Yes, Muslims drink breast milk; Islamic law permits a wet nurse to breastfeed an infant. This creates a "milk relationship" with specific rulings.
Islamic Perspective on Breastfeeding and Milk Kinship
In Islam, breastfeeding is considered a natural and encouraged way to nourish infants. Beyond simply providing nutrition, breastfeeding can also establish a unique bond, known as "milk kinship" (or rada'a), between the child and the wet nurse (the breastfeeding woman) and her family.
Rules and Considerations Regarding Milk Kinship
- Permissibility: It is permissible for a Muslim infant to drink breast milk from a woman who is not their biological mother. This practice is common in situations where the biological mother is unable to breastfeed.
- Establishment of Kinship: Milk kinship is established after a certain number of feedings. The exact number varies among different Islamic schools of thought, but it usually ranges from three to five separate instances of breastfeeding to constitute milk kinship.
- Legal Implications: Once milk kinship is established, certain Islamic laws related to marriage and mahram (those whom one is forbidden to marry) apply between the child and the wet nurse's immediate family (husband, children, and parents). This means, for example, that the breastfed child cannot marry the wet nurse's children or her husband. The awrah (modesty) rules are applied as if the child was related by blood.
- Husband's Consent: Some Islamic scholars recommend that a woman seek her husband's permission before breastfeeding another woman's child, as this decision impacts the family’s relationships and inheritance laws.
- Purpose: Milk kinship aims to create a sense of familial responsibility and protection around the breastfed child.
Summary
Muslims can and do drink breast milk from women who are not their biological mothers when the need arises. This creates a specific type of kinship with associated rights and responsibilities within the Islamic framework.
