The expiation for one individual is a mudd. God Almighty compared the expiation to maintenance for one's family, as He, the Exalted, said: "...from that which you feed your families..." [Surat al-Ma'idah: 89]. For the wealthy, it is two mudds, because the maximum God Almighty has obligated for one person is two mudds in the expiation for harm (kaffarat al-adha), and for the person of moderate means, it is one and a half mudds—half the maintenance of the wealthy and half the maintenance of the poor.
Our argument is the statement of the Prophet (peace and blessings of God be upon him) to Hind: "Take what suffices you and your child in a reasonable manner." He commanded her to take what suffices her without specifying an amount, and he deferred the exercise of judgment (ijtihad) in that regard to her. It is known that the extent of her sufficiency is not confined to two mudds such that it neither exceeds nor falls short of them. Furthermore, God Almighty said: "And upon the father is their provision and their clothing according to what is reasonable." The Prophet (peace and blessings of God be upon him) said: "They have a right over you to their provision and clothing in a reasonable manner." Obligating less than sufficiency from provision is a departure from the "reasonable," while obligating the amount of sufficiency—even if it is less than a mudd or two ratls of bread—is spending in a reasonable manner, and thus it is what is required by the Book and the Sunnah. Considering maintenance by analogy with expiation regarding quantity is invalid because expiation does not vary with wealth or poverty, nor is it assessed by sufficiency; rather, the Sharia considers it in terms of the kind, not the quantity. For this reason, al-udm (condiments) is not required therein.
Section: Grains are not required in maintenance. Al-Shafi'i said: What is required is grain, by analogy with the feeding in expiation, to the extent that even if he were to provide her with flour, sawiq (parched barley), or bread, it would not be incumbent upon her to accept it, just as it is not incumbent upon the poor person in the case of expiation.
(10) Surat al-Ma'idah: 89. (11) In [M]: "wa-nisf" (and half). (12) In the original: "al-mu'sir" (the impoverished). (13) In [A]: "al-muqtir" (the indigent). (14) Its recording was previously mentioned in: 5/156. (15) In the addition: "bil-kifayah" (by sufficiency). (16) In [M]: "bil-kaffarah" (by the expiation). (17) Al-udm: "That with which bread is made palatable."
