Consumption of Camel Urine and Clarification from the Islamic Tradition

By Mawlana Abu Asim Badrul Islam

Introduction

In some countries of the Muslim world, camel urine is believed to contain extraordinary medicinal value. It is drunk and used in various ways. Companies have come into existence, which produce camel urine drinks and other products from camel urine. Although, this practice is found amongst a tiny minority of – almost insignificant – Muslim populations confined to a few cultures, it is nevertheless causing some confusion and raising questions (not to speak of the derision by some non-Muslims, who have their own multiple other questionable practices). Some are drawing a parallel between this practice by some Muslims and the consumption of, and supposed blessings derived from, cow urine by some Hindus.

Scientific Research

As far as we are aware, there is no conclusive scientific research available yet on the benefits or harms of camel urine. Some laboratory research seems to indicate that camel urine may contain anti-cancer properties[1]. Following the outbreak of the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS‐CoV), the World Health Organisation (WHO) has recently (2017) issued warnings about the consumption of raw camel milk or camel urine by those who are at high risk of contracting the virus[2].

Why Are Muslims Drinking Camel Urine?

The question arises as to why Muslims, who have always been known for their extraordinary diligence in cleanliness and purity, which is at the very core of the teachings of their faith, are drinking camel urine. As surprising as it may sound, those minority of Muslims who are drinking camel urine, are doing so out of religious conviction. That conviction stems from their understanding of an incident during the blessed lifetime of the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ. This incident has been reported in several places by Imām al-Bukhāri in his Ṣaḥῑḥ (ḥadῑth 233)[3] and Imām Muslim in his Ṣaḥῑḥ (ḥadῑth 1671)[4]. It has also been reported by various other imams of ḥadῑth in their respective collections.

The Ḥadῑth of Camel Urine

The ḥadῑth is narrated by Anas ibn Mālik (may Allāh be pleased with him). He describes how a group of people from the tribe of ῾Ukl or ῾Uraynah[5] arrived in Madῑnah. In the commentary of the ḥadῑth, Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Ḥajar al-῾Asqalāni, in his monumental Fatḥ al-Bāri, states that they embraced Islām[6], but fell very ill due to the climate, food and flu of Madῑnah. Ibn Ḥajar mentions that there is indication that when they arrived in Madῑnah, they were already ill. Their illness was extreme malnutrition and weakness. Their colour had turned pale. They came to the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ and complained about their critical condition. He told them to go to a herd of milch camels that were kept in the plains outside Madῑnah and drink their urine and milk. In his commentary on Ṣaḥῑḥ Muslim, ῾Allāmah Mufti Muḥammad Taqi ῾Uthmāni mentions various narrations that state that the camels belonged to the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ, or that amongst the camels were some that belonged to the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ. Some narrations of the ḥadῑth state that the camels were of ṣadaqah[7]. When these individuals went, and drank the urine and milk of the camels, they regained good health. They then killed the shepherd of the Messenger of Allāh [8] and stole the camels. According to some narrations, they put on weight and regained strength.

Verdicts of the Legal Schools

Imām Badr al-Dῑn al-῾Ayni, in his commentary on Ṣaḥῑḥ al-Bukhāri, states that, based on this ḥadῑth, Imām Mālik maintains purity (ṭahārah) of the urine of all animals whose flesh is ḥalāl. This view is also shared by Imāms Aḥmad, al-Sha῾bi, ῾Aṭā̕, al-Nakha῾i, al-Zuhri, Ibn Sῑrῑn, al-Ḥakam, al-Thawri[9]. From amongst the imams of the ḥanafi school of sacred law, Imām Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan al-Shaybāni also holds this view[10]. When asked about it, he argues with this ḥadῑth in his pivotal work, Kitāb al-Aṣl. Imām Abu Yūsuf, the other main student of Imām Abu Ḥanῑfah, maintains the permissibility of drinking the urine of animals whose flesh is ḥalāl (like camels), but states that the same will render water impure, even if a small quantity mixes with water[11]. However, the established view in the ḥanafi school, upon which fatwa is given, is that all urine is filth (najis)[12], although a small amount, which has been deemed negligible,[13] is excused in prayer.

