‘Azl is when the man withdraws when close to ejaculation in order to discharge outside the vaginal passage. 'Azl is something which is permitted by the Shar’a. i.e. it is allowed for a man when He has sexual intercourse with his wife to discharge his semen, when close to ejaculation, outside the vaginal passage. Bukhari has reported on the authority of 'Ata'a from Jabir that He said: “We used to practise 'Azl in the time of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) while the Qur'an was being revealed.” It has also been narrated on the authority of 'Ata'a that He heard Jabir (ra) saying: “We used to practise 'Azl while the Qur'an was being revealed.” And in Muslim: “We used to practise 'Azl in the time of Allah's Messenger (pbuh), He knew of it and He did not forbid us from it.” This is the decision of Allah's Messenger (pbuh) on 'Azl. Which indicates its permissibility, since if it were Haram He would not have remained silent. The Hukm of 'Azl has been related by the Sahabi to the time of the Prophet (pbuh), and because of this it becomes a hukm ascribed to Him (pbuh) since it is apparent that the Prophet knew about it and assented to it, due to the numerous occasions where they put their questions to Him about the rules. With regards to the permissibility of 'Azl there are also a number of authentic Ahadith. Narrated by Ahmad, Muslim and Abu Daud on the authority of Jabir: “A man came to the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) and said: ‘I have a slave girl who is our servant. She carries water for us. I have intercourse with her, but I do not want her to become pregnant’. He (pbuh) said: ‘Practise ‘Azl, if you like. But what is decreed for her will come to her.’” Muslim reports on the authority of Abu Sa'id: “We went out with the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) on the expedition of Bani al-Mustaliq.We took as captive some beautiful Arab women.We desired them, for we were suffering from the absence of our wives. We wanted to practise ‘Azl, so we asked Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) about it. He said: ‘What prevents you from doing so? Since Allah has ordained whom He has to create until the Day of Judgement’”. Abu Daud narrated on the authority of Jabir who said: “A man from the Ansar came to the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) and said: “I have a slave girl. I have intercourse with her but I do not want her to become pregnant.” He (pbuh) said: ‘Practise ‘Azl, if you like. But what is decreed for her will come to her.’” 'Azl is unequivocally permitted whatever the intention of the one who practises it. Whether it is for the intention of not having offspring, having fewer children, or in sympathy for the wife because she is weak making it difficult for her to bear or give birth, or for any other reason.

The husband has the right to practise 'Azl regardless of his intention. That is because the evidences concerning it are unrestricted (Mutlaqa), and under no circumstances are they restricted; and they are general (Aam) without any specification (Takhsis). Thus, they remain unrestricted and general. It should not be said that 'Azl constitutes killing the child before its creation. There are clear Ahadith which reject this. Abu Daud has reported on the authority of Abu Said that a man said: “O Messenger of Allah (pbuh) I have a slave girl and I practise 'Azl with her. I do not want her to get pregnant but I desire what men desire. The Jews say that 'Azl is the minor live burial of children.” He said: “The Jews have lied. If Allah wanted to create a child you could not stop Him”. The text came to permit 'Azl for the intention of not having children.

