Sodomy is a Sin Greater than Adultery:<\/strong> The eleventh sin that is classified as a Greater sin is sodomy or homosexuality. This is verified from the sayings of Imam Ja\u2019far as-Sadiq (a.s.) and Imam ar-Ri\u010fa (a.s.). In fact it is a sin greater than adultery. Its retribution and punishment are more severe than for adultery. Imam Ja\u2019far as-Sadiq (a.s.) has stated: \u201cPenetrating the anal opening is a greater sin than penetrating the vagina. Certainly Allah destroyed a complete Umma (Umma of Hazrat Lut (a.s.) because they indulged in sodomy. Allah has not destroyed even one man for adultery\u201d. (al-K\u0101fi)<\/p>\n The Holy Prophet (S) says, Sodomy is Kufr (disbelief)<\/strong> Punishment upon the People of Lut (a.s.)<\/strong> The Slave Who Killed His Master<\/strong> A Homosexual shall be counted Among the People of Lut (a.s.)<\/strong> Sodomy is an Indecency<\/strong> * * *<\/p>\n The Qur\u2019an has used the word \u2018indecency\u2019 for adultery in the way it has also used it for sodomy. It is said in Surah al-Ar\u2019\u0101f: A Lustful Glance on a Young Boy<\/strong> The Sensual Kiss and the Rein of Hell<\/strong> Sleeping Together of Two People of the Same Sex<\/strong> The Punishment of Sodomy<\/strong> * * *<\/p>\n The second method of proving the crime of sodomy is that four just witnesses see it being committed with their own eyes and testify in consonance. If the witnesses are less than four, the testimony is not accepted and the penalty for sodomy is withheld. If less than four people have seen this act, they should not testify. If they do so, they shall themselves become liable for the penalty of \u201cqazaf\u201d. This clause shall be elaborated later. If the guilty repents before the four witnesses testify, the penalty is not imposed and he is not killed. The confession or the testimony should be with regard to the penetration of the anus with the penis, only then the capital punishment is carried out. But if the two men cause ejaculation without penetrating the anus (by pressing the sexual organ between the thighs of another man or by rubbing with the buttocks), then the punishment is a hundred lashes for them.<\/p>\n Why is Sodomy Punishable with Death?<\/strong> * * *<\/p>\n A person who is guilty, he confesses and undergoes the penalty for it in this world, and thus he will have atoned for his sins and will not be subjected to the torture of the hereafter. Even so, it is better if he refrains from revealing his secrets and submits his case only before the Almighty. He should repent, weep and beg for forgiveness from Allah (S.w.T.). Insha\u2019Allah, Allah (S.w.T.) will forgive him. However, a person should not be complacent after seeking forgiveness. While he is hopeful of Allah (S.w.T.)\u2019s Mercy, he should be in dread of Allah (S.w.T.)\u2019s retribution and must continue to implore Allah (S.w.T.) to forgive him. In this way, he will attain a degree of piety and emerge a far better human being than he ever was. Fire Did Not Burn the Repentant!<\/strong> It so happened that the man came out of the fire unscathed. The fire could not burn the one who repented.<\/p>\n Remarkable Points<\/strong> The Mother, Sister and Daughter of the Sodomist<\/strong>
\n\u201cA person who commits sodomy with a boy will acquire such a Janabat (impurity) that even all the water of this world cannot remove it. Allah will be wrathful at him and curse him. (That is He will take away His Mercy from him and will award Hell for him.) What a dreadful place it is! Then the Heavens shudder of it. And the person who allows another to mount him from behind to commit sodomy, then Allah puts him on the fringe of Hell (in extreme heat) and keeps him there till He completes the reckoning of all the people. Then He orders him to be put into Hell. One by one he is made to suffer all the punishments of Hell till he reaches the lowest stage. Then he never comes out from there.\u201d
\n(Wasa\u2019il ul-Shia)<\/p>\n
\nAmir ul-Mu\u2019min\u012bn \u2018Ali (a.s.) has said:
\n\u201cSodomy is a Greater Sin and carries punishment when a man mounts upon another man but does not penetrate. If he penetrates, it is kufr\u201d.
\n(al-K\u0101fi)
\nIt means that one who considers sodomy legal is a Kafir, because to consider sodomy illegal is one of the requirements of faith. And one who disbelieves in any of the requirements of faith becomes a Kafir. However if anyone commits this act knowing that it is Har\u0101m is deserving of punishment which is similar to the one meted out to kuffar, and it is eternal.
