FAQ in the category of Sin

- Being angry is the opposite of being pleased.

The way of determining whether Allah is pleased with us or not is evaluating how much we obey His rules and orders. For, Allah becomes pleased when the deeds which He orders are done and he becomes angry when the deeds which he forbids are not done.

We have no other criterion. For, Allah does not judge anyone based on his/her name or surname; He judges people based on their deeds and their good or bad thoughts.

For example, Allah does not tolerate when a good person drinks alcohol but he accepts the prayer of a person who sins openly. The principle of “all or none” does not exist in divine evaluation.

This is expressed in the best way as follows:

Verily the most honored of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things). (al-Hujurat, 49/13)

- A believer is always between fear and hope as the Quran orders. For, according to the Quran giving up hope of Allah's Soothing Mercy (Yusuf, 12/87) and feeling secure of Allah’s wrath (al-A'raf, 7/99)  are non-Islamic thoughts.  Allah's consent represents His mercy and His anger represents His wrath.

- As it is understood from these explanations, no one knows whether they deserve Heaven or Hell. And no one knows whether Allah is pleased or angry with them. This situation is the necessity of the mystery of testing.

- So, a person’s thinking that Allah is pleased or angry with them is actually the delusion of devil and trick of his soul.

It is a definite fact that on the Day Judgment, Allah will weigh the good deeds and bad deeds and He will forgive a person whose good deeds are heavier even if one percent. (al-Qaria, 101/6-11)

Acting upon the fact, “The superiority of the things that Allah regards valuable causes a person to enter Heaven”, some scholars state the following:

“If you would like to learn your position in Allah’s eye, look at the position of Allah in your eye! ”

Our respect to Allah may be a sign of His mercy to us. The opposite is also valid. To respect and obey Allah’s orders and prohibitions is a sign of Allah’s consent with us.

- We should not compare Allah’s being pleased or angry with those of humans. We have to remember that sins and disobedience cause Allah to be angry and Good deeds and obedience cause Allah to show mercy to us.

In other words, oleander (Tree of Hell) of Hell is hidden behind every sin and disobedience. Th seed of the tree of Heaven (Tuba) is hidden behind every good deed and obedience.

You can analyze the issue based on this statement.

It is possible for your sins to remain hidden in the hereafter even if people know about it. It is Allah who will reveal our mistakes or who will hide them and not show to anyone in the Hereafter.

From this point of view,
- If we fulfill the conditions of repentance, if we do not commit those sins again,
- If we ask forgiveness from those whose rights we have violated and if we make up with them,
- If we do not search people’s mistakes and if we do not tell anyone about the mistakes we see,
- If we forgive the wrong deeds done to us, do not tell anyone about them, and keep them hidden,

Allah, who hides every mistake and who is Ghafur (Forgiver) and forgives our mistakes without even blaming us, will never remind them us of our sins that we have told others if He is pleased with us and if He wills. We expect this benevolence, grant and grace from His endless mercy, forgiveness and pardoning.

Man Can Make Mistakes

Our Lord forbids all kinds of secret and open sins. (al-Anam, 6/151) However, he also states that we can sin. (an-Nisa, 4/17)

We are humans; we can make mistakes. However, we should not announce those mistakes and sins. We should not make people witness our sins. Our only witness should be our Lord. We must turn to him. There is nothing that can be hidden from Him. Pain may be reduced by sharing it with others but sins are not forgiven by sharing. Speaking openly about sins breaks the resistance to sin. Therefore, sins should remain hidden. A person should not lift the veil of secrecy unless Allah lifts it. If a person boasts about his sins, the punishment for his sins will be increased many times more.

Regret and Repentance of Sins

It is the most important condition and sufficient for the servant to embrace regret and repentance in the face of his sins in his own conscience, that is, in his inner world to be considered repentant. There is no need to list and confess his sins in front of another person or institution; such a deed is incompatible with the belief of tawhid (oneness) because no one other than Allah has the authority to accept or reject repentance of sins or to impose penalties for sins.

Unless sins involve violation of the rights of others, they are personal and are between a person and his Lord. If it includes the violation of the rights of others, the sin is an issue only between the person whose right has been violated and the person who has violated; it is still regarded as a secret for third parties.

Concealment of Sins for Forgiveness

The principle of “secrecy” is in question for sins and this principle should be preserved. Allah’s name “Sattarul-Uyub (Concealer of Faults)” wants to hide sins. Sins must be kept secret so that the path of forgiveness will remain open.

The Names of Sattar and Ghaffar of God Almighty

Stating that that man has a nature capable of committing faults and sins, Nursi says that the names of Sattar (Concealer) and Ghaffar (Forgiving) of God Almighty function as a bulwark against faults and sins, and that God Almighty covers, hides and forgives sins only when one takes refuge in Him. (see Mesnevi-i Nuriye, p. 113)

The confession of guilt by a criminal in judicial courts is considered repentance. If a sin or crime has been committed in an area related to the rights and laws of one or more people, the courts will definitely take action to judge the criminal and protect the innocent people. It is necessary to ensure justice, and it is a separate issue. In this regard, it is a virtue for a person to confess his guilt at the court, and it is like repentance in a sense.

However, a person should hide his sins that do not concern others, avoid spreading his sins and repent of his sins in his own conscience. It is haram to boast about one’s sins.

We should not tell others about our sins

It is essential not to commit sins; we need to take all kinds of material and spiritual measures to ensure it.

However, when some people commit a sin either due to their souls, the devil or other factors, they cannot help telling others about it. They think that if they do not tell someone about their sins, they will be full of stress and that they will be relieved when they share it with someone. However, they do not take into account what it will cost them to spread their sins.

One should repent instead of telling others about his mistakes

One should not tell anyone about his mistakes so as not to be criticized and mentioned by some people who know nothing but to blame. Instead of telling his mistake to someone, one should open his hands and beg God Almighty, ask for forgiveness, and repent of his sins. He should know that God Almighty will forgive him when he sincerely repents and fulfills his duties of worship.

Exposing one’s sins makes him shameless

It should not be forgotten that exposing one’s sins makes him shameless and gives him the courage to sin again.

Hearing someone’s sins makes some people with weak character view those sins with sympathy and commit them when they have the opportunity.

What is worse, a sin that is exposed has less chance of being forgiven.

We should not forget that Allah Is forgiving

A sinner should not tell anyone about his sin as if he had done a heroic act. Thinking that his Lord knows the sin he committed, he should feel ashamed and should hope that God Almighty will forgive him, as it is indicated in the hadith below:

Once, while the Prophet was sitting in the Masjid an-Nabawi, a man came to him and said:

“O Messenger of Allah! I have committed a sin that must be punished. Punish me!”

The Prophet did not say anything to that man. However, the man repeated his request soon:

“O Messenger of Allah! I have committed a sin that must be punished. Punish me!”

The Messenger of Allah did not answer him again. Then the time for prayer came and the prayer was performed. That Companion, who was overwhelmed by the burden of sin, followed the Messenger of Allah after the prayer and repeated his request:

“O Messenger of Allah! I have committed a sin that must be punished. Punish me!”

The Prophet turned to the man and asked:

“Did you not make wudu properly when you left your house to come to the mosque?”

“Yes, I did, O Messenger of Allah!”

“Did you not come to the mosque and pray with us?”

“Yes, I did, O Messenger of Allah!”

“Then, Allah has forgiven your sin.” (Bukhari, Hudud 27; Muslim, Tawba 44)

With this good news, the Prophet informed us that worship would not only bring thawabs to people but they would also atone for sins.

Let’s cover and conceal the faults of others

“If a person hides the mistakes and faults of his Muslim brother, what others have not seen and what that person does not want anyone else to see, Allah will cover his faults on the Day of Judgment. If a person reveals something that his Muslim brother does not want to be heard, Allah will reveal his faults and what he does not want to be known. Thus, He will disgrace him even if he is in his own house. He who covers the faults of his Muslim brother is as if he has revived a dead person.” (Bukhari, Mazalim, 3; Muslim, Birr, 58; Tirmidhi, Birr, wa Sila, 85)

“If a person covers the faults of a Muslim, Allah will cover his fault on the Day of Judgment.” (Abu Dawud, Adab, 39)

“If a person sees a fault and covers it, it is as if he has given life to a baby buried alive in the grave.” (Abu Dawud, Adab, 38)

“Allah Almighty states the following in a sacred hadith:
‘I am so generous and forgiving that I will not expose in the Hereafter a Muslim servant’s fault that I covered in this world and will not disgrace him.’“ (Jamius-Saghir, 2893)

We should not investigate others’ faults and mistakes

And spy not on each other behind their backs...” (al-Hujurat, 49/12)

“Do not investigate one another’s private live.” (Muslim, Birr wa Sila, 30)

We should pray

“Ask Allah to cover your faults and make you safe from what you fear.” (Jamius-Saghir, 638)

We should try to be treated by Allah’s name Ghafur

Al-Ghafur: It means the one who forgives a lot, covers sins a lot and forgives faults a lot. God Almighty is Ghafur. He forgives sins, covers faults and forgives His servant. The difference in meaning that distinguishes this name from the name “al-Afuww”, which means the one who forgives, is as follows:

The name al-Afuww includes forgiving sins but the faults and sins are exposed and the servant feels embarrassed.

The name al-Ghafur includes forgiving sins and the sins are not exposed; thus, the servant is not disgraced by being reminded of his sins; and the sin is completely abandoned. We can better understand this difference in meaning with the following example:

Suppose that a shopkeeper entrusted the cash register to an employee. The employee stole money from the safe that was entrusted to him due to the devil. The shopkeeper caught his employee red-handed. Now the shopkeeper can do three different things to his employee.

The first one: He can grab him, scold him, and hand him over to the police, making him go to jail. It is punishment. The shopkeeper can prefer punishment.

The second one: The shopkeeper can call the employee to his room and start scolding him:

“Did I not do you favors? Did I not protect you? Did I not pay you more than you deserved? Did I not take care of you when you had nothing? How did you wrong me in return for all this? Do you have no mercy! Are you not ashamed at all?”

He can utter similar sentences, disgracing and embarrassing his employee. He can scold his employee and remind him of his favors. However, then, he can say to him,

“I will not hand you over to the police. I will not punish you for this crime. This disgrace is enough for you. I forgive you.”

This is the deed of forgiveness. The shopkeeper does not punish him and does not hand him over to the police. However, he disgraces him and scolds him. Thus, the shopkeeper acts in accordance with Allah’s name al-Afuww.

The third one: the shopkeeper sees and knows the theft of his employee, but does not scold or disgrace him. He does not call him to account for this crime; he acts as if he does not know it. He does not disgrace him. Thus, the shopkeeper acts in accordance with Allah’s name of al-Ghafur.

Just like in the example above, God Almighty can treat His servants in three different ways. He sometimes punishes His servants due to their sins and disobedience. It is Allah’s punishment and His treatment with penalty. Sometimes, He does not punish His servants in this world and in the hereafter due to their sins and disobedience. However, He reminds his servant of those sins the Day of Reckoning. He disgraces His servant by making his hands, eyes, ears and other organs talk. In fact, this disgrace and shame will reach such a level that the servant will want to go to Hell as it is indicated by the following hadith:

It was reported from Jabir Ibn Abdullah. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said:

“On the Day of Judgment, the shame and disgrace of the son of Adam in the presence of Allah will reach such a level that he will want to be ordered to go to Hell so that he can be saved from disgrace.” (Suyuti, Durrul Mansur: 2/411)

Yes, God Almighty will disgrace some of His servants so much; then, He will punish some of those servants by throwing them into Hell; and He will forgive some of them and put them to Paradise. It is forgiveness. In other words, He does not punish them by putting them in Hell, but He disgraces them by scolding them due to their faults. The third treatment of God Almighty is this: He never reminds His servant of his sins and does not scold him due to his mistakes. He even makes His servant forget that he has committed those sins so that he will not be embarrassed and ashamed in His presence and his joy will not turn into sadness. It is the manifestation of the name Ghafur. He makes the servant forget his sins and forgives him completely.

Therefore, we pray to Allah, with the expressions وَاعْفُ عَنَا وَاغْفِرْ لَنَا saying, “Our Lord, blot out our sins, and grant us forgiveness” in the last verse of the chapter of al-Baqara, which we read after the night prayer, and we ask Allah for pardoning and forgiveness. Only pardoning is not enough. We also ask for forgiveness so that our sins will not be revealed and we will not be disgraced. This forgiveness we want is the manifestation of the name al-Ghafur and it has a meaning beyond pardoning.

We should learn the following from the hadith above:  

We should act as if we are blind in the face of people’s faults and never see them. We should not blame anyone. Let us pity them and try to correct him with grace. He who can do it will be a mirror to Allah’s name al-Ghafur, which is a great blessing.

Hz. Isa (Jesus) states the following regarding the issue: “Do not look at people’s faults of as if you are the Lord. You are a servant; deal with your own faults.”

May God Almighty show us the manifestation of the name al-Ghafur! May He cover our faults and not scold us due to them! May He treat us with His name al-Ghafur! Amin!

The covering of the sins have two aspects: one in the Gathering Place and the other in the world.

The greatest way of the sins in the world to be covered and not to be revealed is repentance. Allah does not reveal and covers the sins of the people who repent sincerely in this world and in the hereafter.

The first condition for the sins to be forgiven, covered and pardoned is not to insist on committing sins and the second one is to repent. A person who repents will naturally pray to Allah for forgiveness. However, prayer alone is not enough.

The divine assessment in the test of religion is based on the deeds first, the intentions after that and the prayers (duas). Repentance-asking for forgiveness is also a kind of dua. However, if a person repents and asks for forgiveness on the one hand and continues committing sins on the other hand, he will ridicule himself.

Allah will not show the sins of a person that He has forgiven to anyone in the hereafter by any means. We understand it from the following hadith:  

"Allah will bring a believer near Him on the Day of Judgment and shelter him with His Screen and ask him, ‘Did you commit such-and-such sins?’ He will say, ‘Yes, my Lord.’ Allah will ask him again, ‘Did you commit such-and-such sins?’ He will say, ‘Yes, my Lord.’ Allah will keep on asking him till he will confess all his sins and will think that he is ruined. Allah will say: 'I did screen your sins in the world and I forgive them for you today.'" (Bukhari, Mazalim, 3)

- The following prayers at the end of the chapter of al-Baqara regarding the issue are important: “Blot out our sins, and grant us forgiveness. Have mercy on us.”

The meaning of the prayer is as follows:

“Blot out our sins”: Acquit us of the penalty that we deserve; annul our penalty.

“Grant us forgiveness”: When you forgive our sins, cover them; do not show them to anyone; do not disgrace us.  

“Have mercy on us”: After saving us from penalty and screening our sins, do not keep your mercy away from us. That is, grant us the boons of Paradise!

“Blotting out sins” in the verse is related to bodily penalty. The second one, “granting forgiveness”, is related to spiritual penalty. The third one, “mercy”, is related to bodily reward. The last one, “You are our Lord” is related to spiritual reward. (see Razi, the interpretation of the verse in question)

"Kabira" which means major sin is a noun derived from kabr (kibar), which lexically means "become big materially or spiritually". Taking the common points in different definitions, we can define kabira (plural form kabair), which is used in the sense of major sin, as "a deed or act that is certain to have been forbidden by the religion and that necessitates worldly or otherworldly penalty". The other bad deeds are called saghira (minor sin).

It is generally accepted that a minor sin that is committed insistently is transformed into a major sin. It is stated in the Quran that a sin, which is generally expressed by the words dhanb, ithm, fisq and isyan, can be major or minor. According to the explanations in the relevant verses, minor sins are forgiven when major sins are avoided. (an-Nisa, 4/31) Those who believe in Allah and rely on Him avoid major sins and shamelessness. (ash-Shura, 42/36-37) It is also stated in some verses that the book of deeds to be given to people in the hereafter will include all of the sins whether minor or major. (al-Kahf, 18/49)

In the hadiths, major sins are expressed by words and phrases like "mubiqat (destructive deeds), kabair (major sins) and a'zamu'dh-dhunub (biggest sins)". In various narrations, the following deeds are mentioned among the primary major sins: Associating partners with Allah, killing a person, rebelling against one's parents, eating up the property of orphans, eating up interest, accusing honest women of unchastity, practicing magic, escaping the battle, perjury and dying with too much debt. (Musnad, 2/201, 214; 4/392; 5/413; Muslim, Iman, 143-146) It is also stated in hadiths that Hz. Prophet (pbuh) will intercede in the hereafter for the Muslims who committed major sins. (Tirmidhi, Qiyamah, 11)

The first most important disagreement among Muslims was the state of a Muslim who commits major sins. Two issues about this disagreement, which started to be discussed in the first ages of Islam, are seen to be in the foreground in the literature.   One of the issues is what deeds are regarded as major sins and the other is the religious status of a person who commits major sins. According to one of the views about determining major sins, all of the deeds that are contrary to divine orders are major sins. There are some scholars who say the number of major sins is seven hundred while others say the number is seventy. Ibn Hajar al-Haythami mentions four hundred and sixty-seven major sins. (az-Zawajir, 1/270-275; 2/265-27)

Kharijites are the first and primary people that regard all sins as major sins. However, it can be said that there are also some Sunni scholars like Ibn Hajar, who hold the same view. According to another view, any deed that is contrary to divine orders are included in the scope of major sins but some of them are regarded as minor sins compared to others. However, it is not possible to determine the numbers of the major sins and their properties since no sin can be regarded as a minor sin. Ashariyya scholars of the Mutaqaddimun (living previously) Era like Ashari, Baqillani, Ibn Furak , Abu Ishaq al-Isfarayni hold this view. (Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Zawajir, Beirut, 1408, 1/5)

According to the third view, the deeds which are definite to have been forbidden by the religion and about which worldly or otherworldly penalties are in question. Therefore, it is contrary to verses and hadiths to regard all sins as major sins.

