Question 2083: What is the ruling on eating the meat of donkeys, horses, and mules?
Answer
✅ Answer: Please pay attention to the following narrations:
1 عن محمد بن سنان أَنَّ الرِّضَا کَتَبَ إِلَیْهِ فِیمَا کَتَبَ مِنْ جَوَابِ مَسَائِلِهِ کُرِهَ أَکْلُ لُحُومِ الْبِغَالِ وَ الْحُمُرِ الْأَهْلِیَّةِ لِحَاجَةِ النَّاسِ إِلَی ظُهُورِهَا وَ اسْتِعْمَالِهَا وَ الْخَوْفِ مِنْ فَنَائِهَا وَ قِلَّتِهَا لَا لِقَذَرِ خَلْقِهَا وَ لَا قَذَرِ غِذَائِهَا.
📚 Illal al-Shara'i, p. 563
Imam Reza, peace be upon him, wrote in response to Muhammad ibn Sinan's questions: Eating the meat of domestic mules and donkeys has been deemed 'makrooh' (disliked) because of people's need for them for riding and work and the fear of their extinction and scarcity, not because of the impurity of their creation or the impurity of their food!
2 عن أَبِی الْحَسَنِ اللَّیْثِیِّ عن جَعْفَرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ قال: سُئِلَ أَبِی عَنْ لُحُومِ الْحُمُرِ الْأَهْلِیَّةِ فَقَالَ نَهَی رَسُولُ اللَّهِ عَنْ أَکْلِهَا لِأَنَّهَا کَانَتْ حَمُولَةَ النَّاسِ یَوْمَئِذٍ و إِنَّمَا الْحَرَامُ مَا حَرَّمَ اللَّهُ فی الْقُرْآنِ
📚 Illal al-Shara'i, p. 563
Imam Sadiq, peace be upon him, said: My father was asked about the meat of a domestic donkey; so he said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, forbade eating it because at that time they were pack animals, and verily, the forbidden thing is what Allah, the Exalted, has forbidden in the Quran!
3 عن عَلِیِّ بْنِ جَعْفَرٍ عَنْ أَخِیهِ قال: سَأَلْتُهُ عَنْ لُحُومِ الْحُمُرِ الْأَهْلِیَّةِ أَ تُؤْکَلُ فَقَالَ نَهَی عَنْهَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ و إِنَّمَا نَهَی عَنْهَا لِأَنَّهُمْ کَانُوا یَعْمَلُونَ عَلَیْهَا فَکَرِهَ أَنْ یُفْنُوهَا.
📚 Qur'b al-Isnad, p. 117
Ali ibn Ja'far said: I asked Imam Kadhim, peace be upon him, about the meat of a domestic donkey, is it eaten? The Imam said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, forbade it, and verily he forbade it because people worked on them, so he disliked that they would be destroyed and finished!
4 عن أبی بصیر یعنی المرادی قال سَمِعْتُ أَبَاجَعْفَرٍ یَقُولُ إِنَّ النَّاسَ أَکَلُوا لُحُومَ دَوَابِّهِمْ یَوْمَ خَیْبَرَ فَأَمَرَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ بِإِکْفَاءِ قُدُورِهِمْ وَ نَهَاهُمْ عَنْ ذلک وَ لَمْ یُحَرِّمْهَا.
📚 Al-Tahdhib, Vol. 9, p. 41
Abu Basir said: I heard Imam Baqir, peace be upon him, say: Verily, people ate the meat of their animals in the Battle of Khaybar, so the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, ordered their pots to be overturned and forbade them from it, and he did not declare it forbidden (haram)!
5 عن زرارة عن أحدهما فی أَبْوَالِ الدَّوَابِّ تُصِیبُ الثَّوْبَ فَکَرِهَهُ فَقُلْتُ أَلَیْسَ لُحُومُهَا حَلَالًا فقال بَلَی وَ لَکِنْ لَیْسَ مِمَّا جَعَلَهُ اللَّهُ لِلْأَکْل
📚 Kafi, Vol. 3, p. 57
Zurarah narrated from one of the two Imams, Baqir or Sadiq, peace be upon them, that he disliked the urine of pack animals (horses, mules, and donkeys). I said: But isn't their meat permissible?! He said: Yes! But these are not from the animals that Allah, the Exalted, has designated for eating!
6 عن ابن مسکان قال: سَأَلْتُ أباعبداللَّه (علیه السلام) عَنْ لُحُومِ الْحَمِیرِ فَقَالَ نَهَی رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلی الله علیه و آله عَنْ أَکْلِهَا یَوْمَ خَیْبَرَ قال و سَأَلْتُهُ عَنْ أَکْلِ الْخَیْلِ و الْبِغَالِ فقال نَهَی رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلی الله علیه و آله عَنْهَا فَلَا تَأْکُلُوهَا إِلَّا أَنْ تُضْطَرُّوا إِلَیْهَا
📚 Kafi, Vol. 6, p. 246
Ibn Muskan said: I asked Imam Sadiq, peace be upon him, about the meat of a donkey; the Imam said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, forbade it in the Battle of Khaybar!
He said: And I asked the Imam about the meat of a horse and a mule; the Imam said: Do not eat it unless you are in a state of necessity and compulsion!
7 Muhammad ibn Muslim said: I asked Imam Baqir, peace be upon him, about the meat of a horse and a mule; the Imam said: It is permissible, but people have an aversion to it!
📚 Tahdhib, Vol. 9, p. 41
✅ Based on the above narrations and others, eating the meat of a domestic donkey, horse, and mule has not been forbidden and is permissible, but because Allah, the Exalted (in Surah An-Nahl, verse 8 and others), has designated these for riding and carrying loads and has not designated them for eating, and for some other reasons mentioned in the above narrations and others, eating their meat has been made 'makrooh' (disliked), although eating their meat is not forbidden and is permissible.
✅ Eating the meat of a wild donkey or zebra is permissible without being 'makrooh', and its narrations can be viewed at this link:
اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَی مُحَمَّدٍ وَ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ و عَجِّلْ لِوَلِیِّکَ الْفَرَجَ و الْعَافِیَةَ و النَّصْر