Prescribed Punishments (Kitab Al-Hudud)

كتاب الحدود

Chapter 3: What has been reported concerning Al-Muharibah

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.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas

The verse "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, or the cutting off of hands and feet from opposite side or exile from the land...most merciful" was revealed about polytheists. If any of them repents before they are arrested, it does not prevent from inflicting on him the prescribed punishment which he deserves.

Chapter 4: Regarding interceding about a legal punishment

‘A’ishah said

The Quraish were anxious about the Makhzumi woman who had committed theft, They said : Who will speak to the Messenger of Allah(ﷺ) about her ? Then they said: Who will be bold enough for it but Uasmah bin Zaid, the prophet’s (ﷺ) friend! So Usamah spoke to him, and the Messenger of Allah(ﷺ) said : Are you interceding regarding one of the punishments prescribed by Allah ? He then got up and gave an address, saying : What destroyed your predecessors was just that when a person of rank among them committed a theft, They left him alone , and when a weak one of them committed a theft, they inflicted the prescribed punishment on him . I swear by Allah that if Fatimah daughter of Muhammad should steal, I would have her hand cut off.

’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).

Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) Said: Forgive the people of good qualities their slips, but not faults to which prescribed penalties apply.

Chapter 5: Pardoning in cases of hadd (punishment) that do not reach the sultan

Narrated Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-'As

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Forgive the infliction of prescribed penalties among yourselves, for any prescribed penalty of which I hear must be carried out.

Chapter 6: Concealing those who have committed deeds for which had punishments are prescribed

Narrated Nu'aym

Ma'iz came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and admitted (having committed adultery) four times in his presence so he ordered him to be stoned to death, but said to Huzzal: If you had covered him with your garment, it would have been better for you.

Ibn al-Muakadir said

Huzzal had ordered Ma’iz to go to the prophet (ﷺ) and tell him(about his having committed adultery).

Chapter 7: Regarding one deserving of the punishment coming to confess

Narrated Wa'il ibn Hujr

When a woman went out in the time of the Prophet (ﷺ) for prayer, a man attacked her and overpowered (raped) her.

She shouted and he went off, and when a man came by, she said: That (man) did such and such to me. And when a company of the Emigrants came by, she said: That man did such and such to me. They went and seized the man whom they thought had had intercourse with her and brought him to her.

She said: Yes, this is he. Then they brought him to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).

When he (the Prophet) was about to pass sentence, the man who (actually) had assaulted her stood up and said: Messenger of Allah, I am the man who did it to her.

He (the Prophet) said to her: Go away, for Allah has forgiven you. But he told the man some good words (AbuDawud said: meaning the man who was seized), and of the man who had had intercourse with her, he said: Stone him to death.

He also said: He has repented to such an extent that if the people of Medina had repented similarly, it would have been accepted from them.

Abu Dawud said: Asbat bin Nasr has also transmitted it from Simak.

Chapter 8: Prompting with regard to hadd

Narrated AbuUmayyah al-Makhzumi

A thief who had accepted (having committed theft) was brought to the Prophet (ﷺ), but no good were found with him. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), said to him: I do not think you have stolen. He said: Yes, I have. He repeated it twice or thrice. So he gave orders. His hand was cut off and he was then brought to him. He said: Ask Allah's pardon and turn to Him in repentance. He said: I ask Allah's pardon and turn to Him in repentance. He (the Prophet) then said: O Allah, accept his repentance.

Abu Dawud said: It has been transmitted by 'Amr b. Asim, from Hammam, from Ishaq b. 'Abd Allah from Abu Ummayyah, a man of the Ansar from the Prophet (ﷺ).

Chapter 9: Regarding the case of a man who admits he committed a punishable offense, but does not specify what it was

Abu ‘Umamah said

A man came to the prophet (ﷺ) and said : Messenger of Allah ! I have committed a crime which involves prescribed punishment so inflict it on me . He said : Have you not performed ablution when you came? He said : Yes, He said: Have you not prayed with us when we prayed ? He said : Yes .He then said : Go off, for Allah, the Exalted, forgave you.

Chapter 10: Testing by means of beating

Azhar ibn Abdullah al-Harari said

They came to an-Nu'man and said: You have set them free without beating and investigation. An-Nu'man said: What do you want? You want me to beat them. If your goods are found with them, then it is all right; otherwise, I shall take (retaliation) from your back as I have taken from their backs. They asked: Is this your decision? He said: This is the decision of Allah and His Apostle (ﷺ).

Abu Dawud said: By this statement he frightened them ; that is, beating is not necessary except after acknowledgement.

Chapter 11: For what the hand of a thief is to be cut off

‘A’ishah said

The prophet (ﷺ) used to cut off a thief’s hand for a quarter of a dinar and upwards.

‘A’ishah reported the prophet (ﷺ) as saying

Ahmed b. Salih said: The amputation (of a thief’s hand) is for a quarter of a dinar and upwards.

Ibn ‘Umar’ said

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) had thief’s hand cut off for a shield worth three dirhams.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Umar

The Prophet (ﷺ) had a man's hand cut off who had stolen from the place reserved for women a shield whose price was three dirhams.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) had a man's hand cut off for (stealing) a shield whose price was a dinar or ten dirhams.

Abu Dawud said: Muhammad bin Salamah and Sa'dan bin Yahya have transmitted it from Ibn Ishaq through his chain of narrators.

Chapter 12: For what the thief's hand is not to be cut off

Narrated Rafi' ibn Khadij

Muhammad ibn Yahya ibn Hibban said: A slave stole a plant of a palm-tree from the orchard of a man and planted it in the orchard of his master. The owner of the plant went out in search of the plant and he found it. He solicited help against the slave from Marwan ibn al-Hakam who was the Governor of Medina at that time. Marwan confined the slave and intended to cut off his hand. The slave's master went to Rafi' ibn Khadij and asked him about it.

He told him that he had heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: The hand is not to be cut off for taking fruit or the pith of the palm-tree.

The man then said: Marwan has seized my slave and wants to cut off his hand. I wish you to go with me to him and tell him that which you have heard from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). So Rafi' ibn Khadij went with him and came to Marwan ibn al-Hakam.

Rafi' said to him: I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: The hand is not to be cut off for taking fruit or the pith of the palm-tree. So Marwan gave orders to release the slave and then he was released.

Abu Dawud said: Kathar means pith of the palm-tree.

This tradition has also been transmitted by Muhammad bin Yahya bin Hibban through a different chain of narrators. This version adds

Marwan gave him some lashes and let him go.