Source: Fatāwā Amunpuri by Shaykh Ghulām Mustafa Zaheer Amunpuri
Some people cite the verse “Your wives are a tilth for you; so approach your tilth as you will” to permit anal intercourse. What is the ruling on this interpretation?
Naafiʿ narrates that ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما explained the verse:
﴿نِسَاؤُكُمْ حَرْثٌ لَكُمْ فَأْتُوا حَرْثَكُمْ أَنَّى شِئْتُمْ﴾
[Sūrah al-Baqarah: 223]
“Your wives are a tilth for you, so approach your tilth as you wish.”
As follows:
نزلت في اتيان النساء في ادبارهن
“This verse was revealed concerning intercourse with women from behind.”
Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī: 3/751 – Chain is Ṣaḥīḥ (authentic)
❖ It is also reported that:
كان لا يرى بأساً أن يأتي الرجل امرأته في دبرها
ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar did not see any harm in a man approaching his wife from behind.
Al-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Nasā’ī: 8931 – Chain is Ḥasan
⚠ However, this does not mean that ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar considered anal intercourse permissible.
Saʿīd ibn Sayyār said:
“I said to Ibn ʿUmar: We buy slave girls and practice taḥmīḍ with them.”
He asked, “What is taḥmīḍ?”
I said, “We have intercourse with them in their behinds (i.e., anal intercourse).”
He replied:
أَوَ يَعْمَلُ هَذَا مُسْلِمٌ؟
“Would a Muslim ever do such a thing?”
Al-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Nasā’ī: 8979; Sharḥ Mushkil al-Āthār by al-Ṭaḥāwī: 15/426 – Chain is Ṣaḥīḥ
Some people use this verse and Ibn ʿUmar’s interpretation to justify unnatural intercourse, but neither the verse nor Ibn ʿUmar’s words provide such evidence.
Kashf al-Mushkil: 2/582
Those who claimed that the early generations permitted anal intercourse have misunderstood them. What the salaf actually allowed was intercourse in the front private part from behind, not in the back passage itself.
The Arabic phrase “from behind” was confused by some to mean “in the back”, when in reality it referred to the direction, not the entry point.
Zād al-Maʿād: 4/261
This interpretation (from behind into the front) is confirmed by al-Nasā’ī’s narration.
He further states:
هو الثابت بلا شك عن عبد الله بن عمر أنه يحرمه
“It is undoubtedly proven from Ibn ʿUmar that he considered [anal intercourse] forbidden.”
Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr: 1/526, 1/533
Any ambiguous reports must be interpreted in light of the explicit ones.
Another narration from Ibn ʿUmar explicitly declares anal intercourse as ḥarām. If any lenient statements exist, they are not explicit and may have meant permissibility of vaginal intercourse from behind.
Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalā’: 5/100
ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Sābiṭ narrated:
He asked Ḥafṣah bint ʿAbd al-Raḥmān, the granddaughter of Abū Bakr رضي الله عنه, about unnatural intercourse. She replied:
“Umm Salamah رضي الله عنها told me that the Anṣār did not lie their wives down face-down for intercourse, whereas the Muhājirūn did. When an Anṣārī woman married a Muhājir man, he asked her to lie down that way. She refused and went to Umm Salamah. When the Prophet ﷺ came, she narrated the incident. The Prophet ﷺ then recited the verse:
﴿نِسَاؤُكُمْ حَرْثٌ لَكُمْ فَأْتُوا حَرْثَكُمْ أَنَّى شِئْتُمْ﴾
“…And said: 'The place of intercourse is only one (i.e., the front private part).'”
Sunan al-Dārimī: 1159; Musnad Aḥmad: 6/305; Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī: 2/92 – Chain is Ḥasan
❖ Imām al-Baghawī (510 AH) said:
“There is consensus among the scholars that it is permissible for a man to approach his wife in her front private part from behind and in whatever position he desires.”
Sharḥ al-Sunnah: 9/106
① The verse does not permit anal intercourse.
② The phrase “from behind” refers to position, not entry point.
③ Anal intercourse is ḥarām by consensus.
④ The correct interpretation is: approaching the wife from behind into her front private part is allowed.
❖ Question:
Some people cite the verse “Your wives are a tilth for you; so approach your tilth as you will” to permit anal intercourse. What is the ruling on this interpretation?