Ahmad and Muslim have narrated on the authority of Usama b. Zayd that a man came to the Prophet (pbuh) and said: I do 'Azl with my wife. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (pbuh) said: “Why do you do that?” The man said: “I pity her child or her children.” Thereupon the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: “If that were harmful it would have harmed the Persians and the Romans”. Here the Messenger (pbuh) said “Why do you do that?” He did not say 'Do not do that'. It is understood from this Hadith that He agreed upon it; but He informed Him that having children one after another does not cause harm as the evidence for that is by what Muslim reported in the Hadith of Usama b. Zayd when a man came to Allah's Messenger (pbuh) and said: “I practise 'Azl with my wife pitying her child.” The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: “If it is for that reason, then no. It did not harm the Persians or the Romans”, and it is also narrated in Muslim from Abdul-Rahman b. Bishr from Abu Said: “Fearing that pregnancy will harm the child being suckled.” Consequently, since the Messenger allowed 'Azl in order to avoid pregnancy, even though the suckling infant is not harmed, it applies on 'Azl to prevent pregnancy for the purpose of avoiding a large family or avoiding having children in the first place etc. This is because if Allah (swt) knew that the child will be born, then the child will be born whether the (husband) practiced 'Azl or not. Thus, Ibn Hibban reported in the Hadith of Anas that a man inquired about 'Azl. The Prophet (pbuh) said: “If the semen from which a child comes is spilled on a rock, He will bring forth from it a child”. It cannot be said that limiting offspring goes against the Prophet's (pbuh) encouragement to have many children when He said: “Marry, have offspring and multiply”; and when He (pbuh) said: “A fertile black woman is better than a beautiful woman who is barren”. This is not true because permitting 'Azl does not contradict the encouragement to have many children. On the one hand there is exhortation to have a lot of offspring and on the other there is a permission to practise 'Azl. As for what Ahmad has reported from Judhama bint Wahb al-Asadiyya, that she said: “I was present with the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) among the people. He (pbuh) was saying: “I wanted to forbid sexual intercourse with mothers who are giving suckling to their children, but I have seen that the people of Persia and Rome do that and their children are not harmed at all”. Then He was asked about 'Azl. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: “That is the concealed burial. It is (and He recited the verse): ”When the female (infant) buried alive (as the pagan Arabs used to do) shall be questioned”.[At- Takwir:8-9]. This Hadith contradicts the clear and authentic Ahadith which permit 'Azl. When a Hadith conflicts with another Hadith which has more lines of transmission, then the latter is preferred and the singularly transmitted Hadith is rejected. Accordingly, this Hadith is rejected because it contradicts what is stronger than it and has more lines of transmission.

It should not be said that the reconciliation of this Hadith with the Ahadith which permit 'Azl is that this Hadith is taken to mean dislike for 'Azl. This would have been possible if there was no clash in the Messenger's (pbuh) negation in the other Hadith to the same meaning which came in this Hadith. So the Hadith which Ahmad and Abu Dawood reported on the authority of Abu Said: “The Jews say that 'Azl is the minor live burial of children.” He (pbuh) said: “The Jews have lied” and the Hadith of Judhama says: “That is the concealed burial.” It is (and He recited the verse):

“When the female (infant) buried alive shall be questioned” [At- Takwir: 8-9]

Thus, it is not possible to reconcile these two Ahadith. Either one of them is abrogated or one of them is stronger than the other so the weaker Hadith is rejected. Since the history of the two Ahadith is unknown and the Hadith of Abu Said is supported by numerous Ahadith and through numerous chains, while the Hadith of Judhama has come isolated and it is not supported by anything, it is therefore rejected and the Hadith which is stronger than it, is preferred. Therefore, 'Azl is definitely allowed without any dislike whatever the person intends from the practising of 'Azl , due to the general nature of the evidences. The man does not need to even ask permission from his wife to practise 'Azl because the issue relates to Him and not to her. It should not be said that intercourse is her right, so the semen is also her right, thus He cannot discharge it outside the vagina without her permission. This is a rational justification and not one from the Shari’ah so it accordingly has no value. And furthermore it is nullified because intercourse is her right but not the discharge of semen as evidenced by the impotent man who if He entered the wife but did not discharge, He is considered to have fulfilled her right by the entering. She does not, then, have a right to the repudiation (Faskh) of marriage. As for what Ibn Maja has reported on the authority of Umar b. al-Khattab who said: “Allah's Messenger (pbuh) forbade the practise of 'Azl with a free woman without her permission”, it is a weak Hadith and in the isnad there is Ibn Lahia and (much) has been said about Him. Therefore, the Ahadith remain unrestricted in their permissibility of 'Azl .

This ruling on 'Azl applies to the use of medicines, condoms or the use of a coil to prevent pregnancy. All of them belong to the same category because the evidences permitting 'Azl completely apply to them, as all these means belong to the question of 'Azl. This is so because the ruling is the permissibility of a man undertaking an action to prevent pregnancy whether by 'Azl or any other means. What is permitted for the man is permitted for the woman since the ruling allows the prevention of pregnancy through any of the available means.

