The benefits of circumcision outweigh the pain

Praise be to Allaah.
Yes, there are benefits of circumcision insofar as it is part of the sunan (ways) of the Prophets
and is part of the sunan al-fitrah (acts that befit the natural state of man). It is cleaner and
healthier in terms of urination and intercourse, and prevents infection, etc. These and other
benefits far outweigh the pain caused, which is less for infants than for adults.
Moreover, a number of the scholars have said that circumcision is obligatory for males. Ibn
Qudaamah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in his book al-Mughni: Circumcision is an
obligation for men and an honour, not an obligation, for women. This is the opinion of a number
of scholars. Ahmad said: It is more of an obligation for men, because if a man is not
circumcised, this piece of skin will be dangling down over the head of the penis and it will be too
difficult to clean left-over urine properly. It is not so strict in the case of women. Abu AbdAllaah said: Ibn Abbaas used to be very strict in this matter, and it is reported that he said that
no Hajj or salaah would be accepted, i.e., from the one who is not circumcised. Al-Hasan was
more lenient; he said: If a person enters Islam, it is not essential for him to be circumcised.
And he said: Black and white people embraced Islam, but not one of them was checked or
forced to get circumcised.
The evidence that it is obligatory is the fact that covering the awrah (private parts) is obligatory,
so if circumcision were not obligatory, it would not be permissible for the one who wants to be
circumcised to uncover his awrah for this purpose. Circumcision is one of the signs of a
Muslim, and like the other signs, it is obligatory. If an adult male embraces Islam and is afraid
that circumcision would be harmful for him, then he is excused, because a person may be
excused from ghusl, wudoo, etc., if he fears that they may be harmful for him, so it is more so in
the case of circumcision. If a person is confident that it will not be harmful, then he has to do it.
Hanbal said: I asked Abu Abd-Allaah about the Dhimmi (non-Muslim under Islamic rule) who
embraces Islam: did he think that he should be circumcised? He said: There is no alternative to
that (i.e. he has to). I asked: what if he or she is advanced in age? He said: It is better for him to
be circumcised, because of the hadeeth: Ibraaheem was circumcised when he was eighty years
old, and Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): it is the religion of your father
Ibraaheem [al-Hajj 22:78]
So our advice to you is to go ahead and have your son circumcised by someone who is skilled
and experienced. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: Five things are
part of the fitrah: circumcision, removing the pubic hair, trimming the moustache, cutting the
nails, and plucking the armpit hair. (Reported by al-Bukhaari, 5441)
May Allaah help us and you to do good.

Ruling on circumcision
What is the ruling on circumcision? What is the ruling on what some people do, where they flay
the penis or the pubic area?
Praise be to Allaah.
Circumcision is one of the characteristics of the fitrah (the natural state of man), and it is one of
the symbols of the Muslims, because it is narrated in al-Saheehayn that Abu Hurayrah (may
Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) said: The (characteristics of) the fitrah are five: circumcision, shaving the pubic hair,
trimming the moustache, cutting the fingernails and plucking the armpit hairs. So he (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) started with circumcision and said that it is one of the
characteristics of the fitrah.
Circumcision as prescribed by Islam involves cutting the foreskin covering the glans of the penis
only. Those who flay the skin surrounding the penis or flay the entire penis, as is done in some
savage countries, and claim in their ignorance that this is the circumcision prescribed in Islam,
this is nothing but something prescribed by the Shaytaan and made attractive to the ignorant, and
it is a torment to the one who is circumcised. It goes against the Sunnah of Muhammad (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and the Islamic shareeah which is based on ease and
which enjoins preservation of life.
It is haraam for a number of reasons, including the following:
1-

The Sunnah mentions cutting off the foreskin covering the glans of the penis only.

