Mubah

Mubāḥ (Arabic: مباح, lit. 'permitted'}^[1] is a term used in Islamic jurisprudence to describe actions that a person has no specific obligation to perform or abstain from, and thus attracts no reward (ثواب, thawāb) or punishment from God in Islam.^[2]

Fiqh

In the principles of Islamic jurisprudence (Arabic: أصول الفقه, romanized: uṣūl al-fiqh), rulings governing actions fall into categories known as "the five rulings" (الأحكام الخمسة, al-aḥkām al-khamsa).

It is a sin or a crime to perform a forbidden action or not to perform a mandatory action. Avoiding reprehensible acts and performing recommended acts is held to be subject of reward in the afterlife, while allowed actions entail no judgement from God.^[3]^[4]

Obligatory (واجب, wājib or فرض, farḍ);
Recommended (مُسْتَحَبّ, mustaḥabb or المندوب, mandūb};
Neutral, that is, not involving God's judgment (مباح, mubāḥ);
Disliked or reprehensible (مكروه, makrūh);
Forbidden (حَرَام, ḥarām or محظور, maḥzūr).

Islamic jurists disagree on whether the term halal covers the first two, three, or four of these categories.^[3] Mubāḥ is commonly translated as "neutral" or "permitted" in English^[5] "indifferent"^[6] or "(merely) permitted".^[6]^[7] A mubāḥ action is one that is not mandatory, recommended, reprehensible or forbidden, and thus involves no judgement from God.^[3] The assignment of acts to this legal category reflects a deliberate choice rather than an oversight on the part of jurists.^[5]

In Islamic property law, the term mubāḥ refers to things which have no owner. It is similar to the concept res nullius used in Roman law and common law.^[8]

References

↑ Hans Wehr, J. Milton Cowan (1976). A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic (3rd ed.). Spoken Language Services. p. 81.
↑ Rippin, Andrew (8 April 2014). Muslims: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices. Routledge. p. 102. ISBN 978-1-134-27436-9. Retrieved 9 July 2026.
1 2 3 Vikør, Knut S. (2014). "Sharīʿah". In Emad El-Din (ed.). The Oxford Encyclopedia of Islam and Politics. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 2014-06-04. Retrieved 2026-07-09.
↑ Gibb, H. A. R., ed. (1960). The Encyclopaedia of Islam. Leiden, The Netherlands: E. J. Brill. p. 257.
1 2 Wael B. Hallaq (2009). Sharī'a: Theory, Practice, Transformations. Cambridge University Press (Kindle edition). p. Loc. 2160.
1 2 Baber Johansen (2009). "Islamic Law. Legal and Ethical Qualifications". In Stanley N. Katz (ed.). The Oxford International Encyclopedia of Legal History. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
↑ Juan Eduardo Campo, ed. (2009). "Halal". Encyclopedia of Islam. Infobase Publishing. p. 284.
↑ Ersilia Francesca (2009). "Possession. Yad in Islamic Law". In Stanley N. Katz (ed.). The Oxford International Encyclopedia of Legal History. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

External links

[1] Hans Wehr, J. Milton Cowan (1976). A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic (3rd ed.). Spoken Language Services. p. 81.

[2] Rippin, Andrew (8 April 2014). Muslims: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices. Routledge. p. 102. ISBN 978-1-134-27436-9. Retrieved 9 July 2026.

[vikor-3] 1 2 3 Vikør, Knut S. (2014). "Sharīʿah". In Emad El-Din (ed.). The Oxford Encyclopedia of Islam and Politics. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 2014-06-04. Retrieved 2026-07-09.

[4] Gibb, H. A. R., ed. (1960). The Encyclopaedia of Islam. Leiden, The Netherlands: E. J. Brill. p. 257.

[hallaq-5] 1 2 Wael B. Hallaq (2009). Sharī'a: Theory, Practice, Transformations. Cambridge University Press (Kindle edition). p. Loc. 2160.

[baber-6] 1 2 Baber Johansen (2009). "Islamic Law. Legal and Ethical Qualifications". In Stanley N. Katz (ed.). The Oxford International Encyclopedia of Legal History. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

[7] Juan Eduardo Campo, ed. (2009). "Halal". Encyclopedia of Islam. Infobase Publishing. p. 284.

[8] Ersilia Francesca (2009). "Possession. Yad in Islamic Law". In Stanley N. Katz (ed.). The Oxford International Encyclopedia of Legal History. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

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Fiqh

See also

References

External links