Imāms Abu Ḥanῑfah, al-Shāfi῾i, Abu Yūsuf, Abu Thawr and many others maintain the impurity or filth of all urine[14] (irrespective of whether it is the urine of a human – baby or adult, ḥalāl animal or ḥarām animal).

Explanations for the Ḥadῑth of Camel Urine

As for the ḥadῑth of the people of ῾Uraynah, from which this disagreement stems, imāms Abu Ḥanῑfah, al-Shāfi῾i, Abu Yūsuf, Abu Thawr and many others argue that the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ permitted them to drink the urine of camels due to necessity (at the time, and for those particular individuals). Therefore, this incident cannot be taken as evidence where such a necessity does not exist. There are many other instances in the Sharῑ῾ah when, due to necessity, an impermissible thing is allowed. For example, the wearing of silk is unlawful for men. It is permitted in the battlefield, due to certain skin conditions and extreme cold, when an alternative cannot be found.

The most satisfactory explanation for the incident of the people of ῾Uraynah is that the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ knew through revelation that their cure lay in the drinking of camel urine. Using ḥarām substance as medical remedy is permissible when there is certainty of cure[15], in the absence of a ḥalāl alternative[16]. For example, eating of a carcass when one fears death due to extreme hunger; drinking of wine due to extreme thirst or in order to clear food that is stuck in the throat, in the absence of anything else. Allāh Most High says,

وَمَا لَكُمۡ أَلَّا تَأۡكُلُواْ مِمَّا ذُكِرَ ٱسۡمُ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيۡهِ وَقَدۡ فَصَّلَ لَكُم مَّا حَرَّمَ عَلَيۡكُمۡ إِلَّا مَا ٱضۡطُرِرۡتُمۡ إِلَيۡهِۗ وَإِنَّ كَثِيرٗا لَّيُضِلُّونَ بِأَهۡوَآئِهِم بِغَيۡرِ عِلۡمٍۚ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ هُوَ أَعۡلَمُ بِٱلۡمُعۡتَدِينَ ١١٩

Why should you not eat of (meats) on which Allah’s name has been pronounced, when He has explained to you in detail what is forbidden to you – except under compulsion of extreme necessity? (Al-An῾ām: 119)

Shams al-A̕immah al-Sarakhsi states:

“The ḥadῑth of Anas (may Allāh be pleased with him) has been narrated from him by Qatādah, in which he reports that they were permitted to drink the milk of camels. He did not mention urine. Only in the narration of Ḥumayd al-Ṭawῑl is there mention of urine[17]. When the evidence of a ḥadῑth in any matter is questionable, it no longer remains an evidence. Moreover, we say, the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ granted them exclusive permission to drink camel urine, as he knew through revelation that their cure lay in its drinking. The same cannot be found in our age. This is similar to his granting Al-Zubayr exclusive permission to wear silk due to the rash on his skin or presence of parasitic insects. [We further say,] they were granted permission to drink camel urine, as they were disbelievers in the knowledge of Allāh and His Messengerﷺ [18]. He knew through revelation that they would all die apostates. It is not unimaginable that the cure of a disbeliever be found in filth.”[19]

Imām Badr al-Dῑn al-῾Ayni further presents the generality of the ḥadῑth reported by imams al-Ḥākim, Aḥmad, Ibn Mājah, al-Dāra Quṭni and al-Ṭabarāni:

استنزهوا من البول ، فإن عامة عذاب القبر منه.

“Cleanse yourselves from urine. For, most punishment of the grave is due to [carelessness in this regard].”

A similar ḥadῑth, warning that punishment of the grave is often due to carelessness in properly cleansing oneself from urine, has also been reported by imāms al-Bukhāri and Muslim in the Ṣaḥῑḥ.

Imām Shams al-A̕immah Al-Sarakhsi also presents this ḥadῑth and another narration in his Al-Mabsūṭ[20] to prove the impurity of urine in general. He points out that when the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ warned against negligence in regard to keeping oneself clean from urine, he did not limit it to just human urine, as he did not specify the type of urine.