Accordingly, along with the major sins mentioned above, the following deeds are also deeds that are forbidden in the Quran: abandoning visiting close relatives, talebearing, fornication or mediating for fornication, eating pork, not paying attention to cleanliness necessary for worshipping, stealing, drinking alcohol, committing perjury, giving up  hope of Allah's mercy, feeling sure that one will not be punished by Allah, violating an agreement. Kalam scholars of Mu'tazila and Maturidiyya and the majority of the mutaakhkhirun (living later) scholars of Ashariyya hold this view. (ibid. 1/6-10)

Major sins lead a person to rebellion and fisq but it is not possible to describe such a believer as fasiq and fajir. For, belief consists of approving through the heart the existence and oneness of Allah and the revelation sent by Him through Hz. Muhammad (pbuh); deeds are not a part of belief. When a person does a deed that is contrary to divine orders, his belief exists. As a matter of fact, the use of conjunctions that connect these two concepts in the verses that mention belief and deeds together indicate that belief and deeds are different things. (al-Baqara, 2/25; an-Nisa, 4/124)

Besides, when it is stated that those who commit major since like killing a person are punished in retaliation, they are still mentioned as believers; they are not deprived of the property of belief. (al-Baqara, 2/178; al-Hujurat, 49/ 9)

In terms of reason, murtakib al-kabira (committer of major sins) should also be regarded as a believer. Such a person does not regard opposing a divine order legitimate; on the contrary, he commits such a deed due to heedlessness, bad habits, extreme, anger, etc but he always hopes to be forgiven. Ahl as-Sunnah kalam scholars of Maturidiyya and Ash'ariyya madhhabs of creed hold this view.  (Maturidî, Tawhid, s. 329-334; Abu Abdullah al-Halimi, al-Minhaj, 1/409) Scholars of Salafiyye describes a murtakib al-kabira as fasiq but they hold the same view as Ahl as-Sunnah kalam scholars regarding his worldly and otherworldly position. (see Abu Bakr al-Hallal, as-Sunnah, p. 583-608; Sharhu Aqidati't-Tahawiyya, p. 295-334)

The view that some of the sins are major and that some of them are minor and that the major sins are the ones about which worldly and otherworldly penalties are in question in verses and hadiths seems appropriate. It is impossible to compromise the views of Kharijites, Murjia and Mutazila with verses and hadiths regarding the religious status of the committers of major sins. Both Sunni kalam scholars and Salafiyya scholars hold the view that the committers of major sins do not exit the religion and they accept that it is possible to be freed from sins through repentance and through worldly penalty. This approach is more appropriate in terms of verses, hadiths and reason. (see TDV. İslam Ansiklopedisi, Kabira item)

NOTE: We advise you to read the following article prepared by Vecdi Akyüz regarding the issue:

Hidden shirk (polytheism) and fornication of the eyes are also among major sins. According to the belief of Islam, everybody except prophets commits sins. Sin means a religious crime caused by words and deeds that are contrary to Allah's orders and prohibitions. It is haram both to abandon what Allah orders to be done and to do what Allah does not allow to be done.

The Concept of Major Sin

Because not all sins are equal, they are divided into two as major sins and minor sins regarding belief and daily deeds. Major sins are called kabira (pl. kabair), and minor ones are called saghira (pl.saghair).

Major sins are religious, individual and social major crimes and deeds about which there are threatening verses or hadiths and which lead to punishment both in this world and in hereafter and cause wrong and distorted faiths, abandoning faith and religion, personal and social unrest, defeatism, deviation, anomy and corruption.

A real believer tries to avoid all sins whether major or minor. However, a believer should not approach sins especially major sins because the responsibility and results of the major sins are more serious. Allah states the following in the Quran:

"If ye (but) eschew the most heinous of the things which ye are forbidden to do, We shall expel out of you all the evil in you and admit you to a Gate of great honor." (an-Nisa, 4/31)

Those who commit major or minor sins are not regarded as apostates except for the sins related to faith and accepting haram and halal unless they regard the sins they commit as permissible. However, they become sinners. One who commits major sins except for polytheism and blasphemy is called Murtakib al-Kabira (committer of major sins), Fasiq or Fajir.

Those who commit sins should try to be saved from their faults because they are sinful believers. So, at first, they should regret and return to faith from major sins which are regarded like polytheism and blasphemy; they should repent from and other major sins and should not commit them again. Allah states the following in the Quran:

"Those who avoid great sins and shameful deeds, Only (falling into) small faults--verily thy Lord is ample in forgiveness." (an-Najm, 53/32);

"Say: "O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful." (az-Zumar, 39/53)

Major sins are among the basic principles that are necessary to be known by believers concerning the issues like creed, belief, worshipping or the everyday issues and that are haram to do and obligatory to abandon. We will try to list the 72 major sins, which are listed randomly in traditional religious books, in a way parallel to the system of 32 and 54 fard (obligatory) deeds:

“Major sins” significantly appear as a result of committing what is ordered not to do and abandoning what is ordered to do related to the deeds that are among 54 fards.

There are a great number of major sins. However, a schematic and systematic list is determined in traditional religious books by improving the concept of “72 Major Sins” which primarily includes major sins - from the point of learning and keeping in mind easily with a pedagogical genius.

Major Sins (72 Major Sins)

A- Major Sins Concerning the Articles of Faith

Major sins concerning the articles of faith are the wrong and distorted beliefs in the form of the extension of the fundamentals of faith:

1. To associate partners with Allah,

2. To believe in and follow fortunetellers, soothsayers, magicians and those who claim to give information about the unseen (ghaib).

3. To swear an oath in the name of anyone except Allah.

4. To abandon the religion of Islam and to become an apostate.

5. To forget the Qur’an after memorizing it; to forget reading the Qur’an after learning it.

6. To have a strong affection for the worldly life. To have so much affection for the world as to forget the hereafter and to abandon the religious duties.

7. To impute lies/untrue words to Hz. Prophet, to report a word that he did not say.

8. To talk against, utter bad words about and swear at the Companions (Sahaba) of the Prophet.

9. To swear at holy things and make fun of them.

B. Major Sins concerning the pillars of Islam

Major sins concerning the pillars of Islam are remindful and explanatory principles of the pillars of Islam concerning negative attitudes:

10. Not to perform ghusl (full ablution) and miss one of the daily prayers because of not having performed ghusl; to walk around without having ghusl.

11. To recite the adhan (call to prayer) and perform a prayer before its due time.

12. Not to perform the five daily prescribed prayers in time and miss them.

13. Not to fast in the month of Ramadan without having an excuse; to eat or drink something in the presence of fasting Muslims.

14. Not to pay zakah (almsgiving) and the tithe.

C. Major Sins concerning Halals and Harams (Permissible and Forbidden Things)

Some of the 72 major sins are about halal/haram ranging from faith to practices:

15. Not to accept halal and haram as halal and haram.

16. To get dressed in a way to excite lust (this is valid for both men and women).

17. To wearing silk clothes and adorn themselves in a pompous way (for men).

18. To uncover the private parts of the body and to show them to others and to look at the private parts of others.

19. (For a woman) to wear the clothes of men; (for a man) to wear the clothes of women and to try to look like the opposite gender.

20. To continue to eat after being full.

21. To drink wine and alcoholic drinks; to use something that intoxicates such as drugs, heroin etc.

22. To eat the leftovers of a dog.

23. To eat pork and lard.

24. To eat carrion and to make others eat it.

25. To have a tattoo done.

26. To receive or give interest (riba), to practice usury.

27. To commit a theft.

28. To grab one’s property.

D. Major Sins Concerning Ethics

An important part of 72 major sins is about bad ethics, which is the opposite of high ethics:

29. To disobey one’s mother and father, to beat them.

30. To give up visiting one’s close relatives, to break off relationship with relatives and not to visit them; not to help them when they need help.

31. To be jealous of others.

32. To misappropriate.

33. To betray people whether Muslims or unbelievers.

34. To make fun of a believer’s obedience to faith and decrees of Islam.

35.  To utter dirty and bawdy words.

36.  To retail gossip and backbite.

37.  To backbite and gossip.

38. To break the heart of his/her believing brother/sister.

39. To talk against chaste women, to insult a chaste woman calling her a prostitute, to spread the family secrets of chaste women.

40. To avoid sleeping with her husband (for a woman).

41. To visit someone without the permission of her husband (for a woman).

42. To be married with two sisters at the same time (for a man).

43. To liken the thigh of his wife to his mother’s (for a man).

44. To swear at his wife’s mother (for a man).

45. To remain ignorant; not to learn religious duties, obligations, necessities, sunnahs and to insist on ignorance. (Not to learn the information concerning the world and the hereafter and religion (such as obligatory acts and forbidden things) and not to avoid being ignorant. Those who do not learn their religious duties may easily commit forbidden deeds.)

46. Not to know how terrible ignorance is. (One who does not know that s/he does not know may easily fall into forbidden things.).

47. Not to measure and weigh in a correct and just way; to deceive people.

48. Not to fear the torture of Allah, to feel sure that one will not undergo any torture and to think that s/he is among those special people who will reach salvation.

49. To give up the hope of Allah’s mercy.

50. To commit fornication, to go after illegal lustful pleasures;

51. To have a homosexual relation (to commit anal intercourse and lesbianism).

52. To try to have a sexual intercourse when his wife is in puerperum and in menstruation (for a man).

53. To leer at non-mahram women and girls (for a man).

54. To be conceited (to regard oneself very important; to get above oneself; to move away from modesty); to oppress and tyrannize people by becoming arrogant.

55. To eat up the property of orphans unjustly. (the Qur’an, An-Nisa, 4/10)

56. To hide property when the inheritor is in deathbed.

57. To tell lies,

58. To swear in vain, to swear many times.

59. To commit perjury; not to witness truly.

60. To throw a living animal into fire.

61. To be stingy and to act stingily.

62. To remind someone a favor that had been done before. To do somebody a favor, and then to rub it in.

63. To laugh out loud unnecessarily.

64. To sing immoral songs.

E. Major Sins Concerning Sins

A few of the 72 major sins are about committing sins:

65. To insist on committing sins/minor sins. To insist on committing sins.

66. To commit sins in the Kaaba.

F. Major Sins Concerning Social Life

67. Not to obey the legitimate administration and the laws of the government; to revolt against the government and administrators.

68. To kill someone intentionally and unjustly.

69. To commit suicide.

70. To run away from enemies in a war; to give up jihad in the way of Allah.

71. To take or give bribes.

72. Not to prevent the evil from being committed despite having the power or authority.

The origin of the saying "Is a person who knows equal to a person who does not know?" in your question is a verse in the Quran:

"... Say: 'Are those equal, those who know and those who do not know?' It is those who are endued with understanding that receive admonition." (az-Zumar, 39/9).

The rewards people get for the good deeds they do by searching and knowing about them very well are more than the rewards they get for the good deeds they do by imitating others. Similarly, the punishment for a sin committed deliberately is not equal to a sin committed without knowing that it is a sin. 

However, if a person has not learned something that he has to know due to his neglect and commits a sin consequently, his responsibility will not decrease very much.

It is fard to fulfill the orders of Allah; similarly, it is fard to avoid His prohibitions. Therefore, a person who does not fulfill His orders commits sins; similarly, a person who does not avoid His prohibitions commits sins.

A person who does not fulfill fard worshipping because he commits a sin commits two sins. In fact, if he fulfills fard worshipping, he will be saved from its punishment and he will decrease his sins.

The sins we commit should not prevent us from worshipping; this is a delusion of Satan. Besides, a person who thinks sins prevent fard worshipping had better give up committing sins instead of giving up fulfilling fard worship.

The Black Sea will not decrease if we take a glass of water from it; it will not overflow if we add a glass of water to it either. This example is incomplete when compared to the mercy and compassion of our Lord because even if it is the sea, it has a limit. The mercy of Allah is endless and large. Turning to the being who has infinite mercy, taking refuge in Him and repenting are the greatest happiness, infinite mercy and endless happiness.

Therefore, the door of repentance is always open for everyone. However, it is necessary to repent immediately without delay since death can come any moment.

Sinning is peculiar to us, servants. The ideal is to try not to sin at all, especially after attaining guidance. However, as long as we are alive, we always have the opportunity to repent and improve our state.

If your heart were sealed as you mention, you would not be able to ask this question. Asking it shows that you have understood your mistake.

Allah Almighty is Tawwab and Ghaffar; He accepts sincere repentance and forgives mistakes.

However, we should not forget that we will probably be tested again and again by divine wisdom for the sins we have committed as a necessity of divine law. What matters is to understand your mistake, to improve your state and not to fall into that mistake again. The best solution for this is as follows:

- To repent to our Lord with regret, to ask for forgiveness,

- To move away from the people and environment that lead us to sins,

- Not to miss our fard and wajib deeds of worship, especially the 5 daily prayers,

- To pay attention to the halal / haram balance,

- If we have violated rights of others due to our sins, to ask forgiveness from those people.

- And to seek help from our Lord with prayer and supplication.

Apart from them, to abandon unnecessary things as much as possible, to read the Quran, tafsirs of the Quran, to benefit from especially the works of Ahl as-Sunnah scholars that increase belief and religious talks online or by participating in person.

If you apply it, you will observe a positive change in yourself and in your heart day by day with the permission of Allah.

Takfir: Attributing unbelief to a person and saying that he is an unbeliever (kafir).  

Unfortunately, some Muslims say other Muslims are unbelievers and accuse them of unbelief today. We will deal with the issue from A to Z in this work inshallah.

What underlies the issue is whether a person who commits a major sin becomes an unbeliever or not. According to Kharijites, a person who commits a major sin exits the religion of Islam and becomes an unbeliever. Thus, Kharijites say those who commit major sins are unbelievers.

According to Mutazila, which is the madhhab of Shiites in creed, a person who commits a major sin does not become an unbeliever but remains in a position between belief and unbelief. If he dies without repenting in that position, he will be a person of Hell. However, his penalty will be lighter than that of an unbeliever. Thus, Mutazila does not say that a person who commits a major sin is an unbeliever but says he is close to an unbeliever. 

Some people who call themselves Salafis state that those who do not judge by the decrees of Allah are unbelievers; they even regard those who are ruled by human-made laws as unbelievers. That is, according to them, both those who impose those laws/decrees and those who live under those laws/decrees are unbelievers.   

According to Ahl- as-Sunnah creed, our creed, deed is not a part of belief. Therefore, a person who commits a major sin does not become an unbeliever but a fasiq/sinner. If Allah wills, He will send such a person to Hell and then to Paradise. If He wills, He will send him to Paradise directly, without sending him to Hell.

In this work, we will prove that a person who commits a major sin does not become an unbeliever. We will also classify those who impose human-made decrees/laws and those who act according to them and show through evidences which ones become unbelievers.

Before starting to prove, we would like to state the following:

When we say, “Committing a major sin does not make a person an unbeliever”, we do not encourage committing sins. On the contrary, we say, “Flee from not only major sins but also minor sins as if fleeing from Satan. Sins attract Allah’s wrath, make man deserve His punishment and prevent His mercy.” We say similar things and try to prevent ourselves and our addressees from committing sins.

However, to say “a major sin makes a person an unbeliever” is a decree of fiqh. Our issue is nothing but to prove that this decree is wrong.

When we say, “Those who do not judge according to Allah’s decrees do not become unbelievers based on such and such conditions”, we do not say it because we like human-made laws. Praise be to Allah that we are people of shari’ah. We will sacrifice ourselves for the slightest decree of shari’ah. We want to live in a country where decrees of shari’ah are implemented. We also want those decrees to be dominant in the world. It is one thing to want it and it is another thing to say, “Those who live in a country where Allah’s decrees are not dominant become unbelievers.” The phrase “becomes an unbeliever” is a decree of fiqh. It is the duty of scholars to show that this decree is wrong. When we say, “they do not become unbelievers based on such and such conditions”, we do not say “We should be ruled by human-made laws.” We say, the decree “they become unbelievers” is wrong. It is not Allah’s decree.

We want you to understand very well what we explain. It is not taqwa to say, “A person who commits sins becomes an unbeliever.” It is not taqwa to say, “You live in a country where Allah’s laws are not dominant; therefore, you are an unbeliever.” There is a distance as much as the earth and the sky between a sinner and an unbeliever. An unbeliever cannot enter Paradise forever but a sinner will enter Paradise after he is burnt in Hell based on his sins.

