Suicide as seen in Islam
Every breath of a human, every moment of his or hers life
in all Religious traditions, their teachings, their guidance, their viewpoints,
their perspectives is worth more than a priceless gem. These breaths the human
being takes in order to survive in life and the moments of life itself are like
the pearls of a necklace. Just as a pearl will embellish the appearance of that
neck that wears the necklace of pearls, in the same way the life of a
individual is enhanced by that person who looks after the moments of his life.
No Treasure trove of any Ruler, no Sultanate of any Sultan, no Kingdom of any
King, no Rulership of any Queen in tantamount is equal in value to one moment
of an individuals life. Life in-fact in numerous places of the Quraan, either
directly or indirectly, is described by Allah as a favour on human beings. In one
verse of the Quraan, Allah says, " How can you disbelieve? Seeing
that you were dead and He gave you life. Then He will give you death, then
again will bring you to life (on the Day of Resurrection) and then unto Him you
will return." (Surah Al-Baqarah Verse 28)
Out
of all the bounties Allah has bestowed upon human beings, the most precious is
the gift of life. Each one us should remember that this life Allah has granted
us, it is not our personal possession or our personal property. In-fact it is a
trust from Allah, making us merely trustees. Because we are trustees we should
utilise each and every moment of our lives in the paths that please Allah.
In one verse of
the Quraan Allah informs mankind,
"And I (Allah) created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me (Alone)". (Surah Adh-Dhariyat Verse 56)
"And I (Allah) created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me (Alone)". (Surah Adh-Dhariyat Verse 56)
From this verse we
can learn the reason why Allah created mankind.
How precious is
this gift of life, we can learn through the Holy Quraan, Ahadeeth (Traditions
and Sayings of Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him)) and the Shariah (Islamic
Law).
For instance, in
one verse of the Quraan, Allah says,
"He has
forbidden you only the carrion (flesh of dead animals), and blood, and flesh of
swine, and that which is slaughtered as a sacrifice for others than Allah (or
has been slaughtered for idols, on which Allah’s Name has not been mentioned
whilst slaughtering). But if one is forced by necessity without wilful disobedience
nor transgressing due limits, then there is no sin on him. Truly, Allah is
Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful."(Surah Al-Baqarah Verse 173)
In the closing
stages of this verse Allah talks about one who is forced to consume Haraam
(unlawful) items due to the fear of death. Allah says, then there is no sin in
him. For example, one is in severe hunger, such hunger that could lead to ones
death, he consumes something that is Haraam (unlawful) e.g. Carrion, on the Day
of Judgement he will not be questioned regarding these Haraam (Unlawful) items
he consumed in order to save his life. Similarly one is fasting in the Month of
Ramadhaan and severe thirst over-takes him, again it is permissible for him to
break his fast in order to saves ones life. Even if he broke the fast by
consuming Haraam (Unlawful) fluids e.g. Blood, Alcohol he will not be
questioned regarding this. From this verse we can undoubtedly acknowledge how
precious and valuable life is in the eyes of The Almighty Allah.
Life
in many people’s opinion is a journey. Some even sees it as a pilgrimage. In
the Islamic perspective it is a journey far beyond death. It is like a trip
around the world. We stop in many different Continents, Countries, Cities,
Towns and Villages. Some bring happiness and some give us grief. The white
beaches, beautiful rainforests, buildings etc would force a smile on the face
of many a person regardless of what grief he is in, but the sight of the poor,
war-stricken and weak will give one intense grief. Life is a test from Allah,
He tests people in various ways and times. He tests some by blessing them with
countless bounties to see if the servant appreciates what he has been blessed
with by Allah and he shows gratitude towards Allah for blessing him with these
bounties. At times Allah in his infinite wisdom, puts a person in intense
grief, to see if the servant turns to Allah and seeks guidance and help.
Excellent examples
of both situations are found in the life and story of the Prophet of Allah,
Ayyub (AS). Allah granted him many bounties, then he gave him such illness that
the people around him could not bear. Prophet Ayyub (AS) turned to Allah for
help and Allah in his infinite mercy returned all the past bounties upon him.
In some narrations it has been said that Allah gave him more bounties than the
amount he had before his illness.
