LGBT in Islam

Attitudes toward lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people and their experiences in the Muslim world have been influenced by its religious, legal, social, political, and cultural history.

Quran, Hadith and other Islamic texts



 * Do you commit an abomination which no one in the world did before you? Surely you come to males with lust instead of females. Nay, you are a people exceeding bounds.
 * Lot, Quran 7:80-81


 * Quran (7:80-84) - "...For ye practice your lusts on men in preference to women: ye are indeed a people transgressing beyond bounds.... And we rained down on them a shower (of brimstone)"


 * Quran (26:165-166) - "Of all the creatures in the world, will ye approach males, "And leave those whom Allah has created for you to be your mates? Nay, ye are a people transgressing"


 * Quran (4:16) - "If two men among you are guilty of lewdness, punish them both. If they repent and amend, Leave them alone"
 * Yusuf Ali translation.


 * (We also sent) Lut (as a messenger): behold, He said to his people, "Do ye do what is shameful though ye see (its iniquity)? Would ye really approach men in your lusts rather than women? Nay, ye are a people (grossly) ignorant! But his people gave no other answer but this: they said, "Drive out the followers of Lut from your city: these are indeed men who want to be clean and pure!" Then We saved him and his household save his wife; We destined her to be of those who stayed behind. And We rained down on them a shower (of brimstone): and evil was the shower on those who were admonished (but heeded not)!
 * Quran 27:54


 * And (remember) Lut: behold, he said to his people: "Ye do commit lewdness, such as no people in Creation (ever) committed before you. "Do ye indeed approach men, and cut off the highway?- and practise wickedness (even) in your councils?" But his people gave no answer but this: they said: "Bring us the Wrath of Allah if thou tellest the truth." He said: "O my Lord! help Thou me against people who do mischief!" When Our Messengers came to Abraham with the good news, they said: "We are indeed going to destroy the people of this township: for truly they are (addicted to) crime."
 * Quran 29:28


 * Abu Dawud (4462) - The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, "Whoever you find doing the action of the people of Loot, execute the one who does it and the one to whom it is done." **Sahih hadith


 * Abu Dawud (4448) - "If a man who is not married is seized committing sodomy, he will be stoned to death."
 * Sunan Abu Dawud 38:4448


 * Narated By Abdullah ibn Abbas : The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: If you find anyone doing as Lot's people did, kill the one who does it, and the one to whom it is done.
 * Sunan Abu Dawud 38:4447


 * Narrated AbuSa'id al-Khudri: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: A man should not look at the private parts of another man, and a woman should not look at the private parts of another woman. A man should not lie with another man without wearing lower garment under one cover; and a woman should not be lie with another woman without wearing lower garment under one cover.
 * Sunan Abu Dawud 31:4007


 * Narrated AbuHurayrah: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: A man should not lie with another man and a woman should not lie with another woman without covering their private parts except a child or a father. He also mentioned a third thing which I forgot.
 * Sunan Abu Dawud 31:4008


 * AbuDawud said: From here I remembered this tradition from Mu'ammil and Musa: Beware! No man should lie with another man, no woman should lie with another woman except with one's child or father. He also mentioned a third which I have forgotten...
 * Sunan Abu Dawud 11:2169


 * Narrated AbuHurayrah: The Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) cursed the man who dressed like a woman and the woman who dressed like a man.
 * Sunan Abu Dawud 32:4087


 * Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin: Ibn AbuMulaykah told that when someone remarked to Aisha that a woman was wearing sandals, she replied: The Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) cursed mannish women.
 * Sunan Abu Dawud 32:4088


 * Sahih Bukhari (72:774) - "The Prophet cursed effeminate men (those men who are in the similitude (assume the manners of women) and those women who assume the manners of men, and he said, 'Turn them out of your houses .' The Prophet turned out such-and-such man, and 'Umar turned out such-and-such woman."


 * Narrated Ibn 'Abbas: The Prophet cursed effeminate men and those women who assume the similitude (manners) of men. He also said, "Turn them out of your houses." He turned out such-and-such person out, and 'Umar turned out such-and-such person.
 * Sahih Bukhari 8:82:820


 * al-Tirmidhi, Sunan 1:152 - [Muhammad said] "Whoever is found conducting himself in the manner of the people of Lot, kill the doer and the receiver."


