Discover Islam, - *Penal laws in Islam

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In Islam, there are specific penal laws for major crimes. The underlying principles here are the following. Firstly, no matter how ideal a religion is, there will be some forms of transgression by some persons. Secondly, there are major crimes that need major punishments.
The major transgressions, according to Islam, are murder, highway robbery, theft, adultery, and false accusation of adultery. These transgressions affect the individual and the society and create a state of confusion and insecurity.
The principles that govern penal laws in Islam are:
1. The punishment should be effective enough to deter the crime.
2. Punishment is necessary, though disliked.
3. Punishment is a means to social security.
The Penalty for Murder:
As for murder, the Islamic punishment for intentional murder is the execution of the murderer. Pardoning is possible if the closest relative of the murdered person accepts blood-money. However, if murder is unintentional, blood-money takes the place of the death sentence.
In countries that have abolished capital punishment, we notice that such a cancellation has ended up with more murders and more murderers. Any toleration of murders will encourage more murders and the result is the loss of security.
In countries that apply the death sentence for murder, one notices that such a sentence minimises the cases of murder. When a person knows that he will be killed if he kills, he will think at least a thousand times before he considers committing a murder.
Islam legislated killing as a punishment for murder fourteen centuries ago. Allaah is the Most Merciful: man need not wait centuries until sociologists finish their research on the subject or until parliaments vote for a solution!
Allaah, through the Holy Quran, shows us the right way that provides society with security: intentional murder is punished by killing the murderer. Although killing is a severe punishment, it is fair because murder itself is an even more severe action and such a punishment is necessary because without it more murders are encouraged.
The Penalty for Highway Robbery:
Another crime that is specified in the Quran is highway robbery. The punishment of a highway robber may take one of these forms depending on the seriousness of the case. The robber may be put to death, or crucified, or have his hand and leg cut off on opposite sides, or imprisoned.
Of course, highway robbers threaten the security of the society, endanger the lives of individuals, and rob persons of their money. If such persons are punished softly, the result is more and more robbers as is the case of countries that deal with such criminals leniently.
On the contrary, in a country like Saudi Arabia, which applies Islamic penal laws, we find that the cases of murder and robbery are the fewest in the whole world. We must remember that the function of the punishment is double: the criminal himself is punished for what he has committed and other persons in the same community are warned not to commit similar crimes.
The Penalty for Theft:
The other crime that is specified in the Quran is theft. As we know, Islam emphasises the individual's safety with regard to his life, property, and honour. Any threat to these three entities is severely punished by Islam. A person who kills another or robs him is severely punished because this is the only way to guarantee security for every individual.
Concerning theft, Islam legislates cutting the thief's hand off as a maximum punishment and under certain conditions. In countries that apply this punishment, like Saudi Arabia, we notice that theft is a very rare occurrence. The judge decides the seriousness of the case and decides if the thief should get the maximum penalty or not, according to certain conditions and restrictions.
When a person knows that he will lose his hand if he uses it in stealing, this makes stealing a rare possibility. The implication of such a punishment is this: each organ in the body must be used cleanly, honourably, and legally. The function of the hand is not stealing. If the hand is used to threaten other people, it is a dangerous hand and the judge is entitled to reconsider its existence.
The other implication of cutting the hand off is to give the thief and other people a permanent example and a continuous reminder of the fate of thieves. In countries that merely imprison the thief, the thief himself may steal again after being released from prison.
The Penalty for Adultery:
Another major crime in Islamic law is adultery. The Holy Quran tells us that the adulterer or the adulteress is to be flogged one hundred stripes while being witnessed by some people. The idea of letting some people witness the carrying out of the punishment is to add to the psychological effect of flogging on the culprit. If the adulterer or adulteress is married, the penalty is stoning to death, according to certain strict conditions.
The position of Islam with regard to adultery is clear. If adultery is punished softly or not punished at all, the result will be destructive to the family structure. The family, according to Islam, is the best structure that secures happiness, security, loyalty, and belongingness to the husband, the wife, and children. Therefore, this family must be protected from all dangers and threats. One threat to the family surely comes from adultery. That is why Islam punishes adultery severely in order to penalise offenders and to deter others.
