Prescribed Punishments (Kitab Al-Hudud)

كتاب الحدود

Chapter 1: Ruling on one who apostatizes

`Abd Allah (b. Mas`ud) reported the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) as saying

The blood of a Muslim man who testifies that there is no god but Allah and that I am the Messenger of Allah should not be lawfully shed but only for one of three reasons: married fornicator, soul for soul, and one who deserts his religion separating himself from the community.

Abu Burdah said on the authority of Abu Musa

I went to the Prophet (ﷺ) while two men who were Ash’ arIs were with me. One of them was on my right and the other on my left side. Bothe of them asked him for employment. The prophet (ﷺ) was silent. He asked : What do you say Abu Musa, or ‘Abd Allah b. Qais (Abu Musa’s name)? I replied: By him who has sent you with truth, they did not inform me of what they had in their hearts, and I did not know that they would ask for an employment. He said : I have the scene before my eyes that he had his toothstick below his lip which receded. He (the prophet) said: We will never or will not put in charge of our work anyone who asks for it. But go, ye, Abu Musa, or ‘Abd Allah b. Qais. He then sent him as a Governor of the Yemen, After him he sent Muadh b. Jabal. When Muadh came to him, he said: come down , and he put a cushion for him. He saw that a man was chained with him. He asked : What is this? He replied: He was a Jew and he accepted Islam. He then converted to his religion, an evil religion. He said: I will not sit until he is killed according to the decision of Allah and his Apostle (ﷺ). He said: Yes, be seated. He said: I will not sit until he is killed according to the decision of Allah and his Apostle (peace be upon him). He said it three times. He then commanded for it and he was killed. Both of them then discussed the question of prayer and vigilance at night. One of them, probably Muadh, said : So far as I am concerned, I sleep and I keep vigilance: I keep vigilance and I sleep: I hope for the same reward for my sleep as for my vigilance.

Abu Burdah said

A man who turned back from Islam was brought to Abu Musa. He invited him to repent for twenty days or about so. Muadh then came and invited him (to embrace Islam) but he refused. So he was beheaded.

‘Ikrimah said

‘Ali burned some people who retreated from Islam. When Ibn ‘Abbas was informed of it, he said: If it had been I, I would not have burned them, for the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: Do not inflict Allah’s punishment on anyone, but would have had killed them on account of the statement of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). The Apostle said: Kill those who change their religion. When ‘Ali was informed about it he said: How truly Ibn ‘Abbas said!

Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) Said: The blood of a Muslim man who testifies that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is Allah's Apostle should not lawfully be shed except only for one of three reasons: a man who committed fornication after marriage, in which case he should be stoned; one who goes forth to fight with Allah and His Apostle, in which case he should be killed or crucified or exiled from the land; or one who commits murder for which he is killed.

The tradition mention above has also been transmitted by Abu Musa through a different chain if narrators. But there is no mention of demand of repentance.

Chapter 0

Chapter 1: Ruling on one who apostatizes

Narrated Mu'adh ibn Jabal

AbuMusa said: Mu'adh came to me when I was in the Yemen. A man who was Jew embraced Islam and then retreated from Islam. When Mu'adh came, he said: I will not come down from my mount until he is killed. He was then killed. One of them said: He was asked to repent before that.

Narrated Sa'd ibn AbuWaqqas

On the day of the conquest of Mecca, Abdullah ibn Sa'd ibn AbuSarh hid himself with Uthman ibn Affan.

He brought him and made him stand before the Prophet (ﷺ), and said: Accept the allegiance of Abdullah, Messenger of Allah! He raised his head and looked at him three times, refusing him each time, but accepted his allegiance after the third time.

Then turning to his companions, he said: Was not there a wise man among you who would stand up to him when he saw that I had withheld my hand from accepting his allegiance, and kill him?

They said: We did not know what you had in your heart, Messenger of Allah! Why did you not give us a signal with your eye?

He said: It is not advisable for a Prophet to play deceptive tricks with the eyes.

Chapter 2: The ruling regarding one who reviles the prophet (pbuh)

Narrated Ali ibn AbuTalib

A Jewess used to abuse the Prophet (ﷺ) and disparage him. A man strangled her till she died. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) declared that no recompense was payable for her blood.

