How is *Hukuma* (discretionary compensation assessment) calculated for injuries lacking a fixed compensation amount?
Chapter on Diyat (Blood Money) for Wounds
Al-Mughni
Book of Blood-Money (Diyyāt)
Primary text
The method of *Hukuma* involves comparing the value of the injured person (treated as a slave for assessment purposes) before the injury and after healing. If the healthy value is ten, and the value after healing from the injury is nine, the injury caused a loss of one-tenth of the full compensation (*Diyah*). This principle is unanimously held by scholars, including Al-Shafi'i and the companions of the *Ra'y*. The general principle is that what is not explicitly fixed by religious text requires *Hukuma*, applying equally to head wounds below Al-Muwaddihah and other body injuries, provided no fixed compensation or sound analogy exists.
Supporting text
A specific perspective suggests that if the injury in the head or face is one without a fixed compensation (like Al-Sumhaq), and the *Hukuma* assessment exceeds the fixed compensation for a more severe injury (like Al-Muwaddihah, set at five camels), the compensation due should be limited to the fixed amount of the more severe injury, such as five camels. This is because the injury is a component of that severer injury, and it is impermissible for a part to incur a greater liability than the whole. This position is adopted by the majority of scholars, including Al-Shafi'i and the companions of the *Ra'y*.