In countries that are lenient with adultery, before and after marriage, the result is obvious for all of us. Those countries have frequent divorces, frequent cases of rape, countless cases of nervous breakdown caused by divorce, murders accompanying rape, and a series of psychological and mental complications.
According to Islam, all physical needs must be organised and all psychological needs must be guaranteed. Eating is a need, but it must be regulated; otherwise, a person may starve or explode out of overeating. The same applies to the sexual need; this need must be satisfied and organised at the same time. The only safe solution is the Islamic one: sexual satisfaction through marriage only. This solution has no single bad side effect. On the contrary, free sex satisfies the sexual need, but it has a countless number of ill-effects that harm the family, adults, and children.
The Penalty for False Accusation of Adultery:
The other major crime is the false accusation of a woman of adultery. The punishment of a false accuser is flogging him eighty stripes and not admitting evidence from him throughout his life.
This severe punishment for a false accusation of adultery is justifiable on the basis that this accusation has a destructive influence on the woman involved. If she is married, she may be divorced in addition to the disgrace that will follow her and her family. If she is not married, this accusation may block the way of marriage in front of her.
As we have said, Islam puts high emphasis on an individual's life, property, and honour. Any threat to a person's life, property, or honour is severely punished by Islamic law.
Of course, offences are more than five. Those five mentioned here are the major ones. Because murder, robbery, theft, adultery, and false accusation of adultery are the major crimes, the Quran mentions them and specifies the punishment for each. Other crimes and offences are punished according to what the judge sees in the light of the spirit and text of penal laws.
As we can see, Islam is not a system of prayers and fasting only. It is a system that regulates worship, penal laws, marriage and divorce, inheritance, taxes, eating, clothing, and social relations. In brief, Islam is a comprehensive system that regulates all the aspects of human life, guides man to the best solutions to his major problems, and helps man to avoid problems in the first place.
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Discover Islam, - *Who is Allaah?

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Allaah is the proper name of the One True God. Nothing else can be called Allaah. This term has no plural or gendfer, which shows its uniqueness when compared with the word ‘god’, that can be made plural, gods; or feminine, goddess. It is a known fact that every language has one or more terms that are used in reference to God and sometimes to lesser deities. This is not the case with Allaah.
Some of the biggest misconceptions that many non-Muslims have about Islam have to do with the word "Allaah". For various reasons, many people have come to believe that Muslims worship a different God than Christians and Jews. This is totally false, since "Allaah" is simply the Arabic word for "God" -- and there is only One God. However, it is certainly true that Jews, Christians and Muslims all have different concepts of Almighty God. For example, Muslims, like Jews, reject the Christian beliefs of Trinity and Divine Incarnation. However, this does not mean that each of these three religions worships a different God – because there is only One True God. Judaism, Christianity and Islam are classified as ‘Monotheistic’, however, Islam teaches that other religions have, in one way or another, distorted and nullified a pure and proper belief in Almighty God by neglecting His true teachings and mixing them with man-made ideas.
The One True God is a reflection of the unique concept that Islam associates with God. To a Muslim, Allaah is the Almighty, Creator and Sustainer of the universe, who is similar to nothing and nothing is comparable to Him. The Prophet Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, )may Allaah exalt his mention( was asked by his contemporaries about Allaah; the answer came directly from Allaah Himself in the form of a short chapter of the Quran, which is considered the essence or the motto of monotheism. This is chapter 112 which reads )what means(:“Say: ‘He is Allaah, )who is( One, Allaah, the Eternal Refuge. He neither begets nor is born, nor is there to Him any equivalent.’”]Quran 112:1[
Some non-Muslims allege that God in Islam is a stern and cruel God who demands to be obeyed fully. He is not loving and kind. Nothing can be farther from the truth than this allegation. It is enough to know that with the exception of one, each of the 114 chapters of the Quran begins with the verse: "In the name of Allaah, the Merciful, the Compassionate." In one of the sayings of Prophet Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, we are told that:"Allaah is more loving and kinder than a mother to her dear child."
