My wife was pregnant in the first two months, and we did not want her to be pregnant, so she went to the hospital and aborted the fetus, and it was still just a small piece of
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The questioner : My wife was pregnant in the first two months, and we did not want her to be pregnant, so she went to the hospital and aborted the fetus, and it was still just a small piece of flesh from which nothing had become apparent. Do we owe anything, or do we have to fast? Because I asked, and they told me that we owe nothing because this fetus had not yet become apparent. May Allah reward you with good?
The Shaykh : I would like to say to the brother questioner, and to whoever is listening, that increasing the number of offspring is among the objectives of the Shari'ah, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) encouraged increasing the number of offspring. He said: So he encouraged marrying the loving woman who shows affection to her husband, because her affection for her husband generally entails intimacy with her and intercourse with her, and intercourse leads to an increase in offspring. For this reason, he followed the description of "loving" with "fertile," meaning one who gives birth frequently. Therefore, we should not try to reduce childbirth, given that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) loves for us to have many children.
As for the answer to the specific question, I say: The scholars differed on the permissibility of abortion outside of its proper time. Some prohibited it absolutely, saying: Allah the Exalted placed this drop of sperm in a secure place, so this secure place should not be violated except for a Shari'ah reason. Some permitted expelling the drop of sperm, meaning expelling the fetus before forty days. Some permitted it before it is created, because it is not known if it is a clot whether it will become a child or not. Some permitted it until the soul is breathed into it; once the soul is breathed into it, they agreed on prohibiting its abortion, except if that is at the time of birth and natural delivery is difficult, and it is aborted by a surgical delivery, in which case there is no harm. And what I see is that it is not permissible, once we have confirmed that it is a pregnancy, to abort it except for a Shari'ah reason, such as it becoming apparent that this fetus is deformed in a way that it cannot live with, causing psychological harm to it and its family. In that case, it is aborted due to the need or dire necessity for it. Likewise, if there is fear for its mother if it grows up and becomes large, then there is no harm in aborting it in that case. And this is restricted to the case where the soul has not been breathed into it. The soul is breathed into it when it reaches four months. Once the soul is breathed into it, it is forbidden to abort it absolutely, even if the doctors decide that if it is not aborted, the mother will die. It is not permissible to abort it even if the mother dies because of its presence, because it is not permissible for us to kill a soul to preserve another soul. If someone says: If we keep it and the mother dies, then he will also die, resulting in the killing of two souls. And if we take it out, perhaps the mother will be saved. The answer is: If we keep it and the mother dies because of it, and he dies after his mother's death, then his mother's death is not from us, but from Allah Mighty and Majestic. It is He who decreed her death because of this pregnancy. But if we abort the fetus that was alive and it dies due to the abortion, then its killing is from our action, and that is not permissible for us.
The questioner : May Allah reward you, O honorable Shaykh, and may Allah bless you and your knowledge, and benefit the Muslims through you.
The Shaykh : I would like to say to the brother questioner, and to whoever is listening, that increasing the number of offspring is among the objectives of the Shari'ah, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) encouraged increasing the number of offspring. He said:
Marry the loving and fertile women
تزوجوا الودود الولودAs for the answer to the specific question, I say: The scholars differed on the permissibility of abortion outside of its proper time. Some prohibited it absolutely, saying: Allah the Exalted placed this drop of sperm in a secure place, so this secure place should not be violated except for a Shari'ah reason. Some permitted expelling the drop of sperm, meaning expelling the fetus before forty days. Some permitted it before it is created, because it is not known if it is a clot whether it will become a child or not. Some permitted it until the soul is breathed into it; once the soul is breathed into it, they agreed on prohibiting its abortion, except if that is at the time of birth and natural delivery is difficult, and it is aborted by a surgical delivery, in which case there is no harm. And what I see is that it is not permissible, once we have confirmed that it is a pregnancy, to abort it except for a Shari'ah reason, such as it becoming apparent that this fetus is deformed in a way that it cannot live with, causing psychological harm to it and its family. In that case, it is aborted due to the need or dire necessity for it. Likewise, if there is fear for its mother if it grows up and becomes large, then there is no harm in aborting it in that case. And this is restricted to the case where the soul has not been breathed into it. The soul is breathed into it when it reaches four months. Once the soul is breathed into it, it is forbidden to abort it absolutely, even if the doctors decide that if it is not aborted, the mother will die. It is not permissible to abort it even if the mother dies because of its presence, because it is not permissible for us to kill a soul to preserve another soul. If someone says: If we keep it and the mother dies, then he will also die, resulting in the killing of two souls. And if we take it out, perhaps the mother will be saved. The answer is: If we keep it and the mother dies because of it, and he dies after his mother's death, then his mother's death is not from us, but from Allah Mighty and Majestic. It is He who decreed her death because of this pregnancy. But if we abort the fetus that was alive and it dies due to the abortion, then its killing is from our action, and that is not permissible for us.
The questioner : May Allah reward you, O honorable Shaykh, and may Allah bless you and your knowledge, and benefit the Muslims through you.