وعن ابي هريرة رضى الله عنه قال: قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم:إذا قاتل احدكم فليجتنب الوجه
Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “When one of you fights, let him avoid the face.”
Takhrij:
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, see Tuhfat al-Ashraf
Benefits:
➊ The prohibition of striking the face:
This hadith shows that it is forbidden for Muslims to strike anything at another’s face, even when disciplining or teaching one’s slave, servant or student. Striking the face with anything, even to teach manners or as punishment, is haram.
In a marfu’ narration from Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him), these words occur: اذا ضرب احدكم خادمه فليجتنب الوجه
“When one of you strikes his servant, let him avoid the face.” Even when a dispute arises, and no matter how inflamed the anger and emotions, a Muslim should not strike another Muslim’s face, not even a slap, let alone with a weapon. One narration’s words are:
اذا قاتل احدكم اخاه فلا يلطمن الوجه
“When one of you fights with his brother, he should not slap him on the face.”
② Not striking the face even when punishing:
In one narration, قَاتَلَ is replaced with اِذَا ضَرَبَ اَحَدُكُمْ.
That is, whenever one strikes for any reason, not only in fighting, he should avoid striking the face.
➋ Boxing:
Since boxing targets each other’s face, according to this hadith this brutal sport is haram.
➌ Why is striking the face prohibited?:
One reason for prohibiting striking the face is clearly apparent: it is the manifestation of human beauty and grace, and most of a person’s senses, such as sight, hearing, taste and smell, are found in the face. When the face is struck, it is quite possible that all of these senses, or any one of them, may be lost or impaired, and there is also a fear of the features being disfigured. Such an excess against a Muslim brother cannot be deemed permissible.
The second reason was stated by the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) himself. In Sahih Muslim, in a narration from Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him), these words occur:
اذا قاتل احدكم اخاه فليجتنب الوجه فان الله خلق آدم على صورته
“When one of you fights with his brother, let him avoid the face, for Allah created Adam in His image.”
In this hadith, the prohibition of striking is because of the honour of the human face. Some people explain this hadith as meaning that Allah created Adam in the image of Adam himself, but Ibn Abi Asim, in Kitab al-Sunnah, narrated this same report through the route of Abu Yunus from Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) with these words: من قاتل فليجتنب الوجه فان صورة وجه الانسان على صورة وجه الرحمن “Whoever fights, let him avoid the face, for the form of the human face is upon the form of the face of the Most Merciful.” (Other narrations with this meaning are also mentioned in Fath al-Bari; see: Volume 5, hadith 2559)
Ishaq ibn Rahawayh and Ahmad ibn Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on them both) declared authentic the hadith that states Allah created Adam in the image of the Most Merciful.
However, one must especially bear in mind that Allah said in the Quran:
لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ وَهُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْبَصِيرُ
“There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearing, All-Seeing.”
Likewise, Allah created Adam in His image, but what is meant by this? Allah alone knows the true reality of it, but this much is certain: there is nothing like Allah. The creation cannot be likened to the Creator.
The ruling on striking a disbeliever’s face:
Some scholars have written that striking the face is not permissible even in jihad, but this is not correct. The fact is that disbelievers, because of their disbelief, are deprived of human dignity and have no honour أُولَـٰئِكَ كَالْأَنْعَامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ أُولَـٰئِكَ هُمُ الْغَافِلُونَ
“They are like cattle, rather they are even more astray.”
On the Day of Resurrection, this reality will be manifested in such a way that the face of Azar, the father of Ibrahim (peace be upon him), will be changed into that of a hyena.
Honour and dignity belong only to the believer. وَلِلَّـهِ الْعِزَّةُ وَلِرَسُولِهِ وَلِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ
“Honour belongs to Allah, to His Messenger, and to the believers.” This is why Allah said about the disbelievers: فَاضْرِبُوا فَوْقَ الْأَعْنَاقِ وَاضْرِبُوا مِنْهُمْ كُلَّ بَنَانٍ
“Strike above the necks and strike every finger-tip of them.”
Now it is clear that above the necks is only the skull and the face, and it is not possible to strike with such precision that only the skull is hit and not the face. And Allah said that the angels, when causing the disbelievers to die, يَضْرِبُونَ وُجُوهَهُمْ وَأَدْبَارَهُمْ
“strike their faces and their backs.”
Salamah ibn al-Akwa’ (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that at the Battle of Hunayn, when the disbelievers surrounded the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) from all sides, he dismounted from his mule, then took a handful of dust from the ground and threw it toward their faces, saying: شَاهَتِ الْوُجُوْهُ “May the faces be disfigured.” Then Allah filled all their eyes with dust, they turned their backs and fled, and Allah defeated them.
See, the Prophet (ﷺ) targeted their faces and made a special supplication for their faces to be disfigured.
➏ Striking the face is permissible in retaliation:
Allah said:
فَمَنِ اعْتَدَىٰ عَلَيْكُمْ فَاعْتَدُوا عَلَيْهِ بِمِثْلِ مَا اعْتَدَىٰ عَلَيْكُمْ
“Whoever transgresses against you, transgress against him in the same manner as he transgressed against you.”
And He said:
وَكَتَبْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ فِيهَا أَنَّ النَّفْسَ بِالنَّفْسِ وَالْعَيْنَ بِالْعَيْنِ وَالْأَنفَ بِالْأَنفِ وَالْأُذُنَ بِالْأُذُنِ وَالسِّنَّ بِالسِّنِّ وَالْجُرُوحَ قِصَاصٌ
“We prescribed for them in it: a life for a life, an eye for an eye, a nose for a nose, an ear for an ear, a tooth for a tooth, and for wounds is retaliation.”