However, Allaah is also Just. Hence, wrongdoers and sinners must have their share of punishment, and the pious will receive His bounties and favors. People suffering throughout their lives while seeking Allaah’s bounty and people oppressing and exploiting other people all their lives should not receive similar treatment from their Lord. Expecting similar treatment for them is contrary to the very belief in the accountability of man in the Hereafter, which removes all the incentives for striving to attain a moral and virtuous life in this world.
Islam rejects characterizing God in any human form or depicting Him as favoring certain individuals or nations on the basis of wealth, power or race. He created human beings as equals. They may distinguish themselves and get His favor only through virtue and piety.
The concepts that God rested in the seventh day of creation, that God wrestled with one of His soldiers, that God is an envious plotter against mankind, or that God is incarnate in any human being are considered blasphemy from the Islamic point of view.
The Creator must have a different nature from the things He created, because if He were of the same nature as them, He would be temporal and would therefore need a maker. Therefore, nothing is like Him. If the Maker is not temporal, then He must be Eternal. The Eternal cannot be bound by limitations. He is the Self-Sufficient because nothing outside Him can cause him to continue to exist, and if nothing outside Him causes Him to continue to exist, this means that He is Self-Sufficient. And if He does not depend on anything for the continuance of His own existence, then His existence can have no end. The Creator is therefore Eternal and Everlasting.
Linguistically, it is interesting to note that the Aramaic word "El", which is the word for God in the language that ‘Eesaa )Jesus(, may Allaah exalt his mention, spoke, is certainly more similar in sound to the word "Allaah" than the English word "God". This also holds true for the various Hebrew words for God, which is "El" and "Elah", and the plural form "Elohim". The reason for these similarities is that Aramaic, Hebrew and Arabic are all Semitic languages with common origins. It should also be noted that in translating the Bible into English, the Hebrew word "El" is translated variously as "God", "god" and "angel"! This imprecise language allows different translators, based on their preconceived notions, to translate the word to fit their own views. The Arabic word "Allaah" presents no such difficulty or ambiguity, since it is only used for Almighty God alone. Additionally, in English, the only difference between "god", meaning a false god, and "God", meaning the One True God, is the capital "G" which is commonly used in written works.

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Dought & clear, - {Islamic history and biography}, - * Why has the civilisation of the Muslims fallen behind others?

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In these times we notice that the West has advanced far ahead of us in many things but Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning): “O Children of Israel! Remember My Favour which I bestowed upon you and that I preferred you to the Alameen (mankind and jinns)” [al-Baqarah 2:47]. Have these many blessings that Allah bestowed upon the descendants of Ya‘qoob ceased in our time, or will they continue until the Day of Resurrection? If they have ceased, then why are they advanced so far ahead of us in this world and at this time in so many things? What are we Arabs lacking or what is hindering us from being better than them in our thinking, inventions and manufacturing?
Praise be to Allah.
It is not fair for anyone who wants to examine the causes of any nation’s decline to focus only on some outward aspects of its decline that everyone can see, because achieving cultural advancement is a huge process in which innumerable interrelated factors play a role; these factors are accumulated throughout the years and penetrate deeply in all aspects of life, which leads to raising the level of communities little by little. Humans can hardly feel this progress because it is like the light of dawn; it keeps coming out until its light spreads over the horizon.
The Holy Qur’an tells us some of the aspects of material advancement that were – and still are – a means of trials and tests, of which no one understands the great wisdom behind it and the great impact it has on historical dynamics except Allah, may He be glorified and exalted.
Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
“On the Day when those who disbelieve (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism) will be exposed to the Fire (it will be said): "You received your good things in the life of the world, and you took your pleasure therein. Now this Day you shall be recompensed with a torment of humiliation, because you were arrogant in the land without a right, and because you used to rebel and disobey (Allah)”
[al-Ahqaaf 46:20]
“Do they not travel in the land, and see what was the end of those before them? They were superior to them in strength, and they tilled the earth and populated it in greater numbers than these (pagans) have done, and there came to them their Messengers with clear proofs. Surely, Allah wronged them not, but they used to wrong themselves.
