Q122 :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. May I also say that my financial situation is not that
bright. Indeed, I can hardly cope with the great demands placed on
me.
A122 : 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 contraceptions 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 netpanions
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, renetmended, discouraged or forbidden,
according to the different circumstances of its person. If a highly
netpetent doctor advises his patient that a certain operation will not
only cure his illness but also prevents a speedy deterioration of his
case, which is otherwise inevitable, then we can say that the operation
is renetmended. 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 netmits 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 netpetent
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.
Our Dialogue ( Source : Arab News – Jeddah )