The Applicability of the Principle of Non-forgiveness of a Muslim's Blood to Benevolent Acts (fiʿl-i muḥsinānih) Resulting in Death (With a Critique of Article 509 of the Islamic Penal Code)

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Seyyed Hosein Ghandili ¹

Alireza Abedi Sarasia ²

Seyyed mohammad taghi Ghabooli ³

¹ PhD Candidate, Department of Islamic Jurisprudence and Principles of Islamic Law, Faculty of Theology and Islamic Studies, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad

² Associate Professor, Department of Islamic Jurisprudence and Principles of Islamic Law, Faculty of Theology and Islamic Studies, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad

³ Associate Professor, Department of Jurisprudence and Fundamentals of Islamic Law, Faculty of Theology and Islamic Studies, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran

10.22067/jfiqh.2025.90265.1851

Abstract

According to the Rule of Iḥsān, if a benevolent act results in loss or damage, it does not give rise to liability (żamān), and Imāmī jurists generally make no distinction in this respect between financial loss and bodily injury. This is despite the fact that the Sharīʿa has established a distinction between financial and bodily harm with respect to liability based on the available evidence and indications. In cases of bodily harm, unlike financial loss, the Principle of the Non-forgiveness of a Muslim's Blood has been established to prevent a Muslim's blood from being rendered uncompensated and to preclude the negation of liability. Against this background, the present study asks whether the complete denial of liability for a benevolent act resulting in death can itself amount to rendering a Muslim's blood uncompensated. The present article adopts a descriptive-analytical method and relies on library and documentary sources to review three possible scenarios: a benevolent act resulting in the death of the beneficiary, a benevolent act resulting in the death of a third person, and a benevolent act committed with the intention of promoting the public good that results in death. The possible legal outcomes are analyzed, and in some situations the possibility of compensating bodily injuries through the Public Treasury, on the basis of the Principle of the Non-forgiveness of a Muslim's Blood and other supporting reasons and indications, is strengthened.

Keywords

sanctity of blood

the Principle of the Non-forgiveness of a Muslim's Blood

negation of liability

benevolent act

Subjects

• Criminal jurisprudence

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