Darul Ifta Ibn Masood

What is the ruling of killing a snake?

Published as Killing snakes

· 22 Jumada II 1445 AH1 min readEnglish

Question

What is the ruling of killing a snake? And what should be done afterwards if it is killed – should the snake be burned or buried?

Answer

In principle, it is permissible to kill naturally harmful animals. Snakes are naturally considered as harmful; hence it will be permissible to kill them. In fact, the Fuqaha have written that a person receives Thawaab (reward) for killing a snake [[i]].

There is no clear text in regards what should be done with it after killing it. Hence, it will be best to bury the snake as done with other dead animals.

References (Arabic / Urdu sources)

[i] Ahsanul Fataawa (Vol8/Pg185)

Answered by
Mufti Abdur Rahman Abdur Razak
Checked & approved by
Mufti Mohammed Desai Sahib
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Questions about this ruling, answered only from the archive with sources.

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Source: Darul Ifta Ibn Masood — https://fataawa.co.za/killing-snakes/
Fatawa SA: https://fatawa.co.za/fatwa/ibnmasood-29277

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