Homosexuality Category in LGBTQ
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بِسۡمِ اللهِ الرَّحۡمٰنِ الرَّحِيۡمِ
In the Name of Allâh, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.ⓘ
All praise belongs to Allah alone, and may He exalt our Last Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, bless him and his family, Companions, and all who follow him rightly until the Last Hour.
Explore the homosexuality category within the LGBTQ spectrum, its meaning, social perceptions, and related issues. Learn how it fits within the broader LGBTQ framework.
Published: March 29, 2026
Last Update: March 29, 2026
Category: muhammadur-rasulullah
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Category-1: Same-Sex Sexual Acts (Homosexuality)
# 1. Introduction:
Homosexuality refers to sexual relationships or marriage between people of the same gender. This includes sexual relationships between men and men (gay) or women and women (lesbian). These are the first two letters, “L” and “G” in the term LGBTQ+ movement.
People who engage in sexual relationships or marriage with someone of the same gender are called homosexual persons. Such actions are severely condemned in Islam, and the last Prophet, Muhammad ﷺ, cursed those who commit these acts.
Homosexual Act is Worse than Fornication and Adultery (A Grave Sin)
In Islam, the homosexual act (the act of the people of Lut) is considered a grave and unnatural sin, worse than fornication and adultery because it completely goes against the natural relationship between men and women.
During the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, no one ever came asking permission to act upon same-sex attraction. However, some people came asking about opposite-gender desires. One famous narration recorded in Musnad Ahmad mentions:
A young man came to the Prophet ﷺ and said: “O Messenger of Allah, permit me to
commit fornication.”
The Prophet ﷺ asked him: “Would you like it for your mother?”
He said:
“No.”
The Prophet ﷺ said: “Neither do people like it for their mothers.”
He asked about his
daughter, sister and aunt, and the young man said “No” each time. Then the Prophet ﷺ prayed for him and the
young man later said that fornication became hated to him.
This shows that people sometimes struggled with desire toward the opposite gender, but there is no report of anyone asking permission for same-sex acts, which shows how unnatural such behaviour was.
Important Principle in Islam
Islam clearly distinguishes between:
- Feelings, thoughts, or desires
- Actions and behavior
A person is not sinful for merely having thoughts or desires as long as they do not act upon them. The Last Prophet ﷺ said that Allah has forgiven the Ummah for evil thoughts as long as they do not speak about them or act upon them[1].
The Last Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Allah has forgiven my followers the evil thoughts that occur to their minds, as long as such thoughts are not put into action or uttered." And Qatada said, "If someone divorces his wife just in his mind, such an unuttered divorce has no effect.: - Muttafaqun 'alayh (Bukhari 5269 and Muslim Sahih Muslim 127a.)
The Prophet ﷺ teaches that a Muslim is not held accountable for evil thoughts that cross their mind, as long as they do not act on them or speak of them. Allah has pardoned the Ummah of Muhammad ﷺ for such fleeting thoughts that waver in the heart. However, if these thoughts settle in the heart—such as arrogance, conceit, or hypocrisy—or are acted upon through words or deeds, then accountability applies.
Benefits from the Hadith
- Allah forgives and overlooks transient thoughts and mental distractions that arise in a person’s mind.
- For example, if someone thinks of divorce but does not say or write it, it does not count as a divorce.
- A person is not accountable for inner thoughts, regardless of their severity, unless they take root in the heart and are acted upon or spoken.
- This Hadith highlights the special status of the Ummah of Muhammad ﷺ, who are granted the mercy of not being judged for involuntary thoughts, unlike previous nations.
Because of this principle:
- Having a sinful thought or desire does not make a person sinful.
- Resisting sinful desires brings reward from Allah and can lead to Jannah.
Likewise, Islam distinguishes between:
- Homosexual feelings or attraction
- Homosexual acts or behavior
If a person experiences such feelings but does not engage in same-sex sexual activity, then the person is not considered a sinner. In fact, abstaining from acting upon sinful desires for the sake of Allah will bring reward on the Day of Judgment.
Al-Allāmah Shaykh Ubayd al-Jabiri (rahimahullah) stated:
“…those who openly perform marriage (nikah) between men and men, or women and women (same gender unions), are considered disbelievers (kāfir)....” end of speech
This ruling applies specifically to those who openly reject the prohibition and justify same gender marriage as permissible or even the act of marriage between people of the same gender.[2]
In human history, sexual relationships and marriages have been between men and women. This has been the natural way through which families are formed and humanity continues to grow. From the time of Adam until today, humanity has continued through male–female sexual relationships and reproduction.
