Western thinkers and writers who attempt to express themselves on subjects dealing with the Quranic teachings are often led astray, not always on account of prejudice as it is often thought, but rather on account of their ignorance of the basic concepts of the Quran.  For example, I reproduce herewith an extract from an article entitled “Hygiene and Medicine in the Koran,” by Dr. Brandenburg, in “Medical Mirror”

(1969-No.2), a journal published by E. Merck A.G., Darmstadt, Germany.   It states:

“Many principles in Islamic religion and many characteristics of the cult have their roots in the Arabian heathenism or are closely connected with cults borrowed from Judaism and Christianity.  The teachings of Muhammad (peace be upon him) give the faithful a number of regulations governing Hygiene, which like other commandments are derived in part from ancient Arabian rites, from Jewish prototypes, in particular from Mosaic Law, in other words from ancient oriental customs.  If we compare the relevant passages in the Bible and the Koran, we find that they have much in common.”

            The above description gives a false and misleading impression that the contents of the Quran comprise of a borrowed and a man-made material.  For those who begin to write on the Quran with preconceived distorted ideas, as stated above, it is very difficult to do justice to the Quranic teachings.  I explain herewith the true position.  I may point out, at the outset, that the Law-giver of the universe is One.  He has revealed His law to humanity step by step, every fresh edition of these laws being the late edition of the one preceding it.  The messengers of God appeared on earth in different ages.  Everytime a messenger came, he brought the same universal truth explained in the manner understandable by the people of his age.  But after a lapse of time, man-made ideas infiltrated into the divine message and human self-interest made His followers deviate from the path shown by Him until another messenger came with basically the same message but consistent with the intellect of his people.  This process continued until man was mature enough to receive a complete code of life, applicable for all times to come.

This final code of life or the latest edition of the Laws given by Allah to mankind is today contained in the Quran only.  Allah took upon Himself the assemblage, the correct recital and the explanation of the Quranic verses ( 75: 17-19).  Allah also took upon Himself the safety of the book.  The great proclamation of the Quran is before us: “We have without doubt sent down the message and We will assuredly guard it (from corruption)” (15:9).

              Stating briefly, the Quran is an unadulterated divine message, which is final and complete.  It is a confirmation of the revelation that went before it and is a criterion of differentiation between right and wrong.  It places things related to human problems in an orderly manner, in correct perspective and in exact proportion.  It discloses hidden realities of life.  It is a constructive book whose code of life promotes preservation, stability, growth and manifestation of human personality as well as of human society.

It is a book whose laws are based on permanent values.

              What I want to impress upon the readers by the above description is that non-Muslims, when they venture to write on a Quranic subject, are not able differentiate between a revealed book present in its original form and the one corrupted and encroached upon by human sentiments and ideas.

            Secondly, it may be pointed out that the contents of the Quran comprise of injunctions, laws and permanent values that form the fundamentals of the Quranic teachings and are intended to guide the destiny of mankind.  With few exceptions, these fundamentals are not accompanies by details which have been left for the people of respective ages to decide according to the needs and circumstances of a particular age.

              Thirdly, it may be noted that a messenger of God, on whom revelation descends, although he establishes a social order based on the fundamental principles revealed to him, but at the same time he keeps in view the customs and usages prevalent in the society around him before the descent of revelation.  Such customs and usages that do not come into conflict with the revealed fundamentals, and are at the same time useful, are allowed to be kept up; and those that go against them are not allowed to be continued.

              Fourthly, it must be kept in mind, that the revealed message, sent to humanity thorough the messengers of God in their respective ages, being the same in essence, there are bound to be so many things common between the Quran and the earlier revealed books.  But this does not mean that previous religions or the customs and usages of pre-Islamic era are the prototypes of Islam and were injudiciously followed by the Muslims.

              Fifthly, the western writers, on account of  their having a poor first hand knowledge of the Quranic teachings, are misled by the “Ahadis” literature.  As it is extremely difficult for everybody to differentiate a true “Hadis” from a forged one, the authenticity of each “Hadis” that suits their purpose is taken for granted and is made to fit into their own description.  “Ahadis” are, at best, the sayings of the Rasool (peace be upon him), collected centuries after his death and vitiated by so many human distortions.

The Quran is the only divine message now present on the face of the earth in its original and unadulterated form.

              Being unable to realise the above said obstacles in the way of their true assessment of the Islamic way of life, the western writers present views on subjects related to Islam, which are far from reality. 

            Here, in the pages that follow, I have described, “Food and Hygiene in Islam” and have tried to explain the true import of the Quranic verses on the subject.

              Let us make it clear on the outset that the Quranic injunctions are a beautiful blend of physical and spiritual aspects of human life, so much so that ordinary day to day activities of man become a part and parcel of obedience to the Creator, thus making the acts performed by believers in the Quran well-guided, well-controlled and well-organized.  It forms the basis of discipline, the likes of which is nowhere to be seen in the human world, not even in the highly-trained and disciplined armies.  Take, for instance, the prayers in congregation.  It is not only a manifestation of subservience to Allah Almighty but is also an unparalleled discipline.  It makes a believer not only accustomed to obedience to one command, but also time-conscious, so that the daily period of 24 hours becomes automatically and uniformly divided, inculcating regular habits, which become a matter of routine for the whole of his life.

            The holy Quran deals with all sorts of subjects including those related to science.

Nearly one-eighth of the Quranic text relates to the phenomena of nature.  Matters related to food and hygiene form one such subject.  It does not mean that the Quran is a book of science, yet it blends hygienic principles into a discipline, so that they assume the form of a ritual.  A believer thus observes these principles as part of obedience to the divine command.