I believe it's because they view that they are unclean and they are considered "HARAM" or not allowed per Allah. I think this was because pigs were considered unhealthy sources of meat because of how 'dirty' they were. Islam has strict dietary rules to ensure that followers are eating 'healthy'.

You get a machine (for example, a washing machine, dvd player) made by AB Ltd. You'd trust the instruction manual (IM) supplied by AB Ltd to tell you how to get the best out of your machine and at the same time make it last long. As long as the IM lives up to that trust and using the IM does not cause you any problem with the machine then most people would not want to question the instructions in the IM. Only a few, for example the expert or technically curious, might want to analyse the instructions further. Similarly, the HQ is an IM for humanity. It is the latest version. As with any latest version, its instructions fall into two categories. First, new instructions applicable to the latest model, in this case modern man and modern societies, and secondly, instructions repeated from earlier versions for things that haven't changed. Whereas man's knowledge and lifestyle have changed to those of modern man, the charcteristics that define him as a human being remain unchanged. The instruction not to eat pork falls in the second category, it is in the OT, was upheld by Jesus in the NT and remains unaltered in the HQ. Those who have looked deeper into this particular instruction have come up with various possible reasons why this instruction has been stipulated. These, possible reasons, include the willingness of the animal to eat anything including excrement.

"Like humans, pigs are omnivores eating plant or animal material and will forage and scavenge on household scraps. For this reason many cultures, particularly those based in warmer climates where diseases are difficult to control, consider pigs to be unclean and unsuitable for human consumption." From http://www.fortunecity.com/marina/bounty/170/pigs.html Pigs are omnivorous animals, ie they are the eaters of both plants and meat and they're basically general feeder. This is why Muslims are not allowed to consume pork. This also include carnivorous animals as well. In Islamic dietary law, Muslims are allowed to eat herbivorous creatures ie beef, mutton, lamb and poultry products. There are many other religions and cultures that forbid the consumption of pork other than Islam, such as Judaism and Seventh Day Adventist. I hope this answer is satisfactory :)

(Some people may not like this answer but, here is the truth from Islam's perspective) There are several reasons (a few below): - All land animals that eat meat cannot be consumed by Muslims (that would automatically exclude the pig as it eats meat) reason in Islam is diseases spread easily through dead meat and so to consume animals that eat dead meat increases your chances of being infected by disease (especially in the past). - Pigs are omnivorous and dont just eat meat & veg but eat anything including excrement etc... this makes the meat (unpure/dirty also increases your chances of being infected) - (as stated in the HQ) there have been evil groups of humans that have been converted to pigs (& monkeys). (so my theory) to eat pigs could make the person a cannibal - (like humans are at a different level of intelligence), it has been found that both pigs & monkeys are more intelligent than most normal animals (that are free for consumption in Islam) Note: strangely Pig DNA has been found to be very close to human DNA -closer than monkeys?- and pigs have been found to be intelligent creatures)

I have a friend who is Cinese and also muslim. He told me that muslims can't eat pork because pigs don't care about insest! I couldn't beleive this because he said he like eating rabbit. But if rabbits don't do insest like he tells me how is Australia so poplulated with rabbits? The English introduced a few for hunting use.

