Jhatka

Jhatka (Hindi: झटका jhaṭkā IPA: [dʒʰəʈkɑ]; Punjabi: ਝਟਕਾ (Gurmukhi), جھٹکا (Shahmukhi)) is derived from Sanskrit word Jhatiti (झटिति) which means "instantly, quickly, at once".[1][2]

Historically and currently, a significant amount of meat-eating Hindus prescribe jhatka meat. This is widely considered to be less painful to the animal. To Shaivite Hindus in Punjab, Bengal and Kashmir, Jhatka meat is required for those who eat meat.

Although not all Sikhs maintain the practice of eating meat butchered in this style, it is understood by most orthopraxic Sikhs to have been mandated by the tenth Guru:

According to the Sikh tradition, only such meat as is obtained from an animal which is killed with one stroke of the weapon causing instantaneous death is fit for human consumption. Guru Gobind Singh took a rather serious view of this aspect of the whole matter. He, therefore, while permitting flesh to be taken as food repudiated the whole theory of this expiatory sacrifice. Accordingly, he made jhatka meat obligatory for those Sikhs who may be interested in taking meat as a part of their food.

— HS Singha, Sikhism, A Complete Introduction[3]

As stated in the official Khalsa Code of Conduct, Kutha meat is forbidden, and Sikhs are recommended to eat the jhatka form of meat.[4][5]

jhatka karna or jhatkaund refers to the instantaneous severing of the head of an animal with a single stroke of any weapon, with the underlying intention of killing the animal whilst causing it minimal suffering.[2] The Sikh Rahit Maryada forbids hair-cutting, adultery, the use of intoxicants, and the consumption of kutha meat (halal meat).[6]

During the British Raj, jhatka meat was not allowed in jails, and Sikh detainees during the Akali movement and beyond had to resort to violence and agitations to secure this right. Among the terms in the settlement between the Akalis and the Muslim Unionist government in Punjab in 1942 was that jhatka meat be continued by Sikhs.

On religious Sikh festivals, including Hola Mohalla and Vaisakhi, at the Hazur Sahib Nanded, and many other Sikh Gurdwaras, jhatka meat is offered as "mahaprasad" to all visitors in a Gurdwara.[7] Though, this practice is considered to be wrong and not acceptable by major sikhs as only lacto-vegetarian langar is supposed to be served inside gurudwaras.

Some Sikh Organizations, such as the Damdami Taksal and Akhand Kirtani Jatha, have their own codes of conduct. These organizations define kutha meat as any type of slaughtered meat, and eating meat of any type is forbidden.[8]

All three methods use sharp knives. In the Shechita and Halal methods, the animal is slaughtered by one swift, uninterrupted cut severing the trachea, esophagus, carotid arteries, jugular veins, and vagus nerves, followed by a period where the blood of the animal is drained out.[9][10] In the Jhatka method, a swift uninterrupted cut severs the head and the spine.[9][10] In both the Halal and Shechita methods, a prayer to God (Allah) is required at the start of the slaughtering process. One prayer is sufficient if there isn't any interruption during Shechita of multiple animals in a single slaughtering session, but a separate prayer is required before every slaughter in Halal meat production.[10]

In India, there are many jhatka shops, with various bylaws requiring shops to display clearly that they sell jhatka meat.[11]

In the past, there has been little availability of jhatka meat in the United Kingdom, so people have found themselves eating other types of meat,[12] although jhatka has become more widely available in the United Kingdom.[13]