Definition:
Abortion can be defined as the termination of a pregnancy during the first, or the second trimester, and it can be done on a dead, or a living fetus.
There are many types of abortions, for example a blighted ovum and or embryonic pregnancy, an abortion can be spontaneous, it can be incomplete or complete, it can be missed or it can be septic.
The incidence of abortion before the age of 20 years is about 12%, and 26 % above the age of 40 years. More than 80% of spontaneous abortion occurs during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
The causes of abortions are many, it could be fetal like chromosomal anomalies, whether it’s aneuploidy or euploidy, aneuploidy like trisomy or monosomy which is caused by x- triplody, tetraploidy; it could have a maternal origin like for example if the mother has a chronic debilitating disease like TB or cancer, it could have an uterine cause, whether substrate or bisubstrate, it could be caused by drugs, alcohol, caffeine and tobacco, it could be caused by radiation, contraception or if the mother has an i.u.d. (intrauterine device), or it can be cause by other diseases like thrombophilia, anti-phosphoric syndrome or systemic lupus erythromatosis.
The indication of abortion is: if the baby is dead, the doctors should give the mother treatment in the form of drugs. If she’s in the first trimester we could do surgery in the form of evacuation or if she’s in the second trimester induction of abortion.
The problem is on the mother or on the fetus. If the problem is the mother, if she is having a heart disease we should terminate the pregnancy, if the mother develops a disease during the pregnancy like pre-eclampsia or eclampsia we should terminate pregnancy. If the problem is the fetus, like if the fetus is congenitally malformed, there are anomalies in the fetus, then we should terminate the pregnancy and anomalies that make the baby impossible to survive like multiple congenital anomalies in the limbs, in the heart, in the abdomen in this case we should terminate the pregnancy.
Many individuals in the West equate abortion with miscarriage, they say well, a miscarriage and abortion are the same thing, so why can’t we have an abortion? What is the difference between a miscarriage and abortion? Can you please elaborate between these two issues?
There is a difference between miscarriage and abortion.
A miscarriage is something that is done without any human intervention, there is no interference from the part of the woman, who is carrying the fetus, or from an external part if someone beats her up or gives her some medications or interferes surgically to have her abort the child.
So, a miscarriage is something that happens from Allah the All Mighty, as we say, and we believe that it is in the best interest of the mother, because usually, as physicians say, that whenever a miscarriage takes place, this is because there is some form of mutilation or deformation in the fetus that would most likely be the cause of this child to be born into some form of being retarded, being something that is wrong with it. So, Allah would choose for the pregnancy to be terminated at this early stage. And as a believer, we believed that whatever Allah rules upon a Muslim, than this ruling is for him/her best.
And a miscarriage is, as said, something that humans have no intervention to or with, not like abortion. Abortion is something that is intentional made, and it is something that a person does, either a physician or by sort of abuse of the pregnancy. The mother can abort herself by carrying heavy things for example, or by being beaten by, or abused by someone else and then she aborts her pregnancy. And this form of abortion is divided into 2 types:
Type 1 – Before the soul is breath into the fetus
Type 2 – After it was breath into the fetus
The prophet (salla Allahu alaihi wa sallam) tells us in the authentic hadith and these are of course words by a person who was illiterate, who did not go into any medical school and who could not read or write, yet, it is a revelation from Allah. He (salla Allahu alaihi wa sallam) stated this 15 centuries ago: “ Verily the creation of each one of you is brought together in his mother’s womb for 40 days in the form of a nutfah (a drop of fluid), then he becomes an alaqah (thick coagulated blood) for a similar period which is 40 days, then he becomes a mudghah (chewed like morsel of flesh) for a similar period which is 40 days, then Allah sends an angel who blows his soul into him and enjoined to write down four things: his deeds, his provisions, his life span, and whether he is doomed for Hell or destined to Paradise.”
So, from this hadith we understand that the soul is breath only after the 120 days, approximately 4 months. This gives us an indication that it is a different way of looking at a miscarriage or an abortion before having this. Also, Allah tells us that the chewed flesh, the mudgah can be formed and not formed. And Allah mentions this in the Qur’an, Allah the All Mighty said:
“O mankind if you are in doubt about the Resurrection, then, Verily, We created you from dust, then from a nutfah which is a mix of male and female sexual discharge, the offspring of Adam that is, then from a clot which is a piece of a thick coagulated blood, then from a form of flesh some formed and some un-formed that We may make clear to you.”
What is the difference between what is mentioned in the Qur’an the formed and the un-formed?
There is a big difference in the rulings that are given whether the fetus that was aborded, or that came out as a form of miscarriage is formed or not formed. So, there is a big difference for the rulings regarding purity, regarding the funeral prayer, regarding washing the fetus and burying it or discarding it, a number of things.
Is it fair to say that the difference between the formed and the un-formed is the differences of that period? That the prophet (salla Allahu alaihi wa sallam) mentioned when there is no spirit and when the spirit is finally in the fetus?
No, it is not; because, as mentioned in the hadith, there are 40 days, 40 days, 40 days and then the spirit or the soul is breath into the fetus. Now, scholars all agree that before the second phase which is 80 days, this is not a living creature yet, because the soul was not breathed into it, first of all, second of all, it’s just a clot of blood, it’s not still formed. And they all agree that from day 120 onwards it is a living creature because the soul has been breathed into it.
The differences between day 81 and day 120, these 40 days in between, is if the baby is formed or un-formed. So, if a miscarriage or an abortion takes place in this period, between day 80 and day 120, we have to look at what came out, if it was formed in the sense that, it has arms, legs, it has a shape of the head, then it takes the ruling of a born baby, in the sense that it has for the mother that is, but as a child, no, it’s not, it’s not a living creature yet, it does not have a soul spirit yet.
