✅Answer: The porcupine, or 'tashi' or 'sikhor' or 'chuleh,' is a mammal from the rodent family and is one of the largest rodents.
The porcupine has long quills on its body similar to a hedgehog, but it has a larger body than a hedgehog.
✅ But pay attention to the following narration:
1 عَنِ ابْنِ مَحْبُوبٍ عَنْ سَمَاعَةَ بْنِ مِهْرَانَ قَالَ: سَأَلْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ عَنِ الْمَأْكُولِ مِنَ الطَّيْرِ وَ الْوَحْشِ فَقَالَ حَرَّمَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ كُلَّ ذِي مِخْلَبٍ مِنَ الطَّيْرِ وَ كُلَّ ذِي نَابٍ مِنَ الْوَحْشِ فَقُلْتُ إِنَّ النَّاسَ يَقُولُونَ مِنَ السَّبُعِ فَقَالَ لِي يَا سَمَاعَةُ السَّبُعُ كُلُّهُ حَرَامٌ وَ إِنْ كَانَ سَبُعاً لَا نَابَ لَهُ وَ إِنَّمَا قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ هَذَا تَفْصِيلًا....
📚 Al-Kafi, vol. 6, p. 247
Sama'ah said: I asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about the birds and wild animals that are permissible to eat.
The Imam said: 'The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) forbade every bird with talons and every wild animal with canines!'
I said: 'People say: 'The one with canines from among the predators!''
Then the Imam said to me: 'Predators are all forbidden, even a predator that does not have canines, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) has specified and separated this...'
✅ According to the above narration and others, the meat of animals that have a 'nab,' meaning a canine tooth (like a dog's tooth), is forbidden, whether they are predators or not.
The porcupine is a rodent, and the characteristic of rodents is having two continuously growing incisors (not canines) in their upper and lower jaws.
Common rodents include: mice, rats, squirrels, chipmunks, porcupines, hamsters, guinea pigs, jerboas, gerbils, pocket gophers, and beavers.
✅ With this in mind, due to the presence of canines in this animal, its meat is considered forbidden.
✅ Porcupines have similarities to hedgehogs, and some have said that the porcupine is a type of hedgehog. If this is true, then from another perspective, the meat of this animal is also forbidden, which becomes clear in the following two narrations:
2 عَلِيِّ بْنِ مُغِيرَةِ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ جَدِّهِ قَالَ: الْمُسُوخُ مِنْ بَنِي آدَمَ ثَلَاثَةَ عَشَرَ صِنْفاً مِنْهُمُ الْقِرَدَةُ وَ الْخَنَازِيرُ وَ الْخُفَّاشُ وَ الضَّبُّ وَ الْفِيلُ وَ الدُّبُّ وَ الدُّعْمُوصُ وَ الْجِرِّي وَ الْعَقْرَبُ وَ سُهَيْلٌ وَ الْقُنْفُذُ وَ الزُّهَرَةُ وَ الْعَنْكَبُوتُ....
📚 'Ilal al-Shara'i', p. 487, hadith 4
Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) narrated from his father from his grandfather that he said: 'The metamorphosed beings from the Children of Adam were 13 groups, which are:''
Monkeys, pigs, bats, lizards, elephants, bears, water-worms, eels, scorpions, 'suhayl' (a type of fish), hedgehogs, 'zuhrah' (a type of bird), and spiders...'
3 عَنْ سَمَاعَةَ بْنِ مِهْرَانَ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ فِي حَدِيثٍ قَالَ: وَ حَرَّمَ اللَّهُ وَ رَسُولُهُ الْمُسُوخَ جَمِيعاً.
📚 Al-Kafi, vol. 6, p. 247
Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said in a hadith: 'Allah and His Messenger have forbidden all metamorphosed beings!'
✅ Therefore, if the porcupine is a type of hedgehog or 'qunfudh,' in addition to the criterion of having canines, its meat is also forbidden by the criterion of the impermissibility of metamorphosed beings. Of course, this criterion is used only if the porcupine is a type of 'qunfudh' or hedgehog.
✅ Unfortunately, some ignorant or impious people eat the meat of porcupines under the pretext of a cure for certain diseases, which is not only forbidden but also lacks any basis for its supposed medicinal benefits.
اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَی مُحَمَّدٍ وَ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ
وَ عَجِّلْ لِوَلِیِّکَ الْفَرَجَ وَ الْعَافِیَةَ وَ النَّصْرَ
