Ruling on Drinking One’s Wife’s Milk by Mistake: Does Fosterage Apply?
Source: Aḥkām wa Masāʾil – Nikāḥ ke Masāʾil, Volume 1, Page 314
❓ Question:
If a man mistakenly drinks his wife’s milk, does a foster relationship (Riḍāʿah) become established in such a case?
✅ Answer:
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, Ammā Baʿd!
If such an act occurs mistakenly by a man, a foster relationship is not established.
The proof is the ḥadīth:
«فَاِنَّمَا الرَّضَاعَةُ مِنَ الْمَجَاعَةِ»
(Bukhārī Sharīf – Kitāb al-Nikāḥ, Bāb: Man Qāla Lā Riḍāʿa Baʿda Ḥawlayn)
Meaning:
“Breastfeeding is only considered valid in the time of hunger.”
📖 Explanation:
If an adult man, by mistake or for some other reason, drinks his wife’s milk, then since he is not a hungry infant, the rules of Riḍāʿah do not apply to him.
- No foster relationship is established.
- None of the rulings of fosterage take effect in this situation.
ھذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
