ANIMALS RIGHTS in MUSLIM PERSPECTIVE

There are a lot of organizations that explain they are
defending ANIMAL RIGHTS in front of the media Now we
would like to share Muslim perspective on this
subject.

In the western world “Animal Rights” concept was put
on the agenda late 19th century. The Universal
Declaration of Animal Rights was proclaimed in Paris
on 15 October 1978 at the UNESCO headquarters. Now
let’s examine Muslim practices since centuries ago.

The best sample to the humanity, our beloved Prophet
(Peace be upon him) “…He even thought baby animals and
ordered to behave compassionately and clemently to
them, care them well and banned insult, sarcasm…When a
man was milking his goat The Prophet said to him to
leave milk to the young goat… also the prophet banned
to harm birds nest and take eggs and chicks, he did
not tolerate to hunting for enjoyment, amusement and
entertainment. (1)

*
The Prophet (pbuh) “If someone kills a sparrow
unjustly Allah (God) the almighty will bring him/her
to account for it in the Doomsday” (2)

*
Anas Bin Malek saw a group that made a hen target and
took aim at the hen and said “the Messenger of Allah
(pbuh) banned to make living animals target.“ (3)

*
Abdullah (the son of Hazrat Omar) narrated a saying of
the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) “A woman was punished in
hell becuse of a cat that was died becuse of hunger
Allah scolded the woman “You did not feed, water also
set free in order to find its share in the earth.” (4)

*
A prostitute woman saw a dog almost dead because of
waterless was was hanging about around a well. She
took her shoe off and made her cover rope, she tied
the shoe with the rope and drew the water from the
well and gave water to the dog so Allah forgave her.”
(5)

*
A young lady was on a camel carrying some belongings
of Muslims She saw the Prophet (pbuh) meanwhile they
reached narrow part of the path on mountain… the Woman
said “Giddap! Allah damn it” then tried tor ride the
camel. The Prophet (pbuh) said “Do not a damned camel
accompany us.” (That means Muslim society do not
want damned human or animal with them also this words
of the prophet (pbuh) were directed to the woman mean
“You lose the right to use the animal that you
damned…Do modern animal rights defenders know the
Prophet (pbuh) that even banned to say “Damn it” to
the animals. (6)

*
Anas bin Malek: “When we stayed for the night. We did
not to begin paternoster and pray to Allah without
untying load of camels for their rest.” (Ebu
Dawud.Cihad:44) (7)

*
The Pophet (pbuh) banned to incite animals to fight
each others. (8)

*
The Prophet passed near a donkey that had branded on
its face and said “Allah damn him/her that
branded/fired its face.” (Muslim.Libas.107) (9)

*
Hazrat Ali gave as a gift a booty camel to Hazrat
Hamza and other one to Hazrat Fatima then Hazrat Hamza
kicked Hazrat Fatima’s camel with anger and the camel
was wounded…Hazrat Ali told the event to the Prophet
(pbuh)….When Hazrat Hamza was martyred he was cut into
seventy parts…The Prophet said “My backbone was
broken” and said in sorrow “I wish you would not kick
Hazrat Fatima’s camel.” (10)

*
“Let’s study “Istanbul Municipality Laws” dated 1502
in the era of II. Bayazid.
*…Do not use the horse that has problem on its
feet.
*…Take care the feet of horses, mules and donkeys.
*…Do not load heavily.
*…All people must obey these rules,
*…Guards must protect laws (rights) of everything that
Allah created… There are Islamic rule…”(11)

*
Sultan III. Murad 1586 accepted “carrying load on
handicapped and weak animals” committing a crime. (12)
*
“O! Messenger of Allah…Are there reward from Allah
for goodness to animals” They asked. And Prophet
(pbuh) said “There are reward for goodness to living
being.”
The beloved Prophet ordered to people that milked
animals to cut their fingernails not to hurt animals.
The Prophet (pbuh) came near to a camel that moaned
when it saw Him and he caressed its head then turned
to its owner:
“Do not you fear from Allah for this camel? It
warned met hat you did not give any food and tired it
a lot.” (13)
*
When the Prophet (pbuh) was going forward
to Mecca with his army and saw a dog breast-feeding
its puppies and barking for protecting them and the
Prophet (pbuh) took measures to prevent any injury
from the army to the dog and its puppies and ordered
his companion Cuayl bin Suraka to stand in front of
the dog. (14)

*
“Famous sufi Ali al-Havvas (d.1532) frequently used
to control feeding trough of dogs and fill them foods
that carrying with him and While Ebudderda (another
companion of the Prophet (pbuh)) was crying by the
side of his dead camel and had said : “O! Damun (its
name)…Do not become claimant in the presence of my
LORD (Allah). You know I always have careful attention
not to load you above your strength.” (15)
When the Prophet (pbuh) was passing by a camel very
much faint and the Prophet (pbuh) said “Fear Allah
because of rights of these mute animals! and ride
them, eat them too while they are well-fed.” (16)

*
Shah-i Nakshiband (k.s.) said “A dog that i served,
treated its wounds, bruises lied on its back, lifted
its four feet up, turned its face to the sky and so
supplicated that then i lifted my hands up and said
“AMEN”. Here is all what happened realized at that
time.” (17)

The events that we will quote now are in mind-blowing,
amazing magnifience and it is not a big claim to say
that these behaviours can be seen between people
called Muslims.
DDT was not invented yet. In that times there are a
lşot of bedbugs in old Istanbul wooden houses.
When the bedbugs were catched, They were not killed
and they are collected on a stone in a bowl filled
with water until the morning then they are freed in
the garden. I want to shout to the blockheaded ones
that say “Every terrorist is muslim.” (18)