2- This is torture and mutilation, and the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) forbade mutilation and torture of dumb beasts, committing outrages upon them or
cutting off their limbs. It is more appropriate that tormenting the sons of Adam should be more
forbidden, and a more serious sin.
3- This is contrary to the humanity and kindness encouraged by the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) when he said, Allaah has decreed humanity in all
things.
4- This may lead to disease or death of the one who is circumcised, and that is not permissible
because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
and do not throw yourselves into destruction
[al-Baqarah 2:195]

And do not kill yourselves (nor kill one another)

[al-Nisa 4:29]
Hence the scholars stated that it is not obligatory to circumcise an adult if there is the fear of any
of these things happening to him.
With regard to bringing men and women together on a certain day to attend the circumcision and
parade the child uncovered in front of them, this is haraam, because it involves uncovering the
awrah which Islam dictates should be covered, and forbade us to uncover it.
Similarly, mixing between men and women on this occasion is not permitted, because of the
fitnah (temptation) involved and because it goes against the pure shareeah.
Kitaab Majmoo Fataawa wa Maqaalaat Mutanawwiah li Samaahat al-Shaykh al-Allaamah
Abd al-Azeez ibn Abd-Allaah ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him), vol 4, p. 423

Circumcision: how it is done and the rulings on it

Could you tell us what circumcision is and how and where it is done?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him) wrote a useful book on the rulings concerning
the newborn, which he called Tuhfat al-Mawdood fi Ahkaam al-Mawlood. In this book he wrote
an extensive chapter in which he spoke of circumcision and the rulings thereon. The following is
a summary of that, with additional comments from some other scholars.
1 The meaning of circumcision (khitaan):
Ibn al-Qayyim said:
Khitaan is a noun describing the action of the circumciser (khaatin). It is also used to describe
the site of the circumcision, as in the hadeeth, When the two circumcised parts (al-khitaanaan)
meet, ghusl become obligatory. In the case of a female the word used is khafad. In the male it is
also called idhaar. The one who is uncircumcised is called aghlaf or aqlaf.
Tuhfat al-Mawlood, 1/152
2 Circumcision is the Sunnah of Ibraaheem and the Prophets after him:
Al-Bukhaari (6298) and Muslim (2370) narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with
him) said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
Ibraaheem (peace be upon him) circumcised himself when he was eighty years old, and he
circumcised himself with an adze.

An adze (qadoom) is a carpenters tool; it was also said that al-Qadoom is a place is Syria.
Al-Haafiz ibn Hajar said:
It is most likely that what is referred to in the hadeeth is the tool. Abu Yalaa narrated that Ali
ibn Rabaah said: Ibraaheem was commanded to circumcise himself, so he circumcised himself
with an adze and it was very painful for him. Then Allaah revealed to him saying, You rushed to
do it before We told you what tool to use. He said, O Lord, I did not want to delay obeying
Your command.
Ibn al-Qayyim said:
Circumcision was one of the things with which Allaah tested Ibraaheem, His Close Friend. He
did them perfectly so Allaah made him a leader of mankind. It was narrated that he was the first
one who was circumcised, as mentioned above. What it says in al-Saheeh is that Ibraaheem
circumcised himself when he was eighty years old. After him, circumcision continued among the
Messengers and their followers, even the Messiah. He was circumcised and the Christians affirm
that, and do not deny that, as they also affirm that he was forbidden the flesh of pigs
Tuhfat al-Mawdood, p. 158-159
But the scholars (may Allaah have mercy on them) differed as to the ruling on circumcision.
Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
The most correct view is that it is obligatory in the case of men and Sunnah in the case of
women. The difference between them is that in the case of men, it serves an interest which has to
do with one of the conditions of prayer, namely purity (tahaarah), because if the foreskin
remains, when the urine comes out of the urethra, some of it will collect there, and this causes
burning and infection every time the person moves, and every time the foreskin is squeezed,
some drops of urine come out, thus causing najaasah (impurity).
In the case of women, it serves a useful purpose which is to reduce desire. This is seeking
perfection, not removing something harmful.
Al-Sharh al-Mumti, 1/133-134
This is the view of Imam Ahmad (may Allaah have mercy on him). Ibn Quddamah said in alMughni (1/115): As for circumcision, it is obligatory for men and it is good in the case of
woman, but it is not obligatory for them.
3 Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
Abul-Barakaat said in his book al-Ghaayah: In circumcision of a man, the skin at the tip of the
penis (the foreskin) is removed; if he only removes most of it, that is permissible. It is mustahabb
to circumcise females provided that is not done in an extreme manner. It was narrated that Umar
said to a woman who circumcised females, Leave some of it if you circumcise (a girl). AlKhallaal said in his Jaami: What is cut when circumcising: Muhammad ibn al-Husayn told me

