A puzzling phenomenon in contemporary Muslim culture is that
of “porkophobia.” Porkophobia describes a syndrome that includes many symptoms
such as severe disgust, waves of nausea with occasional vomiting or increased
heart rates and sweating when Muslims encounter pork or pigs. Importantly,
these reactions do not require the ingestion of pork, they are even observed
when Muslims see pork or pigs. In more severe forms of porkophobia, the mere
image of a pig on TV or the realization that one has touched (not snacked on!)
pig skin leather elicits similar reactions of revulsion. This severe form of
porkophobia is not restricted to Muslims growing up in pig-free Muslim
countries, but is also found amongst Muslims living in countries where pork is
commonly eaten and pigs are used as important farm animals.
I suffer from moderate to severe porkophobia, even though I
sometimes have difficulties admitting how severe my ailment is. For example, I
tried to laugh it off when some family friends gave us the movie “Babe: A pig
in the city” as a present and inquired if it was a problem that the starring
role was played by a pig. I have a hard time telling friends that according to
the Chinese astrological calendar, I was born in the year of the pig even
though the characteristics attributed to this astrological sign include fine
qualities such as honesty, diligence and kindness. I also sympathized with a
Muslim father who was being asked by his 3-year old daughter what the name of
the small pink plastic animal was that she was holding in her hand. He first
said this toy had no name, he then tried to kick it under his chair so she
could not reach it, and because she persisted, he ended up saying it was a pink
goat.
These reactions amongst Muslims to images of pork are not
completely surprising. Muslims often point to the prohibition on eating pork
found in the Quran and the Jewish kashrut laws. However, even though the Qur’an
prohibits eating pork, it does not necessarily prohibit seeing talking pigs in
a movie, owning pig-leather shoes or reading a Dr. Seuss book entitled “Green
Eggs and Ham”. The porkophobic culture that is prevalent in many Muslim
households has created an anti-pork and anti-pig culture that by far exceeds
the actual religious prohibitions on ingesting pork.
It is remarkable how a whole culture of disgust evolved from
a straightforward dietary law. When I have addressed this issue with fellow
Muslims, they suggest that instilling porkophobia into the subconscious minds
of Muslims prevents them from even considering the ingestion of pork. I have to
agree that this strategy is very efficacious. I have virtually never seen
anybody who refers to himself or herself as a Muslim ever eat pork. But what is
most puzzling, however, is that this simple dietary law has lead to a whole
culture of disgust, whereas other Islamic laws and Qur’anic prescriptions have
not. One is much more likely to encounter a Muslim who drinks alcohol, commits
adultery or collects interest on his loans than one who eats a bacon sandwich.
While some argue that the prohibition of alcohol is more vague in Islam than
the prohibition on pork, there is no doubt that Islam is very clear on
prohibiting adultery and exploiting poverty-stricken people by charging
interest on loans.
Why have other Islamic prescriptions and prohibitions not
lead to a similar culture of disgust? Avoidance of pork has fairly minor sociopolitical
relevance, it is not part of the five pillars of Muslim faith and it has never
been a central message of Islam. In short, it is not a defining characteristic
of Islam. The phenomenon of porkophobia has given a dietary law such a high
level of importance that if a compassionate and generous Muslim were ever
observed to be eating pork in public, he or she would be ostracized by the
Muslim community. In contrast, contemporary Muslims have not developed a
similar culture of revulsion when they see the un-Islamic practice of
exploitation. Many Muslims would have no problems watching a movie with Michael
Douglas acting as an aggressive CEO whose actions can have disastrous effects
on the lives of his employees, while they might indeed have a problem if they
saw Michael Douglas eating five strips of bacon in that same movie.
One answer to this puzzle is that porkophobia allows Muslims
to maintain their identity especially when living as a minority in a
predominantly non-Muslim culture with a straightforward criterion: Do you eat
pork or not? The avoidance of pork is not that difficult. Even in Southern
Germany, which is the heartland of pork sausages, one can easily avoid eating
pork without disrupting one’s life or social relations. Therefore, the
avoidance of pork does not have many untoward social or economic consequences
for Muslims but it still allows them to feel a connection to their perceived
religious identity.
On the other hand, “exploitophobia” would cause major
problems for Muslims. Much of the modern economy is built on exploiting workers
and charging excessive interest rates. If the thought of how Islam prohibits
the charging of interest on loans or the exploitation of fellow humans were to
lead to a culture of disgust, Muslims would have a hard time working in most
parts of the modern economy. Thus, it is more convenient to allow the
pork-prohibition to become a faux-principle of faith.
This elevation of comparatively less important aspects of
Muslim faith to become the new core principles is not just limited to the
avoidance of pork. It seems that the practice of Islam is often reduced to
issues such as clothing, language or diet. These can be more conveniently
implemented and monitored than the complex pursuits of knowledge, social
justice or spiritual growth, which lie at the core of the faith.
Porkophobia therefore seems to have emerged as a convenient
way for people to “feel Muslim,” by developing a whole culture of disgust around a dietary law.
Muslims could perhaps consider whether one should use the power of revulsion to
convey ideas that are more central to Islam rather than the mere avoidance of
pork. Wouldn’t it be better if Muslims felt a porkophobia-like revulsion when
encountering race and gender-based discrimination, domestic abuse, poverty or
social injustice?
An earlier version of this article was originally published on the Altmuslim blog.
Well said, great insight!
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