# Which hadith are used to justify killing apostates, and were the scholars who used them right? *The main narrations, the period of grace, and scholars who got it wrong* - URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/vyawdwthpa4/s/6/ - Date: 2018-05-10 · Kind: lesson · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: Apostasy has NO punishment in Islam: A Qur'an & Sunnah Analysis by Mufti Abu Layth (23:28–26:06) - Status: general teaching - Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyAwDWTHPa4&t=1408s - Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/vyawdwthpa4/ **Topics:** Apostasy and blasphemy; Hadith in legal reasoning and hadith absolutism; Al-Andalus and the Maghrib **Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** Some scholars did rule that apostates be killed, and he says they were clearly wrong, products of a ruthless age; the time given to apostates in the reports makes sense only as time to withdraw from rebellion. **Checked position (checked by two independent reviews, not by the channel):** Mufti Abu Layth says that scholars who ruled that apostates be executed unless they returned to Islam were clearly and categorically wrong, being products of an age that placed little value on human life. **Evidence, his words at 24:58:** “but they got it wrong if they said that they were wrong clearly clearly and categorically” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyAwDWTHPa4&t=1498s) ## Longer summary Turning to the objection that there is a hadith in Bukhari, Mufti Abu Layth says the popular narrations on apostasy go back mainly to three or, by extension, four companions: Ibn Abbas, the most popular, Abu Hurayra, arguably Anas, and Hamza al-Aslami [?]. On the reports that Islam gives the apostate time, he says it is nonsensical that the time was for coming back to belief, and makes more sense that it was for submitting to peace and withdrawing from a rebellion. He says that if some scholars ruled that apostates be executed unless they returned to Islam, they were clearly and categorically wrong, being products of an age in which Christendom and the Muslim world alike placed little value on human life and religious people justified things by religion. He recalls, from Muslim Spain, Maliki scholars who disagreed over killing a man accused of apostasy, one saying 'kill him, his blood is on me', which he calls absurd. ## Sources and names cited - Ibn Abbas - Abu Hurayra - Anas ibn Malik - Hamza al-Aslami [?] - Sahih al-Bukhari - istitabah (asking the apostate to repent) - Maliki school - al-Andalus (Muslim Spain) ## Transcript (machine tier, 23:28–26:06) [23:04] these freedoms ok let's take a look at someone but people would say yes but there's a hadith you see those of you just tuning in if you can click like click Share now people will say ah but Mufti there's a hadith in body now let me tell you there are famously you're right there are famously some narrations okay mainly the narrations are three by extension form okay the narrations go [23:43] back to in they go back to even a bus or on the along on the the popular narration goes back to even our bus it goes back to Abu Hurairah anis around a long one arguably and hansel Islamic these four are the these are the narrations the main popular narrations are really to the ones of and the absolute popular one is from even our bus Radha Mohan and I'm gonna discuss that and then Abu Hurairah okay so let me [24:21] right now when you say Islam gives time I'm gonna come to that to demonstrate when you say Islam gives time what could have they been speaking about could have they been speaking about to return to the faith as in to believe again that's nonsensical the other angle is they were they were speaking about perceptibly to have submitted to the peace and to withdraw from this rebellion that makes more sense now that would make sense to kind of withdraw from any insurgency the [24:58] other thing is if some scholars did say this if some scholars I'm not denying that some scholars may have said that that oh we're going to execute them or they have to embrace Islam in these days but they got it wrong if they said that they were wrong clearly clearly and categorically and the truth is that yes they too were a product of their environment in a day and age the whole world was doing things like this it was no different in Christianity they had the same thing in Christendom they had the same thing in was in the Muslim world they saw it as no different so some scholars did have quite a ruthless [25:37] mentality sometimes because the the day and age had very little value sometimes for human life and people of religion often justify things by religion but that doesn't make it right so hence you had some I've quoted in the past some Maliki scholars who said well all so-and-so has said this and somebody said well he's an apostate or he's like this you should kill him and other scholars in most in Muslim Spain said no you can't do that you know you need to defend things and that one scholar said kill him and he's his blood is on me and I will answer on the day of judgment that is absurd but that was the mentality of unfortunately of some ## Cite Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment VyAwDWTHPa4/s/6. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/vyawdwthpa4/s/6/ Not a fatwa: these answers were given to specific people at specific times. Ask a qualified scholar about your own situation.