Therefore, it is not very easy to call someone “unbeliever”. We cannot say, “You are an unbeliever” to anyone we wish. We will deal with the issue in detail in this work inshallah. We have introduced the issue; now we will deal with the first evidence of the issue.

According to the verses of the Quran, a person who commits a major sin does not become an unbeliever.

The First Evidence: If two parties among the believers fall into a quarrel (fight), make peace between them.

The following is stated in verse 9 of the chapter of al-Hujurat:

وَاِنْ طَائِفَتَانِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ If two parties among the believers اقْتَتَلُوا fall into a quarrel (fight) فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَهُمَا make ye peace between them.

Let us pay attention to the meaning again:

“If two parties among the believers fall into a quarrel (fight), make ye peace between them.”

Our question is as follows:

- Is it halal or haram for Muslims to fight each other?

It is definitely haram and a major sin. The Muslims who fight and kill each other commit a major sin.

Does committing that major sin make them exit the religion of Islam?

No. What is our evidence? The verse above. The verse states the following:

  وَاِنْ طَائِفَتَانِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ اقْتَتَلُوا If two parties among the believers fall into a quarrel (fight)... 

If their fighting and killing each other, that is, committing a major sin, made them unbelievers, Allah would not call them “believers”. Look at the verse: Allah calls those fight and kill their Muslim brothers “believers”. Who can call a person whom Allah calls “a believer” an unbeliever?

Now we address those who say, “He who commits a major sin becomes an unbeliever” as follows: You say committing a major sin makes a person an unbeliever. If committing a major sin makes a person exit the religion of Islam, why does Allah call those who commit a major sin by fighting each other “believers”? Why does He qualify those who kill each other as believers? If committing a major sin made a person an unbeliever, would Allah call them “believers”? Definitely not. Since He says they are believers, it means they are believers; committing a major sin does not make them unbelievers.

O those who call committer of sins unbelievers! Accept the decree of the verse above and give up calling those who commit sins unbelievers.

The Second Evidence: If any remission is made by the brother of the slain...

The following is stated in verse 178 of the chapter of al-Baqara for a Muslim who kills his believing brother and for whom retaliation or diyah (blood money) is necessary:

فَمَنْ عُفِيَ لَهُ But if any remission is made - that is, if the killer is forgiven - مِنْ أَخِيهِ شَيْءٌ by the brother of the slain - that is, if the guardian of the slain gives up some of the blood money فَاتِّبَاعٌ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ - for the one who forgives- then grant any reasonable demand وَأَدَاء إِلَيْهِ بِإِحْسَانٍ - for the killer - and compensate him with handsome gratitude.

We want to deal with the following part of the verse:

  فَمَنْ عُفِيَ لَهُ مِنْ أَخِيهِ شَيْءٌ But if any remission is made by the brother of the slain...

The guardian of the slain is mentioned by the phrase “the brother of” in the verse and it is stated that the guardian of the slain and the killer are brothers. Now we ask the following:

- What kind of brotherhood is it? What is the brotherhood between the guardian of the slain and the killer?

The brotherhood in question is not biological brotherhood because there is no biological brotherhood between the killer and the guardian of the slain. It is Islamic brotherhood. God Almighty uses the phrase “the brother of” in order to dissuade the guardian of the slain from retaliation and to lessen the blood money; thus, He stimulates the mercy of the guardian.   

Now we ask the following question:

- If committing a major sin made a person exit the religion of Islam, could the guardian of the slain and the killer be brothers?

If killing a Muslim, that is, committing such a major sin, made a person an unbeliever, would Allah say “his brother” for the guardian of the slain?

We know from the following statement of the Quran that the believers are but a single brotherhood:  إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ إِخْوَةٌ.

The continuation of that brotherhood between the killer and the guardian of the slain is an evidence showing that committing a major sin does not make a person an unbeliever. If committing a major sin made a person an unbeliever, a brotherhood between them would not be mentioned because an unbeliever and a believer can never be brothers.  

To sum up: Since Allah states that the guardian of the slain is the brother of the killer and since that brotherhood is Islamic brotherhood, the sin of killing a person does not make the killer an unbeliever and exit the religion of Islam. It proves that committing a major sin does not make a person an unbeliever.

The Third Evidence: Allah is full of grace to those who believe.

First, let us make an analysis:

Is it a sin to escape from war?

Yes, it is. It is a major sin. If committing a major sin made a person an unbeliever, those who escaped from war would become unbelievers and Allah would address them as “unbelievers”. If Allah does not call them “unbelievers” but believers, it proves that escaping from war does not make them unbelievers, which is an evidence that he who commits a major sin does not become an unbeliever.

Let us see what Allah says about those who escape from war in verse 153 of the chapter of Aal-i Imran:

إِذْ تُصْعِدُونَ Ye were climbing up the high ground وَلاَ تَلْوُونَ عَلَى أَحَدٍ without even casting a side glance at any one وَالرَّسُولُ يَدْعُوكُمْ فِي أُخْرَاكُمْ and the Messenger in your rear was calling you back.

The verse above was sent down about the Battle of Uhud. It mentions some Companions who escaped from war thinking the Prophet died. The Prophet (pbuh) called out to them so that they would not escape but they ran away and did not turn around to look at anyone.   

If committing a major sin made a person an unbeliever, those Companions who escaped from war would have become unbelievers because it is a major sin to escape form war.

Now we ask the following questions:

- What does Allah say about them?
- Does He say they are unbelievers or believers?

Allah states that He forgave them:

  وَاللَّهُ ذُو فَضْلٍ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ Allah is full of grace to those who believe.

You can see that Allah calls those who escaped from war “believers” and forgives them stating that He is full of grace to believers.

Allah calls those who escaped from war, who committed that major sin, “believers” but Salafis say, “they are unbelievers”. Do you know better than Allah? How can you call a person whom Allah calls a believer an unbeliever? Is it not enough as a sin to call a believer an unbeliever?  

Being an unbeliever is one thing and being a fasiq (sinner) is another. A person who commits a major sin is a fasiq, not an unbeliever. Our evidence is verse 152 of the chapter of Aal-i Imran.

The Fourth Evidence: O ye who believe! Turn to Allah with repentance.

Let us make an analysis:

- Who is called and wanted to repent?

A person who commits a sin is called to repent. A person without a sin is not called to repent. If committing a sin made a person an unbeliever, Allah would address those who committed sins as “unbelievers” when He wanted them to repent. If committing a sin does not make a person an unbeliever, Allah will address them as “believers”. Let us see how Allah addresses those whom He wants to repent:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا O ye who believe! تُوبُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ Turn to Allah تَوْبَةً نَصُوحًا with sincere repentance. (at-Tahrim, 66/8)

 How does Allah address those who commit sins in the verse? He says, أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا O ye who believe! Look! Allah addresses those who commit sins as “believers” If committing a sin made a person an unbeliever, would Allah address those who committed sins as “believers”? Definitely not. Since He addresses them as believers, committer of a major sin is a believer. The sin he has committed does not make him exit the religion of Islam and an unbeliever.

Allah addresses His slaves as “believers” not only in the verse above but in all verses in which He wants the committers of sins to repent. All those verses prove that committers of sins are believers and that they do not exit the religion of Islam.

We should state the following here: We do not deal with the issue in order to encourage people to commit sins. We do not say, “Since committing sins does not make a person exit the religion of Islam, let us hurry to sin together.” We state the following as we have mentioned above:

“Flee from sins as if fleeing from snakes and Satan. Sins attract Allah’s wrath, and deprive man of His mercy; they cause a person to go to Hell and cause many other evils.”

However, they are different from saying that a person who commits sins is an unbeliever. In this work, we analyze a decree of fiqh. That decree of fiqh is that a person who commits sins does not become an unbeliever. We defend that decree against the mentality of Mutazilites, Kharijites and Salafis. Do not become encouraged to commit sins from our explanations. What we mean is different.

We make those explanations against Kharijites, Mutazilites and Salafis who say, “A person who commits a major sin becomes an unbeliever.” Our aim is to prove that committing a major sin does not make a person exit the religion of Islam and that deed is not a part of belief. We make those explanations with that purpose. Never reach the following conclusion from our explanations: “Since we do not exit belief, let us commit sins as we wish.” The topic of this lesson is not the value of righteous deeds; therefore, we do not explain it here. If this work were about the value of righteous deeds, we would say different things. The value of righteous deeds is one thing and a person without righteous deeds becoming an unbeliever is another. We should not forget that difference.

The Fifth Evidence: Allah forgives anyone He wishes except for a person who joins other gods with Him.

Let us make an analysis now:

We know that any sin can be forgiven through repentance. Even if that sin is polytheism (shirk) and unbelief, it can be forgiven through sincere repentance. If a person repents of unbelief and becomes a believer, all of his previous sins are forgiven. If a person repents, his other major sins are also forgiven. Thus, it means the door of repentance is open for all sins that are repented whether they are major sins or unbelief.

Now we ask the following question:

- Does God Almighty forgive the sin of unbelief without repentance?

We know based on the verses of the Quran that He does not forgive unbelief and polytheism without repentance. What is more, if an unbeliever repents at the last breath, his repentance is not accepted. As a matter of fact, Pharaoh repented at the last breath but his repentance was not accepted.

Now we want to list what we have mentioned so far and want to ask a question:

1. The sin of unbelief can be forgiven through repentance.

2. The other major sins can be forgiven through repentance.

3. If an unbeliever dies without repenting, the sin of unbelief is not forgiven; it will condemn a person to eternal Hell.  

Now we ask the following:

- Can the major sins outside of unbelief be forgiven without repentance?

For instance, if a person drinks alcohol and dies before repenting of that sin, will Allah forgive that sin or not?

The answer to that person is very important because if major sins can be forgiven without repentance, major sins will not make a person an unbeliever. If a person who committed a major sin became an unbeliever, his forgiveness would be impossible. The possibility of forgiveness shows that a major sin is different from unbelief and that it will not make a person an unbeliever.

Let us see what the Quran says regarding the issue:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ Indeed, Allah لاَ يَغْفِرُ forgiveth not - What does He not forgive? - أَنْ يُشْرَكَ بِهِ joining other gods with Him

-If a person repents of the sin of polytheism (joining other gods with Allah) before death, Allah forgives him. It is stated in dozens of verses. It means the polytheism mentioned in the verse is the polytheism of a person who dies as a polytheist. Allah does not forgive a person who dies as a polytheist. If the sins other than polytheism are not repented, can they be forgiven? The verse states the following: وَيَغْفِرُ مَا دُونَ ذلِكَ لِمَنْ يَشَاء But He forgiveth whom He pleaseth other sins than this (an-Nisa, 4/116)

Look! The verse states the following: Allah does not forgive joining other gods with Him; He forgives the sins of a person He wishes other than that. The verse above is related to the sins that are not repented because even polytheism and unbelief can be forgiven when they are repented. In that case, the meaning of the verse is as follows:

Indeed, Allah does not forgive joining other gods with Him unless repented. As for the sins other than polytheism, He forgives the major sins of any person He wishes even if he does not repent.  

The verse above is an evidence that committing a major sin does not make a person an unbeliever. If a major sin made a person an unbeliever, Allah would not forgive the committer of major sins just as He would not forgive unbelievers. However, it is stated in the verse that He forgives any slave He wishes without repentance. It means a major sin does not make a person an unbeliever and does not make him exit the religion of Islam.

The Sixth Evidence: We have indeed believed; forgive us.

The following is stated in verse 16 of the chapter of Aal-i Imran:

اَلَّذِينَ (Namely), those يَقُولُونَ who say رَبَّنَا إِنَّنَا آمَنَّا Our Lord! We have indeed believed فَاغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا forgive us, then, our sins, وَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ and save us from the agony of the Fire    

As the verse above states, believing slaves say, “We have believed; forgive us.” That is, they want forgiveness due to their belief; they do not mention righteous deeds. That statement proves that only belief can be a means of forgiveness by Allah and that only through belief can a slave attain Allah’s mercy and forgiveness. It proves that belief is different from deeds and that a person who does not do righteous deeds is also a believer.

If righteous deeds were definitely necessary for Allah’s forgiveness, the verse above would be as follows:

We have believed; we have done righteous deeds; we have not committed major sins; forgive us.

Yes, the verse would be like that but it is not so; the request for forgiveness is attributed to belief only. It proves that a person without righteous deeds is also a believer and that he can be forgiven.

Having no righteous deeds means not performing fard deeds and not avoiding major sins. That such a person can be forgiven thanks to belief proves that a person who commits a major sin is a believer and that his sin does not make him exit from belief. If his belief made him exit belief, his forgiveness would not be possible.

The Seventh Evidence: Those who believed and did not emigrate.

The following is stated in verse 72 of the chapter of al-Anfal:

  وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَلَمْ يُهَاجِرُوا As to those who believed and did not emigrate, مَا لَكُمْ مِنْ وَلاَيَتِهِمْ مِنْ شَيْءٍ  حَتَّى يُهَاجِرُوا  ye owe no duty of protection to them until they emigrated وَإِنِ اسْتَنْصَرُوكُمْ فِي الدِّينِ but if they seek your aid in religion, it is your duty to help them.

When the verse above was sent down, migration from Makkah to Madinah was rendered fard. The obligation of migration was abrogated afterwards.  

 Let us look at the beginning of the verse again; what does the verse say? The verse states the following:

  وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَلَمْ يُهَاجِرُوا those who believed and did not emigrate...

We understand the following from the clause above:

There are some people. They did not fulfill the fard deed of migration. Although migration was fard, they did not go to Madinah by leaving Makkah; that is, they committed a sin and abandoned a fard deed.  

Did their abandoning that fard deed and committing that sin make them exit the religion of Islam? No. What is our evidence? The beginning of the verse. The verse states the following:

   وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَلَمْ يُهَاجِرُوا those who believed and did not emigrate...

Look! Allah qualifies those who did not fulfill the fard deed of migration as believers. If not migrating, that is, not fulfilling a fard, made a person an unbeliever, Allah would not call them “believers”. Since He calls them believers, they are believers; committing a major sin did not make them exit the religion of Islam. Along with migration, the same thing holds true for other sins.

It is one thing for a deed to be a sin and to necessitate punishment and it is another thing for a deed to make a person exit the religion of Islam. A sin is definitely something bad and leads a person to penalty but it does not make a person an unbeliever. It is one thing to lead a person to penalty and it is another thing to make a person an unbeliever. Verse 72 of the chapter of   al-Anfal is an evidence that a sin does not make a person an unbeliever.

The Eighth Evidence: Those who believe, and do deeds of righteousness...

First, we will make an analysis:

- Are belief and deed a whole or are they different things?

The answer to that question is very important because if belief and deed are a whole, when a person abandons deeds, he abandons belief too. Accordingly, a person who commits a sin abandons belief. Otherwise, if belief and deed are different things, abandoning deeds does not necessitate exiting belief. In that case, the person who commits a major sin does not become an unbeliever.

To enable you to understand it better, let me put it this way: Belief is a whole. Our scholars express it as follows: “It is a whole that is impossible to divide.” That is, it is a whole that cannot be divided into parts. Therefore, if a person believes in all realities of belief but denies only one, he exits belief because belief is a whole. He who denies one part of it is as if he has denied the whole.

If deed is a part of belief, he who abandons a deed exits belief. If it is not a part of belief, he who abandons a deed does not exit belief because deed is not included in belief; therefore, he who abandons it does not exit belief.  

Kharijites, Mutazilites and some Salafis regard deed as a part of belief and say, “Belief and deed are a whole.” As a result of that wrong creed, they accuse a person who abandons deeds of exiting belief. However, according to Ahl as-Sunnah creed, deed is not a part of belief. Deed is one thing and belief is another. Since deed is not a part of belief, abandoning deeds does not lead to abandoning belief.   

In that case, if it is proved that belief and deed are different things, it will also be proved that abandoning deeds, that is, committing sins, will not cause a person to exit belief. We will do it now; we will prove that deed is different from belief.  

Our evidence is the phrase اَلَّذينَ اٰمَنُوا وَ عَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ those who believe, and do deeds of righteousness...  mentioned in dozens of places in the Quran. The letter “waw” (and) mentioned in the verse is a letter of atf (conjunction). The letter of conjunction shows that what comes before it is different from what comes after it. When we say Ali and Ahmad came, we understand that Ahmad is a different person from Ali. Ali is different and Ahmad is different. What shows that difference is the conjunction “and”.

Likewise, when we say, اَلَّذينَ اٰمَنُوا وَ عَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ those who believe, and do deeds of righteousness..., we understand that belief is different from deeds of righteousness. If belief and deeds were the same, the conjunction “waw” would not be used between them; only “those who believe” would be enough. However, it is not used like that. The following is stated: Those who believe, and do deeds of righteousness... That phrase proves that deeds are different from belief and deeds are not a part of belief.

Besides, God Almighty always mentions belief together with deeds of righteousness. If deeds of righteousness were part of belief, it would be a repetition. Repetition is not nice in eloquence. The Quran was sent down in eloquence.

