Wa `alaykum As-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh

 

In the Name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the Mercy-Giving

  

All praise is due to Allah. Peace and blessings be upon His Messenger Muhammad.

 

Basically, Muslims have been exhorted to have many children to increase the number of Muslims, which adds quantitative value and power to the ummah.

 

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “I shall boast of your great numbers before other nations.” (Abu Dawud)

 

But spouses may need, for one reason or another, to avoid impregnation. `Azl (coitus interruptus) is one of the old methods in this regard. It was even a practiced by some of the companions of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) during his lifetime and with his approval, as reported in Sahih Muslim on the authority of Jabir ibn `Abdullah.

 

Therefore, according to the majority of Muslim jurists, it is permissible to practice `azl, though it is still undesirable as Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) described it in another narrations as “an invisible way of burying a child alive.” (Muslim)

In principle, modern contraceptives, as ways of birth control, have the same ruling of `azl but with the following conditions:

 

1- There should be a legitimate reason to use them. It is not permissible to use contraceptives for fear of poverty, for example.

 

2- Contraception has to be with mutual consent of both spouses; otherwise, it is not permissible.

 

3- No harmful effects should be incurred as a result of using such contraceptives. It is not permissible to use any contraceptive that has harmful side effects.

 

Almighty Allah knows best.