At a glance
- Era
- The Early Abbasid Caliphate · Abbasid Fragmentation
- Region
- Levant & Iraq
- Review
- Draft Completeness 1/5 · Help complete it
Development of law, theology and institutions
Overview
The mazalim (grievances) was an administrative judicial institution, which the caliph convened or for which he appointed a judge as deputy, to hear complaints of injustice that went beyond the work of ordinary judgement. 2
The Abbasid caliph al-Mahdi took an interest in it, and he had a house made with an iron window through which complaints were thrown. 2
Al-Muhtadi built a dome with four doors, which he called "the dome of grievances," where he sat to hear both the general public and the privileged. 3
People and things also explored
Biting and the liability for injury it causes (add)· Justice and uprightness (adl)· Contagion (adwa)· Pardon (afw) in purity, worship, contracts and penalties· Covenant (ahd) and the duty to keep it; oath by the covenant of God· Term, deadline (ajal)· Hired worker (ajir)· Stranger, outsider (ajnabi)
Sources
- Tarikh al-Dawla al-Abbasiyya — Muhammad Suhayl Taqqush (7th ed. 2009) , p. 166
- Tarikh al-Dawla al-Abbasiyya — Muhammad Suhayl Taqqush (7th ed. 2009) , p.76
- Tarikh al-Dawla al-Abbasiyya — Muhammad Suhayl Taqqush (7th ed. 2009) , p.166
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “The mazalim (courts of grievances)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/concept/mazalim/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-22.