06/09/2010 Is Family Planning Allowed in Islam?

Is Family Planning
Allowed in Islam?

By Sheikh Jamaal al-Din Zarabozo

The question of family planning and birth control was

discussed in detail by the Majma al-Fiqh al-Islaami. They
had twenty three scholars research this topic and present
their findings on this matter. The participants involved
represented many different trends and schools of
thought. Among the participants were Muhammad Ali al-
Baar, Ali al-Saaloos, Muhammad Saeed Ramadhan al-
Booti, Abdullah al-Basaam, Hasan Hathoot and
Muhammad Sayid Tantaawi. Their proceedings, papers
and discussions may be found in Part One of the Fifth
Volume of Majallah Majma al-Fiqh al-Islaami (1988/1409
A.H.). These proceedings are 748 pages all about the
question of birth control and related issues.

The following are important points related to the issue of

birth control in Islam. These were mentioned by some of
the participants in the above program:

The institution of marriage and the want to have children

was the custom of the best of creation, the prophets and
messengers chosen by Allah. Allah says about them

missionislam.com/…/familyplanning.htm 1/7
06/09/2010 Is Family Planning Allowed in Islam?
"And indeed We sent messengers before you and
made for them wives and offspring" (al-Raad 38)

The best example for the believers is the example of the

prophet Muhammad (saw), who married and had
children. These prophets and messengers are the people
whom Muslims should look to emulate. Allah says

"They are those whom Allah has guided. So follow

their guidance" (al-Anaam 90)

They should be emulated and not the disbelievers of the

West, whose new lifestyles - mostly out of concern for
enjoying this life or obtaining as many worldly goods as
possible - discourage women from having more children.

Islam has forbidden celibacy (state of not being married),

monasticism (life of monks & nuns) and castration
(removal of the male glands) for such purposes. The
prophet (saw) made this clear when he told those
companions who were considering acetic forms of life: "I
pray and I sleep; I fast and I break my fast; and I marry
women. Whoever turns away from my way of life is not
from me."

The prophet (saw) not only encouraged marriage but he

encouraged marrying those women who are child-
bearing. He stated: "marry the loving, child-bearing
women for I shall have the largest numbers among the
prophets on the day of Resurrection."(Recorded by
Ahmad and ibn Hibban.)

From the Islamic perspective, children are a gift and a

blessing from Allah. Allah mentions some of the bounties
that He has bestowed upon mankind in the following
verse: "And Allah has made for you spouses of your
own kind and has made for you, from your wives,
sons and grandsons, and has bestowed upon you
good provisions." (al-Nahl 72)

Allah also said: "Wealth and children are the

adornment of the life of this world." (al-Kahf 46)

The only true provider for all mankind is Allah. If Muslims

follow what Allah has prescribed for them, Allah will
provide for them. Allah has warned about killing one's
children out of fear of poverty for either parents or the
missionislam.com/…/familyplanning.htm 2/7
06/09/2010 Is Family Planning Allowed in Islam?
child. Allah says: "Kill not your children because of
poverty - We provide sustenance for you and for
them" (al-Anaam 151)

Allah also says: "And kill not your children for fear of
poverty. We shall provide for them as well as for
you. Surely, the killing of them is a great sin" (al-Isra
31)

Hence, Muslims should never abort or kill their children

out of fear of poverty. It is Allah who provides for them.

Based on the above points and numerous others, the

scholars who participated in the research on this
question came up with the following resolution:

It is not allowed to enact a general law that limits

the freedom of spouses in having children.
It is forbidden to "permanently" end a man's or a
woman's ability to produce children, such as by
having a hysterectomy or vasectomy, as long as
that is not called for by circumstances of
necessity according to its Islamic framework.
It is permissible to control the timing of births with
the intent of distancing the occurrences of
pregnancy or to delay it for a specific amount of
time, if there is some Shariah need for that in the
opinion of the spouses, based on mutual
consultation and agreement between them.
However, this is conditioned by that not leading to
any harm, by it being done by means that are
approved in the Shariah and that it not do
anything to oppose a current and existing
pregnancy.

Birth Control

Reprinted from OurDialogue.com

These are questions and answers reprinted from "Our

Dialogue," a series appearing in the “Arab News” of
Jeddah; providing an Islamic perspective to questions
agitating the minds of people today.

Can a Couple Limit Their Children?

Question: Is it appropriate for a married couple not to

missionislam.com/…/familyplanning.htm 3/7
06/09/2010 Is Family Planning Allowed in Islam?
have more than two children because of their limited
economic resources? Is it acceptable that they take
measures to prevent pregnancy after having had two
children?

Answer: During the time of the Prophet, some of his

companions tried to reduce the chances of conception
and pregnancy, because they did not want any more
children. The Prophet was aware of that. Some referred
to him while some relied on the fact that no edict was
given concerning the question of preventing pregnancy.
The general rule is that "everything is permissible unless
pronounced otherwise." Thus, we have statements by
some of the Prophet's companions such as: "We
resorted to contraception at the time when the Qur'an
was being revealed", and "We resorted to contraception
and the Prophet was aware of that but he did not stop
us." These statements are clear in their import. If the
Prophet's companions had been doing something
unacceptable to Islam, God would have either revealed a
prohibition in the Qur'an or the Prophet would have given
an order in a Hadith.

The fact is that the Prophet did not give such an order.
Instead, when he learned from one of his companions
that he resorted to contraception, the Prophet said
clearly that no method of contraception would stop the
creation of a child, should God will that the child be born.
As such, no method of contraception can stop God's will
being fulfilled.