\nHuzaifa ibn Mansur says:
\n\u201cI enquired regarding sodomy which is a Greater Sin from Imam Ja\u2019far as-Sadiq (a.s.)\u201d. The Imam replied:
\n\u201cTo press the sexual organ between the thighs in an illegal way\u201d
\nI asked, \u201cWho is the person who commits sodomy\u201d.
\nImam (a.s.) replied;
\n\u201cOne who has disbelieved in what Allah has revealed to his Messenger (the Holy Qur\u2019an).\u201d
\n(Wasa\u2019il ul-Shia)
\nImam Ja\u2019far as-Sadiq (a.s.) was queried by Abu Basir regarding the verse:
\n\u201cSo when our decree came to pass, we turned them upside down and rained down upon them stones, of what has been decreed, one after another.\u201d
\n(Surah H\u016bd 11:82)
\nImam (a.s.) explained:
\n\u201cThere is no one who leaves this world while considering sodomy Hal\u0101l, but that Allah hits him with one of the stones that had fallen on the people of Hazrat Lut (a.s.).\u201d
\nIt is reported in Wasa\u2019il ul-Shia that a person who believes sodomy to be Hal\u0101l and commits it several times and does not repent; at the time of his death Allah hits him with one of the stones that had rained upon the people of Lut (a.s.). His death is brought about by the impact of this stone, but people do not see it (the stone).
\n(Tafsir al-Qummi)<\/p>\n
\nThe Holy Qur\u2019an has described Three kinds of punishments that were meted out to the people of Lut (a.s.), one was a terrible scream and shriek, the second was the shower of stones that rained upon them, and the third was that the earth turned upside down. After mentioning the last calamity, it is said in Surah H\u016bd:
\n\u201cMarked (for punishment) with your Lord and it is not far off from the unjust.\u201d
\n(Surah H\u016bd 11:83)
\nThis verse is an indication that such type of punishments may even be inflicted upon those who commit similar acts (acts of homosexuality).<\/p>\n
\nIn the time of Umar a slave killed his master. When this slave confessed to the crime Umar ordered him to be put to death. Amir ul-Mu\u2019min\u012bn \u2018Ali (a.s.) questioned this slave,
\n\u201cWhy did you kill your owner?\u201d
\n\u201cHe had forcibly committed sodomy with me,\u201d replied the slave.
\n\u2018Ali (a.s.) asked the heirs of the deceased, \u201cHave you buried him?\u201d
\n\u201cYes we have just come after burying him\u201d, they replied.
\n\u2018Ali (a.s.) advised Umar to have the slave held in custody for three days and told the heirs of the deceased to come back after three days.<\/p>\n
\nThree days passed, then \u2018Ali (a.s.), Umar and some of the heirs of the murdered man went to the grave. Upon reaching there \u2018Ali (a.s.) asked, \u201cIs this the grave of your man?\u201d \u201cYes\u201d they answered.
\n\u2018Ali (a.s.) ordered the grave to be dug out. Amazingly the dead body had disappeared from it. \u2018Ali (a.s.) said,
\n\u201cAllahu Akbar! I have heard the Holy Prophet (S) saying that, \u2018Whosoever from my Umma commits the act of the Umma of Lut and dies before repenting for it shall not remain in the grave for more than three days. The earth will suck him inside and he shall reach the place of the dead of Lut. Where destiny annihilated them. Then that person will also be counted among them\u2019.\u201d
\n(Kitab Mualim-uz-zalfa)<\/p>\n
\nHazrat Imam \u2018Ali ar-Ri\u010fa (a.s.) has said;
\n\u201cRefrain from adultery and sodomy, and this sodomy is worse than adultery. These two sins are the causes of seventy two ills of this life and the Hereafter.\u201d
\n(Fiqh al-Ri\u010fa)<\/p>\n
\n\u201cAnd (we sent) Lut when he said to his people: What! Do you commit an indecency which anyone in the world has not done before you?\u201d
\n\u201cMost surely you come to males in lust besides females. Nay you are a prodigal people\u201d.
\n(Surah al-Ar\u2019\u0101f 7:80-81)
\nWhat could be more indecent than the act where man squanders away his sperms in a way prohibited by Allah (S.w.T.) instead of allowing them to reach the wombs of women to ensure the continuation of the human race.
