Chapter 01-Qisas (Retaliation)

1199. Ibn Masud narrated that the Messengerof Allah said, "The blood of a Muslim who testifies that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and that I am His Messenger, cannot be shed lawfully, except in three cases: a married person who committed adultery, in Qisas(retaliation) for murder (life for life)and the apostate from Islam who abandons the Muslim Jama'ah (community)." Agreed upon.







1200. 'A'ishah narrated that Allah's Messenger said, "The 'blood of a Muslim is not to be shed except for three reasons: a married man who committed adultery, a man who kills another Muslim intentionally for which he must be killed (in Qisas or retaliation), and a man who abandons Islam and fights against Allah and His Messenger, in which case he should be either killed, crucified, or exiled." Related by Abu Dawud and An-Nasai'. Al-Hakim graded it as Sahih.







1201. 'Abdullah Ibn Masud narrated that the Messenger of Allah said, ''The first issues to be judged among people on the Day of Resurrection, are those of unlawful blood-shed." Agreed upon.







1202. Samurah narrated that the Messenger of Allah said, "Whoever kills his slave we shall kill him, and whoever cuts the nose of his slave we shall cut off his nose." Related by Ahmad and the four Imams. At-Tirmidhi graded it as Hasan.

Abu Dawud and An-Nasa'i added the following, "and whoever castrates his slave we shall castrate him." Al-Hakim graded this addition as Sahih.








1203. 'Umar bin al-Khattab (RAA) narrated, 'I heard the Messenger of Allah say, "A father is not to be killed for his off·spring." Related by Ahmad, At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah. Ibn al-Garud and al-Baihaqi graded it as Sahih.






1204. Abu Juhaifah narrated, I asked 'Ali : 'Do you have any other Divine Revelation besides what is in the Qur'an? 'Ali said, 'No. By Him Who made the grain split (germinate) and created the soul, we have nothing besides the Qur'an except the gift of understanding the Qur'an, which Allah gives aman, besides what is written in this manuscript. I said, 'What is in this manuscript?' 'Ali said, 'The regulations of Diyah (Blood money), the ransom for captives and the ruling that no Muslim should be killed in Qisas for killing a disbeliever.' Related by Al-Bukhari.








1205. The previous tradition was also transmitted by Ahmad, An-Nasa'i and Abu Dawud on the authority of 'Ali with a different chain of narrators where he said, 'The blood of one Muslim (his life) is equivalent to the blood of another Muslim (i.e. equal in Qisas and blood money), the protection of Allah is one (and is equally) extended to the most humble of the believers (i.e. if a Muslim gives protection to a man or to a group of men, they should all help him even is he was the most humble of them). Believers are all like one hand against their enemies. No believer is to be killed for a disbeliever (i.e. in Qisas,nor should one who has a covenant with the Muslims be killed while his covenant holds.' Al-Hakim graded it as Sahih.







1206. Anas bin Malik narrated that a girl was found with her head crushed between two stones. They asked her, 'Who did that to you? Is it so and so, or so and so? They mentioned some names to her until they mentioned the name of a Jew, whereupon she nodded her head. The Jew was captured and he confessed. The Messenger of Allah ordered that his head be crushed between two stones.' Agreed upon and the wording is from Muslim.







1207. Imran bin AI-Husain narrated that a slave of some poor people cut off the ear' of another slave belonging to some rich people. They came to the Messenger of Allah but he appointed no compensation for them. (334) Related by Ahmad and the three Imams with a sound chain of narrators.

334. Scholars have different opinions as to the reason for giving no compensation. Some say that it happened by accident, some say that maybe it was because his masters were poor so the Messenger of AllAh gave him the compensation himself, some say that the boy was still immature and Allah knows best.








1208. 'Amro bin Shuaib narrated on the authority of his father, on the authority of his grandfather , that a man stabbed another man in his knee with a horn. So he came to the Messenger of Allah and said, 'Retaliate on my behalf.' The Messenger of Allah said to him, ''Wait until your wound has healed," The man came again and said, '0 Messenger of Allah! Retaliate on my behalf.' So, he allowed him to retaliate against the one who attacked him (by stabbing him the same way). Then he came again to the Messenger of Allah and said, '0 Messenger of Allah! I have become lame.' The Messenger of Allah said to him, "I forbade you (to take retaliation until your wound was healed) but you disobeyed me, may Allah keep you away from His mercy (for your disobedience), and as for your lameness you are not entitled to any compensation (as he retaliated before
he discovered the lameness otherwise he would have been entitled half the Diyah)," Then Allah's Messenger prohibited the following, 'No retaliation is to be made for a wound before the victim is totally recovered.' Related by Ahmad and Ad-Daraqutni.








