1113 – ‘Ubadah ibn al-Samit (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Do not commit ghulul; for ghulul is fire, and it is a disgrace upon its perpetrator in this world and the Hereafter.” Related by Ahmad and al-Nasa’i, and declared authentic by Ibn Hibban. (1)

Grade of the hadith
The hadith is sound; Ibn Hibban authenticated it. It was transmitted by Imam Ahmad, al-Nasa’i, and Ibn Hibban, and it is corroborated by the report in Sahih al-Bukhari from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him): “The Messenger of Allah ﷺ stood among us, mentioned ghulul, and emphasized its seriousness …” and so forth. Al-Haythami said: “In this chain is Umm Habibah bint al-‘Irbad; I have found no one who deemed her reliable or unreliable, while the remainder of the narrators are trustworthy.”

Vocabulary
• ghulul – with ḍammah on the ghayn; the verbal noun of ghalla–yaghullu–ghulūlan. It refers to the misappropriation of war booty or other entrusted property.
• ‘ār – a blemish and public disgrace that clings to its perpetrator.

Points derived from the hadith
1 – Ghulul, the betrayal of trust in the spoils of war, is one of the major sins. Allah says: “Whoever betrays will come with what he has betrayed on the Day of Resurrection” (3:161).
The scholars unanimously agree on this because it combines numerous harms: it is folly and treachery, and it constitutes wrongdoing against all the combatants and the rightful recipients of the khums (one-fifth share).