Is it permissible for a young man to masturbate out of fear of falling into unlawful sexual intercourse?

The Shaykh : I am often asked, as are others, about the permissibility of what is called today: the secret habit. In old Arabic, it is known as al-istimna', which is the extraction of semen by a man playing with himself. We are often asked about this: is it permissible in the Shari'ah for one who is overcome by desire, or not? Especially since the question is usually accompanied by the fear of falling into the major sin, meaning the question is phrased like this: "Is it permissible for a young man to masturbate out of fear of falling into unlawful sexual intercourse?" The answer is: it is not permissible, for two reasons. The first reason is that this play is contrary to the prescribed method for a person to satisfy his desire. This is what is explicitly stated in the words of Allah—Blessed and Exalted is He: That is, those who transgress, who wrong themselves, by opposing the Shari'ah of their Lord, who showed them the way to release their desire. There are two ways: one is marriage, which is known permanently and eternally, and the other is taking concubines, which is absent today. We have lost it because we turned away from obeying Allah—Mighty and Majestic—in many of the rulings of His Shari'ah, including jihad in the path of Allah. For there is no way to reach taking concubines except through fighting the disbelievers who prevent people from the path of Allah—Blessed and Exalted is He. So when captives from these disbelievers fall into the hands of the Muslims, whether the captives are men or women, they become slaves, and the women become slave-girls, concubines for the husbands who obtained the concubines from their share.
This taking of concubines today—because of turning away from jihad in the path of Allah—Mighty and Majestic—
unfortunately, does not exist. We ask Allah—Blessed and Exalted is He—to return the Muslims to acting upon the rulings of their religion, including jihad in the path of Allah—Mighty and Majestic. And it is not for the sake of taking concubines, because taking concubines is not the goal; rather, it is a fruit and a result. The goal is jihad so that the word of Allah—Blessed and Exalted is He—may be the highest. If the way is limited today to marriage, then every young man must strive earnestly for lawful marriage. There is no doubt that matters are tied to their times, as Allah—Mighty and Majestic—said. So until it becomes easy for this Muslim young man to marry, he should fast, because fasting serves as a restraint for him. As for masturbation, it is not the way to treat what we mentioned earlier from the noble verse: That is, those who transgress, who wrong themselves. Second, it is a contradiction of this educational means to which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) encouraged the youth to resort when they do not have the ability to marry. Third and finally, it has been medically established that masturbation has many, many harms. Sometimes among its effects is that the one afflicted with masturbation is not fit to be a husband later, because he suffers from a little or a lot of relaxation. Therefore, the youth should fear Allah—Mighty and Majestic, be patient, and follow the advice of their Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): Yes.

The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.

The Shaykh: Amen.