In the Quraan
Allah has mentioned the call for help of Prophet Ayyub (AS). Allah says:
"And
(Remember) Ayyub (Job), when he cried to his Lord: "Verily, distress has
seized me, and you are the Most Merciful of all those who show mercy". So
We answered his call, and removed the distress that was on him, and We restored
his family to him (that he had lost) and the like thereof along with them as a
mercy from Ourselves and a reminder for all those who worship Us. (Surah
Al-Anbiya Verse 83-84)
In
another Surah of the Quraan Allah says regarding Prophet Ayyub (AS):
"And
remember Our slave Ayyub (Job), when he invoked his Lord (saying):"Verily
Satan has touched me with distress (by ruining my health) and torment (by
ruining my wealth)! (Allah said to him): "Strike the ground with your
foot: This is (a spring of) water to wash in, cool and a (refreshing)
drink". And We gave him back his family, and along with them the like
thereof, as a Mercy from Us, and a Reminder for those who understand."And
take in your hand a bundle of thin grass and strike therewith (your wife), and
break not your oath. Truly, We found him patient. How excellent a slave!
Verily, he was ever oft- returning in repentance (to Us).
Like Prophet
Ayyub, each and every one of us is tested by Allah in someway or another. Some
turn to Allah and seek help, as in the case of Prophet Ayyub and others turn
completely to the opposite side, which leaves many in grief. These people upon
whom many grieve and mourn are the people who have turned to suicide.
Suicide,
or self-killing, has been known throughout the whole of recorded history and
has been a phenomenon in every culture and social setting. It was noted in the
Biblical Times within the Jewish and Christian faiths. It is mentioned in the
Bhagavad Gita within the Hindu faith, in classical Greece and Rome, and later
throughout the Middle-Ages, when the reaction to the heresy of suicide was
severe hostility from the Universal Church, whose later fathers railed against
the canonical sin of despair.
Suicide occurs in
every culture, not only in the Western developed world, but also in India,
China and, despite severe theological prohibitions, in Islam.
Within
the Judaeo-Christian tradition, there are eleven instances of suicide described
in the Bible's Old Testament and one in the New Testament. Perhaps the most
famous death in the former is the suicide of King Saul following his defeat in
the hands of the Philistines, heard in David’s lament, and ‘how are the mighty
fallen’. Saul had sought the assistance of his bodyguard to help kill himself.
The soldier was horrified at the irreligious notion of killing his appointed
King, and turned the sword upon himself. Saul, apparently aided by such an
example, then followed suit. It appears that the avert prohibition against
suicide was first formerly pronounced by Saint Augustine, who in his City of
God describes the action as a ‘moral sin’.
The
Church did not always condemn suicide when, for example, following some severe
assault, such as rape, the victim took a ‘virtuous’ or honourable way out. She
could then claim sympathy and the forgiveness of her society and family, in both
Roman and Christian times.
As
shown, neither the Judaic nor Christian parts of the Bible are there direct
injunctions against suicide. However, this is not the case in the traditions of
the true religion, Islam, which continues to be a major influence upon many
Islamic people.
There are a few
quite specific sanctions expressed in the Quraan against self-killing. The
Prophet Muhammad (SAW) also assigns suicide to the lower levels of Hell.
Allah says
explicitly in the Quraan,
"And do not kill yourselves. Surely, Allah is Most Merciful to you". (Surah An-Nisa Verse 29)
"And do not kill yourselves. Surely, Allah is Most Merciful to you". (Surah An-Nisa Verse 29)
In another verse
of the Quraan, Allah says:
"And do not throw yourselves in destruction". (Surah Al-Baqarah Verse 195)
"And do not throw yourselves in destruction". (Surah Al-Baqarah Verse 195)
The
impact of this injunction still has considerable force in Islamic countries,
and it may be one reason why, with the exception of Jordan and Turkey, there is
no recorded suicide in national statistics of the Islamic Nations. But, in the
last decade or so there has been a substantial increase of suicide in Muslims
living in Non-Muslim countries, namely Britain and America.
The
current attitude and dilemmas, unlike in previous times, suicide can be
discussed relatively easily today, even within the mass media of the late
twentieth century. For example, in the worldwide magazine Time there have been
three major articles concerning suicide, which while acknowledging dilemmas,
were mainly concerned with where firm baselines should be drawn, accepting
without question the ‘obvious’ rationality of such actions in many situations.
Yet a little more than 100 years ago, Robert Louis Stevenson, in what was
considered to be a horrendous book, The Suicide Club, found himself almost at
the extreme end of the case of language, because he could not describe in
sufficiently villainous terms the leader of this ‘devilish’ club. Constantly,
modern poets and novelist have almost celebrated suicide.