As a result of those analyses, we state the following:

Committing a sin is definitely something bad; it makes the one who commits it deserve punishment but does not make him exit belief. However, abandoning deeds can make a person exit belief only if deeds are part of belief. We have proved with the verse above that deeds are not a part of belief.

The Ninth Evidence: And when the people of taqwa do something to be ashamed of, they earnestly bring Allah to mind, and ask for forgiveness for their sins.

God Almighty states in verse 135 of the chapter of Aal-i Imran that Paradise was prepared for the people of taqwa and mentions the characteristics of the people of taqwa. He states the following as the fourth characteristic of the people of taqwa:

وَالَّذِينَ إِذَا فَعَلُوا فَاحِشَةً When they do something to be ashamed of أَوْ ظَلَمُوا أَنْفُسَهُمْ or wrong their own souls ذَكَرُوا اللَّهَ earnestly bring Allah to mind فَاسْتَغْفَرُوا لِذُنُوبِهِمْ and ask for forgiveness for their sins وَمَنْ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ and who can forgive sins except Allah?  وَلَمْ يُصِرُّوا عَلَى مَا فَعَلُوا وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ and are never obstinate in persisting knowingly in (the wrong) they have done.  

When Allah describe the people of taqwa in the verse above, He does not say, “they do not commit sins.” He says, “When they do something to be ashamed of, they earnestly bring Allah to mind, and ask for forgiveness for their sins.”

The people of taqwa, who are the most approved believers, are those who are at the highest level. However, they can also commit sins. It means not committing sins is something that human beings cannot attain – except for prophets and exceptional people. People of taqwa sometimes commit sins and wrong their souls.

If committing sins made a person exit belief and become an unbeliever, there would be no believers in the world; everybody would be unbelievers. In that case, God Almighty would praise the people of taqwa for being unbelievers rarely. The meaning of the verse would be as follows:

When the people of taqwa do something to be ashamed of and become unbelievers, they earnestly bring Allah to mind, and ask for forgiveness for their sins. They do not insist on unbelief. They sometimes become unbelievers; then, they become believers again.  

The meaning of the verse would be like that. Is it possible for Allah to praise the people of taqwa for becoming unbelievers from time to time? If you say, “He who commits a major sin becomes an unbeliever”, you will have to say, “Yes, it is possible; Allah praises them for becoming unbelievers from time to time.” It is definitely wrong. Let alone people of taqwa, no believer is praised for becoming an unbeliever from time to time. It proves that committing sins does not make a person an unbeliever. Even people of taqwa commit sins.

The Tenth Evidence: O you who believe!

The following is stated in verse 29 of the chapter of al-Anfal:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا O ye who believe! نْ تَتَّقُوا اللَّهَ If ye fear Allah يَجْعَلْ لَكُمْ فُرْقَانًا  He will grant you a criterion (to judge between right and wrong)  وَيُكَفِّرْ عَنْكُمْ سَيِّئَاتِكُمْ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ  remove from you (all) evil (that may afflict) you, and forgive you.

In the verse above, Allah addresses His believing slaves as follows: “O ye who believe!” He states that He will remove them from all evil and that He will forgive them if they fear Allah (have taqwa).

Let us make an analysis now:

The first question: Are the people whom Allah addresses not believers?

They are definitely believers. Its evidence is the fact that Allah addresses them as follows: “O ye who believe!” If they were not believers, they would not be addressed like that.

The second question: Do those believers have sins.  

They definitely do because Allah promises them to forgive their sins. Sins are necessary first for forgiveness to occur. There will be no forgiveness without sins. That Allah says to them, “I will remove you from all evil and forgive you” proves that those people committed sins before. They may have been minor sins or sometimes major sins due to being humans.

Look! God Almighty addresses the people who have committed sins as “O ye who believe!” Thus, He states that they are believers. That address by Allah proves that committing sins does not make a person exit belief. If committing sins made a person exit belief, Allah would not address them as “O ye who believe!” Since He addresses them like that, they are believers; their sins do not make them exit belief and become unbelievers. Their minor sins and rarely committed major sins will inshallah be forgiven by Allah due to their taqwa.

The Eleventh Evidence: O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls.

The following is stated in verse 53 of the chapter of az-Zumar:

قُلْ Say: يَا عِبَادِيَ الَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِهِمْ O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls! لاَ تَقْنَطُوا مِنْ رَحْمَةِ اللَّهِ Despair not of the Mercy of Allah. إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا For Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.

The verse above was sent down about the sinful believers. Some of the evidences showing that it was sent down about believers are as follows:  

1. The word عِبَاد meaning “slaves” in the verse is always used for believers in the Quran. For instance, the following is stated in the chapter of al-Furqan:   

  وَعِبَادُ الرَّحْمنِ الَّذِينَ يَمْشُونَ عَلَى الْأَرْضِ هَوْنًا And the servants of (Allah) Most Gracious are those who walk on the earth in humility. (al-Furqan, 25/63)

 The following is stated in the chapter of al-Insan:

  عَيْنًا يَشْرَبُ بِهَا عِبَادُ اللَّهِ A Fountain where the Devotees of Allah do drink, making it flow in unstinted abundance. (al-Insan, 76/6)

The word “ibad” in the verses above and other verses of the Quran is used for believers. Therefore, believers are meant by the word “ibad” in the verse that we have shown as an evidence above.

2. The suffix “ye” (my) is added to the word عِبَاد in the verse and the word is in the form of عِبَادِي.  عِبَادِي means “My slaves” The phrase “My slaves” expresses value and honor. That value and honor belong to only believing slaves in the eye of Allah. For, Allah states the following about unbelievers:

 أُولَئِكَ كَالأَنْعَامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ They are like cattle,- nay more misguided. Thus, the word عِبَادِي meaning “My slaves” in the verse expresses honor and value, which are valid for believers.  

3. A believer is a person who accepts that he is a slave of Allah. Unbelievers reject that slavery. Therefore, the phrase “My slaves” is more appropriate for believers. 

4. God Almighty states in the verse that He will forgive all sins, which is impossible for unbelievers. Allah states in many verses that He will not forgive unbelievers. In that case, the verse in question mentions believers.

5. In the verse in question, Allah Almighty states that He will treat His slaves with His names Ghafur (Oft-Forgiving) and Rahim (Most Merciful). He treats only believers with those names. He will treat unbelievers with His names such as Aziz (Mighty), Jabbar (Compelling) and Muntaqim (Avenger). It proves that the verse in question was sent down about believers.

There are other evidences showing that it was sent down about believers but we regard the evidences above as sufficient.  

Now we ask the following question:

The following is stated in the verse: يَا عِبَادِيَ الَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِهِمْ   O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls!... We have proved that the slaves mentioned in the verse are believers. What does believers’ transgressing against their souls mean? Does anything other than committing sins come to your mind? Probably not. Transgressing against their souls means committing sins and disobeying Allah.

God Almighty includes those slaves who have transgressed against their souls in the group of believers and addresses them as follows: Despair not of the Mercy of Allah. The statement “Despair not of the Mercy of Allah” prohibits His slaves from despairing of the mercy of Allah. It means a command to hope and expect generosity from Him. Since Allah orders them to hope and expect generosity, it fits Allah to treat them generously. It means, He will forgive their sins.    

Besides, Allah states at the end of the verse that He is Oft-Forgiving and Most Merciful and that He will forgive all sins. It proves that a believer who commits sins does not exit the religion of Islam and does not become an unbeliever. If he became an unbeliever, his forgiveness would not be possible. Allah states in dozens of verses that He will not forgive unbelievers. He states in the verse in question that He will forgive the sins of believers. That statement proves that a believer does not exit belief and does not become an unbeliever due to his sins.

The Twelfth Evidence: O ye who believe! what is the matter with you that ye cling heavily to the earth?

 The following is stated in verse 38 of the chapter of at-Tawba:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا O ye who believe! مَا لَكُمْ What is the matter with you, thatإِذَا قِيلَ لَكُمُ انْفِرُوا فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ when ye are asked to go forth in the cause of Allahاثَّاقَلْتُمْ إِلَى الأَرْضِ ye cling heavily to the earth? أَرَضِيتُمْ بِالْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا مِنَ الآخِرَةِ Do ye prefer the life of this world to the Hereafter? فَمَا مَتَاعُ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا فِي الآخِرَةِ إِلاَّ قَلِيلٌ But little is the comfort of this life, as compared with the Hereafter.

According to the statement of Ibn Abbas, the verse above was sent down about the Battle of Tabuk. When the Prophet (pbuh) returned from Taif, the Muslims were ordered to fight against the Byzantines. It was the hottest time of the year then. The fruits in Madinah had ripened and it was time to harvest. The place to go was very far away and it was necessary to make more preparations compared to other wars. The Byzantine army was very big. Therefore, some Companions regarded fighting against the Byzantines as something very difficult and they did not want to take part in the expedition. Some of them did not join the army.

God Almighty addressed those who did not want to take part in the war and who did not obey the command of the Prophet (pbuh) to “make jihad!” as “O ye who believe!”

Let us make an analysis:

The first question: Are those people whom Allah addresses not believers?

They are definitely believers. Its evidence is the fact that Allah addresses them as follows: “O ye who believe!” If they were not believers, they would not be addressed like that.

The second question: Was jihad fard for them?    

It was definitely fard because if it were not fard, they would not be reprimanded like that. And their deed would not be expressed as “clinging heavily to the earth”.

Look! God Almighty addresses those who did not obey the command of the Prophet (pbuh) to “make jihad!” and who abandoned fard jihad as “O ye who believe!” Thus, he approves that they are believers.  

That address by Allah proves that abandoning a fard deed and committing a sin do not make a person exit belief. If committing sins made a person exit belief, those people who did not obey the Prophet (pbuh) would become unbelievers. Allah would not address them as “O ye who believe!” Since He addresses them like that, they are believers; abandoning a fard deed does not make them exit belief and become unbelievers. It proves that committing major sins and abandoning a fard deed do not make a person exit belief.

However, we should remind you the following again:

Do not underestimate sins acting upon our explanations. Sins and abandoning fards lead to bad results. They might not make a person an unbeliever but they can attract Allah’s wrath and cause man to go to Hell and deprive him of Allah’s mercy. They cause many other evils. Since our topic is not the badness of sins, we will not deal with it now. Do not forget this point!

We have proved so far through evidences that committing major sins does not make a person an unbeliever. In fact, there are more evidences that we can show. However, since we have proved the issue with 12 strong evidences, we do not want to lengthen the evidence part.  

In the remaining part of our work, we will answer the statements of those who accuse the committers of major sins as unbelievers.

Answers to the evidences of those who call sinners unbelievers

First: Those who do not judge by what Allah has revealed are unbelievers.

Their first statement that we will answer is as follows:

They say, ‘The following is stated in verse 44 of the chapter of al-Maida:

وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ If any do fail to judge by (the light of) what Allah hath revealed, أُولئِكَ هُمُ الْكَافِرُونَ they are (no better than) Unbelievers.   

- It is stated in the verse above that those who do not judge by what Allah has revealed are unbelievers. A person who commits a major sin does not judge by what Allah has revealed. Therefore, he is an unbeliever.  

That is what they say: A person who commits a major sin does not judge by what Allah has revealed. Therefore, he is an unbeliever.

Now we will prove how wrong their statement is. We want to ask you some questions regarding the issue:

- With what organ do we see? With the eye. Man does not see with his hand or ear but with his eye.

- With what organ do we hear? With the ear. Man does not hear with his eye or nose but with his ear.

- With what organ do we smell? With the nose. Man does not smell with his hand or ear but with his nose.

- With what organ do we taste? With the tongue. Man does not taste with his eye or ear but with his tongue.

- With what organ do we touch? With the hand. Man touches with his hand.

Now we ask the most important one:

- With what organ or faculty do we judge? With what organ does man judge? With the heart. Man judges with his heart; it is called approving.

Accordingly, the meaning of “He who does not judge by what Allah has revealed...” is “He who does not approve with his heart what Allah has revealed...” He who does not approve with his heart that what Allah has revealed is true is an unbeliever. There is no doubt about it.  

What happens if a person approves something but does not act according to it? Suppose that a person decreed with his heart, that is, approved, that drinking alcohol was haram but drank alcohol. What is the position of such a person?  

That person decreed/judged with what Allah revealed but he did not act accordingly. Decreeing is one thing and acting according to that decree is another. He is a believer since he accepts that alcohol is haram but he is a fasiq and sinner since he does not act accordingly.  

If the statement “He who does not act according to what Allah has revealed...” were used in the verse instead of “He who does not judge by what Allah has revealed...”, we would decree that the committer of major sins would be an unbeliever. However, Allah does not say “does not act” but “does not judge”.

That is the point that those who regard committers of sins as unbelievers do not understand; they do not understand the difference between “to judge” and “to act”; they think not to judge means not to act. However, to judge is related to the heart and it is called approval.

Let us ask the question differently:

- Suppose that a person does not drink alcohol but he does not accept that alcohol is haram; is such a person a believer?

No, he is not a believer. For, he acts according to what Allah has revealed but he does not judge by what Allah has revealed. He is an unbeliever because he does not approve that drinking alcohol is haram even if he does not drink alcohol at all.

Thus, if a person denies even only one decree of Allah, he becomes an unbeliever since he does not judge by what Allah has revealed. He is an unbeliever even if he accepts all of Allah’s other decrees. If he approves that decree but he does not act accordingly, he is regarded to have judged by what Allah has revealed but he has not acted according to that decree. He who does not judge by what Allah has revealed becomes an unbeliever but he who does not act according to what Allah has revealed becomes a fasiq and a sinner. It is one thing to become an unbeliever and another to become a sinner.  

Does a person who makes laws contrary to Allah’s decree become an unbeliever?  

Now let us deal with another issue:

- Does a person who makes laws contrary to Allah’s decree though Allah’s decrees exist become an unbeliever? For example, does a person who makes a law that drinking alcohol is legitimate though Allah says it is haram and that fornication is not a crime though Allah says it is haram become an unbeliever? That is, what is the position of those who makes laws that are contrary to the decrees of shari’ah?

Their position is as follows:

If they believe that the decrees that they impose are true and Allah’s decrees are wrong or invalid or if they disdain Allah’s decrees, they are unbelievers because they do not approve with the heart that Allah’s decrees are true. That lack of approval makes them unbelievers.

If those people accept that Allah’s decrees are true and that their decrees are wrong but they impose decrees that are contrary to shari’ah, they are believers. Since those people approve with the heart that Allah’s decrees are true, they are regarded to have judged by what Allah has revealed. However, they become fasiqs and sinners since they impose laws that are contrary to those decrees.

We should add the following:

When we say, “That person does not become an unbeliever; he is a believer”, we mean “He is treated as a believer in terms of worldly laws.” That is, his marriage is not invalidated; the meat of the animal he slaughters is permissible to eat; his worship is valid. We mean the laws that are valid for a believer are valid for him.

However, we cannot know whether such people can maintain their belief at the last breath. Nevertheless, we can say that it is very difficult. It is one thing to be treated as a believer in the world and it is another thing to maintain belief at the last breath and to die as a believer. It is very difficult for those who spend their entire lives making decrees contrary to Allah’s decrees not to attract Allah’s wrath and to maintain belief at the last breath.

Let us have a look at the following issue:

What is the position of the people who live in the countries that are ruled by human-made laws?

There are two positions. If they accept Allah’s decrees but cannot change the human-made decrees due to their weakness and are ruled by those decrees, they are believers as long as they approve Allah’s decrees by their hearts. When Hz. Yusuf became the governor of Egypt, it was being ruled according to human-made decrees. That Hz. Yusuf judged by those decrees did not make him an unbeliever because he had no power to change those laws. When he attained enough power, he replaced them with Allah’s decrees. Similarly, we do not have the power to change the current human-made laws. We do not support them with our hearts; we like only Allah’s decrees. In that case, we are believers.

If the people living in a country that is ruled by human-made laws like those laws, despise Allah’s laws and think that those laws are outdated, they become unbelievers because they do not approve Allah’s laws by their hearts.

We can even state the following: If a person believes that all decrees of Allah are true and valid but denies only one decree, he becomes an unbeliever. That he approves all other decrees does not make him a believer.  

Second: If a person kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell.

We will answer the second statement of those who call believers committing major sins unbelievers.

 They say, the following is stated in verse 93 of the chapter of an-Nisa:

وَمَنْ يَقْتُلْ مُؤْمِنًا مُتَعَمِّدًا If a man kills a believer intentionally, فَجَزَاؤُهُ جَهَنَّمُ his recompense is Hell خَالِدًا فِيهَا to abide therein - in Hell - (for ever). وَغَضِبَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ And the wrath وَلَعَنَهُ and the curse of Allah are upon him وَأَعَدَّ لَهُ عَذَابًا عَظِيمًا and a dreadful penalty is prepared for him.