῾Allāmah Mufti Muḥammad Taqi ῾Uthmāni argues that the ḥadῑth of the people of ῾Uraynah was abrogated by later ḥadῑths, which established the filthiness of urine. He states:

“Even though, in the absence of certainty of dates, abrogation cannot be proven by mere possibility, it can[21] be sufficient to prevent the ḥadῑth from being used as an evidence (for the alleged purity of camel urine) in direct contradiction to general [established] principles and popular reports of ḥadῑth, when such a possibility is corroborated by various other strong indicative evidences. In this matter, there exist some strong indicative evidences, which corroborate the possibility of abrogation. These evidences include the fact that the incident of the people of ῾Uraynah occurred during the 6^th year of the hijrah and the ḥadῑth of the filthiness of urine was narrated by Abu Hurayrah, who embraced Islām during the 7^th year of the hijrah. When the Islām of a narrator occurs at a later date, even though it does not always definitively imply the lateness of what he has narrated, it is[22], nevertheless, indicative evidence of lateness. This is especially so, if we consider the fact that had the filthiness of urine been abrogated in the 7^th year of the hijrah, none of the Companions would have related the ḥadῑth of its filthiness to Abu Hurayrah without pointing out that it had been abrogated. It is obvious that the incident of the people of ῾Uraynah occurred in clear view of the Companions and it was popularly known to people. Had the incident been abrogative of the filthiness of urine, it would not have remained hidden from the Companions. The issue is one that is faced by the general populace – especially, in the case of the Companions, many of whom herded camels and milked them.

It is well-known in the science of ḥadῑth that commandments in the matter of filth were gradually escalated from leniency to strictness. There are examples of many things, which, during the early days of Islām, were considered clean (or pure) and not affecting the validity of ṣalāh. Later, commandments relating to these very things were escalated to that of filth[23]. An instance of this is the ḥadῑth of Ibn Mas῾ūd, reported by al-Bukhāri, regarding the dumping by Abu Jahl of entrails and intestines of a camel on the back of the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ while he was in prostration, praying. He did not interrupt his ṣalāh due to this. Rather, he continued praying, as al-Ḥāfiẓ[24] has mentioned in Fatḥ al-Bāri. Ibn Ḥazm has claimed that this ḥadῑth has been abrogated by the ḥadῑth of faeces and blood.

Thus, the above indicative evidences corroborate the possibility of abrogation. In the existence of such a strong possibility, it is not correct to infer from the ḥadῑth under discussion the purity of urine – regarding the filthiness of which there are many ḥadῑths.  

A third explanation for the ḥadῑth under discussion is that the command was to drink camel milk and snuff[25] camel urine, while urine has been put in conjunction with milk by way of inclusion in expression [only]. […] This has been elaborated by Ibn Hishām[26] in Mughni ‘l-Labῑb (2:193, 2:169, 1:32) in the beginning of the fifth chapter of the second volume.[27]

[What I have stated above] is proven by other variant transmissions of this ḥadῑth. For instance, in the Sunan of al-Nasā̕ i, there is no mention of urine. The precise wording is:

فبعث بهم رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم إلى لقاح ليشربوا من ألبانها ، فكانوا فيها … إلخ

“The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ sent them to some milch camels so that they may drink their milk. They did this […]”

Similarly, the word ‘urine’ has not been mentioned in the narration of Anas [ibn Mālik] that has been reported by al-Ṭaḥāwi through the transmission of ῾Abd Allāh ibn Bakr, from Ḥumayd, from Anas. This has been mentioned by our shaykh, al-Binnori[28], in his Ma῾ārif al-Sunan (1:275). He then says:

“Based on this, it is very likely that the mention of urine with milk in the context of the command of the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ was the handiwork of one of the transmitters of the ḥadῑth. The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ may have commanded them to drink camel milk and to wash their nostrils with camel urine, but they may have also drank the urine. Thus, they were both mentioned together [by a transmitter] in the context of drinking of milk, in view of what actually happened – and not because the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ had commanded them to drink camel urine.