The
reasons that lead a person to commit suicide are as numerous and complex as the
thousands of people who do so every year. Below are a few contributing causes
of suicide:
Unipolar affective disorder
(Depression)
The
mental disorder usually called ‘depression’ is now described as ‘unipolar
affective disorder’. The term depression is of course problematic, in that a
low mood, or sometimes a feeling of emotional glumness, of living ‘out of
sorts’ or ‘fed up’, is a frequent experience for many people. In this sense it
is ‘normal’ and many people can feel ‘depressed’ without having depression.
There is another side to this coin, where a person can feel particularly well,
‘on a high’ or with a feeling of well being. This can be the experience of a
large number of people without it being felt, thought or observed as a problem
or a disorder. A person simply feels in a ‘good mood’.
The causes of depression are many:
The causes of depression are many:
1.
Mood: There is a profound disturbance of mood, which is one of the prevailing
sadness and misery.
2.
Cognition (To think deeply): There is an important disturbance of cognition, so
that everything around them is interpreted dismally. Sufferers can believe they
are hateful, worthless and, at the extreme, that they are already dead and
responsible for the evils in the world.
3.
Energy: There are very often tell-tale changes in mood and energy, in which the
mood is especially low in the early morning hours, with relative lighting of
misery in the afternoon.
4.
Sleep: There is a disturbance of sleep, where it is quite usual for a person to
be able to sleep almost as soon as going to bed, but with early waking,
sometimes accompanied by quite enclosed changes of mood.
5.
Appetite: There is a loss in appetite, and an apparently liked food turns to
such, that you cannot bear the sight of it.
6.
Stress: Stress at work, home, school etc can cause severe depression which can
lead to suicide.
One
of the most common sentiments expressed by many of those who resort to suicidal
behaviour is a sense of detachment from others. This is not so much physical
isolation but refers more to a sense of moral insulation, where the individual
has come to define his, or her, situation as so hopeless that others cannot
help to put it right.
Addiction
to drugs and alcohol, in this day and age, has become a major factor, which
leads a person to suicide. In the past few months the media around the world
have shown many cases of suicide due to drug use. Some have also predicted if
drugs like cannabis was to be made legal, the death toll will increase due to
this. The media have shown the devastating effects suicide has on the society
around the world through drug use.
One
may feel isolated after the death or separation from family members or friends.
Loss of a relative/friend causes immense grief, which may cause one to think
about suicide. Some commit suicide thinking they will join the dead in the
grave.
This many times has the same effect as the death of a loved one. Sometimes it may, make some feel life is not worth living.
One
who is large debts, thinking he will never be able to pay-up and may resort to
suicide, thinking he will no more have this burdensome responsibility on his
head, leaving his next of kin this problem.
Severe
sicknesses, which one cannot bear, can lead one to take his life. In many cases
taking help from others in doing this act (Euthanasia).
(Above
are only a few reasons why one may resort into taking his own life. Many others
can be found through thorough research.)
Few
events in life have the same impact on us as the suicide of a friend or a loved
one. The loss of a loved one, from any cause, brings out intense grief and
mourning. The response and emotions felt by the bereaved following suicide are
very different to those felt after other types of deaths. The fact that a loved
one's death appears to involve an element of choice, raise painful questions
which deaths from natural or accidental causes do not. Bereavement by suicide
is usually prolonged. The grief is characterised by agonising, questioning and
the search for some explanation as to why the death of his loved one has
happened. Bereavement in this way often encompasses strong feelings of abandonment
and rejection.
The sense of shock
and disbelief following suicide is very intense. The most common and disturbing
aspect of grief after suicide is recurring images of death, even if it was not
witnessed. The finding of the body can be a traumatic experience. Going over
and over the very frightening and painful images of the death, and the feelings
these create, is a normal process of grief.
Newly
bereaved people always ask ‘why?’ However bereavement through suicide often
involves a prolonged search for a reason or explanation to tragedy. Most people
bereaved by suicide usually come to accept that they will never know the reason
why a loved one did what they did. In the search for answers, different members
of the same family may have different ideas as to why he/she took their life,
it could strain family relationships, especially if an element of blame is
involved.
Below,
I have included statistics, which I have obtained for many different sources,
including The Samaritans (www.thesamaritans.org).
· The World Health Organisation estimates that in the year 2002 approximately 1.1million people will die from suicide
· A global mortality rate of 17 per 100,000
· One death every 40 seconds from suicide
· In the last 45 years suicide rates have increased by 65% worldwide.
