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الفتح الربانی
Fath al-Rabbani
مسائل الحدودIssues of Hudud (Prescribed Punishments)
بَابُ الْحَثِ عَلَى إِقَامَةِ الْحَدِ وَالنَّهْي عَنِ الشَّفَاعَةِ فِيهِ إِذَا بَلَغَ الْإِمَامَChapter: Encouragement to Establish the Prescribed Punishment and Prohibition of Intercession When It Reaches the Ruler
Hadith 6628
اُردوEn
(وَعَنْهُ مِنْ طَرِيقٍ ثَانٍ) قَالَ كُنْتُ نَائِمًا فِي الْمَسْجِدِ عَلَى خَمِيصَةٍ لِي فَسُرِقَتْ فَأَخَذْنَا السَّارِقَ فَرَفَعْنَاهُ إِلَى النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَأَمَرَ بِقَطْعِهِ فَقُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ أَفِي خَمِيصَةٍ ثَمَنُهَا ثَلَاثُونَ دِرْهَمًا أَنَا أَهَبُهَا لَهُ أَوْ أَبِيعُهَا لَهُ قَالَ فَهَلَّا قَبْلَ أَنْ تَأْتِيَنِي بِهِ
(Second chain) Sayyiduna Safwan bin Umayyah (may Allah be pleased with him) says: I was sleeping in the mosque on my cloak, someone stole it, and we caught the thief and brought him to the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). When you (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered his hand to be cut off, I said: O Messenger of Allah! Will his hand be cut off in exchange for this cloak, whose price is only thirty dirhams? I gift this cloak to this man or sell it to him. You (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Why did you not do so before bringing him to me?
Brief Explanation
Benefits: … From the last hadith it is understood that before a matter reaches the ruler, the subjects have the right to pardon cases involving hudud (prescribed punishments), but if a case involving hudud reaches the ruler, then there is no right to pardon it, even if the rightful claimant goes around announcing forgiveness. When a person kills a Muslim, one life is indeed lost, and when the heirs are given the right to retribution (qisas) and they exercise this right, then another life is also lost. However, regarding this loss, Allah the Exalted says: {وَلَکُمْ فِی الْقَصَاصِ حَیٰوۃٌیٰٓاُولِی الْاَلْبَابِ لَعَلَّکُمْ تَتَّقُوْنَ۔} … “O people of understanding! In retribution (qisas) there is life for you; through it you will refrain (from unlawful killing).” (Surah al-Baqarah: 179)
When the killer fears that he too will be killed in retribution, then he will not dare to kill anyone, and in the society where this law of retribution is enforced, this fear protects the society from murder and bloodshed, resulting in great peace and tranquility in the society. The society of Arabia in which the Noble Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) gave birth to his civilization was itself unparalleled in murder and bloodshed; when a conflict would erupt, it would not end for hundreds of years. But in the ten-year civilization established by the Noble Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) in Madinah Munawwarah, how many murders occurred, and how much evil spread as a result? A comparison can be made.
In reality, the Islamic hudud (prescribed punishments) are guarantors of peace and are indispensable and life-giving for the formation of an enviable society. Their purpose is not to inflict pain on the oppressor, but rather their aim and objective is to make the society peaceful and secure, and by punishing one person, to make all individuals understand that beware, no one should violate the honor, dignity, wealth, or life of another, otherwise the same fate will befall him. In this way, the enforcement of qisas (retribution) and hudud is a message of peace and security.
When the killer fears that he too will be killed in retribution, then he will not dare to kill anyone, and in the society where this law of retribution is enforced, this fear protects the society from murder and bloodshed, resulting in great peace and tranquility in the society. The society of Arabia in which the Noble Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) gave birth to his civilization was itself unparalleled in murder and bloodshed; when a conflict would erupt, it would not end for hundreds of years. But in the ten-year civilization established by the Noble Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) in Madinah Munawwarah, how many murders occurred, and how much evil spread as a result? A comparison can be made.
In reality, the Islamic hudud (prescribed punishments) are guarantors of peace and are indispensable and life-giving for the formation of an enviable society. Their purpose is not to inflict pain on the oppressor, but rather their aim and objective is to make the society peaceful and secure, and by punishing one person, to make all individuals understand that beware, no one should violate the honor, dignity, wealth, or life of another, otherwise the same fate will befall him. In this way, the enforcement of qisas (retribution) and hudud is a message of peace and security.
