6. Al-Ghalool

The direct meaning of al-ghalool is anything stolen from the booties of war. A general meaning of the word would also include anything taken without right. The punishment for this, Allah says in the Qur’an: “It is not for any Prophet to take illegally a part of booty (Ghulul), and whosoever deceives his companions as regards the booty, he shall bring forth on the Day of Resurrection that which he took (illegally). Then every person shall be paid in full what he has earned – and they shall not be dealt with unjustly.” (3:161)

RasulAllah sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam says that if you have stolen a camel, you will be carrying that camel on your shoulders on the day of judgment – the same goes for stealing a cow or a goat. It has been narrated on the authority of Abu Humaid as-Sa’idi who said: The Messenger of Allah sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam appointed a man from the Asad tribe who was called Ibn Lutbiyya in charge of Sadaqa (i. e. authorised him to receive Sadaqa from the people on behalf of the State.) When he returned (with the collections), he said: “This is for you and (this is mine as) it was presented to me as a gift.” The narrator said: The Messenger of Allah sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam stood on the pulpit and praised God and extolled Him. Then he said: “What about a State official whom I give an assignment and who (comes and) says: ‘This is for you and this has been presented to me as a gift’? Why didn’t he remain in the house of his father or the house of his mother so that he could observe whether gifts were presented to him or not? By the Being in Whose Hand is the life of Muhammad, any one of you will not take anything from it but will bring it on the Day of Judgment, carrying on his neck a camel that will be growling, or a cow that will be bellowing or an ewe that will be bleating.” Then he raised his hands so that we could see the whiteness of his armpits. Then he said twice: “O God, I have conveyed (Your Commandments).” [Muslim, B. 20, #4509] Why would people give him gifts? So that he would be lenient and overlook. This was given as the title of a gift, but in reality it is a bribe. I want to clarify that if you are in a position of leadership, it does not mean you cannot accept gifts period. You can accept gifts, whoever you are, whatever position you are in. You cannot accept gifts when it is given with the intention of getting favor that doesn’t belong to the person.