A Response To The Fatwa    (About Masturbation)

Sheikh Abdul Karim Zidan's comment on a legal fatwa published in the Journal of Islamic Education issued in Iraq. This fatwa was in response to a question from a questioner on the issue of masturbation by hand.  Sheikh Abdul Karim Zidan considered this fatwa incomplete and did not meet the complete answer to the questioner, so he published a comment on it that was published in the same magazine.

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The text of the commentary of Sheikh Abdul Karim Zidan

The Journal of Islamic Education in its first issue for the   twenty-seventh year published a legal fatwa in response to a question from a questioner. She fears that she will suffer hardship or fall into the legal prohibition, and the evidence for this advice is, (the second)  that the mufti - may Allah reward him - did not mention the jurisprudential texts from the sayings of the jurists in which there is no basis for what he went to in his fatwa.

And our response to his fatwa relates to these two aspects, so that the issue is clear in the eyes of the honorable readers, and so that there is no confusion, ambiguity, confusion, or arbitrary speech without evidence or proof, and Allah says the truth and He is the guide to the right path.

First note - advice to the questioner:

1)  The jurists, may Allah have mercy on them, said that marriage is obligatory if it is necessary to prevent fornication and not to fall into it.

     A- It came in Al-Mughni by Ibn Qudamah al-Hanbali, may Allah Almighty have mercy on him: And people in marriage are of three types, among them: He who fears for himself falling into the forbidden that he abandons the marriage, then he must marry according to the saying of the general jurists, because he must abstain and protect himself from the forbidden, and the method of marriage.

   B- It came in Fath al-Bari with the explanation of Sahih al-Bukhari by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, may Allah Almighty have mercy on him: (It is well-known on the authority of Ahmad that marriage is not obligatory for the able-bodied, unless he fears impotence. Al-Qurtubi said: The person who is able to fear harm to himself and his religion from celibacy, so that it will not be removed from him except by marriage, does not differ in the obligation of marriage to him).

Ibn Daqiq al-Eid said: Some jurists divided marriage into the five rulings, and made it obligatory if he feared impotence and was able to marry and concubinage was not possible. Al-Maziri Al-Maliki said: It is obligatory - that is, the obligation of marriage - in the right of someone who does not refrain from fornication without it.

    C- In the authentic hadith narrated by Al-Bukhari, Muslim and others: (The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O young men, those of you who can afford to should marry; it restrains the gaze and fortifies one's chastity. Those who cannot should fast; it controls the sexual desire), for it is for him and he came.” And in the interpretation of this honorable hadith: Unlike the elderly, although the meaning is considered if the reason is found in the elderly and the elderly as well). As for what is meant by the ba’a, Imam al-Khattabi said it is marriage. Al-Nawawi, may Allah have mercy on him, said, “What is meant by ba’a is intercourse, so its estimation is: Whoever among you is able to have intercourse because he is unable to provide for the marriage, then he must fast to ward off his desire and cut off the evil of his semen, as intercourse cuts him off—that is, mistakes.”

The evidence for this noble hadith is that he commands young men to marry, justifying that by lowering the gaze and preserving the private parts, and that this discourse pervades the elderly and the middle-aged if there is an invitation to marriage - meaning lust in it - as Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani said, and we mentioned his saying above. The meaning of this is that this curse is also considered in women, as the woman in which the one who calls for marriage - meaning lust in it - enters into this legal discourse and is commanded to marry if she is able, so that it will be easy for her to lower her gaze and lower her private parts. Moreover, the principle in the legal discourses is the generality, i.e. its generality to the generality of the obligated males and females, unless there is evidence for singling out, and there is no evidence here for singling out, because the woman also needs to lower her gaze and preserve her chastity, and the way to that is marriage, so she is addressed to him.

2)  In light of what we have mentioned: the honorable hadith and its significance, and the sayings of the jurists, the questioning Muslim woman must marry, and she should not refrain from marriage if a man who is sick comes to her religiously and morally, especially since the provisions for marriage are on the husband and not on the wife,  (the ba’ah) i.e. provisions Marriage does not require a woman to acquire it, because Islamic law obligates it on the man, not on the woman.

It is not said here that the sayings of the jurists are meant by men, not women, because we say that the reason for what they said of the necessity of marriage is when there is fear of falling into adultery - when being able to provide for the supplies of marriage - this reason is realized in the woman also because she has lust. Fornication is obligatory for him to marry, because the rulings are entrusted with their causes, so if the reason for the ruling is realized, the ruling is fulfilled. This is one, and the other, that the principle of the legal rulings is general: that is, they include both males and females, unless the evidence for the specialization of one of the two categories is based on the legal ruling. And there is no evidence that the man, rather than the woman, is obligated to marry him if he is able to do it and he fears that he will fall into adultery if he does not marry.

