Jhatka
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Jhatka, or Jhataka (càṭkā, Punjabi:
Etymology
Jhatka (
Importance in Sikhism
Although not all Sikhs maintain the practice of eating meat butchered in this style, it is well known by most Sikhs to have been mandated by the ten Sikh Gurus:
According to the Sikh tradition, only such meat as is obtained from an animal which is killed with one stroke of the weapon causing instant death is fit for human consumption. Guru Gobind Singh took a rather serious view of this aspect of the whole matter. He, therefore, while permitting flesh to be taken as food repudiated the whole theory of this expiatory sacrifice. Accordingly, he made jhatka meat obligatory for those Sikhs who may be interested in taking meat as a part of their food.
As stated in the official
Jhatka karna or jhatkaund refers to the instant severing of the head of an animal with a single stroke of any weapon, with the underlying intention of killing the animal whilst causing it minimal suffering.[2]
During the
On religious Sikh festivals, including
Opposition
Some Sikh organizations, such as the Akhand Kirtani Jatha, have their own codes of conduct regarding meat consumption. These organizations define kutha meat as any type of slaughtered meat, and eating meat of any type is forbidden aside from that which is slaughtered on religious festivals and individual "Akhand paht" three-day prayers.[9]
In early 1987 Kharkus issued a moral code banning the sale and consumption of meat and for jhatka shops to be closed. The ban led to much of Punjab being without meat and the closing of jhatka shops. Those who continued to sell or eat meat risked death and commonly would have their businesses destroyed and be killed. One survey found that there were no meat or tobacco shops between Amritsar and Phagwara. In the peak of the militancy, most of Punjab was meatless. Famous restaurants that served meat had removed it from their menu and denied ever serving it. The ban was popular among rural Sikhs. Kharkus justified the ban by saying, "No avatars, Hindu or Sikh, ever did these things. To eat meat is the job of rakshasas (demons) and we don't want people to become rakshasas."[10][11][12][13]
Comparison with Kosher and Halal methods
Both methods use sharp knives. In the
Terminology for non-jhatka products
Slaughter by means such as
In Sikhism, there are three objections to non-jhatka or kutha products: the first being the belief that sacrificing an animal in the name of God is ritualism and something to be avoided; the second being the belief that killing an animal with a slow bleeding method is inhumane; and the third being historic opposition of the right of ruling Muslims to impose its practices on non-Muslims.
Availability
In Ajmer (Rajasthan, India), there are many jhatka shops, with various bylaws requiring shops to display clearly that they sell jhatka meat.[23]
By contrast there is no rule to affix board marking shops selling
In the past, there has been little availability of jhatka meat in the United Kingdom, so people have found themselves eating other types of meat,[24] although jhatka has become more widely available.[25]
See also
- Halal – Islamic term for "permissible" things
- Christian dietary laws – Christian principles for daily food
- Dhabihah – Animal slaughter in Islamic law (Muslim method of ritual slaughter)
- Legal aspects of ritual slaughter
- Diet in Sikhism – Views on what followers of Sikhism are permitted to eat
- Shechita – Ritual slaughter of an animal in Jewish law
- Meat consumption among Sikhs
- Rehat – Code of Conduct for Sikhs
References
- ^ "Jhatiti, Jhaṭiti: 10 definitions". www.wisdomlib.org. 24 March 2019. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-61069-412-4., Quote: "Jhatka, which comes from the Sanskrit word jhatiti meaning "at once", is a method of slaughter in which a single rapid jerk or blow to the head is believed to produce the least amount of suffering for the animal. (...) Unlike in Islam, there is no religious ritual that accompanies the killing."
- ISBN 978-8170102458, pages 81-82
- ^ ISBN 9789386446695– via Google Books.
- ISBN 978-1-64760-859-0.
- ISBN 81-7304-058-3"And one Semitic practice clearly rejected in the Sikh code of conduct is eating flesh of an animal cooked in ritualistic manner; this would mean kosher and halal meat. The reason again does not lie in religious tenet but in the view that killing an animal with a prayer is not going to ennoble the flesh. No ritual, whoever conducts it, is going to do any good either to the animal or to the diner. Let man do what he must to assuage his hunger. If what he gets, he puts to good use and shares with the needy, then it is well used and well spent, otherwise not."
- ISBN 81-7010-200-6 "The practice of the Gurus is uncertain. Guru Nanak seems to have eaten venison or goat, depending upon different Janamsakhiversions of a meal which he cooked at Kurukshetra which evoked the criticism of Brahmins. Guru Amardas ate only rice and lentils but this abstention cannot be regarded as evidence of vegetarianism, only of simple living. Guru Gobind Singh also permitted the eating of meat but he prescribed that it should be jhatka meat and never Halal meat that is in the Muslim fashion."
- ^ a b "The most special occasion of the Chhauni is the festival of Diwali which is celebrated for ten days. This is the only Sikh shrine at Amritsar where Maha Prasad (meat) is served on special occasions in Langar", The Sikh review, Volume 35, Issue 409 - Volume 36, Issue 420, Sikh Cultural Centre, 1988
- ^ Spirit, Khalsa. "Khalsa Rehat". KhalsaSpirit.com. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
- ^ "AISSF forces shopkeepers to shut liquor and meat shops in Punjab". India Today. Retrieved 2023-09-14.
- ^ "Sikh militants in Punjab, putting a moral edge on... - UPI Archives". UPI. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
- ISBN 978-93-5150-953-0.
- ISBN 978-1-317-75178-6.
- ^ ISBN 978-1845932152, pages 207-208
- ^ ISBN 978-1611861747
- ISBN 978-1-351-90010-2.
- ISBN 978-0-415-44851-2.
The Sikh Rahit Maryada forbids hair cutting, adultery, the use of intoxicants, and the eating of kutha meat, or meat of an animal or fowl slaughtered slowly.
- ISBN 978-0-415-44851-2., Quote: "The Sikh Rahit Maryada forbids hair cutting, adultery, the use of intoxicants, and the eating of Kutha meat, that is Muslim halal meat, obtained through the slow bleeding or religious sacrifice of animals".
- ISBN 978-1-4426-0516-9.
- ISBN 978-81-7010-245-8. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
- ^ Aditya Menon (14 May 2020). "Why Hindutva Outfits Are Calling for a Boycott of Halal Products". The Quint. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
- ISBN 978-93-5388-377-5. Retrieved 2022-06-10.
mostly practised in Shakti cult, while Puranas and the Gita forbid animal sacrifice.
- ^ Order No. Tax/F.15(25)DLB/63 Published in the Govt. Gazette on 13-02-1965 (Part 6)
- ISBN 1-85856-353-4
- ISBN 0-8138-0714-X
External links
- The Politics of Sikh Identity: Understanding Religious Exclusion, Paramjit S. Judge and Manjit Kaur (2010)
- The Myth of Goat Sacrifice and Hazoor Sahib
- Sikh Scholar Views on Diet