Ahkam al-Mujahid bil-Nafs fi Sabil Allah fi al-Fiqh al-Islami
- Author died
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- Editions
- Maktabat al-'Ulum wa-al-Hikam
Ahkam al-Mujahid bil-Nafs fi Sabil Allah fi al-Fiqh al-Islami (Rulings Pertaining to the Physical Combatant in the Path of God in Islamic Jurisprudence) is a contemporary comparative fiqh treatise authored by the Saudi scholar Marei al-Shahri, focusing on the legal rulings governing Muslim combatants across the diverse branches of Islamic law.
Composition and Purpose
The work originated as a doctoral dissertation submitted by Marei ibn Abd Allah ibn Marei al-Shahri to the Higher Institute of Judiciary at Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University in Riyadh. The defense committee comprised Abdullah ibn Muhammad al-Mutlaq and Muhammad Fadl al-Murad. The author later served as an assistant professor in the Department of Islamic Studies at the Teachers College in Abha.
Al-Shahri formulated the treatise to consolidate the fiqh rulings specific to physical fighters against non-Muslim combatants into a single reference work. His stated objectives included articulating the legal guidelines governing warfare conduct, distinguishing Islamic combat from self-interested or tribal aggression, clarifying protections afforded to non-combatants, and refuting claims that depict Islamic combatants as indiscriminate shedders of blood.
Methodology
The author adopted a comparative jurisprudential method (fiqh muqaran). In disputed matters, he outlines the positions of the four Sunni legal schools—the Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, and Hanbali madhhabs—as well as the views of the Zahiri jurist Ibn Hazm. He examines the textual evidence of each school, evaluates counterarguments, and adopts weighted conclusions (tarjih) based on proof without factional adherence to a specific school, generally presenting the preferred ruling at the outset of each discussion.
Structure and Contents
The book is organized into an introductory survey (Tamhid) followed by four major parts (abwab):
- Introduction (al-Tamhid): Covers five preliminary topics: the definition of jihad and its categories; the legal legitimacy and legislative stages of physical warfare; the virtues of jihad and combatants; its overarching objectives; and the definition, prerequisites, and individual legal obligation of the fighter.
- Part One: Rulings in Acts of Worship (Ahkam al-Mujahid fi al-Ibadat): Spans four chapters detailing ritual purification for wounded fighters, prayer regulations (including shortening and combining prayers during patrols, naval operations, and captivity), the rules of zakat, fasting, and pilgrimage, as well as the laws of combat, permissible warfare tactics, weapons, booty (ghanimah), state revenues (fay'), and combat incentives (nafl).
- Part Two: Rulings in Financial Transactions (Ahkam al-Mujahid fi al-Mu'amalat): Comprises three chapters covering commercial transactions (such as purchasing weapons and supplies from enemy merchants), contracts of hire, reward, loan, and found property, as well as pledges and guarantees.
- Part Three: Rulings in Family Law (Ahkam al-Mujahid fi Fiqh al-Usrah): Divided into four chapters addressing religious endowments, gifts, bequests, and inheritance (including the estate of missing combatants); marriage contracts in enemy territory and captivity; abstention oaths (ila') and marital reconciliations (raj'ah); and waiting periods ('iddah) and financial maintenance for the fighter's family.
- Part Four: Rulings in Torts, Penalties, and Judiciary (Ahkam al-Mujahid fi al-Jinayat wal-Diyat wal-Hudud wal-Qada'): Consists of two chapters examining legal retribution (qisas), blood money (diyah), the prohibition of suicide in battle or captivity, the execution or deferral of statutory penalties (hudud) in enemy territory and frontier garrisons, judicial duties during warfare, and the admissibility of combatants' testimonies.
Publication
The work was published in a multi-volume print edition by Maktabat al-Ulum wal-Hikam in Medina and Dar al-Ulum wal-Hikam in Syria.
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