Explanation

In this Hadīth, Rāfi‘ ibn Khadīj (may Allah be pleased with him) reports: We were with the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) in Dhul al-Hulayfah when the people were stricken by hunger. They got camels and sheep as war booty. He added: The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) was behind the people. They hurried and slaughtered the animals and put their meat in pots and started cooking it. (When the Prophet came), he ordered the pots to be overturned. Then, he distributed the animals (of the booty), regarding ten sheep as equal to one camel. One of the camels fled and the people ran after it till they were exhausted. There were only a few horses with them. A man threw an arrow at the camel, and Allah stopped the camel with it. The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Some of these animals are like wild animals. So, if you lose control over one of these animals, treat it in this way." Before distributing them among the soldiers, my grandfather said: "We may meet the enemy soon and we have no knives; can we slaughter the animals with reeds?" The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Use whatever causes blood to flow, and eat the animals if the name of Allah has been mentioned before slaughtering them. Do not slaughter with teeth or claws, and I will tell you why: It is because teeth are bones and claws are the knives of the Abyssinians."