The Qur'an prohibits sexual immorality in all forms. This article presents a detailed analysis of the prohibition, the proofs required to obtain conviction, and the subsequent punishments.
Throughout this article, the following Arabic terms are used to maintain legal precision:
- Faahishah: The general, comprehensive term for shameful, indecent, or immoral conduct (e.g., unlawful relationships, sexual misconduct that does not involve penetration, homosexual behaviour, etc).
- Zina: The specific term for the act of unlawful sexual penetration (adultery/fornication involving both heterosexual and homosexual acts). Every act of zina is a faahishah, but not every faahishah is zina.
This establishes two very distinct but active penalties dependant on the crime.
Prohibition of faahishah
The Qur'an is filled with prohibitions on faahishah. There are no distinction made in unlawful relationships on whether it is between heterosexuals or homosexuals. If the relationship is not under the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman, that relationship regardless of orientation will fall under faahishah and will always be forbidden.
The Qur'an categorically states that Allah "...prohibits faahishah..." (16:90).
The Qur'an instructs Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) to declare "...my Lord has made forbidden faahishah; what is public
of it and private..." (7:33).
The Qur'an warns the believers to "...not come near zina, for it is faahishah and an evil path" (17:32). The wording 'near zina' shows the command is not only to avoid the act itself but also to stay away from any faahishah which may lead towards it. Zina is described as immoral and further described as an evil path and following it will lead to corruption of both the individual and society.
The Qur'an also ties the complete avoidance of zina directly to one of the conditions of faith. For a person to be a believer, alongside not setting up "...anything besides Allah..." (60:12), they must also commit to not "...commit zina..." (60:12). This shows that abstaining from zina is a fundamental requirement of faith itself.
As for people engaging in homosexual behaviour, Lot asks his people "...why do you commit faahishah..." (27:54) or says "...you commit a faahishah..." (29:28).
We discuss the prohibition on homosexuality in detail here.
Work of satan
Faahishah is one of the works of satan. The Qur'an makes this clear when it says that satan "...only orders you to evil and faahishah..." (2:169) or "the devil promises you poverty and orders you to faahishah..." (2:268). The Qur'an forbids the believers to "...follow the footsteps of the devil..." (24:21) and those that do "...should know that he
advocates faahishah..." (24:21).
The Qur'an makes it clear that faahishah can never be justified as demonstrated when the Qur'an instructs Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) to declare that "...Allah does not order faahishah..." (7:28).
While society is tasked with enforcing these strict boundaries against corruption, the door to divine mercy remains open for all who turn back to Allah with sincerity. However, all convictions rely due process where the faahishah/zina was established as 'evident' and 'clear' and not based on rumours and hearsay.
Proofs
In the Qur'an, proving faahishah is treated with utmost seriousness in order to protect individuals from false accusations and to uphold justice. The burden of proof is exceptionally high for all types of faahishah, as the Qur'an states the accuser "…shall bring four witnesses over them from among you…" (4:15).
This means that four people must have directly witnessed the specific immoral act or conduct themselves and at the same time be willing to publicly testify. In the most severe case of faahishah, that of zina, they must have witnessed the physical act taking place. Anything less than four witnesses is insufficient in the eyes of the Qur'an for a legal conviction.
False testimony
Giving false testimony as a witness is a very serious offence which brings its own repercussions. Those "…who accuse the emancipated females, then they do not bring forth four witnesses…" (24:4) must themselves be punished. The punishment prescribed by Allah is that "…you shall lash them with eighty lashes…" (24:4) for bearing false testimony. In addition to this, Allah disgraces them publicly by commanding believers to "…not accept their testimony ever…" (24:4), and Allah describes them as "…the wicked" (24:4). This punishment is reduced to forty lashes each for those who were formerly slaves. The Qur'an states "once they are emancipated, then any of them who comes with an faahishah shall have half of what is upon those already emancipated of the punishment..." (4:25).
However, Allah being most merciful, allows false accusers to restore their honour and dignity if they "…repent after this and do good…" (24:5). Due to their initial disgrace being a public one, their repentance and reform must also be done publicly so the community is aware of it.
By demanding such overwhelming evidences, the Qur'an ensures that accusations of any type of faahishah cannot be made lightly or maliciously. This high standard protects the dignity of individuals, prevents slander, and reinforces the principle that justice must be based on undeniable proof rather than suspicion or gossip. We see this principle in practice when Allah says "…if only they had brought four witnesses to it. If they did not have the witnesses, then these with Allah are the liars" (24:13).
The severe consequences of false accusations without proof are clear. Such people are not only punished and disgraced in society, but worse, they are deemed liars in the eyes of Allah.
Punishments - faahishah
The believers must never make faahishah as acceptable in society. The community must always make life difficult for those engaged in faahishah as much as possible. This extends to any non-penetrative sexual behaviour outside of marriage and other immoral conduct, excluding the act of zina which carries its own punishment.. The Qur'an instructs the believers "...you shall trouble them..." (4:16). This could mean stigmatising immoral behaviour, preventing access to places which could lead to faahishah, censoring such behaviour in the media or shunning such peoples to make them feel like outsiders.
Making life difficult for the two parties involved must continue until they "...repent and reform..." (4:16). If they do, then Allah instructs the believers to "...leave them alone..." (4:16).
Female punishments - faahishah
If a woman is found guilty of any faahishah where the evidence does not establish penetration (i.e., faahishah other than the act of zina), "...then you shall restrict them in the homes until death terminates their lives..." (4:15). The four witnesses must have directly witnessed the immoral conduct or unlawful relationship itself, which is a lower threshold than the proof required for zina.
