Traditional religious texts...

Traditional religious texts, in fact, delineate a hierarchy of responsibilities for human beings. At the apex are our responsibilities and duties toward God through acts of worship and service and obedience to His Law. Then there is the responsibility one has toward oneself.

Since human life is sacred and is not created by us, we are responsible for trying to keep our souls as well as bodies healthy and not causing ourselves spiritual or physical harm (unless it is in battle or some other cause for the welfare of others or in self-defense). Therefore, as already stated, suicide is considered a grave sin in Islam.

The modern idea that “This is my body and I can do whatever I want with it” is totally absent from the Islamic perspective; Islam states, “My body is not mine, for I did not create it- it belongs to God.” Responsibility to…