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Harisa (a superficial wound)

الحارصة

Harisa is a superficial head wound that scratches and slightly splits the skin without drawing blood; it is also called the scratching or peeling wound. The Shafiis and Hanbalis, and one Hanafi view, hold that there is no retaliation for it and that only a just assessment (hukuma adl) is due; the Malikis and the apparent Hanafi view require retaliation. 1 2 3

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At a glance

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Crime and punishment

Overview

Harisa is a superficial head wound that scratches and slightly splits the skin without drawing blood. It is also called the scratching or peeling wound. 1

The ruling

The Shafiis and Hanbalis, and one Hanafi view, hold that there is no retaliation for it, and that a just assessment is due because no fixed sum is set by revelation. 2

The Malikis, and the apparent Hanafi view, require retaliation measured in length, breadth and depth. 2

Related wounds

The daamiya, the baadiha, the mutalahima and the simhaq are wounds that share the same general rule of a just assessment. 1

People and things also explored

Habs (imprisonment and detention)· Hadr (blood and value wasted: no retaliation, no compensation)· Hashima (a head wound that breaks the bone: its compensation)· Cauterising the stump (hasm)· Hija' (satire and insult in verse: its rules)· Hirabah (highway robbery)· Guarding (hirasa)· Safe custody (hirz) in theft

Sources

  1. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.6722
  2. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.6723
  3. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.6724
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Harisa (a superficial wound)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/concept/harisa/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-23.

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Wing

Ideas

Beliefs, concepts, sciences and schools, explained in plain words. Related

Habs (imprisonment and detention)

In the technical sense habs is holding a person back, preventing him from acting for himself and going about his affairs. Jurists agree that it is lawful. Most treat it as a branch of discretionary punishment (ta'zir), used either as a penalty or to secure a suspect, and most set no upper limit on its length, leaving that to the judge. It may be open-ended or for life, and it ends with death, repentance or the pardon of the person wronged. Jurists also set rules for women, ambiguous and juvenile detainees, the prisoner's transactions, maintenance and oaths, the prohibited forms of discipline, and the jailer's qualities and the state's duty to oversee prisons.