Bismillahi Al-Rahmani Al-Rahim
Leather Revisited
Brother Nadeem Rehman writes:
There is another answer to the brothers question which seems to be
very helpful and practical in his situation.
The skin of a dead animal is purified by tanning as long as the dead
animal is from that which can be eaten. This is an opinion of shaikh
ul-Islam ibn Taymiyah [al-fatawa: 21/90] and is in conformance with one of
the opinions in the madhab of imam Ahmad. The ruling is based upon ahadith
in which the prophet (SAW) said:
"it's tanning is it's purification" [Muslim, kitab al-haid
107,106/366]
"it's tanning is it's purification" [An-Nasai: 4244, Ahmad: 6/154-155]
"the slaughter of a skin is its tanning" [Ahmad: 3/476, an-Nasai: 4243 and
others]
[end]
While it is a well known opinion of Imam Ahmad, I have yet to hear of any
of the middle- and later- scholars champion the position, except for Ibn
Taymiyyah. If asked what the position in the Hanbali mathab is, the answer
is that tanning does not ritually purify an animals skin unless it has been
slaughtered.
-- Musa