Wednesday, 14 February 2018

Islam and Artificial Insemination

Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {And Allah has made for you from yourselves mates and has made for you from your mates sons and grandchildren and has provided for you from the good things. Then in falsehood do they believe and in the favor of Allah they disbelieve? } [Quran 16:72]. Allah The Exalted also Says (what means): {He gives to whom He wills female [children], and He gives to whom He wills males. Or He makes them [both] males and females, and He renders whom He wills barren. Indeed, He is Knowing and Competent. } [Quran 42: 49-50].
 

 

In addition, the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: "Marry women who are loving and very prolific, so I will outnumber all other nations through you." [Abu Daawood and An Nasaa'i]

Continuous reproduction is of a great importance in the life of man in order for him to preserve his existence and perform his mission of constructing the earth. Nevertheless, one of the spouses – or both - may suffer infertility which deprives them from having righteous offspring.

Science discovered artificial insemination as a means to treat infertility in the husband or wife and in the case of a delay in pregnancy in a number of cases, including:

- The blockage of the fallopian tubes extended to the two sides of the uterus or the absence thereof.

- The presence of antibodies in the secretions of the cervix and vagina.

- Low sperm count in men.

Forms of Artificial insemination:

There are various forms of artificial insemination. However, they are divided into: permissible according to the restrictions set forth by Islam or impermissible for contradicting the principles of the Islamic Sharee'ah. These forms can be presented as follows:

The Permissible Forms Include:

- Taking the sperm specimen from the husband and injecting it into the uterus of his wife by way of internal fertilization.

- Taking two samples; one from the semen of the husband and the other from the ovum of the wife. They are fertilized externally in a test tube. Then, the embryo is implemented in the uterus of the wife, the owner of the ovum.

Impermissible forms Include:

- Inserting the semen of a certain male, who is known to the doctor but unknown to the married couple, into the uterus of a woman. This is after having taken her consent and the consent of her husband provided that the donor shall not know to whom his semen will be given.

- Collecting the semen of many men and donating them to the sperm bank. Then, it is used to fertilize the woman who requests fertilization.

- External fertilization in a test tube between the sperm of a man and an ovum of a woman who is not his wife and this man and woman are referred to as donors. Then the embryo is implemented in the womb of another married woman who desires to give birth. This applies in cases of barren wives as a result of problems in the ovaries but a healthy uterus as well as in case of barren husbands.

Regulations of Artificial Insemination:

Jurists have set forth a number of regulations that protect the individuals, the family and society, such as:

- Taking extremely intense precautions in assuring that the ovum is not confused with other fertilized ova.
- The husband or someone he trusts shall attend the process of insemination from the point of taking the sperm and the egg until inserting them into the woman's uterus.
- Recording the data of the process in full in order to avoid any circumstances that may lead to intermixing of lineages.
- Affirmation of the professional and ethical integrity of the physicians and medical staff who perform the process of insemination.

The issue, from the very beginning, should be enveloped by faith in fate and divine decree as Allah The Exalted Says (what means): {He gives to whom He wills female [children], and He gives to whom He wills males. Or He makes them [both] males and females, and He renders whom He wills barren. Indeed, He is Knowing and Competent.} [Quran 42: 49-50].

Polyandry in Islam

You have to know that Islam prohibits a woman to marry more than one man, this is not just to protect the progeny, but for many other wisdoms. These wisdoms are known by some people and not known by others. Therefore even if it is confirmed that the father of the child can be determined by DNA testing, still this does not change the ruling due to several reasons. 


If the woman is busy taking care of more than one husband, which one would she obey, taking into consideration that people differ in their nature and character? One wants to travel and the other wants to stay where he resides, one wants to have sexual intercourse with her at a specific hour, and the other wants the same at the same time. One wants hot food and the other wants it cold, and other unlimited matters. So how can life be acceptable with the above conditions? 

In addition to this, she has to fulfill the need of her husbands whether in relation to sexual intercourse or else. If we assume that their needs are at the same time, how can she fulfill them? If she is impregnated by one husband and then others have sexual intercourse with her, then they have committed the prohibition, from which the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) warned saying: "It is not allowed for a man who believes in Allah and the Last Day, to have an intercourse with a woman who is pregnant from another man." [Ahmad and Abu-Daawood]

Finding a Good Spouse - Dua

Remember, the spouse that you should desire would be a religious and pious spouse which would lead you closer to Allah. Be careful not to be deceived by looks or money – because these qualities will normalize, whereas the love provided through piety will continue to grow.
There is a supplication that has been recorded by Imam Ali (a). “Whichever one of you who wants to get married should first perform a two-rakat prayer, in every rakat, Surah Fatihah and Surah Ya-Sin must be recited, then after the prayer ends and  one praises Allah, the following should be said:

اللَّهُمَّ ارْزُقْنِی زَوْجَةً وَدُوداً وَلُوداً شَکُوراً غَیُوراً إِنْ أَحْسَنْتُ شَکَرَتْ وَ إِنْ أَسَأْتُ غَفَرَتْ وَ إِنْ ذَکَرْتُ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى أَعَانَتْ وَ إِنْ نَسِیتُ ذَکَّرَتْ وَ إِنْ خَرَجْتُ مِنْ عِنْدِهَا حَفِظَتْ وَ إِنْ دَخَلْتُ عَلَیْهَا سُرَّتْ وَ إِنْ أَمَرْتُهَا أَطَاعَتْنِی وَ إِنْ أَقْسَمْتُ عَلَیْهَا أَبَرَّتْ قَسَمِی وَ إِنْ غَضِبْتُ عَلَیْهَا أَرْضَتْنِی یَا ذَا الْجَلَالِ وَ الْإِکْرَامِ هَبْ لِی ذَلِکَ فَإِنَّمَا أَسْأَلُکَه و لا آخِذ اِلاّ ما مَنَنْتَ و اَعْطَیْتَ

O’ Lord, give me a nice, child-bearing, thankful, bā-ghayrat spouse; a spouse that would be thankful if I treat him/her good and would forgive me if I treat him/her bad; a spouse that would help me if I remember Allah and would remind me of Allah if I forget him; a spouse that would protect me if I leave his/her presence and would make me happy if I enter his/her presence; a spouse that would obey me if I ordered him/her to do something and would take my vows seriously if I make one against him/her; a spouse that would calm me down if I get angry. O’ Lord of loft and honor, give me such a spouse. I have asked for him/her from you and nothing would come to me unless you give it to me.