Answer: The fact that consumption of pork is prohibited in Islam is well known. The following points explain various aspects of this prohibition: 1. Pork prohibited in Qur’an The Qur’an prohibits the consumption of pork in no less than 4 different places. It is prohibited in 2:173, 5:3, 6:145 and 16:115. "Forbidden to you (for food) are: dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which hath been invoked the name of other than Allah." [Al-Qur’an 5:3] The above verses of the Holy Qur’an are sufficient to satisfy a Muslim as to why pork is forbidden. 2. Pork prohibited in the Bible The Christian is likely to be convinced by his religious scriptures. The Bible prohibits the consumption of pork, in the book of Leviticus "And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be cloven footed, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you". "Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcass shall ye not touch, they are unclean to you." [Leviticus 11:7-8] Pork is also prohibited in the Bible in the book of Deuteronomy "And the swine, because it divideth the hoof, yet cheweth not the cud, it is unclean unto you. Ye shall not eat of their flesh, nor touch their dead carcass." [Deuteronomy 14:8] A similar prohibition is repeated in the Bible in the book of Isaiah chapter 65 verse 2-5. 3. Consumption of pork causes several diseases The other non-Muslims and atheists will agree only if convinced through reason, logic and science. Eating of pork can cause no less than seventy different types of diseases. A person can have various helminthes like roundworm, pinworm, hookworm, etc. One of the most dangerous is Taenia Solium, which is in lay man’s terminology called tapeworm. It harbours in the intestine and is very long. Its ova i.e. eggs, enter the blood stream and can reach almost all the organs of the body. If it enters the brain it can cause memory loss. If it enters the heart it can cause heart attack, if it enters the eye it can cause blindness, if it enters the liver it can cause liver damage. It can damage almost all the organs of the body. Another dangerous helminthes is Trichura Tichurasis. A common misconception about pork is that if it is cooked well, these ova die. In a research project undertaken in America, it was found that out of twenty-four people suffering from Trichura Tichurasis, twenty two had cooked the pork very well. This indicates that the ova present in the pork do not die under normal cooking temperature. 4. Pork has fat building material Pork has very little muscle building material and contains excess of fat. This fat gets deposited in the vessels and can cause hypertension and heart attack. It is not surprising that over 50% of Americans suffer from hypertension. 5. Pig is one of the filthiest animals on earth The pig is one of the filthiest animals on earth. It lives and thrives on muck, faeces and dirt. It is the best scavenger that I know that God has produced. In the villages they don’t have modern toilets and the villagers excrete in the open air. Very often excreta is cleared by pigs. Some may argue that in advanced countries like Australia, pigs are bred in very clean and hygienic conditions. Even in these hygienic conditions the pigs are kept together in sties. No matter how hard you try to keep them clean they are filthy by nature. They eat and enjoy their own as well as their neighbour’s excreta. 6. Pig is the most shameless animal The pig is the most shameless animal on the face of the earth. It is the only animal that invites its friends to have sex with its mate. In America, most people consume pork. Many times after dance parties, they have swapping of wives; i.e. many say "you sleep with my wife and I will sleep with your wife." If you eat pigs then you behave like pigs. We Indians look upon America to be very advanced and sophisticated. Whatever they do, we follow after a few years. According to an article in Island magazine, this practice of swapping wives has become common in the affluent circles of Bombay.

