Every 14th of February, millions around the world celebrate Valentine’s Day — a day marketed as a celebration of love. But for Muslims seeking to protect their faith and understand their spirituality, Sheikh Tawfique Chowdhury, Chairman and CEO of the Mercy Mission movement and a graduate of the College of Shariah at the Islamic University of Medina, offers a sobering reminder: love is one of the most powerful gifts Allah ﷻ has placed in the human heart, and how we channel it determines whether it draws us closer to our Creator — or drives us irreparably far from Him.
The Hidden Reality Behind the Red Hearts
Beyond the chocolates, roses, and romantic imagery lies a troubling pattern that Sheikh Tawfique brings to light with striking clarity. In Muslim-majority countries, social welfare records reveal a significant spike in abandoned newborns approximately nine months after Valentine’s Day — babies found in orphanages, shopping centres, and heartbreakingly, in rubbish bins. This is not coincidental. Valentine’s Day has evolved, for many, into a cultural occasion for committing what Islam explicitly forbids. The celebration glorifies physical attraction under the banner of “love,” stripping the word of its deeper, spiritual meaning — the meaning for which it was created. As Sheikh Tawfique warns, the love Allah ﷻ has placed in every human heart was never meant to be a pathway to sin; it was always meant to be a pathway to Him.
“Don’t make the love that Allah has created in your heart a means for you to lose the love of Allah. Don’t replace the love of Allah — the real reason why you were created — with the love of a human being who is not permitted for you.” — Sheikh Tawfique Chowdhury
- Valentine’s Day has become an occasion for haram relationships, dating, and zina — with real, measurable social consequences in Muslim communities worldwide.
- Physical attraction has been falsely elevated to the status of “love,” hollowing out its true, God-given meaning and purpose.
- Even small, seemingly harmless steps — a gift, a text, following someone on social media — can be the first steps toward what Allah ﷻ has forbidden: “Do not come near zina.”
- The love placed in the human heart by Allah ﷻ is a sacred trust. Misdirecting it toward what is haram is a betrayal of that trust.
The Gravity of Zina: What the Quran and Sunnah Make Clear
Allah ﷻ does not merely prohibit zina — He commands in the Quran: “Do not come near zina; it is a most evil deed and an evil way.” The directive to not even approach it is deliberate and profound. The Prophet ﷺ described a vision in which those who committed zina were shown burning in a great furnace, reformed, and burned again — an eternal cycle reflecting the enormity of this sin. And in this dunya, the consequences are equally devastating for one’s faith, character, and spiritual wellbeing:
- Betrayal of sacred trusts — the trust of Allah ﷻ, one’s family, spouse, and children is shattered.
- Loss of noor — the light and serenity visible on the face of a true believer fades and disappears.
- Spiritual alienation — a profound emptiness and distance from people and from Allah ﷻ takes hold.
- Erosion of self-respect and chivalry — qualities central to Islamic character and Muslim identity are stripped away.
- Loss of the rank of Believer — at the very moment of committing zina, a person forfeits the rank of mu’min, which can only be restored through sincere and complete tawbah.
“A person who commits zina is no longer considered a believer at the time of committing it. He will never again be known as a believer unless and until he sincerely repents.” — Sheikh Tawfique Chowdhury, drawing from the words of the Prophet ﷺ
Marriage: The Halal Path to Honouring the Love Allah Created
Sheikh Tawfique does not dismiss or diminish the beauty of human love — he honours it as a divine gift. The longing for companionship, for closeness with another soul, is a God-given hunger of both the heart and the body. But just as physical hunger does not justify stealing food, emotional and spiritual longing does not justify haram relationships. The answer Islam offers is nikah — marriage — pursued with sincere intention, with the support of parents and the community, and with full trust in Allah ﷻ that He will open provisions for those who step forward in His obedience. Sheikh Tawfique encourages young Muslims not to be deterred by age or financial concern, and calls on the wider Muslim community — including through the giving of zakat — to actively support those who wish to marry. This Valentine’s Day, and every day of the year, the guidance of Islam is not to suppress the love in your heart but to honour it: to channel it purely, purposefully, and in a way that draws two souls — and the lives they build together — ever closer to Allah ﷻ, the One who created love itself.
