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Hawam (creeping things: their sale, eating and killing)

هَوَام

Hawam is the plural of hamma, a creature with venom that kills, and sometimes used of harmless insects. 1 2 The jurists agree in general that the sale of creeping things with no benefit is not valid: the Hanafis, Shafi'is and Hanbalis hold that their sale does not conclude, while the Malikis hold them pure, and the sale of anything pure and useful is valid. 2 The Shafi'is and Hanbalis permit the sale of bees, as do the Malikis, and the Shafi'is require that delivery be possible. 2 3 Some jurists permit the sale of silkworms and their eggs before they move, since they are pure and yield silk. 3 4 Most jurists forbid eating creeping things, while the Malikis allow all kinds of insects. 4 Killing them is generally permitted outside the Sacred Precinct and for those not in ihram. 4

Depth

At a glance

Era
The Early Abbasid Caliphate
Region
Arabia
Review
Draft Completeness 1/5 · Help complete it

Animals and mercyHalal and haramWater and animals

Summary

Hawam is the plural of hamma, a creature with venom that kills, and sometimes used of harmless insects. 1 2

Sale

The jurists agree in general that the sale of creeping things with no benefit is not valid. 2 The Hanafis, Shafi'is and Hanbalis hold that their sale does not conclude; the Malikis hold them pure, and the sale of anything pure and useful valid. 2 The Shafi'is and Hanbalis permit the sale of bees, as do the Malikis, and the Shafi'is require delivery to be possible. 2 3 Some jurists permit the sale of silkworms and their eggs before they move, since they are pure and yield silk. 3 4

Eating and killing

Most jurists forbid eating creeping things; the Malikis allow all kinds of insects. 4 Killing them is generally permitted outside the Sacred Precinct and for those not in ihram. 4

People and things also explored

Hirr (the cat: purity, sale, damage and eating)· Akl (eating: lawful food and manners)· Wells (fiqh of wells)· The divine method: commands and prohibitions· Anam (livestock: camels, cattle and sheep, and their rulings)· Awqas (the gaps between the prescribed amounts of zakat on camels, cattle and sheep, and whether zakat is due on them)· Prohibition of misappropriating spoils (ghulul)· Hadi (the whitish fluid before childbirth: its ruling on ablution and purity)

Sources

  1. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.16571
  2. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.16572
  3. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.16573
  4. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.16574
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Hawam (creeping things: their sale, eating and killing)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/concept/hawam-fiqh/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-23.

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Hirr (the cat: purity, sale, damage and eating)

Hirr in the lexical sense is the male cat, with hirra for the female; it is a species of the feline family. The majority (Hanafis, Malikis, Shafi'is and Hanbalis) hold the cat pure, on the Prophet's words that it is not impure and is among those who go about you; a Hanafi view, that of al-Tahawi, holds it impure. Its remnant (su'r) is pure. Its urine and dung are impure in the sounder Hanafi narration, and impure for the Malikis and Shafi'is. Most jurists allow its sale as a pure animal of use; the Shafi'is limit that to the domestic cat, and some scholars, including Abu Hurayra and Mujahid, dislike it, citing the report of Jabir on the price of the dog and the cat. The Hanbalis and the sounder Shafi'i view hold the owner liable for damage a habitually destructive cat causes. On killing an attacking cat, the Shafi'is permit killing only when no lesser repulse works; a habitually harmful cat may be killed according to some Shafi'i and Maliki views. Eating its flesh is forbidden by most Hanafis, the Hanbalis in the sounder view and some Malikis, and allowed by some Shafi'is.