The limb (udw) and its rulings in purity, injury and burial

العُضْو

In the lexicon, udw is any bone surrounded by flesh, of a person or an animal; its root sense is cutting and separating, and it refers to a distinct part of the body ¹. In purity, the duty of washing attaches to what remains of an amputated limb: if the cut is above the elbow or ankle, washing of what is cut off falls away; the Malikis do not wash the stump of an elbow ². The jurists agree that an extra limb growing in the place of washing must be washed; they differ when it grows elsewhere ² ³. A limb separated from a living person is buried without washing or prayer; for a dead person's separated part, the Hanafis and Malikis wash and pray over it only where it is more than half the body, while the Shafi'is and the main Hanbali view pray over any part of a dead Muslim whose death is known ³ ⁴. A limb cut from a living animal is carrion, except fish and locusts; a human limb is subject to retaliation when deliberately injured where it can be matched, and otherwise to blood-money or an assessed award ⁴.

Summary

In the lexicon, udw is any bone surrounded by flesh, of a person or an animal; its root sense is cutting and separating, and it names a distinct part of the body ¹.

Washing with a missing or extra limb

Where part of a limb is cut off, washing applies to what remains. If the cut is above the elbow or ankle, washing of the cut part falls away, and the Malikis do not wash the stump of an elbow ². An extra limb is washed when it grows in the place of washing; the jurists differ when it grows elsewhere ² ³.

A separated limb

A limb separated from a living person is buried without washing or prayer. For a dead person's separated part, the Hanafis wash and pray over it where it is more than half the body, while the Shafi'is and the main Hanbali view pray over the part of a Muslim whose death is known ³ ⁴.

A limb of an animal

A limb cut from a living animal is carrion, except fish and locusts ⁴.

Injury to a limb

A deliberate injury to a person's limb entails retaliation where the match can be made; otherwise blood-money or an assessed award is due ⁴.

Where to look further

Retaliation is treated under «qisas», blood-money under «diyat», and food under «at'ima» ⁴.

Sources

al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.11653

al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.11654

al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.11655

al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.11656

Bone (adhm): purity, use and retaliation

In the lexicon, adhm is the bone that has flesh on it, plural 'idham and 'izam. Most jurists hold that a human bone is pure, whether living or dead, of a Muslim or not; that a fish bone stays pure after death; and that the bone of a lawfully slaughtered edible animal is pure and may be used. The bone of carrion, or of a non-edible animal, is impure according to the Malikis, Shafi'is, Hanbalis and Ishaq, and cannot be purified; the Hanafis hold it pure, and 'Umar disliked oiling in ivory. On cleansing after excretion with a bone, the Shafi'is and Hanbalis forbid it; the Hanafis dislike it as forbidden but accept that it suffices; the Malikis forbid a carrion bone and allow a pure bone with disapproval. Most jurists allow retaliation for a bone only at a joint, since equality cannot be achieved elsewhere.