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The top answer to this question What does the Quran say about homosexuality? says:

Homosexual acts are strictly forbidden in Islam. Although it has mainly been focused around men, women homosexuals are not that strongly discussed. -- muslim1

And the answer to To what extent is anal sex Haram? quotes the Hadith:

"Allah is not shy to tell you the truth: do not have intercourse with your wives in the anus."—Narrated by Ahmad, 5/213

(see also: In Islam, are there limits on sex between a married couple?)

This motivates my question:

Question: Is gay sodomy considered a worse sin than straight sodomy?

I think I can safely believe that Islam has a strongly anti-gay-sodomy attitude. On the other hand, Islam does not seem to have such a reputation for straight sodomy.

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  • I'm not sure if one could answer this as all reports saying that straight sodomy is allowed have been falsified by scholars pretending that these statements where misunderstood.
    – Medi1Saif
    Sep 13, 2016 at 11:34
  • 2
    There's e.g. ahadith on these things, and perhaps the strength of these statements could result in an imbalance between these two acts. I'm not sure, though (hence the question). Sep 13, 2016 at 13:30

1 Answer 1

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The Reliance of the Traveller, The Classic Manual of Islamic Sacred Law 'Umdat al-Salik, by Ahmad ibn Naqib al-Misri (translated by Nuh Ha Mim Keller), which describes Shafi'i fiqh, classifies these sins.

Summary: There's strong evidence that gay sodomy is an enormity (major sin), while the evidence is less strong for straight sodomy with one's wife. The Reliance classified straight sodomy with one's wife as a "probable enormity".

Gay sodomy is an enormity

p17.0 SODOMY AND LESBIANISM

In more than one place in the Holy Koran, Allah recounts to us the story of Lot's people, and how He destroyed them for their wicked practice. There is consensus among both Muslims and the followers of all other religions that sodomy is an enormity. It is even viler and uglier than adultery.

They cite Qur'an 26:165-166: Do you approach males among the worlds And leave what your Lord has created for you as mates? But you are a people transgressing.

They also cite three hadith:

  1. Kill the one who sodomizes and the one who lets it be done to him.

    This seems to be Sunan Abi Dawud 4462 [grade: hasan sahih]

  2. May Allah curse him who does what Lot's people did.

    This is described as "Musnad Ahmad (1/317) No. 2915, This was classed as hasan by Shu’ayb al-Arna’oot in Tahqeeq al-Musnad" at authentictauheed.com

  3. Lesbianism by women is adultery between them.

    For more about this hadith, see Did the Prophet say "lesbianism among women is zina between them"?

Straight sodomy (with one's wife) is a probable enormity

SODOMIZING ONE'S WIFE

p75.20 The Prophet (Allah Bless him and give him peace) said,

"He who sodomizes a woman is accursed."

I did not immediately find further information about this hadith.

It is later listed as an enormity (twice) in Ibn Hajar Haytami's List of Enormities (within The Reliance):

(258) sodomizing one's wife;

(338-43) fornication; sodomy; bestiality; sodomizing a woman; lesbianism between women (meaning one woman doing with another that which resembles what a man would do with her); or for a husband to have intercourse with the body of a deceased wife;

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