Then evil was the end of those who did evil, because they belied the Ayat (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, Messengers, etc.) of Allah and made mock of them.”
[ar-Room 30:9-10].
Al-‘Allaamah Muhammad Rasheed Rida (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The first Muslims’ belief in the Oneness of Allah (Tawheed), their knowledge of Him, their love for Him and their reliance on Him are what purified their souls, honed their ambitions and gave them a sense of pride and power; that enabled them to establish truth and justice, and motivated them to conquer lands, rule nations, ransom them from spiritual and intellectual slavery to soothsayers, rabbis, monks and clergy, liberate them from the injustice and tyranny of kings, establish the foundations of civilisation, and revive and develop different branches of science and technology. They were able to achieve all of that in an unprecedented manner that no other nation on earth had ever achieved or even come close. Gustave le Bon, the famous sociologist, said: Mastery of different branches of science and technology was not possible for any rising nation in less than three generations: the first generation clings to the past; the second generation started the process of freeing themselves from blind following; and the third generation is the generation of independence and hard work. (He said that this applies to all nations) except the Arabs; they are the only ones who were able to lay the foundation of science and technology in the first generation.
I say: The cause of that was the teachings of the Qur’an, which taught them to be independent in thinking and to avoid blind imitation. It taught them to be prepared to lead mankind in spiritual and worldly matters alike. But all of that disappeared for subsequent generations, after the demise of the Islamic caliphate and after Arabic civilisation ceased to flourish, when power shifted to the non-Arabs who had nothing of Islam except superficial traditions and were not strongly connected to the guidance of the Qur’an.
Tafseer al-Manaar, 11/173
We cannot ignore the impact of conspiracies, both internal and external, against our ummah throughout the ages, which led to its enemies getting ahead of it in material matters. But our thought and the thought of our ummah is far above feelings of defeatism, relying on others in order to achieve revival, and feeling overwhelmed in the face of great responsibility, the responsibility of being in a leading position in relation to other nations. As for our enemies among the Israelites, they excelled at making the most of every opportunity and they strove hard in engineering events that had a global impact. They strove persistently for decades until they achieved what they wanted and reached a position of power in our times. But that has nothing to do with the verse (interpretation of the meaning):“O Children of Israel! Remember My Favour which I bestowed upon you and that I preferred you to the Alameen (mankind and jinns)” [al-Baqarah 2:47], because this verse speaks of previous blessings that Allah had granted to the Children of Israel throughout history, and is meant to remind them of that. Among these blessings are what is mentioned in the Holy Qur’an, where Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):“And (remember) when Moosa (Moses) said to his people: ‘O my people! Remember the Favour of Allah to you, when He made Prophets among you, made you kings, and gave you what He had not given to any other among the Alameen (mankind and jinns, in the past)’” [al-Maa’idah 5:20].
Al-Haafiz Ibn Katheer (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Here Allah, may He be exalted, reminds them of previous blessings that He bestowed upon their fathers and forebears, and the favour He bestowed upon them by sending the Messengers from among them, revealing the Books to them and favouring them above all other nations at that time. End quote.
Tafseer al-Qur’an al-‘Azeem, 1/255
However, we regard our current situation with optimism that motivates us to advance further and succeed by striving harder to use all possible means, both spiritual and worldly. The foundation of that is the righteous individual who always remembers that Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, is watching him in all situations. Such individuals are a constructive factor in the reform of communities and families; they do not wait for the revival to be presented to them on a golden platter or hope that programs will be set up for them to achieve that. Rather they hasten to take the initiative and strive hard to do all that is good and beneficial, putting their trust in Allah in the hope that He will bless their deeds, no matter how small, and reward those who do good for their good deeds. Allah, may He be exalted, knows who is trying to spread mischief and who is striving to do good, and the followers of His Messengers will prevail and be victorious if they take the measures that lead to victory and advancement. Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Indeed, they planned their plot, and their plot was with Allah, though their plot was a great (one, still) it would never be able to remove the mountains (real mountains or the Islamic law) from their places (as it is of no importance).
So think not that Allah will fail to keep His Promise to His Messengers. Certainly, Allah is All-Mighty, - All-Able of Retribution”
[Ibraaheem 14:46-47].
