I asked for the fish not because fish is preferable to me...

I asked for the fish not because fish is preferable to me than chicken but because I was not allowed to eat that chicken since I was not sure that it has been slaughtered in accordance with Islamic laws. This is a problem that I have faced many times in foreign countries. Since I was born and brought up in a Muslim country, I have no lingering doubts regarding chicken, or fish bought in a Muslim market. But in a Western country, the situation is completely different.

And that is because I am not allowed to eat any meat until I am sure that it was slaughtered according to the laws of Islam. This normally creates hardship.

The meal was served to us and the tray that was placed in front of me contained the following: fish fried in sunflower oil garnished with fried potatoes, a little bit of rice, salad, a couple of green olives, grapes, black fig, dessert, water in a small container, and small packets of salt, sugar, pepper, two pieces of bread, a fork, two spoons, a knife, and a napkin. I was really hungry.

I thanked Allah first, then picked the fork and knife, and cut the fish into small pieces that could be eaten easily.

Then, I stopped and the following thought passed through my mind: It is true that if the fish is of the type that has scales, and that it has come out of the water alive or died after being caught in the net, then it is permissible for me to eat it irrespective of the fact that the fisherman is a Muslim or a non-Muslim, and no matter whether the name of Allah was invoked on it or not. This is correct. But the problem may be in the oil in which the fish was fried.

Was that oil ritually pure (tahir). And was the cook a Muslim? These were the disturbing thoughts passing through my mind at that moment. So I stopped eating that fried piece of the fish, despite the fact that I was hungry! I put down the fork on the side of the plate and tried to recall the rules of these issues that I had read about in the Manual of Islamic Laws of my marja' when I was getting ready for the journey. First I asked myself about the sunflower oil: is it ritually pure?

I immediately responded positively because the religious law says, "everything is pure for you until you come to know about its impurity." And since I did not know about the impurity of the sunflower oil, I assumed it was pure. Now since the oil used in frying the fish was pure, the whole fish is pure, and thus I am allowed to eat it.