Why is the usage of pork forbidden in Islam?

Consumption of pork is prohibited in Islam is well known fact. Read on to know various reasons of this prohibition:

Pork prohibited in Qur’an

The Qur’an prohibits the consumption of pork in no less than 4 different places. It is prohibited in 2:173, 5:3, 6:145 and 16:115.
“Forbidden to you (for food) are: dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which hath been invoked the name of other than Allah.” [Al-Qur’an 5:3]

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

Pork prohibited in the Bible

The Bible, too, prohibits the consumption of pork, in the book of Leviticus-

“And the swine, though he divide 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 11:7-8]

Pork is also prohibited in the Bible in the book of Deuteronomy

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“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 14:8]

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

Medically speaking, eating pork causes various diseases

Medicine has now proved that 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 is in lay man’s terminology called tapeworm. It thrives in the intestine and its ova i.e. eggs, enter the blood stream and can reach almost all the organs of the body. Thus, it can damage almost all the organs of the body.

Another vicarious helminth is Trichuris Tichura. 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 Tichuriasis, twenty two had cooked the pork very well. This indicates that the ova present in the pork do not die with normal cooking temperatures. So, any logical person should avoid pork for better health.

Pork = Fat

As a doctor, I can say that Pork has very little muscle building nutrients and contains excess of fat. This fat gets deposited within the vessels and can block them causing cause hypertension and heart attack. It is not surprising that over 50% of Americans suffer from hypertension.

Doubtlessly, Pig is one of the filthiest animals on earth

It lives and thrives on muck, faeces and dirt. It is one of the best scavenger that God has produced. In the villages, especially in India, where they do not have modern toilets and the villagers excrete in the open air, very often this waste is cleared by pigs.

Some may argue that in advanced countries like Australia, pigs are bred in very clean and hygienic conditions. Even in these hygienic conditions the pigs are kept together in sties. No matter how hard you try to keep them clean they are filthy by nature. They eat and enjoy their own as well as their neighbour’s excreta. Pig is the most shameless animal on earth

The reason being it is the only animal that invites its friends to have sex with its mate. And its an old notion that a person becomes what he eats. Here’s a ‘little’ proof. In America, most people consume pork willingly. Many a times after dance parties, they indulge in this shameless act called ‘wife swapping’; i.e. many say “you sleep with my wife and I will sleep with your wife.” If you eat pigs then you behave like pigs. We Asians, look upon America to be very advanced and sophisticated. And whatever they do, we follow after a few years. According to an article in Island magazine, this practice of swapping wives has now become common in the affluent circles of Indian metropolitan cities as well. I don’t think it can get anymore shameless than that. Lest people start enjoying excreta as delicacies some day!

I hope that these reasons should now be enough to prove the importance of staying miles away from this nasty thing called pork, which is not only religiously banned, but also logically speaking should be never consumed or used in any form.

Dr. Aafreen Kotadiya
MGM College & University