There are various legal, religious and social attitudes towards surrogacy in different countries. Surrogacy in Islam and Islamic countries is a widely discussable topic. In order to examine the rulings of this process, candidates should refer to valid “fatwas” on surrogacy and opinions of jurists.
Surrogacy in Islam can be discussed in two different points of view: Sunni and Shia schools of thought.
Surrogacy in Islam Shia
In 1999, Ayatollah Khamane’i the Supreme Jurisprudent of the Shia in Iran ruled that under certain conditions surrogacy, egg, or embryo donations are all allowed. “Transfer of the fetus to the uterus of the woman is not forbidden in any case, but touching and looking at the haram should be avoided”, he declared. More information on egg donation in Islam
For instance,egg donation is allowed if the husband marries the egg donor temporarily. His justification for allowing embryo donation is that the embryo is created from a married couple and is given to another married couple, and it does not involve direct sexual contact so it cannot be called adultery.
This remarkable difference in Shia and Sunni attitudes about surrogacy origins from a different conception of the adultery act. In the Shia conception, adultery is physical and sexual bodily contact not just transferring some cells.
Also in the Shia’s point of view, adultery destroys the family while donation (or surrogacy) protects it. Surrogacy is acceptable based upon the objectives of Sharia; which are to protect one’s dignity and honor, and also defend the preservation of the human species which is one of the primary goals of Sharia. The supporters of surrogacy in Islam consider it permissible by comparing it to ‘wet-nursing’. Just like a foster mother who breastfed and gives nutrition to the baby, in surrogacy the baby is nourished by the surrogate mother. Therefore, they consider surrogacy and wet-nursing similar.
Surrogacy in Islam Sunni
In Sunni, jurists are on two different sides; some of them accept surrogacy as a way of extending families and some others don’t have a positive attitude towards using the IVF method and surrogacy. They assume getting an egg or sperm from a third party is similar to sharing the marriage bed with someone else and therefore they compare it to adultery because the surrogate is carrying the fertilized egg of someone who is not her legal husband and therefore it is considered illegitimate. Furthermore, they argue since the biological mother has a genetic part in creating the baby, there is a high potential for emotional and legal confrontation between the two “mothers”.
However, these two following conditions are permissible in Sunni as long as the couple is still married:
- Fertilization outside the body which was occurred by combining the husband’s sperm and the wife’s egg and then transferring it into the wife’s uterus (IVF + Embryo transfer).
- Fertilization inside the wife’s body by making the husband’s sperm be transferred into her uterus mechanically (IUI).
The conditions above mean that there is literally no surrogate mother! Both husband and wife have to be content about doing the process. The physician must be a female and it is better to be a Muslim if it is possible. Surrogacy in Hanafi and surrogacy in Shafei is acceptable by using modern reproductive techniques as long as the insemination is occurred by sperms of the husband and eggs of the wife. Here It should be mentioned that a few religious authorities allow surrogacy between co-wives.
as a result of all the discussions and attitudes towards surrogacy especially in Sunni, you better talk with your trusted jurists about this process and ask their idea about it. After all, you are getting help from this method to have a stronger family relationship by having offspring.
Is Surrogacy Haram in Islam?
As it was discussed above, the Islamic attitude toward involving a third party for reproduction is not united. Surrogacy from Sunni point of view is not an acceptable form of having children because they compare carrying the baby of a man who is not the mother’s legal husband to adultery and they do not approve this method. However, most religious leaders in Shia approve surrogacy. They believe that surrogacy should not be compared to adultery since it is not a sexual act. They compare surrogacy to wet nursing where another woman only nourishes the baby and she was not involved with embryo formation.
Overall, the debates on the issue of surrogacy are extensively done by the Islamic foghaha since each can have their own reasons to judge the morality of this process. Nevertheless, we cannot ignore the fact that surrogacy is one of the best ways to help infertile couples have children and grow their families.
Surrogacy in Iran is not only legally supported, but also religiously approved. TebMedTourism as one of the most experienced surrogacy companies organizes all the medical and legal requirements of this process for prospective parents so that they be able to focus on the arrival of their baby with peace of mind.
Necessities and Uses of Surrogacy
In order to maintain the family as a social unit and prevent it from possible breakdown, infertile couples try to use surrogacy as a kind of treatment in order to have children. This action may have the following medical reasons.
The most important reason for using a surrogate is that either the infertile woman’s uterus is not suitable for pregnancy or she has no uterus at all. Lack of uterus may be congenital or acquired. In the congenital form, due to abnormal development of the molar ducts during pregnancy, the newborn girl may have normal ovaries but is deprived of having a uterus.
In the acquired type, a woman has no uterus because of a hysterectomy (removal of the uterus) due to malignant changes in the mucous cells of the cervix or the uterus itself, but she has an ovary. Sometimes it is not possible to replace the fetus due to defects and abnormalities in the structure of the uterus caused by the presence of large or too many fibroids or due to repeated curettages (Asherman syndrome).
Other reasons for using surrogacy include helping a woman with cancer or cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and other conditions that prevent pregnancy due to chemotherapy or medication. This method can be also recommended when a woman has a genetic disease that can be transmitted to the fetus or has had frequent miscarriages for unknown reasons.
Nowadays, there are approximately 80 million childless persons in the world. In most nations, not having a child is a major problem that leads to suffering and pain for infertile couples. It can bring many negative social consequences for the couple, especially for women. They can be excluded from social events, criticized, or mistreated. It may also lead to divorce, polygamous marriage, or social isolation.
Terms of surrogacy use
To sum up, while having children is not a legal obligation for every couple, chasing the dream of conceiving children can be a personal right. Parenthood and surrogacy in Islam can be considered valid by following specific conditions and guidelines of Islamic law, jurisprudence, and Sunnah.
Our professional medical team in TebMedTourism Co. is ready to guide you and answer your further questions about surrogacy. We will lead you the way till the end of the journey. Contact TebMedTourism Co. now free of charge all through the week.
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