Quora Answer: Are Predatory Fish Halal?

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ 

The following is my answer to a Quora question: “Are predatory fish halal?” 

There is this verse, in the Qur’an: 

سُوۡرَةُ المَائدة

أُحِلَّ لَكُمۡ صَيۡدُ ٱلۡبَحۡرِ وَطَعَامُهُ ۥ مَتَـٰعً۬ا لَّكُمۡ وَلِلسَّيَّارَةِ‌ۖ وَحُرِّمَ عَلَيۡكُمۡ صَيۡدُ ٱلۡبَرِّ مَا دُمۡتُمۡ حُرُمً۬ا‌ۗ وَٱتَّقُواْ ٱللَّهَ ٱلَّذِىٓ إِلَيۡهِ تُحۡشَرُونَ (٩٦) 

Lawful to you is the pursuit of water-game and its use for food ― for the benefit of yourselves and those who travel; but forbidden is the pursuit of land-game:― as long as you are in the Sacred Precincts or in pilgrim garb.  And fear Allah, to whom you shall be Gathered Back. (Surah al-Ma’idah:96) 

This verse, Itself, does not stipulate whether this “game” is herbivorous or carnivorous.  However, it may be understood to not refer to fish, but other animals found in the water, and hunted, such as sea birds and other aquatic animals, such as turtles.  Fish are generally caught through nets, lines and other paraphernalia, and not “hunted” per se. 

As recorded by Imam Abu ‘Isa Muhammad ibn ‘Isa as-Sulami at-Tirmidzi (r.a.), in his Jami’ al-Mukhtaswar min as-Sunan ‘an Rasulullah wa Ma’rifat asw-Swahih wa al-Ma’lul wa ma ‘Alayhi al-‘Amal, better known as Jami’ at-Tirmidzi, that Sayyidina Abu Hurayrah ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Sakhr ad-Dawsi az-Zahrani al-Azdi (r.a.) reported that the Prophet (s.a.w.) was asked about sea water, he said, “Its water is purifying for ablution, and its dead animals are lawful to eat.” 

Based on this, and other ahadits, prophetic narrations, we may eat any animal from the sea, provided it is not poisonous, or for ethical reasons, not endangered.  There are positions within Ja’fari, and Hanafi fiqh, jurisprudence, where certain or all shellfish, is haram, forbidden, but these are minor differences of opinion.  Almost every type of fish we eat is predatory.  Were it a prohibition, we would have almost nothing to eat from the sea.