The Three Categories
Hudud (fixed penalties): Specific offenses with specific penalties prescribed in the Quran or hadith. The major hudud crimes and their penalties:
- Zina (adultery/fornication): flogging (unmarried) or stoning (married — this is hadith-based, not directly Quranic)
- Qadhf (false accusation of zina): 80 lashes
- Sariqah (theft): amputation of the hand (with strict evidentiary conditions)
- Hiraba (highway robbery/banditry): execution, crucifixion, amputation, or exile
- Shurb al-khamr (drinking alcohol): flogging (the specific number varies by school — 40 or 80 lashes)
- Riddah (apostasy): the classical position was execution; modern scholars debate this extensively
Qisas (equivalence): For homicide and bodily harm, the victim or heirs have the right to exact equivalent retaliation, accept blood money (diya), or pardon. The majority position: the heirs’ pardon is strongly encouraged.
Ta’zir (discretionary): All offenses not covered above are subject to the judge’s discretion — the punishment must be proportionate but is not fixed. Modern Islamic criminal codes extensively use ta’zir to handle contemporary offenses.
The Evidentiary Barrier
The classical scholars erected extremely high evidentiary standards for hadd penalties specifically — four witnesses for zina, confession conditions, etc. The principle: al-hudud tudra’ bi’l-shubuhat — hadd penalties are averted by any doubt. The result: in classical Islamic jurisprudence, hadd penalties were applied very rarely.
See also: Fiqh Al Iqrar, Fiqh Al Sulh, Ilm Al Usul, Fiqh Al Hiyal, Fiqh Al Iman Wa Kufr