Majmu' al-Fatawa - Ibn Taimiya - (15/332)

Majmu' al-FatawaIbn Taimiya

Lot, since they were the first to commit the abomination of sodomy. He prescribed eighty lashes as the punishment for falsely accusing someone of sexual immorality. Punishment for accusations of other offences is subject to juristic discretion; some scholars permit it to reach eighty lashes, a view held by many of them. As ‘Alī said:

“No one who prefers me over Abū Bakr and ‘Umar shall be brought before me without my flogging him with the prescribed punishment for a slanderer.”

And as ‘Abd al-Rahmān ibn ‘Awf said:

“When he drinks, he speaks incoherently, and when he speaks incoherently, he makes slanderous accusations. The prescribed punishment for drinking is eighty lashes, and the prescribed punishment for a slanderer is eighty lashes.”

Allah, Exalted is He, says in the verse:

“Indeed, those who love that immorality should spread among the believers will have a painful punishment in this world and the Hereafter.”

This condemns anyone who loves that, whether this remains in the heart alone or is also expressed through speech and bodily actions. It condemns anyone who speaks of sexual immorality or reports it out of a desire for it to occur among the believers—whether out of envy or hatred, or out of love and desire for immorality itself. Both constitute love of immorality and hatred of the believers. Thus, whoever loves to practise it speaks of it.

The scholars disapproved of amorous poetry that encourages it. Likewise, mentioning it constitutes forbidden backbiting, whether in verse or prose. Imitating those who practise it is also forbidden, just as urging others to engage in it is forbidden. An action may be encouraged through commands at one time and through narratives at another. For the wicked—fornicators and those who practise sodomy—these two means serve the same purpose as recounting the stories of the prophets and the righteous serves for believers. The former draw lessons from jealous concern for them, while the latter draw lessons from delusion. For the people of disbelief, wickedness and disobedience recount stories of

لُوطٍ إذْ كَانُوا هُمْ أَوَّلَ مَنْ فَعَلَ فَاحِشَةَ اللِّوَاطِ وَجَعَلَ الْعُقُوبَةَ عَلَى الْقَذْفِ بِهَا ثَمَانِينَ جَلْدَةً وَالرَّمْيَ بِغَيْرِهَا فِيهِ الِاجْتِهَادُ وَيَجُوزُ عِنْدَ بَعْضِ الْعُلَمَاءِ أَنْ يَبْلُغَ الثَّمَانِينَ عِنْدَ كَثِيرٍ مِنْهُمْ كَمَا قَالَ عَلِيٌّ: " لَا أُوتِيَ بِأَحَدِ يُفَضِّلُنِي عَلَى أَبِي بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرَ إلَّا جَلَدْته حَدَّ الْمُفْتَرِي " . وَكَمَا قَالَ عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ عَوْفٍ: إذَا شَرِبَ هَذَى وَإِذَا هَذَى افْتَرَى وَحَدُّ الشُّرْبِ ثَمَانُونَ وَحَدُّ الْمُفْتَرِي ثَمَانُونَ. وقَوْله تَعَالَى {إنَّ الَّذِينَ يُحِبُّونَ أَنْ تَشِيعَ الْفَاحِشَةُ فِي الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ} الْآيَةُ. وَهَذَا ذَمٌّ لِمَنْ يُحِبُّ ذَلِكَ وَذَلِكَ يَكُونُ بِالْقَلْبِ فَقَطْ وَيَكُونُ مَعَ ذَلِكَ بِاللِّسَانِ وَالْجَوَارِحِ وَهُوَ ذَمٌّ لِمَنْ يَتَكَلَّمُ بِالْفَاحِشَةِ أَوْ يُخْبِرُ بِهَا مَحَبَّةً لِوُقُوعِهَا فِي الْمُؤْمِنِينَ: إمَّا حَسَدًا أَوْ بُغْضًا وَإِمَّا مَحَبَّةً لِلْفَاحِشَةِ وَإِرَادَةً لَهَا وَكِلَاهُمَا مَحَبَّةٌ لِلْفَاحِشَةِ وَبُغْضًا لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا فَكُلُّ مَنْ أَحَبَّ فِعْلَهَا ذَكَرَهَا. وَكَرِهَ الْعُلَمَاءُ الْغَزَلَ مِنْ الشِّعْرِ الَّذِي يُرَغِّبُ فِيهَا وَكَذَلِكَ ذِكْرُهَا غِيبَةٌ مُحَرَّمَةٌ سَوَاءٌ كَانَ بِنَظْمِ أَوْ نَثْرٍ وَكَذَلِكَ التَّشَبُّهُ بِمَنْ يَفْعَلُهَا مَنْهِيٌّ عَنْهُ: مِثْلَ الْأَمْرِ بِهَا؛ فَإِنَّ الْفِعْلَ يُطْلَبُ بِالْأَمْرِ تَارَةً وَبِالْإِخْبَارِ تَارَةً فَهَذَانِ الْأَمْرَانِ لِلْفَجَرَةِ الزُّنَاةِ اللُّوطِيَّةِ: مِثْلَ ذِكْرِ قِصَصِ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ وَالصَّالِحِينَ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ أُولَئِكَ يَعْتَبِرُونَ مِنْ الْغَيْرَةِ بِهِمْ وَهَؤُلَاءِ يَعْتَبِرُونَ مِنْ الِاغْتِرَارِ؛ فَإِنَّ أَهْلَ الْكُفْرِ وَالْفُسُوقِ وَالْعِصْيَانِ يَذْكُرُونَ مِنْ قِصَصِ