But for the mother if it was formed then, and if she was divorced, we know that there is what is called as “Iddah”, and if the divorce takes place while a mother is pregnant, she is out of the iddah- of the waiting period, she still remains the wife of her husband until she gives birth.
The minute she gives birth, then she is
considered to have her iddah over. So her waiting period after marriage is terminated, this is one.
Second of all, the blood comes out of a woman who is the post-delivery bleeding; this is considered to be one of the things that prevent her from praying, if the fetus was formed. But if it was not formed, then she has to pray, she has to fast because this is not considered to be post-delivery bleeding and so on. There are number of verdicts, if the fetus was formed she does not pray she does not fast. If it was un-formed, she prays, and she fast and so on.
Is the formed creature that goes out from miscarriage (We ask Allah to protect us) have a Janazah that prayed on it before the soul entered into the baby?
It is not considered to be a living, that is why we do not pray janazah for it. Some scholars say, because it is formed you can do this and this is a little bit closer to reality because it is in between a living creature and a clot of blood, so because it has a formation of a living creature, some scholars say that you would offer a funeral prayer and it wouldn’t harm this miscarriage fetus to have this prayer, In sha’Allah it would add value and reward to the parents.
But in all cases, once it is formed, do we bury it or just wash it?
Once it is formed we have to bury it and we give it a proper burial because it is not something to throw out as in the case of a clot of blood or a piece of meat.
SubhanAllah! One can’t help but think after discussing this issue and understanding once the baby is form and so on, we see in the animal kingdom, even animals are very protective of their offspring, what could be worse than killing your own children in the eyes of common day a murder. So, what would drive somebody to wants to abort their own child?
Well, this has a lot of answers to it unfortunately. But before going to this answers or cases we have to understand that Islam gives a lot of value to life, and that is why like in other religions, it is forbidden in Islam to abort a child except in very, very limited cases that we will come to mention In sha’Allah.
Islam gives a great value to life. Unfortunately, when you do not have proper belief and imam, you tend to feel that life is something that is worthless.
Usually people who perform abortions are those who conceive through haram, through illegal means, adultery or fornications. Maybe the doctors would come and say that the child, or the fetus is not properly created, in a sense that it has a deformity, or something that is missing, so the father and the mother would fell that we don’t want to go into this, let’s abort the pregnancy altogether. Maybe in so many cases, especially when dealing with abortion in a commercial way, people would use the fetus and their stem cells in their researches, so they would sell this with a lot of money. So whenever a woman comes in, they would pretend that there is something wrong with her and they would advise her, 3 or 4 doctors who don’t fear Allah, who don’t know Allah and who are only interested in their wallets and bank accounts and would charge and abort the child and the pregnancy for her own safety and well- being and they would take the fetus and would use its body parts, stem cells, etc. from it. So there are a lot of reasons.
But among the reasons is it abuse because not necessarily the consent of the mother is always there in abortion. Maybe someone attacks her or beats her while she is pregnant and she has a miscarriage or an abortion, accordingly. So, there are many reasons for that.
Are there any Islamic valid reasons we can think of where a woman would want to abort her child for example if she was rape, or she committed fornication?
Scholars say that, a pregnancy that results from rape, though it is a great calamity and the one that was rape is rewarded at the sight of Allah because of this calamity and the child she is conceiving, it has no guilt, he did not do anything wrong to be killed for, so they say that it is not permissible for her to perform this abortion and unless it is 40 days old, or below but more than that, it would not be permissible. And some say it is not permissible altogether. In the case of being conceived out of wed-lock, or fornication, or adultery this is even greater, this is not permissible because it’s their own wrongdoing and it’s not a child’s fault that his parents did the sins.
Is there a difference in terms on how the woman has to purifies herself afterwards, how the child is considered a living creature or not, between the first 40 days, the next 40 days and the final 40 days? Correct? So then, is an abortion in different stages? Whether it’s a blood clot or the fetus that’s been formed or finally the child has a soul obviously, the worst time to abort. Is the ruling the same? How are the people in Islam who abort their children treated? Are they punished?
40 days and before 40 days and below some scholars says it is permissible, if there is a legitimate reason. If the soul was breathed then, there is no legitimate whatever. It is killing, some even say even if the mother was facing a heart attack and she could die while giving birth, we cannot abort the child because her death is probable, she might and she may not, but the killing of the fetus that was a living creature this is something that is murder.
So, is it wrong islamically to abort a child?
Yes, it is, it is punishable. In Islam if you kill a living fetus after 120 days you are forced to give expiation, blood-money to the family of the child that was aborted which is 5 camels worth of money.
What if that is the woman who wants to abort her own child?
Then, she is the one who is supposed to do this. She gives it and she has no share on it. She gives it to her husband who is inheriting this child. And some schools of thought says that she also has too fast for 2 consecutive months as a form of expiation
But they are not charge with murder?
Well, it’s not murder yet, because if the abortion takes place while the woman is pregnant with it, It’s not fully pledge murder, but it is part of it and it’s a major sin in Islam and we can go on to call it murder if the assault takes place at a pregnant woman and then she gives birth in a time which is usual for a woman to give birth like 7 months, 8 months, 9 months and the child lives for a normal period of time which is 10 min; half hour, a normal life and then dies, out of this abuse or assault.
And if this assault is directly the cause of death of this born child?
Then, she has to give full blood money. This is called murder, it is not like the five camel worth, she has to pay the full 100 camel worth of blood-money to the parents.