However, in recent years, same-sex sexual relationships and marriages have become more visible and legally accepted in some countries.
Many people support and promote this change, while others acknowledge that it goes against the long-standing natural order and moral values. They argue that the natural human disposition is based on male–female sexual relationships that allow human beings to reproduce, and they also raise concerns about health risks and diseases associated with same-sex sexual intimacy. They also argue that if same-sex relationships were the only form of relationship or it were inborn genetically, human reproduction would stop and humanity would not continue.
We know homosexuality is unnatural and disgusting, even an ordinary person — whether Muslim, Christian, atheist, doctor, engineer, or even a child — can understand that if someone says men should marry men or women should marry women, we feel uncomfortable and absurd about it.
However, today, some people are normalizing homosexuality through movies, pornography, advertisements, Hollywood films, webseries, Dramas, Serials, comedies, and other media.
As time passes, misguidance in the world will increase. Our last Prophet, Muhammad, said that Islam began as something strange and will return to being strange again, as mentioned in a famous hadith[3]. Because of this, there is good news for the “ghuraba” (strangers)[4]—those who remain firm in their beliefs and actions even when society around them becomes corrupt. They may seem unusual because most people follow the corruption, but a small number will remain steadfast in their faith(Iman), actions, and principles.
BEING PATIENT UPON AL-GHURBAH (STRANGENESS)
Allamah Al-Mufti Al-Waleed Shaykh Salih Al-Fawzan said:
"Strangers, when? When the people get corrupted. See, the people, all of them. Not the disbelievers, the disbelievers are well known. Rather, the Muslims get corrupted, they get corrupted. They are infiltrated by different thoughts, opinions, desires and different sects. As for you, stick to the path of the Messenger even if you become strange among them. Be patient upon strangeness."*
{And whosoever obeys Allah and the Messenger (Muhammad peace be upon him) then they will be in the company of those on whom Allah has bestowed His Grace, of the Prophets, the Siddiqun (those followers of the Prophets who were first and foremost to believe in them, like Abu Bakr As-Siddiq), the martyrs, and the righteous. And how excellent these companions are! - [Quran an-Nisä':69]
These are your companions upon this path. Do not feel lonely or estranged; you have the Messenger with you.
Which is better: being with Abü Bakr, 'Umar, 'Uthmän, and 'Ali, or being with 'so and so' from the people of misguidance?
Stay upon the right path, be patient upon it, and be firm upon it, until you reach Jannah.
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtjxF_QEKuE
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Read footnotes:
[1] The Last Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Allah has forgiven my followers the evil thoughts that occur to their minds, as long as such thoughts are not put into action or uttered." And Qatada said, "If someone divorces his wife just in his mind, such an unuttered divorce has no effect.:
Source of hadiths - Muttafaqun 'alayh (Bukhari 5269,6664 and Muslim Sahih Muslim 127a.), Bulugh Al-Muram, Sunan an-Nasa'i 3434 sahih, Sunan Ibn Majah 2040 sahih, Sunan Ibn Majah 2044 sahih, Sunan an-Nasa'i 3435 sahih, Mishkat al-Masabih 63 sahih, Sunan Abi Dawud 2209 sahih, Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1183 sahih, Sunan an-Nasa'i 3433 sahih.
The meaning of “what occurs within themselves” refers to involuntary thoughts that arise as suggestions from Satan or the ego. We are not held accountable for these thoughts if we do not let them settle in our hearts.
Imam Al-Nawawi comments on this tradition, stating:
قَالَ الطَّحَاوِيُّ وَأَهْلُ اللُّغَةِ يُرِيدُونَ بِغَيْرِ اخْتِيَارِهَا كَمَا قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى وَنَعْلَمُ مَا تُوَسْوِسُ بِهِ نَفْسُهُ والله اعلم
Al-Tahawi and the scholars of language said that this refers to thoughts that occur without choice, as Allah says: “We know what his soul whispers to him” (50:16). Allah knows best.
Source: Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim bi-Sharḥ al-Nawawī 127
He also writes:
قال العلماء المراد به الخواطر التي لا تستقرّ
The scholars explain that this refers to initial thoughts that do not settle.
Source: al-Adhkār 1/345
All humans will encounter evil suggestions from Satan or fleeting desires from the ego that tempt disobedience. A key part of life’s test is choosing which thoughts to act upon or ignore.
