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A Muslim should steer clear of all sins,
major and minor ones. A faithful Muslim takes care of every
utterance or deed, avoiding anything that makes him subject
to the punishment of Allah and His Wrath.
The major sins are those acts which have
been forbidden by Allah in the Qur'an and by His Messenger
(peace and blessings be upon him) in the Sunnah, and which
have been made clear as forbidden by the actions of the
first righteous generation of Muslims, the Companions of the
Prophet. Allah Almighty says,
(If you avoid the major (part) of what you have been forbidden
(to do), We will cancel out for you your (other) evil deeds
and will admit you (to Paradise) with a noble entry) (An-Nisaa' 4:31)
In this verse, Allah Almighty has guaranteed
the Garden of Paradise to those who avoid the major sins.
And Allah Almighty also says,
(Those who avoid the greatest of sins and indecencies, and
forgive when they are angry) (Ash-Shura 42: 37)
and (Those who avoid the greatest sins and indecencies, except for
oversights, (will find that) surely your Lord is ample in
forgiveness) (An-Najm 53: 32)
Allah's Messenger was also reported to have
said,
"The five
(daily) Prayers, Friday to Friday and Ramadan to Ramadan,
make atonement for what has happened since the previous one,
as long as major sins have been avoided."
(Authenticated by Al-Albani)
It is therefore very important to determine
exactly what the greatest vices, technically called
"the major sins" (kaba'ir), are in order
that Muslims should avoid them.
There is some difference of opinion among
scholars in this regard. Some say these major sins are
seven, and in support of their position they quote the
hadith:
"Avoid the
seven noxious things: associating anything with Allah,
magic, killing one whom Allah has declared inviolate without
a just cause, consuming the property of an orphan, devouring
riba (interest), turning back when the army advances,
and slandering chaste women who are believers but
indiscreet." (Al-Bukhari and Muslim)
`Abdullah ibn `Abbas said: "Seventy is
closer to their number than seven," and indeed that is
correct. The above hadith does not limit the major sins to
those mentioned in it. Rather, it points to the type of sins
which fall into the category of major. These include those
crimes which call for a prescribed punishment (hadd),
such as theft, fornication or adultery, and murder; those
prohibited acts for which a warning of a severe punishment
in the Hereafter is given in the Qur'an or the Sunnah; and
also those deeds which are cursed by our Prophet (peace and
blessings be upon him). These are all major sins.
Of course, there is a gradation among them,
since some are more serious than others. We see that the
Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has included shirk
(associating someone or something with Allah) among them,
and from the text of the Qur'an we know that a person who
commits shirk will not be forgiven and will remain in
Hell forever. Allah Most High says:
(Surely, Allah does not forgive associating anything with Him,
and He forgives whatever is other than that to whomever He
wills) (An-Nisaa' 4: 48)
Hence, the major sins are:
1. Associating anything with Allah
2. Murder
3. Practicing magic
4. Abandoning salah (ritual Prayer)
5. Not paying zakah
6. Not fasting during the month of Ramadan
without excuse
7. Not performing Hajj, while being able to
do so
8. Showing disrespect to parents
9. Severing relations with relatives
10. Committing adultery
11. Committing sodomy
12. Dealing in riba (interest)
13. Wrongfully consuming the property of an
orphan
14. Lying about Allah or His Messenger
15. Running away from the battlefield
16. Deceiving the people that one rules and
being unjust to them
17. Being proud and arrogant
18. Bearing false witness
19. Drinking alcohol
20. Gambling
21. Falsely accusing chaste women (i.e. of
committing fornication or adultery)
22. Stealing from the spoils of war
23. Stealing
24. Committing highway robbery
25. Making false oath
26. Committing oppression
27. Earning ill-gotten gain.
28. Consuming what is unlawful.
29. Committing suicide
30. Lying frequently
31. Judging unjustly
32. Giving and accepting a bribe
33. Imitating the opposite sex (in dress,
behavior, and the like)
34. Allowing one’s wife, daughters, etc.
to display their beauty to men or conduct illicit sexual
relations
35. Marrying a divorced woman in order to
make her lawful for her ex-husband to remarry her after he
irrevocably divorced her
36. Not protecting oneself or one's clothes
from being contaminated with urine or excrement.
37. Showing off
38. Learning knowledge of the religion for
the sake of this world and withholding that knowledge (i.e.,
not teaching people)
39. Betraying a trust
40. Recounting favors
41. Denying Allah's Decree
42. Listening to people's private
conversations
43. Carrying gossip
44. Swearing
45. Breaking contracts
46. Believing in fortune-tellers
47. Behaving badly toward ones husband
48. Making statues
49. Lamenting, wailing, tearing the
clothing, and doing other things of this sort when an
affliction falls
50. Treating others wrongfully
51. Treating one's wife, servant, the weak,
and animals badly
52. Offending one's neighbor
53. Offending and abusing Muslims
54. Offending people and having an arrogant
attitude toward them
55. Trailing one's garment in pride
56. Wearing silk and gold (for men only)
57. Slaughtering an animal that has been
dedicated to anyone other than Allah
58. To knowingly ascribe one's paternity to
a man other than one's biological father
59. Arguing and disputing violently
60. Withholding excess water
61. Giving short weight or measure
62. Feeling secure from Allah's Plan
63. Offending pious people
64. Not praying in congregation but praying
alone without an excuse
65. Persistently missing Friday Prayer
without any excuse
66. Usurping the rights of the heir through
bequests (to others)
67. Deceiving and plotting evil
68. Spying for the enemy of the Muslims
against Muslim's interest
69. Cursing or insulting any of the
Companions of the Prophet
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