as is commonly done nowadays in our land: they make it kneel, bind its forelegs and hind legs, twist its neck, tie it with a rope over its back, and then slaughter it by piercing.

So we say: if a person is unable to follow the sunnah and fears for himself, or fears that the animal may die, there is no harm in binding it and slaughtering it by piercing while it is kneeling.

His statement, “then he pierces it with a spear”: the author has explained the manner of slaughtering by piercing: he pierces it with a spear—mentioned merely as an example—or with a knife, a sword, or anything that wounds and causes the blood to flow freely.

His statement, “in the hollow between the base of the neck and the chest”: this is near the animal’s forelegs and is well known. When he pierces it, he draws the spear so as to sever the windpipe and the esophagus.

His statement, “and the others are slaughtered by cutting the throat”: this is in the accusative case because it is coordinated with the verbal noun in his statement, “The sunnah is to slaughter camels by piercing,” so that one verbal noun is joined to another. The intended meaning is: the sunnah is to slaughter camels by piercing and to slaughter other animals by cutting the throat. An example is the verse:

“To wear a cloak and thereby delight my eye
is dearer to me than wearing thin garments.”

His statement, “the others,” means animals other than camels. Slaughtering by cutting the throat is done at the upper part of the neck, not its lower part, whereas slaughtering by piercing is done at its lower part. This is why camels die more quickly than sheep, goats, and cattle: piercing is close to the heart, so the blood gushes forth rapidly from it. If the camel were slaughtered at the head, it would suffer pain from the slaughter, because the blood would have to travel between