 * It was narrated by Jaabir (may Allah be pleased with him): "The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: 'There is nothing I fear for my ummah more than the deed of the people of Loot.'"
 * Tirmidhi 1457


 * It was narrated from Abu Hurairah: that the Messenger of Allah cursed women who imitate men and men who imitate women. (Sahih)
 * Sunan Ibn Majah 3:9:1903


 * It was narrated from Ibn 'Abbas: that the Prophet cursed men who imitate women and woman who imitate men. (Sahih)
 * Sunan Ibn Majah 3:9:1904


 * It was narrated from Ibn`Abbas that the Messenger of Allah said: “Whoever you find doing the action of the people of Lut, kill the one who does it, and the one to whom it is done.” (Hasan)
 * Sunan Ibn Majah 3:20:2561


 * It was narrated from Abu Hurairah that the Prophet said concerning those who do the action of the people of Lut: “Stone the upper and the lower, stone them both.” (Hasan)
 * Sunan Ibn Majah 3:20:2562


 * Malik related to me that he asked Ibn Shihab about someone who committed sodomy. Ibn Shihab said, "He is to be stoned, whether or not he is muhsan."
 * Al-Muwatta 41:11


 * Reliance of the Traveller, p17.2 - "May Allah curse him who does what Lot's people did."


 * It was narrated that Ibn Abbaas said: “The Prophet Muhammed (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "... cursed is the one who has intercourse with an animal, cursed is the one who does the action of the people of Loot."
 * Narrated by Ahmad, 1878: Classed as saheeh by Shaykh al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Jaami’, no. 5891


 * Ibn Abbas and Abu Huraira reported God's messenger as saying, 'Accursed is he who does what Lot's people did.' In a version...on the authority of Ibn Abbas it says that Ali [Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law] had two people “burned” and that Abu Bakr [Muhammad's chief companion] had a wall thrown down on them.
 * Mishkat, vol. 1, p. 765, Prescribed Punishments


 * And when two of you (read wa’lladhāni or wa’lladhānni) men, commit it, that is, a lewd act, adultery or homosexual intercourse, punish them both, with insults and beatings with sandals; but if they repent, of this [lewd act], and make amends, through [good] action, then leave them be, and do not harm them. God ever turns [relenting], to those who repent, and is Merciful, to them. This [verse] is abrogated by the prescribed punishment if adultery is meant [by the lewd act], and similarly if homosexual intercourse is meant, according to al-Shāfi‘ī; but according to him, the person who is the object of the [penetrative] act is not stoned, even if he be married; rather, he is flogged and banished. Judging by the dual person pronoun, it seems more obvious that homosexual fornication is meant [by this verse], even though the former [sc. al-Shāfi‘ī] was of the opinion that it referred to an adulterer and an adulteress; but this [opinion of his] may be countered by the fact that [the reference to] the two [men] becomes clear on account of the particle min being attached to a masculine pronoun [minkum, ‘of you’], and by the fact that they suffer the same punishment, [both effect the action of] repentance and [are both granted] that they be left alone [thereafter], [all of] which applies specifically to men, given that for women detention is stipulated, as was stated before.
 * Al Jalalayn. Tafsir al-Jalalayn. http://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=74&tSoraNo=4&tAyahNo=16&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=2|title= Surah 4 Ayah 16|publisher= Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought|author= Feras Hamza (trans.)|series= Tafsir al-Jalalayn|date= |archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.altafsir.com%2FTafasir.asp%3FtMadhNo%3D0%26tTafsirNo%3D74%26tSoraNo%3D4%26tAyahNo%3D16%26tDisplay%3Dyes%26UserProfile%3D0%26LanguageId%3D2&date=2014-05-29


 * And the two persons among you who commit illegal sexual intercourse, punish them both. [Qur'an 4:16]) Ibn `Abbas and Sa`id bin Jubayr said that this punishment includes cursing, shaming them and beating them with sandals. This was the ruling until Allah abrogated it with flogging or stoning, as we stated. Mujahid said, "It was revealed about the case of two men who do it." As if he was referring to the actions of the people of Lut, and Allah knows best. The collectors of Sunan recorded that Ibn `Abbas said that the Messenger of Allah said,... Whoever you catch committing the act of the people of Lut (homosexuality), then kill both parties to the act.
 * Ibn Kathir. http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=698&Itemid=59|title= The Adulteress is Confined in her House; A Command Later Abrogated|publisher=Tafsir Ibn Kathir|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.qtafsir.com%2Findex.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26task%3Dview%26id%3D698%26Itemid%3D59&date=2014-05-29


 * "Do you commit lewdness such as none preceding you has committed in all of the nations Verily, you practice your lusts on men instead of women."... meaning, you left women whom Allah created for you and instead had sex with men Indeed, this behavior is evil and ignorant because you have placed things in their improper places.
 * Ibn Kathir. http://tafsir.com/default.asp?sid=7&tid=18236 The Story of Prophet Lut, upon Him be Peace, and His People] Tafsir 'Ibn Kathir


 * Both of them – fornication and homosexuality – involve immorality that goes against the wisdom of God’s creation and commandment. For homosexuality involves innumerable evil and harms, and the one to whom it is done would be better off being killed than having this done to him, because after that he will become so evil and so corrupt that there can be no hope of his being reformed, and all good is lost for him, and he will no longer feel any shame before God or before His creation. The semen of the one who did that to him will act as a poison on his body and soul. The scholars differed as to whether the one to whom it is done will ever enter Paradise. There are two opinions which I heard Shaykh al-Islam (may Allaah have mercy on him) narrate.”
 * Ibn al-Qayyim: Ad-Dā'i wa Dawā, p. 115

Quotes

 * Gay Muslim activists. That is a very rare job description. You guys have big ones.
 * Bill Maher in Religulous, the 2008 documentary film starring political comedian Bill Maher


 * Nowhere in the Quran does it say punish homosexuals. And historians have also never found any case of the Prophet Muhammad dealing with homosexuality.
 * Daayiee Abdullah, as quoted in First Gay ‘Imam’ in USA Says ‘Quran Doesn’t Call for Punishment of Homosexuals’ (22 May 2015), .


