The Book of Hunting, Slaughter, and what may be Eaten — Hadith 4908

Arabic Text

حَدَّثَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ حَاتِمٍ، حَدَّثَنَا بَهْزٌ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو عَقِيلٍ الدَّوْرَقِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو نَضْرَةَ، عَنْ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ، أَنَّ أَعْرَابِيًّا، أَتَى رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَقَالَ إِنِّي فِي غَائِطٍ مَضَبَّةٍ وَإِنَّهُ عَامَّةُ طَعَامِ أَهْلِي - قَالَ - فَلَمْ يُجِبْهُ فَقُلْنَا عَاوِدْهُ ‏.‏ فَعَاوَدَهُ فَلَمْ يُجِبْهُ ثَلاَثًا ثُمَّ نَادَاهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فِي الثَّالِثَةِ فَقَالَ ‏ "‏ يَا أَعْرَابِيُّ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَعَنَ أَوْ غَضِبَ عَلَى سِبْطٍ مِنْ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ فَمَسَخَهُمْ دَوَابَّ يَدِبُّونَ فِي الأَرْضِ فَلاَ أَدْرِي لَعَلَّ هَذَا مِنْهَا فَلَسْتُ آكُلُهَا وَلاَ أَنْهَى عَنْهَا ‏"‏ ‏.‏

English Translation

Abu Sa'id reported that an Arab of the desert came to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and said: I live in a low land abounding in lizards, and these are the common diet of my family, but he (the Holy Prophet) did not make any reply. We said to him: Repeat it (your problem) and so he repeated it, but he did not make any reply. (It was repeated thrice ) Then Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) called him out at the third time saying: O man of the desert, verily Allah cursed or showed wrath to a tribe of Bani Isra'il and distorted them to beasts which move on the earth. I do not know, perhaps this (lizard) may be one of them. So I do not eat it, nor do I prohibit the eating of it.