Fatwa on Oral Sex

By Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid

Praise be to Allah!

It is permissible for the husband to enjoy/savor/relish his wife however he wishes, and to come to her in the genital area from any point he wishes. As Allah (Exalted is He) has said:

“Your wives are a tillage for you [to cultivate] [nisa’u-kum harthun l-kum]

so go to your tillage as you wish. [fa-’’tu hartha-kum anna shi’tum] Q 2:223.

It is unlawful for the man to perform two sexual acts on the wife, namely:

1. Sexual penetration [wat’] during menstruation[haid].

As Allah (Exalted is He) has said:

They question you concerning menstruation. [wa yas aluna-ka ‘ani ‘l-mahid:]

Say: It is an illness, [qul huwa adhan]

So let women alone at such times [fa-’’tazilu ‘n-nisa’a fi ‘l-mahidi]

and do not approach them until they are cleansed [wa la tagrubu-hunna hatta yathurn:]

And when they have purified themselves, [fa-idha tatahharna fa’’tu-hunna]

then go into them as Allah has enjoined on you. [min haithu amara-kumu ‘llah:]

Truly Allah loves those who repent, [inna ‘llaha yuhibbu ‘t-tawwabina]

and He loves those who keep themselves clean. wa yuhibbu ‘l-mutatahhirin.] Q 2:222.

2. Sexual penetration in the anus.

Allah’s messenger (Allah bless him and give him peace) has said:

"Accursed is he who has sex with his wife in her anus." (Reported by Abu Dawud and Imam Ahmad [ibn Hanbal], and established as authentic in Sahih al-Jami’ 5889.)

These two prohibitions are mentioned together in the saying [hadith] of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace):

"Beware of the anus and the menstrual period." (Reported by Imam Ahmad [ibn Hanbal] and Abu Dawud; also in Sahih al-Jami’ 1141.)

As for the question of oral titillation of the pudendum, it all depends on two considerations:

1. It must not be hurtful.
2. It must not result in the introduction of impurity/dirt into the internal organs.

This [is what I have to say on the subject]. Allah knows best. May Allah bless our Prophet Muhammad.

This is a translation of Sheikh Muhammed's answer as it appears on his question and answer site at http://www.islam-qa.com/

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