The cat is considered "the quintessential pet" by many Muslims, [1] and is admired for its cleanliness.
Unlike many other animals, such as dogs, Islamic Law considers cats ritually pure and that cats possess barakah (blessings). [2] [3] and allows cats to freely enter homes and even mosques. Cats are believed to be the most common pet in Muslim countries. [1]
The American poet and travel author Bayard Taylor (1825–1878) was astonished when he discovered a Syrian hospital where cats roamed freely. The institution, in which domestic felines were sheltered and nourished, was funded by a waqf, along with caretakers' wages, veterinary care, and cat food. Edward William Lane (1801–1876), a British Orientalist who resided in Cairo, described a cat garden originally endowed by the 13th-century Egyptian sultan Baibars. [1]
Wilfred Thesiger, in his book The Marsh Arabs, notes that cats were allowed free entry to community buildings in villages in the Mesopotamian Marshes and were even fed. [4] [ page needed ] Aside from protecting granaries and food stores from pests, cats were valued by the paper-based Arab-Islamic cultures for preying on mice that destroyed books. For that reason, cats are often depicted in paintings alongside Islamic scholars and bibliophiles.
In Islamic tradition, cats are admired for their cleanliness. They are considered to be ritually clean, and are thus allowed to enter homes [1] and even mosques, including Masjid al-Haram. Food sampled by cats is considered halal, in the sense that their consumption of the food does not make it impermissible for Muslims to eat, and water from which cats have drunk is permitted for wudu (the ablution that is done by Muslims). [1]
Muslim scholars are divided on the issue of neutering animals. Most, however, maintain that neutering cats is allowed "if there is some benefit in neutering the cat and if that will not cause its death". [5] Muhammad ibn al Uthaymeen, a 20th-century Saudi Arabian Wahhabi imam, preached:
If there are too many cats and they are a nuisance, and if the operation will not harm them, then there is nothing wrong with it, because this is better than killing them after they have been created. But if the cats are ordinary cats and are not causing a nuisance, perhaps it is better to leave them alone to reproduce. [5]
A story exists which says that Muhammad had a cat called Muezza (or Muʿizza; Arabic : معزة) , in which Muhammad, while preparing for prayer discovers Muezza on his prayer robe, so as to not disturb the cat he cut the sleeve off. [6] [7]
However, there is no mention of any such cat and its story in any hadith, [8] which leads many Muslims to agree that this story is fabricated. [9]
Assim Al-Hakeem, a Sunni cleric, comments on a question made about Muezza: [10]
But to claim that the prophet had a cat and he named it "Mu'izza" and the prophet did this or that, all of this is nonsense and baseless.
Sayyed Mohammad Al-Musawi, a Shia cleric, also comments on a quesiton about Muezza, in which he says: [11]
About the name of a cat in the house of the Prophet, the narration is found in Sunni books, but I could not find it till now in our Shia books. It make no difference as the Hadeeths which we have are authentic in allowing having a cat at home.
Whether the story of Muezza is true or fabricated, Muhammad is known to have criticized abusers of cats. [12]
Hadith or athar is a form of Islamic oral tradition containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the prophet Muhammad. Each hadith is associated with a chain of narrators. Compilations of hadith were collected by Islamic scholars in the centuries after Muhammad's death. Hadith are widely respected in mainstream Muslim thought and are central to Islamic law.
Islamic dietary laws are laws that Muslims follow in their diet. Islamic jurisprudence specifies which foods are halal and which are haram. The dietary laws are found in the Quran, the holy book of Islam, as well as in collections of traditions attributed to the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
Al-Sīra al-Nabawiyya, commonly shortened to Sīrah and translated as prophetic biography, are the traditional Muslim biographies of the Islamic prophet Muhammad from which, in addition to the Quran and Hadiths, most historical information about his life and the early period of Islam is derived.
The Farewell Sermon also known as Muhammad's Final Sermon or the Last Sermon, is a religious speech, delivered by the Islamic prophet Muhammad on Friday the 9th of Dhu al-Hijjah, 10 AH in the Uranah valley of Mount Arafat, during the Islamic pilgrimage of Hajj. Muhammad al-Bukhari refers to the sermon and quotes part of it in his Sahih al-Bukhari. Part of it is also present in Sahih Muslim and Sunan Abu Dawood. Verse 5:3, "Today I have perfected for you your religion," is believed to have been recited during the address as the capstone verse of the Quran. Various versions of the sermon have been published, including several English translations. The sermon consists of a series of general exhortations for Muslims to follow the teachings that Muhammad had set forth in the Quran and Sunnah.
The Israʾ and Miʿraj are the two parts of a Night Journey that Muslims believe the Islamic prophet Muhammad took during a single night around the year AD 621. Within Islam, the majority of Islamic scholars claim that the journey was both a physical and spiritual one. Islamic tradition believes a brief mention of the story is found in the 17th surah (chapter) of the Quran, called al-Isra', while details of the story are found in the hadith.