Allamah Imam Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jaujiyah al-damashqui al-hanbali explains:
وَاعْلَمْ أَنَّ وُرُودَ الْخَاطِرِ لَا يَضُرُّ وَإِنَّمَا يَضُرُّ اسْتِدْعَاؤُهُ وَمُحَادَثَتُهُ فَالْخَاطِرُ كَالْمَارِّ عَلَى الطَّرِيقِ فَإِنْ تَرَكْتَهُ مَرَّ وَانْصَرَفَ عَنْكَ
Know that passing thoughts are not harmful. They only harm if we engage them. A thought is like a passerby on the road: if ignored, it will leave.
Source: al-Jawāb al-Kāfī 1/157
Thus, the proper approach to bad initial thoughts is neither suppression nor engagement, but remembering Allah and redirecting the mind to beneficial thoughts. Like passersby on a road, if we ignore them, they move on.
A common example is what scholars call “backbiting in the heart” (al-ghibah bil-qalb). While it is forbidden to speak ill of others, it is also impermissible to entertain harmful assumptions inwardly.
Allah says:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اجْتَنِبُوا كَثِيرًا مِّنَ الظَّنِّ إِنَّ بَعْضَ الظَّنِّ إِثْمٌ
“O you who have faith, avoid much assumption; indeed some assumption is
sinful.”
(Surat al-Hujurat 49:12)
Here, “assumption” refers to voluntary thoughts about others that are unjustly held. Involuntary initial thoughts are excused unless they are allowed to take root and are nurtured through reflection or speech.
Imam Al-Nawawi explains:
اعلم أن سوء الظنّ حرام مثل القول فكما يحرم أن تحدّث غيرك بمساوئ إنسان يحرم أن تحدّث نفسك بذلك وتسئ الظنّ به … فأما الخواطر وحديث النفس إذا لم يستقرَّ ويستمرّ عليه صاحبُه فمعفوٌ عنه باتفاق العلماء لأنه لا اختيارَ له في وقوعه ولا طريقَ له إلى الانفكاك عنه
“Know that bad assumptions are forbidden like words. Just as it is forbidden to speak ill of someone, it is forbidden to entertain it inwardly… As for fleeting thoughts and ego-driven suggestions, if they do not settle, they are pardoned by scholarly consensus, as the person has no choice in their occurrence or control over them.”
Source: al-Adhkār 1/344-345
He further notes:
قالوا وسواءٌ كان ذلك الخاطِرُ غِيبة أو كفراً أو غيرَه فمن خطرَ له الكفرُ مجرّد خَطَرٍ من غير تعمّدٍ لتحصيله ثم صَرفه في الحال فليس بكافر ولا شئ عليه
“Scholars said whether an initial thought is backbiting, disbelief, or otherwise, if it arises without deliberate intent and is immediately dismissed, it carries no accountability.”
Source: al-Adhkār 1/345
Any negative thought that would be sinful to voice outwardly—such as envy, malice, greed, or lust—is equally harmful if entertained inwardly, as it can eventually manifest in action.
Every human is influenced by angels, devils, or the ego. The angel prompts good and obedience, the devil prompts evil and disobedience, and the ego seeks to satisfy base desires.
Abdullah ibn Mas’ud radiallhuanhu reported:
إِنَّ لِلشَّيْطَانِ لَمَّةً بِابْنِ آدَمَ وَلِلْمَلَكِ لَمَّةً فَأَمَّا لَمَّةُ الشَّيْطَانِ فَإِيعَادٌ بِالشَّرِّ وَتَكْذِيبٌ بِالحَقِّ وَأَمَّا لَمَّةُ الْمَلَكِ فَإِيعَادٌ بِالخَيْرِ وَتَصْدِيقٌ بِالحَقِّ فَمَنْ وَجَدَ ذَلِكَ فَلْيَعْلَمْ أَنَّهُ مِنَ اللهِ فَلْيَحْمَدِ اللَّهَ وَمَنْ وَجَدَ الأُخْرَى فَلْيَتَعَوَّذْ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ
“Verily, Satan and angels influence the son of Adam. Satan incites evil and denies truth; angels encourage good and affirm truth. Whoever experiences angelic influence should praise Allah; whoever experiences otherwise should seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan.”