In summary, it is not correct to use the ḥadῑth under discussion to prove the purity of camel urine, in the presence of these strong possibilities.

As for the proofs for the filth of all urine, they are very many. [We shall mention a few here.]

• Al-Tirmidhi has reported the ḥadῑth of Ibn ῾Umar:

نهى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم عن أكل الجلالة وألبانها.

“The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ prohibited the eating of the flesh, and drinking of milk, of animals that eat animal faeces.”

The reason for the prohibition is its eating of animal faeces. Thus, we know that the flesh of such an animal is impure, as the filth [from the consumed faeces] would have spread to its flesh.

• The ḥadῑth of Abu Hurayrah that has been mentioned by Ibn Mājah, al-Dāra Quṭni, al-Ḥākim in his Mustadrak – and he said: [it is] authentic according to the conditions of the two shaykhs (al-Bukhāri and Muslim). Al-Dhahabi has concurred with this:

استنزهوا من البول ، فإن عامة عذاب القبر منه.

“Cleanse yourselves from urine. For, most punishment of the grave is due to [carelessness in this regard].”

[…]”[29]

Imām Sayyid Muḥammad Anwar Shāh Kashmῑri in his Arabic transcribed commentary lectures on Ṣaḥῑḥ al-Bukhāri, entitled Fayḍ al-Bāri (1:429), questions how, when the context of the ḥadῑth and the precise words used by the transmitters is so clear in that the permission to drink camel urine was for medical purposes, it can be used to prove general or absolute purity of urine. There is absolutely no indication in the wording of the ḥadῑth that it is referring to purity of urine.

Imām Sayyid Muḥammad Anwar Shāh Kashmῑri then questions the assumption that the medicinal application of camel urine was through oral administration. Rather, he argues that it was actually through nasal administration, without drinking it. This is inferred from variant narrations of the ḥadῑth reported by imāms al-Ṭaḥāwi and al-Nasā̕ i. The transcriber-editor of Fayḍ al-Bāri, ῾Allāmah Muḥammad Badr ῾Ālam Miruthi[30], in a footnote, adds another ḥadῑth from the Sunan of Imām Abu Dawūd, which has been reported in a most unlikely chapter, in which the narrator, the Companion Abu Dharr, states that he is unsure as to whether the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ also instructed him to drink camel urine when he instructed him to drink its milk due to illness. He says that Imām Abu Dawūd declares it unauthentic.[31] In the report of Imām al-Nasā̕ i, in the narration that has been transmitted through Sa῾ῑd ibn al-Musayyib[32], there is mention of drinking camel milk, but no mention of urine. There is also another narration that has been reported by Imām al-Nasā̕ i, wherein drinking of milk and urine is mentioned, but there is no mention of whether they drank the urine upon instruction from the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ or of their own accord.[33] The matter is further blurred by the fact that the narration found in the Muṣannaf ῾Abd al-Razzāq mentions nasal administration, instead of drinking.[34]

As for the proof of the filthiness of urine, Imām Sayyid Muḥammad Anwar Shāh Kashmῑri argues that it can be inferred from the Noble Qur̕ān. Allāh Most High states:

وَإِنَّ لَكُمۡ فِي ٱلۡأَنۡعَٰمِ لَعِبۡرَةٗۖ نُّسۡقِيكُم مِّمَّا فِي بُطُونِهِۦ مِنۢ بَيۡنِ فَرۡثٖ وَدَمٖ لَّبَنًا خَالِصٗا سَآئِغٗا لِّلشَّٰرِبِينَ ٦٦

Indeed, there is a lesson for you in the cattle. We provide you, out of what lies in their bellies, between faeces and blood, the (drink of) milk, pure and pleasant for those who drink. (Al-Naḥl: 66)

He has mentioned, in this verse, faeces with blood. A ḥadῑth states:

نهى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم عن أكل الجلالة وألبانها.

