Islamic Studies on Homosexuality
Omar Nahas, MA.
.
Is it possible for Muslims to talk about homosexuality in terms acceptable to their religion?
This is a primary question that needs to be answered if Muslims and non-Muslims are to discuss homosexuality and other related issues. It is also important for Muslims who want to discuss these issues among themselves for example, in conjunction with sexual education within the Muslim community.
I. Selected Passages from Islamic Sources:
The term sexuality and homosexuality are not a term found in the Koran. However, the concepts of sexuality and homosexuality can be directly perceived from texts from the Koran. There are two separate words for heterosexual sex relations inside and out of Islamic wedlock: Nikah and Zina.
There is no separate or special word in the Koran for homosexual sex relations. The Koran calls the acts against the people, from the prophet Lot ‘sayi’at’ (a general term meaning ‘bad things’). What those acts exactly were, can be found in the texts of the Koran. One of them is penetrating (Arab: ya’tun) males. This sexual activity, forbidden by the Koran, is referred to in the Koran with the verb (ya’tun) and followed by a noun as object. In Islamic texts, (liwata) is the acceptable term for ‘penetrating males’.
Lesbian sexual acts are referred to with the same verb (ya’tun), only in the feminine form and followed by the noun (fahisha). This is a general term and means ‘great sin’. The term that Islamic scholars use for sexual relations between women (sihak) is not in the Koran but instead in the pronouncements of the Prophet. Islam considers Lesbian sexual acts (sihak) an unacceptable form of sexual activity.
This brief explanation from Islamic sources make clear how important it is to study Islamic terms if we want to study homosexuality from an Islamic perspective.
II. Islamic View on Homosexuality
In order to discuss homosexuality in a manner acceptable in Islam, I have taken stock of the views on homosexuality according to Islam and based on Islamic literature. This point of view can be divided into six points:
1) Muslim scholars unanimously agreement that Islam rejects homosexual acts. However, it only becomes punishable when anal sex occurs in public (or is obvious, meaning where others can witness it).2) Islamic punishment for anal sex in public varies according to the situation. There is a light and a heavy punishment.3) The Juridical tradition has written that anal sex can only be punished if four witnesses saw the actual penetration with their own eyes and are prepared to act as witnesses. The sanction is actually against having sex in public, because the punishment is also applicable to heterosexual acts in public.4) The rule about ‘four witnesses’ weighs heavily. An accusation by someone without four witnesses (as evidence) is also punishable.5) Above all, the Islamic law is only applicable for Muslims who live in a country with an Islamic tradition and where Islamic law in implemented.6) The Islamic view of homosexuality doesn’t limit itself to strict statutory regulation. Islam recognizes that the sex drive is inherent in everyone. Islam has complete views concerning feminine and masculine homosexuality.
The above rules and summaries come from Islamic literature, written in Arabic and discussed in the Koran. Comparable summaries can be found in various Koran exegeses and other Islamic sources, in the languages of the Moslem world. These ideas are familiar with those who know Islam, regardless of origin.
The six points, seen in their entirety, give a rather negative impression of the Muslim viewpoint on homosexuality. Besides this view is a more positive one of the nuances and specifications from these concisely formulated points. These nuances and specifications can be found in the Islamic literature itself. The YOESUF Foundation and the people who work in an emancipatory yet Islamic way of discussing homosexuality will certainly give attention to these nuances in the coming years.
The image surrounding Islam and homosexuality depends upon the way in which people manage the above mentioned rules in discussion. When people stress the punishability of homosexual sex (as discussed in the point one) and negate the condition of public acts and the nature of human sexuality, they draw a much more negative picture than Muslim scholars intended. Both the four witnesses? rule and the pre-condition that Islamic law is only applicable in strict Islamic countries are very important. These laws have no consequences for the gay and lesbian lives (of Muslim or non-Muslims) in the Netherlands, the West or in not very strict Muslim countries.
