eat prawns?

[Muhammad Zaynul Abideen]

assalamoalikom



are you aloud to eat prawns?

[Imam]

Bismillahir Rahmaanir Rahim,

Wa'laykum As-Salaam,


My dear brother, in order to see if we are allowed to eat prawns we have to find out what they are.

What you must remember, is that out of all the creatures in the sea, all are forbidden (haraam), except for the fish. So the obvious question which stands is, are prawns a type of fish?

Lets pay attention to a few Islamic dictionaries in order to identify this:

a) Qamus is a famous arabic dictionary. It says:

"The irbiyaan (prawn) is a fish, like a creepy crawly."

b) The 'taj-al-'urus' says:

"The irbiyaan (prawn) is a white coloured fish like a creepy crawly, and is normally found in Basra".

c) The Siraah says:

"The irbiyaan (prawn), is a type of fish".

d) Muntahul-arab says:

"Irbiyaan (prawns) are a type of fish, which are called 'jhinga', in Hindi"

Apart from these meanings, there are lots of other Arabic/Islamic dictionaries which define the prawn to be a fish, ive only quoted a few.

Those people who do not say that it is a fish, should stay away from it. However, Imam Sha'fi'i says that it is haraam, because they are similar to bird droppings, and these are impure, therefore prawns are also impure. But there is nothing from our Imams to say that they are halaal. Therefore to keep away from such a doubt, and difference is best. (awlaa).


Jazaakallah


M. Waseem Ashrafi