34/6. Chapter:
Sahih Muslim 1941b — Halal Food: Horse Meat and Domestic Donkeys
The permissibility of eating horse meat
Hadith About Horse Meat and the Food Ruling at Khaibar
Sahih Muslim : 1941b
Sahih MuslimHadith Number 1941b
وَحَدَّثَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ حَاتِمٍ، حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ بَكْرٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا ابْنُ جُرَيْجٍ، أَخْبَرَنِي أَبُو الزُّبَيْرِ أَنَّهُ سَمِعَ جَابِرَ بْنَ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، يَقُولُ أَكَلْنَا زَمَنَ خَيْبَرَ الْخَيْلَ وَحُمُرَ الْوَحْشِ وَنَهَانَا النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم عَنِ الْحِمَارِ الأَهْلِيِّ .
Jabir bin `Abdullah Narrated from:
We ate during the time of Khaibar the (flesh) of horses and of wild asses, but Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) prohibited us (to eat) the flesh of domestic asses.
[1] A type of wild donkey.Reference : Sahih Muslim 1941bIn-book reference : Book 34, Hadith 52USC-MSA web (English) reference : Book 21, Hadith 4780
Summary of Sahih Muslim Hadith 1941b
This hadith about horse meat gives a clear food ruling from the time of Khaibar. Jabir ibn Abdullah says that the Companions ate horses and wild asses, while the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم prohibited the flesh of domestic asses. The main point is simple: not every similar animal has the same ruling. The report separates horse meat, wild ass meat, and domestic donkey meat. For readers searching halal food hadith, horse meat in Islam, or domestic donkey meat hadith, this narration shows that the ruling is tied to what the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم allowed or prohibited in that event. The text does not discuss every animal, but it does give a direct difference between these three foods.
What we learn from this hadith
- Horse meat was eaten by the Companions at the time mentioned in the report.
- Wild ass meat is mentioned separately from domestic ass meat.
- Domestic donkey meat was prohibited by the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم at Khaibar.
- Food rulings should not be guessed by looks alone.