“The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ prohibited the eating of the flesh, and drinking of milk, of animals that eat animal faeces.”

The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ commanded in a ḥadῑth:

من دخل المسجد ، فليمط الأذى عن نعليه.

“He who enters the masjid, should remove from his shoes that which causes discomfort (i.e. faeces and urine).” 

To limit the definition of faeces, mentioned in the above ḥadῑth, to human faeces is far-fetched. Also, another ḥadῑth states:

وأن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم نهى عن الصلاة في المزبلة.

“The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ prohibited praying at landfill sites (i.e. where refuse is dumped).“

وأنه ألقى الروث وقال: إنها ركس.

“The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ threw dung and said, ‘Indeed, this is filth’.”[35]

Conclusion

Had camel urine been permissible to consume or indeed a cure, it would have been widely used by the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ and his Companions and all the generations thereafter to our time. It would have been a very popular method of medication, regarding which every Muslim community in the world, in every age, would have known – almost like the way all Muslims know about Zamzam water and its virtues. In fact, Muslims throughout history would not have let a single drop of urine from their camels go to waste. However, the reality is quite contrary. To most Muslims, the drinking of camel urine is unheard of and, when told, they find even the thought of it abhorrent and distasteful.

Abu Asim Badrul Islam
Northampton, ENGLAND
19^th Ramaḍān 1438/14^th June 2017

Bibliography:   

• ῾Abd Allāh ibn Maḥmūd al-Mawṣili, Al-Ikhtiyār li Ta῾lῑl al-Mukhtār (Beirut: Al-Risālah al-῾Ālamiyyah, 1430/2009).
• ῾Abd al-Ghani al-Ghunaymi al-Maydāni al-Dimashqi, Al-Lubāb fi Sharḥ al-Kitāb (Beirut: Dār al-Bashā̕ir al-Islāmiyyah, 1431/2010).
• Abu Bakr Muḥammad ibn Abī Sahl ‘Shams al-Aʾimmah’ al-Sarakhsī, Al-Mabsūṭ (Beirut: Dār al-Maʿrifah, no date).
• Abu Ja῾far Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Salāmah al-Ṭaḥāwi, Sharḥ Mushkil al-Āthār (Tuḥfat al-Akhyār bi Tartῑb Sharḥ Mushkil al-Āthār) (Riyadh: Dār Balansiyyah, 1420/1999).
• Abu ‘l-Ḥusayn Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad al-Qudūri, Mukhtaṣar al-Qudūri (Beirut: Dār al-Bashā̕ir al-Islāmiyyah, 1431/2010).
• Abu ‘l-Ḥusayn Muslim ibn al-Ḥajjāj ibn Muslim al-Qushayri al-Nῑsāpūri, Ṣaḥῑḥ al-Imām Muslim (Jeddah: Dār al-Minhāj (1433/2013).
• Badr al-Dīn Abū Muḥammad Maḥmūd ibn Aḥmad al-ʿAynī, ʿUmdat al-Qārī Sharḥ Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī (Beirut: Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyyah, no date).
• Fakhr al-Dῑn Khān Abu ‘l-Maḥāsin al-Ḥasan ibn Manṣūr al-Auzjandi al-Farghāni, Fatāwā Qāḍi Khān (Al-Fatāwā al-Khāniyyah) (Damascus: Dār al-Nawādir, 1434/2013).
• Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan al-Shaybāni, Al-Aṣl (Beirut: Dār Ibn Ḥazm, 2012/1433).
• Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan al-Shaybāni, Al-Jāmi῾ Al-Ṣaghῑr (Beirut: Dār Ibn Ḥazm, 2011/1432).
• Muḥammad Taqi al-῾Uthmāni, Takmilah Fatḥ al-Mulhim bi Sharḥ Ṣaḥῑḥ Muslim (Damascus/Beirut: Dār al-Qalam, 1427/2006).
• Muḥammad ibn Ismā῾ῑl ibn Ibrāhῑm ibn al-Mughῑrah al-Bukhāri, Al-Jāmi῾ al-Ṣaḥῑḥ (Ṣaḥῑḥ al-Bukhāri) (Beirut: al-Risālah al-῾Ālamiyyah, 1432/2011).
• Muḥammad ibn Ismā῾ῑl ibn Ibrāhῑm ibn al-Mughῑrah al-Bukhāri, Al-Jāmi῾ al-Ṣaḥῑḥ (Ṣaḥῑḥ al-Bukhāri) (Jeddah: Dār al-Minhāj, 1429).
• Sayyid Anwar Shāh ibn Muʿaẓẓam Shāh al-Kashmīrī, Fayḍ al-Bārī ʿalā Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, (Beirut: Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyyah, 2005).
• Shihāb al-Dῑn Aḥmad ibn ῾Ali ibn Ḥajar al-῾Asqalāni, Fatḥ al-Bāri bi Sharḥ Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī (Riyadh: Dār Ṭaybah, 1426/2005).
• Shihāb al-Dῑn Aḥmad ibn ῾Ali ibn Ḥajar al-῾Asqalāni, Taqrῑb al-Tahdhῑb (Jeddah: Dār al-Minhāj, 1433/2012).

