(Series of Answers by the Eminent Scholar Ata bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah, Ameer of Hizb ut Tahrir, to the Questions of the Visitors of his Facebook Page "Fiqhi")
Answer to a Question
Blood Money (Diyah) in Accidental Homicide and Intentional Homicide
To: Abu Ahmed Abd
Question:
Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh,
The Diyah for accidental homicide is obligatory and is paid to the family of the deceased. What has been narrated from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ is that it is one hundred camels for the people of the desert, or one thousand gold dinars, or twelve thousand silver dirhams. Amr bin Hazm mentioned in his book that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ wrote to the people of Yemen:
وإن في النفس المؤمنة مائةٌ من الإبل، وعلى أهل الوَرِق ألف دينار
"And for a believing soul, there are one hundred camels, and for the people of silver, one thousand dinars." (Narrated by al-Nasa'i).
And Ibn Abbas narrated: That a man from the Banu Adi was killed:
فجعل النبي ﷺ ديته اثني عشر ألفاً
"So the Prophet ﷺ made his blood money twelve thousand." (Narrated by Abu Dawud and Ibn Majah).
Al-Sha'bi narrated that Umar set it at one thousand dinars for the people of gold. And on the authority of Amr bin Shu'ayb, from his father, from his grandfather: That Umar stood as a speaker and said: "Behold, camels have become expensive," so he valued it at one thousand dinars for the people of gold, twelve thousand for the people of silver, two hundred cows for the people of cows, two thousand sheep for the people of sheep, and two hundred suits (hulal) for the people of suits. (Narrated by Abu Dawud).
Our Sheikh, may Allah honor you with the leadership of the Ummah in the Rightly Guided Khilafah State soon, if Allah wills. We see here the difference in the payment of Diyah during the time of Umar bin al-Khattab and what he commanded. Is this considered a consensus (Ijma') of the Sahaba such that what Umar bin al-Khattab commanded must be followed? And is it permissible today to pay the Diyah in silver (al-wariq) given the vast difference between the price of gold and silver, which today is estimated at approximately ninety percent? That is, the Diyah in gold is ten times more than the Diyah in silver, and here the difference and the vast gap between the two Diyahs appear. So, which of them must the judge rule with today?
May Allah reward you with goodness.
Answer:
Wa Alaikum Assalam Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh,
The Diyah can be from livestock or from currency (naqd). As for the Diyah of livestock without aggravation (taghlidh), it is one hundred camels, and it is taken in accidental homicide (qatl al-khata') and what is treated as accidental. The evidence for this is what al-Nasa'i narrated on the authority of Amr bin Shu'ayb, from his father, from his grandfather, that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
مَنْ قُتِلَ خَطَأً فَدِيَتُهُ مِائَةٌ مِنَ الْإِبِلِ...
"Whoever is killed by mistake, his blood money is one hundred camels..."
As for semi-intentional homicide (shibh al-amd), al-Nasa'i narrated on the authority of Abdullah bin Amr, from the Prophet ﷺ who said:
قَتِيلُ الْخَطَإِ شِبْهِ الْعَمْدِ بِالسَّوْطِ أَوِ الْعَصَا، مِائَةٌ مِنَ الْإِبِلِ أَرْبَعُونَ مِنْهَا فِي بُطُونِهَا أَوْلَادُهَا
"The one killed by mistake that is semi-intentional, by a whip or a stick, [the blood money] is one hundred camels, forty of which are pregnant."
Likewise, it is the Diyah for intentional homicide (qatl al-amd) if the guardians of the deceased agree to the Diyah instead of retribution (qisas).
As for the Diyah in currency, it is one thousand dinars for the people of gold and twelve thousand dirhams for the people of silver. Al-Nasa'i narrated on the authority of Abu Bakr bin Muhammad bin Amr bin Hazm, from his father, from his grandfather: "That the Messenger of Allah ﷺ wrote a letter to the people of Yemen containing the obligations, the Sunan, and the Diyahs..." and it stated:
...وَعَلَى أَهْلِ الذَّهَبِ أَلْفُ دِينَارٍ
"...and for the people of gold, one thousand dinars."
Abu Dawud narrated in his Sunan on the authority of Ikrimah, from Ibn Abbas, that a man from Banu Adi was killed:
فَجَعَلَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ دِيَتَهُ اثْنَيْ عَشَرَ أَلْفًا
"The Prophet ﷺ made his blood money twelve thousand."
The Shar'i Dinar equals the weight of [4.25] grams of gold, which is the weight of the Shar'i Mithqal. The Shar'i Dirham equals the weight of [2.975] grams of silver. Accordingly, the Diyah of the deceased in gold equals the weight of [4,250] grams of gold. In silver, it equals the weight of [35,700] grams of silver.
The payment in paper money for the one thousand gold dinars is the price of [4,250] grams of gold, and for the twelve thousand silver dirhams, it is the price of [35,700] grams of silver.
However, the current paper currency is not backed by gold or silver, so it does not fall under the category of "people of gold" nor "people of silver."
It is considered currency by analogy (qiyas) due to the existence of a reason ('illah) derived from the text, which is "monetariness" (al-naqdiyah), as explained in its chapter in the book The Funds in the Khilafah State (Al-Amwal) and other books of ours.
Valuing the Diyah in gold according to current paper money is greater in amount than valuing it in silver according to current paper money. The consideration of these papers in Diyahs depends on ijtihad in the matter. What I see is that there is no harm in valuing it in silver for the Diyah of accidental homicide, because the one to whom accidental killing is attributed did not commit a sin; the Diyah is not because he committed a forbidden act, but rather the Diyah here is for a wisdom known to Allah. Thus, the lighter of the two amounts in paying the accidental Diyah suits the fact that the killer did not commit a forbidden act. As for the Diyah of intentional homicide, I see that it should be valued in gold, because the intentional killer has committed a forbidden act, so mitigation does not suit him; rather, the heavier of the two amounts suits him.
I ask Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta'ala that I have been guided to what is correct in this.
Your brother, Ata bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah
05 Sha'ban 1437 AH Corresponding to 12/05/2016 CE
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