that al-Fadl ibn Ziyaad told them: Ahmad was asked, How much should be cut in circumcision?
He said, Until the glans (tip of the penis) becomes visible.
Ibn al-Sabbaagh said in al-Shaamil: What is obligatory in the case of a man is to cut the skin on
the tip of the penis until the entire glans becomes visible. In the case of a woman, it means
cutting the skin that looks like the comb of a rooster at the top of the vagina, between the two
labia; if it is cut the base of it should be left like a date pit.
Al-Nawawi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
The well-known correct view is that everything covering the glans must be cut.
Al-Majmoo, 1/351
Al-Juwayni said:
The hadeeth indicates that not too much of it should be removed (in the case of women), because
he said, Leave something sticking out and do not go to extremes in cutting.
Tuhfat al-Mawdood, 190-192
The point is that in the case of males, all the skin covering the tip of the penis should be cut, but
in the case of females only a part of the skin that is like a roosters comb at the top of the vagina
should be cut.
4 The wisdom behind circumcision
With regard to a man, he cannot be clean from urine unless he is circumcised, because drops of
urine collect underneath the foreskin and he cannot be sure that they will not drip and make his
clothes and body impure. Hence Abd-Allaah ibn Abbaas was very strict on the issue of
circumcision. Imam Ahmad said: Ibn Abbaas was very strict on this matter, and it was narrated
that there is no Hajj and no prayer for him, i.e., if a person is not circumcised his Hajj and prayer
are not valid. Al-Mughni, 1/115
With regard to the wisdom behind the circumcision of women, it is to regulate their desire so it
will be moderate.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked about whether
women should be circumcised or not. He replied:
Praise be to Allaah. Yes, they should be circumcised, i.e., the top of the piece of skin that looks
like a roosters comb should be cut. The Messenger of Allaah (S) said to the woman who did
circumcisions: Leave something sticking out and do not go to extremes in cutting. That makes
her face look brighter and is more pleasing to her husband. That is because the purpose of
circumcising a man is to make him clean from the impurity that may collect beneath the foreskin.
But the purpose of circumcising women is to regulate their desire, because if a woman is not
circumcised her desire will be strong. Hence the words O son of an uncircumcised woman are
used as an insult, because the uncircumcised woman has stronger desire. Hence immoral actions

are more common among the women of the Tatars and the Franks, that are not found among the
Muslim women. If the circumcision is too severe, the desire is weakened altogether, which is
unpleasing for men; but if it is cut without going to extremes in that, the purpose will be
achieved, which is moderating desire. And Allaah knows best.
Majmoo al-Fataawa, 21/114
5 It is permissible to pay money for circumcision.
Ibn Qudaamah said:
It is permissible to pay money for circumcision and for medical treatment. We do not know of
any difference of opinion on this matter, because it is doing something that is needed and which
is allowed in shareeah. So it is permissible to pay money for it, like all other permissible
actions.
Al-Mughni, 5/314.
Ruling concerning circumcision for a man who becomes Muslim at a mature age

If a man converts to Islam and is quite mature in age i.e., over forty it is very difficult for him
to be circumcised. Is it OK if he does not follow this particular practice?
Praise be to Allaah.
If circumcision after converting is too difficult, because of his age, then it is OK if he does not
get circumcised. Circumcision should not be insisted on, lest it turns him away from Islam.
(Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daaimah, 5/115)
Ruling on circumcision for one who has become Muslim

What is the ruling on circumcision for a new Muslim, and when should he get circumcised?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Circumcision for the new Muslim is obligatory, as it is for one is born Muslim, and he has to get
circumcised when he becomes Muslim, but if delaying it could serve some interest, such as
avoiding putting him off Islam, because Islam not yet established in his heart, there is nothing
wrong with that, because the evil that results from delaying circumcision is less serious than the
evil that results from his apostasy from Islam after becoming Muslim. End quote.
Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him)

Al-Ijaabaat ala Asilah al-Jaaliyaaat, 1/3,4