فهرس المصادر والمراجع :

الإختيار لتعليل المختار ، لعبد الله بن محمود الموصلي ، تحقيق شعيب الأرنؤوط وآخرين ، الرسالة العالمية ، بيروت ، ط1\1430.
الأصل ، لمحمد بن الحسن الشيباني ، تحقيق د. محمد بوينوكالن ، دار ابن حزم ، بيروت ، ط1\1433.
تقريب التهذيب ، لشهاب الدين أحمد بن علي بن حجر العسقلاني ، تحقيق محمد عوامة ، دار المنهاج ، جدة ، ط9\1433.
تكملة فتح الملهم بشرح صحيح الإمام مسلم ، لمحمد تقي العثماني ، دار القلم ، دمشق/بيروت ، ط1/1427.
الجامع الصحيح ، لمحمد بن إسماعيل بن إبراهيم بن المغيرة البخاري ، تحقيق شعيب الأرنؤوط وآخرين ، الرسالة العالمية ، بيروت ، ط1\1432.
الجامع الصحيح ، لمحمد بن إسماعيل بن إبراهيم بن المغيرة البخاري ، دار المنهاج ، جدة ، ط2\1429.
الجامع الصغير ، لمحمد بن الحسن الشيباني ، تحقيق د. محمد بوينوكالن ، دار ابن حزم ، بيروت ، ط1\1432.
عمدة القاري شرح صحيح البخاري ، لبدر الدين أبي محمد محمود بن أحمد العيني ، دار الكتب العلمية ، بيروت.
شرح مشكل الآثار (تحفة لأخيار بترتيب شرح مشكل الآثار) ، لأبي جعفر أحمد بن محمد بن سلامة الطحاوي ، تحقيق وترتيب أبي الحسين خالد محمود الرباط ، دار بلنسية ، الرياض ، ط1/1420.
صحيح الإمام مسلم ، لأبي الحسين مسلم بن الحجاج بن مسلم القشيري النيسابوري ، دار المنهاج ، جدة ، ط1\1433.
فتاوى قاضي خان (الفتاوى الخانية) ، لفخر الدين خان أبي المحاسن الحسن بن منصور الأوزجندي الفرغاني ، المعروف بقاضي خان ، مطبوع بحاشية الفتاوى الهندية ، دار النوادر ، دمشق ، ط1\1434.
فتح الباري بشرح صحيح البخاري ، لشهاب الدين أحمد بن علي بن حجر العسقلاني ، دار طيبة ، الرياض ، ط1\1426.
فيض الباري على صحيح البخاري ، لمحمد أنور الكشميري الديوبندي ، دار الكتب العلمية ، بيروت ، ط1\1426.
اللباب في شرح الكتاب ، لعبد الغني الغنيمي الميداني الدمشقي ، تحقيق د. سائد بكداش ، دار البشائر الإسلامية ، بيروت ، ط1\1431.
المبسوط ، لأبي بكر محمد بن أبي سهل السرخسي ، المعروف بشمس الأئمة ، دار المعرفة ، بيروت.
مختصر القدوري ، لأبي الحسين أحمد بن محمد القدوري ، تحقيق د. سائد بكداش ، دار البشائر الإسلامية ، بيروت ، ط1\1431.

