Pre term birth

[Rula Omer]

AsSalamo Alaekum.  I have heard some persons say that the Quran mentions about pre term or pre matured birth.  But I have not so far read such a verse in the Quran.  Please confirm with some details.

[Heba E. Husseyn]

Walaikum as Salam.   No, the Noble Quran does not discuss pre-term birth.  Insh'Allah, I will come back in a while and give the necessary details.  Right now I'm too short of time running out .. gotta rush for Asr prayers and then do some cooking.  If you don't mind, please wait just a bit.

[Rula Omer]

No problem sister Heba E. Husseyn.

[Heba E. Husseyn]

Okay, I'm back.  I'll continue with the answer to your query. 

As we all know, pre-term births can happen in some cases for various reasons, it is not the norm and the Quran does not discuss this issue. 

That idea of pre-term birth in the Quran comes from a traditional narration which is a complete misunderstanding and thus a misinterpretation of a portion of the Quranic Verse 46:15 of Surah Al-Ahqaf, quote:  “ .. and the bearing of him and the weaning of him is thirty months, ..”  (46:15).

The mention of 30 months in V.46:15 has been distorted with a wrong explanation by traditionalists ensuing from an incorrect calculation.

Here’s how the misinterpretation got constructed:

In two other Verses of the Quran, 31:14 of Surah Luqman and 2:233 of Surah Al-Baqrah, the Noble Quran states:

“- His mother bears him in weakness upon weakness, and his weaning is in two years -”  31:14.

“Mothers shall suckle their children for two whole years; (that is) for those who wish to complete the nursing (period).”  2:233.

In the above 2 Verses, two years is stated as the standard or default period for breastfeeding a baby and then, to start feeding that baby with other suitable foods. This comprises of the approximate nursing period of a newborn as they grow.  This does NOT imply that it is Haram or prohibited to  stop breastfeeding the child a little before or after the child is 2- years-old.  It depends entirely on every personal situation or circumstances.  But the traditionalists have taken the period of 2 years or 24 months as an exact period for nursing the child.  Based on this traditional misperception, they have thoroughly misinterpreted a portion of Verse 46:15 from Surah Al-Ahqaf which I quote again for reference:

“and the bearing of him and the weaning of him is thirty months, ..”  (46:15).

According to traditionalists the breakup of 30 months is explained as follows:

24 months for breastfeeding and weaning the child is taken by them as a rigidly exact period of time that cannot be lessened nor extended.  Thus, 24 months subtracted from 30 months leaves a balance of 6 months.  Thus, our traditional sisters and brothers jump to the conclusion that V.46:15 refers to the baby being born after 6 months instead of 9 months. And thus, according to their very fallacious reading, they presume V.46:15 refers to pre-term birth after 6 months of pregnancy, as if it is the norm.  This is not the explanation contained in Ayat 46:15.

The actual concept of V.46:15 is as follows:

It is very simple.  Verse 46:15 reflects on the total length of the minimal period during which a mother undergoes hardships from the start of pregnancy, throughout the breastfeeding period until the baby is old enough to eat a little on solid foods (often called weaning).  This entire stretch of time is approximately stated as 30 months (on average) in normal cases.  A baby is born 9 months after conception.  By the time the baby is 21 months old (that is, close to 2 years), makes it a total period of 30 months from the time of conception.  By the time the baby is approximately 2-years-old, breast feeding is lessened (or ended in some cases) and the baby starts eating on other suitable foods (apart from or in addition to mother’s milk) known as the weaning period.  This is the message the Verse conveys when it states: “and the bearing of him and the weaning of him is thirty months,”

[Rula Omer]

Yeah .. now I understand very well.  Thank u sister dear.  I was getting confused because i don't know of anything in the Quran to indicate pre term birth so why are all these people saying it?  Btw what is that traditional story or is it bukhari hadith in sahih collection?

[Heba E. Husseyn]

......  Btw what is that traditional story or is it bukhari hadith in sahih collection?

Yes of course, Insh'Allah.

