Hi Nicole,
Just to help re-enforce some of the points made here ;-
I went to an Abbatoire in Turkey last year & took our kids (1 & 4 at the time), where they slaughtered 10,000 Qurb’an. Each one is done by hand.
To explain the pillars for the slaughter to be halal (permissible by God) are a) the person performing the slaughter must be Muslim b) he must pronounce the name of Allah c) he / she must use a very sharp instrument to cut the jugular in one swift cut, severing the jugular, windpipe / oesophagus.
When I watched the man performing the slaughter was constantly sharpening his blade on a slather around his waist. This ensured his instrument was razor sharp the whole time. He was extremely expert whipping around like a dervish, slaughtering at least 3-5 animals (sheep in this case) in a matter of seconds.
The animals is very unlikely to feel any pain, as the instrument is so sharp that by going straight through the neck & oesophagus it cuts off the oxygen to the brain and the animal passes out within seconds. A German scientist did a study comparing the Halal way of slaughter versus the stunning & other methods & he concluded the Halal method is far superior as the brain patterns show it is like the animal is falling asleep. The animals come out individually from a segregated enclosure & they are really not intelligent enough to figure out what is going on in that space of time.
Slaughter in this method is compulsory as the heart then pumps out all the blood & it is compulsory to drain out all the blood from the animal (they are hung up). There is a lot of science to back all this ancient wisdom up & it is to do with health reasons, as the blood can contain harmful bacteria.
The Western media in some cases may make it look like some sort of bloody occult ritual, as if people go to Makkah to bathe in the blood of camels & delight in the killing. They do have a habit of sensationalism, sometimes even turning things upside down to the confusion of the reader.
Halal slaughter is the most humane way to kill an animal. Whereas MNC animal slaughter has many cases where it is grossly inhumane & simply cruel in the extreme.
Part of Islamic teaching is to observe the act of halal slaughter, I have volunteered a number of times at the Mosque. It is very moving. On a smaller scale (80-100 sheep) a few of us will hold and stroke the animals to keep them calm. No animal likes to be manhandled, but it doesn’t mean they are in fear of being killed – they do not have awareness of this as they are segregated. When we witness the slaughter process we are less likely to take the steak & food we get served up on a plate for granted. It puts us in a higher state of gratitude. I encourage my children to see it and explain to them what it is about.
The Western MNC slaughterhouses are often really inhumane. The animals are backed up & stunned. They are in such shock & pain that the animals behind go into a state of fear & adrenalin is pumped through the body of the animal which hardens the meat. You can taste the difference with halal meat.
As a consequence of all this negative publicity animal rights movements have prevented people from being able witness this sacred ritual in Singapore, which is a great education for kids. In Singapore now for the past 4 years they have had to totally screen everything off, no observation points! How will kids learn to appreciate all this food they devour & take for granted? Isn’t it better they grow up to appreciate that an animal sacrificed it’s life so we can eat? In Singapore you never even get to see a cow or a sheep!
So as is often the case media critics have it wrong. The meat is distributed to the poor and needy as an act of alms giving. The act of slaughter is to represent the slaughtering of the ego.
I hope you will accept the invitation to come to Al Kaff Mosque, (next to where I live too) & we will be very happy to share more with you / answer all your concerns.
A last point is these animals are actually in submission. I can show you videos where animals will literally lie down and place their necks to be slaughtered. This is an act of obedience to God.
Have a blessed day.
Source: Tim Alden
