[ Islam Is Peace ]

Dr. Zakir Naik, the president of Islamic Research Foundation, states the following:

“The fact that consumption of pork is prohibited in Islam is well known. The following points explain various aspects of this prohibition:

1. Pork prohibited in the Qur’an:

The Qur’an prohibits the consumption of pork in no less than 4 different places. It’s prohibited in 2:173, 5:3, 6:145 and 16:115. For instance, Allah says:

“Forbidden to you (for food) are: dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which hath been invoked a name other than that of Allah.” (Al-Ma’idah: 3)

The above verses of the Glorious Qur’an are sufficient to satisfy a Muslim as to why pork is forbidden.

2. Pork prohibited in the Bible:

Addressing the Christian who is likely to be convinced by his religious scriptures, the Bible prohibits the consumption of pork, in the book of Leviticus:

“…and the swine, as he divideth the hoof, and be cloven footed, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you. Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcass shall ye not touch, they are unclean to you.” (Leviticus chapter 11 verse 7 and 8)

Pork is also prohibited in the book of Deuteronomy:

“And the swine, because it divideth the hoof, yet cheweth not the cud, it is unclean unto you. Ye shall not eat of their flesh, nor touch their dead carcass.” (Deuteronomy chapter 14 verse 8)

A similar prohibition is repeated in the book of Isaiah chapter 65 verse 2-5.

3. Consumption of pork causes several diseases:

The other non-Muslims and atheists will agree only if convinced through reason, logic and science. Eating of pork can cause no less than seventy different types of diseases.

A person can have various helminthes, like roundworm, pinworm, hookworm, etc. One of the most dangerous is Taenia Solium, which in a layman’s terminology is called tapeworm. It harbors in the intestine and is very long. Its ova, i.e. eggs, enter the blood stream and can reach almost all the organs of the body. If it enters the brain it can cause memory loss. If it enters the heart it can cause heart attack and if it enters the eye it can cause blindness. If it enters the liver it can cause liver damage. It can damage almost all the organs of the body.

Another dangerous helminthes is Taenia Trichuriasis. A common misconception about pork is that if it is cooked well, these ova die. In a research project undertaken in America, it was found that out of twenty-four people suffering from Taenia tichurasis, twenty two had cooked the pork very well. This indicates that the ovas present in the pork do not die under normal cooking temperature.

4. Pork has fat building material:

Pork has very little muscle building material and contains excess of fat. This fat gets deposited in the vessels and can cause hypertension and heart attack.

5. The pig is one of the filthiest animals on earth:

The pig is one of the filthiest animals on earth. It lives and thrives on muck, filth and dirt. In the villages they don’t have modern toilets and the villagers excrete in the open air. Very often excreta are cleared by pigs.