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Qur'an 5:38

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Qur'an 5:38
Verse's Information
NameVerse of Hadd al-Sariqa
SuraSura al-Ma'ida (Qur'an 5)
Verse38
Juz'6
Content Information
Cause of
Revelation		Theft of armor by Tu'ma b. Ubayriq
Place of
Revelation		Medina
TopicJurisprudential
AboutPunishment for theft


Qur'an 5:38, known as the Verse of Ḥadd al-Sariqa (Arabic: آيَة حَدّ ٱلسَّرِقَة, Verse of the Punishment of Theft) is verse 38 of Sura al-Ma'ida, which states the punishment for theft. Shi'a jurists, citing this verse and hadiths, have ruled that the right hand of the thief should be cut off from the joint of the four fingers.

The wisdom behind this punishment is considered to be a lesson for society and a deterrent against theft. Cutting off the fingers of the right hand is due to the proportion of ruling and subject; since theft is usually committed with the fingers and typically with the right hand.

Some consider the interpretation of this verse by Imam al-Jawad (a), alongside Qur'an 29:18, as confirmation of the correctness of the method of interpreting the Qur'an by the Qur'an, while others dispute this understanding.

The cause of revelation of this verse is considered to be related to the theft by Tu'ma b. Ubayriq, one of the hypocrites of Medina. However, jurists and commentators consider this ruling general and applicable to all thefts.

Text and Translation

Introduction

Verse 38 of Sura al-Ma'ida is called the Verse of Hadd al-Sariqa, which states the punishment for someone who commits the act of theft.[1]

Jurists have relied on this verse to prove the Hadd punishment for theft.[2] Based on this verse, the principle of the punishment of cutting off the hand for theft is accepted by all Muslims. However, there is a difference of opinion regarding the details of its execution.[3] Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Tabataba'i in Tafsir al-Mizan considers the phrase "jaza'an bima kasaba nakalan min Allah" as a reference to the punishment of the crime, which serves as a lesson for the rest of the people.[4] Some commentators have suggested that in verse 38 of Sura al-Ma'ida, the male thief is mentioned first, then the female thief; but in the Verse of Flogging ("The adulteress and the adulterer, flog each of them a hundred lashes"), which states the ruling for adultery, the adulteress is mentioned first, then the adulterer. This might be because in theft, the role of the male offender is more prominent, while in adultery, the role of the female offender is more prominent.[5]

Cause of Revelation

Based on exegetical accounts, this verse was revealed regarding the theft by one of the hypocrites of Medina named Tu'ma b. Ubayriq from his uncle.[6] According to accounts, he stole two armors and some food from his uncle, Qatada b. Nu'man, and hid them with a Jew named Zayd b. Sumayr, denying the theft.[7] When Qatada found out his armors were with Zayd the Jew, he demanded them from him, and Zayd stated that Tu'ma had left them with him.[8] Qatada took Tu'ma to Prophet Muhammad (s) for judgment, at which time Qur'an 5:38 and several verses from Qur'an 4 were revealed.[9]

Jurisprudential Rulings of Cutting the Hand

Main article: Punishment of Theft

Shi'a jurists, contrary to the apparent meaning of the verse which commands cutting off the hands of the thief, have issued fatwas only for cutting off four fingers of the right hand of the thief (excluding the thumb). This view is stated to be exclusive to Imamiyya jurists.[10] Some have also claimed consensus on it.[11]

Al-Sharif al-Murtada relies on the apparent meaning of Qur'an 5:38 to prove this ruling, because the term "hand" (yad) includes the fingers to the shoulder.[12] When God used the term "hand" and did not specify a particular amount, one should suffice with the minimum amount considered "hand" by custom, which is the fingers.[13] Shi'a jurists have also relied on narrations from the Imams (a) which identify the place of cutting as the four fingers.[14] In a narration from Imam Ali (a), the wisdom of not cutting off the palm is stated to be leaving a part of the hand for performing Wudu.[15]

Muhammad Sadiqi Tihrani, a Shi'a jurist and commentator, considering that theft is committed using fingers, states the reason for cutting fingers in theft as the proportion between the ruling and the subject.[16] The wisdom of cutting the right hand is also considered to be because the right hand is primarily used in theft.[17]