- It is stated in the verse above that he who kills a believer intentionally will remain in Hell forever. Only unbelievers will remain in Hell forever. In that case, he who kills a believer intentionally will exit the religion of Islam and becomes an unbeliever. If he were not an unbeliever, he would not remain in Hell forever. That the murderer will remain in Hell forever is an evidence that he is an unbeliever. Since killing a person makes one an unbeliever, other major sins will also make him an unbeliever.

That is what they say. Let us explain the verse in question now: When we explain it, you will see that the issue is not like what they say at all.

First, let us have a look at the reason why that verse was revealed. The verse was sent down about a person called Miqyas:  

Miqyas and Hisham were two brothers and they became Muslims in Madinah. Once, Miqyas found the dead body of his brother Hisham among the tribe of Sons of Najjar. He went to the Prophet (pbuh) at once and told him about it. The Prophet sent a Companion called Zubayr to Sons of Najjar with the following message: “If you know the murderer of Hisham, surrender him to Miqyas. If you do not know him, pay diyah (blood money) for him.”

When Zubayr and Miqyas conveyed the message to the tribe of Sons of Najjar, they said, “By Allah, we do not know the murderer but we will pay diyah for your brother.” Then, they gave Miqyas one hundred camels as diyah. While Miqyas and Zubayr was returning to Madinah, Satan started to whisper Miqyas the following: “Why did you accept diyah for your brother; it is a shame for you. Kill Zubayr to take your revenge.”

Acting upon the delusion of Satan, Miqyas killed Zubayr, exited the religion of Islam and went to Makkah with the camels. Miqyas was killed on the day when Makkah was conquered; he was not given security.

The verse “If a man kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell” was sent down about Miqyas. The reason he will stay in Hell forever is not because he killed Zubayr but because he exited the religion of Islam. The decree of the verse holds true for the unbelievers like Miqyas.

If someone objects to the explanation above by saying, “That the reason why the verse was sent down is specific does not prevent its decree from being general; though the verse was sent down about Miqyas, its decree is valid for all killers”, we will make the following explanations:

1. The decree of the verse may be about those who regard killing a believer halal (legitimate). The reason why they will remain in Hell forever is not due to murder but accepting haram as halal. He who accepts haram as halal becomes an unbeliever and remains in Hell forever.  

2. The decree of the verse may be about a person who kills a believer due to his belief. Killing a believer due to his belief makes a person an unbeliever. The reason why such a person will remain in Hell forever is not due to his murder but targeting that believer’s belief. He who targets a believer’s belief and disdains belief becomes an unbeliever and remains in Hell forever.  

3. The phrase خَالِدًا فِيهَا translated as “He is in Hell forever” does not always express eternity. “Khulud” means remaining in a place for a long time. As a matter of fact, Arabs call days “khawalid”. It is not because days will continue forever but because they will continue for a long time. If the word “khulud” in the verse were used together with the word “abadan (eternally)” in the form of خَالِدًا فِيهَا أَبَدًا, we would understand from that phrase that the murderer would remain in Hell forever. However, the word abadan is not used. It proves that a person who kills a believer intentionally will remain in Hell for a long time, not forever. Thus, it proves that a person who commits a major sin does not become an unbeliever. Even if we put aside the previous explanations, only this explanation will be enough to explain the issue.   

Why did Ibn Abbas say, ‘A person who kills someone will remain in Hell forever’?

The following question can be asked:

- If what you say is true, why did Ibn Abbas say, ‘A person who kills someone will remain in Hell forever’? Ibn Abbas is one of the Companions who understood the Quran best. Is his view regarding the issue wrong?

That question can be answered as follows:

Ibn Abbas uttered that statement as an exaggeration in order to prevent a person from killing someone. As a matter of fact, as it is stated in Qurtubi’s tafsir, Abu Malik al-Ashjai reported the following from Ibn Ubayda:

Once a man went to Ibn Abbas and asked, “Is the repentance of a person who kills a believer intentionally accepted?” Ibn Abbas said, “No. His abode will be Hell.” When the person who asked the question left, the people sitting with him asked, “O Ibn Abbas! Did you issue us a fatwa like that? You said previously that the repentance of the killer would be accepted.”

Thereupon, Ibn Abbas said, “I noticed that the man was very nervous and furious; I think he wants to kill a believer. Therefore, I issued that fatwa.” When they followed the man, they found out that he really wanted to kill a believer.

As it is seen, the statement of Ibn Abbas “The repentance of a person who kills a believer intentionally is not accepted” aimed to dissuade the man from committing a sin; it is not his real fatwa.   

As a matter of fact, Sufyan Ibn Uyayna states the following:

If a person has not killed a man, you can say to him, “Your repentance will not be accepted if you kill somebody.” However, if a person kills somebody, regrets after that and wants to repent, you can say to him, “Your repentance can be accepted.”

That is the view of all scholars with Ahl as-Sunnah creed. There are several verses of the Quran and hadiths regarding the issue. We quoted 12 of the verses in the previous parts.

Third: Those who believe and confuse not their beliefs with wrong.

We will answer the third statement of those who call believers committing major sins unbelievers.

 They say, the following is stated in verse 82 of the chapter of al-Anam:

اَلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَلَمْ يَلْبِسُوا إِيمَانَهُم بِظُلْمٍ It is those who believe and confuse not their beliefs with wrong أُولئكَ لَهُمُ الأَمْنُ that are (truly) in security وَهُمْ مُهْتَدُونَ for they are on (right) guidance

- It is stated in the verse above that those who do not confuse their beliefs with wrong are in security and on guidance. What is meant by “zulm (wrong)” in the verse is major sins. Since being in security is stated to be peculiar to those who do not confuse their beliefs with wrong, that is, those who do not commit major sins, those who confuse their beliefs with sins, that is, those who commit major sins are not in security and on guidance. It shows that they are not believers.

That is what they say. Let us explain the verse in question now: When we explain it, you will see that the issue is not like what they say at all.

Those who do not confuse their beliefs with wrong (zulm) are mentioned in the verse. The word zulm in the verse does not mean sin but polytheism (shirk), that is, associating partners with Allah. As a matter of fact, the following is stated in the chapter of Luqman:

  إِنَّ الشِّرْكَ لَظُلْمٌ عَظِيمٌ Zulm (false worship) is indeed the highest wrong-doing. (Luqman, 31/13)

Look! Polytheism is called “zulm” in the verse above and it is stated that it is the highest wrong-doing (zulm). The meaning of the word “zulm” in the verse in question is polytheism and the meaning of the verse is as follows:

It is those who believe and confuse not their beliefs with wrong (polytheism) that are (truly) in security for they are on (right) guidance.

That is the meaning of the verse. 

The evidence of it is as follows:

The verse we explain in this part is verse 82 of the chapter of al-An’am. The verse is in the part where the story of Hz. Ibrahim is narrated. That story is related to rejecting polytheism throughout. Obedience and deeds of worship are not mentioned in that story; oneness and belief are mentioned. Therefore, it is necessary to interpret the word “zulm” in the verse as “polytheism”.

If they object to our explanation and say, “We interpret the word ‘zulm’ in the verse as major sin”, we will say, “Even if you interpret it as major sins, it cannot be concluded from the verse that a person who commits a major sin becomes an unbeliever. In that case, the verse is explained as follows:   

Allah threatens the sinful Muslims, or according to you, those who confuse not their beliefs with major sins, with fear and states that they are not in security. Lack of security does not necessitate eternal punishment. There are so many moments in the hereafter when even prophets will not be in security and will fear by saying “nafsi, nafsi (my soul, myself)”. The fear of sinners will continue much longer. The verse narrates that state.

Besides, there is no sign in the verse that the punishment will last forever. If Allah wishes, He will forgive the sinners after their fear; if He wishes, He will punish them based on their sins and then send them to Paradise. That is the explanation of the verse. The verse has no indication that a person who commits major sins will be an unbeliever.

Fourth: Those who seek gain in evil, and are girt round by their sins,- they are companions of the Fire.

We will answer the fourth statement of those who call believers committing sins unbelievers.

They say, the following is stated in verse 81 of the chapter of al-Baqara:

مَنْ كَسَبَ سَيِّئَةً Those who seek gain in evil وَأَحَاطَتْ بِهِ خَطِيئَتُهُ and are girt round by their sins فَأُولئكَ أَصْحَابُ النَّارِ they are companions of the Fire هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ Therein shall they abide (For ever).

- It is stated in the verse above that those who commit sins and are surrounded by their sins will remain in Hell forever. Remaining in Hell forever is peculiar to unbelievers. In that case, the one who commits sins must be an unbeliever. If he were not an unbeliever, he would not remain in Hell forever.

That is what they say. That he who commits sins remains in Hell forever is evidence that he is an unbeliever.  

Let us explain the verse in question now: When we explain it, you will see that the issue is not like what they say at all.

The verse was sent down related to either unbelievers or believers.  

مَنْ كَسَبَ سَيِّئَةً Those who seek gain in sayyia: The word sayyia translated as “evil (sin)” means polytheism, not sin. In that case, the meaning of the statement in the verse is as follows: Those who commit the sin of polytheism and become polytheists. The part of the verse after it is as follows: وَأَحَاطَتْ بِهِ خَطِيئَتُهُ and are girt round by their sins; “Sins’ surrounding a person” becomes possible when a person has no approval of belief in his heart, no utterance of belief in his tongue and no deed of worship in his organs. If a person has approval of belief in his heart, utterance of belief in his tongue and deeds of worship in some of his organs, his sins cannot surround him.   

Thus, sins can surround a person only if he is an unbeliever. In that case, the meaning of the verse is as follows:

Those who seek gain in sayyia - that is, those who commit the sin of polytheism and become polytheists - and are girt round by their sins - that is, if sins surround them completely because of not having approval of belief in their hearts, utterance of belief in their tongues and deeds of worship in any of their organs- فَأُولئكَ أَصْحَابُ النَّارِ   they are companions of the Fire هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ Therein shall they abide forever.

If it is accepted that the verse was sent down related to unbelievers, the meaning of the verse is as it is explained above: If it is accepted that the verse was sent down related to believers, the meaning of the verse is as follows:

مَنْ كَسَبَ سَيِّئَةً Those who seek gain in evil وَأَحَاطَتْ بِهِ خَطِيئَتُهُ and are girt round by their sins  - that is, if they keep committing many sins - فَأُولئكَ أَصْحَابُ النَّارِ they are companions of the Fire هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ Therein shall they abide for a long time.

Look! When we supposed that the verse was sent down related to unbelievers, we translated the word خَالِدُونَ as “abide forever”. When we supposed that the verse was sent down related to believers, we translated the word خَالِدُونَ as “abide for a long time”. The reason for it is as follows:

The word خَالِدُونَ does not always express “abiding forever”; it also means “abiding for a long time”. As a matter of fact, “khulud”, which is the root of the word, means to remain somewhere for a long time. Arabs call days “khawalid”. It is not because days will continue forever but because they will continue for a long time.

If the word “khulud” in the verse were used together with the word “abadan” in the form of خَالِدًا فِيهَا أَبَدًا, we would understand from that phrase that the murderer would remain in Hell forever. However, the word “abadan” is not used. It proves that a person who kills a believer intentionally will remain in Hell for a long time, not forever.

Even if it is accepted that the verse in question was sent down related to believers, there is no indication in the verse that sinful believers will remain in Hell forever; there is an indication that they will remain there for a long time. Even if they remain in Hell for a long time, they will exit Hell one day. It proves that a person who commits sins does not become an unbeliever.  

Fifth: An adulterer, at the time he is committing illegal sexual intercourse, is not a believer.

We will answer the fifth statement of those who call believers committing sins unbelievers.

They say: It is stated in hadiths that those who commit major sins are not believers. For instance, the following is stated in a hadith:  

  لا يَزني الزَّاني حينَ يَزني وهوَ مؤمنٌ An adulterer, at the time he is committing illegal sexual intercourse, is not a believer. ولا يَسرقُ السارقُ حينَ يسرقُ وهوَ مؤمنٌ A thief, at the time of stealing, is not a believer.  ولا يشربُ الخمرَ حينَ يشربُها وهوَ مؤمنٌ A drinker, at the time of drinking an alcoholic drink, is not a believer.

- It is clearly stated in the hadith above that the committer of sins is not a believer. There is no need to say anything else regarding the issue.

That is what they say. Let us explain the meaning of the hadith above and refute their statement.

 The Prophet (pbuh) states the following in a hadith:

 لا عَيْشَ إلاَّ عَيْشُ الآخِرَة There is no life other than life in the hereafter.

Is it understood from the hadith that there is no life in the world? Well, there is life in the world. If we understand the hadith like that, how can we explain the existence of life in the world? When the Prophet (pbuh) says, “There is no life other than life in the hereafter”, he does not deny life in the world; he denies the perfection of life in the world; he states that real and perfect life is in the hereafter. That is, when compared to life in the hereafter, life in the world is as if it does not exist. That is what the Prophet (pbuh) states. It is one thing to say that something is non-existent and it is another to reject its perfection.

Similarly, the meaning of the statement, “An adulterer, at the time he is committing illegal sexual intercourse, is not a believer” is “He is not a believer in its real sense. His belief is not perfect. He is not a real believer.” The Prophet (pbuh) does not deny the belief of the adulterer; he denies the perfection of his belief. It is one thing to accept belief as non-existent and it is another thing to deny the perfection of belief. What is in question here is to reject the perfection of belief.

Let us give another example:

 لاَ عِلْمَ إِلاَّ مَا نُفِعَ Knowledge (ilm) is nothing but what is benefited from.

Let us ask a question now: Is knowledge that we do not benefit from not ilm? That is ilm too but it is not perfect ilm. Knowledge is one thing and perfect knowledge is another. To reject the perfection of something does not mean to reject that thing itself.

Similarly, “A drinker, at the time of drinking an alcoholic drink, is not a believer” does not mean “that person is an unbeliever”. It means “He is not a believer in the perfect sense. His belief is not perfect. He is not a real believer.”

The Prophet’s statement, “He who does such and such a thing is not of me” means “He is not a real member of my ummah. If he were a real member of my ummah, he would not do it.” It does not mean that he is an unbeliever.

For example, the Prophet (pbuh) says, “He who sleeps on a full stomach while his neighbor is hungry is not one of us.” It does not mean, “Anyone who sleeps on a full stomach while his neighbor becomes an unbeliever.” It means “That person is not a real believer like us; his belief is not perfect.”

We can give more examples. We use similar expressions every day. For instance, when a doctor misdiagnoses, you say about that doctor, “He is not a doctor.” With that statement, you do not mean, “He does not have a medical diploma or he has not studied medicine.” You mean that person is not a good doctor.

You can say the same the same thing for any professional who makes a mistake. You even say, “He is not a man” for a man who deceives you. With that statement, you do not mean he is not a human being. You mean he is not a perfect man. Yes, he is a man but not a perfect man.  

Similarly, the Prophet’s statements for a believer, “he is not a believer; he is not one of us” mean “he is not a good believer; he is not a real believer like us”. It does not mean that he is an unbeliever. It is one thing to regard something as non-existent and it is another to regard its perfection as non-existent. What is regarded as non-existent in the hadiths in question is perfect (real) belief, not belief itself.  

We hope the issue has been understood. We end our work here.

Praise be to our Lord that He enabled us to complete another work related to belief. In fact, there are many more things to say regarding the issue but the details may bore you. We do not enter into details so as not to bore you; we regard what we have explained so far as sufficient.

May Allah not separate us from the service of belief! May He make this work atonement for my sins, the sins of those who contributed to this work and those who benefit from this work sincerely! May He make us His slaves and members of the ummah of His beloved Prophet! Amin.

Insistence on sins blackens the heart, which was created as the mirror of the truth. Sins settle in the heart, blacken it and harden it until they drive the light of belief away from the heart. There is a way leading to unbelief in every sin. If a sin is not eliminated by asking for forgiveness (repentance), it will lead the heart to bad deeds and will make it disobey Allah. 

If a sin is not transformed into practice from thought, man will not be punished for it. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) states the following regarding the issue: 

"Allah forgives my ummah for the evil deeds their souls may whisper or suggest to them as long as they do not act on it or speak." (Bukhari, VII, 59)

Sins are divided into two in terms of responsibility: major sins and minor sins.

Kabair (major sins): They are the sins that prevent people from knowing Allah and that necessitate religious penalties when they are committed or the sins that Allah threatens to punish with penalty in Hell. According to another view, anything forbidden by Allah is a major sin. The number of major sins were determined as seven, nine, seventy and two hundred based on hadith narrations. (Sharhu Aqidatit-Tahawiyya, p. 370, 371)

Main major sins are as follows: Associating partners with Allah, killing a person, slandering that someone has committed fornication, committing fornication, escaping from jihad, practicing magic, eating up the property of orphans, opposing one's parents, committing a sin in the haram part of Makkah, eating up interest, stealing, drinking alcohol, gambling.

If a Muslim commits a major sin without underestimating it and having belief in his heart, he does not exit the religion and he does not become an unbeliever. Ahl as-Sunnah holds the view that a Muslim who commits a major sin will not become an unbeliever, that he will not stay in Hell forever, that Allah will forgive him with His grace and generosity even if he dies without repenting and that He will punish him in Hell with His justice if He wishes. (Sharhu Aqidatit-Tahawiyya p. 370)

The biggest major sin is not to recognize Allah and to associate partners with Him in His essence, attributes and deeds. It is called the biggest major sin.  

