Jhatka

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Jhatka or Chatka (jhàṭkā IPA: [tʃə̀ʈkɑ]) is meat from an animal that has been killed instantly, such as by a single strike of a sword or axe to sever the head, as opposed to ritualistically slow slaughter (kutha) in the halal method (dhabihah).[1]

Jhatka is the method of meat production demanded by many Hindus, Sikhs and Christians in India, while Halal is demanded by the Muslims and Kosher by the Jews.[1][2]

Etymology[edit]

Jhatka (Hindi: झटका jhaṭkā IPA: [dʒʰəʈkɑ]; Punjabi: ਝਟਕਾ (Gurmukhi), جھٹکا (Shahmukhi)) is derived from Sanskrit word Jhatiti (झटिति) which means "instantly, quickly, at once".[3]

Hindus and jhatka[edit]

Historically and currently,[4] those Hindus who eat meat prescribe jhatka meat.[5] Many Shaivite Hindus engage in jhatka methods as part of religious dietary laws, as influenced by some Shakta doctrines, which permit the consumption of meat (except beef, which is universally proscribed in Hinduism). During Durga Puja and Kali Puja among some Shaivite Hindus in Punjab, Mithila, Bengal and Kashmir, Jhatka meat is the required meat for those Shaivite Hindus who eat meat. In theory, most Western methods of animal killings for the purpose of meat are done with an instant blow to the head which can be interpreted as ‘jhatka’ meat. This could make it acceptable for some practicing Hindus & Sikhs to classify bolt gun killed animals as ‘jhatka’ meat.[6]

Sikhs and jhatka[edit]

Jhatka meat is mandated for Sikhs, for the following reason,[7][8]

According to the ancient Aryan Hindu tradition, only such meat as is obtained from an animal which is killed with one stroke of the weapon causing instantaneous death is fit for human consumption. However, with the coming of Islam into India and the Muslim political hegemony, it became a state policy not to permit slaughter of animals for food, in any other manner, except as laid down in the Quran - the kosher meat prepared by slowly severing the main blood artery of the throat of the animal while reciting verses from the Quran. It is done to make slaughter a sacrifice to God and to expiate the sins of the slaughter. 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 and the right of ruling Muslims to impose it on the non-Muslims. Accordingly, he made jhatka meat obligatory for those Sikhs who may be interested in taking meat as a part of their food.

— HS Singha, Sikhism, A Complete Introduction[9][8]

As stated in the official Khalsa Code of Conduct,[10] Kutha meat is forbidden, and Sikhs are recommended to eat the jhatka form of meat.[11][12]

For Sikhs jhatka karna or jhatkaund refers to the instantaneous 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.

During the British Raj, jhatka meat was not allowed in jails and Sikh detainees during the Akali movement and beyond had to resort to violence and agitations to secure this right. Among the terms in the settlement between the Akalis and the Muslim Unionist government in Punjab in 1942 was that jhatka meat be continued as a Sikh Martial Heritage.

On religious Sikh festivals, including Hola Mohalla and Vaisakhi, at the Gurdwara of Hazur Sahib, Fatehgarh Sahib and many other Sikh Gurdwaras,[13] jhatka meat is offered as "mahaprasad" to all visitors in a Gurdwara. This is regarded as food blessed by the Guru and should not be refused.

Buddhists and jhatka[edit]

In Mongolian culture, it is traditional to say Om mani padme hum into the ear of the animal before slaughtering it as instantly as possible .[citation needed]

Christians and jhatka[edit]

In terms of slaughtering animals for food, the method of jhatka (with a single strike to minimize pain) is preferred by many Christians,[1] although the Armenian Apostolic Church, among other Orthodox Christians, have rituals that "display obvious links with shechitah, Jewish kosher slaughter."[14]

Comparison of Jhatka, Shechita and Halal methods[edit]

