Today we will be talking about the Islamic punishment for adultery, which is stoning. Is it barbaric as some people claim it to be? Quite the contrary, we will see the mercy of Islam in it, as the divine culmination of Judaism and Christianity. So claim Muslims!
[“Social progress can be measured by the social positions of the female sex in society” -Karl Marx]
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FIRSTLY, Islam alleviated humankind from this most severe punishment for nearly all crimes. In addition, Islam introduced the Islamic Shari’ah Laws to deal with punishment and ways of living. Throughout ancient history, humanity was predominantly violent and unruly. Harsh measures needed to deter evil acts, when advanced means had not yet developed for effective policing, detention, and rehabilitation.
However, this does not justify the barbaric laws and practices of all ancient non-religious societies.
In addition, while Islam confirms the divine origin of the Old Testament, it is impossible to know for certain which of its punishments were: indeed ordained by God, OR invented by the Rabbis, OR altered by the scribes (Jer 8:8, Mat 5:20, 23:13).
In the Old Testament, stoning was prescribed for many infarctions, such as: committing adultery, fornication, worshiping other Gods, inviting people to worship other Gods, blaspheming, witchcraft, touching a mountain (Sinai), breaking the Sabbath, disobeying your parents, not screaming loud enough while being raped. Islam lifted the burden of this most severe punishment for all crimes, except one: committing adultery (because of the devastating impact of marital infidelity in society). Moreover, regarding fornication by unmarried people, Islam reduced the punishment to 100 or more lashes.
SECONDLY, regarding the "verse of stoning", Allah mercifully[?] lifted its recitation and the texts from the Qur’an, while the legislations [Sunnah and Ahadith] maintained the same! To paraphrase, Imam Al Suyuti from his book Al Itqan: ‘this verse abrogated (while its application remained) to ALLEVIATE the Islamic nation, because it is the heaviest burden and the toughest, and the most severe punishments on a human being’. In the Qur’an, stoning as a practice is only mentioned for actions of evil people against the righteous. This is in stark contrast with [the Bible, where all sorts of people were stoned for the many reasons we mentioned earlier].
THIRDLY, Islam's Shari'ah Law requirements regarding witnesses are so stringent that it is nearly impossible to obtain a conviction for adultery. For example, convicting someone [women especially] in court for adultery requires FOUR Muslim male-eyewitnesses of good character, who saw the penetration of one sexual member into another [Guess the culprit/offender has to make sure that he has four such honorable men as witness in the offense]. Not only is it very unlikely to find 4 people of good character who watched such an act together, but if less than 4 witnesses are produced, the witnesses themselves will be punished for the crime of slander.
THERE CAN BE NO LAW ABOVE THE LAW OF THE CREATOR - Akbarally Meherally
The day when Allah through His Messenger Muhammad revealed the prescribed penalty for the sin of adultery and fornication, all the past Traditions, Rulings, Examples and Directives from the Prophet and/or from all other individuals or societies do stand repealed permanently. To propagate otherwise would be to place the “Human Law” above the “Law of Allah”, which in Islam is regarded as an unpardonable sin.
STONING TO DEATH IN THE HADITH
There are a few Muslims who do propagate, based upon a “re-reported narratives” called Hadeeth, that the Second Caliph [successor to the Prophet] had said in one of his sermons that there used to be a Revealed Verse for “Death” by stoning, but it has since been lost and is not to be found in “The Holy Book”.
Stoning to death, a cruel insane Islamic punishment [still practiced across many Islamic countries] given to people who are married but still voluntarily have sex outside marriage. The “merciful” Prophet, who of course was the messenger of the “merciful” Allah, ordered this cruel punishment to be ‘practiced as the Laws of Allah'.
So, what happens in Stoning? Well, in stoning to death, the victims’ hands tied behind their backs and their bodies put in a cloth sack. Then, this human "package" buried in a hole, with only the victim’s heads showing above the ground. If it is a woman, she is buried upto her shoulders. This is to give her a seemingly equal (but nonetheless impossible) chance to escape recognizing her lesser physical strength. After the hapless individual has been secured in the hole, people start chanting "Allah hu Akbar" [meaning, God is great], and throw palm sized stones at the head of the victim from a certain distance [a circle is drawn of the goatherd crowd]. The stone then thrown until that person dies or until he/she escapes out of the hole and crosses the circle. Escaping is impossible and naturally, the procedure is extremely barbaric and bloody!