✿ Answer:
Naafiʿ narrates that ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما explained the verse:
﴿نِسَاؤُكُمْ حَرْثٌ لَكُمْ فَأْتُوا حَرْثَكُمْ أَنَّى شِئْتُمْ﴾
[Sūrah al-Baqarah: 223]“Your wives are a tilth for you, so approach your tilth as you wish.”
As follows:
نزلت في اتيان النساء في ادبارهن
“This verse was revealed concerning intercourse with women from behind.”
Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī: 3/751 – Chain is Ṣaḥīḥ (authentic)❖ It is also reported that:
كان لا يرى بأساً أن يأتي الرجل امرأته في دبرها
ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar did not see any harm in a man approaching his wife from behind.
Al-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Nasā’ī: 8931 – Chain is Ḥasan⚠ However, this does not mean that ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar considered anal intercourse permissible.
❖ Clarification from Ibn ʿUmar’s Own Statement:
Saʿīd ibn Sayyār said:
“I said to Ibn ʿUmar: We buy slave girls and practice taḥmīḍ with them.”
He asked, “What is taḥmīḍ?”
I said, “We have intercourse with them in their behinds (i.e., anal intercourse).”
He replied:
أَوَ يَعْمَلُ هَذَا مُسْلِمٌ؟
“Would a Muslim ever do such a thing?”
Al-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Nasā’ī: 8979; Sharḥ Mushkil al-Āthār by al-Ṭaḥāwī: 15/426 – Chain is Ṣaḥīḥ❖ Views of the Scholars:
❀ Imām Ibn al-Jawzī (597 AH):
Some people use this verse and Ibn ʿUmar’s interpretation to justify unnatural intercourse, but neither the verse nor Ibn ʿUmar’s words provide such evidence.
Kashf al-Mushkil: 2/582❀ Imām Ibn al-Qayyim (751 AH):
Those who claimed that the early generations permitted anal intercourse have misunderstood them. What the salaf actually allowed was intercourse in the front private part from behind, not in the back passage itself.
The Arabic phrase “from behind” was confused by some to mean “in the back”, when in reality it referred to the direction, not the entry point.
Zād al-Maʿād: 4/261❀ Imām Ibn Kathīr (774 AH):
This interpretation (from behind into the front) is confirmed by al-Nasā’ī’s narration.
He further states:
هو الثابت بلا شك عن عبد الله بن عمر أنه يحرمه
“It is undoubtedly proven from Ibn ʿUmar that he considered [anal intercourse] forbidden.”
Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr: 1/526, 1/533Any ambiguous reports must be interpreted in light of the explicit ones.
❀ Imām al-Dhahabī (748 AH):
Another narration from Ibn ʿUmar explicitly declares anal intercourse as ḥarām. If any lenient statements exist, they are not explicit and may have meant permissibility of vaginal intercourse from behind.
Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalā’: 5/100❖ Early Historical Context:
ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Sābiṭ narrated:
He asked Ḥafṣah bint ʿAbd al-Raḥmān, the granddaughter of Abū Bakr رضي الله عنه, about unnatural intercourse. She replied:
“Umm Salamah رضي الله عنها told me that the Anṣār did not lie their wives down face-down for intercourse, whereas the Muhājirūn did. When an Anṣārī woman married a Muhājir man, he asked her to lie down that way. She refused and went to Umm Salamah. When the Prophet ﷺ came, she narrated the incident. The Prophet ﷺ then recited the verse:
﴿نِسَاؤُكُمْ حَرْثٌ لَكُمْ فَأْتُوا حَرْثَكُمْ أَنَّى شِئْتُمْ﴾
“…And said: 'The place of intercourse is only one (i.e., the front private part).'”
Sunan al-Dārimī: 1159; Musnad Aḥmad: 6/305; Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī: 2/92 – Chain is Ḥasan❖ Consensus (Ijmāʿ) Among Scholars:
❖ Imām al-Baghawī (510 AH) said:
“There is consensus among the scholars that it is permissible for a man to approach his wife in her front private part from behind and in whatever position he desires.”
Sharḥ al-Sunnah: 9/106
Summary of the Ruling:
① The verse does not permit anal intercourse.
② The phrase “from behind” refers to position, not entry point.
③ Anal intercourse is ḥarām by consensus.
④ The correct interpretation is: approaching the wife from behind into her front private part is allowed.
