Salafi Research Institute SRI
Sharḥ ʿUmdatul Aḥkām
Kitāb al-Aṭʿimah – [The Book of Eating]
Translated Abu Ubaydah
Translated, Checked & Additional Notes
Abu Hibban & Abu Khuzaimah Ansaari
The Permissibility of Eating Locusts
[374] Narrated Abdullah Ibn Abu `Aufa (Radi Allahu Anhu):
We participated with the Prophet (Sallalahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) in seven Ghazawat (battles), and we used to eat locusts with him.
[GRADING] – [NARRATED BY MUSLIM]
[REFERENCES]
Transmitted by
Bukhari, Book of Hunting, Slaughtering, Chapter: The eating of locusts [no.5495]
Muslim, Book of The Book of Hunting, Slaughter, and what may be Eaten, Chapter: The permissibility of eating Locusts [no.1952]
Abu Dawud [no.3812], Tirmidhi [no.1821-1822], Nasai [7:210], Ahmad [4:380], Darimi [no.2010], Musnad Humaidi [no.713]
[RULINGS FROM THE HADITH]
1) This hadith establishes that locusts are halal. You eat them by frying (boiling, grilling, cooking etc.) them.
2) Shaikh Abdullah Bassam mentions there is ijma of the Muslims on the lawfulness of eating locusts. [Tawḍih al-Aḥkam [7:10]
3) It was narrated from ‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar that the Messenger of Allah (Sallalahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) said:
“Two kinds of dead meat and two kinds of blood have been permitted to us. The two kinds of dead meat are fish and locusts, and the two kinds of blood are the liver and spleen” (Sunan Ibn Majah, Book of Food, [no.3218, Ahmad [2:97 no.5690]
4) This is one of the best diets (rations) to have whilst being in battle because:
- Readily available and you don’t need to look after them like other animals such as cows, chicken etc.
- Plenty of them available when they (typically) come in swarms
- They mature within weeks and reproduce in large numbers
- Easy to cook
- High in protein and good fats
- Lightweight to carry
