I am married and my wife is in Lebanon. I work in Brazil in order to earn my living and to educate my children. But I committed adultery here, and I have already expressed regret and repented to Allah. Is that sufficient for me, or must the legal punishment also be implemented? Please deliver a legal verdict for me, may Allah have mercy upon you. A – There is no doubt that adultery is one of the major sins. Among the things that lead to this sin is women being unveiled, free mixing of men with unrelated women, the decay of morality, and the corruption of society in general. So, if you committed adultery as a result of being far away from your wife and mixing with evil and corrupt people, then you regretted your sin and repented to Allah with a sincere repentance, we hope that Allah will accept your repentance and forgive you your sin, in accordance with His statement (meaning of which translates): “And those who invoke not any other god along with Allah, nor kill such person as Allah has forbidden, except for just cause, nor committing illegal sexual intercourse – and whoever does this shall receive the punishment. The torment will be doubled for him on the Day of Resurrection, and he will abide therein in disgrace. Except those who repent and believe, and do righteous deeds; for those, Allah will change their sins into good deeds, and Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” (Qur'an, 25:68-70) It has been confirmed from Ubadah Bin As-Samit (may Allah be pleased with him) in the Hadith of the women's oath of allegiance, that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “And whoever from among you fulfills it, their reward is with Allah. And whoever commits any such thing, is punished for it, and that will be atonement for it. And if anyone commits anything and Allah conceals (the sin), then the matter rests with Allah. He may forgive if He wills, and he may punish if He wills.” (Al-Bukhari, no. 4894 and Muslim, no. 1709) But you must migrate from that corrupt environment since it encourages you to commit acts of disobedience, and you should seek your living in another country where evil is less, in order to preserve your religion. For verily, Allah's earth is spacious, and a man will not be deprived of a land in which he may earn the sustenance which Allah has written for him: “And whosoever fears Allah and keeps his duty to Him, He will make a way for him to get out (from every difficulty). And He will provide for him from (sources) he never could imagine.” (Qur'an, 65:2-3) – Permanent Committee for Islamic Research and Verdicts; Fatawa Islamiyah, vol. 6, pp. 193