All three methods use sharp knifes. The Jhatka method is closer to Shechita method of meat production than the halal method. In Shechita, the animal is slaughtered by one swift, uninterrupted cut severing the trachea, esophagus, carotid arteries, jugular veins and vagus nerves.[15][16] In Jhatka method, a swift uninterrupted cut severs all these and the spine.[15][16] In Halal method, the slaughter is done with a swift deep incision with a sharp knife on the throat, cutting the jugular veins and carotid arteries of both sides but leaving the spinal cord and nervous tissue intact, followed by a period where the blood of the animal is drained out.[15][16] A prayer to God is not required in Jhatka or Shchita methods with each animal commercially slaughtered, but a prayer to God (Allah) is required at the start or if there is any interruption during Halal meat production.[16]

Availability of jhatka meat[edit]

In India, there are many jhatka shops, with various bylaws requiring shops to display clearly that they sell jhatka meat.[17]

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,[18] although jhatka has become more widely available in the United Kingdom.[19]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Engineers, Niir Board Of Consultants & (2009). Medical, Municipal and Plastic Waste Management Handbook. National Institute of Industrial Research. p. 214. ISBN 9788186623916. Halal is the method preferred by Muslims and jhatka by the Hindus/Christians/Sikhs, etc. 
  2. ^ Rayall, Gurbachan Singh (31 Dec 1998). Punjabi University English-Punjabi dictionary. Foreign Language Study (in Punjabi and English). Punjabi University. ISBN 81-7380-095-2. Retrieved 28 November 2010. The Sikh Rahit Maryada forbids hair-cutting, adultery, the use of intoxicants, and the eating of kutha meat.
  3. ^ jhaTiti Sanskrit English Dictionary, Koeln University, Germany; same definition is in Monier Williams Sanskrit English Dictionary and Apte Etymology and Dictionary
  4. ^ "The Hindu : Sci Tech / Speaking Of Science : Changes in the Indian menu over the ages". Hinduonnet.com. 2004-10-21. Retrieved 2010-02-03. 
  5. ^ Das, Veena (13 February 2003). The Oxford India companion to sociology and social anthropology, Volume 1 1. OUP India. p. 151. ISBN 0-19-564582-0. Retrieved 13 June 2010. 
  6. ^ Jhatka, the Forgotten Meat. What is it?
  7. ^ Jhatka, The Sikh Encyclopedia
  8. ^ a b What is Jhatka Meat and Why? Jhatka Meat, Sikhism
  9. ^ HS Singha (2009),Sikhism: A Complete Introduction, Hemkunt Press, ISBN 978-8170102458, pages 81-82
  10. ^ 10 Misconception Regarding Sikhs
  11. ^ Singh, I. J., Sikhs and Sikhism 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.
  12. ^ Mini Encyclopaedia of Sikhism by H.S. Singha, Hemkunt Press, Delhi. ISBN 81-7010-200-6 The practice of the Gurus is uncertain. Guru Nanak seems to have eaten venison or goat, depending upon different Janamsakhi versions 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 not Halal meat that is jagged in the Muslim fashion.
  13. ^ "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
  14. ^ Grumett, David; Muers, Rachel (26 February 2010). Theology on the Menu: Asceticism, Meat and Christian Diet. Routledge. p. 121. ISBN 9781135188320. The Armenian and other Orthodox rituals of slaughter display obvious links with shechitah, Jewish kosher slaughter. 
  15. ^ a b c Neville Gregory and Temple Grandin (2007), Animal Welfare and Meat Production, CABI, ISBN 978-1845932152, pages 207-208
  16. ^ a b c d Amy J Fitzgerald (2015), Animals as Food, Michigan State University Press, ISBN 978-1611861747
  17. ^ Order No. Tax/F.15(25)DLB/63 Published in the Govt. Gazette on 13-02-1965 (Part 6)
  18. ^ Sikh women in England: their religious and cultural beliefs and social practices By S. K. Rait, p. 63 Trentham Books, 2005 ISBN 1-85856-353-4
  19. ^ Food safety and quality assurance: foods of animal origin By William T. Hubbert, Page 254 Wiley-Blackwell, 1996 ISBN 0-8138-0714-X
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