\nSodomy and homosexuality are denounced in Surah H\u016bd, Surah Al-\u2019Ankab\u016bt, Surah Qamar, Surah an-Najm in addition to Surah al-Ar\u2019\u0101f; so that the people are fully warned. Allah (S.w.T.) has strictly forbidden such a loathsome act.<\/p>\n
\nTo look upon a young boy with lust is Har\u0101m, especially a boy who has not yet developed facial hair. The evil effects and the severe punishments for a lustful glance have already been described in the section on adultery. It is also related from the Holy Prophet (S) that he said;
\n\u201cRefrain from looking lustfully at the children of rich people and slaves, especially those who have yet no beard. Because the mischief that is possible by such glances is greater than mischief of glancing at young girls, who are in veil.\u201d
\n(Wasa\u2019il ul-Shia)
\nIt is obligatory for a Muslim to control his glances and safeguard against such indecencies.<\/p>\n
\nIt is Har\u0101m to kiss a young man with passion. Imam Ja\u2019far as-Sadiq (a.s.) quotes the Holy Prophet (S) that he (S) said;
\n\u201cIf a person kisses a young man with passion, on the Day of the Judgement Allah shall tie a rein of fire on his mouth.\u201d
\n(al-K\u0101fi)
\nImam ar-Ri\u010fa (a.s.) has remarked,
\n\u201cWhen a person kisses a young man sensually, the angels of the sky, the angels of the earth, the angels of mercy, and the angels of wrath curse him. And Allah decrees for him a place in Hell. O, what a dreadful place it is!\u201d
\n(Fiqh al-Ri\u010fa)
\nThe Holy Prophet (S) has said,
\n\u201cAllah shall punish for a thousand years in Hell, the man who kisses a boy with passion.\u201d
\n(Mustadrak ul-Wasa\u2019il)
\nIf two just witnesses testify to have seen a man kissing a young man in a sensual way, the wrongdoer could be punished with thirty to ninety lashes as decided by the Qazi. This is the punishment according to Islamic law.
\nThe traditions imply that those who perform such an act should also be punished like the adulterers, that is, a hundred lashes for each of them. However, if two women are involved the Qazi prescribes less than a hundred lashes for them.<\/p>\n
\nSome scholars remark that since the sleeping of two men under a single blanket without clothes is a punishable offence according to Shari\u2019a, it is also a Greater Sin.
\nIt is therefore mustahab not to sleep together even with clothes on. Except for husband and wife, Islam prohibits any two persons who are able to distinguish right from wrong, to sleep close to each other or under a common blanket. The same prohibition applies to brothers and sisters.
\nThe Holy Prophet (S) has stated:
\n\u201cMake separate bed for your children above ten years. Two brothers and two sisters and a brother and a sister should not be made to sleep on the same bed.\u201d
\n(Wasa\u2019il ul-Shia)
\nThe Holy Prophet has thus advised us that brothers and sisters should not sleep very close to each other. If they cover themselves, they should have a separate blanket or sheet.<\/p>\n
\nSince sodomy is a greater crime than adultery and its evils are worse, the punishment for sodomy is also more severe than that of adultery according to the Islamic law. Islam prescribes capital punishment for the active as well as the passive partner in the crime. If both are major and sane, both of them have to be killed. The active partner is beheaded with the sword or killed by stoning or burnt alive or thrown from a height with the hands and the legs tied. These are the ways prescribed for punishing the criminal, but it is at the discretion of the Judge to determine the method. Similarly, the method adopted for the death of the passive partner is also determined by the Qazi.
\nAccording to Amir ul-Mu\u2019min\u012bn \u2018Ali (a.s.), a person who has committed this sin must also be burnt after being killed.
\nAs in the case of adultery, the guilt of sodomy is also proved in one of two ways. The first is that both the participants, or one of them confesses four times before a Judge. If he confesses less than four times the legal penalty cannot be issued. He is only warned and severely rebuked so that he may never repeat it. Some Mujtahids believe that the four confessions should be on four different occasions. It is also required that the accused be major, sane, free and independent. Even if he confesses four times, a minor person can only be reprimanded for the act so that he never does it again. The same applies for the slave and the insane person. Apart from this, if someone is forced into such a crime and is unable to avoid it, there is no penalty for him.<\/p>\n
\nPeople, who have abandoned shame and decency so as to commit such a revolting and loathsome act of sexual perversion in the presence of other people, are like cancer for the society. If they are left alive, they will spread their shamelessness till it engulfs the entire society. This was the fate of the people of Lut (a.s.). First, Satan led one person to commit this indecency and later he invited others to the same evil. Finally, the crime reached such a gigantic proportion that among the people of Lut (a.s.), it was common to see a man mount upon another and perform sodomy right before the eyes of the onlookers. Women also had sexual relations among themselves. Allah (S.w.T.) cursed these people and destroyed them.
\nHomosexuality is such a hideous crime that if one does not repent and pray for forgiveness, he becomes like the one who has disbelieved in Allah (S.w.T.). He becomes liable for eternal punishment like the Kafirs. Hence, there is no better way than to kill this person and burn the corpse.
