Is masterbation allowed?
Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,
As Salaam Aleikum wa
Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be
upon all of you)
One of our
brothers/sisters has asked this question:
Is masterbation allowed?
(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)
Answer:
In the name of Allah, We praise
Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none
can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright.
We bear witness that there is no one (no idol,
no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam,
no dai,
nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that
Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.
The act of masturbation is
prohibited in Islam, and must be avoided by the believers. But just to put it into perspective, the sin
of masturbation is not as grave as the sin of zina
(adultery or fornication). But it definitely is a sin, and an evil act, and
must be avoided by the believers.
Allah says in the Holy
Quran Chapter24 Surah Noor verse 30:O Prophet, enjoin
the believing men to restrain their gaze, and guard their private parts. This is a more righteous way for them. Allah has knowledge of whatever they do.
Allah has commanded the
believers to lower their gaze, and guard their chastity. This is a more righteous way for them. The
act of zina (fornication or adultery) is a great
sin in Islam. But the Prophet (saws)
warned us against committing zina of the eyes, zina
of the feet, zina
of the hands, etc. If ones eyes are
constantly watching sexual movies, magazines, etc. it would be
considered zina of the eyes. If one goes to the place to commit zina or to the place of sexual movies, magazines, etc., it
would be considered zina of the feet. Similarly, the act of masturbation,
could be considered a zina of the eyes, or hands,
etc. It is a sin and an evil act, and
must be avoided by the believers.
It has been reported in an
authentic narration, that the Messenger of Allah (saws) said, "O young
people! Whoever among you can marry, should marry, because it helps him lower
his gaze and guard his modesty; and whoever is not able to marry, should fast,
as fasting diminishes his sexual power."
Thus if one is unable to control
his sexual desire, he should get married, rather than get involved in
committing sins like masterbation
and zina (fornication or adultery). And if one is unable to marry, he should
fast, as the Messenger of Allah (saws) says, that fasting reduces the persons
sexual desire, and thus will stay away from committing sin.
Whatever written of Truth and
benefit is only due to Allahs Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error
is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He
is the Only Source of Strength.
Your Brother in Islam,