Instance for Interpreting Quran by Quran

The interpretation of verse 38 of Sura al-Ma'ida, considering Qur'an 72:18 ("The places of worship belong to Allah, so do not invoke anyone along with Allah"), is mentioned as one of the instances of Tafsir of the Qur'an by the Qur'an.[18] Based on this explanation, in verse 38 of Sura al-Ma'ida, the ruling of cutting the thief's hand is stated; but the place of cutting is unclear. By referring to Qur'an 72:18 and noting that the places of prostration belong to God, it becomes clear that in cutting the hand, the palm should not be cut, and one should suffice with cutting the fingers.[19] It is narrated that al-Mu'tasim al-Abbasi asked scholars of different sects about the place of cutting the thief's hand in a gathering. Imam al-Jawad (a) in that assembly, based on verse 38 of Sura al-Ma'ida and Qur'an 72:18, identified the place of cutting as the joint of the fingers.[20] Some believe that this interpretation by Imam al-Jawad (a) cannot be used to confirm the method of interpreting the Quran by the Quran, because these two verses do not have a clear connection, and such an application can only be done by the Imam (a) with his special knowledge.[21] In contrast, some have considered this type of interpretation by the Imam (a) as confirmation of the method of interpreting the Quran by the Quran and consider the criticisms raised as stemming from a lack of complete and correct understanding of this exegetical method.[22] Another example of using the ruling of the punishment of theft (based on the Shi'a view), based on Tafsir of the Qur'an by the Qur'an, is that Imam Ali (a) never, when cutting the thief's hand, cut the thumb and the palm. When asked why he left most of the thief's hand, he said: If this thief repents, with what will he perform Wudu? Because God Almighty says (after the verse regarding the ruling of cutting the thief's hand): "But whoever repents after his wrongdoing and reforms, indeed, Allah will turn to him in forgiveness. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful."[23]

See Also

Notes

  1. ↑ Fāḍil Jawād, Masālik al-afhām, vol. 4, p. 203.
  2. ↑ Sayyid Murtaḍā, al-Intiṣār, pp. 528-529; Ṭūsī, al-Mabsūṭ, p. 19; Ṭūsī, al-Khilāf, vol. 5, p. 452; ʿAllāma Ḥillī, Mukhtalaf al-Shīʿa, vol. 9, p. 249.
  3. ↑ Sayyid Murtaḍā, al-Intiṣār, pp. 528-529.
  4. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 5, p. 329.
  5. ↑ Qarāʾatī, Tafsīr-i nūr, vol. 2, p. 292.
  6. ↑ Ṭabarānī, al-Tafsīr al-kabīr, vol. 2, p. 391; Samarqandī, Tafsīr al-Samarqandī, vol. 1, p. 388; Māturīdī, Taʾwīlāt ahl al-sunna, vol. 3, p. 518; Shabistarī, Aʿlām al-Qurʾān, pp. 533-534.
  7. ↑ Shabistarī, Aʿlām al-Qurʾān, p. 534.
  8. ↑ Shabistarī, Aʿlām al-Qurʾān, p. 534.
  9. ↑ Shabistarī, Aʿlām al-Qurʾān, p. 534.
  10. ↑ Sayyid Murtaḍā, al-Intiṣār, pp. 528-529.
  11. ↑ Marʿashī Najafī, Aḥkām al-sariqa, p. 316.
  12. ↑ Sayyid Murtaḍā, al-Intiṣār, pp. 528-529.
  13. ↑ Sayyid Murtaḍā, al-Intiṣār, pp. 528-529.
  14. ↑ Ṭūsī, al-Khilāf, vol. 5, p. 452.
  15. ↑ ʿAyyāshī, Tafsīr al-ʿAyyāshī, vol. 1, p. 318; Baḥrānī, al-Burhān, vol. 2, p. 296.
  16. ↑ Ṣādiqī Tihrānī, al-Furqān, vol. 8, p. 348.
  17. ↑ Khaṭīb, al-Tafsīr al-Qurʾānī, vol. 3, p. 1093.
  18. ↑ Subḥānī Tabrīzī, al-Manāhij al-tafsīriyya, p. 142.
  19. ↑ Subḥānī Tabrīzī, al-Manāhij al-tafsīriyya, p. 142.
  20. ↑ ʿAyyāshī, Tafsīr al-ʿAyyāshī, vol. 1, pp. 319-320.
  21. ↑ ʿIbādī et al., "Wākāvī-yi tafsīr-i āya-yi ḥadd-i sariqat...", p. 18.
  22. ↑ Asʿadī, "Riwāyat-i tafsīrī-yi Imām Jawād (a)...", p. 82.
  23. ↑ Fayḍ Kāshānī, Tafsīr al-ṣāfī, vol. 2, p. 34.

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