Related: Also, see The Stoning (movie)
Many hadith, including Sahih Bukhari give proof that Stoning as ordered and practiced by Mohammed, for example: Volume 2, Book 23, Number 413: Narrated 'Abdullah bin ‘Umar: “The Jew brought to the Prophet a man and a woman from amongst them who have committed (adultery) illegal sexual intercourse. He ordered both of them to be stoned (to death), near the place of offering the funeral prayers beside the mosque."
Below are the three narrations on the penalty of stoning, from the famous book of the Prophetic Traditions and Narrations known as Sahih Al-Bukhari:
Hadith No. 4.829: ‘When a Jew and a Jewess who had committed the illegal sexual intercourse were brought before the Prophet, he ordered them to be punished according to their Jewish laws that are recorded in the Torah. The couple was stoned to death. This Hadith was narrated by Abdullah bin Umar’.
Hadith No. 8.805: ‘A married man from the tribe of Bani Aslam who had committed illegal sexual intercourse and bore witnesses four times against himself was ordered by the Prophet to be stoned to death’. [This Hadith as narrated by Jabir bin Abdullah Al-Ansari].
Hadith No. 8.804: ‘Ash Shaibani narrates that when he asked ‘Abdullah bin Abi Aufa; “Did Allah’s Apostle carry out the penalty of Rajam (i.e., stoning to death)?” He said, “Yes”. When the narrator asked; “Before the revelation of Surah-an-Nur or after it?” He replied, “I don’t know.” This Hadith is narrated by Ash Shaibani and is repeated one more time under Hadith No. 8: 824
QUR’AN VERSUS HADITH
1. The Surah-an-Nur [Chapter 24 of the Qur’an in which the penalty of flogging as prescribed] as revealed in or after the sixth year of Prophet’s migration from Makkah to the city of Medinah. This confirmed by Surah verses 11 to 20. It is inconceivable that the Prophet, who as been declared by Allah as the best of the examples for Humanity, could have dictated his own edict after the revelation of Surah-an-Nur, which was delivered to humanity through him. [Did not Allah promise to Guard His Revelation failed to safeguard His “Holy Book” (see Qur’an 41:42; 15:9 and 73: 20)?]
2. It is a known fact that before the promulgation of the Qur’anic Laws, the Prophet and his followers used to follow many of the Abrahamic Traditions and the Law of Moses. Once the specific Law of the Qur’an as revealed to the Prophet in that matter, the ancient traditions and laws became invalid?
3. The Hadith No. 5: 805 does speak of a married man being “stoned to death” but it does not specify the period when that penalty as confirmed. Before or after the revelations of Allah’s Law, one cannot use this example of “a married individual” and interpret it to be applied to the revealed verse and then create the distinction between the act of adultery and the fornication?
4. There is NO recorded authentic narrations in which the Prophet has made a ruling or given the directives that there is to be observed a distinction or inequality between the “married persons” and “unmarried individuals” when the penalty for the illegal sexual intercourse is to be applied. Nor, there is any explicit directive or a command of the Prophet asking the followers that the revealed verses of “flogging” is ONLY for the “unmarried individuals”?
5. Why is the Islamic Shari’ah Law NOT applied to any Muslim MALE individuals? The Court is required to have Four Witnesses to the act of Adultery, to pass their Judgments. The Islamic Courts need no Witnesses in any such reported cases?
Allah’s Law permits the guilty person to live and remarry (see below), while the woman is NOT given this privilege in Islam?
“Let no man guilty of adultery or fornication, marry any, but a woman similarly guilty, or an Unbeliever, nor let any but such a man or an Unbeliever marry such a woman: To the Believers such a thing is forbidden“ [Qur’an Surah-an-Nur (24) verse 3 (This verse 3, follows the verse number 2 in which the penalty is prescribed and it emphasizes the fact that THERE IS NO DEATH PENALTY)].
