1157 – On the authority of Abū Qatādah, may Allah be pleased with him, regarding the incident of the wild donkey: “The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) ate some of it.” Agreed upon.⦗1⦘

What is derived from the ḥadith:

1. Ḥayāt al-Ḥayawān notes that the wild donkey is also called al-farāʾ; it has a long lifespan and is classed as game. Sharḥ al-Iqnāʿ states that for every wild donkey taken, one must offer a cow in compensation—a verdict handed down by ʿUmar. ʿUrwah and Mujāhid explained that this is because the cow is the animal that most closely resembles it.

2. The full wording of the ḥadith, as recorded by al-Bukhārī and Muslim, is that Abū Qatādah said: “One day I was sitting with a group of the Prophet’s Companions (peace and blessings be upon him) in a house on the road to Mecca. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was ahead of us. The people with him were in iḥrām (a state of consecration) while I was not, for this occurred in the year of Ḥudaybiyah. They noticed a wild donkey as I was busy mending my sandals, but they did not inform me—though they wished I had seen it. When I turned and caught sight of it, I went to my horse, saddled it, and mounted, forgetting my whip and spear. I said to them, ‘Hand me the whip and spear.’ They replied, ‘By Allah, we will not help you with regard to it.’ I grew angry, dismounted, picked them up myself, then mounted again, charged the donkey and struck it down. I brought it to them after it had died, and they started eating it. Later they became doubtful about eating it while they were in iḥrām. That evening we travelled on, and I concealed the foreleg with me. When we met the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) we asked him about it. He said, ‘Do any of you still have some of it?’ I answered, ‘Yes,’ and handed him the foreleg. He ate it while he was in iḥrām, and then asked, ‘Did anyone point it out to him or order him to hunt it?’ They replied, ‘No.’ He said, ‘Then eat it.’”

3. The ḥadith establishes the permissibility of eating the meat of the wild donkey; it is counted among the wholesome kinds of game. The scholars unanimously agree on its lawfulness. Imām al-Shāfiʿī said: “We know of no disagreement concerning the permissibility of the wild donkey’s meat except what has been reported from Muṭarrif ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Shikhkhīr, and the entire body of scholars stands opposed to his view.”