What Happens to Someone With Mental Health Issues Who Commits Suicide?
Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Question
If one commits suicide but is mentally ill, will it still be considered a voluntary death?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Merciful and Compassionate
I hope you’re doing well, insha’Allah.
These are complex issues. We consign the matter to Allah, trusting His Mercy and Wisdom above our judgment.
While suicide is in itself prohibited and sinful, we cannot judge someone struggling with mental health or other challenges as to why they committed suicide. Sin, even grave, doesn’t lift faith (iman).
Sin, Death, and Divine Wisdom
It is a principle of Islamic beliefs that “Whoever dies unrepentant of their sin, their matter is consigned to their Lord.” [Laqqani, Jawhara al-Tawhid] Allah can forgive by His Mercy, or take to task by His Justice.
We also remember that Allah Most High says: “Say: My servants who have wronged yourselves, never despair of God’s mercy. God forgives all sins: He is truly the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful.” [Qur’an, 39.53]
If someone is struggling with mental health, it is urgently imperative to reach out to suicide prevention hotlines; family, friends, and trusted local scholars. You are not alone.
SeekersGuidance Suicide Archives
SeekersGuidance Mental Health Archives
And Allah is the giver of success and facilitation.
Wassalam,
[Shaykh] Faraz Rabbani
Shaykh Faraz Rabbani spent ten years studying with some of the leading scholars of recent times, first in Damascus and Amman, Jordan. His teachers include the foremost theologian of recent times in Damascus, the late Shaykh Adib al-Kallas (may Allah have mercy on him), and his student Shaykh Hassan al-Hindi, one of the leading Hanafi fuqaha of the present age. He returned to Canada in 2007, where he founded SeekersGuidance to meet the urgent need to spread Islamic knowledge–both online and on the ground–in a reliable, relevant, inspiring, and accessible manner. He is the author of Absolute Essentials of Islam: Faith, Prayer, and the Path of Salvation According to the Hanafi School (White Thread Press, 2004.) Since 2011, Shaykh Faraz has been named one of the 500 most influential Muslims by the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Center.
