Walking on Hot Coals Proves Innocence

(Azizabad, Balochistan, Pakistan) A 40-year-old local man, Nazim Ali, became entangled in a property dispute with his brother who, Nazim claimed, still owed him his share. The brother denied that he owed anything to Nazim.

After consulting with tribal officials in an effort to prove the validity of his claim, Nazim agreed to walk on burning coals.

If Nazim was truthful and innocent in his claim that property was still owed to him, he would emerge from the burning coals without burn marks on his feet.

If Nazim's feet displayed burn marks, he would be ruled guilty of untruthfulness.

A group of tribal elders, called a Jirga, would decide.

A trench was dug, 12 feet long by two feet wide and two feet deep, and filled with dry wood. The wood was set on fire and allowed to burn for two hours.

As the time to take the test of innocence approached, a veteran walked close to the fire and recited verses from the holy Qura’an. One of the elders told the verses were recited to bring the fire ‘under control’ so that it would not harm the innocent and only burn the guilty.

Hundreds of people, including friends and relatives of the accused, stood around the burning coal when the accused took a walk on burning coal. He was immediately taken to a bucket filled with the blood of a slaughtered goat and dipped his feet in it.

“If there were burn marks on his feet, the man is considered guilty and Jirga decides further course of action against him. If his feet remain safe, he will be declared innocent,” another tribesman Muhammad Saleem said.

The incident was witnessed by hundreds of people and widely reported in the media.

Reportedly, the final decision on Nazim's guilt or innocence will be announced today.

Surprisingly, there is a belief among Muslims that reciting the Qu'ran over a fire actually places the fire under control. It logically should be considered a myth.

To conclude, it's not clear whether the walking-on-coals practice is part of Sharia or simply a traditional custom but it seems clear that any truly tolerant and diverse society will approve the methodology as an acceptable way to resolve conflicts.