قَالَ الْحَارِثُ بْنُ مِسْکِينٍ قِرَائَةً عَلَيْهِ وَأَنَا أَسْمَعُ عَنْ سُفْيَانَ عَنْ عَمْرٍو عَنْ مُجَاهِدٍ عَنْ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ قَالَ کَانَ فِي بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ الْقِصَاصُ وَلَمْ تَکُنْ فِيهِمْ الدِّيَةُ فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ کُتِبَ عَلَيْکُمْ الْقِصَاصُ فِي الْقَتْلَی الْحُرُّ بِالْحُرِّ وَالْعَبْدُ بِالْعَبْدِ وَالْأُنْثَی بِالْأُنْثَی إِلَی قَوْلِهِ فَمَنْ عُفِيَ لَهُ مِنْ أَخِيهِ شَيْئٌ فَاتِّبَاعٌ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَأَدَائٌ إِلَيْهِ بِإِحْسَانٍ فَالْعَفْوُ أَنْ يَقْبَلَ الدِّيَةَ فِي الْعَمْدِ وَاتِّبَاعٌ بِمَعْرُوفٍ يَقُولُ يَتَّبِعُ هَذَا بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَأَدَائٌ إِلَيْهِ بِإِحْسَانٍ وَيُؤَدِّي هَذَا بِإِحْسَانٍ ذَلِکَ تَخْفِيفٌ مِنْ رَبِّکُمْ وَرَحْمَةٌ مِمَّا کُتِبَ عَلَی مَنْ کَانَ قَبْلَکُمْ إِنَّمَا هُوَ الْقِصَاصُ لَيْسَ الدِّيَةَ
سنن نسائی · Hadith 4796
It was narrated that Ibn ‘Abbas said: “There was Qisas among the Children of Israel, but Diyah was unknown among them. Then Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, revealed: Al-Qi (the law of equality in punishment) is prescribed for you in case of murder: the free for the free, the slave for the slave, and the female for the female..” up to His saying: “But if the killer is forgiven by the brother (or the relatives) of the killed against blood money, then adhering to it with fairness and payment of the blood money to the heir should be made in fairness.” Forgiveness means accepting the Diyah in the case of deliberate killing. Adhering to it in fairness means asking him to pay the Diyah in a fair manner, and payment in fairness means giving the Diyah in a fair manner. This is an alleviation and a mercy from your Lord, means: This is easier than that which was prescribed for those who came before you, which was Qisas and not Diyah.” (Sahih)
Translated by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan · Reviewed by Islamic University of Madinah · Published March 2020