· Suicide is now among the three leading causes of death amongst those aged 14-44(both sexes)
· Suicide attempts are up to 20 times more frequent than completed suicide
· Although suicide rates have traditionally been highest amongst the elderly, rates among young people have been increasing to such a rate that they are now the group at highest risk in a third of all countries
· More people die from suicide than homicide in the USA, in 1997 there were 1.5 times as many suicides as homicide
· Mental disorders (particularly depression and substance abuse) are associated with more than 90% of all causes of suicide
· Males are four times more likely to die from suicide than women are. However , females are more likely to attempt suicide than males
· 2 suicides every day by young people in the UK and Republic of Ireland
· 80% of suicides by young men
· Suicide accounts for a fifth of all deaths of young people
· An estimated 24,000 adolescents self-harmed in 1998 – 3 every hour
· Alcohol and substance misuse are significant factors in youth suicide
· Contributory factors to youth suicide include unemployment, social isolation, recent inter personal life events and difficulties with parents, peers and partners
· 6,216 suicides in the UK, 439 suicides in the Republic of Ireland
· One suicide every 79 minutes in the UK and the Republic of Ireland
· More than two young people commit suicide every day in the UK
· Suicide figures are double the death toll from road traffic accidents
· Suicide is now the second most common cause of death in the UK for young people aged between 15-24
· People who make suicide attempts or threats are not just "attention seeking", but are at the risk of harming themselves
· Most suicidal people are undecided about living or dying, and try beforehand to let others know how they are feeling, or give clues or warnings
· Somebody tries to take his own life every three minutes
· In any given week, at least 463,000 people have serious thoughts about suicide
· Every year around 2500 children or young people phone child-line about feeling suicidal
· Overdosing accounts for 50% of female suicides and 25% of male suicides
· Under 25 year olds account for 9.26% of all suicides in East Lancashire. Of which 2.3% are of Asian heritage
Statistics
about suicide are difficult to collate, and many are inaccurate because of the
sensitivity of the issue. According to some research suicide rates are 50%-60%
higher than the official rate.
There
are three areas where the law is relevant to suicide. First, while attempting
to commit suicide has not been illegal in Britain since 1961, it is still a
criminal offence under the ‘Suicide Act 1961’ to help someone commit suicide.
Second, health professionals who do not take reasonable precautions to safeguard
a suicidal patient who then goes on to commit suicide may be sued for
negligence in the civil courts. Third, in some cases, people felt to be at
grave risk of harming themselves can be detained for their own safety under the
‘Mental Health Act 1983’ (England and Wales), 1984 (Scotland), or ‘Mental
Health Order 1986’ (Northern Ireland).
Our
Beloved Prophet Muhammad (SAW) mentioned suicide many times, a few of these
incidents are recorded in Muhammad Ibn Ismael's, 'Sahih Al-Bukhari'. In one
incident narrated by Thabit bin Ad-Dahhak (RA): the Prophet (SAW) said,
"Whoever intentionally swears falsely by a religion other than Islam, then
he is what he has said, (e.g. if he says, 'If such thing is not true then I am
a Jew,' he is really a Jew if he is a liar). And whoever commits suicide with a
piece of iron, he will be punished with the same piece of iron in the
Hell-fire."
Narrated
by Jundub: The Prophet (SAW) said, "A man was inflicted with wounds and he
commited suicide, and so Allah said: My slave has caused death on himself
hurriedly, so I forbid Paradise for him."
Narrated by Abu Hurairah (RA): The Prophet (SAW) said, "He who commits suicide by throttling shall keep on throttling himself in the Hell-fire (forever), and he who commits suicide by stabbing himself, he shall keep stabbing himself in the Hell-fire (forever)."
Narrated by Abu Hurairah (RA): The Prophet (SAW) said, "He who commits suicide by throttling shall keep on throttling himself in the Hell-fire (forever), and he who commits suicide by stabbing himself, he shall keep stabbing himself in the Hell-fire (forever)."
From
the sayings of Allah and his Prophet (SAW), we can see suicide is not accepted
in Islam and we can also see through other sources, it is also prohibited in
other religions.
If
one is thinking of committing suicide he should think about his friends and
family, then he should turn to Allah and ask for his help. Talking to the
Scholars and others would also help. Confidential information is also available
through your GP. Many centres also offer help for people in these troubled
times.
May
Allah save us from this sin and give us all guidance to the straight path. May
Allah save us from all types of grief and give us all entrance into Paradise. –
Aameen.
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