This viewpoint is indeed Islamic but not practiced by all Muslims in their daily lives. Islam is practiced and interpreted in different ways by Muslims from different cultures. In Turkey and in Egypt, the religion is the same but the people give it different meaning. The local cultures give Islam its own Turkish or Egyptian flavor.In daily practice, people from the same culture have different opinions on the subject. Islamic scholars and sexual freedom fighters try to influence these opinions in a number of ways. But because homosexuality is not a word found in the Koran, the discussion quickly becomes difficult. Even intellectuals with Islamic backgrounds use the same terms but give them different meanings. The term ‘al Shuzuz al Jinsi’ (literally translated as ‘the sexual deviation’) is used by Arabs (incorrectly) as a synonym for homosexuality. The general public does not understand the literal translation for homosexuality ‘Aljinsiya al mithliah’ or ‘Junusiyya’. As a result, the Arabic newspaper (Aljisr) in the Netherlands uses the more negative ‘al Shuzuz al jinsi’ instead of ‘Junusiyya’. The consequences of this are obvious! It is possible to relativise these consequences in the context of the emancipation process, but the difference in the meaning of the different terms which are wrongly used as synonyms remains too great to be acceptable. That shows the importance of researching the origins of the perception of homosexuality as a sexual deviation in order to make discussion possible.Hereby is the difference between the Islamic view of homosexuality and the cultural viewpoint of Muslim cultures on this subject clearer; Islam considers homosexuality a sin but many Muslim cultures view it as a sexual deviation as well as a sin.
In addition to the aforementioned, there are also less well known nuances for Muslims concerning homosexuality. Because these give a more positive image of homosexuality, they are unfortunately viewed with suspicion. Advocates of this line of thought are suspected of all sorts of ulterior motives and often oppressed. For example, Mohammed Jalal Kishk’s book of stories entitled Muslim’s Ideas About Sexuality . The author gives his views on sexuality and homosexuality in paradise. Because of its rosy descriptions, the book first had to be examined by an Islamic commission chosen by al- Azhar. The commission was objective enough to release the book. But the Egyptian media was ruthless in its contempt the book, the members of the commission and Al- Azhar University.
The above examples, especially the last, clearly illustrate that homosexuality can be discussed in Muslim circles, but it remains a sensitive subject. This sensitivity must be kept in mind, especially when providing informational services on the homosexuality. Information must not clash with Islamic values and it should be made clear that Islamic ideas are respected, whether people personally agree or not. To achieve this, it is important to be open to advice and criticism from Islamic scholars and from the Muslim community. Above all, the information that is provided must be clear on the sources of that information.
Is it possible for Muslims to talk about homosexuality in terms acceptable to their religion?
This is a primary question that needs to be answered if Muslims and non-Muslims are to discuss homosexuality and other related issues. It is also important for Muslims who want to discuss these issues among themselves for example, in conjunction with sexual education within the Muslim community.
I. Selected Passages from Islamic Sources:
The term sexuality and homosexuality are not a term found in the Koran. However, the concepts of sexuality and homosexuality can be directly perceived from texts from the Koran. There are two separate words for heterosexual sex relations inside and out of Islamic wedlock: Nikah and Zina.
There is no separate or special word in the Koran for homosexual sex relations. The Koran calls the acts against the people, from the prophet Lot ‘sayi’at’ (a general term meaning ‘bad things’). What those acts exactly were, can be found in the texts of the Koran. One of them is penetrating (Arab: ya’tun) males. This sexual activity, forbidden by the Koran, is referred to in the Koran with the verb (ya’tun) and followed by a noun as object. In Islamic texts, (liwata) is the acceptable term for ‘penetrating males’.
Lesbian sexual acts are referred to with the same verb (ya’tun), only in the feminine form and followed by the noun (fahisha). This is a general term and means ‘great sin’. The term that Islamic scholars use for sexual relations between women (sihak) is not in the Koran but instead in the pronouncements of the Prophet. Islam considers Lesbian sexual acts (sihak) an unacceptable form of sexual activity.
This brief explanation from Islamic sources make clear how important it is to study Islamic terms if we want to study homosexuality from an Islamic perspective.