1209. Aba Hurairah narrated, 'Two woman of the tribe of Hudhail fought with each other and one of them threw a stone at the other. In this way she killed the woman and what was in her womb (as she was pregnant). Their dispute was presented to the Prophet who ordained that the Diyah (blood money) of the unborn child, is a male or a female slave of the best quality. He also decided that the Diyah of the woman is to be paid by her relatives (the one who killed) on her father's side. (335) The Messenger of Allah also ordained that her inheritance (of the woman who killed as she died later) be for her sons and husband (and not for her relatives who had to pay the Diyah). Hamal bin An-Nabighah Al-Hudhaili then said, '0 Messenger of Allah! Why should I pay the Diyah for one who neither drank nor ate nor spoke, nor cried (i.e. the dead fetus), such a creature is not entitled to blood money.' The Messenger of Allah then said, "This man is one of the brothers of the soothsayers," on account of the rhymed speech which he used, concerning the dead fetus.

335. There was no Qisas in this case, as the woman did not intend to kill her. She only used a small stone or the like.

1210. Abu Dawud and An-Nasa'i narrated on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas that "Umar asked about the judgment of the
Prophet concerning the Diyah of the dead fetus. Hamal bin An-Nabighah Al-Hudhaili then got up and said, "I was between the two women. One of them struck the other with a stone, killing her and what was in her womb. So the Messenger of Allah ordained .....," (as above). Ibn Hibban and al-Hakim graded it as Sahih







1211. Anas narrated that Ar-Rubai bint An-Nadr (his aunt) broke the incisor teeth of a girl. Thc family of Ar-Rubai asked the family of the girl to pardon her, but they refused. They then offered them Arsh (336), (as compensation) but they also refused. They came to the Messenger of Allah asking for Qisas and he gave orders that they should take their Qisas from Ar-Rubai '. Anas bin An-Nadr then came to the Messenger of Allah and said, '0 Messenger of Allah! Will the incisor tooth of Ar-Rubai ' be broken? No, by Him Who sent you with the truth, her incisor tooth will not be broken. The Messenger of Allah then said to him, "Anas! Allah's decree is equal retaliation!' But the family of the girl agreed to pardon Ar-Rubai. The Messenger of Allah then said, "Among Allah's servants are those who if they swear by Allah (for something), Allah will consent to their oath," Agreed upon, and the wording is from Al-Bukhari.

336. Term used for blood money owed for injuries.








1212. Ibn' Abbas narrated that the Messenger of Allah said, "If anyone is killed and his killer is not known (337) or was killed with a stone, a whip or with a stick (i.e. killed by mistake but with a deliberate injury) his Diyah will be that of killing by mistake (manslaughter). As for whoever killed deliberately, retaliation is due (from the one who killed him). Anyone who tries to prevent taking Qisas (from the killer) may Allilh curse him." Related by Abu Dawud, An-Nasa'i and Ibn Majah with a strong chain of narrators.

337. Such as the one killed in a fight between two families or two tribes and it is not definitely known who killed him or how he was killed. In this case the other family must take an oath that they did not kill the victim, and if it is known who killed him (which group of people or which family) they would share his Diyah (for a death caused by mistake) Otherwise, if it is dHlicult to identify the group of people who killed him, his
Diyah is to be paid from the Muslim Treasury.







1213. Ibn Umar narrated that the Messenger of Allah said,"If a man holds another man so that a third man can kill the seized one, then the one who killed is to be killed (in Qisas) and the one who seized the killed one is to be imprisoned." Related by Ad-Daraqutni Ibn al-Qattan graded it as Sahih and its narrators are trustworthy.








1214. 'Abdur Rahman bin Al-Bailamani narrated that the Messenger of Allah killed a Muslim who killed Mu'ahid. (338) who had made a covenant with the Muslims, and said, "I am closest to the ones who keep their covenants of protection." Related by 'Abdur Razzaq.

338. A Mu'ahid is a non Muslim who is residing in an Islamic State with whom there is a covenant of peace and protection, The killing of such a person is murder.








1215. Ibn 'Umar narrated, 'A young boy was murdered deceitfully. 'Umar thereupon said, "If all the people of San 'a.'
(in Yemen) participated in killing him, I would kill them all.' (339) Related by al-Bukhari.

339. The incident happened when a man traveled and left his wife with their child. The woman and her lover killed the child for fear that he may tell lhe husband about it when he returned. Those involved were the woman, her lover, her servant and another man. When Umar knew about it from Yala bin Umaiyyah, his ruler in Yemen, he issued a decree that all of them must be killed as they killed him collectively.







1216. Abu Shuraih Al-Khazai narrated that the Messenger of Allah said, "If the relative of one of you is killed after my speech, his family has one of two choices: 'Either they take his Diyahor kill the killer' Related by Abu Dawud and An-Nasa'i.








1217. A similar narration is transmitted by Al-Bukhari and Muslim on the authority of Abu Hurairah