This restriction is effectively house arrest, serving as a preventive and corrective measure to halt the progression of the sin. The penalty is conditional as it remains until "...Allah makes for them a way out" (4:15). This means the confinement is not intended to be lifelong, but can be if the woman refuses to repent, reform, or take the necessary steps to meet the condition for release.
"...Allah makes for them a way out" (4:15) would apply for scenarios such as where an unmarried heterosexual couple in a relationship decide to marry each other and legitimise their relationship or people in homosexual relationships "...repent and reform..." (4:16) and enter into heterosexual marriages.
This punishment of effective house arrest is directed specifically at women, as the practical realities of most of human history meant that confining men would have disrupted families and communities dependent on their provision and protection. In this distinction lies the wisdom of the Qur’an: the ruling balances moral discipline with social practicality, ensuring correction is achieved without destabilising the wider community
Punishments - zina
If a person is found guilty of zina, the punishment for both "the adulteress and the adulterer..." (24:2) is explicitly mentioned in the Qur'an. Since the act of zina is the most severe form of faahishah, conviction of zina also automatically establishes guilt of faahishah. Those who uphold the laws of the state "...shall lash each of them with one hundred lashes..." (24:2). This lashing is the fixed retributive penalty for zina, but it does not absolve the individual from the legal obligation to reform their underlying state of faahishah. Therefore, the conditional penalties of faahishah covered earlier remain in effect until the conditions for ending them are met.
Even though the punishment for zina may seem harsh, there is no room for leniency as the Qur'an says "...do not let any pity overtake you regarding the system of Allah if you believe in Allah and the last day..." (24:2). To be effective as a deterrent, the lashings must be carried out in public as the Qur'an instructs "...let a group of the believers witness their punishment..." (24:2).
The public punishment is reduced to fifty lashes each for those who were formerly slaves. The Qur'an states "once they are emancipated, then any of them who comes with an faahishah shall have half of what is upon those already emancipated of the punishment..." (4:25).
Additionally, the Qur'an indicates that if a married person is found guilty of zina, then the marriage must be dissolved as Allah says "...such has been made forbidden for the believers" (24:3).
The man found guilty of zina "...will only marry an adulteress or she who is a polytheist..." (24:3) and similarly the woman found guilty of zina "...will only be married to an adulterer or he who is a polytheist..." (24:3). This does not mean they cannot be married to believers but they are restricted to marrying fellow believers who have also been found guilty of zina. It must be stressed that this ruling only applies to those found guilty of zina and not other types of faahishah.
In addition, if the woman is the guilty party, then she will lose some of her rights from the marriage contract as soon as the marriage is annulled. Usually in matters of divorce, a woman is entitled to stay in the marital home for a specified period determined by the Qur'an depending on her situation at the time of divorce. This entitlement is removed from her entirely if "...they commit an evident faahishah..." (65:1). When it comes to wedding dowry, this wholly belongs to the wife and the husband is prohibited from accessing any part of it without her permission "...unless they commit a clear faahishah..." (4:19).
Cases between spouses
In cases of "...those who accuse their spouses..." (24:6) of zina, the Qur'an recognises that the spouse making the accusations may have "…no witnesses except for themselves…" (24:6). In such circumstances, their testimony alone "…is to be equivalent to that of four witnesses…" (24:6), but only on the condition that "…it is sworn by Allah that he is being truthful…" (24:6). If the person cannot or does not swear by Allah, then that testimony must be deemed false and they must be punished accordingly.
Furthermore, the sole witness must also make an additional testimony, declaring that "…the curse of Allah upon him if he is of the liars" (24:7). In this way, the spouse must testify twice: once to affirm in the name of Allah that their allegation is true, and a second time to invoke the curse of Allah upon themselves if they are lying.
The public "...punishment will be averted from her if she bears witness four times by Allah that he is of the liars" (24:8). Once again she must make an additional testimony that "...the curse of Allah upon her if he is speaking the truth" (24:9). If both testimonies are made by the wife, then she cannot be punished. This does not mean the husband is then found guilty of false testimony. It simply means in this scenario, the case rests with Allah.
Divine punishment
If a person were to die after being found guilty of zina but without repenting and seeking forgiveness from Allah prior to death, the divine warning is severe as "...retribution will be doubled for him on the day of resurrection
and he will abide in it in disgrace" (25:69). Yet Allah's mercy is vast, and the one who can avert this disaster is "...the one who repents and believes and does good
works..." (25:70). Should they do this, their outcome is transformed, for "...Allah will replace their sins with good, and Allah is
Forgiving, Merciful" (25:70).
The wisdom behind this balance is clear as worldly punishments act as a deterrent to protect society and safeguard the family unit. At the same time, repentance secures salvation in the hereafter, ensuring that the guilty ones are not locked in disgrace should they turn back to Allah with sincerity.
"As for those who enjoy that faahishah spreads among those who
have believed..." (24:19), then they have been warned of "...a painful retribution in this world
and the hereafter..." (24:19).
Conclusion
The Qur'an's legal framework for faahishah balances justice and mercy, establishing that abstaining from zina is fundamental to faith. To protect the accused, conviction for any faahishah requires the highest standard of proof: four witnesses, making false accusation a severely punished crime.
The Qur'an employs two penalties with distinct functions:
- Correction: other forms of faahishah are met with conditional house arrest and rejection of such people until the individuals demonstrate sincere repentance and reform.
- Retribution: the specific act of zina is met with a fixed public penalty of one hundred lashes (fifty for former slaves) as a severe public deterrent.
- False testimony: making false accusations is met with a fixed public penalty of eighty lashes (forty for former slaves) as a severe public deterrent.