72/18. Chapter:
Sahih Bukhari 5501 — Permitted Slaughter With a Stone
The instruments that cause the blood to gush out
Hadith About Slaughtering With a Stone in an Emergency
Sahih Bukhari : 5501
Sahih BukhariHadith Number 5501
حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ أَبِي بَكْرٍ، حَدَّثَنَا مُعْتَمِرٌ، عَنْ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ، عَنْ نَافِعٍ، سَمِعَ ابْنَ كَعْبِ بْنِ مَالِكٍ، يُخْبِرُ ابْنَ عُمَرَ أَنَّ أَبَاهُ، أَخْبَرَهُ أَنَّ جَارِيَةً لَهُمْ كَانَتْ تَرْعَى غَنَمًا بِسَلْعٍ، فَأَبْصَرَتْ بِشَاةٍ مِنْ غَنَمِهَا مَوْتًا، فَكَسَرَتْ حَجَرًا فَذَبَحَتْهَا، فَقَالَ لأَهْلِهِ لاَ تَأْكُلُوا حَتَّى آتِيَ النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَأَسْأَلَهُ، أَوْ حَتَّى أُرْسِلَ إِلَيْهِ مَنْ يَسْأَلُهُ. فَأَتَى النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَوْ بَعَثَ إِلَيْهِ فَأَمَرَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم بِأَكْلِهَا.
Ka'b Narrated from:
A slave girl of theirs used to shepherd some sheep at Si'a (a mountain near Medina). On seeing one of her sheep dying, she broke a stone and slaughtered it. Ka`b said to his family, "Do not eat (of it) till I go to the Prophet (ﷺ) and ask him, or, till I send someone to ask him." So he went to the Prophet (ﷺ) or sent someone to him The Prophet (ﷺ) permitted (them) to eat it.
Reference : Sahih al-Bukhari 5501In-book reference : Book 72, Hadith 27USC-MSA web (English) reference : Vol. 7, Book 67, Hadith 409
Summary of Sahih Bukhari Hadith 5501
This hadith explains a case of emergency slaughter in simple terms. A slave girl was looking after sheep at Si’a. She noticed that one sheep was dying, so she broke a stone and slaughtered it before it died. Ka`b did not rush his family to eat from it. He told them to wait until he asked the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم or sent someone to ask him. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم then permitted them to eat it. The hadith shows carefulness in food matters and the value of asking when a person is unsure. For people searching Islamic slaughter rules or hadith about slaughtering with stone, this narration gives a direct example from the text.
What we learn from this hadith
- When unsure about food, Ka`b waited and asked before eating.
- The sheep was reached and slaughtered before it died.
- The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم permitted the meat after being asked about the case.
