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Action (amal) and the five rulings that govern it

العَمَل

In the lexicon, 'amal is a trade and an act; in the scholars' general usage it covers the acts of the limbs and of the heart, and some define it as bringing a thing about by speech or by deed 1. The five rulings govern it: what the Lawgiver requires as binding is obligatory, what he requires without binding is recommended, what he forbids bindingly is forbidden, what he discourages without binding is disliked, and what he leaves to choice is permitted 1. The servant is rewarded for obedience and punished for disobedience, unless God pardons him 1.

Depth

At a glance

Era
The Prophetic Era
Region
Global / Diaspora
Review
Draft Completeness 1/5 · Help complete it

Development of law, theology and institutionsEthics and character

Summary

In the lexicon, 'amal is a trade and an act; in the scholars' general usage it covers the acts of the limbs and of the heart, and some define it as bringing a thing about by speech or by deed 1. The five rulings govern it: what the Lawgiver requires as binding is obligatory, what he requires without binding is recommended, what he forbids bindingly is forbidden, what he discourages without binding is disliked, and what he leaves to choice is permitted 1. The servant is rewarded for obedience and punished for disobedience, unless God pardons him 1.

People and things also explored

Biting and the liability for injury it causes (add)· Pardon (afw) in purity, worship, contracts and penalties· Covenant (ahd) and the duty to keep it; oath by the covenant of God· The practice of the people of Medina ('amal ahl al-Madina) as evidence· Warranty (uhda) in sale and in pre-emption, and the defect· Ada' al-dayn (paying a debt: its ruling, the manner of payment, insolvency and the debts of the dead)· Ada' al-shahada (performing testimony: the duty on request, the excused witness, and the wording)· Manners of the Qur'an bearer

Sources

  1. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.11839
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Action (amal) and the five rulings that govern it”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/concept/amal/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-23.

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Ideas

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Biting and the liability for injury it causes (add)

In the lexicon, add is gripping a thing with the teeth and holding it. If a person bites another without right and a wound results, the biter must pay the damages for the wound, assessed as a just award by experts. If one man bites another's hand and the bitten man pulls it free so that the biter's front teeth fall out, most jurists hold that there is no liability, relying on a prophetic judgement in such a case; the Shafi'is limit this to a bitten man who chose the easiest means of release, and the preferred Maliki view requires compensation.