Ruling on Absence from Battle by Order of the Leader
✍ Written by: Imran Ayub Lahori
Main Point:
A person who is absent from battle due to the command of the leader is entitled to a share from the war booty.
Evidence
❶ Narration of Hazrat Ibn ‘Umar (رضي الله عنهما):
When Hazrat ‘Uthman (رضي الله عنه) was absent from the Battle of Badr — because he was caring for the daughter of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), who was sick — the Prophet (ﷺ) said to him:
إن لك أجر رجل ممن شهد بدرا و سهمه
“You will have the reward of a man who participated in Badr, as well as his share.”
[Bukhari: 3130, Kitab Fard al-Khums: Bab idha ba‘atha al-imam rasulan, Tirmidhi: 3706, Musnad Ahmad: 101/2 – 120]
Scholarly Opinions
❖ If someone is absent due to personal reasons but joins after the battle ends, will he receive a share?
- Imam al-Shafi‘i, Imam Malik, Imam al-Awza‘i, Imam al-Thawri, Imam al-Layth:
He will not be given a share. - Hanafis:
If he arrives before the booty is brought to Dar al-Islam, he will be given a share.
[Al-Umm by al-Shafi‘i: 255/7, Al-Ikhtiyar: 126/4, Al-Mughni: 104/13, Nayl al-Awtar: 45/5]
✔ Preferred View (Rajih):
It depends on the discretion of the ruler. He may, based on wisdom and circumstance, choose to grant or withhold from someone.
Additional Evidence
A Hadith states:
وما قسم لأحد غاب عن فتح خيبر منها شيئا إلا لمن شهد معه إلا لأصحاب سفينتا مع جعفر وأصحابه قسم لهم معهم
“The Prophet (ﷺ) did not allocate anything from the booty of Khaybar to anyone absent, except to those who were present. However, he did allocate shares to Ja‘far al-Tayyar (رضي الله عنه) and his companions who came with the ship (from Abyssinia).”
[Bukhari: 3136, Kitab Fard al-Khums: Bab wa min al-dalil ‘ala anna al-khums l-nawa’ib al-muslimin, Muslim: 2502, Abu Dawud: 2725, Tirmidhi: 1559, Musnad Ahmad: 394/4]
Hazrat ‘Umar (رضي الله عنه) said:
الغنيمة لمن شهد الوقعة
“Booty belongs only to the one who was present at the battle.”
[‘Abd al-Razzaq: 302/5, 9689; Ibn Abi Shaybah: 494/6, 33226; Majma‘ al-Zawa’id: 343/5; Al-Bayhaqi: 50/9]
Summary:- If absence from battle is by the command of the leader, the absent person is entitled to a share.
- If absent for personal reasons, scholars differed: majority denied a share, while Hanafis allowed it if he joined before booty reached Dar al-Islam.
- The stronger view: the matter is left to the discretion of the ruler.
