Is a person who commits suicide eternally in the fire of Hell, never to leave it?
The one who commits suicide commits a grave sin and a major enormity, and a severe warning has been issued against it in the Quran and Sunnah, such as His (Allah's) saying, the Most High: (And do not kill yourselves. Indeed, Allah is to you ever Merciful) [4:29], and the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) warning that the one who kills himself will be tormented with that by which he killed himself in the Hellfire.
Scholars have differed regarding the eternal damnation of the one who kills himself in the Hellfire due to the differing wordings of the hadiths. The أهل السنة (Ahl al-Sunnah) do not believe in the eternal damnation of Muslims who commit sins, and this includes the one who commits suicide, whereas the Khawarij and Mu'tazilah believe in their eternal damnation. The Ahl al-Sunnah have responded to the addition found in Sahih Muslim, which suggests eternal damnation, with several answers, including: deeming the addition to be erroneous, or interpreting it as referring to one who deems killing permissible, or that the word "eternity" was mentioned for deterrence and severity, or that the mentioned recompense may be followed by Allah's forgiveness for monotheists, or that what is meant by "eternity" is eternity subject to Allah's will.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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