Explanation of the author's statement: "And it is forbidden to accept a bribe"
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The Shaykh : He said, "And it is forbidden to accept a bribe". The word is trilateral with the letter ra. It is said *rishwah*, and the second is *rashwah*, and the third is *rushwah*. It is derived from *rashaa*, which is the rope tied to the bucket to draw out water. The *rashaa* is the means by which a person reaches his objective. Yes, the *rashaa* is the means to his objective, which is money. A bribe is offering something by which a person reaches his objective. So anyone who offers something to reach his objective is a briber. However, a bribe in terms of the ruling is not permissible. It is when a litigant offers something to the judge to reach the point where the judge rules in his favor regarding what he claimed, or removes the ruling from him regarding what was claimed against him. Because the one who receives the bribe sometimes wants the judge to rule in his favor regarding what he claimed, and sometimes wants the judge to remove what was claimed against him. And there is a difference between the two, O Nasr. Is there a difference between them?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Now, if a litigant claims that he is seeking one hundred thousand from so-and-so and pays a bribe to the judge, then he wants the judge to rule in his favor regarding what he claimed. And if a litigant has one hundred thousand claimed against him and gives the judge coins, then he wants the judge to remove what was claimed against him. In both cases, the bribe is forbidden.
First: Because of the authentic hadith that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) cursed the briber and the one who accepts the bribe. Cursing is expulsion and distance from the mercy of Allah. This necessitates that bribery is among the major sins.
Second: Because it corrupts the morals of people. If people are ruled in favor of based on the bribe, the people become corrupt. They mean, they boast about it, who has the most bribe. If the litigant gives a thousand, he is ruled in his favor, and if he gives eight hundred, he is not ruled in his favor. So one gives, gives a thousand, and if he thinks his opponent will give a thousand, he gives two thousand, and so on. And thus the people become corrupt.
Third: Because it is a cause for changing the ruling of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). A cause for changing the ruling of Allah. How is that? Because by nature, the soul is weak and inclined. It inclines toward whoever does good to it. So if he is given a bribe, he rules other than what Allah revealed. And in this is a change of the ruling of Allah (Mighty and Majestic).
Fourth: Because it contains injustice and tyranny. Because if he rules for the briber against his opponent without right, he has wronged the opponent. And there is no doubt that injustice is darkness on the Day of Resurrection, and that tyranny is among the causes of general calamities, such as drought and others.
Fifth: Because it is consuming wealth by falsehood, or enabling the consumption of wealth by falsehood. How is that? Does the judge have the right to take something for his ruling? No. Because we say that what the judge took either compels him to rule with truth, and ruling with truth, it is not permissible for him to take worldly compensation for it. Or it compels him to rule contrary to the truth, or to rule against the truth. And this is more severe, more severe, more severe, and more severe. So taking the bribe is consuming wealth by falsehood, and offering it is aiding in the consumption of wealth by falsehood. Now, with bribery, the trust is corrupted and trusts are lost. And this is a sixth meaning: that it contains the loss of trusts, and that a person is not trusted, and the judge is not trusted, and a person does not know whether he will be ruled in favor of what he has of right, or whether he will be ruled against. And this is a great corruption. And for this reason, the briber and the one who accepts the bribe deserve the curse of Allah, may Allah protect us from that. But what do you say if it becomes difficult to give the rightful person his right except by offering coins? Does this fall under bribery or not? We say, yes, it is a bribe, because the person wants to reach his right. But its sin is on the taker, not the giver. Because the giver only offered it to extract his right, because his right is lost if he does not offer that. And the curse is on the one who accepts the bribe, the taker. And the scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) have stated this and explained that whoever offers something to reach his right, nothing is upon him. What can he do? And now there are those who say to the person seeking his right: either you give me so-and-so explicitly, or wait until when? Wait. He waited a week. He came to him and said, "O Allah, do you want to give it to me?" He said, "No." He said, "Wait." The second week came. "Do you want to give it to me?" "No, wait." And so on until he gets tired and gives it to him against his will. He gives it to him against his will. And this is, in fact, a bitter matter and a corruption of the morals and religions and bodies of people. Because they consume illicit gain. Until a person told me that he had a transaction in one of the departments. He was going back and forth, and each of the clerks would say to him, "Wait." And this one would say, "He went to the second, and he went to the third," and so on. And he was tired. It happened that he left this department one day. So-and-so said, his companion met one of his friends. He said, "What is with you, O so-and-so? You are going back and forth to this place." He said, "I have such-and-such a transaction that is finished, nothing remains of it except a small thing, and I have been delayed to make it easy." He said, "Do you want it to be easy?" He said, "Yes." He said, "Come." He stood up and went with him. He said to the coffee shop, "Come, this is two hundred and fifty riyals. Two hundred and fifty dollars. These transactions are enough to finish it for us. Look at its number and date." He said, "You are welcome, you are welcome. You, if Allah wills, when you pray the midday prayer, come. We will say, 'By Allah, we will go out between a believer and a disbeliever.'" He said, "The day we prayed the midday prayer and came, or the transaction was in his hand, pure." He said, "If I had known, I would have given him two thousand and five hundred, not two hundred and fifty. I have been going back and forth for a while, and I am just looking. I mean, now, may Allah protect us, it is a lowliness. A simple bribe has changed the situation!"
