Is it permissible for a person in dire necessity (who finds nothing to eat) to cut off and eat a portion of their own living body parts?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Hunting and Slaughter
Primary text
If the person in dire necessity finds nothing, it is not permissible for them to eat a part of their own body members.
Supporting text
Some companions of Al-Shafi'i permitted this, arguing that one may preserve the whole by removing a limb, similar to removing gangrene (Al-Akalah). The counter-evidence is that eating a part of oneself might kill the person, making it self-inflicted killing, and the survival is not guaranteed by eating it. In contrast, removing gangrene is permissible because of the fear of death from that specific limb, allowing removal of impending harm, analogous to defending against an aggressor, but one is not permitted to kill for consumption.