II. Islamic View on Homosexuality
In order to discuss homosexuality in a manner acceptable in Islam, I have taken stock of the views on homosexuality according to Islam and based on Islamic literature. This point of view can be divided into six points:
1) Muslim scholars unanimously agreement that Islam rejects homosexual acts. However, it only becomes punishable when anal sex occurs in public (or is obvious, meaning where others can witness it).2) Islamic punishment for anal sex in public varies according to the situation. There is a light and a heavy punishment.3) The Juridical tradition has written that anal sex can only be punished if four witnesses saw the actual penetration with their own eyes and are prepared to act as witnesses. The sanction is actually against having sex in public, because the punishment is also applicable to heterosexual acts in public.4) The rule about ‘four witnesses’ weighs heavily. An accusation by someone without four witnesses (as evidence) is also punishable.5) Above all, the Islamic law is only applicable for Muslims who live in a country with an Islamic tradition and where Islamic law in implemented.6) The Islamic view of homosexuality doesn’t limit itself to strict statutory regulation. Islam recognizes that the sex drive is inherent in everyone. Islam has complete views concerning feminine and masculine homosexuality.
The above rules and summaries come from Islamic literature, written in Arabic and discussed in the Koran. Comparable summaries can be found in various Koran exegeses and other Islamic sources, in the languages of the Moslem world. These ideas are familiar with those who know Islam, regardless of origin.
The six points, seen in their entirety, give a rather negative impression of the Muslim viewpoint on homosexuality. Besides this view is a more positive one of the nuances and specifications from these concisely formulated points. These nuances and specifications can be found in the Islamic literature itself. The YOESUF Foundation and the people who work in an emancipatory yet Islamic way of discussing homosexuality will certainly give attention to these nuances in the coming years.
The image surrounding Islam and homosexuality depends upon the way in which people manage the above mentioned rules in discussion. When people stress the punishability of homosexual sex (as discussed in the point one) and negate the condition of public acts and the nature of human sexuality, they draw a much more negative picture than Muslim scholars intended. Both the four witnesses? rule and the pre-condition that Islamic law is only applicable in strict Islamic countries are very important. These laws have no consequences for the gay and lesbian lives (of Muslim or non-Muslims) in the Netherlands, the West or in not very strict Muslim countries.
This viewpoint is indeed Islamic but not practiced by all Muslims in their daily lives. Islam is practiced and interpreted in different ways by Muslims from different cultures. In Turkey and in Egypt, the religion is the same but the people give it different meaning. The local cultures give Islam its own Turkish or Egyptian flavor.In daily practice, people from the same culture have different opinions on the subject. Islamic scholars and sexual freedom fighters try to influence these opinions in a number of ways. But because homosexuality is not a word found in the Koran, the discussion quickly becomes difficult. Even intellectuals with Islamic backgrounds use the same terms but give them different meanings. The term ‘al Shuzuz al Jinsi’ (literally translated as ‘the sexual deviation’) is used by Arabs (incorrectly) as a synonym for homosexuality. The general public does not understand the literal translation for homosexuality ‘Aljinsiya al mithliah’ or ‘Junusiyya’. As a result, the Arabic newspaper (Aljisr) in the Netherlands uses the more negative ‘al Shuzuz al jinsi’ instead of ‘Junusiyya’. The consequences of this are obvious! It is possible to relativise these consequences in the context of the emancipation process, but the difference in the meaning of the different terms which are wrongly used as synonyms remains too great to be acceptable. That shows the importance of researching the origins of the perception of homosexuality as a sexual deviation in order to make discussion possible.Hereby is the difference between the Islamic view of homosexuality and the cultural viewpoint of Muslim cultures on this subject clearer; Islam considers homosexuality a sin but many Muslim cultures view it as a sexual deviation as well as a sin.
In addition to the aforementioned, there are also less well known nuances for Muslims concerning homosexuality. Because these give a more positive image of homosexuality, they are unfortunately viewed with suspicion. Advocates of this line of thought are suspected of all sorts of ulterior motives and often oppressed. For example, Mohammed Jalal Kishk’s book of stories entitled Muslim’s Ideas About Sexuality . The author gives his views on sexuality and homosexuality in paradise. Because of its rosy descriptions, the book first had to be examined by an Islamic commission chosen by al- Azhar. The commission was objective enough to release the book. But the Egyptian media was ruthless in its contempt the book, the members of the commission and Al- Azhar University.
The above examples, especially the last, clearly illustrate that homosexuality can be discussed in Muslim circles, but it remains a sensitive subject. This sensitivity must be kept in mind, especially when providing informational services on the homosexuality. Information must not clash with Islamic values and it should be made clear that Islamic ideas are respected, whether people personally agree or not. To achieve this, it is important to be open to advice and criticism from Islamic scholars and from the Muslim community. Above all, the information that is provided must be clear on the sources of that information.
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