Qatiat al-Rahim: al-Mazahir - al-Asbab - Subul al-Ilaj
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- The book is published on the website of the Saudi Ministry of Awqaf without metadata
Qatiat al-Rahim: al-Mazahir – al-Asbab – Subul al-Ilaj (Severing Ties of Kinship: Manifestations, Causes, and Ways of Remedy) is a moral and social treatise by the contemporary Saudi scholar Muhammad bin Ibrahim al-Hamad focused on the prohibition of severing kinship ties (qati'at al-rahim) and the practical means of fostering familial relations (silat al-rahim).
Purpose and Scope
The author composed the treatise to warn against severing kinship bonds, describing it as a major transgression that destroys social harmony, brings curses and immediate divine punishment, and deprives individuals of mercy and Paradise. The work aims to diagnose how familial estrangement manifests in contemporary Muslim societies where materialism has become widespread, uncover its underlying psychological and social causes, and outline remedies rooted in the Quran, the Sunnah, and scholarly wisdom.
Structure and Contents
The book is structured into several interconnected sections outlined in the author's introduction:
- Definition of Severing Kinship: Defining the linguistic and legal meaning of kinship bonds and their rupture, citing lexicographers such as Ibn Manzur and Ibn al-Athir.
- Manifestations of Severing Kinship: Outlining common behaviors of estrangement, such as abandoning visits, failing to provide financial or moral support, ignoring relatives during times of joy and grief, and prioritizing non-relatives over family members.
- Causes of Severing Kinship: Enumerating twenty specific causes that lead to familial ruptures, including:
- Ignorance of the consequences of estrangement and the virtues of maintaining ties.
- Weakness of piety and religious commitment.
- Arrogance arising from wealth, status, or high office.
- Prolonged absence, which fosters habituated estrangement.
- Excessive and severe reproach when visits do occur.
- Imposing burdensome costs and formalities upon visiting relatives.
- Cold reception and lack of attentiveness toward visitors.
- Stinginess and fear of relatives requesting financial aid.
- Delays in dividing inherited estates.
- Unclear business partnerships between kin.
- Total absorption in worldly pursuits.
- Complications resulting from divorce between relatives.
- Geographical distance and lethargy in traveling.
- Living in excessive proximity, which can cause friction over mutual rights.
- Impatience and inability to overlook minor lapses.
- Inadvertently forgetting relatives when issuing invitations.
- Envy toward successful relatives.
- Excessive joking that leads to hurt feelings.
- Slander and paying heed to gossipmongers.
- Ill-mannered spouses who discourage their partners from maintaining family relations.
- Remedies and Means of Maintaining Ties: Explaining how kinship ties are actively upheld through visits, correspondence, phone calls, financial generosity, exchanging gifts, sharing in joys and sorrows, reconciling disputes, and advising relatives gently toward righteousness.
- Virtues of Maintaining Kinship: Detailing scriptural rewards for upholding ties, such as being a mark of faith, a means for expansion of sustenance (rizq) and prolongation of lifespan (ajjal), and a key reason for entering Paradise. The author addresses the theological reconciliation regarding lifespan increases by citing Ibn Taymiyyah's distinction between absolute decree (qadar mubram) in the Preserved Tablet and conditional decree (qadar mu'allaq) recorded by angels.
- Aids to Maintaining Kinship: Practical reminders and behavioral guidelines that facilitate fulfilling the rights of relatives.
Method and Sources
The author employs an analytical and exhortative method, drawing upon relevant Quranic passages, prophetic traditions, legal commentaries, and Arabic poetic citations. He integrates classical insights from figures such as Umar ibn al-Khattab, al-Ghazali, Ibn Abd al-Barr, and Ibn Taymiyyah alongside observations of contemporary familial challenges.
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