Chapter 3: What has been reported concerning Al-Muharibah

Anas b. Malik said

Some people of ‘Ukl or ‘Urainah’ came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and found Madinah unhealthy. So the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) ordered them to go to the camels (of the sadaqah) and ordered them to drink some of their urine and milk. They went there when they became well, they killed the herdsman of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and drove off the camels. The news about them reached the prophet (ﷺ) early in the morning. So he sent people in pursuit of them, and they were brought when they day had risen high. He ordered and their hands and feet were cut off and nails were drawn into their eyes, and they were thrown out of Harrah. They begged for water but were not supplied water. Abu Qilabah said: They were people who had stolen, killed, apostatized after their faith and fought against Allah and his Apostle (ﷺ).

Narrated AbuzZinad

When the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) cut off (the hands and feet of) those who had stolen his camels and he had their eyes put out by fire (heated nails), Allah reprimanded him on that (action), and Allah, the Exalted, revealed: "The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His Apostle and strive with might and main for mischief through the land is execution or crucifixion."

Muhammad bin Sirin said

This happened before the prescribed punishments(hudud) were revealed, meaning the tradition of Anas.

Chapter 4: Regarding interceding about a legal punishment

’A’ishah said

Abu dawud said: Ibn Wahb transmitted this tradition from Yunus on the authority of al-Zuhri, and in this version he said al-Laith has said: A woman committed theft during the lifetime of the Prophet (ﷺ) on the occasion of the Conquest (of Mecca). It has been transmitted by al-Laith from Yunus on the authority of Ibn Shihab through his chain of narrators. He said in this version: A woman borrowed goods. Mas'ud bin al-Aswad also transmitted a similar tradition from the Prophet (ﷺ) and said: A velvet was stolen from the house of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).

Abu Dawud said: Abu al-Zubair reported on the authority of Jabir: A woman committed theft and took refuge with Zainab daughter of Prophet (ﷺ).

Chapter 13: Cutting off the hand for snatching and treachery

Narrated Jabir ibn Abdullah

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Cutting of hand is not to be inflicted on one who plunders, but he who plunders conspicuously does not belong to us.

Narrated Jabir ibn Abdullah

He also said through this chain: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: Cutting of the hand is not to be inflicted on one who is treacherous.

Chapter 15: Cutting off the hand for a loan if he denies borrowing it

Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin

A woman borrowed jewellery through some known persons and she herself was unknown. She then sold them. She was seized and brought to the Prophet (ﷺ). He gave orders that her hand should be cut off. It is this woman about whom Usamah interceded and of her the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said whatever he said.

Chapter 1: Ruling on one who apostatizes

Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas

Abdullah ibn AbuSarh used to write (the revelation) for the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). Satan made him slip, and he joined the infidels. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) commanded to kill him on the day of Conquest (of Mecca). Uthman ibn Affan sought protection for him. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) gave him protection.

Chapter 2: The ruling regarding one who reviles the prophet (pbuh)

Narrated AbuBakr

AbuBarzah said: I was with AbuBakr. He became angry at a man and uttered hot words. I said: Do you permit me, Caliph of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), that I cut off his neck? These words of mine removed his anger; he stood and went in. He then sent for me and said: What did you say just now? I said: (I had said:) Permit me that I cut off his neck. He said: Would you do it if I ordered you? I said: Yes. He said: No, I swear by Allah, this is not allowed for any man after Muhammad (ﷺ).

Abu Dawud said: This is Yazid's version. Ahmad bin Hanbal said: That is, Abu Bakr has no powers to slay a man except for three reasons which the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) had mentioned: disbelief after belief, fornication after marriage, or killing a man without (murdering) any man by him. The Prophet (ﷺ) had powers to kill.

Chapter 3: What has been reported concerning Al-Muharibah

Narrated Abdullah ibn Umar

Some people raided the camels of the Prophet (ﷺ), drove them off, and apostatised. They killed the herdsman of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) who was a believer. He (the Prophet) sent (people) in pursuit of them and they were caught. He had their hands and feet cut off, and their eyes put out. The verse regarding fighting against Allah and His Prophet (ﷺ) was then revealed. These were the people about whom Anas ibn Malik informed al-Hajjaj when he asked him.