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Surah Al-Ma'idah, verse 3: meaning and tafsir
حُرِّمَتْ عَلَيْكُمُ ٱلْمَيْتَةُ وَٱلدَّمُ وَلَحْمُ ٱلْخِنزِيرِ وَمَآ أُهِلَّ لِغَيْرِ ٱللَّهِ بِهِۦ وَٱلْمُنْخَنِقَةُ وَٱلْمَوْقُوذَةُ وَٱلْمُتَرَدِّيَةُ وَٱلنَّطِيحَةُ وَمَآ أَكَلَ ٱلسَّبُعُ إِلَّا مَا ذَكَّيْتُمْ وَمَا ذُبِحَ عَلَى ٱلنُّصُبِ وَأَن تَسْتَقْسِمُوا۟ بِٱلْأَزْلَٰمِ ۚ ذَٰلِكُمْ فِسْقٌ ۗ ٱلْيَوْمَ يَئِسَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ مِن دِينِكُمْ فَلَا تَخْشَوْهُمْ وَٱخْشَوْنِ ۚ ٱلْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ وَأَتْمَمْتُ عَلَيْكُمْ نِعْمَتِى وَرَضِيتُ لَكُمُ ٱلْإِسْلَٰمَ دِينًا ۚ فَمَنِ ٱضْطُرَّ فِى مَخْمَصَةٍ غَيْرَ مُتَجَانِفٍ لِّإِثْمٍ ۙ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ ٣
Forbidden[5] to you are carrion, blood[6], the flesh of swine, and that which is sacrificed to other than Allah; and that which is killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, or by a headlong fall, or by being gored; and that which is partly eaten by a predator unless you slaughter it [before it dies]; and that which is sacrificed to idols. Also it is forbidden to use arrows [of chance][7] to determine your decisions. This is all evil practice. Today the disbelievers have lost all hope in [eliminating] your religion, so do not fear them but fear Me. Today I have perfected your religion for you, completed My favor upon you, and have chosen Islam as your religion. But if anyone is compelled by severe hunger, not intending to sin, then Allah is All-Forgiving, Most Merciful.
Translation of the meanings: Rowwad Translation Center — version 1.0.19 · QuranEnc.com
[5] See 2:173, 5:90.
[6] What is unlawful is running blood, not the blood captured in vessels after slaughter.
[7] Al-istiqsām bi al-azlām (lit. divining by casting lots): This was an Arab practice before Islam, whereby they had three lots (flat marked pieces of wood) dedicated to divinations. On each there was written either: “My Lord commanded me”, “My Lord forbade me”, or nothing at all. A person would abide by what the lot told him, but if he drew the empty one, he would recast again until he drew either one of the other two. [cf. al-Tabarī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Sa‘dī]
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Al-Mukhtasar: Abridged Explanation of the Quran
Tafsir Center for Quranic Studies · QuranEnc.com
3. Allah has forbidden you from eating those animals that die without being ritually slaughtered. He has also forbidden you from spilled blood; pig’s meat; an animal on which other than the name of Allah was taken at the time of slaughter; an animal that was strangled or beaten to death, or one that fell from a high place; or an animal that was gored by another animal and an animal that was hunted by a predator, such as a lion, tiger or wolf, unless you reach any of these animals while they are alive and you slaughter them – in which case they will be lawful for you. He has forbidden you from those animals that were sacrificed for idols. He has also prohibited you from drawing lots to know whether something is destined for you or not, or to use as a means of making a decision when intending to do something or not. By doing these prohibited things a person is leaving obedience to Allah. Today the disbelievers have lost hope that you will leave the religion of Islam, because they see its strength. So do not fear them, but fear Me alone. Today I have perfected for you your religion, which is Islam. I have completed My apparent and hidden favours on you. I have selected Islam as your religion, so I will not accept any other. If anyone is forced due to hunger to eat from an animal that was not slaughtered correctly, with no inclination to sin, there is no sin on such a person to do so. Allah is Forgiving and Compassionate.
Quran text: Tanzil Project (Tanzil Quran Text, Uthmani v1.1, CC BY 3.0). The translation and tafsir are quoted word for word, unchanged, from the Noble Quran Encyclopedia, QuranEnc.com, each credited to its source. Details on our sources page. These texts are quoted exactly as published; no answer is written by AI. Quran Chat does not issue fatwas.