O seeker, take note: mā following idhā is an additional particle.
All additional particles in the Quran, the sunnah, or Arabic speech serve to emphasize.
Thus, the basic ruling concerning foods is permissibility for believers, but not for others. The disbeliever will not raise a morsel to his mouth without being punished for it on the Day of Resurrection; nor will he swallow a sip of water without being punished for it on the Day of Resurrection; nor will he cover himself or warm himself with a thread of cotton without being held to account for it on the Day of Resurrection.
This tremendous principle, to which the Quran and the sunnah attest, is expressed in the Prophet’s saying, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him: “Allah, exalted is He, has ordained obligatory duties, so do not neglect them; He has set limits, so do not transgress them; and He has left certain matters unmentioned out of mercy for you, not out of forgetfulness, so do not inquire into them.” (1) And he said: “Whatever He has left unmentioned is pardoned.” (2)
From this principle, established by the Quran and the sunnah and agreed upon by Muslims in general, we derive the following benefit: whenever anyone says that something is forbidden—whether something eaten, drunk, or