Sahih al-Bukhari is the first hadith collection of the Six Books of Sunni Islam. Compiled by Islamic scholar al-Bukhari in the musannaf format, the work is valued by Muslims, alongside Sahih Muslim, as the most authentic after the Qur'an.
In Islam, bidʿah refers to innovation in religious matters. Linguistically, the term means "innovation, novelty, heretical doctrine, heresy". Despite its common use in Muslim texts, the term is not found in the Qur'an.
A Nasheed is a work of vocal music, partially coincident with hymns, that is either sung a cappella or with instruments, according to a particular style or tradition within Sunni Islam.
The hadith of the thaqalayn refers to a statement, attributed to the Islamic prophet Muhammad, that introduces the Quran, the principal religious text in Islam, and his progeny as the only two sources of divine guidance after his death. Widely reported by both Shia and Sunni authorities, the hadith of the thaqalayn is of particular significance in Twelver Shia, where their Twelve Imams are viewed as the spiritual and political successors of Muhammad.
The hadith of pen and paper is an incident in which the Islamic prophet Muhammad expressed a wish to issue a written statement shortly before his death, possibly on a Thursday, but was prevented from doing so. Muhammad's intentions are debated though it is commonly believed that the statement would have formally designated his successor. Possibly because of its ramifications throughout the history of Islam, some have referred to this incident as the Calamity of Thursday.
Adi ibn Hatim al-Tai was a leader of the Arab tribe of Tayy, and one of the companions of Muhammad. He was the son of the poet Hatim al-Tai. Adi remained antagonistic to Islam for about twenty years until he converted to Islam in 630.
Mishkat al-Masabih by Walī ad-Dīn Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh al-Khaṭīb at-Tibrīzī (d.1248) is an expanded and revised version of al-Baghawī's Maṣābīḥ as-Sunnah. Khaṭīb at-Tibrīzī rendered this version of the original text more accessible to those not having an advanced knowledge of the science of hadith.
The ban on Hadith is a historical tradition, which says that Umar, the second Caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate ordered a ban on the writing down of oral traditions about the Islamic Prophet Muhammad, who died in 632 CE. Although the tradition is prominently quoted and referred to, it was not given any formal name, in contrast to other Hadiths such as the Hadith of the pond of Khumm or the Hadith of Qur'an and Sunnah.
According to Islam, animals are conscious of God. According to the Quran, they praise Him, even if this praise is not expressed in human language. Baiting animals for entertainment or gambling is prohibited. It is forbidden to kill any animal except for food or to prevent it from harming people.
Miracles of Muhammad are miraculous claims attributed to the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
Hadith of Jesus Praying Behind Mahdi refers to a collection of hadith (sayings of Muhammad related to the prophecy that after Jesus descends and joins the Mahdi and his followers in the final days before the destruction of Earth, Jesus will decline the offer of the Mahdi to lead the Mahdi and company in salat telling the Mahdi to lead. The Mahdi is an Islamic figure in Islamic eschatology, and salat is the Islamic practice of worship of God. The prophecy is narrated in numerous hadith collections. A total of 29 Hadiths relate the return of Jesus, and his prayer with Mahdi's lead.
Ismail ibn Musa Menk, commonly known as Mufti Menk, is a Zimbabwean Islamic speaker. He is the Grand Mufti of Zimbabwe's Muslim community, and head of the fatwa department for the Council of Islamic Scholars of Zimbabwe.
Quranism is an Islamic movement that holds the belief that the Quran is the only valid source of religious belief, guidance, and law in Islam. Quranists believe that the Quran is clear, complete, and that it can be fully understood without recourse to the hadith and sunnah. Therefore, they use the Quran itself to interpret the Quran, an exegetical principle known as tafsir al-Qur'an bi al-Qur'an.
Assim bin Luqman al-Hakeem is a Saudi cleric of Indonesian descent. He is based primarily in the city of Jeddah, where he hosts programs dealing with Islam. Al-Hakeem mostly talks in English, and he is also known for his witty sarcasm and humorous approach.
Radd al-Shams is believed by Muslims to be a miracle in which Muhammad asked God to return the sun to its position before sunset, so that Ali could have enough time to say his Asr prayer. According to some sources Radd al-shams also took place in the time of some other prophets.
In still another charming legend about the Prophet, one day his favorite cat Muezza bowed to thank him for some kind favor and, by this story, Muhammad then passed his hand down three times the length of the animal's back, giving to it—and to all cats evermore—the enviable capacity always to land squarely on their feet.
عُذِّبَتِ امْرَأَةٌ في هِرَّةٍ سَجَنَتْها حتَّى ماتَتْ، فَدَخَلَتْ فيها النَّارَ، لا هي أطْعَمَتْها ولا سَقَتْها، إذْ حَبَسَتْها، ولا هي تَرَكَتْها تَأْكُلُ مِن خَشاشِ الأرْضِ
