Islamist preacher Zakir Naik, who has been on the run from the Indian law enforcement authorities, is not new to controversies. A video of the fugitive, explaining the health benefits of camel urine in the light of Islam, has now gone viral on social media. It is ironic that while Muslims regularly use the ‘gaumutra’ (cow urine) jibe to insult Hindus, they believe that camel urine is beneficial to health.
The contentious video was uploaded on Huda TV on January 7 this year. The channel has a whopping 4.87 lac subscribers. Zakir Naik appeared in the video and answered the questions posed by three curious Muslim viewers about the health benefits of camel urine and milk in accordance with Quran. At about 4:56 minutes in the video, Naik claimed, “There are various researches which confirm that there are various benefits for the human being in drinking camel’s urine.”
To substantiate his claim, Naik drew conclusions made by an ancient Persian physician named Ibn Sina. While quoting him, the Islamic preacher, “Amongst all urines, the most beneficial is the urine of the Bedouin camels. Today, after doing laboratory tests, we have come to know that the camel’s urine contains potassium and albuminous proteins. We know it also contains traces of uric acid, sodium as well as creatin.”
Islamic preacher lists down health benefits of drinking camel urine
“According to the research done by Dr. Abdul Fateh Mehmood Idris, he says that the urine of the camel can be used in certain skin diseases…Scientific research has proven that urine makes the hair lustrous and thick. It is also used in the prevention of dandruff,” Zakir Naik alleged. He then went on to quote the ‘research’ done by another Muslim microbiologist named Dr. Ahlaam Al Awadi. The Islamic preacher this time added that Dr. Awadi’s research showed that camel urine can even cure hepatitis, besides skin diseases and dandruff.
Citing one Dr. Khurshid, Zakir Naik went on to claim that camel urine contains anti-cancer properties and can be used in the treatment of cancer. The Islamic preacher urged his Muslim followers to blindly believe everything in the Quran and agree to the sayings of the Hadiths, provided they are authentic. “You can always do research later. Science is not the criteria to determine whether you should believe in the Hadith or not. If Hadith is authentic, we believe in it irrespective of whether science belives in it or not,” Naik emphasised.
Zakir Naik says no medical benefit of cow urine
While answering the question of a fellow Muslim who mock Hindus over ‘cow urine’, Naik urged its followers to refrain from doing so. Quoting Persian physician Ibn Sina, he claimed that urine extracted from both cow and camel are ‘pure.’ Zakir Naik went on to add that Muslims can consume the urine or fecal matter of any animal or bird that is permissible (Halal) for them to eat. He, however, disagreed with the medical benefits of cow urine and said that he couldn’t find any scientific research on it.
“Drinking of camel urine is a common practice (among Muslims). It is coming down from centuries in the Arab (world). Same is the practice of drinking cow’s urine among Hindus. But, there is no scientific proof (for cow urine) that I could find. So, I cannot say whether it is good or bad. But according to Islamic scholars, yes, you can have it,” Zakir Naik said. He then went on to mock Hindu deities, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and dismissed the advancement of science in ancient India.
Zakir Naik quotes authentic Islamic Hadith to justify the drinking of camel urine
Towards the end of his video, Zakir Naik quoted verse 5686 of the Hadith of Sahih-al-Bukhari. It goes as, “The climate of Medina did not suit some people, so the Prophet ordered them to follow his shepherd, i.e. his camels, and drink their milk and urine (as a medicine). So they followed the shepherd that is the camels and drank their milk and urine till their bodies became healthy. Then they killed the shepherd and drove away the camels. When the news reached the Prophet e sent some people in their pursuit. When they were brought, he cut their hands and feet and their eyes were branded with heated pieces of iron”