"Allah forgiveth not that partners should be set up with Him; but He forgiveth anything else, to whom He pleaseth..." (an-Nisa, 4/48)

It is not permissible to continue acting rebelliously by giving up hope of Allah or not to repent without heeding one’s sins by feeling sure that Allah will not punish him. A believer must be between the state of fear and hope no matter how many sins he commits and he must not turn away from his Lord. 

"Say: "O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful." (az-Zumar, 39/53)

"And (tell My servants) that My Penalty will be indeed the most grievous Penalty." (al-Hijr, I5/50)

Mu'tazila claims that a person who commits a major sin will cease to be a believer and will remain between belief and unbelief (al-Manzila baynal-Manzilatayn) and that he will not exit Hell if he dies without repenting. Kharijites go further and accuse even the believers who commit minor sins of unbelief. Mu'tazila shows the following verse in the Quran as evidence:  

"If a man kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell, to abide therein (For ever)..." (an-Nisa, 4/93)

However, the word "khalidan" means both forever and for a long time in Arabic. That the word “khalidan” in this verse means for a long time is supported by the meaning of the verse mentioned above (az-Zumar, 39/53).

If a believer commits a sin or acts lazily to fulfill fards though he is a believer in his heart and says that he is a believer with his tongue and believes that he deserves to be punished, he is a sinful believer. Allah’s describing such a person as an unbeliever is metaphorical. That is, it is in the sense of denying boons / ingratitude. If a Muslim accepts a sin as halal or denies a fard that he does not fulfill, he becomes an unbeliever.  

It is a major sin not to decree based on Islamic principles. If the decrees of Islam are not applied with the belief that the age of Islam passed and that it is unnecessary in this age, it is unbelief. The issues of belief and unbelief and decreeing that a believer is an unbeliever were dealt with in separate books. Salim al Bahansawi's book called "al-Hukmu wa Qadiyyatu Takfiril-Muslim" is one of them.

Saghair (minor sins): They are the small sins that do not necessitate penalty in the world and in the hereafter. When a minor sin is committed continuously, it ceases to be a minor sin. When one repents and asks for forgiveness, it will be forgiven inshallah. Some scholars said, "Do not be interested in whether a sin is minor or major; be interested in against whom you commit it." Everything that prevents one from knowing Allah and worshipping him, and everything that becomes a barrier between Allah and His slave is a sin.

Avoiding sins precedes fulfilling fards. First, the heart is purified from sins; then, it is adorned with fulfilling fards. Sins and harams destroy and poison religious feelings. However, that poison looks like honey and tastes sweet but it kills man’s spiritual feelings. 

It should not be forgotten that every boon is in return for some difficulty. Those who want Paradise and jamalullah (seeing the beauty/face of Allah) have to put up with some hardships and difficulties and take refuge in Allah. Believers worship their Lord as if He sees them, with the consciousness of ihsan. They act knowing that there is an angel on their left shoulders, recording their sins. 

If man avoids sins as much as he can, Allah will forgive minor sins.

"If ye (but) eschew the most heinous of the things which ye are forbidden to do, We shall expel out of you all the evil in you, and admit you to a gate of great honour."(an-Nisa, 4/31),

"Those who avoid great sins and shameful deeds, only (falling into) small faults,- verily thy Lord is ample in forgiveness..."(an-Najm, 53/32)

Allah forgives the sins of His slaves due to some deeds they do and some words and prayers they say. The Prophet (pbuh) states the following:

"There is nobody in the world who will say, ‘La ilaha illallahu wallahu akbar, wala hawla wala quwwata illa billah’ (There is no god but Allah. Allah is the greatest. There is no might and power but that of Allah) and whose sins will not be forgiven even if they are as many as the foams in the sea." (Tirmidhi, Daawat, 58)

"There is no slave who will be not be forgiven if he commits a sin, makes wudu properly after that sin, performs a prayer of two rak'ahs and ask for forgiveness from Allah." (Ahmad b. Hanbal, I/10).

Prophets are infallible; they do not commit sins. However, there are some deeds called "zalla", which are regarded as mistakes for the rank of prophethood. Ahl as-Sunnah accepts intercession, reckoning, Scales (mizan), Sirat, hawd (Pool), Paradise, Hell, penalty in the grave and the questioning by munkar and nakir as true and principles of the religion.

The Results of Sins and Disobedience:

- To be deprived of ilm (knowledge): For, ilm is not given to sinners.

- Lack of sustenance: The sustenance of a sinner goes to harams. Allah's blessing and grant on him will cease.

- The heart and the spirit go bad: Their natural states go bad; they move away from repentance with insensitiveness, mercilessness and fearlessness. The inner world blackens, the heart rusts and the feeling of shame and good manners disappear.   

- To move away from people: A sinner who moves away from his soul, relatives and the community is bound to be alienated.

- Every sin leaves a stain: The result of the sins will bring about something bad in the body, mind and the other organs. Every sin leads to another sin.  

- Every sin is an inheritance from the bad non-Islamic nations in the past. Conceit is the inheritance from Pharaoh and homosexuality from the tribe of Lut (Lot).

- Sins and disobedience cause Allah's wrath to occur. Misfortunes and disasters will come. Sins harm the past, the present and the future generations.

- Sinners will be deprived of the repentance and asking for forgiveness of the angels on behalf of them and the intercession of the Prophet (pbuh). Sins weaken the belief of people.  

Some hadiths of the Prophet (pbuh) about sins:

"There are three kinds of zulm (wrongdoing/oppression): There is one zulm that Allah will not forgive, one that He will forgive and one that He will definitely call people to account for. The zulm that Allah will not forgive is shirk (polytheism). For, Allah states the following : "False worship is indeed the highest wrong-doing." (Luqman, 31/13) The zulm that Allah will forgive is the zulm slaves inflict upon their own souls. They are the mistakes they make in the affairs between their Lord and them.  The zulm that Allah will definitely call people to account for is the zulm people inflict upon one another. Allah will call them to account for it and punish them."

"Allah says, ‘O my slave! You did not worship Me but you hoped from Me. I forgave your sins. O my slave! If you come to Me with an earth load of sins, and meet Me associating nothing to Me, I will welcome you with an earth load of forgiveness.’"

"A misfortune and a small or big disaster that hit a person is because of his own sin. Allah forgives a lot of sins though."

"I swear by Allah in whose hand of power my soul is that no fatigue, nor disease, nor sorrow, nor sadness, nor hurt, nor distress befalls a Muslim, even if it were the prick he receives from a thorn, but that Allah expiates some of his sins for that."

"It is enough as a sin for a person to tell others whatever he hears."

"If anyone intercedes for his brother and he presents a gift to him for it and he accepts it, he approaches a great door of the doors of sins."

"No sinner will carry the burden of another."

"Allah will accept the repentance of any slave unless his soul reaches his throat."

"There is no Muslim who performs fard prayer, wudu, awe and ruku’ properly whose prayer will not atone for his sins before that prayer – unless he commits a major sin."

"If people see a bad deed and do not change it, Allah will soon send them a general penalty."

"O Allah! Do not destroy us because of the sins committed by others. Avoid seven destructing sins: associating partners with Allah, sorcery, murder, devouring the wealth of orphans, devouring interest, escaping from battle and slandering a chaste woman."

"If a person believes and performs fasting for Allah in Ramadan, his previous sins will be forgiven. Damned is the bribe-giver and the bribe-taker. Halal is certain and haram is certain. Leave what seems doubtful to you. When prostitution and fornication become rampant in a nation, Allah will send upon them such strange diseases that their own ancestors never heard of. Whenever a nation lessens weights and measures [ie. be deceitful in business transactions], Allah will punish them with oppression, famine and poverty. If the administrators of a nation do not decree based on the decrees Allah sent down, Allah will cause them to disintegrate. A slave is deprived of sustenance due to his disobedience and the sins he commits."

"Call yourself to account before you are called to account. If you knew what would happen to you, you would laugh less and cry more. If a bad deed you commit makes you sad, you are a believer. O Allah who transforms hearts! Make my heart steadfast to Your religion!" (Ibn Kathir, I, 508, 528; Bukhari, Libas, 24, Tibb, l, Sawm, 1-15, Ahkam, 9, Buyu', 2, 3; Muslim, Birr, 45 ff.; Iman,143, 144, 145, 153, 154, Muqaddima, 5; Abu Dawud Buyu, 82; Tirmidhi, Tafsir, 44; Daawat, 90, 99; Ibn Majah Ahkam, 2; Malik, Muwatta ; Hudud, 2,' Ahmad b. Hanbal, II, 164, 248; V, 154, 190, 194).

(Zübeyr TEKKEŞİN)

Both fornication and disrespect to parents are major sins; they are haram.

Besides, although disrespect to parents is a major sin, a Muslim who commits it does not become an unbeliever; he violates the rights of both parents and Allah. He should repent and win the hearts of his parents.

The verses mentioned in the question are as follows:

“Those who invoke not with Allah any other god nor slay such life as Allah has made sacred except for just cause not commit fornication and any that does this (not only) meets punishment, (But) the Penalty on the Day of Judgment will be doubled to him and he will dwell therein in ignominy - Unless he repents believes and works righteous deeds for Allah will change the evil of such persons into good and Allah is Oft-Forgiving Most Merciful.” (al-Furqan, 25/68-70)

It is stated in the verses and hadiths regarding the issue that the reward for good deeds will be doubled but that the penalty for bad deeds will not be doubled. (1)

In that case - as some commentators such as Zamakhshari and Razi state (2) - it is not meant in the verse that the penalty of a sin will be doubled when it is stated that the punishment of those who commit the sins mentioned in the verse will be “doubled” but it is meant that the penalties for crimes such as polytheism, murder and fornication will be added to one another.

Major sins are mentioned in the hadiths with terms such as “mubiqat (destructive deeds), kabair, a’zam adh-dhunub”.

In various hadith narrations,

- Associating partners with Allah,
- Murder,
- Disobeying parents,
- Devouring orphan’s property,
- Devouring interest (riba),
- Accusing honest women of unchastity,
- Practicing sorcery,
- Fleeing from war,
- Committing perjury
- Dying with so much debt that cannot be paid
are mentioned as primary major sins. (3)

The fact that some of the sins are understood as major sins is generally explained by the fact that those sins are deeds for which worldly or otherworldly punishment is foreseen for the person who commits them. (4)

Therefore, the main purpose of the texts that mention major sins is not to rank them according to their size, but to state that the sins in question necessitate severe penalties. Moreover, the situation of the person or group addressed sometimes affects the mentioning or ranking of the deeds that necessitate reward or punishment in the texts.

From this point of view, it is understood that the order of sins in different verses and hadiths will not show whether such a sin is bigger than another sin.

However, if it is necessary to make a classification in terms of being the biggest of the major sins, it can be said that the biggest sin after murder is fornication. (5)

References:

1) an-Nisa 4/40; al-Anam 6/160; ash-Shura 42/40; Bukhari, Tawhid 35; Muslim, Iman 203-209.
2) Zamakhshari, Razi; the interpretation of verse 69 of the chapter of al-Furqan.
3) Musnad, 2/201, 214; 4/392; 5/413; Muslim, Iman, 143-146.
4) see TDV İslam Ansiklopedisi Kebair item.
5) Ghazali, Ihya, IV, 20.

Why does Allah punish people in the hereafter, Would it not be more reasonable to punish in the world?

A judge must punish a person who commits a crime. If a person is not punished, the criminal will not come to his senses and repeats the crime, but on the Day of Judgment, the situation is different. When the veil of testing is removed for the person who commits a crime, he will not commit that crime again. Is punishment not imposed to people in order to get them to come to their senses and to realize justice?  One way or another, people will come to their senses on the Day of Judgment.

Then:

What is the point of punishing on the Day of Judgment? Will it be not justice only? If He had punished them in the world, not on the Day of Judgment, it would have been both fair and the punished person would have been wiser (he would not have done it again and the world would have been a better place).

Would it not have been more reasonable (God forbid) for Allah to punish that criminal while he was still in this world?

This world is a place of testing, and the reward for the deeds will be given in the Hereafter, and people will live an eternal life in Paradise or Hell.

The fact that Allah does not directly prevent evil in this world is because we are in the world of testing. This world is a test hall; both those who do wrong and those who do right are allowed. If there was an intervention for those who do wrong, the test room would have no meaning. If roses were thrown on the heads of those who did good deeds and thorns were thrown on the heads of those who sinned, this world would no longer be a test hall; everyone would have to pray and to cover themselves, whether they wanted to or not.

That is to say, it is a necessity of wisdom that there should be no punishment in the testing room that would force people to believe, worship and avoid sins by removing their will.

However, from time to time, the rewards or penalties of deeds are also given in this world.

For example, many tribes were destroyed and punished in this world for denying their prophets.

Almighty Allah tells us about the stories of the Prophets with their nations so that we can learn lessons.

Likewise, people who murder, steal, rob and commit adultery are punished in this world. Again, it is stated in hadiths that those who disobey parents and those who commit such acts will be punished while they are in the world.

The fact that sins cause remorse and uneasiness can also be described as advance punishments.

On the other hand, unbelief and shirk (worshipping any being other than Allah) are such great sins that their punishment does not fit into this mortal worldly life. So is the reward of faith.

In summary, it is both more logical and wiser not to impose a punishment that removes the will of man in this worldly life, which is a test hall, and to postpone the punishment to the Hereafter.

The duty of a doctor is not to fight or to be hostile to the patient but to fight the disease. The doctor must be hostile to the disease, not to the patient.

Similarly, people have spiritual illnesses. Instead of being hostile to the people who go beyond limits because of these diseases, we should be hostile to those attributes in them. We should try to free those ill people from germs such as unbelief and oppression.

The duty of the Muslim is to struggle against the diseases of people who are spiritually ill like that.

Even the prophets, who were protected by Allah with the attribute of innocence, made some minor mistakes called zallah, in other words, an involuntary mistake; there cannot be any conscious Muslim who can say, “I am not a sinner; I never commit sins.”

It is definitely very important to avoid sins, especially major sins, and to do one’s best to avoid them but sometimes we inevitably sin because we are human beings. Therefore, the door of repentance and asking for forgiveness is always open any moment as long as we are alive; every Muslim must repent heartily at least five times a day during obligatory prayer times.

- Thus, a Muslim will hope that Allah will accept his repentance and forgive him.

- In addition, he will become hostile to the sin, not the sinner, that is, not the sinning Muslim brothers he sees around by realizing that his own life is full of mistakes and sins; and he should warn his brother with soft words.

A Muslim should not be hostile to even unbelievers, let alone a sinful believer; he should be hostile to unbelief; it should not be forgotten that most of the Companions of the Prophet, who are probably the most virtuous people after prophets, were polytheists and unbelievers at first.  

Our present state is definitely important but what is more important is our state when we die; no one has any guarantee about it. May Allah not deviate anybody!

In history, there are so many people who were on the right path first but who were defeated by their souls and deviated from the right path like Qarun (Croesus); there are also so many people who found the right path and became models for Muslims after committing so many sins.

By the way, when we say we should not be hostile to sinners but to sins, we do not mean that the sinner should get away with what he has done; it is a social duty for us to make the sinner suffer the consequences of his sins in this world in accordance with the decrees determined by Allah. That is, we cannot say to a thief, "We are against theft, not you!" and release him. We will punish him but we will do our best to correct him and make him find the true path.

Everyone knows that the following saying of Mawlana Rumi has been misunderstood by some ignorant and malicious people: “Come, come, whoever you are; whether you are a sinner, unbeliever or fireworshipper…”

Mawlana calls everybody to his dervish lodge but he calls them so that they will improve; he calls a Christian to oneness, a drunkard to soberness by giving up drinking and a fireworshipper to Allah. He calls them to have a sincere belief, repent, ask for forgiveness and fulfill the tasks of worshipping fully.

Answer 1: Calling a sinful situation or behavior beautiful (good) does not make a person an unbeliever.

- There are two important mechanisms in humans:

One is belief, which stimulates sublime feelings, and the soul, heart, conscience and mind that regard the orders and prohibitions of Islam as beautiful and admire them.

The other is carnal desires that excite mean feelings and show denial and rebellion as good.

Some people are unbelievers and some are believers.

Some believers are sinners. They are people who live in a dilemma. On the one hand, common sense and conscience on the side of belief suggest obedience to Allah, and on the other hand, there are inferior feelings that advise man to disobey Allah and obey the evil-commanding soul.

Although man preserves his belief, he can be carried away by the desires of his soul. While the heart and conscience hate committing sins, the soul and mean feelings take pleasure from sins.

At this crossroads of thought, man’s free will comes into play. If the desires of the soul outweigh, the soul says, “You will attain salvation by repenting in the future; do not give up committing this or that sin and enjoying the pleasure for the time being!”

If the desires of the heart, common sense and conscience, which are the seat of belief, prevail, the person’s will chooses to keep away from sins.

