Chapter 2: Surat Al-Baqarah (The Cow), verse 172-176
Translation:
Believers, eat of the wholesome things with which We have provided you and give thanks to God, if it is Him you worship. He has forbidden you carrion, blood, and the flesh of swine; also any flesh that is consecrated other than in the name of God. But whoever is driven by necessity, intending neither to sin nor to transgress, shall incur no guilt. God is forgiving and merciful. Those that suppress any part of the Scriptures which God has revealed in order to gain some paltry end shall swallow nothing but fire into their bellies. On the Day of Resurrection God will neither speak to them nor purify them. Woeful punishment awaits them. Such are those that barter guidance for error and forgiveness for punishment How steadfastly they seek the Fire! That is because God has revealed the Book with the truth; those that disagree about it are in extreme schism. (172-176)
Commentary:
Human beings
should feel thankful and obedient to God while eating food and drinking water.
They should express themselves thus: “In accordance with God’s commandment,
we are eating and drinking what God has provided us with.” These emotions
evoke in a man the feeling of true devotion to their Maker. But this
psychological make-up changes in case of self-styled beliefs. In that case
man’s attention is diverted to the supposed properties of the things he
consumes. Therefore, the same divine blessing which is meant to produce feelings
of thanksgiving, evoke instead feelings of veneration for material objects.
Under the influence of such false beliefs man comes to accord the position of
creator to the created. If something is held unlawful by God, it is not owing to
the sacredness of that thing but rather because it is something impure or the
divine law has testified to its uncleanness e.g. carrion, blood, swine or an animal sacrificed in the name of some idol instead of in
the name of God. In cases of extreme necessity where a man’s life may be at
stake, he may eat food otherwise forbidden, for instance when suffering extreme
hunger and when no other food is available, in illness, or in other such
circumstances as may compel him to do so. However, it is essential that such
forbidden food should not be taken simply for the pleasure of the palate. That
is, one must remain within the bare limits of necessity.
When superstitious beliefs about prohibitions have been accepted by the masses as religious beliefs and held sacred, the religious scholars of the community fail to muster enough courage to declare openly that those beliefs have nothing to do with true religion, for they are afraid that if they did so, they would be severing themselves from the general public to whom they owe their popularity. They may revel in such compromises bringing them wealth and honour, but in the eyes of God, they are the worst offenders. Hiding the truth for worldly considerations is not one of those offences that God will ignore in the Hereafter. These are in fact crimes that deprive man of God’s mercy. Worse still are those, who, instead of accepting the truth when it is presented to them start engaging in meaningless discussions. They develop a propensity to divisiveness and ultimately they stray so far from truth that there remains no chance of their returning.