Will it be possible to eliminate extramarital relationships through the punishments prescribed in the Quran?

It is not just penal laws that find mention in the Quran. In fact, Islam views the recourse to penal law only as a last resort. The Quran teaches that all circumstances which can lead to extramarital sexual affairs must first be removed. All laws and regulations for that purpose are provided by the Quran. They can be summarized as follows:

One : Men and women are to dress decently. As sight constitutes the prime motivation of the sexual impulse in man, women are not to dress in such a fashion as to display their beauty.

Two : There should be nothing in society which is of a sexually provocative nature. Indeed, in an Islamic society cabarets, dances, beauty contests, ballets and the like are never permitted.

Three: The unrestricted mingling of the sexes, which ultimately leads to adultery, must be prevented.

Four : The use of sex as a profession must be completely banned. For in an Islamic society, prostitutes, call-girls, sex-bombs, nude models and the like are an impossibility.

Five: Men and women (excepting for the husband or any relative with whom marriage has been prohibited) are not to travel together.

Six: Men and women are not to converse freely except in the presence of another person.

Seven: Unless they have become mates through the institution of marriage, men and women are not to gaze at each other with lewd passion.

Eight: They are not to speak, or flirt, in a manner that evokes lust.

Nine : If a man comes with the offer of marriage, the guardians of the woman must come forward to offer her in marriage to him if he is seen to be of a suitable person.

Ten : In the case of the men who cannot find contentment in a single woman, there is also the provisions - albeit, a conditional one -to marry more than one woman.

Firstly, the Quran seeks to remove all situations which serve to inflame sexual passions and to promote crime of adultery. Secondly, it provides for an open permission for the fulfillment of desires through recourse to a lawful procedure. Even after this, those who opt for illegal means for the fulfillment of their desires actually destroy the moral fabric of society as well as the family. Islam's prescription here is to award severe punishments in such cases.

Circumstances play not an insignificant role in tempting man to commit sin. In actual terms, therefore, due to the transformation of the media and the market into the promoters of sexual provocation and the current stand of the society in seeing in extramarital relationships nothing of a sinful nature, the attacks against women have only risen to alarming heights. What could be the reason for this? The shift in the position of the society as regards to extramarital affairs and the exploitation of feminine charms by the media and the market have played out not a small part of their own in contributing to the rise of atrocities against women. If such a state of affairs is to continue, even women who lead decent lives will not be allowed to go about in peace.

This situation cannot exist in an Islamic society. For there can be no instance wherein women cannot live free of the fear of losing their chastity. Indeed, in the time of the Prophet very few people, whose number could be virtually counted by the fingers of one's hands, were punished for adultery. So was it during the reign of the Caliphs. Although the sway of the media and the influence of western culture have all served to create much decadence, the low rate of crime even today in countries where the Quranic penal laws are implemented highlights its practicability through all ages.

Courtesy: M M Akbar

Oneness of God Have you ever wondered? The Last Prophet Mary Honored The Holy Qur'an Nerve Endings & Pain Sensation The Hadith The Day of Resurrection Islam Vs Terrorism The Coccyx Bone Who Do Muslim Worship The Female Honey Bee Gospel Of Jesus Christ Human Embryonic Development Who was Jesus Christ ? Remembering Death Sincerity : Just a drop will do Consequences of Sinning Muslim Women are not oppressed The True Home Promised To The Believers Signs of Allah in Birds The City of Pillars Let Us Ponder Muslim Women are not oppressed Islamic Law on Robbery Did God have a Son? Relations outside of wedlock The Proportion of Rain Eliminate Extramarital Relationships Who is Muhammad? The Rituals of Hajj