So, the covering that protects a person’s belief is one thing and the mechanism that causes sins is another. Therefore, committing a major sin - even knowingly, lovingly, by regarding it as beautiful, or by liking it - does not make a person exit the religion as long as he does not deny it.

- The principle of the religion of Islam regarding the issue is this: “A person does not become an unbeliever due to any sin he commits as long as he does not call what is halal haram and what is haram halal.”

Answer 2:

- Something that pleases the soul is also beautiful in its sight. Undoubtedly, the concept of “beauty” here - as we have stated in our first answer - is not real, it is figurative; it is not scientific, it is sensual; it is not of belief, it is of devil. However, it is expressed with the concept of beautiful.

Moreover, there are hundreds of issues that are haram and hence ugly (bad) according to some Islamic scholars and halal and hence beautiful (good) according to others. Which of them do you push outside of religion?

- It is one thing to regard something as beautiful because one’s soul likes it - as a result of an innate feeling - and it is another thing to say that something that the religion of Islam forbids is beautiful - because it is haram. There is a great difference between them.

- Within the framework of our subject, whether everything is beautiful or ugly is considered from two perspectives.

First: The thing in question is beautiful or ugly due to its position.

Second: It is beautiful or ugly according to Islam.

According to the first option, there may be no harm in regarding something as beautiful from one perspective, even if it is haram, depending on the intention.

According to the second option, regarding something that Islam considers haram as beautiful has the risk of unbelief. It is possible for those two options to come together.

For example: A person may have a beautiful wife from the People of the Book. If that man regards his wife’s unbelief as beautiful and says, “This woman is very beautiful”, he exits the religion of Islam. However, if he says, “My wife is very beautiful,” not because of her religion, but because she is his beloved wife, it will not be the slightest sin.

Claiming otherwise means denying the verse of the Quran because the Quran allows marriage with a woman from the people of the book. Since it allows marriage, there is no obstacle for that husband, like every other husband, to love his wife, who is from the people of the book, to regard her as beautiful and to say, “She is very beautiful.” In other words, the Quran finds it appropriate for a husband to say “she is very beautiful” about his unbelieving wife.

- What is meant by the expressions in the sources in question is that a person who knowingly says “This is beautiful” out of spite though it is considered haram, that is, ugly, in Islam becomes an unbeliever. Otherwise, it cannot be said that a person who hears someone reciting the Quran with a melodious voice, likes his voice and says “You have recited it beautifully” without thinking about taghanni at all is an unbeliever.

- Now imagine that there are thousands of different views among madhhabs (sects). One might say halal for something and another might say haram for the same thing; one might say fard for something and another might say mubah (permissible) for the same thing. Since no scholar regards haram as beautiful, all parties regard their own view as beautiful and the other side’s view as ugly. In that case, there will remain no Muslims.

- Likewise, for example, according to Hanafis, wudu is not invalidated by touching a woman’s skin but according to Shafi’is, it is invalidated. Every scholar can regard his own opinion as right and good, and the opinion of the other party as bad. Can we doubt their belief?

We should first state that the believers who commit major sins do become unbelievers. However, as you also state, sins that are ignored may cause the heart to harden and the light of belief to exit.  

“Sin, penetrating to the heart, will blacken and darken it until it extinguishes the light of belief. Within each sin is a path leading to unbelief. Unless that sin is swiftly obliterated by seeking God’s pardon, it will grow from a worm into a snake that gnaws on the heart.

For example, a man who secretly commits a shameful sin will fear the disgrace that results if others become aware of it. Thus, the existence of angels and spirit beings will be hard for him to endure, and he will long to deny it, even on the strength of the slightest indication.” (Lem'alar, 9)

Similarly, the desire to deny Hell and even Allah can appear in a person due to the sins that he constantly commits. He can dare to deny with a slight sign.

“By no means! But on their hearts is the stain of the (ill) which they do.” (al-Mutaffifin, 83/14) As it is stated in the verse above, the stain on the heart caused by sins will harden so much that it will be impossible to clean them - unless the heart is cleaned by repentance and seeking forgiveness. (see ibid)

Thus, it becomes impossible for the realities of belief to give light into the heart and it also becomes impossible to extract the dirt caused by sins. After that, a way leading to unbelief will have been opened through sins.

- The hearts of unbelievers are sealed; similarly, the hearts of the believers who continue committing sins can be sealed. However, the hearts are sealed as a result of people’s preferring unbelief and disobedience to Allah by using their free will.

“(They have incurred divine displeasure): In that they broke their covenant; that they rejected the signs of Allah; that they slew the Messengers in defiance of right; that they said, "Our hearts are the wrappings (which preserve Allah´s Word; We need no more)";- Nay, Allah hath set the seal on their hearts for their blasphemy, and little is it they believe.” (an-Nisa, 4/155) The reason why the hearts of the deniers are sealed is stated clearly in the verse above.

- “When a slave commits sin, a black spot appears on his heart. If he repents, gives up that sin and seeks forgiveness, his heart will be polished. However, if the sin increases, the black spot increases and starts to cover the whole heart in parallel with the sins that are committed. This issue is indicated in the following verse of the Quran: “By no means! But on their hearts is the stain of the (ill) which they do.” (al-Mutaffifin, 83/14)” (see Muslim, Iman, 231; Tirmidhi, Tafsir, 75)

It is indicated in the hadith above that the way that leads believers to unbelief is insistence on sins.

- The Prophet (pbuh) states the following in another hadith:

“People must cease to neglect the Friday prayer or Allah will seal their hearts and then they will be among the negligent.” (Muslim, Jumua 40)

What is meant by “the negligent” in the hadith is that they fall into negligence/heedlessness so much that they cannot discriminate between the truth and the wrong. They will confuse the way of belief and unbelief. (see Subulus-Salam, 2/45)

However, the door of repentance is always open before death. We must not despair of the mercy of Allah. If a person repents and acts in accordance with his repentance, Allah will forgive his sins:

"O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful." (az-Zumar, 39/53)

There are hadiths stating that anyone who has belief in his heart and dies with this belief will eventually enter heaven, even if he enters Hell before. (Bukhari, Tawhid 19, 31, 36, 37; Muslim, Iman 322, 334; Muwatta, 1/212)

The first condition for entering heaven is to have belief in Allah (swt). Even if a believer is a sinner, after serving his punishment, he/she will go to heaven in the end. All kinds of troubles, diseases and calamities that happen to a person are a reason for the reduction of his sins.

Those who are stated to stay in Hell forever in the verses are unbelievers. However, it is known that those who lack good deeds will also be punished.

The meaning of the related verses is as follows:

“Those to whom We gave the Scripture recognize him to be a true prophet as they recognize their own children. Those who have ruined themselves will never believe. Who does more wrong than those who fabricate lies against Allah or deny His signs? Indeed, the wrongdoers will never succeed.” (Surah al-An’am, 6/20-21)

Zamakhshari and many other tafsir scholars stated in the verse that it was the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) who was expressed as familiar to Jews and Christians, and some said it was the Quran. (Zamakhshari, Shawkani, Ibn Ashur, Elmalılı interpretation of the relevant verse)

In fact, it can be said that both meanings are meant in the verse.

Although Allah (swt) explicitly states the belief of tawhid (oneness) in the Qur'an, arguing that He made idols partners with Him, who is more unjust than the People of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) who claim in their books that Allah does not give information about the Qur'an and Muhammad (pbuh).

It is said that the following meaning can also be deduced from the verse:

Let us assume that the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) had fabricated some words and attributed them to Allah, as the polytheists claim; would he not have been the worst of the wrongdoers and the unjust people? However, since he is a person known for his respect and honesty towards Allah, what he reports is definitely the word of Allah.

As for the topic in the question:

The word muflih, which is derived from falah and means "attaining salvation and eternal bliss", is used in the Qur'an as "muflihun", in its plural form, as an expression of praise only for believers.

In the terminology of the Qur'an, the word "falah" generally refers to getting out of Hell and entering Paradise in the hereafter and obtaining the approval of Allah, (al-Mu'minun 23/1; al-Mujadila 58/22)

- to those who spend their life by believing in the unseen and performing prayers, sharing the blessings bestowed upon them with others, believing in the books given to the prophets and the day of judgement. (al-Baqarah 2/2-5),
- those who call others to goodness, encourage what is good, and forbid what is evil
- to those who do not consume interest (Aal-i Imran 3/104, 130),
- for those who stay away from evil traps like alcohol, gambling, shirk (polytheism), and fortune-telling (al-Ma’idah 5/90),
- those who avoid from cruelty and injustice (al-An’am 6/21, 135; Yusuf 12/23),
- to those who strive (jihad) in the way of Allah with their wealth and lives (at-Tawbah 9/88),
- for those who fulfill their duty of servitude to Allah and do good deeds (al-Hajj 22/77),
- and those who perform their prayers in khushu (awe) and constantly, avoid empty words and do not engage in useless deeds, protect their chastity and honour, observe the trust and fulfill the covenant (al-Mu’minun 23/1-10),
- believing women and men who try to act in accordance with Allah's orders and repent for their sins (an-Nur 24/31),
- those who cleansed themselves of spiritual evils such as Kufr (unbelief) and sin (al-A’la 87/14; ash-Shams 91/9)

In hadiths, falah is generally defined as

- to attain Allah's forgiveness and affection, to obtain His consent (Musnad, 1/257; 3/127);
- Believing in Allah’s oneness and avoiding shirk (Musnad, 3/492; 4/341),
- Following the Prophet Muhammad's (pbuh) way (Musnad, 2/188)
- and who can stay away from fitnah (mischief) (Musnad, 2/441)
It is stated in the hadiths that believers described above can attain salvation under these conditions.

In addition to having a sincere belief, Islam also attaches importance to the realization of every good and useful work that is believed, it recognizes that the bliss of the world and the hereafter depends on the harmony of belief and righteous deeds (amal salih).

The aim of religion and being religious is to ensure the peace of individual and community life and to attain the happiness of eternal life by applying the practices offered by the religion regarding forms of worship, ethical rules and inter-human relations together with a sincere belief.

However, it is expected that sincere believers will complete their shortcomings in the field of religious practices over time since it is almost impossible to attain perfection and all virtues.

The believers who pass on to the hereafter without completing them will obtain eternal bliss either after receiving divine forgiveness or after being punished for a while.

The word “la’nah (curse/damnation)” mentioned in the Quranic verses and hadiths means “deprivation of goodness and guidance in this world and grace and mercy in the hereafter” for non-Muslims. (Lisanul-Arab, “la’n” item; Kāmus Tercümesi, IV, 750-752)

However, it is stated that if the word “la’nah” is used for believers, it will have a metaphorical meaning as “Allah removing that person from the ranks of good and righteous people and punishing him according to the sin he has committed”. (Tahanawi, Kashshaf, 2/1309; Badruddin al-Ayni, Umdatul-Qari, 8/417)

Ibn Mas’ud (radiyallahu anh) narrates:

“The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) cursed the one who accepts interest (riba) and the one who gives it.” [Muslim, Musaqah 25, (1579); Abu Dawud, Buyu’ 4, (3333); Tirmidhi, Buyu 2, (1206); Ibn Majah, Tijarat 58, (2277)]

The following addition exists in the narrations of Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi: “…the ones who act as witnesses (to the transaction of interest) and who write it...”

“Mischief (fitnah) is asleep. May Allah curse the person who awakens it!”

Abu Hurayra (radiyallahu anh) narrates: “The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:

“May Allah curse the thief who steals an egg and whose hand is cut off, and the thief who steals a rope and whose hand is cut off.”

A’mash states the following: “They are of the opinion that the egg mentioned in the hadith is a lump of iron, and that some ropes are worth three or more dirhams.” [Bukhari, Hudud 13, 7; Muslim, Hudud 7, (1687); Nasai, Sariq 1, (7, 65)

EXPLANATION:

It is likely that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) meant the minimum amount of nisab that causes the hand to be cut off with the words “egg” and “rope”. In other words, a person who gets used to stealing with worthless things such as rope and eggs may lose his hand because of his habit of stealing those worthless things. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) reminds us of this situation and warns us not to fall into these seemingly unimportant habits at the very beginning.

As for the thief being cursed by Allah, it is not a curse that is made by mentioning a specific person; it is general. Although it is not permissible to curse a specific person, this hadith shows that it is permissible to curse in general. Some scholars state that it is permissible to curse the offender before the hadd penalty is executed, but not after the hadd, because the hadd will be atonement for the sin committed; however, some scholars object to it too.

Abu Hurayra (radiyallahu anh) narrates: “The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:

“May Allah curse the one who wears false hair and the one who has it worn, and the one who tattoos the body and the one who gets tattooed!” [Bukhari, Libas 86, Tibb 36; Muslim, Libas 119, (2124); Nasai, Ziynah 25, (8, 148)]

Ibn Abbas (radiyallahu anhuma) said:

“Cursed is he who wears false hair, and he who has it worn, and he who thins the eyebrows, and he who has the eyebrows thinned, and he who tattoos, and he who gets tattooed.” [Abu Dawud, Tarajjul 5, (4170)]

Anas (radiyallahu anh) narrates: “The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) cursed ten people with regard to khamr (wine):

“The one who presses it (to make wine from its raw material) and the one who has it pressed, the one who drinks it and the one who serves it, the one who carries it (from the factory or warehouse, from the wholesaler to the retailer or the consumer) and the one who has it carried, the one who sells it and the one who buys it, the one who donates it, and the one who spends the money of it.” [Tirmidhi, Buyu’ 59, (1295); Ibn Majah, Ashriba 6, (3381)

Khufaf Ibn Ima al-Ghifari (radiyallahu anh) narrates: “The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) made ruku’ and then raised his head and said,

“May Allah forgive the tribe of Ghifar, may Allah grant peace to the tribe of Aslam! Usayya rebelled against Allah and His Messenger. O Allah, curse the Sons of Lihyan. And curse Ri’l and Zakwan’ and then he prostrated.” [Muslim, Masājid 308, (679)]

The following is stated in another narration:

“If a man calls his wife to bed and she does not come, and he is angry until the morning, the angels will curse her until the morning, in one narration until she comes to bed.” [(Bukhari, Nikah 85, Bad’ul-Khalq 6; Muslim, Nikqh 120-122 (1436); Abu Dawud, Nikah 41, (2141)]

The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) says:

“He cursed men who became like women and women who became like men.” (Bukhari, Libas 62)

“He cursed men who tried to resemble women and women who tried to resemble men.” (Bukhari, Libas 61) 

“He cursed the man who dressed like a woman and the woman who dressed like a man.” (Abu Dawud, Libas 28)

A man asked Ali (ra), “What is the secret that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) entrusted to you?”

Ali (ra) got angry and said:

“The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) did not tell me any secret that he hid from the people. However, he told me four things!”

When the man said: “What are they? Can you tell me?”, Ali (ra) said:

“May Allah curse the one who slaughters in the name of anyone but Allah! May Allah curse the one who curses his parents! May Allah curse the one who patronizes a person of bid’ah! May Allah curse the one who changes the boundary stones of a field!” [Muslim, Adahi 43, (1978); Nasai, Dahaya 34, (7, 232)]

Rezin adds the following, reporting from Ibn Abbas:

“He who prevents a blind person from walking on the road is cursed. He who rapes an animal is cursed. He who practices sodomy is cursed.”

Ali (radiyallahu anh) narrates:

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) cursed the one who accepts interest, the one who gives it, the one who writes the contract of interest, the one who prevents zakah, the one who tattoos, the one who gets tattooed, the one who has forged, the one who practices hulla marraige, and the one who has hulla marriage done, except when it is due to illness.” [Nasai, Ziynah 25, (8, 147)]

(Prof. Dr. İbrahim Canan, Kütüb-i Sitte) 

1. Hadd penalties applied on people are laws imposed by Allah. Thus, when hadd penalties are applied, the orders of Allah are fulfilled.  

2. A hadd penalty applied on a person becomes an atonement for his sins. The Prophet (pbuh) said,

"Woe be upon you! Go back, ask forgiveness of Allah and turn to Him in repentance." Maiz returned without going away much and said, "O Messenger of Allah! Purify me!" The Prophet sent him away uttering the same words three times. When it was the fourth time, the Prophet said, "From what am I to purify you?" Maiz said, "From fornication!" The Prophet (pbuh) asked, "Does he have any mental illnesses?" They said he did not have any such illness. He asked, "Has he drunk wine?" A person stood up and smelt his breath but noticed no smell of wine. The Prophet (pbuh) asked again, “Have you committed fornication?” He said, “Yes.” He made pronouncement about Maiz and he was stoned to death.

After he was stoned to death, the Companions were divided into two groups about him. Some of them said Maiz had been destroyed while others said he had made the best repentance. This disagreement lasted for three days. Then, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) came and said, “Pray for Maiz b. Malik. May Allah forgive Maiz b. Malik.” Then, the Prophet (pbuh) said, “Maiz made such a repentance that if that were to be divided among a people, it would be enough for all of them.” (Muslim, Hudud, 22; ash-Shawkani, Naylul-Awvtar, VII, 95,109; az-Zaylai, Nasbur-Raya, III, 314 ff)

3. Tazir penalties are applied for the haram deeds other than those for which hadd penalties are applied. For instance, a person who tells lies is not accepted as a witness; a person who does not perform prayers is imprisoned.

