Monthly Archives: July 2017

How did dogs become ‘dirty’ in Islam when they were not – Prof Alan Mikhail

Dogs in Islam, as they are in Rabbinic Judaism, are conventionally thought of as ritually impure. This idea taps into a long tradition that considers even the mere sight of a dog during prayer to have the power to nullify a pious Muslim’s supplications. Similar to many other mistakenly viewed aspects of Islamic history, today […]

The man with 750 dogs: An interview in the ‘Dogs and Pups’ Magazine with VOSD Founder Rakesh Shukla

The May 2017 issue of the ‘Dogs and Pups’ Magazine featured the VOSD Dog Sanctuary and VOSD’s Founder Rakesh Shukla in an interview. The interview was taken in March 2017. The transcript can be read after the images. Q: Tell us in brief about your organisation and its inception? I’ve never had a dog growing up […]

Dogs in Islam – Are Dogs (Really) ‘Haram’ in Islam?

While the conventional idea of canines in the Islamic religion is that they are ‘impure’, there are several sources that point to the opposite. Professor Alan Mikhail is Professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies Department of History, Yale University, and is the author of The Animal in Ottoman Egypt and, Under Osman’s Tree: The Ottoman Empire, Egypt, and Environmental […]