Please Note: Footnotes are explanations of text that have an asterisk ( * ) beside it.
There are NO ASTERISKS on the subheadings for 16:115 and 5:3. ONLY within the verses.
The asterisk for 2:172-173 is on the SUBHEADING ONLY, not within the verse.
The asterisks for 6:145-146 is on the SUBHEADING and WITHIN THE VERSE.
Only Four Foods Prohibited
[16:115] He only prohibits for you dead animals, blood, the meat of pigs,* and food which is dedicated to other than GOD. If one is forced (to eat these), without being deliberate or malicious, then GOD is Forgiver, Most Merciful.
[16:118] For the Jews, we prohibited what we narrated to you previously.* It was not us who wronged them; they are the ones who wronged their own souls.
Footnote *16:115 & 118 The most devastating trichinosis parasite, Trichinella spiralis, (also the pork tapeworm Taenia solium) survives in the meat of pigs, not the fat. More than 150,000 people are infected annually in the United States. See 6:145-146, and Appendix 16.
Only Four Meats Prohibited "Animals that die of themselves" Defined
[5:3] Prohibited for you are animals that die of themselves, blood, the meat of pigs,*and animals dedicated to other than GOD. (Animals that die of themselves include those) strangled, struck with an object, fallen from a height, gored, attacked by a wild animal - unless you save your animal before it dies - and animals sacrificed on altars. Also prohibited is dividing the meat through a game of chance; this is an abomination. Today, the disbelievers have given up concerning (the eradication of) your religion; do not fear them and fear Me instead. Today, I have completed your religion, perfected My blessing upon you, and I have decreed Submission as the religion for you. If one is forced by famine (to eat prohibited food), without being deliberately sinful, then GOD is Forgiver, Merciful.
Footnote *5:3 The ``meat'' of the pig is prohibited, not the ``fat.'' Anything that is not specifically prohibited in the Quran must be considered lawful. See 6:145 -146.
Only Four Meats Prohibited*
[2:172] O you who believe, eat from the good things we provided for you, and be thankful to GOD, if you do worship Him alone.
[2:173] He only prohibits for you the eating of animals that die of themselves (without human interference), blood, the meat of pigs, and animals dedicated to other than GOD. If one is forced (to eat these), without being malicious or deliberate, he incurs no sin. GOD is Forgiver, Most Merciful.
Footnote *2:172-173 Throughout the Quran, only four meats are prohibited (6:145, 16:115, Appendix 16). Dietary prohibitions beyond these four are tantamount to idol worship (6:121,148,150; 7:32).
The Only Dietary Prohibitions*
[6:145] Say, "I do not find in the revelations given to me any food that is prohibited for any eater EXCEPT: (1) carrion, (2) running blood, (3) the meat*of pigs, for it is contaminated, and (4) the meat of animals blasphemously dedicated to other than GOD." If one is forced (to eat these), without being deliberate or malicious, then your Lord is Forgiver, Most Merciful.
[6:146] For those who are Jewish we prohibited animals with undivided hoofs; and of the cattle and sheep we prohibited the fat, except that which is carried on their backs, or in the viscera, or mixed with bones. That was a retribution for their transgressions, and we are truthful.
Footnote *6:145-146 Only four kinds of animal products are prohibited: animals that die of themselves, running blood (not trapped within the meat), the meat of pigs, and animals dedicated to other than their Creator. Verse 146 informs us that such prohibitions are very specific; God prohibits either ``the meat'' or ``the fat,'' or both, if He so wills.