Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (6/83)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

and the ends of garments.

Muslim scholars have differed concerning lashes beyond forty, up to eighty: Are they a prescribed punishment that must be carried out, or a discretionary punishment that varies according to the circumstances? There are two well-known opinions, both of which are reported from Ahmad.

The first(1) holds that it(2) is a prescribed punishment, because the lowest prescribed punishment is eighty lashes—the punishment for false accusation of fornication. The proponents of this opinion claimed that the Companions reached a consensus on this and that the reports of forty lashes referred to the use of a double-ended whip, so that forty strokes counted as eighty. This is the position of Abū Hanīfa, Mālik, and others, and it was adopted by al-Khiraqī, al-Qādī Abū Yaʿlā, and others.

The second holds that administering more than forty lashes is permissible but is not an obligatory prescribed punishment. This is the opinion of al-Shāfiʿī and was adopted by Abū Bakr, Abū Muhammad(3), and others. This opinion is stronger, for it is authentically established in the Sahih that ʿAlī—may Allah be pleased with him—gave al-Walīd forty lashes and said:

“The Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—gave forty lashes, Abū Bakr gave forty lashes, and ʿUmar gave eighty lashes. Each(4) is Sunnah, but this is dearer to me(5).”

In the two Sahih collections, Anas reported: “The Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—was brought a man who had drunk wine, and he struck him with sandals approximately forty times. Then a man was brought to Abū Bakr, and he did likewise. Then a man was brought to ʿUmar, and he consulted the people regarding the prescribed punishments,

(1) *Ahaduhumā* (“one of the two,” masculine): thus in (ح) and (ب); all other manuscripts read *ihdāhumā* (“one of the two,” feminine). (2) (ر) reads: *annahā* (“that it is,” feminine). (3) (ن) reads: “Abū Bakr and Muhammad.” (4) (ح) reads: “and all of it.” (5) This report was discussed earlier in this volume, pp. 90–99.

وَأَطْرَافِ الثِّيَابِ، وَقَدْ تَنَازَعَ عُلَمَاءُ الْمُسْلِمِينَ فِي الزَّائِدِ عَنِ الْأَرْبَعِينَ إِلَى الثَمَانِينَ: هَلْ هُوَ حَدٌّ يَجِبُ إِقَامَتُهُ؟ أَوْ تَعْزِيرٌ يَخْتِلَفُ بِاخْتِلَافِ الْأَحْوَالِ؟ عَلَى قَوْلَيْنِ مَشْهُورَيْنِ، هُمَا رِوَايَتَانِ عَنْ أَحْمَدَ، أَحَدُهُمَا (١) : أَنَّهُ (٢) حَدٌّ لِأَنَّ أَقَلَّ الْحُدُودِ ثَمَانُونَ، وَهُوَ حَدُّ الْقَذْفِ، وَادَّعَى أَصْحَابُ هَذَا الْقَوْلِ أَنَّ الصَّحَابَةَ أَجْمَعَتْ عَلَى ذَلِكَ، وَأَنَّ مَا نُقِلَ مِنَ الضَّرْبِ أَرْبَعِينَ كَانَ بِسَوْطٍ لَهُ طَرَفَانِ، فَكَانَتِ الْأَرْبَعُونَ قَائِمَةً مَقَامَ الثَمَانِينَ، وَهَذَا مَذْهَبُ أَبِي حَنِيفَةَ وَمَالِكٍ وَغَيْرِهِمَا، وَاخْتَارَهُ الْخِرَقِيُّ وَالْقَاضِي أَبُو يَعْلَى وَغَيْرُهُمَا. وَالثَّانِي: أَنَّ الزَّائِدَ عَلَى الْأَرْبَعِينَ جَائِزٌ، فَلَيْسَ بِحَدٍّ وَاجِبٍ، وَهُوَ قَوْلُ الشَّافِعِيِّ، وَاخْتَارَهُ أَبُو بَكْرٍ وَأَبُو مُحَمَّدٍ (٣) وَغَيْرُهُمَا. وَهَذَا الْقَوْلُ أَقْوَى؛ لِأَنَّهُ قَدْ ثَبَتَ فِي الصَّحِيحِ عَنْ عَلِيٍّ - رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ - أَنَّهُ جَلَدَ الْوَلِيدَ أَرْبَعِينَ، وَقَالَ: جَلَدَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - أَرْبَعِينَ، وَجَلَدَ أَبُو بَكْرٍ أَرْبَعِينَ، وَجَلَدَ عُمَرُ ثَمَانِينَ، وَكُلٌّ (٤) سُنَّةٌ، وَهَذَا أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ (٥) . وَفِي الصَّحِيحَيْنِ «عَنْ أَنَسٍ قَالَ: أُتِيَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - بِرَجُلٍ قَدْ شَرِبَ الْخَمْرَ، فَضَرَبَهُ بِالنِّعَالِ نَحْوًا مِنْ أَرْبَعِينَ، ثُمَّ أُتِيَ بِهِ أَبُو بَكْرٍ فَفَعَلَ بِهِ مِثْلَ ذَلِكَ، ثُمَّ أُتِيَ بِهِ عُمَرُ فَاسْتَشَارَ النَّاسَ فِي الْحُدُودِ،

(١) أَحَدُهُمَا: كَذَا فِي (ح) ، (ب) وَفِي سَائِرِ النُّسَخِ: إِحْدَاهُمَا. (٢) ر: أَنَّهَا. (٣) ن: أَبُو بَكْرٍ وَمُحَمَّدٌ. (٤) ح: وَالْكُلُّ. (٥) سَبَقَ الْكَلَامُ عَلَى هَذَا الْأَثَرِ فِي هَذَا الْجُزْءِ ص [٠ - ٩] ٩