3)  If it is not possible for the Muslim woman who is asking the question to marry, as if a fiancé did not propose to her, or he proposed and it was not satisfactory in the view of Sharia, then what should she have in this case? In this case - until she gets married - she must be guided by the noble hadith, which is (fasting), because it is for her and it has come. If it is determined and that fasting did not stop her desire, or did not preserve her to the required extent, is she allowed to masturbate by hand? The answer to that becomes clear from the sayings of the jurists, may Allah have mercy on them, first, and then we state our opinion on the issue.

The second observation - the sayings of jurists and commentators on masturbation by hand:

4) What was mentioned in the books of interpretation regarding masturbation by hand

     A- Came in the interpretation of the Alnusfii of the verse: ( وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ لِفُرُوجِهِمْ حَافِظُونَ * إِلَّا عَلَىٰ أَزْوَاجِهِمْ أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَانُهُمْ فَإِنَّهُمْ غَيْرُ مَلُومِينَ * فَمَنِ ابْتَغَىٰ وَرَاءَ ذَٰلِكَ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْعَادُونَ )

(And they who guard their private parts* Except from their wives or those their right hands possess, for indeed, they will not be blamed*But whoever seeks beyond that, then those are the transgressors)

An-Nasafi, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

The Almighty’s saying: (But whoever seeks beyond) i.e., a request to satisfy a lust from other than these two - that is, the wife and the possessor of the oath - (then those are the transgressors) who are perfect in aggression. And it is evidence of the prohibition of pleasure and masturbation with the palm of the will of lust.

     B- It  was stated in the interpretation of Ibn Kathir:

Imam al-Shafi’i, may Allah have mercy on him, and those who agreed with him inferred the prohibition of masturbation by hand with this noble verse.

     C- It  was stated in the interpretation of Al-Qurtubi:

Muhammad ibn al-Hakam said: I heard Harmala ibn Abd al-Aziz said: I asked Malik about the man flogging Umairah. This verse is fascinated: ( وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ لِفُرُوجِهِمْ حَافِظُونَ * إِلَّا عَلَىٰ أَزْوَاجِهِمْ أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَانُهُمْ فَإِنَّهُمْ غَيْرُ مَلُومِينَ * فَمَنِ ابْتَغَىٰ وَرَاءَ ذَٰلِكَ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْعَادُونَ ), he said. This is because they refer to (the male) as (Umira) and the people of Iraq call it (masturbation). And Ahmad ibn Hanbal, for his piety, is permissible, and he argues that it is the expulsion of waste from the body, so it is permissible when needed.

     D-  Interpretation of the spirit of meanings by Al-Alusi:

Likewise, there was a difference of opinion regarding a man’s masturbation with his hand and it is called (Al-Khuddah) and (Halab Umayra). The majority of the imams are of the view that it is forbidden, and they are involved in what is beyond that - that is, in the Almighty’s saying: ( فَمَنِ ابْتَغَىٰ وَرَاءَ ذَٰلِكَ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْعَادُونَ ) The body may be taken out when needed, such as cupping and cupping. And Imam Ibn al-Hamam - the Hanafi school of thought - said that it is forbidden, and if lust overwhelms him, then he does the will to calm her down with it, then it is hoped that he will not be punished. Among the people are those who prevented his entry in what was mentioned - that is, he prevented the entry of masturbation by hand - in the Almighty's saying (( فَمَنِ ابْتَغَىٰ وَرَاءَ ذَٰلِكَ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْعَادُونَ ).

     E- It was stated in the interpretation of Al-Razi: crushing of women, sexual intercourse with a dead animal, and masturbation by hand, nothing is prescribed for them except for punishment.

5) The sayings of the jurists

In the following, we mention some of the sayings of the fuqaha’ on the issue of masturbation by the hand by way of representation and not by way of investigation of all their sayings:

A -  It came in Al-Durr Al-Mukhtar, Explanation of Tanweer Al-Absar in the Hanafi jurisprudence:

B-  It came in Al-Durr Al-Mukhtar Ali Al-Durr Al-Mukhtar by Ibn Abdeen, may Allah have mercy on him: And in Al-Siraj: (If he wanted by this to soothe the excessive lust that occupies the heart, and he was celibate, without a wife or a mother, or if he was, but he is not able to reach her for an excuse), Abu Al-Labth said: (I hope that there is no woe on him).

C- It  is stated in the Shafi’i school of jurisprudence:

(And it is forbidden to masturbate - by hand - because of the Almighty’s saying: ( وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ لِفُرُوجِهِمْ حَافِظُونَ * إِلَّا عَلَىٰ أَزْوَاجِهِمْ أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَانُهُمْ فَإِنَّهُمْ غَيْرُ مَلُومِينَ... ) And because it directly leads to the cutting of offspring, it is forbidden like sexual intercourse.

D-  It was stated in Fath al-Qadeer by Ibn Hammam al-Hanafi in Sharh al-Hidaya: It is not permissible to masturbate with the palm.

