According to Islamic teachings,
birds and animals are communities like us human beings; just and kind treatment
of animals is an obligation upon us. Kind treatment of animals is among the
good deeds worthy of ultimate Divine rewards of forgiveness and salvation in
the life to come. Likewise, cruel treatment of living beings entails consequences for the human soul. Explicit guidance of the Holy Prophet (sa) on
the treatment of birds and animals leaves one with no doubt about the
implications of our deeds vis-a-vis these living beings. Consider the following
teachings of the Holy Prophet (sa).
According to Prophetic traditions, Allah
(swt) thanked a man and forgave him for giving water to a panting dog eating
moist earth in its thirst. The Ahadith also confirm that ‘there is a
reward for your kind treatment of every living being.’ The Holy Prophet (sa)
also stated: ‘If any Muslim plants a tree or sows a crop, and then a bird, or a
human being, or an animal eats of it, then it is sacred charity to his credit.’
Further, the Holy Prophet (sa) relates:
‘A woman entered Hellfire because of a cat that she kept tied up, neither
feeding it nor letting it go to eat of the vermin of the earth.’
He also narrates, “one of the
prophets stopped to rest under a tree, and an ant stung him. The prophet had
his baggage removed from beneath the tree and ordered that fire be set to the ants’
abode. But then God inspired him with the thought, ‘Why not just one ant?’ ”
The Holy Prophet (sa) also states: ‘A
prostitute was forgiven because she passed by a dog panting at a well, and observing
that thirst was about to kill the dog, she removed her slipper, fastened it to her
veil, and drew out some water for the dog. And so she was forgiven because of that.’
In response to a question on the cruel treatment of animals by human beings, Imam- Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam International Hazrat Muhyiuddin Al Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim (aba) of Mauritius profoundly explains Islamic ethics on this vital issue.
Read the Response Below:
'Let me tell you all that
ill-treatment to animals is a grievous sin in Islam. Let me remind you all that
the Quran, Hadiths and Sunnan of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) have put
emphasis on mercy to animals. Allah has created the animals as a blessing for
mankind. Each species of animal has its specific purposes. It was not in vain
that Allah commanded Prophet Nuh (as) to save every two kinds of each species
of animals as available in the vicinity of his native land and to save them
along with the believers in the Ark before the great flood.
We have the domesticated animals as
well as the wild animals in dense forests or jungles. Allah has established a
balance for those animals also to seek their food.
Allah says in the Holy Quran: “Do
they not ever reflect on camels—how they were (masterfully) created?”
(Al-Ghashiyah 88: 18)
Let me remind you that there are
some animals, like cattle, camels and poultry that Allah has given the
permission to man to consume, but their slaughtering should not be done in an
unjust or unislamic way. Islam teaches to give them some water, to turn them
towards the Qibla (Direction of the Ka’aba in Mecca – like in prayer)
and to slaughter them in the name of Allah and in the prescribed way of Islam
to limit their suffering.
As for the other animals which are
not to be consumed, they have their purposes too. The dogs, cats and other
domesticated animals, especially the dogs and cats are allowed in Islam to be
kept as pets, as dogs are excellent guardians for the house yards of people,
and the presence of cats help to frighten away rats and mice which can cause
havoc in and around the house. But, I need to precise here that both cats and
dogs should be kept outside the house, outside the living quarters of the
inhabitant of a house, and be kept clean and given a clean place where they can
stay and be sheltered against bad weather. Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) has forbidden
the Muslims from having dogs inside their houses because the angels do not
enter such houses where dogs are kept.
To answer your question, it is
forbidden for a Muslim believer or for any human being for that matter to be
cruel against animals. Let me remind you of these Hadiths of our beloved
prophet Muhammad (pbuh), the first being the story of a woman who was deemed as
a pious woman who prayed regularly but due to her ill-treatment of a cat, by
putting it behind a closed room without food and drink and which ultimately
died, was thrown into hell due to her uncompassionate treatment of the animal.
(Bukhari)
In contrast, the Holy Prophet
Muhammad (pbuh) mentioned the example of man who due to his compassion towards
a thirsty dog was forgiven by Allah.
Abu Hurairah (ra) reported that the
Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said, “While a man was walking on his way he became
extremely thirsty. He found a well, he went down into it to drink water. Upon
leaving it, he saw a dog which was panting out of thirst. His tongue was
lolling out and he was eating moist earth from extreme thirst. The man thought
to himself: ‘This dog is extremely thirsty as I was.’ So he descended
into the well, filled up his leather sock with water, and holding it in his
teeth, climbed up and quenched the thirst of the dog. Allah appreciated his
action and forgave his sins.” The Companions asked: “Shall we be rewarded
for showing kindness to the animals also?” He (pbuh) said, “A reward is given in connection with every living creature”.
(Bukhari, Muslim)
Each person should show kindness to
animals. If they cannot take care of dogs or cats, they can take strayed dogs
and cats to specialized centers where other people can adopt them. Kindness to
animals is required unless of course, the life of a person is in danger in the
face of a ferocious animal where the ferocious animal attacks him and can kill
him. In that case, it is permissible to kill the animal before it does any harm
to the person or to society at large.
Kindness to animals should come
from within an individual. If someone beats an animal and leaves it to die, he
accumulates sins on his account. And the little ones of the dogs and cats can
only be removed from them and shared to other people after they have passed the
age to drink with their mothers. To separate a dog or cat while they are
suckling with their mothers is sheer cruelty.
I advise my disciples, the Muslims and whole mankind to be kind to animals, and if any one of you have cats and dogs, keep them clean and in a clean environment, outside of your living quarters, in your yard, in a safe and cozy place, and feed them properly and be not cruel to them. Remember that animals, even cats, despite their clean nature, are prone to be affected by bacteria or viruses which can then be transmitted to humans. It is known that compared to dogs, cats are cleaner and can roam a house and do not invalidate prayer, but nevertheless, a believer should not make it a habit to keep their cats in their living quarters, but keep them outside but in a clean place where they are also free to go and seek food elsewhere if they are hungry. I give you this advice because there will be a Cat Virus which will manifest and will cause havoc in many places of the world. So beware, keep yourselves and your pets clean and do not let them come into your beds, sofas, tables, etc. for this can cause much problems later on for you. This is my own advice to all of you.'