Section: It is a sunnah to slaughter with a sharp knife, due to what Abu Dawud narrated from Shaddad ibn Aws, who said: Two things I heard from the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace): "Indeed, Allah has prescribed excellence in all things. So, when you kill, kill well, and when you slaughter, slaughter well. Let one of you sharpen his blade and let him comfort his sacrificial animal" (5). It is disliked to sharpen the knife while the animal is looking at it. Umar saw a man who had placed his foot on a sheep while he was sharpening his knife, so he struck him until he let the sheep go. It is disliked to slaughter a sheep while another is looking at it. It is recommended to face the qiblah with the animal [during slaughter]. Ibn Umar, Ibn Sirin, Ata', al-Thawri, al-Shafi'i, and the people of opinion (Ashab al-Ra'y) considered this recommended. Ibn Umar and Ibn Sirin disliked eating what was slaughtered facing other than the qiblah. The rest of them said: This is not disliked, because the People of the Book slaughter facing other than the qiblah, and Allah has made their slaughtered animals lawful.
Section: Ahmad said: Al-masbura (the detained animal held for target practice) and al-mujaththama (the animal tied up and shot at) are not to be eaten. Ishaq expressed the same view. Al-mujaththama is a bird or a rabbit used as a target, then shot at until it is killed. Al-masbura is similar to it, except that al-mujaththama is only [applicable] to birds, rabbits, and their like, while al-masbura [applies to] every animal. The root of al-sab (detention) is to confine. The basis for its prohibition is that the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) forbade the detention (sabr) of animals (6), and said: "Do not take anything containing a soul as a target" (7). Sa'id narrated with his chain of transmission from Abu al-Darda' who said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) forbade every mujaththama (8). With his chain of transmission from Mujahid, he said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) forbade the mujaththama and eating it, and he forbade the masbura and eating it (8). And because it (9) is an animal
(5) Its extraction was mentioned previously, in: 11/516. (6) Its extraction was mentioned previously, on page 143. (7) Extracted by Muslim, in: Chapter on the prohibition of the detention of animals, from the Book of Hunting. Sahih Muslim 3/1549. And al-Tirmidhi, in: Chapter on what has been mentioned regarding the dislike of al-masbura, from the chapters on hunting. 'Aridat al-Ahwadhi 6/267. And al-Nasa'i, in: Chapter on the prohibition of al-mujaththama, from the Book of Sacrifices. Al-Mujtaba 7/210, 211. And Ibn Majah, in: Chapter on the prohibition of the detention of animals and on mutilation, from the Book of Slaughtering. Sunan Ibn Majah 2/1063. And Imam Ahmad, in: Al-Musnad 6/211, 273, 274, 280. (8) Extracted by al-Tirmidhi, in: Chapter on what has been mentioned regarding the dislike of eating al-masbura, from the chapters on hunting, and in: Chapter on what has been mentioned regarding eating the meat of al-jallalah (animals that feed on filth) and their milk, from the chapters on food. 'Aridat al-Ahwadhi 6/265, 8/19. And al-Nasa'i, in: Chapter on the prohibition of al-mujaththama, and Chapter on the prohibition of al-jallalah, from the Book of Sacrifices. Al-Mujtaba 7/209, 212. And al-Darimi, in: Chapter on the prohibition of mutilation, and Chapter on al-jallalah and what has been mentioned in it of prohibition, from the Book of Sacrifices. Sunan al-Darimi 2/83, 89. And Imam Ahmad, in: Al-Musnad 1/226, 241, 293, 321, 339, 2/366, 3/323, 4/127, 194, 6/445. (9) In (M): "wa-li-annahu".