And Allah knows best.

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Dought & clear, - {Islamic history and biography}, - * Why did Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, test Ayyoob (peace be upon him)?

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Why did Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, test Ayyoob (peace be upon him)? I heard that one of the vulnerable people asked him for protection and he did not give it to him, so Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, punished him for that. Is this story true?
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
The apparent meaning of the Holy Qur’an indicates that Allah’s trial of His Prophet Ayyoob (peace be upon him) was not by way of punishment for a sin or act of disobedience; rather it was for reasons known to Him, may He be glorified and exalted. Perhaps one of those reasons is that it was in order to raise him to high status by virtue of his patience, so that he might attain thereby a lofty status on the Day of Judgement.
Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, praises him for his patience, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):“Truly! We found him patient. How excellent (a) slave! Verily, he was ever oft-returning in repentance (to Us)” [Saad 38:44]. This is the context of praise and commendation, and raising in status, which is different from the context of rebuke that is mentioned in the story of Yoonus (peace be upon him), where Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Then a (big) fish swallowed him and he had done an act worthy of blame.
Had he not been of them who glorify Allah,
He would have indeed remained inside its belly (the fish) till the Day of Resurrection.
But We cast him forth on the naked shore while he was sick”
[as-Saaffaat 37:142-145].
Secondly:
In the Prophet’s Sunnah there is a report which indicates that Ayyoob (peace be upon him) was innocent of any sin that could have been a cause for the sickness that befell him.
It was narrated from Anas ibn Maalik (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said:
“Verily Ayyoob, the Prophet of Allah, suffered his trials for eighteen years, when he was shunned by relatives and strangers alike, except for two of his brothers who were among the closest of his brothers. They used to come to him in the morning and in the evening. One of them said to his companion: Do you know, by Allah, that Ayyoob must have committed a sin that no one else ever committed? His companion said: Why is that? He said: For eighteen years, Allah has not shown mercy to him or granted him relief.
When they went to him in the evening, the man could not keep from telling him about that. Ayyoob said: I do not know what he is talking about, but Allah knows that I passed by two men who were arguing, and they mentioned Allah, I would go back to my house and offer expiation on their behalf, because I did not want Allah to be mentioned except in a proper manner…
Narrated by Abu Ya‘la inal-Musnad, 6/299; Ibn Hibbaan in hisSaheeh, 7/159; al-Haakim inal-Mustadrak, 2/635
This hadeeth was classed as saheeh by Ibn Hibbaan. Al-Haakim said: (It is saheeh) according to the conditions of al-Bukhaari and Muslim, although they did not narrate it. This was also stated by adh-Dhahabi inat-Talkhees. InFath al-Baari, 6/421, Ibn Hajar described it as being the soundest report on this topic. It was classed as saheeh by al-Albaani inas-Silsilah as-Saheehah, no 17. Some of the scholars thought it was flawed. See:Ahaadeeth Mu‘allah Zaahiruha as-Sihhah, p. 54. See also:al-Bidaayah wa’n-Nihaayah, 1/254-259
Thirdly:
The scholars stated that the wisdom behind the trials of the Prophets is to raise them in status and enhance their image and reputation.
Shaykh Ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, tests His slaves with good times and bad, hardship and ease. He may test them thereby to raise them in status and enhance their image and reputation, and multiply the reward for their good deeds, as He did with the Prophets and Messengers (blessings and peace of Allah be upon them) and the righteous among His slaves. The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The most sorely tested of people are the Prophets, then the next best and the next best.” Narrated by at-Tirmidhi, 2398. So if any of the righteous slaves of Allah is tested with sickness and the like, this is akin to the tests of the Prophets and Messengers, and serves to raise one in status and increase the reward, so let him be an example to others of patience and seeking reward with Allah.
End quote from Majmoo‘ Fataawa Ibn Baaz, 4/370-371
On our website we have previously discussed in detail the various reasons behind the trials of the Prophets, and we have quoted the explanation of this issue given by al-‘Allaamah Ibn al-Qayyim.
And Allah knows best.

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