<![CDATA[The phenomenon of gratification toward public officials is increasingly disguised in a manipulative manner as ordinary “gifts,” thereby obscuring the ethical and legal boundaries between legitimate giving and bribery. This practice creates normative ambiguity in modern public administration, as officials often receive non-monetary benefits, concealed incentives, or souvenirs presented as tokens of personal appreciation, while substantively remaining directly related to official authority and public decision-making. This study aims to clearly distinguish the ethical and legal boundaries among the concepts of risywah (bribery), ghulul (misappropriation or unlawful appropriation of public assets), and gifts based on the study of hadith texts, as well as to evaluate their relevance to addressing contemporary corruption cases in Indonesia. The discussion focuses on the substantive nature of benefits associated with public office rather than on their outward forms. This research employs a normative library research method using a comparative sharh (hadith interpretation) approach and a concise takhrij (hadith source verification) of traditions concerning official transactions, administrative decision-making, and the abuse of public authority. The analysis is conducted contextually to relate the textual evidence (nash) to the realities of modern bureaucracy. The findings reveal that Islam strictly prohibits any form of benefit associated with public office or official authority, as such practices fall within the categories of ghulul or risywah. This prohibition remains absolute despite the transformation of its modus operandi in the modern era. Therefore, harmonization between Islamic law and state regulations is necessary in formulating public ethics guidelines that clearly distinguish personal gifts from benefits that undermine the integrity of public office, thereby promoting the public interest and integrity of government bureaucracy.]]>
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