Author: Dr. Muhammad Zia-ur-Rahman Al-Azmi رحمه الله
In the science of Uṣūl al-Fiqh (Islamic legal methodology), it is a well-known fact that there existed a revealed verse concerning the punishment of stoning.
Imām al-Bukhārī and Imām Muslim both recorded the following narration:
ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb رضي الله عنه once stood to deliver a sermon in which he praised Allah and said:
“O people! Indeed Allah sent Muḥammad ﷺ with the truth and revealed the Book upon him.
Among what was revealed to him was the verse of stoning (Āyat al-Rajm).
We recited it, understood it, and remembered it.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ carried out stoning, and we also stoned after him.
I fear that, with the passage of time, someone may say:
‘We do not find the verse of stoning in the Book of Allah’,
and thus they may go astray by abandoning an obligation that Allah revealed.”
Hence, when a married man or woman commits adultery, and the guilt is established either:
[Sunan Abī Dāwūd, Ḥadīth no. 4418]
Rajm is applied when:
① The offender is legally married,
② Adultery is proven either through:
This ruling is part of divine law (Sharīʿah), and rejecting it due to its absence in the Qur’an is misguidance, since Allah has also commanded the application of His rulings through the Sunnah.
[Al-Lajnah al-Dā’imah: Fatwa no. 6194]
❖ The Verse of Rajm (Stoning) and Its Status
In the science of Uṣūl al-Fiqh (Islamic legal methodology), it is a well-known fact that there existed a revealed verse concerning the punishment of stoning.
Imām al-Bukhārī and Imām Muslim both recorded the following narration:
ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb رضي الله عنه once stood to deliver a sermon in which he praised Allah and said:
“O people! Indeed Allah sent Muḥammad ﷺ with the truth and revealed the Book upon him.
Among what was revealed to him was the verse of stoning (Āyat al-Rajm).
We recited it, understood it, and remembered it.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ carried out stoning, and we also stoned after him.
I fear that, with the passage of time, someone may say:
‘We do not find the verse of stoning in the Book of Allah’,
and thus they may go astray by abandoning an obligation that Allah revealed.”
Hence, when a married man or woman commits adultery, and the guilt is established either:
- By clear evidence,
- Or confirmed pregnancy,
- Or by voluntary confession,
[Sunan Abī Dāwūd, Ḥadīth no. 4418]
✔ Legal and Doctrinal Implication
- The punishment of stoning for a married adulterer is a matter of divine legislation, and was practiced by the Prophet ﷺ and the Rightly Guided Caliphs.
- It is not a condition that every divine command be recorded in the Qur’an, as:
- Allah legislates as He wills,
- And the Sunnah is also a source of law,
- The authentic Hadith confirms and upholds this ruling.
⚖ Conditions for Implementing Rajm (Stoning)
Rajm is applied when:
① The offender is legally married,
② Adultery is proven either through:
- Reliable witnesses,
- Clear physical evidence (e.g., pregnancy in the case of a woman with no husband),
- Or a confession made voluntarily.
Closing Note
This ruling is part of divine law (Sharīʿah), and rejecting it due to its absence in the Qur’an is misguidance, since Allah has also commanded the application of His rulings through the Sunnah.
[Al-Lajnah al-Dā’imah: Fatwa no. 6194]
