Advanced search
Visit
7814
Last Updated: 2010/04/06
Summary of question
If a woman becomes illegitimately pregnant and her family will undergo severe hardship as a result, is it permissible to abort the baby before spirit has been breathed into it?
question
In the recent years abortion has been seen as permissible by Islam and the law in special cases and is practiced. It is Shia fiqh’s honor to be up to date and to have answers for today’s issues. My question is that in the case of a woman who has unwillingly and illegitimately been impregnated by force and knows that if she continues with her pregnancy and gives birth to the child, it will be an illegitimate child in society who will bring about many social and psychological problems and even family problems such as this woman’s husband divorcing her. Also, this child may bring problems for society and be a financial burden on the shoulders of the Islamic treasury and cause certain corruptions; all of these are results of such a baby being born. Is it permissible to abort such a baby before spirit has been breathed into it? What is Ayatullah Mahdi Hadavi Tehrani’s viewpoint on the issue?
Concise answer
Continue...
Detailed Answer

Imam Khomeini and other marja’s have said: “If a woman becomes pregnant through adultery, in the case of her or the man or both being Muslim, she cannot abort the baby.”[1] In this case the baby is the woman’s child, the only thing is that the baby won't inherit from the mother.[2]

This question was also sent to the offices of some of the maraje’ and the following are their responses:

The office of the grand Ayatullah Khamenei:

Abortion is haram and the circumstances stated in the question aren't an excuse for its permissibility.

The office of the grand Ayatullah Makarem Shirazi:

It isn't permissible unless there is a very big and important problem that can only be solved through such.

The office of the grand Ayatullah Sistani:

If there is fear of the mother being harmed or if it entails severe hardship and difficulty it is permissible, but it must be done before spirit has been breathed into the fetus.

The office of the grand Ayatullah Safi Golpaygani:

The excuses stated in the question in no way make abortion of the baby permissible.

The office of Ayatullah Mahdi Hadavi Tehrani:

If keeping the baby has a considerable harm for the mother or entails severe difficulty and hardship for her, abortion will be permissible before spirit has been breathed into it, and as long as one isn't sure of the harm or difficulty, and there aren't considerable chances of such happening either, it will remain haram.

In order to have been cautious, it is wajib to refer to the qualified judicial authorities and to get verification from expert practitioners before doing so.

For further information, see:

The ruling on the adulterer and adulteress and the child whom is born from adultery, Question 2030 (website: 2397).



[1] Tawdihul-Masa’el (annotated by Imam Khomeini), vol. 2, pg. 498.

[2] Ibid, Makarem.

Question translations in other languages
Comments
Number of comments 0
Please enter the value
Example : Yourname@YourDomane.ext
Please enter the value
Please enter the value

Thematic Category

Random questions

  • Is it true that some Muslim Gnostics can fly or levitate?
    12266 Practical 2007/02/08
    That which you have mentioned is an effect and result of Man’s spiritual strength, sometimes this may come about by acting in accordance with religious laws and legitimate ascetic discipline. This means that; by moving closer to Allah, Man can possess the greatest name ...
  • What are the distinct criteria through which we can distinguish a lafdhi mutawatir report from an ijmali or ma\'anawi one?
    9619 Contextual study 2014/09/28
    Mutawatir literally means for things to come one after another, without any interval between them and in hadithic terms, refers to a hadith that has been narrated by a group of narrators that one can be definite haven’t all agreed on forging and lying about altogether. Any ...
  • What are the features and privileges of Behar al-Anwar?
    6998 Contextual study 2015/05/03
    Behar al-Anwa being a huge hadith collection is the most important work by Allamah Muhammad Baqir Majlisi. It is a big encyclopedia of Shiite traditions encompassing all religious issues and themes including exegesis of the Quran, history, jurisprudence, theology etc. Some of the most important features of ...
  • Please explain the principles of Sheikh Toosi's political thought.
    8594 Laws and Jurisprudence 2010/12/21
     With the emergence of every era new needs and questions are generated which cause scientists and scholars to think and contemplate and strive to find appropriate answers to, and Sheikh Toosi is one the great scholars who has carried such a burden. The fundamentals of ...
  • Are there any women who reached the rank of ijtihad in religious seminaries?
    9574 تاريخ بزرگان 2007/11/04
    A worthy interaction of Islam with science, and requiring that from every Muslim man and woman, has resulted in women always studying the sciences in Islamic communities and finally some of them reached the rank of ijtihad.As an example, lady Mujtahideh Amin who passed away in 1403h. Lady Mujtahideh ...
  • Who were the Ansar?
    9406 تاريخ بزرگان 2010/04/07
    Ansar is the plural form of Naser from the root of Nasr, and means people who help and aid. In the advent of Islam, the residents of Medinah and its outskirts, especially the members of the two tribes of the Aws and Khazraj were called the Ansar, because ...
  • What is the relationship between man’s efforts and the sustenance that has been measured out for him?
    12817 Traditional 2011/08/15
    There are two kinds of sustenance. There is a sustenance that we go after and a sustenance that comes after us. In the traditions, the sustenance that comes after us is called “the sustenance that seeks,” and the sustenance that we seek has been named “the sought ...
  • What is the proof for Prophet Adam and Nuh (pbuh) being buried in Najaf?
    23457 تاريخ بزرگان 2010/07/20
    The main reasoning that proves the burial of Prophet Adam and Nuh (pbuh) in Najaf are the many hadith that disclose this fact. ...
  • Is it permissible to evade government tax in non-Islamic countries?
    7801 Laws and Jurisprudence 2011/01/10
    The answer given by Ayatollah Mahdi Hadavi Tehrani is as follows:1. You must abide by the rules of the country in which you are living except for when the rules may be opposed to Islamic Shari'ah.
  • I wish to know what the seven paradises are. Can you explain them for me?
    47501 Traditional 2012/04/07
    Dar al-Salam (Abode of Peace), Dar al-Jalal (Abode of Glory), Jannatul Mava (Garden of Refuge), Jannatul Khuld (Garden of Eternity), Jannatul Adan (Garden of Eden), Jannatul Firdous (Garden of Paradise) and Jannatul Naeem (Garden of Bliss) (or Delight) are names for the seven paradises which have been ...

Popular