Permissibility of exact retaliation (Qisas) in a head wound (Shajjah) from a location other than the site of injury.

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When a deep head wound (Shajjah) is inflicted in the front or back of the head in a manner that the original site cannot accommodate the full measure of retaliation (Istifa'), there are two views regarding taking the full measure from the center of the head between the ears, where the wound size is accommodated. One view states that it is impermissible because it involves a location other than where the injury occurred, analogous to being able to take retaliation from the exact site of the wound. The other view permits it because the head is considered one single organ; thus, if full retaliation is impossible at the site of injury, it may be taken from another part of the head. This latter view is explicitly stated by Al-Shafi'i and extends to similar issues in the leg, foot, arm, and upper arm. If taking the full measure is possible from the exact site of the injury, deviating from that site is impermissible unanimously.