 * When I graduated from high school, I hoped that one day gay Americans would be able to get married. And now here I am 45 years later officiating same-sex marriages—how can I not be optimistic that the future is bright?
 * Daayiee Abdullah, as quoted in First Gay ‘Imam’ in USA Says ‘Quran Doesn’t Call for Punishment of Homosexuals’ (22 May 2015), .


 * Some don't believe that homosexuals can be pious. But we can be just as good at our faith as anyone else. We are simply different from other folks, not less committed to our faith.
 * Daayiee Abdullah, as quoted in First Gay ‘Imam’ in USA Says ‘Quran Doesn’t Call for Punishment of Homosexuals’ (22 May 2015), .


 * Some people are uncomfortable with gays, but your discomfort with my sexuality should not translate into me having less rights as an American.
 * Daayiee Abdullah, as quoted in First Gay ‘Imam’ in USA Says ‘Quran Doesn’t Call for Punishment of Homosexuals’ (22 May 2015), .


 * Even though homosexuality is considered a sin in all the Semitic holy books, it does not require any punishment in this world. It is a sin that will accompany its committee in the life after death.
 * Salman al-Ouda - Saudi cleric: 'Homosexuality not a deviation from Islam, should not be punished' (30 April 2016)


 * Homosexuals are not deviating from Islam. Homosexuality is a grave sin, but those who say that homosexuals deviate from Islam are the real deviators. By condemning homosexuals to death they are committing a graver sin than homosexuality itself.
 * Salman al-Ouda - Saudi cleric: 'Homosexuality not a deviation from Islam, should not be punished' (30 April 2016)


 * Even though homosexuality does not distance oneself from Islam, the Islam does not encourage individuals who have same-sex attraction to show their feelings in public.
 * Salman al-Ouda - Saudi cleric: 'Homosexuality not a deviation from Islam, should not be punished' (30 April 2016)


 * There are those who believe that the fight for gay rights, or indeed human rights in general, stops at the borders of Islam. Very few people seem to realise that they should not.  Of course we have legions of celebrities who are willing to sign letters calling for posthumous pardons for Alan Turing and others.  But how do these people select their targets?
 * Douglas Murray, "Why does the battle for gay rights stop at the borders of Islam?", The Spectator (3 February 2015)


 * The cities of Afghanistan and Sind are thoroughly saturated with Persian vice [i.e., homosexuality], and the people sing 'The worth of cunt the Afghan knows Kabul prefers the other "chose!" The Afghans are commercial travelers on a large scale and each caravan is accompanied by a number of boys and lads almost in woman's attire with khol'd eyes and rouged cheeks, long tresses and henna'd fingers and toes . . . they are called Kuch-i-safari or traveling wives.
 * Burton, Richard. The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night. 17 vols. London, n.d. 236 vol x. as quoted in Ibn Warraq, Why I am not a Muslim, 1995. p 341

Male homosexuality remains common in Afghanistan, as does harem lesbianism.
 * Burton found the cities of Afghan to be "saturated with the Persian vice" at the end of the nineteenth century. Afghan merchants were invariably, "accompanied by a number of boys and lads almost in woman's attire with kohl'd eyes and rouged cheeks, long tresses and henna'd fingers and toes, riding luxuriously in Kajawas or camel panniers. They are called Kuch-i safari or traveling wives, and the husbands trudge patiently by their sides.
 * "The Construction of Homosexuality", David F. Greenberg, University of Chicago Press, (9 December 1988) p.180

At first glance, the early Mongols appear to have been an exception to the broad pattern. The Great Yassa, a law code issued by Ghenghiz Khan or at his death for the still-pagan Mongol tribes around 1219, to supplement Mongolian customary law, mandated the death penalty for both sodomites and adulterers. This is not what one would expect in a tribe of nomadic pastoralists with a shamanistic religion. It seems likely that this severe penalty reflects the influence of Christians, Jews, or Moslems, to whom Ghengiz extended hospitality. Ghenghiz was himself illiterate, and might well have called on a literate foreigner to prepare a code of laws.
 * The Moslem rulers of India often maintained youthful male lovers, and male brothels flourished. Burton visited a number of them in 1845.
 * "The Construction of Homosexuality", David F. Greenberg, University of Chicago Press, (9 December 1988) p.181