Classification of Actions based on the Islamic Law (Shari'a)

All human actions are divided according to the Islamic law in the following categories, in order to clarify whether an action is considered permissible or prohibited:

1. Obligatory (Fard): It is what Islamic law imposes on man, without any doubt, such as the obligation of prayer, of fasting, of Zakah (annual obligatory charity that the rich gives to the poor). These actions are obligatory, and whoever makes them will be rewarded, while whoever neglects them will be punished.

2. Preferable (Mustahab): They are the actions that the Islamic law encourages people to do without having made them obligatory. Whoever does them will be rewarded, but whoever neglects them, it is not considered that he sinned, so he is not punished. Such actions are to brush one's teeth with the As-Siwak (small piece of wood with teeth, such as brush) before prayer.

3. Permissible (Μubah): They are the acts which neither whoever does is rewarded nor the one who neglects is punished, such as walking, using the car or an airplane and any other of the daily actions.

4. Repugnant (Makrooh): They are acts abstinence from which is encouraged by the Islamic Law, but there is no prohibition on them. So whoever abstains from them is rewarded, but the one who does them is not considered to have sinned and he is not punished. It is preferred to abstain from these acts and whatever may lead to them, but he who does them has not sinned. But the repetition of such actions and the habit of them leads to the violation of the limits that have been set by Allah and to the commission of an act which Allah has forbidden. The reason behind the fact that such actions are not considered sins, even though they are repugnant, is that sometimes it may be necessary to commit them. For example, Allah, the Almighty, hates divorce, but has not banned it as a mercy for His slaves, to release them if life circumstances require so.

5. Forbidden (Haram): They are the actions the Islamic Law forbids.  So, whoever does them is considered to have sinned and is punished, while whoever abstains from them is rewarded. Such acts are the prohibition of alcohol and adultery.