4. Some sins are not punished in this world but the doers of those sins will be punished in the hereafter if they do not repent. 

HADD PENALTIES

As a verb, hadd means to demarcate, to whet, to stare, to separate and to apply. As a noun, it means boundary, end, blade, definition and religious penalty. The plural form of hadd is hudud. As a legal term, hadds means Islamic criteria and the religious penalties whose boundaries of halal-haram, amounts and qualities imposed by the religion of Islam.

There are criteria showing whether the deeds responsible people (sane people who have reached the age of puberty) do are in accordance with the consent of Allah and His Messenger.

The criteria showing the value decree of the deeds responsible people do are as follows: Fard, wajib, sunnah, mustahab, halal, mubah, makruh, haram, sahih, fasid and batil. Every deed that a responsible person does is evaluated based on those criteria showing the religious boundaries. Consequently, he is punished or rewarded based on them; what he has done becomes either valid (sahih) or invalid (fasid, batil).

The general meaning of religious hadds is the criteria of halal-haram imposed by Allah. The following is stated after the decrees related to inheritance are explained in verse 12 of the chapter of an-Nisa: "Those are limits set by Allah: those who obey Allah and His Messenger will be admitted to Gardens with rivers flowing beneath, to abide therein (for ever) and that will be the supreme achievement. But those who disobey Allah and His Messenger and transgress His limits will be admitted to a Fire, to abide therein: And they shall have a humiliating punishment." (an-Nisa, 4/ 13, 14) In the verse, Allah's orders are expressed as ‘His limits’ and it is stated that those who transgress those limits will be punished.

Those who obey Allah’s orders and do not transgress those limits are happy people to whom Paradise is promised. Allah made a deal with them and purchased their lives and goods in return for Paradise. (at-Tawba, 9/111) "Those that turn (to Allah) in repentance; that serve Him, and praise Him; that wander in devotion to the cause of Allah,: that bow down and prostrate themselves in prayer; that enjoin good and forbid evil; and observe the limit set by Allah;- (These do rejoice). So proclaim the glad tidings to the Believers." (at-Tawba, 9/ 112)

Allah's limits of prohibitions are the deeds that He rendered haram. The deeds Allah rendered haram are divided into two as major and minor sins. (see an-Najm, 53/32; al-Kahf, 18/49)

There is no definite figure about the number of the major sins. A. Ziyaeddin Gümüşhânevî (d. 1311/ 1893) states in his book that the most appropriate number is 125 and explains them in his book one by one. (see Gafillerin Kurtuluş yolu. Translated by Ali Kemal Saran, İkbal Yayınları, Ankara, (no date))

The deeds that Allah rendered haram are expressed as "Allah's hima (wood)" in a hadith: "Both legal and illegal things are evident but in between them there are doubtful (suspicious) things and most of the people have no knowledge about them. So whoever saves himself from these suspicious things saves his religion and his honor. And whoever indulges in these suspicious things is like a shepherd who grazes (his animals) near the Hima (private pasture) of someone else and at any moment he is liable to get in it. (O people!) Beware! Every king has a Hima and the Hima of Allah on the earth is His illegal (forbidden) things. Beware! There is a piece of flesh in the body if it becomes good (reformed) the whole body becomes good but if it gets spoilt the whole body gets spoilt and that is the heart." (Riyadus-Salihin, 419, 420, M. Emre Translation)

As a term of Islamic penal code (Uqubat), hadds are "penalties imposed by Islam related to certain crimes". There are five crimes that necessitate had penalties: fornication, theft, drinking alcohol, accusing a chaste woman of fornication (slandering), waylaying (highway robbery).

In Islamic penal law, hadds are regarded as rights of Allah. That is, the crimes that necessitate hadd (penalty determined by Islam) are regarded as violation of the rights of the public. Qisas (retaliation) involves the rights of individuals; therefore, it is not called hadd. The penalties that were not determined by the Quran and the Sunnah and that are left to the judge are called tazir penalties: imprisonment, display, banishment, etc. (az-Zuhayli, al-Fiqhul-Islam wa Adillatuh, 2^nd impression, Damascus 1405/1985, IV, 284 ff)

The hadd penalties except drinking alcohol were determined in the Quran; the hadd penalty for  drinking alcohol was determined in the Sunnah.

1. Hadd penalty for fornication (hadd for zina): It is stoning to death for a married man and woman, and flogging one hundred times for an unmarried man and woman: " The woman and the man guilty of adultery or fornication,- flog each of them with a hundred stripes: Let not compassion move you in their case, in a matter prescribed by Allah, if ye believe in Allah and the Last Day: and let a party of the Believers witness their punishment." (an-Nur, 24/2)

The penalty of stoning to death was determined by the practice of the Prophet: "A woman from Juhayna who had become pregnant because of fornication came to the Messenger of Allah and said, ‘O Messenger of Allah! I have done something that necessitates had penalty. Apply it on me.’ The Prophet (pbuh) summoned the woman’s guardian and said to him, ‘Treat her well! When she gives birth, bring her to me.’ He acted accordingly. Her clothes were tied around her and the Prophet commanded; she was stoned to death. Then, he performed janazah prayer for her. Thereupon Hz. Umar said, ‘O Messenger of Allah! You performed janazah prayer for her though she had committed fornication.’ The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said, ‘She made such a repentance that if it were to be divided among seventy men of Madinah, it would be enough. Can you find any repentance better than this? She sacrificed her life for Allah.’” (Muslim Hudud 28; Ibn Majah, Diyat, 36' Malik, Muslim, Muwatta" Hudud, 11)

It is necessary for four just male witnesses to witness clearly in the presence of the judge for the penalty of fornication to be applied and it is necessary for the person who committed fornication to know that it is haram.

2. Hadd penalty for theft (hadd for sirqah):

If a person who is sane and has reached the age of puberty steals something amounting nisab from a place, it is called theft. Its penalty is stated in the Quran: "As to the thief, male or female, cut off his or her hands: a punishment by way of example, from Allah, for their crime: and Allah is Exalted in power." (al-Maida, 5/38)

It is necessary for two just witnesses to witness for the penalty of cutting off the hand and for the judge to decide definitely that the crime was committed. The judge asks the witnesses about the following one by one:

The nature of theft, the type of the thing stolen, its value, how it was stolen, when it was stolen and who stole it.

The nisab for theft (the minimum amount necessitating the penalty of cutting off the hand) is ten dirhams according to Hanafi madhhab. The value of dirham at the time when the penalty is applied is taken into consideration. (see al-Qasani, Badayius-Sanayi', VI, 67; Ibnul-Humam, Fathul-Qadir; IV, 220, 230; Nasai, Sariq, 10; Zaylai, Nasbuur-Raya, III, 359, 360).

We can quote the following hadith as an example of the application of the penalty of cutting off the hand and showing that nobody can be accepted as an intercessor for this penalty, which was ordered by Allah: “The people of Quraysh became worried about the state of a lady from Sons of Makhzum who had committed theft. They said, ‘Who will intercede for her with the Messenger of Allah?’ Some said, ‘No one dares to do so except Usama bin Zayd, the beloved one to the Messenger of Allah.’ Usama spoke about that to the Messenger of Allah. Thereupon, the Messenger of Allah said, ‘Do you try to intercede for somebody in a case connected with Allah’s prescribed penalties?’ Then, he got up and delivered a sermon saying, ‘What destroyed the nations preceding you was that if a noble amongst them stole, they would forgive him, and if a poor person amongst them stole, they would inflict legal punishment on him. By Allah, if the daughter of Muhammad stole, I would cut off her hand.’” (ash- Shawkani, Naylul-Awtar, VII,' 131, 136)

3. Hadd penalty for drinking alcohol (hadd for shurb): It is definitely forbidden to drink alcohol by verse 90 of the chapter of al-Maida. However, its penalty was determined by the Sunnah and practice of the Prophet. The Prophet and Hz. Abu Bakr had the person who drank alcohol flogged 40 times. When those who drank alcohol increased during the caliphate of Hz. Umar, he consulted his friends and decided to increase the minimum amount of hadd to flogging 80 times. (see Darimi, Hudud,10; A. b. Hanbal, IV, 389)

It is necessary for the person who drinks to be sane, to have reached the age of puberty, to become a Muslim and to be able to speak for the penalty of drinking alcohol to be applied. This punishment is applied on a person who is caught as drunk and who is proved to have drunk by witnesses.

"A man who drank wine was brought to the Messenger of Allah. The Messenger of Allah, 'Beat him!’ Abu Hurayra said, "So some of us beat him with our hands, and some with their shoes, and some with their garments. After beating, some of us said to him, 'May Allah disgrace you!' The Prophet said, 'Do not say so; for, you are helping Satan to overpower him.’" (Bukhari, Hudud, 4; Muslim, Hudud, 35; Abu Dawud, 35, 36; Tirmidhi, Hudud, 14, 15)

4. Hadd penalty for slandering that one has committed fornication (hadd for qazf): The penalty for those who accuse chaste women of fornication is stated in the chapter of an-Nur: "And those who launch a charge against chaste women, and produce not four witnesses (to support their allegations),- flog them with eighty stripes; and reject their evidence ever after: for such men are wicked transgressors." (an-Nur, 24/4)

Accusing a chaste man of fornication is also punished by being flogged eighty times. The conditions for being chaste are as follows:

To be a free person; to be sane; to have reached the age of puberty; to be chaste.

5. Penalty for waylaying (highway robbery). To stop people on the way, to prevent them from passing and to rob them. Waylaying can be committed by one person or a group, with or without weapons, in an inhabited place or in the country, in the city or outside the city. The crime is regarded to have been committed in all of the states mentioned above. The penalty mentioned in the following verse can be applied: " The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger, and strive with might and main for mischief through the land is: execution, or crucifixion, or the cutting off of hands and feet from opposite sides, or exile from the land: that is their disgrace in this world, and a heavy punishment is theirs in the Hereafter; Except for those who repent before they fall into your power: in that case, know that Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful." (al-Maida, 5/33, 34)

 According to the verse above and the decrees deduced from it by Islamic fiqh scholars, the penalty for a person who waylays was determined as follows:

a) If a person robs and kills, he is executed and hanged to serve as an example.

b) If a person kills another person but does not take part in the robbery, he is executed but not hanged.

c) If a person robs but does not kill, his hands and feet are cut off from opposite sides.

d) Those who cause fear and terror on the way without killing and robbing are punished by being banished. According to Malikis, if a person robs but does not kill, the president has the choice of killing him, hanging him, cutting off his hands and feet from opposite sides or banishing him. (Ibn Taymiyya as-Siyasatush-Shar'iyya, Egypt 1951, p. 82, 83; Ibn Qudama, al-Mughni,1367, no place of publication VIII, 228)

It is stated in many hadiths that it is necessary to act meticulously and not to make any concessions about the application of those penalties. It is mentioned in the verse above that compassion should not be shown regarding the issue.

Some hadiths related to applying had penalties: 

"Apply Allah's penalties of hadd when you are near and far away. Do not allow the criticism of any criticizer to prevent you from applying Allah's penalties. "

"The example of the person abiding by Allah's order and restrictions in comparison to those who violate them is like the example of those people who drew lots for their seats in a boat. Some of them got seats in the upper part, and the others in the lower. When the latter needed water, they had to go up to bring water; so, they said, 'Let us make a hole in our share of the ship and get water so that we will not trouble the upper deck passengers.' If the people in the upper part allowed the lower deck passengers to do what they had suggested, all the people of the ship would be destroyed; but if they prevented them, all of them would be safe." (at-Targhib wat-Tarhib, 4/25, 27).

There are some issues that should not be ignored related to the application of the religious hadd penalties. First of all, hadd penalties are applied in an Islamic state that operates with all of its institutions and boards and based on the decision of the judge. It is necessary to eliminate all of the elements that could lead people to crime, to give people Islamic education and it is necessary for the state to meet the material and spiritual needs of the individuals.

In the past, hadd penalties were rarely applied due to the failure in eliminating all of the ways leading to crime, the suspect benefitting from doubts, lack of full occurrence of the conditions necessary for the crime to be definite, etc. It is also necessary to add the negligence, weakness, laziness and indifference of the administrators related to the application of penalties.

The following is stated in a hadith: "Do not apply hadd penalties if there are doubts." (Abu Dawud, Salah, 14; Tirmidhi, Hudud, 2) It is an important principle in Islamic penal code. The hands of people who stole were not cut off in a year of famine with the practice of Hz. Umar acting upon this principle. This penalty was not applied on a person who stole from his master or relative due to the doubt that he might have some rights on their wealth. The following examples are related to that principle:

- If four people bear testimony that a person committed fornication but if two of them bear testimony unwillingly, hadd penalty is not applied on any of them: the woman, the man and the witnesses.  

- If one of the witnesses withdraws his testimony while a criminal is being flogged, the remaining stripes are not applied. 

- If somebody says one person drank alcohol and if somebody else says the same person said that he drank alcohol, the hadd penalty for drinking alcohol is not applied.

- If a person admits that he stole first but withdraws his statement later and admits again that he stole some of the alleged goods, the hadd penalty is not applied. (For detailed information, see Cevat Akşit, İslâm Ceza Hukuku ve İnsanî Esasları, İst. 1987, 2^nd impression)

Halit ÜNAL

A person's having such kinds of hobbies are beneficial for the health of the soul and the body.

It is permissible to take up hobbies moderately and spend money on them unless a hobby which is forbidden by religion is taken up and unless worship is neglected worships in pursuit of a hobby.

Being moderate changes according to the person’s financial situation and specific and general needs.

Since it is possible for people to distinguish between good and evil, right and wrong after they reach puberty, our Lord will not call us to account for the childhood period of our worldly life on the Day of Judgment, but He will call us to account for our obligations of worship, such as prayer and fasting, starting from the age of puberty; so, our religious obligations begin after the age of puberty.

However, the time of puberty is not precise as a date. Starting from the age of twelve for boys and nine for girls, the feeling of puberty can occur in any month and day until they reach the age of fifteen.

From the day of the onset of this human and sexual sensation, which manifests itself as ejaculation and wet dreams in boys and menses in girls, each of the obligations is recorded separately in the book of deeds as either “fulfilled” or “did not fulfill”.

It is not appropriate for a person to narrate his sins in the past. For, he makes other people witnesses for his sins by doing so. If he wants to narrate them so that others will take lessons, he should narrate them without mentioning that he did them; for instance, he can say, "Once, something like that happened…"

Our religion orders a person to hide his mistakes and others’ mistakes. Man is a being that Allah created in a perfect form but he can sometimes commit deeds that are regarded as mistakes and sins deliberately or by mistake.  

It is normal for almost everybody to do things like that. Besides, the Prophet (pbuh) attracted attention to this issue by saying,

“Everybody makes mistakes; the best one among those who make mistakes is the one that corrects his mistake.” (1)

In Islam, people are ordered to hide such negative deeds, not to seek and display them. Hz. Prophet (pbuh) said,

“If a slave hides the mistake of another slave in this world, Allah will hide his mistake on the Day of Judgment.” (2)

On that great day, when everybody will flee from his mother, father, relatives and friends (3) and when everything will be made clear (4), everybody may have some mistakes and sins that he does not want to be displayed. If we want our sins and mistakes to be hidden on that day, we should act with the consciousness that we should help those who want their sins to be hidden. We should never forget that we would obtain something in the hereafter, along with the worldly and ethical aspects of our attitudes. We should not forget that we would need those thawabs so much that it is impossible to express now. It is a fact that we can win that day today and lose it today. We should think that the more we hid others’ sins, the more our sins would be hidden on that day. We should not forget that it is a virtue to cover sins, not to reveal them according to the holy values we believe.

The religion of Islam prohibits people from seeking the sins and mistakes of others and from revealing their secret states and privacy. On the contrary, our religion regards it an ethical virtue to cover others’ sins and mistakes. However, those sins and mistakes are the ones that are not related to the violation of others’ rights, that do not contain oppression and injustice and that will not be useful to anyone when they are revealed. It is not religiously permissible for a person who knows such sins to hide them. For, if such sins and mistakes are concealed, others will suffer. Our religion advises us to consider our religion’s principles of mercy and dignity of man when the sanctions are applied to the people who commit sins and violate rules. 

Footnotes:

1. Tirmidhi, Sifatul-Qiyamah, 49.
2. Muslim, Birr, 72. See also Bukhari, Mazalim, 3; Abu Dawud, Adab, 38.
3. Abasa, 34-36.
4. al-Mu’min, 16.

If there is a curvature, excess, abnormality, etc. in organs such as eyebrows, moustache, beard, nose and ears that disturbs the owner and causes psychological distress, it is permissible to trim or remove them.

Operations and applications made to normalize an abnormal organ, to prevent a normal organ from deformation, to cure an organ that has been harmed, to eliminate something that troubles man physically or spiritually, etc. are not included in the scope of damned changes and are permissible.