When a word in the Qur’an can be interpreted in more than one way...

When a word in the Qur’an can be interpreted in more than one way, it is incumbent upon the Muslims to seek guidance from the Prophet and the Ahlu 1-bayt. Otherwise, they would be guilty of tafsir bi ‘r-ra’iy (interpreting the Qur’an according to one’s own personal views); and this is a sin which pushes the sinner into jahannam. (B) THE HISTORY OF KHUMS “Khums is one of those things which was introduced by ^Abdu ‘1-Muttalib, the grandfather of the Prophet, and continued in Islam.

Acting upon a command of God given to him in dream, when “Abdu ‘1-Muttalib rediscovered the well of Zamzam, he found in it many valuable things which were buried in it in the very remote past by the Ismailites when they feared that their enemies would usurp them. When ‘Abdu ‘1-Muttalib found that buried treasure, he gave away one-fifth (literally, khums) in the way of God and kept the remaining four-fifths to himself.

Then it became a custom in his family; and after the hijrah of the Prophet, the same system was incorporated in Islam. Thus the first khums was not given 16 See the entry under G-N-M; in the 28th edition of al-Munjid (Beirut: Dar el- Machreq, 1986) it is on p. 561. Also see other famous dictionaries like Lisan al- ’Arab and al-Qamus.

from the ‘spoils of war’, but from a buried treasure (which is one of the seven items eligible for khums.) (C) THE ISLAMIC LAWS “Not a single sect of Islam confines the meaning of ghanimah to the ‘spoils of war’. In addition to the “spoils of war1 the following items are subject to khums: (a) Minerals: eligible for khums in Shi’ah and Hanafi sects, (b) Buried treasure: eligible for khums in all Muslim sects (that is, Shi’ah, Hanafi, Maliki, Hanbali and Shaf’iy).

(D) THE INTERPRETATION OF THE QUR’AN “As mentioned earlier, the interpretation of the Qur’an must be based on the teachings of the Ahlu ‘1-bayt. The word ghanimah in the verse under discussion has clearly been interpreted as ‘alfa’idatu ‘l-muktasabah — the earned profit’ by our Imams.

“To conclude, we can say that the word ghanimah was never treated as being confined to the ‘spoils of war’ by any sect of Islam; and as far as our Imams are concerend, it meant many things besides the spoils of war right from the day of Imam ‘Ali (peace be upon him), as the authentic traditions show.”17 What has been quoted above can also be substantiated from the practice of the Prophet of Islam himself.