The method of contraception which was known at that

time was coitus interruptus. Modern methods are equally
permissible, provided that they are safe and they prevent
conception. Sterilization of either the man or the woman
is not permissible except when it is made absolutely
necessary for medical reasons. Thus, if doctors
determine that any pregnancy is likely to present a
serious risk to the life of the mother, then sterilization
may be approved. But each case must be considered
separately on its own merits.

What I have said so far applies at the individual level

only. A national policy of family planning which aims to
reduce the population is unacceptable because it is likely
to have serious repercussion on the health of the nation
missionislam.com/…/familyplanning.htm 4/7
06/09/2010 Is Family Planning Allowed in Islam?
as a whole.

Coitus Interruptus

Question: You advised a young man to get married and

delay having children until he has finished his studies.
This obviously means that he has to resort to methods of
birth control. In our community, most scholars say that
birth control is not acceptable from the Islamic point of
view. Please comment.

Answer: In ancient times, before the new methods of

birth control were invented, people resorted to coitus
interruptus in order to restrict the number of children.
This is a safe method, because it does not involve the
use of any substance or chemical compound. It is a
simple method which involves withdrawal before
discharge. It is not highly effective, because some of the
sperms may be released before the actual discharge.
These could easily fertilize the female egg. This method
was practiced in Arabia, as well in many other places.
The companions of the Prophet mentioned it to him and
asked him whether it was wrong. The Prophet did not
forbid them that, but he told them that it could not stop
Allah's work. If He wants us to create something, or in
this case, if He wants a child to be born, the resort to
contraception would not prevent the mother from getting
pregnant.

We have reports from companions of the Prophet

mentioning that he was aware of their resort to
contraception, but he did not forbid them that.

In the light of the foregoing, we can say that using a safe

and effective method of birth control is permissible, if it
does not involve the use of a harmful substance. The
couple must check with their doctor if a particular method
is safe for them to use. If so, then they decide whether to
use it or not.

Contraception and Sterilization

Question: I have four children and I am considering

resorting to a sterilization operation to be done for my
wife. She is thin and weak and can hardly cope with the
demands of the family, especially during my prolonged
absence, away from home to work here in Saudi Arabia.
missionislam.com/…/familyplanning.htm 5/7
06/09/2010 Is Family Planning Allowed in Islam?
May I also say that my financial situation is not that
bright. Indeed, I can hardly cope with the great demands
placed on me.

Answer: Let us first of all deal with the financial aspect

of this question. We know that Allah provides sustenance
for everyone of His creation. I personally have
experienced an improvement in my financial level with
every child I have had. Indeed, that improvement was
very tangible in the case of one of my children. Some
people may not have such a tangible experience. It is
true to say, however, that Allah will not neglect to provide
sustenance for any human being. It is up to the
breadwinner of the family to make use of the
opportunities that Allah provides for him.

Having said that, I should also point out before attending

to the question on sterilization that resorting to methods
of contraception which are safe and do not affect the
health of the mother is permissible. That must be kept at
the individual level. By this I mean that a family may
resort to contraception in order to limit the number of
their children if they determine that such a thing is
desirable in their particular circumstances. At the time of
the Prophet, some of his companions resorted to coitus
interruptus, which was the only method of family planning
known to them, and the Prophet was aware of what they
did. He did not instruct them to stop, nor did he tell them
that what they did was forbidden. Therefore, it is
permissible. Other methods of family planning have the
same verdict provided they are safe.

Sterilization which involves a surgical operation is a

special case. Unlike other methods of contraception it is
permanent. Therefore it has to be viewed separately.
Preventing pregnancy by surgery is known as
sterilization which can be performed for either the
husband or the wife. It is perhaps more accurate to say
that we cannot make a general, sweeping statement in
order to say that such an operation is either forbidden or
permissible. Any surgery may be considered, from the
strictly religious point of view, as required,
recommended, discouraged or forbidden, according to
the different circumstances of its person. If a highly
competent doctor advises his patient that a certain
operation will not only cure his illness but also prevents a
missionislam.com/…/familyplanning.htm 6/7
06/09/2010 Is Family Planning Allowed in Islam?
speedy deterioration of his case, which is otherwise
inevitable, then we can say that the operation is
recommended. On the other hand, if there is no strong
medical grounds for operating on a certain patient, but
the doctor advises the operation only to get his fee, then
the doctor commits a sin by giving such an advice.

In the case of sterilization, what we have to look for is the

effect of pregnancy on the health of the mother. If a
competent doctor determines that every pregnancy is
likely to pose a real threat to the life of the mother or to
cause serious threats to her health and that other
methods of contraception may also have a bad effect on
her health, then the woman may have such an operation
without any qualm of conscience. It is permissible in her
case. On the other hand, for a woman who asks her
doctor to perform such an operation because she feels
that a pregnancy may spoil her figure or having children
may stop her from taking a lengthy holiday every few
months, such an operation is forbidden.

In your particular condition, I do not think the reasons

you have advanced for such an operation constitute a
sound argument to justify the operation. Your wife may
be thin and weak, but you can easily delay pregnancy by
resorting to other methods of contraception. On the basis
of what you say in your letter, you are only with your wife
for a month or so every year. If you take adequate
precautions, you can almost certainly prevent
pregnancy. Therefore, the operation is not required on
medical grounds. Hence, it cannot be lawful in your
case.

Top of Contact Mission Discussion Recommended

Page Islam Board Links

missionislam.com/…/familyplanning.htm 7/7