\nWe have already noted in the chapter on adultery that punishment in Islam for acts of indecency are severe but tempered with Allah (S.w.T.)\u2019s Mercy and Compassion. We have also discussed that Islam has formulated strict laws not just to punish the wrong doers but rather to act as a detriment for the negligent. Although capital punishment is prescribed for sodomy, it can only be administered after four just witnesses have testified to the sin being committed in their presence. The extreme degree of leniency in Islamic laws is apparent here. If an individual shows just enough decency as not to commit a filthy act in public and that too for fear of being put to death, Islam does not allow his fellow-beings to punish him. Further, if the sinner repents before the four witnesses have testified, he cannot be put to death. But if the testimony is complete, penalty cannot be reduced and the guilty has to be killed.
\nAs far as confession of the crime is concerned, the same regulations hold as in the case of adultery. The guilty must confess four times. He must confess in clear unambiguous words and must not speak in an elusive way. The Judge must make sure that the person is sane. Also, that he is not joking and confessing to something he has not really done. All these stipulations and concessions are given to the guilty by the Almighty so that the sinner has an opportunity to save himself. If, finally the guilty is found deserving a death sentence, his death will be a lesson for others. The aim of Islam in designing these laws is not merely to punish the offenders but to reform society. Islam aims at creating a sound environment for us where we can get the best of the world and the hereafter.<\/p>\n
\nIn the end we quote a tradition from Amir ul-Mu\u2019min\u012bn \u2018Ali (a.s.): \u201cIf anybody deserves to be stoned to death twice, it is the homosexual.\u201d
\nAll the revealed religions are unanimous that sodomy must be dealt with strictly. Not only is the human race inflicted with spiritual degradation and physical illness and disabilities, it also runs the risk of extinction. The boy who is sexually assaulted, loses his manliness. Sodomy takes the society to the depths of depravity. It is therefore incumbent on men and women to marry and satisfy their sexual urge in a healthy manner, the way Nature has designed. This will ensure the continuity and the well-being of the human race.<\/p>\n
\nThere is a tradition from Imam Ja\u2019far as-Sadiq (a.s.) in the book al-K\u0101fi (Section on Penal Code), that:
\nOne day \u2018Ali (a.s.) was sitting with his companions when a man approached and said \u201cO Chief of the Believers, I have committed sodomy with a boy, please purify me (impose legal penalty upon me) \u2018Ali (a.s.) told him, \u201cGo home, you may have had some misunderstanding.\u201d
\nThe next day the man returned and repeated his confession and requested for penalty. \u2018Ali (a.s.) said,
\n\u201cGo home, you may not be in your sense right now.\u201d
\nHe went away only to return the third time and repeat his confession and again asked for punishment.
\nAt last when he came for the fourth time, \u2018Ali (a.s.) said,
\n\u201cThe Holy Prophet (S) has prescribed Three methods of dealing with the situation, you may choose any one of the three deaths – by having the arms and feet tied and thrown from the cliff, being beheaded or being burnt alive.\u201d
\nHe said, \u201cO, \u2018Ali (a.s.) which is the worst of these methods?\u201d Imam replied, \u201cBurning alive.\u201d \u201cThen I choose this death.\u201d said the man. By permission of \u2018Ali (a.s.), he stood and prayed two rak\u0101t prayer and then said, \u201cO Allah ! A sin was committed by me of which You are well aware. Then I had the fear of this sin, I came to the Successor of your Prophet and requested him to purify me. He gave me a choice of three deaths. I chose the most dreadful death. I pray to you to consider this penalty as the expiation of my sin and do not burn me in the fire of Hell which is ignited by you.\u201d
\nThen he got up weeping and jumped into the pit into which the fire had been lit. He sat in the fire and the fire engulfed him from all the sides. \u2018Ali (a.s.) began to weep, upon seeing this condition and the other companions were also in tears.
\n\u2018Ali (a.s.) said, \u201cArise, the one who has caused the angels of the earth and the sky to weep. Allah has certainly accepted your repentance. Get up but never approach the sin that you have committed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nIt is commonly agreed by the Mujtahids that if a person confesses four times but repents before the execution of sentence, the Judge has the authority either to impose penalty or cancel it. The above report also indicates that the Imam (a.s.) did not pursue the sentence. However, the sentence cannot be cancelled after the testimony of four just witnesses.<\/p>\n
\nIt must be known that if a man commits sodomy with a boy (that he penetrates his anus), the mother, sister and daughter of the boy becomes Har\u0101m for this man forever. That is, this man could never lawfully marry the mother, sister or daughter of this boy.<\/p>\n