The questioner : The worker gives it, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Yes, that is right.
The questioner : I give it, and he has no involvement with the people.
The Shaykh : Yes, but it was useful, it was useful, it was useful, it was useful. So the important thing is that these people, that bribery is corruption for society in reality. And for this reason, it is forbidden for the judge to accept a bribe absolutely. Now, if the judge does not have a provision from the public treasury, meaning he does not have a salary from the public treasury of the state, and he is a person who has no money, and he is a buyer and seller, and he said to the two litigants: "I will not judge between you except for so-and-so, according to the case. If it is a big case, I will judge between you for a lot, and if it is a small case, for a small amount." Is this permissible or not?
The questioner : It is permissible.
The Shaykh : There is a difference of opinion. The well-known view in the school of thought is that it is permissible. And the correct view is that it is not permissible. The correct view is that it is not permissible, because this is taking compensation for something that is obligatory upon him. Because judging between people is obligatory. And if he accustoms himself to this, will he limit himself to the amount of sufficiency? No, he will become greedy. And if he makes the fee, for example, five on the thousand on the first day, he makes it ten on the thousand on the second day, and his greed increases. So the correct view is that this is not permissible. And it is said to him: Fear Allah. Work in the market to the extent you can, and judge between people at another time. But this issue that we have now hypothesized is rare in occurrence, very rare in occurrence. And in our time, praise be to Allah, as you see, the judges have provisions from the public treasury that are more than their sufficiency.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Now, if a litigant claims that he is seeking one hundred thousand from so-and-so and pays a bribe to the judge, then he wants the judge to rule in his favor regarding what he claimed. And if a litigant has one hundred thousand claimed against him and gives the judge coins, then he wants the judge to remove what was claimed against him. In both cases, the bribe is forbidden.
First: Because of the authentic hadith that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) cursed the briber and the one who accepts the bribe. Cursing is expulsion and distance from the mercy of Allah. This necessitates that bribery is among the major sins.
Second: Because it corrupts the morals of people. If people are ruled in favor of based on the bribe, the people become corrupt. They mean, they boast about it, who has the most bribe. If the litigant gives a thousand, he is ruled in his favor, and if he gives eight hundred, he is not ruled in his favor. So one gives, gives a thousand, and if he thinks his opponent will give a thousand, he gives two thousand, and so on. And thus the people become corrupt.
Third: Because it is a cause for changing the ruling of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). A cause for changing the ruling of Allah. How is that? Because by nature, the soul is weak and inclined. It inclines toward whoever does good to it. So if he is given a bribe, he rules other than what Allah revealed. And in this is a change of the ruling of Allah (Mighty and Majestic).
Fourth: Because it contains injustice and tyranny. Because if he rules for the briber against his opponent without right, he has wronged the opponent. And there is no doubt that injustice is darkness on the Day of Resurrection, and that tyranny is among the causes of general calamities, such as drought and others.
