Title: The Narrative Regarding Masturbation... Question/Comments: You wrote: "As far as the legal standing of self induced sexual pleasure is concerned, the Shari`ah is absolutely silent on this topic. I, therefore cannot say that masturbation is prohibited in the Islamic Shari`ah ." What are you comments on the following hadith ? The Prophet said: "Among those whom God will not look at on the Day of Resurrection, and to whom He will say, "Enter the Fire along with those who enter," the Prophet (pbuh) counted the following: The active and the passive partners in homosexuality; the one who has sex with animals; the one who is married to a woman and her daughter at the same time; and the one who masturbates regularly, unless they repent and reform." Answer: I could not find the referred narrative ascribed to the Prophet (pbuh) in any of the more accepted books of the compilation of narratives ascribed to him. Though this narrative is included in a secondary compilation of narratives titled " Jami` al-Ahadith wal-Maraaseel " but the problem with this source is that it does not stipulate the chain of narrators reporting these words. I remember reading this narrative for the first time in Abul-A`laa Mawdudi 's booklet titled " Purdah " (Urdu). However, when this booklet was later translated into the Arabic language, it was published by Nasiruddin Al-albani - one of the leading contemporary scholars of the science relating to the chain of narrators of saying ascribed to the Prophet (pbuh). In the Arabic translation of the booklet, Nasiruddin Al-albani added a note regarding the lack of authenticity of the referred narration. Unfortunately, I do not have access to the Arabic translation of the booklet; otherwise, I would have attached a copy of the note written by the scholar. In any case, unless the complete chain of narrators of the referred narrative is known, no meaningful comment can be made on it. 5 th August 1999