Penalty for Murder or accident
Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,
As Salaam Aleikum wa
Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be
upon all of you)
One of our
brothers/sisters has asked this question:
What is the penalty for the taking of another muslim`s life, wheather it is by murder, or by accident? Is there an obligation to support his surviving family members as long as they live?
(There may be some grammatical and spelling
errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from
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confidentiality.)
Answer:
Penalty for Murder or
accident
In the name of Allah, We praise
Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can
misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We
bear witness that there is no one (no idol,
no person, no grave, no
prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone,
and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of
His Messengers.
Your question: What is the penalty for the taking of another
muslim`s life, wheather it
is by murder, or by accident?
Ref: Intentionally killing another muslim.
Allah says in the Holy
Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisaa verse 93:As for the one who
kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell, wherein he shall live
forever. He has incurred the Wrath of
Allah, and Allah’s curse is on him; and Allah has prepared a woeful torment for
him.
Allah says in the Holy
Quran Chapter Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 178:O you who have believed!
The Law of Retribution has been prescribed for you in cases of
murder. The free for the free, the
slave for the slave, the woman for the woman!
But if the brother (inheritors) of the slain is willing to show leniency
to the murderer, the blood money should be decided in accordance with the
common law and the murderer should pay it with handsome gratitude. This is a concession and a mercy from your
Lord. There shall be a painful torment
for anyone who transgresses the limits after this. In the Law of Retribution, there is security
of life for you, O you men of understanding.
It is expected that you will refrain from breaking this Law (or fear
Allah).
The intentional killing of a
believer is considered amongst one of the gravest sins in Islam. If the murderer does not seek sincere
repentance from Allah Subhanah for his deed, Allah
has declared that his recompense will be the everlasting torment of the Hell
Fire for his grave sin of murder in the Hereafter.
Allah has given the complete
right and power to the inheritors of the victim, to determine the prescribed
punishment of the murderer. If the
inheritors decide that they want Retribution, then the
Ref: the un-intentional killing of a person.
Allah says in the Holy
Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisaa verse 92:It does not behove a believer to slay another believer except by error,
and if one slays a believer by error, he must set free one believing slave as
expiation, and pay blood money to the heirs of the slain person, unless they
charitably forgo it. But if the murdered muslim
belonged to a people who are at enmity with you, then the expiation shall be
the freeing of one believing slave; and if the slain person belonged to a non-muslim ally of yours, then the blood-money must be paid to
his heirs and a believing slave has to be set free. But if one could not afford a slave, then he
must fast two consecutive months. This
is the way enjoined by Allah for repentance.
Allah is the All Knowing, All Wise.
Thus, if one kills another
person un-intentionally (eg. Accident,
etc.) the expiation in today’s age will be that
the person pays the blood-money to the heirs,
and fast two months consecutive as a form of repentance to Allah Subhanah.
Your Question: Is there an obligation to support his
surviving family members as long as they live?
Other than paying the blood
money, there is no obligation on the murderer to support the family members of
the slain as long as they live. But if
one, out of his own guilt and goodwill does so, it will be a form of ‘sadaqa’ for him.
In both cases, the person who
has killed must turn to Allah Subhanah in sincere Taubah and repentance and beg Allah to forgive his
sin. That is the only way to avoid the
Wrath, Anger and Retribution in the Court of Allah in the Hereafter. Allah Subhanah
forgives all sins through repentance and sincere Taubah.
Allah says in the Holy
Quran Chapter 25 Surah Furqaan verses 63-71:The (true)
servants of the Merciful are those who walk humbly on the earth. When the ignorant people behave insolently
towards them, they say, “Peace to you”; (And those) who pass their nights in
prostrating themselves and standing before their Lord and pray, “O our Lord,
save us from the torment of Hell, for its torment is killing! It is an evil abode, and an evil resting
place”. (And those)
who, when they spend are neither extravagant, nor miserly, but keep the golden
mean between the two extremes.
(And those) who do not invoke any god but Allah Alone, nor kill
a soul unjustly, which Allah has forbidden, nor commit ‘zina’ (fornication and adultery)… He who does this shall be
punished for his sin, and his torment shall be doubled on the Day of
Resurrection, and he shall abide in a state of ignominy; EXCEPT THE ONE WHO MAY
HAVE REPENTED (AFTER THOSE SINS), AND HAVE BELIEVED AND DONE RIGHTEOUS
DEEDS. For then, Allah will change his
evil deeds into good deeds, and He is very Forgiving and Merciful. In fact, one who repents and does righteous
deeds, returns to Allah as one rightly should!
Whatever written of Truth and
benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error
is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He
is the Only Source of Strength.
Your Brother in Islam,
Wister