Question:

I have a few questions knocking my head, Please try to address this issue.
I am a 24 year old unmarried Muslim youth from India, I have committed a sin of having an illegal affair with a non-Muslim unmarried girl. I have been physically intimate with her (although we did not have sexual intercourse). Now I wanted to clarify the following:
1.What is the punishment of this grave sin (considering the fact that I did not have sexual intercourse with her although this does not lessen the magnitude of crime I have knowingly committed and considering the fact that I live in a non-Muslim state).
2. Assuming that I am entitled to an Islamic punishment that I cannot receive here in India, how do I repent from this sin so that I can be assured of wiping this sin off myself before my death.
3. What do I owe to the girl? Can she pull me into the Fire of Hell inspite of my repentence? Or is there a way I can get myself assured that she cannot harm me in court of Allah?

I just wanted to add that I am highly Allah fearing. This crime was committed out of poor Iman and inability to resist the temptation. Please answer this keeping in view that it is the question of my Life Heareafter. Also, which are the verses in Quranin which it is it mentioned that fornication(pre-marital sex) is a sin? I am reading Maulana Maududi's Tahfimal Quran, can you quote me some Hadith or incidents which mention that fornication is sin, and how one repented after committing this sin.

Jazakallah
February 10, 1999

 

Answer:

As you did not have an intercourse with the girl, you have not fornicated.

There is no punishment in this world. However you should repent to Allah and ask for his forgiveness. Do not be disappointed with the mercy of Allah. A true repentance has four steps.

First be ashamed of what you have done, then resolve that you will not do that again, thirdly, do not do that again, and fourthly, apologize to the girl for the wrong doings. Also please note that Islam forbids the talking and propagating the sin to others. Keep this a guarded secret and REPENT TO ALLAH.

(Reply contributed by Dr. Hassanuddin)

Back to Index Q&A