Animals in Islam
[6] In the Arabian Peninsula before the advent of Islam in the 7th century CE, Arabs, like other people, attributed the qualities and the faults of humans to animals.
In support of this, for example, it was believed that upon one's death, the soul departs from the body in the form of a bird (usually a sort of owl); the soul-as-bird then flies about the tomb for some time, occasionally crying out (for vengeance).
[19][9] Muslims cannot use any equipment that injures an animal, (i.e., beating them in a circus show, forcing them to carry heavy loads, or running at extreme speeds in races) even to train them.
In verse 6:38, the Qur'an applies the term ummah, generally used to mean "a human religious community", for genera of animals.
[33] According to many verses of the Qur'an,[37] the consumption of pork is sinful,[38] unless there is no alternative other than starving to death (in times, for example, of war or famine).
[46] An alleged hadith which regards black dogs as "evil" has been rejected by the majority of Islamic scholars as fabricated.
Many Islamic jurists allowed owning dogs for herding, farming, hunting, or protection, but prohibited ownership for reasons they regarded as "frivolous".
[51] The Quran[52][53][54][55][56][57][58] talks about a miraculous She-Camel of God (Arabic: نَـاقَـة, 'she-camel') that came from stone, in the context of the Prophet Salih, Thamudi people and Al-Hijr.
Forbidden (haram) is also the meat of domesticated donkeys, mules, any predatory animal with canine teeth and birds with talons.
[60] Verses 50 and 51 of Surat al-Muddaththir in the Quran talk about ḥumur ('asses' or 'donkeys') fleeing from a qaswarah ('lion', 'beast of prey' or 'hunter'), in its criticism of people who were averse to Muhammad's teachings, such as donating wealth to the less wealthy.
"[2][7] Muhammad issued advice to kill animals that were Fawāsiq (Arabic: فَوَاسِق "Harmful ones"), such as the rat and the scorpion, within the haram (holy area) of Mecca.
[66][69] In the Nahj al-Balagha, the Shi'a book of the sayings of Ali, an entire sermon is dedicated to praising peacocks.
[77] In "two separate narrations by Abu Hurayrah, the Prophet told his companions of the virtue of saving the life of a dog by giving it water and quenching its thirst.
[75] Abou El Fadl "found it hard to believe that the same God who created such companionable creatures would have his prophet declare them 'unclean'", stating that animosity towards dogs in folk Islam "reflected views far more consistent with pre-Islamic Arab customs and attitudes".
"[81] According to a story by Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj, black dogs are a manifestation of evil in animal form and the company of dogs voids a portion of a Muslim's good deeds;[74][82] however, according to Khaled Abou El Fadl, the majority of scholars regard this to be "pre-Islamic Arab mythology" and "a tradition to be falsely attributed to the Prophet".
[85] Big cats like the asad (lion), namir (نَمِر, leopard), and namur (نَمُر, tiger), can symbolize ferocity, similar to the wolf.
Prominent Muslims with animal names include Hamzah, Abd al-Rahman ibn Sakhr Al-Dawsi Al-Zahrani (more commonly known by his kunya "Abu Hurairah" or the Father of the kitten), Abdul-Qadir Gilani (called al-baz al-ashhab, the wise falcon) and Lal Shahbaz Qalander of Sehwan (called "red falcon").
The most famous, Kalilah wa-Dimnah or Panchatantra, translated into Arabic by Abd-Allāh Ibn al-Muqaffaʿ in the 8th century, was also known in Europe.
[89] In Malaysia in 2016, the Malaysian Islamic Development Department, a religious governing body, prohibited the use of the term hot dog to refer to the food of that name.
[90] Islamist organization Hamas which controls the Gaza Strip, banned public dog walking in May 2017, stating it was to "protect our women and children".
[91] UK animal welfare organizations have decried some ritual methods of slaughter practiced in Islam (dhabihah) and Judaism (shechita) as inhumane and causing "severe suffering".
"[93] In permitting dhabiha, the German Constitutional Court cited[94] the 1978 study led by Professor Wilhelm Schulze at the University of Veterinary Medicine Hanover which concluded that "[t]he slaughter in the form of ritual cut is, if carried out properly, painless in sheep and calves according to the EEG recordings and the missing defensive actions.
"[95] Muslims and Jews have also argued that traditional British methods of slaughter have meant that "animals are sometimes rendered physically immobile, although with full consciousness and sensation.
Applying a sharp knife in shechita and dhabh, by contrast, ensures that no pain is felt: the wound inflicted is clean, and the loss of blood causes the animal to lose consciousness within seconds.
Furthermore, depictions of animals in Islam can potentially be a combination of both decorative and symbolic in their respective usage, e.g. royal tapestries with animal motifs used to cover furniture such as the "Double-Face Textile with a Tree of Life & a Winged Lion," hailing from Rayy, Iran circa the Early Islamic Period.
Often we can find these adorsed or flanking animals surrounding an actual visual representation of a tree, this seems to be a common motif.
[98] This particular mosaic was found in a private room of the desert palace which served as a bathhouse complex for the purpose of leisure.
[100] In many instances, we can observe these acquired pieces of animals such as ivory tusks, being repurposed, not only as a trophies but as a decorations.
A great example of the aforementioned is "The Pyxis of al-Mughira," made at the Royal Workshop at Madinat al-Zahra, Spain, This Ivory Casket was gifted to the prince for the purpose of serving as a decorative piece with a nefarious political connotation behind it.
[101] Perhaps most interesting is that these caskets would be intricately carved from ivory, and depict various animal motifs, in various relations to pleasure, power, etc.
