Is the word "عبودية" (servitude/worship) permissible if it means subjugation and control?
Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 2026
It is permissible to use the word "ist'abadahum" (استعبدهم - enslaved them) to mean "istadhallahum" (استذلهم - subjugated them), as evidenced by the famous saying of Omar ibn al-Khattab: "Since when have you enslaved people, when their mothers gave birth to them free?" The linguistic origin of "ist'abadahu" is "he took him as a slave," whereas "abbada" (عبَّد), with a shaddah on the ba, is used for subjugation, as in "al-ba'eer al-mu'abbad" (البعير المعبَّد - the subjugated camel) and "al-tareeq al-mu'abbad" (الطريق المعبَّد - the paved/trodden road).
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/104454
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- Original fatwa ID
- 104454
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- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
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