Question:
I would like to know if a married Muslim woman committs adultery & has illegitimate physical relations with another married man other than her lawfully wed husband, what does the Islamic-Sharia says for such a woman/man?
Secondly, since undobtedly both of them have committed sins, what should be the kaffara (compensation) in their respective cases so that they can lead a normal life without any guilt feeling & repentence & their conscience don't bite them in their future lives? Finally, does their respective nikaahs still remain valid ? If no, then what are the implications on their respective lives thereafter & what should they do if they still want to remain loyal & lawfully-married to their respective spouses. Answer: In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Such a man and woman,
according to the Shariah, have committed a major sin. It is fard (compulsory) upon them to immediately, without delay,
do repentance (tauba). Therefore, if one delays the repentance,
then apart from repenting for the actual sin, it is also compulsory to repent for
having delayed the repentance. Failure to repent from sins will make such a
person liable to receive unbearable punishment after death. For a major sin,
such as committing adultery, sincere repentance is the only kaffara
(atonement). Repentance, according to the
Shariah, comprises of the following components: 1) Abandoning the sin. 2) Having remorse for having
committed the sin because it is a sin. If one has remorse for committing the
sin because of its harmful effect on his health or wealth, for example, then
the repentance is not valid. 3) Having firm determination
not to commit the sin again. 4) If the sin involved
unlawfully taking another person’s right, then to give back his right.
And if the sin involved leaving an act of worship that was obligatory on him,
then to make up for it (by doing qadaa’). قل ابن
نجيم رحمه
الله: أما
الكبائر –
أسأل الله
العفو عنها
والعافية
منها –
فقالوا: هي
بعد الكفر:
الزنا إلخ ... (
وبعد صفحات) ... الثاني
والعشرون: في
التوبة: وهي:
الندم على المعصية
من حيث أنها
معصية ،
والعزم على
عدم العود إلى
مثله ، وتحقيق
الإقلاع عنها ،
وردّ المظالم إلى
أهلها عند
الإمكان ،
وقضاء ما قصر
في فعله من العبادات
؛ وإنما قيدنا
بالحيثية
المذكورة لأن
الندم على
فعلها من حيث
أنها ضارة لبدنه
أو متلفة
لماله ليس
بتوبة ... ( بعد
أسطر )... التوبة
عن الذنب
فريضة على
الفور صغيرة
كانت أو كبيرة
فتجب التوبة
عن تاخير التوبة
... ( وبعد سطر )...
الكبيرة لا
يكفرها إلا
التوبة النصوح
( الرسائل
الزينية: ص 353 ، 372
ط دار السلام ) After a person does sincere repentance
with all the components mentioned above, he should rest assured that the sin is
now forgiven. Allah Ta’ala says in the Holy
Quran: (Translation) And He it is Who accepts
repentance from His servants and pardons the evil deeds and He knows what you
do (Quran 42:25). Abu Ubaidah ibn
Abdullah narrates from his father that Rasulullah (sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam)
said, “One who repents from the sin is like one who has no sin.” (Ibn Maajah, hadith 4240). Although committing adultery is
a major sin, the nikah of one who committed such a
sin will remain intact. |
Mufti-Online.net answers issues pertaining to Shariah. Thereafter, these questions and answers are placed for public view on www.mufti-online.net for educational purposes. However, many of these answers are unique to a particular scenario and cannot be taken as a basis to establish a ruling in another situation or another environment. Mufti-Online.net bears no responsibility with regards to these questions being used out of their intended context.
- The Shariah ruling herein given is based specifically on the question posed and should be read in conjunction with the question.
- Mufti-Online.net bears no responsibility to any party who may or may not act on this answer and is being hereby exempted from loss or damage howsoever caused.
- This answer may not be used as evidence in any Court of Law without prior written consent of Mufti-Online.net.
- Any or all links provided in our emails, answers and articles are restricted to the specific material being cited. Such referencing should not be taken as an endorsement of other contents of that website.