Darul Iftaa Mahmudiyyah

Are Muslims allowed to eat turtle meat since they live in sea water and land also?

· 13 Rajab 1436 AH1 min readFatwa 32892English

Question

Are Muslims allowed to eat turtle meat since they live in sea water and land also?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

According to Shariah, it is not permissible for one to consume reptiles.[1] A turtle is a reptile from the Order Chellonnii or Testudines.[2] Therefore, it will be impermissible for one to consume turtle meat.

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

Mufti Ismail Desai

Darul Iftaa
South Africa

Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.

References (Arabic / Urdu sources)

[1] كَذَلِكَ مَا لَيْسَ لَهُ دَمٌ سَائِلٌ مِثْلُ الْحَيَّةِ وَالْوَزَغِ وَسَامِّ أَبْرَصَ وَجَمِيعِ الْحَشَرَاتِ وَهَوَامِّ الْأَرْضِ مِنْ الْفَأْرِ وَالْقُرَادِ وَالْقَنَافِذِ وَالضَّبِّ وَالْيَرْبُوعِ وَابْنِ عِرْسٍ وَنَحْوِهَا، وَلَا خِلَافَ فِي حُرْمَةِ هَذِهِ الْأَشْيَاءِ إلَّا فِي الضَّبِّ فَإِنَّهُ حَلَالٌ عَنْدَ الشَّافِعِيِّ

(بدائع الصنائع، ج5، ص36، دار الكتب العلمية)

ويكره أكل الضبع والضب والسلحفاة والزنبور والحشرات كلها

) الهداية، ج4، ص352، دار احياء التراث العربي)

[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turtle, last accessed on 27/01/2014.

Answered by
Mufti Ismail Desai
Checked & approved by
Mufti Ebrahim Desai
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Source: Darul Iftaa Mahmudiyyah — https://askimam.org/public/question_detail/32892
Fatawa SA: https://fatawa.co.za/fatwa/askimam-32892

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