Punishment of a Blasphemer of the Prophet ﷺ and Ruling on Pardoning a Dhimmī
Sourced from: Fatāwā Muḥammadiyyah, Volume 1, Page 162
❀ Question
I debated with Asghar Masīḥ, son of Bagh Masīḥ, about the truth of Islam and invited him to accept it. He mockingly said:
"Are you inviting me to believe in Khatm al-Nubuwwah? Is he even a prophet whose body lay for three days without funeral, and then was pushed with sticks into a pit?" (نعوذ بالله من ذلك)
I tried to have him arrested, but he fled. Now Christian priests are requesting his pardon on the condition that he permanently leaves the village. The question is: according to Qur’an and Sunnah, can we pardon Asghar Masīḥ under this condition or not?
❀ Answer
الحمد لله، والصلاة والسلام علىٰ رسول الله، أما بعد!
◈ Ruling on One Who Insults the Messenger ﷺ
✔ Whether Muslim or non-Muslim, combatant or dhimmī — if a person insults or disrespects the Messenger ﷺ, mocks his noble character, or demeans him, such a wretched person is considered an apostate, a heretic, and liable to execution.
✔ No opportunity of repentance is granted.
✔ It is obligatory upon an Islamic government to execute him immediately.
✔ This is the consensus (ijmāʿ) of the majority of scholars, jurists, and ḥadīth scholars.
◈ Statements of Scholars
Ibn Taymiyyah (رحمه الله):
"أن من سب النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم من مسلم أو كافر فإنه يجب قتله. هذا مذهب عليه عامة أهل العلم…”
(al-Ṣārim al-Maslūl, p. 4)
— Whoever insults the Prophet ﷺ, whether Muslim or non-Muslim, must be killed. This is the view of the vast majority of scholars.
Muḥammad ibn Sahnūn:
"أجمع العلماء على أن شاتم النبي المتنقص له كافر… وحكمه عند الأمة القتل ومن شك في كفره وعذابه كفر.”
(al-Ṣārim al-Maslūl, p. 4)
— The scholars unanimously agreed that one who insults the Prophet ﷺ is a disbeliever, his punishment is death, and whoever doubts his disbelief and punishment is himself a disbeliever.
Imām Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal (رحمه الله):
"كل من شتم النبى ﷺ او تنقصه مسلما كان او كافرا فعليه القتل وارى ان يقتل ولا يستاب.”
(al-Ṣārim al-Maslūl, p. 5)
— Whoever insults the Prophet ﷺ, whether Muslim or non-Muslim, must be executed without being allowed to repent.
al-ʿAllāmah al-Shāmī (Ḥanafī):
"و الكافر بسب نبي من الأنبياء فإنه يقتل حدا ولا تقبل توبته مطلقا.”
(Radd al-Muḥtār, vol. 4, p. 221)
— A non-Muslim who insults any prophet is to be executed and his repentance is not accepted.
◈ Dhimmī Who Commits Blasphemy
If a dhimmī insults Allah, His Messenger ﷺ, the Qur’an, or Islam, his pact of protection (ʿahd al-dhimmah) is nullified.
(Fiqh al-Sunnah, vol. 3, p. 73)
Ibn ʿUmar (RA) was informed of a monk insulting the Prophet ﷺ; he said:
“If I had heard it, I would have killed him myself. We did not grant them protection for insulting the Prophet.”
(Fiqh al-Sunnah, vol. 3, p. 73)
◈ If the Blasphemer Accepts Islam
If such a person sincerely accepts Islam, then execution is prohibited, for Islam wipes out all that came before it.
(Fiqh al-Sunnah, vol. 3, p. 73)
◈ Practical Guidance in Present Circumstances
✔ In current governments, enforcing execution for blasphemy is not possible due to unjust systems.
✔ Therefore, expelling him from the village is the best practical solution, leaving his matter to Allah.
✔ Allah Himself has promised to suffice against those who mock His Messenger:
﴿فَاصدَع بِما تُؤمَرُ وَأَعرِض عَنِ المُشرِكينَ ﴿٩٤﴾ إِنّا كَفَينـكَ المُستَهزِءينَ ﴿٩٥﴾﴾
(Sūrah al-Ḥijr)
❀ Conclusion
➊ If Asghar Masīḥ truly committed blasphemy against the Messenger ﷺ, then his Shar‘i punishment is execution without repentance.
➋ This is the consensus of all major jurists and ḥadīth scholars.
➌ But since carrying out this punishment is not possible under current systems, expelling him from the village is an appropriate solution, while leaving his ultimate fate to Allah.
ھذا ما عندي، والله أعلم بالصواب
