Sūrah Al-Ḥashr The Exile: Tafsīr al-Qurṭubī Qurʾānic Rulings and Law

DetailInformationClassificationSignificance

SurahAl-ḤashrMedinanExile of Banū Naḍīr and distribution of their property

Key Fiqh IssueFayʾ property acquired without fighting and its distributionState-managed distributionDistinct from ghanīmah (war booty) in distribution rules

School ComparisonḤanafī: fayʾ to state treasury for distribution; Mālikī: verse 59:7 specifies distribution categories; Shāfiʿī: strict five-category split; Ḥanbalī: same split, debate on Prophet's share post-deathState managedProphet's share debate affects post-prophetic state budgets

Uṣūl PrincipleTafsīl al-naṣṣ the verse itself provides the distribution formulaTextual specificationUnusually detailed Qurʾānic specification of distribution

Al-Qurṭubī notes that fayʾ differs from ghanīmah (war booty): ghanīmah requires actual fighting; fayʾ is acquired when the enemy flees or surrenders without battle. Verse 59:7 specifies distribution: "what Allah has given to His Messenger... belongs to Allah, the Messenger, near relatives, orphans, the poor, and the traveler." Al-Qurṭubī maps this to current distribution: the Prophet's share goes to state welfare after his death; the near relatives' share applies to the Prophet's family (Banū Hāshim and Banū Muṭṭalib per Shāfiʿī; disputed by Ḥanafī).

The Ḥanafī school takes the more flexible approach: fayʾ goes to the state treasury (bayt al-māl) for distribution according to the imam's judgment of public interest. The Shāfiʿī school follows the verse's categories strictly. The Mālikī school grants the leader discretion in distribution but within the verse's overall framework. Al-Qurṭubī derives from the verse's final phrase "so that it will not be a rotation only among the wealthy" the principle that Islamic property distribution is designed to prevent wealth concentration.

مَّا أَفَاءَ اللَّهُ عَلَىٰ رَسُولِهِ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْقُرَىٰ فَلِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ Mā afāʾa llāhu ʿalā rasūlihi min ahli l-qurā fa-lillāhi wa-li-l-rasūl Meaning: "What Allah has given to His Messenger from the people of the towns belongs to Allah and the Messenger..." Al-Qurṭubī: fayʾ's primary distinction is its allocation to the Prophet's discretion without the four-fifths/one-fifth ghanīmah split; the verse provides the complete distribution framework for this property category.

كَيْ لَا يَكُونَ دُولَةً بَيْنَ الْأَغْنِيَاءِ مِنكُمْ Kay lā yakūna dūlatan bayna l-aghniyāʾi minkum Meaning: "So that it will not be a rotation [of wealth] only among the wealthy among you" Al-Qurṭubī: this is the Islamic macroeconomic principle: property redistribution is explicitly designed to prevent wealth concentration; the distribution formula serves both religious and economic justice.

Fayʾ (property acquired without fighting) differs from ghanīmah it uses the distribution categories specified in verse 59:7, not the four-fifths/one-fifth split.
Post-prophetic application: the Prophet's share passes to state welfare (bayt al-māl) for general Muslim benefit not to caliphs personally.
Shāfiʿī position: near relatives' share goes to Banū Hāshim and Banū Muṭṭalib specifically; Ḥanafī disagrees, giving it to general public welfare.
The verse's "dūlah" (rotation) principle establishes an Islamic economic policy against wealth concentration embedded in the Qurʾānic distribution command.
Ḥanafī pragmatic approach: fayʾ to state treasury with imam's discretion in distribution most flexible approach aligned with governance realities.

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