Bayazid-i Bastami, They took a break under trees
during a journey then continued to the journey…They
saw some ants walking on their bags from the break
area on the way…They turned back not to separete them
from homes. ( Now people calls people like that mad)
(19)
*
Hazrat Omar touched wound of a camel because of its
rubbing saddle with his hand and said “ I am afraid of
interrogation (by Allah) because of the incident that
happened to you too.” (20)
Prof. Nevzat TARHAN says : “When the populatin
exchange happened (between Turkey and Greece) Some
Greeks wanted to take their cats with them but the
cats do not want it…because cats have some feelings
for the land, There are “cat loyalty-dog loyalty and
human loyalty” but loyalty of cat is for land,
loyalty of dog is for human and loyalty of human is
for thoughts. (21)
*

“In islamic sufism people keep away from killing
animals as far as possible and excessive fonding of
meat are seen as makruh (disgusting).” (22)

*
After being caliph, Hazrat Ali said in a part of his
first Khutba (sermon): “…the life in the next world is
waiting for human beings, Fear Allah! becuse of
fulfilling the rights of human beings (servants of
Allah) and the rights of the earth!. You will be
interrogated for animals and the earth.” (23)

*

“Kanan Rifai cried out a man that was beating his
horse mercilessly in the middle of street: “Do not
hit…My son…do not hit! When you hit it, i feel pain
in my own body.” (24)

*
The son of Hazrat Abbas told: “We were going to a
place with the Messenger of Allah (pbuh). A man had
tied a sheep to butcher and were sharpening his knife
in front of the sheep. The Prophet (pbuh) said to this
man “Do you want to kill it again and again?” (25)

*
Omar bin Abdulaziz wrote a letter to SAHIBU’L SILK
(Minister of Communications of that time) “Do not
behave rudely to the animals and do not use stick with
awl or iron while you are riding them” (26)

*
“There were a profession called “liver seller”, These
men were carrying a long sticks with livers on the top
of it to sell them in streets and bazaars. When the
charitable people met them they used to buy livers to
give them to hungry cats and dogs as aiming to acquire
merit (good deed).” (27)
*
Pere Jehannot that was a priest wrote a travel book
when he visited Ottoman country. He wrote about animal
rights: “Turks consider dogs filthy so they do not let
dogs in their homes but they appropriate some money to
butchers in their testament to give meat to dogs daily
to protect them from trouble beacuse of hunger.” (28)

*
Abu Huraira that was called “Abdul Shams= Servat of
Sun” by the people in Jahilliya (the time of
pre-Islamic Arabian paganism) but The Prophet (pbuh)
changed his name to “Abdullah= servant of Allah” When
he was a child he used to put kittens in his shirttail
then love and caress them as he found kittens in
grazing flock so people gave him a nickname ABU
HURAIRA=Father of Cats” (29)
*
“Hazrat Omar ordered to let a pigeon fly away, the
Pigeon flied and perched on the Marwa hill, a snake
catched it and killed there so Hazrat Omar sacrified a
sheep (thinking
that i caused the pigeons dead.) (30)
*
“In the time of Children of Israel a man mounted an
ox, meanwhile the animal turned its face to the man
and said:
-I was not created for that. I was created for
ploughing fields. The Prophet (pbuh): “I believed in
what the animal said, Abu Baker and Omar too.” (31)

*
Our beloved Prophet mounted a horse first time in
UHUD, this horse was bought and named “SAKB” by the
Prophet. The Prophet (pbuh) so cared and paid
attention that as He (pbuh) caressed face of the horse
with His shirt’s cuff, the Companions was astonished
and said :
-“O Messenger of Allah, are you caressing with your
shirt’s cuff?”
-and the Prophet (pbuh) said “What can I do, I was
scolded by the Archangel Gabriel becuse of horse.”
(32)
*
French advocate Guer that travelled Ottoman country in
XVII. century mentioned about a hospital for cats and
dogs that were sick in Damascus also Prof. M. Sibai
gave those informations about Animal (Waqf)
Foundations.in Damascus. “In old Foundation tradition
there are places for treating sick animals and putting
them out pasture (This green pasture is now Damascus
City Stadium that had been given as waqf (an
inalienable religious endowment) for weak animals
grazing.) (33)

*
Anas Ibni Malek (a companion of the Prophet (pbuh)) :
“When we arrived the break place, we did not to begin
to pray without untying load of animals for their
rest.” (34)

*
Our Prophet (pbuh) said “THERE ARE REWARD (good
deed) IN WATERING ALL LIVING CREATURES.” (35)
*
AUSTRIAN ambassador Busberg wrote a letter that
mentioned a event in 1 June 1553 : “A Venetian
jeweller (very fond of birds) found a bird that has a
strange beak, he hanged it as stretching its wings on
the entrance of his shop also opened its beak as
putting a rod between the beak. Turks passing away
near the shop thought that the bird was dead, when the
looked at it carefully, noticed that it was alive and
directly complained to Qadi (Muslim judge) then
Venetian ambassador saved the jeweller from
punishment. (36)

*
The events we have tried to mention and tell above are
not only on lines of books we lived and made them
alive in the life.
“…Our honourable architecture built “BIRD HOUSES” on
the walls of buildings as a sign of love yesterday…As
a matter of fact, animals was not stoned, pack animals
were not whipped, there were waqfs (Foundations) for
ownerless animals, birds with broken wing, storks in
our civilization” (37)

Stay with happiness and hope….

(Ahmet Yasar Cakmak- cakmakahmetyasar@hotmail.com
–Gsm: 0090 536 853 20 65)

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