(انتهى)

——————————

Footnotes:

[1] For instance, the National Center for Biotechnology Information in the United States of America has published the findings of one such research (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22922085 – accessed 06 June 2017). See also: http://www.scidev.net/global/disease/news/trials-needed-to-test-camel-urine-cancer-drug-claims.html (accessed 06 June 2017).

[2] http://www.who.int/csr/disease/coronavirus_infections/faq/en/ (accessed 06 June 2017).

[3] باب أبوال الإبل والدواب والغنم ومرابضها

[4] باب حكم المحاربين والمرتدين

[5] Ḥammād – one of the transmitters of the ḥadῑth – is unsure which of the two mentioned tribes it was. Some narrations state that there were four individuals from ῾Uraynah and three from ῾Ukl, while others give other numbers (Fatḥ al-Bāri, 1:574).

[6] وفي رواية أبي رجاء قبل هذا : بايعوه على الإسلام

[7] Takmilah Fatḥ al-Mulhim bi Sharḥ Ṣaḥῑḥ Muslim, 2:177.

[8] Ibn Ḥajar al-῾Asqalāni, quoting from Ibn Isḥāq in his Maghāzῑ and Al-Ṭabarāni, names this shepherd as Yasār. The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ had received him as booty after the battle of the Banu Tha῾labah, which took place in the year 6AH. He set him free after seeing how well he prayed and sent him to herd his camels outside Madῑnah, in Ḥarrah. (Fatḥ al-Bāri, 1:578)

[9] ῾Umdat al-Qāri Sharḥ Ṣaḥῑḥ al-Bukhāri, 3:225.

[10] Kitāb al-Aṣl, 1:57, 1:24; Al-Jāmi῾ al-Ṣaghῑr, p. 64.

[11] Kitāb al-Aṣl, 1:24.

[12] ῾Umdat al-Qāri Sharḥ Ṣaḥῑḥ al-Bukhāri, 3:230. Also, see: Al-Mukhtār li ‘l-Fatwā with its commentary by the author, Al-Ikhtiyār li Ta῾lῑl al-Mukhtār, 1:117; Mukhtaṣar al-Qudūri with its commentary, Al-Lubāb fi Sharḥ al-Kitāb, 2:105; Fatāwā Qāḍi Khān, 1:19.    

[13] Takmilah Fatḥ al-Mulhim bi Sharḥ Ṣaḥῑḥ Muslim, 2:177. The verdicts of the three imams of the ḥanafi school regarding urine of animals whose flesh is ḥalāl are as follows: Imām Abu Ḥanῑfah and Imām Abu Yūsuf – light filth (najāsah mukhaffafah); Imām Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan al-Shaybāni – pure (ṭāhir) (Fatāwā Qāḍi Khān, 1:19).

[14] ῾Umdat al-Qāri Sharḥ Ṣaḥῑḥ al-Bukhāri, 3:230. For the opinion of Imām Abu Ḥanῑfah, see Al-Mabsūṭ, 1:54.

[15] Ibid.

[16] Takmilah Fatḥ al-Mulhim bi Sharḥ Ṣaḥῑḥ Muslim, 2:180.

[17] It ought to be pointed out here that the mention of urine can actually be found in the narrations of several narrators from Anas ibn Mālik (may Allāh be pleased with him). Imām Abu Ja῾far Ṭaḥāwi, in his amazing Sharḥ Mushkil al-Āthār, transmits ḥadῑths with the mention of urine from the following narrators from Anas ibn Mālik: Yaḥya ibn Sa῾ῑd (3223), Abu Qilābah al-Jarmi (2340), Qatādah (3243), Thābit (3243) and ῾Abd al-῾Azῑz ibn Ṣuhayb (3245) (Tuḥfat al-Akhyār bi Tartῑb Sharḥ Mushkil al-Āthār, 5:135-). The same ḥadῑths have also been reported by the authors of the most popular six books of ḥadῑth and others.

