in public, while others are disciplined by dismissal from their posts. Thus, discretionary discipline is not tied to any particular punishment, because its purpose is reform and correction, and this varies from person to person. That is why the author left discretionary discipline unspecified: two men may commit the same offence, yet one may be disciplined by a financial penalty and the other by beating.

The correct view is that he is to be disciplined in the manner mentioned in the hadith of Bahz ibn Hakim, from his father, from his grandfather: the Prophet ﷺ said concerning one who withholds it: “We shall take it and half his property, as a decisive ordinance from among the ordinances of our Lord.” (1)

There is no doubt that when the Sacred Law specifies a type of punishment—even in the matter of discretionary discipline—it is better than what the ruler may impose. Thus, we take it and half his property.

Half of his property means one-half.

But does this mean half of his property in general, or half of the property from which he withheld its zakat?

The answer is that the scholars hold two views on this:

The first is that we take the zakat and half of the property whose zakat he withheld.

The second is that we take the zakat and half of all his property.

For example, if a man owns one hundred camels and one hundred sheep, and he withholds the zakat on the sheep:

According to the first view, we take fifty sheep from him, along with the zakat on the sheep.

According to the second view, we take fifty sheep and fifty