This permission to prevent pregnancy is specific to the temporary prevention of pregnancy. As for the permanent prevention of childbearing or causing sterility, it is Haram. So the use of medicines which irrevocably prevent pregnancy and terminate the chance of having offspring, or the undergoing of surgical operations which permanently halt pregnancy and terminate procreation, are all prohibited. This is so because they are a type of castration so they fall within its category and take its ruling. This is because these practices terminate procreation just as castration terminates procreation. A clear prohibition has been made with regards to castration. Reported by Sa'ad b. Abi Waqqas: “The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) rejected (the idea) of Uthman b. Maz'un living in celibacy (saying): And if He (pbuh) had given me permission we would have got ourselves castrated.” Uthman b. Muz’un came to the Prophet (pbuh) and said: “O Messenger of Allah (pbuh), I am a man suffering from having no wife. Permit me to castrate myself.” He (pbuh) said: “No! However, you should fast”. And in different wording He said: “O Messenger of Allah will you permit me to castrate myself ?” He (pbuh) said: “Allah has substituted for us monasticism with the True Religion”. Narrated about Anas that He said: “The Prophet used to order us to marry and strictly forbade us form celibacy. He used to say: “Get married to the tender and fertile for indeed I like my Ummah to outnumber others on the Day of Judgement”.

The permanent termination of procreation conflicts with the Legislator's making of procreation and childbearing as the original purpose of marriage. That is why Allah (swt) said in showing his (swt) benevolence to people:

“And He has made for you, from your wives, sons and grandsons” [An- Nahl: 72]

The Legislator has made the having of many children Mandub and encouraged people towards it and praised the one who does it. It was narrated by Anas that the Prophet (pbuh) said: “Get married to the tender and fertile for indeed I like my Ummah to outnumber others on the Day of Judgement”. Abdullah b. Umar narrated that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: “Marry the mothers of children so that I can vie with other peoples by your great number on the Day of Judgement”. Ma'qal b. Yasar narrated: “A man came to the Prophet (pbuh) and said: “I have found a woman who is beautiful and of noble descent but she cannot bear children. Shall I marry her ?. He (pbuh) said: “No.” Then He came again and He (pbuh) prevented Him. Then He came for the third time, so the Prophet said: “Get married to the tender and fertile for indeed, I like my Ummah to outnumber others”.

The permissibility of temporary birth control through 'Azl or any other method of birth control does not mean the permissibility of abortion. So when the soul (secret of life) has been breathed into the foetus, its abortion is Haram whether the abortion was brought about by taking a medicine, violent movements or medical operation. This applies whether it was performed by the mother, father or doctor, because it is an aggression on a human soul whose blood is sacrosanct. It is a crime for which blood money (Diyya) has to be paid, the value of which is to free a male or female slave. Its amount is one tenth of the blood money for an adult. He (pbuh) said:

“And kill not anyone whom Allah has forbidden, except for a just cause” [Al- Anam: 151]

Bukhari and Muslim reported from Abu Hurayra (ra) who said: “Allah's Messenger gave a verdict regarding an aborted foetus of a woman from Bani Lihyan that the killer (of the foetus) should give a male or female slave (as a Diyya).And the minimum age of the foetus which requires blood money is when it appears to have some human features such as a finger, hand, feet, head, eye or fingernail.”

But if the abortion took place before the soul was breathed in it, it has to be examined: if the abortion takes place after forty days from the beginning of the pregnancy when the formation of the foetus starts, it will be likewise Haram, and it will take the Hukm of aborting a foetus after the soul (secret of life) has been breathed into it. That is because when the development of the foetus begins and some limbs appear, it becomes certain that it is a living foetus on its way to becoming a complete human. So, it will be an aggression against a human life whose blood is sacred and it will be like burying it alive, a matter which Allah (swt) has forbidden. He (swt) said:

“And when the female (infant) buried alive shall be questioned. For what sin she was killed?” [At- Takwir: 8-9]

So the abortion of the foetus after forty days from the beginning of pregnancy is forbidden for the mother, the father or the doctor. Anyone who aborts after forty days will be committing a sin and a crime for which blood money of an aborted foetus must be paid, which is the giving of a male or female slave as mentioned in the Hadith reported by Bukhari and Muslim.

It is not permitted to abort a foetus whether in the stage of development or after life is breathed into it except if trustworthy doctors decide that the existence of the foetus in the womb of the mother will lead to the death of both her and accordingly the foetus. In this case, it is allowed to abort the foetus and save the life of the mother.