foster relationship through breast milk

Question:

I am supposed to get married to a woman. However, my mother says that she is doubtful as to whether this woman drank her (my mother's) breast milk when she was a baby. Is it permissible for me to marry this woman?

Answer:

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

For the relationship of radaa’ah (foster relationship established due to drinking the breast milk of a woman) to be established between two people, the testimony of two upright Muslim males or one upright Muslim male and two upright Muslim females – that these two individuals (at the age of two or less) drank the breast milk of the same woman, for example – is required.

Therefore, if only one male or one male and one female or two or more females and no male (for example, 4 females and no male) give testimony that Zaid and Fatima drank the breast milk of Rasheeda, the relationship of radaa’ah between Zaid and Fatima will not be established; and it will be permissible for Zaid and Fatima to get married to one another. However, if Zaid and Fatima feel in their heart that this person/these people are telling the truth, it is better that they not get married to one another (although if they do, it will be permissible).

Based on the above, if two upright Muslim males or one upright Muslim male and two upright Muslim females can testify that the woman you intend to marry drank the breast milk of your mother, it will not be permissible for you to marry her. In the absence of such witnesses, it will be permissible for you to marry her. And since your mother is not even sure whether or not the woman you intend to marry drank her breast milk, your mother’s doubt will have no effect on the permissibility of your marriage to this woman.

(Fatawa Mahmudiya: 13/614-616; Ahsanul Fatawa: 5/126; Raddul Muhtaar: 3/224, Saeed; Qamus al-Fiqh: 3/487)

And Allah knows best.

Mufti Faizal Riza
12/12/2011
Darul Ifta Australia
www.mufti-online.net

DISCLAIMER – Mufti-Online.net questions
Mufti-Online.net answers issues pertaining to Shariah. Thereafter, these questions and answers are placed for public view on www.mufti-online.net for educational purposes. However, many of these answers are unique to a particular scenario and cannot be taken as a basis to establish a ruling in another situation or another environment. Mufti-Online.net bears no responsibility with regards to these questions being used out of their intended context.

The Shariah ruling herein given is based specifically on the question posed and should be read in conjunction with the question.
Mufti-Online.net bears no responsibility to any party who may or may not act on this answer and is being hereby exempted from loss or damage howsoever caused.
This answer may not be used as evidence in any Court of Law without prior written consent of Mufti-Online.net.
Any or all links provided in our emails, answers and articles are restricted to the specific material being cited. Such referencing should not be taken as an endorsement of other contents of that website.

Support Darul Ifta Australia by donating.

DISCLAIMER:

Darul Ifta Australia provides answers to queries pertaining to Islamic law. Some answers are subsequently published publically for educational purposes. The queries are taken at face value since we have no way to investigate the actual circumstances or context. Fatwas (answers; verdicts) are unique to the stated query and cannot be used to establish another ruling or applied to another situation. We bear no responsibility for circumstances and situations where incorrect or incomplete information is given in the question. We are also not responsible if the answers are misinterpreted, applied incorrectly or taken out of context. We reserve the right to revise and update answers as and when needed and required.

All fatwas given on this site are based specifically on the question posed and should be read in conjunction with the question.
Darul Ifta Australia bears no responsibility to any party who may or may not act on any fatwa and is being hereby exempted from loss or damage howsoever caused.
No fatwa may be used as evidence in any court of law without prior written consent of Darul Ifta Australia.
Any or all links provided in our emails, fatwas and articles are restricted to the specific material being cited. Such referencing should not be taken as an endorsement of other contents of that website.