The fourth verse

His saying, Exalted is He:

“Say: I find nothing in what has been revealed to me that is forbidden for anyone to eat, unless it be carrion or blood poured out,”

to the end of the verse. Whatever he finds no prohibition against is not forbidden, and whatever is not forbidden is lawful. Similar to this verse is His saying:

“He has only forbidden you carrion, blood, and the flesh of swine,”

to the end of the verse. The particle “only” restricts the former to the latter; thus, forbidden things must be confined to those mentioned. The Book also establishes this comprehensive principle in other passages.

The second category: The Sunnah

Two hadiths come to mind here.

The first hadith: In the two Sahīh collections, Saʿd ibn Abī Waqqās reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“The Muslim who incurs the greatest guilt is one who asks about something that has not been forbidden, and it is then forbidden because of his question.”

This indicates that things become forbidden only through a specific prohibition, as shown by his words, “has not been forbidden.” It also indicates that a prohibition may arise because of a question, thereby making clear that, without it, those things are not forbidden. This is the point being established.

The second hadith: Abū Dāwūd narrated in his Sunan that Salmān al-Fārisī said:

“The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was asked about clarified butter, cheese, and furs. He said: ‘What is lawful is what Allah has declared lawful in His Book, and what is forbidden is what Allah has forbidden in His Book. Whatever He has remained silent about is among the things He has pardoned.’”

This provides evidence in two ways: