The Punishment for Sodomy

Question : The questioner says: I hope you will clarify the punishment for sodomy?

Answer : Sodomy, may Allah protect us from it, means the act of a male with a male. You know what Allah related to us about the story of the people of Lut, and that Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, destroyed their land, turning its top to its bottom, and may Allah protect us from it, He destroyed it completely. This indicates that it is a heinous and ugly act. For this reason, their Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to them: Then he said: And regarding zina, Allah the Exalted said: The word "fahishah" (immorality) is milder than the word "al-fahishah" (the extreme immorality), because the meaning of "al-fahishah" is that which has reached the peak of obscenity, may Allah protect us from it. Thus, sodomy is greater than zina. For this reason, the scholars differed on it. Some scholars said that its hudud punishment is like the hudud punishment for zina: if the act is committed by someone who is not married, he is flogged one hundred lashes and exiled for one year; if he is married, he is stoned to death. Some scholars held that the one who commits sodomy, may Allah protect us from it, and the one with whom it is committed, if they are both adults and of sound mind, must be executed, whether they are married or not. This is the truth, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned that the Companions agreed on killing him, but they differed on how he should be killed. Some said the active and passive parties should be burned with fire. Some said they should be stoned with stones. Some said they should be thrown from the highest place in the city and then stoned. The important point is that the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) agreed on killing the active and passive parties. This is the truth, and the punishment for sodomy is killing in all cases, provided that both the active and passive parties are adults and of sound mind. As for if one is below the age of discernment or has a deficient intellect, meaning below the age of puberty or has a deficient intellect, then they are given a discretionary punishment (ta'zir) that is sufficient to deter them and others like them from this reprehensible act. The reason the hudud punishment for the one who commits sodomy and the one with whom it is committed is stoning to death in all cases is that this act is extremely ugly, and because it is not possible to guard against it, unlike zina. Zina with women can be guarded against by keeping women away from men. But men with each other, males with each other, it is not possible to guard against it by separating them from each other, since it is not possible to say to two young men, for example, who are walking together, "separate." But if you find a young man with a young woman, you can say, "What is this woman doing here?" Therefore, since it is not possible to guard against it and its obscenity is great, it was wise that the active party be killed.