The traditional story is not from Bukhari’s “sahih" but it has the same level of forgery and lack of logic as Bukhari’s “sahih.”

In this traditional tale, the issue of a baby born after 6 months supposedly arises from a misunderstanding by Caliph Usman about some couple committing zina when their first born baby came after 6 months of marriage instead of 9 months, so he condemned them guilty of zina.  Then supposedly again, Imam Ali  consulted with Caliph Usman, showing him V.46:15 telling him that pre-term babies can also be born after 6 months and consequently Caliph Usman agreed and changed his decision about zina regarding the married couple.  As mentioned, this traditional tale comes from the infamous Tabari and is later emphasized by Ibn Kathir, no less infamous for his Quranic misinterpretations.  This story has no evidence of confirmation nor authenticity whatsoever.

I quote the story as follows which I got from Maududi’s commenteries, a place quite rife with hadith and altered bible stories.  You can also get it from other Hadithist sources.

Quote:

During the caliphate of Hadrat `Usman, a person married a woman from the Juhainah tribe, and just six months after the marriage she gave birth to a healthy and sound child. The man took the case before Usman, who declared the woman to be an adultress and ordered that she be stoned to death. On hearing this Hadrat `Ali immediately came to Hadrat `Usman and asked: What sort of a decision have you given ? He replied: She has given birth to a sound child six months after marriage. Is it not a clear .proof of her being an adultress? Hadrat `Ali did not agree, and recited the three above mentioned verses in their sequence. In Surah Al-Baqarah Allah says: 'The mothers shall suckle their children for two whole in years, if the fathers desire the suckling to be completed." In Surah Luqman it is said: "And his weaning took two years," and in Surah AI-Ahqaf: "And his bearing and his weaning took thirty months." Now, if two years of suckling are taken away from 30 months, six months of bearing remain. This shows that the minimum period of pregnancy in which a sound child can be born is six months. Therefore, the woman who has given birth to a child six months after the marriage cannot be declared an adulteress . On hearing this reasoning of Hadrat 'Ali, Hadrat 'Usman admitted that he had not considered that thing at all. Then he recalled the woman and changed his decision. According to another tradition, Ibn 'Abbas also supported the reasoning of Hadrat 'Ali and then Hadrat 'Usman changed his decision. (Ibn Jarir, Ahkam al-Qur an by al-Jassas Ibn Kathir).

Unquote:

[Rula Omer]

Lots of thanks again.  I never knew of this traditional story and it gives me a clear picture how all the misinformation started, ,, and then spreading wrong tafsir of the Quran.  Our scholars should refrain from such things otherwise people will slowly lose trust and respect for them.

[N. Truth Seeker]

Traditionalists assume pre term birth can only be between 6 and 9 months.  But pre mature births can also be at 4 or 5 months.  Or there can also be natural abortion, the mother losing the child when the fetus is 2 or 3 months or earlier.  Secondly, babies born healthy after 5, 6, or 7 months of marriage is apparently zina not premature birth.  Even 6 months is very pre mature.  A baby born after 6 months due to mother’s biological or medical issues is never a healthy one.  Very often they don’t survive for long.  They look very frail, very small, significantly smaller than normal babies born after 9 months. Thus, they also weigh much less than normal babies.  The illogical traditional misinterpretation of V.46:15 astonishes me. But what else can we expect from ones like Tabari and Ibn Kathir who took such delight in spreading misinformation about the Noble Quran.

It should also be known that in the Sight of Allah Almighty there is no condemnation for the child born out of zina.  The condemnation in the Hereafter is only for the parents who commit zina and never repent and give up. The child will be judged according to their own belief and conduct.

[Ruhi_Rose]

If you hear any talk sprouting from the “tafsirs” of ones such as Tabari and Ibn Kathir, that can be certified with a red seal as WRONG. With their bird-brain capacity, they couldn’t even understand the simple Quranic reference of “30 days” in connection with pregnancy, child birth, suckling and weaning, and in the process misinformed and misguided tons of naive hadithists.  Wallahi, Mr.Tabari and Mr. Kathir !!