E- In Subul Islam, Explanation of Bulhu Al-Maram by Al-San’ani came as evidence: “And he used it as evidence – that is, when he said, ﷺ : (O young men, those of you who can afford to should marry; it restrains the gaze and fortifies one's chastity),– Some of the Malikis prohibit masturbation because if it was permissible, they would guide it to it because it is easier. Some of the exceptions were permitted. Hanbali and some of the Hanafi school).

F- it came in Al-Muhalla by Ibn Hazm Al-Andalusi Al-Zahiri (Likewise, masturbation for men is equal, whether the man will not touch his penis with his left hand, and the woman touches her vagina as well. ( وَقَدْ فَصَّلَ لَكُم مَّا حَرَّمَ عَلَيْكُمْ ) (Allah has explained in detail to you what He has forbidden) This is not what He has separated for us to forbid, as it is permissible because of the Almighty’s saying: Then Ibn Hazm said: ( خَلَقَ لَكُم مَّا فِي الْأَرْضِ جَمِيعًا ) (created for you all of that which is on the earth) ,The makrooh is correct on the authority of Ataa, and the absolute permissibility is correct on the authority of Al-Hasan, and on the authority of Amr bin Dinar, on the authority of Ziyad Abi Al-Ala, on the authority of Mujahid, and it was narrated by those who narrated it from those who realized it and these are the senior followers who hardly narrate except on the authority of the Companions).

G-  The Sheikh of Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, said in his fatwas: (As for ejaculating - i.e. semen - by choice, this is forbidden according to most scholars. He did not masturbate or fear illness, for this contains two well-known sayings of the scholars, and sects of the predecessors and successors have permitted in this case, and others have forbidden it).

H-  It was stated in the fatwas of Hassanein Muhammad Makhlooq, the former Grand Mufti of Egypt: He said after a long talk and many jurisprudential statements, the text of which is: The prohibition, and what was narrated on the authority of Ahmad and on the authority of the Hanafi school, is permissible when necessary and absolutely necessary, so it comes under the heading of committing the lesser of two harms.

6)  Summary of the sayings of the jurists

The summary of the above is that masturbation by hand is the original prohibition and prohibition, and the exception is permissibility when necessary, and necessity is the significant fear of falling into adultery. Because necessities allow prohibitions, and what is permitted by necessity is permitted to the extent that the state of necessity pushes it, because the rule, necessities are estimated according to their value.

7) Who is subject to the rule of necessity?

And if masturbation by hand is permissible in a state of necessity, which is a state of real fear of falling into adultery, then adopting the rule of this necessity is only after taking what the honorable hadith has instructed: (O young men, those of you who can afford to should marry; it restrains the gaze and fortifies one's chastity. Those who cannot should fast; it controls the sexual desire) So he should fast as much as he can. Fasting is measured by everything that weakens lust, such as not being exposed to what provokes it by looking at women and what they reveal of their private parts, and this is for men, and from looking at pornographic scenes that provoke desire in reality or images, as well as contemplating the subject of intercourse and so on. It is also necessary to take what is contrary to the arousal of desire, such as contemplation of Allah’s blessings, the Last Day and death, and preoccupation with worship of its various types, including resorting to Allah through supplication, affirmation, protection from fornication, and so on. So, if a Muslim man or woman takes advantage of all of this, and the desire is afflicted, and the man has nothing to marry, and the woman does not come to propose to her and marry her from a qualified person, despite her desire to marry for the sake of being chaste.

8) a summary of the fatwas given to the questioner

In light of all of what we have mentioned, the questioner is given the following fatwa:

First -  The determination to marry, meaning that she resolves and desires it if she is qualified for marriage, is competent in religion and morals, and is able to spend on it. And she does not hesitate because she has a child from her deceased husband, for the virtuous women who abused the Companions married many of them after their husbands separated from them by death or his absence. She gave him to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, to serve him, then she married the great companion, Abu Talha, may Allah be pleased with him. Umm Hakim bint Al-Harith bin Hisham, her husband Ikrima was martyred in the Roman war, so Khaled bin Saeed bin Al-Aas married her after the expiry of her waiting period.

Secondly -  If it is not possible for her to get married, then she must fast and what we mentioned in the previous paragraph. Most likely, these means of fasting and others will lead to them not needing to take the rule of necessity that we have explained. If it is determined and the state of necessity remains in place for her, then she has the right to take her ruling until Allah facilitates relief for her from a righteous husband or from not having to take the rule of necessity.

Third -  that in Islamic Sharia the inheritance of brothers is from a mother) and this means that a Muslim woman may marry another husband after separating from her first husband, from whom she was given children, and then begotten from her second husband with children.

And Allah knows best, and praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, and may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon our master Muhammad and his family and companions.

Dr. Abdul Karim Zidan

Rabi` al-Awwal 1407 AH / November 1986 AD