❖ Taʿzīr: Definition, Limits, and Types
Written by: Imran Ayoob Lahori
◈ Meaning of Taʿzīr
Linguistic Definition:
The word taʿzīr means to strike severely and to discipline. It is derived from the root عَزْرَ يُعَزِّرُ in the form of tafʿīl.
Reference: المنجد: ص / 554
Sharʿī Definition:
A punishment other than the fixed ḥudūd, usually of a lighter degree.
References: القاموس المحيط: ص / 396 ، الفقه الإسلامي وأدلته: 5591/7
◈ Evidence for Taʿzīr
① Abū Burdah ibn Niyār (RA) narrates that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
لا يـجـلـد فوق عشرة أسواط إلا فى حد من حدود الله
"No one shall be lashed more than ten stripes, except in one of the ḥudūd prescribed by Allah."
References: بخاري: 6849–6850 ، مسلم: 1708 ، أحمد: 466/3 ، أبو داود: 4491 ، ترمذي: 1463 ، ابن ماجة: 2601 ، نسائي الكبرى: 320/4 ، حاكم: 369/4 ، دارمي: 176/2
② Bahz ibn Ḥakīm, from his father, from his grandfather, narrates that the Prophet ﷺ once imprisoned a man on the charge of slander and then released him.
References: حسن: صحيح أبو داود: 3087 ، أحمد: 447/4 ، أبو داود: 3630 ، ترمذي: 1417 ، نسائي: 66/8 ، حاكم: 125/1
◈ Juristic Opinions
- Imām Aḥmad (RA), Isḥāq (RA): Taʿzīr should not exceed ten lashes.
- Imām Abū Ḥanīfah (RA), al-Shāfiʿī (RA): It can exceed ten lashes.
References: نيل الأوطار: 607/4 ، تحفة الأحوذي: 858/4 ، فتح الباري: 185/12
Preferred Opinion (الراجح): The stronger view is that taʿzīr must not exceed ten lashes, in accordance with the ḥadīth.
Reference: نيل الأوطار: 608/4
◈ Important Note
This ḥadīth proves not the obligation but the permissibility of taʿzīr. This is why the Prophet ﷺ, when informed about some acts for which no ḥadd was prescribed, did not impose punishment, such as:
① A man who had intercourse with his wife during the day in Ramaḍān.
② A man who met a woman and did everything with her except intercourse.
Reference: الروضة الندية: 615/2
◈ Types of Taʿzīr
➊ Imprisonment – as the Prophet ﷺ did.
➋ Exile / banishment – as the Prophet ﷺ did with the effeminate men (mukhannathūn).
➌ Boycotting / avoiding speech – as was done with the three Companions who stayed behind in the expedition of Tabūk.
➍ Non-obscene verbal reprimand – examples from Qur’ān and Sunnah:
- Mūsā (عليه السلام) said: إِنَّكَ لَغَوِيٌّ مُّبِينٌ [القصص: 18]
- Yūsuf (عليه السلام) said: أَنتُمْ شَرٌّ مَّكَانًا [يوسف: 77]
- The Prophet ﷺ said to Abū Dharr (RA): إنك امرؤ فيك جاهلية
Reference: بخاري: 30 - To someone announcing a lost item in the mosque, he ﷺ said:
لا ردها الله عليك
Reference: مسلم: 568 - To someone trading in the mosque, he ﷺ said:
لا أربع الله تجارتك
Reference: ترمذي: 1321
