The ruling on bribery, and the ruling on paying it when a person is denied his right except by it.

The Shaykh : So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) delivered a sermon and said: meaning from among our duties From this hadith, we know the magnitude of bribery and that it is among the great matters that led the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to stand as a preacher, addressing the people and warning them against this action, because if bribery becomes widespread among a people, they are destroyed, and each one of them does not speak the truth, nor judge by the truth, nor uphold justice, except if he is bribed, may Allah protect us from that. The one who takes a bribe is cursed, the one who takes a bribe is cursed, and the one who gives it is cursed, except if the one taking it is preventing the people’s right except by a bribe; in that case, the curse is upon this taker, not the giver, because the giver only wants to give in order to take his right, so he is excused. As there are, may Allah protect us, now some officials in Islamic states who do not allow people to proceed except with this bribe, may Allah protect us, so he becomes one who consumes wealth unjustly, exposing himself to the curse, we ask Allah for safety. It is obligatory upon the one whom Allah has entrusted with a duty to perform it with justice and to perform the obligation therein to the best of his ability. Also, Barirah, who was a slave woman belonging to a group of the Ansar, was owned by her masters who had written a contract for her manumission for nine ounces of silver. So she came to Aisha seeking her help, saying: Help me to fulfill my contract. She said: meaning: pay her off in cash meaning: her masters And also, a woman from Banu Makhzum used to say to people: Lend me, lend me something, so they would lend her household items, a pot, a water skin, and the like of household goods. Then afterwards she would say: You did not lend me anything, denying it. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered that her hand be cut off, because she was a thief, and this was a theft. The Quraysh were concerned about this matter: how could the hand of a Makhzumian woman from Banu Makhzum, one of the great Arab tribes, be cut off? So they asked for someone to intercede with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and they sent Usamah ibn Zayd ibn Harithah (may Allah be pleased with them both), because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) loved him and loved his father. He said to him to intercede, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: saying this in disapproval of him, because there is no intercession in the limits of Allah once the authority is reached, so Allah curses the intercessor and the one for whom intercession is made. Then he stood before the people and delivered a sermon, saying: Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: meaning: I swear by Allah So is this Makhzumian woman better, or Fatimah bint Muhammad? Fatimah bint Muhammad, he said: So this is one of the incidental sermons. It was the way of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that he would preach to the people for incidental matters or for regular matters. We have previously mentioned the hadith of al-‘Arba’ ibn Sari‘ah, who said: and we have spoken about it before. It is incumbent upon a person, whether a judge, a mufti, a scholar, or a caller to Islam, to preach to the people about incidental matters in which they need clarification of the truth, and about regular matters such as Friday, the two festivals, the prayer for rain, and the eclipse, as mentioned. This is part of the guidance of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his excellent conveyance, because when a thing comes at its time, when it is needed.