It's Friday 2nd March 3.56pm. At 5pm, I'm supposed to send this 2500 word limit research project on food to the sociology department. Of course I'm not going to la...but must say mah coz I'm supposed to.Fortunately I asked for an extension till tomorrow coz right now if I were to send this 1000 mess I just did since 1pm just now, I'm screwed.I know I'm supposed to finish this up by yesterday at least buyt honestly the past one week has been mind boggling for me. And extension is really a saving grace right now.
Well this is what I've done so far...
Introduction
Walking around the IMM mall, a shop selling Hong Kong delicacies caught my eye. Not that the food looks good but rather I was interested in their signage. There written in one corner was a phrase in bold saying “No Pork No Lard”. This was not my first encounter with such phrase though. A few years ago, I had gone to eat with a friend of the same faith and she ate a yong tau foo meal from one of these shops with the “No Pork No lard” signage. It didn’t exactly raise my eyebrow but I was a little apprehensive.
The truth is, we are Muslims and our faith is Islam. Like other religions, our lifestyles are regulated by certain religious guidelines and laws. Food is one of them. Our dietary consumption, or at least eating outside of the home, has been somehow guided by the Halal sign we see at the shops. Though Muslim-owned eatery/foodstalls are not required to put up the Halal certification for it is trusted that the owner would served “pure” Halal food(cite), the rest which is neither owned nor served by Muslims are required to do so. The Halal certification which is endorsed by Majils Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS), also known as the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore, “played an important role as the custodian of Halal food assurance for Singapore’s 15% Muslim population.”(MUIS,2007)
Thus with such signage proclaiming the absence of pork and lard in the food, its validity as Halal, meaning permissible in Arabic,is questioned. Halal food is not about mere replacing the pork and lard with other sources. Theologically, it is one that follows the Sharia Law and what has been permitted or forbidden in the Quran. However with the various understanding, constructions and negotiations of such food rules, it is not strange to see Muslims from partaking the food at these “No Pork No Lard” joints.
Therefore in this paper, I will be looking at the relatively new occurence that has been seen to replace or at least “threatened” to, the validity of Halal food in Singapore. Though still small in number, its presence cannot be ignored.
Methodology and objectives
In doing this paper, I have adopted the qualitative interview approach in getting data from the informants. I have interviewed 10 informants of which I grouped them into 2, Muslims and non-Muslims equally. All the informants were given the same set of questions (Refer to Annex) which ranges from what to them is Halal and otherwise to their opinion relating to the topic of this project.
The objectives of the questions asked is to gain insights to how they perceive what is Halal and/or otherwise. The aim here is not so much to look into the theological explanations of the Muslim food rules but rather its social significance. As noted by Noorman Abdullah, meanings of the terms Halal and Haram “are not static and homogenous but are themselves socially constructed”. Thus by recognizing that these terms are “negotiated and socially structured by social actors”, it also recognizes the human agency in such categorization. (cite).
The reason why I had divided the informants into 2 groups i.e. Muslims and non-Muslims is to contrast or even see the similarities between the understandings of the 2 such groups. Being in a multiracial and multireligious society, my aim is to see as to whether the Muslims have portrayed and given a “well-informed” understanding of the term Halal and haram to the non-Muslims. At the same time, to see also what the non-Muslims have gathered and understand about the Islamic food rules. Through the understanding of the 2, I would then see if it caused and affected in one way or another, the emergence of the “No pork no lard” generation.
What is Halal and Haram?
Before going on to the argument on “No Pork No lard”, let me explain what is again Halal and Haram in greater details. Halal, as the term implies in Arabic, means permissible or lawful. With this, Halal food thus refers to food that is suitable for Muslims consumption. Apart from the popular notion that Halal is just about abstaining from pork or perhaps lard, and alcohol, there are other considerations needed to be put in place. From the paper, MUIS: Halal Certification, food are considered halal based on
1) not interfere with or harm the normal functioning of mind and body
2) free of najis (filth) and carrion or animal not properly slaughtered in accordance to the Sharia Law
3) free from flesh of pigs or dogs or other haram animals of which may include animals with fangs, filthy creatures and donkeys.
Therefore basing on the assumption that the Halal-ness of food is just about the absence pork would be inaccurate. This is because even with the flesh of chicken and other meat sources, these animals have to be slaughtered,as mentioned, according to Sharia Law of which there are again guidelines to adhere to.
Haram on the other hand is the exact opposite. Haram denotes the unlawful and the prohibited. Therefore haram food would be one that is prohibited for consumption. This includes the opposites of the traits given above which is flesh of pig, animal that is not properly slaughtered, carrion, etc.
However there are more than what is perceived the dichotomy of Islamic food laws. Besides Halal and Haram, there are other rules to take note of. These are the terms called shubhah or masbuh and makruh.
Shubhah or masbuh, meaning questionable or dubious in Arabic, is used to describe any food or drink which “lies within the grey area and does not fall clearly under the Halal or non-Halal category.”(MUIS,2007) Muslims, therefore, should avoid consuming Syubhah food or drinks for the Prophet had once said that “whoever distanced himself from it, he has acquitted himself from blame. And those who fall into it, he has fallen into a state of Haram.” Makruh on the other hand are food that is neither “objectionable nor discouraged by Islam, but not haram”. (Noorman) This is to say that eating food deemed as makruh would neither be sinful nor one that receives grace.
Therefore with such terms defined and explained in greater details, in the next section, we will see the informants’ understandings of Halal and Haram and how this might cause and affected the “no pork no lard” occurrence. And with this, we will delve into the social significance of this new occurrence.
Ok, no?
This is just the explaining,descriptive part,there's still the analysing and whatnots.
Torture la these essays...let's just hope I get at least a B+ coz honestly if slogging for an essay gives u a B and below, it's just so $%#@&#@!!$^&)(&%
Hanim