What is the ruling on one who kills himself, and how are the texts that state his eternal abode in the Fire reconciled with the texts that state that the people of tawhid (the oneness of Allah) are not eternally abiding in the Fire?
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The questioner : He says:The questioner : Noble Shaykh, what is the ultimate fate of the one who kills himself in the Hereafter, and how do you reconcile the texts indicating his eternal abode in the Fire with the other texts ruling that the people of tawhid (the oneness of Allah) are not eternally abiding in the Fire? I hope you will provide us with information on this, and may Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : It is obligatory for us regarding these texts to believe in them as they appear, because their speaker is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he is the most knowledgeable about his intended meaning, and he is the most eloquent of creation. It is not possible for him to emphasize this emphasis—"eternally, abiding in it forever"—unless he knows what follows from it.
So it can be said: that this is an exception, and that the one who kills himself is not forgiven, like the mushrik (one who associates partners with Allah).
Or it can be said: that when he killed himself, there was no faith in his heart, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Sahih al-Bukhari 6862 And if the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih al-Bukhari 2475 then this is the most severe case of one who kills himself. So we answer this with one of two things:
Either it can be said that this is an exception, and that the one who kills himself is like the mushrik (one who associates partners with Allah) and is not forgiven.
The second is: that when he killed himself, he was stripped of faith, and faith had completely departed from him, so that this Prophetic ruling from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)—that he is eternally abiding in the Fire of Hell—becomes true. We ask Allah for safety and well-being. Yes.
The Shaykh : It is obligatory for us regarding these texts to believe in them as they appear, because their speaker is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he is the most knowledgeable about his intended meaning, and he is the most eloquent of creation. It is not possible for him to emphasize this emphasis—"eternally, abiding in it forever"—unless he knows what follows from it.
So it can be said: that this is an exception, and that the one who kills himself is not forgiven, like the mushrik (one who associates partners with Allah).
Or it can be said: that when he killed himself, there was no faith in his heart, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
remains at liberty regarding his religion unless he kills somebody unlawfully
لا يزال الرجل في فسحة من دينه ما لم يصب دما حراماand when a robber robs, and the people look at him, then he is not a believer at the time of doing robbery.
لا ينتهب نهبة يرفع الناس إليه فيها أبصارهم حين ينتهبها وهو مؤمنEither it can be said that this is an exception, and that the one who kills himself is like the mushrik (one who associates partners with Allah) and is not forgiven.
The second is: that when he killed himself, he was stripped of faith, and faith had completely departed from him, so that this Prophetic ruling from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)—that he is eternally abiding in the Fire of Hell—becomes true. We ask Allah for safety and well-being. Yes.