Commentary # 2957 (of Abdullah Yusuf Ali) to the above verse: “Islam commands sexual purity, for men and for women, at all times, – before marriage, during marriage, and after the dissolution of marriage. Those guilty of illicit practices are shut out of the marriage circle of chaste men and women” [Surah-an-Nur REPEALED the previous directives permanently].
Click here for more hadith which verify that Mohammed ordered stoning
As a result, enforcing any Islamic Shari'ah punishment for extramarital sexual affair is nearly impossible in Islam. Yet, it somehow this evades the feeble mind and barbarity is practiced at large! In fact, throughout all early Islamic leaderships, there was not even one single case where 4 people testified to witnessing adultery...!!!
In addition, as for those who knew the punishment and confessed anyway, the Prophet of Islam as the supreme repentance confirmed this: worth that of an entire city. Therefore, as a punishment, stoning is not scary at all, because this can hardly ever be enforced in technical terms[?]. It is an effective deterrent, not out of fear, but because no Muslim would want to commit an act that, in the sight of Allah, "DESERVES" such a merciful punishment!
Qur’an 4:85: ‘Whoever recommends and helps a good cause becomes a partner therein: And whoever recommends and helps an evil cause, shares in its burden: And Allah hath power over all things…’
FOURTHLY, this punishment applies only to Muslims, who are not the ones complaining about it?
Islam does not interfere with non-Muslims about the Islamic Shari’ah standards they set regarding adultery. Therefore, attacking Islam's stance on adultery is like trying to FORCE
Muslims to adopt the moral values or religious beliefs of others. And as for those who will still claim that the punishment against Muslims who commit adultery is too severe... we will now discuss the top THREE ways to avoid being Islamically stoned for adultery:
3) Be faithful to your spouse.
2) Don't confess to adultery 4 times.
1) Don't let 4 people of good character witness your act of adultery simultaneously, in a well lit room, and from specific angles.
FIFTHLY, Islamic Shari’ah laws for adultery and fornication protects the Islamic society far better than evil satanic western laws. The false claim of the western society is that Islamic Shari’ah laws on extramarital sex results in the so-called honor-killings…? However, taking the law into one's own hands is a violation of Islamic Shari’ah laws. Moreover, the personal or family pride that would lead to such crimes is in itself a major sin in Islam. So again, it is ridiculous to blame Islamic laws for people who are violating them. Lastly, such crimes are far more prevalent in western societies because fornication permitted except they called crimes of passion.
Two Significant Verses of the Glorious Qur’an: Say: “Allah’s guidance is the (only) guidance and we have been directed to submit ourselves to the Lord of the worlds. [Qur’an Chapter 6, Verse 71]
Moreover, if any fail to judge by what Allah hath revealed they are the wrongdoers [Ar. Zalimuun].
[Qur’an Chapter 5: 45] If Allah –the All Knowing, had desired to convey; that while JUDGING BY what HE has REVEALED one was to observe a clear distinction between “the married” and “the unmarried” individuals for the sin of Zinnah [adultery], then HE would have Revealed the TWO distinct SETS of punishments, which He did not?
Today is there a SINLESS Man living on this planet that could step forward and say; I will be the first to cast, the First Stone???
O’ Muslims of Iran, fear Allah and remember; in the very same Surah An-Nur, just three verses later He reveals; there are exceptions for the guilty, who repent and mend their conducts, FOR ALLAH IS OFT-FORGIVING, THE MOST MERCIFUL…
It is true, as of right now, stoning does not take place in Iran. That is not to say that stoning never took place there, because from 1983-2002 stoning was a punishment, through international pressures the Iranian government have been forced to attempt to update their penal codes... Though this still has not been completed and these disturbing practices, still do persist throughout the Islamic Ummah today [Afghanistan, parts of Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Libya, etc.]. On 15 August, 2004, Atefah Sahaaleh was hanged in a public square in the Iranian city of Neka. Her death sentence imposed for "crimes against chastity". The state-run newspaper accused her of adultery and described her as 22 years old. Nevertheless, she was not married and she was just 16. The execution of a 16 year-old girl: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/5217424.stm
Islamic Stoning, Muslim Honor Killings for adultery and fornication, Islam is for Dummies.
