Chapter on Claims and Evidentiary Proofs

Introduction

“Claims” (sing. daʿwā) refer to a person’s assertion that he deserves something in the possession—or under the liability—of another.

The claimant (al-muddaʿī) is the one who demands from someone else a right he says is owed; if he refrains from making the demand, he is left alone.

As for the bayyināt (sing. bayyina, from abāna, “to make clear”), Imam Aḥmad holds that the term denotes any manifest sign, such as the testimony of a witness.

Ibn al-Qayyim, however, does not confine the notion of bayyina to witness testimony. He maintains that bayyina applies to anything that clarifies and brings the truth to light. Whoever limits it to two witnesses, four witnesses, or even a single witness has not done justice to the word. Nowhere in the Qur’an does bayyina signify “two witnesses”; rather, it consistently means proof, evidence, or demonstration, whether mentioned in the singular or the plural.

Two witnesses are indeed a form of bayyina, but they do not exclude other kinds, some of which may be stronger. The circumstances surrounding a case can attest to a claimant’s truthfulness more powerfully than the report of a witness. The terms bayyina, indication (dalāla), proof (ḥujja), argument (burhān), sign (ʿalāma), and mark (amāra) are all close in meaning.

The divine Lawgiver has not abolished circumstantial indicators, presumptive signs, or contextual evidence. Anyone who surveys the Sharīʿa in its sources and applications will find that it recognises them and bases rulings upon them.