Fifth: Because it is consuming wealth by falsehood, or enabling the consumption of wealth by falsehood. How is that? Does the judge have the right to take something for his ruling? No. Because we say that what the judge took either compels him to rule with truth, and ruling with truth, it is not permissible for him to take worldly compensation for it. Or it compels him to rule contrary to the truth, or to rule against the truth. And this is more severe, more severe, more severe, and more severe. So taking the bribe is consuming wealth by falsehood, and offering it is aiding in the consumption of wealth by falsehood. Now, with bribery, the trust is corrupted and trusts are lost. And this is a sixth meaning: that it contains the loss of trusts, and that a person is not trusted, and the judge is not trusted, and a person does not know whether he will be ruled in favor of what he has of right, or whether he will be ruled against. And this is a great corruption. And for this reason, the briber and the one who accepts the bribe deserve the curse of Allah, may Allah protect us from that. But what do you say if it becomes difficult to give the rightful person his right except by offering coins? Does this fall under bribery or not? We say, yes, it is a bribe, because the person wants to reach his right. But its sin is on the taker, not the giver. Because the giver only offered it to extract his right, because his right is lost if he does not offer that. And the curse is on the one who accepts the bribe, the taker. And the scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) have stated this and explained that whoever offers something to reach his right, nothing is upon him. What can he do? And now there are those who say to the person seeking his right: either you give me so-and-so explicitly, or wait until when? Wait. He waited a week. He came to him and said, "O Allah, do you want to give it to me?" He said, "No." He said, "Wait." The second week came. "Do you want to give it to me?" "No, wait." And so on until he gets tired and gives it to him against his will. He gives it to him against his will. And this is, in fact, a bitter matter and a corruption of the morals and religions and bodies of people. Because they consume illicit gain. Until a person told me that he had a transaction in one of the departments. He was going back and forth, and each of the clerks would say to him, "Wait." And this one would say, "He went to the second, and he went to the third," and so on. And he was tired. It happened that he left this department one day. So-and-so said, his companion met one of his friends. He said, "What is with you, O so-and-so? You are going back and forth to this place." He said, "I have such-and-such a transaction that is finished, nothing remains of it except a small thing, and I have been delayed to make it easy." He said, "Do you want it to be easy?" He said, "Yes." He said, "Come." He stood up and went with him. He said to the coffee shop, "Come, this is two hundred and fifty riyals. Two hundred and fifty dollars. These transactions are enough to finish it for us. Look at its number and date." He said, "You are welcome, you are welcome. You, if Allah wills, when you pray the midday prayer, come. We will say, 'By Allah, we will go out between a believer and a disbeliever.'" He said, "The day we prayed the midday prayer and came, or the transaction was in his hand, pure." He said, "If I had known, I would have given him two thousand and five hundred, not two hundred and fifty. I have been going back and forth for a while, and I am just looking. I mean, now, may Allah protect us, it is a lowliness. A simple bribe has changed the situation!"
The questioner : The worker gives it, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Yes, that is right.
The questioner : I give it, and he has no involvement with the people.
The Shaykh : Yes, but it was useful, it was useful, it was useful, it was useful. So the important thing is that these people, that bribery is corruption for society in reality. And for this reason, it is forbidden for the judge to accept a bribe absolutely. Now, if the judge does not have a provision from the public treasury, meaning he does not have a salary from the public treasury of the state, and he is a person who has no money, and he is a buyer and seller, and he said to the two litigants: "I will not judge between you except for so-and-so, according to the case. If it is a big case, I will judge between you for a lot, and if it is a small case, for a small amount." Is this permissible or not?
The questioner : It is permissible.
The Shaykh : There is a difference of opinion. The well-known view in the school of thought is that it is permissible. And the correct view is that it is not permissible. The correct view is that it is not permissible, because this is taking compensation for something that is obligatory upon him. Because judging between people is obligatory. And if he accustoms himself to this, will he limit himself to the amount of sufficiency? No, he will become greedy. And if he makes the fee, for example, five on the thousand on the first day, he makes it ten on the thousand on the second day, and his greed increases. So the correct view is that this is not permissible. And it is said to him: Fear Allah. Work in the market to the extent you can, and judge between people at another time. But this issue that we have now hypothesized is rare in occurrence, very rare in occurrence. And in our time, praise be to Allah, as you see, the judges have provisions from the public treasury that are more than their sufficiency.