Haraam

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For the Islamic term for "sanctuary", see Haram.

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Halal (legal) Wajib/Fard (obligatory, duty) Mustahabb (favoured) Mubah (neutral) Makruh (disliked, abominable) Haraam (illegal, prohibited) Baatil (void, incorrect) Fasiq (corrupt)
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Haraam (Arabic: حرام‎) (often Haram) is an Arabic term meaning "forbidden". In Islam it is used to refer to anything that is prohibited by the faith. Its antonym is halaal.

The religious term haraam can be applied to:

certain behaviours, such as adultery or abuse
certain objects
certain foodstuffs or food ingredients, such as alcohol or pork
and also to foods, objects and people that would normally be halaal but which were tarnished in some or other way, for example meat slaughtered in a non-permitted way or people with certain sexual preferences

Haraam has, over the years, accumulated additional non-traditional uses to it. In Arabic-speaking countries, such as Lebanon, saying "haraam" can mean, "what a shame" or "what a pity". This can be used formally or between friends. Children are commonly told not to mistreat other children or animals because it is 'haraam'.

The word also appears in Amharic, the national language of Ethiopia. It connotes the same idea of prohibition on religious grounds, however it is used by Christians in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, including bans on pork (more out of Jewish dietary laws, not Islamic).

Haraam is best known to non-Arabs by means of the related word 'harem' referring to the forbidden area of the palace where the women were quartered.

[edit] Examples of Haraam

[edit] Food

Probably the most well-known example of things that are haraam or are products forbidden by Muslim dietary laws, such as alcohol and pork.

It is also haraam to eat meat that was slaughtered without the name of Allah. Meat that is slain with the name of Allah is considered zabiha and is halal or lawful to eat.

There is debate about whether the verses about alcohol refer to alcohol itself or to stronger intoxicants^{[citation needed]}. Pork and derived products such as pork-derived gelatine are also forbidden. It has been said that food items such as Rice Krispie treats are haraam, as they contain gelatin.

[edit] Behaviour

Shirk is considered haraam.

It is also haraam to be a hypocrite. An example of this is when people who commit acts of violence, consume alcohol or do forbidden things claim that they are Muslim.

Adultery is considered haraam. All forms of homosexuality are also haraam^[1]. It is widely held that temporary marriage is not haraam to prohibit unmarried sex. Some^[who?] consider wearing revealing clothes to be haraam. Immodesty in both men and women can also be considered haraam.

Any act of violence, theft, threatening to hurt someone, fraudulent behavior, rape or being untruthful toward others is also haraam.

[edit] Quranic verses about Haraam

Here are some well known verses that are commonly referenced in regard to unlawful food or drinks:

"He hath forbidden you only carrion, and blood, and swineflesh, and that which hath been immolated to (the name of) any other than Allah. But he who is driven by necessity, neither craving nor transgressing, it is no sin for him. Lo! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful".^{[Qur'an 2:173]}

"How should ye not eat of that over which the name of Allah hath been mentioned, when He hath explained unto you that which is forbidden unto you unless ye are compelled thereto. But lo! many are led astray by their own lusts through ignorance. Lo! thy Lord, He is Best Aware of the transgressors." ^{[Qur'an 6:119]}

Here are verses that reference fornication being haraam:

"And come not near unto adultery. Lo! it is an abomination and an evil way." ^{[Qur'an 17:32]}

"Those who invoke not, with Allah, any other god, nor slay such life as Allah has made sacred except for just cause, nor commit fornication; - and any that does this (not only) meets punishment." ^{[Qur'an 25:68]}

Here is a verse that references shirk being haraam:

"Say: I am forbidden to worship those on whom ye call instead of Allah. Say: I will not follow your desires, for then should I go astray and I should not be of the rightly guided." ^{[Qur'an 6:56]}

[edit] Hadith sayings about Haraam

The Hadith is a compilation of the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad and there are a several sayings of the Prophet that relate to unlawful acts or food in the Islam religion. Below are some sayings from the Hadith collections:

Hadith mentioning haraam food and prohibition of alcohol:

In an incident narrated by Rafi’ bin Khadij, the Prophet told Muslims who wanted to slaughter some animals using reeds, “Use whatever causes blood to flow, and eat the animals if the Name of Allah has been mentioned on slaughtering them...”(Bukhari).

Narrated Abu Thalaba: "Allah’s Messenger forbade the eating of the meat of beasts having fangs "(Narrated by Bukhari).

From Muslim (from Abi Said): The Prophet said: "Allah has forbidden alcoholic drinks. Whoever this verse reaches while they still possess any of it, they are not to drink nor to sell."

Hadith mentioning fornication as haraam:

Prophet Muhammad explained: "If one of you were to be stabbed in the head with a piece of iron it would be better for him than if he were to touch a woman whom it is not permissible for him to touch."

Hadith mentioning shirk as haraam:

It is reported on the authority of Ibn Mas'ood that the Messenger of Allah said: "Whoever died while supplicating another deity besides Allah, will enter the Fire." (Narrated by Bukhari)