[18] That is, although, they feigned faith, Allāh and His Messenger ﷺ knew that they were actually disbelievers.

[19] ῾Umdat al-Qāri Sharḥ Ṣaḥῑḥ al-Bukhāri, 3:231.

[20] 1:54.

[21] My italics.

[22] My italics.

[23] That is, what was previously deemed clean was now unclean and filth.

[24] Ibn Ḥajar al-῾Asqalāni.

[25] This is based on a variant of the ḥadῑth, in which they were commanded to drink camel milk and rinse or wash their nostrils with camel urine. This is also explored by Imām Sayyid Muḥammad Anwar Shāh Kashmῑri in his superb Arabic transcribed commentary lectures on Ṣaḥῑḥ al-Bukhāri, entitled Fayḍ al-Bāri (1:429).

[26] The grammarian.

[27] I have omitted much of this point made by ῾Allāmah Mufti Muḥammad Taqi ῾Uthmāni, due to its grammatical technicality of Arabic. Scholars may refer to the original Arabic work. This and some other points may have been taken from Imām Sayyid Muḥammad Anwar Shāh Kashmῑri’s Fayḍ al-Bāri ῾alā Ṣaḥῑḥ al-Bukhāri (1:429), wherein the points are elucidated in more detail. It is worth pointing out here that ῾Allāmah Sayyid Muḥammad Yūsuf al-Binnori was the student of Imām Sayyid Muḥammad Anwar Shāh Kashmῑri, and ῾Allāmah Mufti Muḥammad Taqi ῾Uthmāni is a student of ῾Allāmah Sayyid Muḥammad Yūsuf al-Binnori.  

[28] That is, ῾Allāmah Sayyid Muḥammad Yūsuf al-Binnori. It is worth mentioning here that it is equally correct to call the shaykh ‘al-Binnori’ or ‘al-Banūri’. The book being referred to is his famous 6-volume Arabic commentary on the ῾ibādāt portion of the Sunan of Imām al-Tirmidhi.

[29] Takmilah Fatḥ al-Mulhim bi Sharḥ Ṣaḥῑḥ Muslim, 2:178. In view of brevity, I have omitted the remainder of the discussion on ḥadῑth evidences by ῾Allāmah Sayyid Muḥammad Yūsuf al-Binnori.

[30] Student of Imām Sayyid Muḥammad Anwar Shāh Kashmῑri.

[31] قال العلامة بدر عالم الميرتهي: قلت: ورأيت عند أبي داود رواية في باب الجنب يتيمم ، وفيها: فقال أبو ذر: إني اجتويت المدينة ، فأمر لي رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم بذود وبغنم ، فقال لي: اشرب من ألبانها – وأشك في أبوالها – … إلخ: وحكم عليه أبو داود بعدم الصحة ، وقال: ذكر البول فيه ليس بصحيح ، وليست زيادة في (أبوالها) في حديث أنس رضي الله عنه ، تفرد به أهل البصرة ، فهذه أيضا مهمة ، وإنما نبهت عليها لأنها في غير بابها ، ربما تضلها عند الحاجة. (فيض الباري على صحيح البخاري – 1\429) –-

يقول كاتب هذه المقالة: قال الإمام العلامة خليل أحمد السهارنفوري في كتابه النافع العظيم (بذل المجهود في حل سنن أبي داود – 2\521) عند شرح قوله (وأشك في أبوالها): والشاك حماد بن سلمة أو موسى بن إسماعيل ، فإنه شك هل قال شيخه لفظ ابوالها أو لا؟

[32] ‘Musayyib’ or ‘Musayyab’ – both are correct (see the ḍabṭ in Taqrῑb al-Tahdhῑb, 2396, p.275).

[33] Fayḍ al-Bāri, 1:429.

[34] Ibid, 1:430.

[35] Fayḍ al-Bāri, 1:433.