Source: Sunan al-Tirmidhī 2988, Grade: Sahih
Success lies in expanding space for angelic influence and restricting satanic influence. Observing and evaluating initial thoughts allows the believer to pursue good and ignore evil. Just as angels avoid a house with an undomesticated dog, they cannot enter a heart cluttered with evil thoughts.
One experiencing satanic suggestions should seek refuge in Allah, avoid direct engagement, and redirect attention to beneficial thoughts. Shaykh ul Islam Ibn Taymiyyah al-haraani al-damashqui al-hanbali rahimahullah illustrates:
إذا هاش عليك كلب الغنم فلا تشتغل بمحاربته ومدافعته وعليك بالراعي فاستغث به فهو يصرف عنك الكلب ويكفيك
“If a shepherd’s dog troubles you, do not busy yourself fighting it. Appeal to the shepherd, who will remove it.”
Source: Asrār al-Ṣalāt li-Ibn al-Qayyim 1/76
Thus, rather than fighting evil thoughts, one should restore presence of heart with Allah. Cultivating this awareness—distinguishing angelic prompts from satanic ones—is central to spiritual development, often termed mukashafah (unveiling), which allows one to perceive reality more clearly.
[2] In other words, if someone knowingly claims that such marriages or same sex (men with men or women with women) sexual relationships are allowed in Islam, they fall into disbelief.
However, if a person commits homosexual acts privately while still recognising that these acts are sinful and forbidden in Islam, then the ruling is different. Such a person remains a Muslim, but they are committing a major sin (kabīrah), lesser than major kufr-shirk.
This is similar to other major sins, lesser than “major shirk-kufr” in Islam, such as:
- Zina (adultery or fornication)
- Usury (interest or ribā)
- Lying
- Murder
- Rape
- Disobedience to parents
- Committing suicide
Committing these sins knowingly does not make a person a disbeliever(kafir), as long as they do not claim that these acts are permissible in Islam. The person remains accountable before Allah and must repent to avoid punishment.
A Muslim who commits major sins, lesser than “major shirk-kufr”, is still responsible before Allah for their actions if they die without repentance.
Islam teaches that such a person should:
- repent sincerely (tawbah)
- seek forgiveness from Allah
- avoid repeating the sin
- Avoid declaring something permissible that Allah and his last Messenger made Haram(forbidden) and vice versa.
Key point: Disbelief (kufr) occurs when someone openly rejects the laws of Allah or declares what Allah has prohibited to be permissible, not merely when a person commits a sin lsser than “major shirk-kufr” while knowing it is forbidden.
[3] It is narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: Islam initiated as something strange, and it would revert to its (old position) of being strange. so good tidings for the stranger.
Sahih Muslim 145, Sunan Ibn Majah 3986(Sahih).
[4] This hadeeth was narrated by Muslim (145) from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Islam began as something strange and will revert to being strange as it began, so give glad tidings to the strangers.”
In Sharh Saheeh Muslim, Al-Nawawi quoted al-Qadi ‘Iyad as saying concerning the meaning of this hadeeth:
“Islam began among a few individuals, then it spread and prevailed, then it will reduce in numbers until there are only a few left, as it was in the beginning.”
According to Permanent Committee for Islamic Research and Issuing Fatwas in Fatawa al-Lajnah al-Daimah 2/170, the hadith about Islam beginning as something strange means that when the Prophet Muhammad first called people to Islam, only a small number accepted the message. Because of this, Muslims were few, weak, and often persecuted by their enemies.
Some early Muslims migrated to Abyssinia to escape oppression, while the Prophet later migrated to Medina by Allah’s command. There, Islam gained support, the Islamic state was established, and the religion spread widely with Allah’s help.
Over time, however, divisions and worldly distractions weakened many Muslims. Although their numbers remained large, many people no longer firmly followed the teachings of the Qur’an and the Prophet. Because of this decline in commitment, Islam again appeared “strange,” similar to its early days.
Some scholars, including Muhammad Rashid Rida, believed this hadith also brings hope. Just as Islam spread and became strong after its first difficult period, it may experience another revival in the future. Islamic traditions mention that near the end of time, during the era of Mahdi and the return of Jesus, Islam will again spread widely and believers will achieve victory.
The Strangers (Ghurabaa) & The Evils of Doubts and Desires – Al-Haafidh Ibn Rajab – AbdurRahman.Org
Being Patient Upon Al-Ghurbah (Strangeness) | Shaykh Sālih Bn Fawzān Al-Fawzān - YouTube