His statement, “previously dug,” means a well that had once been dug, then became filled in by sand, rain, or the like, and was subsequently re-dug. Its owner acquires fifty cubits on every side, because he dug it once and then dug it a second time. By the first digging, he acquired twenty-five cubits, and by the second, he acquired another twenty-five; thus the total is fifty cubits.

What the author, may Allah have mercy on him, means by this is a well dug for watering livestock, not for irrigation. This frequently occurs in the open country among the Bedouins: a man digs a well until he reaches water in order to water his camels, cattle, or sheep. We say that, through this well, he acquires fifty cubits if it has been re-dug, or twenty-five cubits if it is a newly dug well—that is, one begun for the first time. Here, the form faʿīlah carries the meaning of something acted upon; that is, its digging was begun. But if the well is for irrigation, it resembles channeling water to land, which constitutes reclamation of all the land that can be cultivated by means of that well.

The apparent meaning of the jurists’ words, may Allah have mercy on them, is that there is no difference whether the digging is easy or difficult—for example, where the ground is rocky—nor whether the well is deep or shallow. The reason is that this protected surrounding area is connected to the interests of the well. A man in the open country digs such a well only to water his livestock, and twenty-five cubits on every side is sufficient: that is, a circle fifty cubits in diameter. But if it is a previously dug well, meaning that it became filled in and was then dug a second time, he acquires fifty cubits on every side.

Their words also apparently indicate that there is no difference whether the digger is once