Prophets had better things to do instead of watching plates of believers. It could amaze you and in opposition with moslim teaching for 14 centuries, Mahomet never forbad pork meat, suggested neither. That would denies Mahomet got a biblical culture : "Allah gave us the Holly Bible with the true. The thora and the Evangiles". (Koran C3 v2 or v3 since edition) In this verset, Mahomet asks the moslims to study the Bible for understand the Coran in the good way. The lecture of Evangiles teaches us Jesus was against the pharisees and the sadducees. He reproached them to be submited to pagans (the romans) and to considarate that the lecture of Bible was enough to get the graduation of good jewish. Jesus was used to speak with an abstract language composed with enigmas, paraboles and comparisons to force reflection in his partisans brain because he thaught that practice of religion must force to wake their spirit up. Once he said to his partisans : "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees". (Bible.Matthew C16v6 and Mark C8 v15). So they thought they couldn't eat bread any more. In a litteral way, leaven is fermented pasta added to new one for getting it better and for helping it to blow away during the baking.In a figurative way, what makes Human better and blow the soul up? Answer : knowledge or teaching. Thus jesus asks his partisans to mistrust the pharisees and sadducees teaching which would soild their soul and their heart. Previously pharisiees were chocked to see him or his partisans eating with dirty hands. So he answered them : " To people able to understand : Every things swallowed by the mouth can't be soiled, only things emited by heart and expressed by mouth is no pure". 'Bible Matthew C15v11. Mark C7v15) Then he turned back and his disciples asked him to explain this enigma. Irritated he answered : "So you are silly too. You don't understand anything swallowed just runs across the stomac (dust, food...) and goes away. But anything coming from heart (hate, lies, pride , vanity...) are unclean. Priests use this episode to teach christians that forbidden foodstuffs are not logical. Mark adds : "Thus Jesus declare that every sorts of foods are good". That means christians must keep in their mind that everything eadable are respectabale". Even to eat rats, worms or bugs couldn't be ashaming. The bases of casher foodstuffs are made by Mose and his brother Aaron in the "Leviticus" (chapter 11) and the deuteronomy '(chapter 14). That means in the third and the feefth book of the Thora. Thora or Torah = Jewish Law. To summarize, Jesus teaches there are two kinds of foods. 1.food for the body are foodstuffs. 2.food for the soul and the heart are teaching or education. In this case, why does Mahomet decide to take forbidden foodstuffs back?. Answer : because he had understood the native reason. Which reason? Answer : to prevent believer to get friend with pagans. Why? Answer : if the believer could eat anything he want ,he would be free to accept any pagan invitations. Going into the pagan's home, he would be dived into private different points of vue, with different targets, differents customs, different answers...Step by step, believer would get some doubts about his own religion ,and so, could leave it forever. But why does Mahomet declared illegal only three elements instead of jewish people having much more forbidden foodstuffs? And why espacialy those one . " I do not find in that which has been revealed to me anything forbidden for an eater to eat except that it be what has died of itself, or blood poured forth, or flesh of pork, for that surely is unclean, other than (the name of) Allah having been invoked on it. No sin for the one acting by constraint off meaning to be rebel or contravener. Allah is merciful" (Koran C6 v145 or V146 since edition) What sort of "leaven" Mahomet put in this verset ? Because those three éléments are not foodstuffs. They are Bible teaching episodes. Amazing , isn't it ? Deciphering ; Died it itself : Bible contents thousands of versets. Only one of them talks about "Died of itself" as Moses talking to jewish people asks : "You shall not eat of any thing that dieth of itself: thou shalt give it unto the stranger that is in thy gates, that he may eat it; or thou mayest sell it unto an alien: for thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God." This is why declaring illegal "Died of itself" episode Mahomet teaches : "Don't accept anything from jewishes . They think they are unique people able to believe in God". Blood poured : There is an allusion of this element in the New Testament ." Jesus took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to the disciples, saying :"Drink it all of it. For this is my blood of the new testament, which is poured for many for the remission of sins". Declaring forbidden the "blood poured" , Mahomet teaches : "Don't share anything with the christians". Flesh of pork...and other than the name of Allah has been invoked : in 70 after J.C., roman empire destroyed Jerusalem.This tragedy caused the end of Bible writing. It is mentioned in the Evangile of Luc (C21 v20 to v24);. The romans , in their religion , when they won battles , praticed a ceremony invoking the name of Jupiter , and during it , a priest brook the head of pork symbolizing the overcamed enemy and it was eaten after. (Documentation in french language : "Dictionnaire de la Civilisation Romaine" by Jean-Claude Fredouille. Larousse editor. ""Dictionnaire de l'Atiquité" by Oxford University. Laffont éditor). Declaring illegal "Flesh of pork" episode , Mahomet teaches : "Don't melt with overcame people (jewishes and christians) et don't submit to the pagans sharing their deash or being sat in the same table". This verset is clearly a hidden poetry expressing : "Eat everything you want but don''t accept anything from jewishes and don't share anything from christians. Don't melt with them and don't unclean yourself with pagans". When the prophet shows the way , the disciple watches the finger. "If they accuse you of falsehood , answer : Your Lord is full of mercy but from people in guilt never He will be turned away" (Koran C6 V147 or 148 since edition) Is this letter clear enough ? Yours , P.-S. : "Thus will be express the prophet words. I will talk to you using paraboles to reveal you hidden trues since the beginning of the world". 'Bible. Matthew C13 v34 et v35).