Source: Fatāwā Amunpuri by Shaykh Ghulām Mustafa Zaheer Amunpuri
What is the Islamic perspective on Raḍāʿat al-Kabīr (breastfeeding an adult)?
Islam is not opposed to reason and logic, but if one presents personal desires and biases in the name of intellect and then places them against Islamic teachings, the consequences are inevitably misguided.
A woman is not permitted to breastfeed a male child who is over two years old or an adult man. This is a fixed law, principle, and regulation in Islam.
However, Allah ﷻ granted the Prophet ﷺ the authority, by divine permission, to make exceptions to general rules for specific individuals.
During the Prophet’s ﷺ time, an exceptional case occurred involving Sahlah bint Suhayl and Sālim, the freed slave of Abū Ḥudhayfah.
Sālim had been adopted as a son and used to live in the household, being treated as their son. Later, the Qur’anic command was revealed:
﴿ادْعُوهُمْ لِآبَائِهِمْ هُوَ أَقْسَطُ عِندَ اللَّهِ﴾
“Call them by their (real) fathers. That is more just in the sight of Allah.”
Surah al-Aḥzāb (33): 5
After this command, it became mandatory for Sahlah to observe ḥijāb from Sālim. Since he had been raised like a son, suddenly enforcing this separation was emotionally distressing for both Sahlah and Abū Ḥudhayfah.
Sahlah approached the Prophet ﷺ and explained the matter. The Prophet ﷺ said:
«أرضعيه»
“Breastfeed him.”
She replied:
"How can I breastfeed him while he is a grown man?"
The Prophet ﷺ smiled and said:
«قد علمتُ أنه رجل كبير»
"I know he is a grown man."
Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 1453
al-Muntaqā by Ibn al-Jārūd: 690
This ḥadīth is authentic and firmly established. It is not disputed among scholars in terms of authenticity. The narrators are reliable, and their integrity has been affirmed. This was an exception granted by the Prophet ﷺ with Allah’s permission.
Those who deny this due to modern discomfort or emotional objection fall into error. The Prophet ﷺ had the divine prerogative to make exceptions, and this is one such case.
Atheists and ḥadīth rejecters often object to this narration, citing it as immoral or lacking modesty. Ironically, many of these same critics support free, unregulated male-female relationships and reject the institution of marriage—yet suddenly claim to be guardians of modesty when it comes to this narration.
Modern deniers of ḥadīth don’t have the courage to reject all of the Sunnah, but they seek ways to undermine specific narrations they personally dislike—without proper understanding or scholarly methodology. But are these critics more honorable than the entire Ummah, including Imams like al-Bukhārī, Muslim, and Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, who all accepted the narration?
The early generations (Salaf) and scholars acknowledged this narration, discussed it, and built rulings and derivations from it. Not a single classical scholar ever denied its authenticity or claimed it contradicted reason or Islamic principles.
A common objection is whether Sālim physically touched Sahlah, which would be impermissible.
Imām al-Nawawī (676 AH), the renowned commentator of Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, addressed this centuries ago:
Qāḍī ʿIyāḍ explained that it is possible Sahlah expressed milk and gave it to Sālim to drink, without any physical contact or bodily exposure.
Even if contact had occurred, this was an exceptional ruling, and just as a woman may be uncovered before her husband in private without it being considered immodesty, so too this specific scenario holds an exceptional legal status without being shameful.
Sharḥ Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 10/31
ʿĀʾishah (RA) and later scholars like Ibn Ḥazm supported the permissibility of Raḍāʿat al-Kabīr based on this ḥadīth.
Ibn Taymiyyah and al-Shawkānī also held the view that in situations of necessity, such an action could be permitted.
However, this view is not the majority view and other wives of the Prophet ﷺ disagreed with ʿĀʾishah.
"All the wives of the Prophet ﷺ refused to accept that such breastfeeding could establish a foster relationship."
They told ʿĀʾishah:
"By Allah, this was a special concession for Sālim only. No man should use this to claim a foster relationship with us or come before us."
Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 1454
Even in their disagreement, they did not reject the ḥadīth itself, only its general applicability. They considered it a specific exception, not a rule.
① Raḍāʿat al-Kabīr (breastfeeding an adult) is not a general ruling in Islam.
② The case of Sahlah and Sālim was a specific exception granted by the Prophet ﷺ.
③ The ḥadīth is authentic and well-accepted by the scholars of ḥadīth.
④ Attempts to reject this narration based on modern sensitivities or false logic are baseless and contradictory.
⑤ The majority of scholars, including the Prophet’s wives, treated this as a unique legal concession, not a norm.
❖ Question:
What is the Islamic perspective on Raḍāʿat al-Kabīr (breastfeeding an adult)?
✿ Answer:
Islam is not opposed to reason and logic, but if one presents personal desires and biases in the name of intellect and then places them against Islamic teachings, the consequences are inevitably misguided.
A woman is not permitted to breastfeed a male child who is over two years old or an adult man. This is a fixed law, principle, and regulation in Islam.However, Allah ﷻ granted the Prophet ﷺ the authority, by divine permission, to make exceptions to general rules for specific individuals.
❀ The Incident of
During the Prophet’s ﷺ time, an exceptional case occurred involving Sahlah bint Suhayl and Sālim, the freed slave of Abū Ḥudhayfah.
Sālim had been adopted as a son and used to live in the household, being treated as their son. Later, the Qur’anic command was revealed:
﴿ادْعُوهُمْ لِآبَائِهِمْ هُوَ أَقْسَطُ عِندَ اللَّهِ﴾
“Call them by their (real) fathers. That is more just in the sight of Allah.”
Surah al-Aḥzāb (33): 5After this command, it became mandatory for Sahlah to observe ḥijāb from Sālim. Since he had been raised like a son, suddenly enforcing this separation was emotionally distressing for both Sahlah and Abū Ḥudhayfah.
Sahlah approached the Prophet ﷺ and explained the matter. The Prophet ﷺ said:
«أرضعيه»
“Breastfeed him.”
She replied:
"How can I breastfeed him while he is a grown man?"
The Prophet ﷺ smiled and said:
«قد علمتُ أنه رجل كبير»
"I know he is a grown man."
Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 1453 al-Muntaqā by Ibn al-Jārūd: 690
Islamic Ruling:
This ḥadīth is authentic and firmly established. It is not disputed among scholars in terms of authenticity. The narrators are reliable, and their integrity has been affirmed. This was an exception granted by the Prophet ﷺ with Allah’s permission.
Those who deny this due to modern discomfort or emotional objection fall into error. The Prophet ﷺ had the divine prerogative to make exceptions, and this is one such case.
Response to Modern Objections:
Atheists and ḥadīth rejecters often object to this narration, citing it as immoral or lacking modesty. Ironically, many of these same critics support free, unregulated male-female relationships and reject the institution of marriage—yet suddenly claim to be guardians of modesty when it comes to this narration.
Modern deniers of ḥadīth don’t have the courage to reject all of the Sunnah, but they seek ways to undermine specific narrations they personally dislike—without proper understanding or scholarly methodology. But are these critics more honorable than the entire Ummah, including Imams like al-Bukhārī, Muslim, and Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, who all accepted the narration?
The early generations (Salaf) and scholars acknowledged this narration, discussed it, and built rulings and derivations from it. Not a single classical scholar ever denied its authenticity or claimed it contradicted reason or Islamic principles.
❀ Clarification on Physical Contact:
A common objection is whether Sālim physically touched Sahlah, which would be impermissible.
Imām al-Nawawī (676 AH), the renowned commentator of Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, addressed this centuries ago:
Qāḍī ʿIyāḍ explained that it is possible Sahlah expressed milk and gave it to Sālim to drink, without any physical contact or bodily exposure.
Even if contact had occurred, this was an exceptional ruling, and just as a woman may be uncovered before her husband in private without it being considered immodesty, so too this specific scenario holds an exceptional legal status without being shameful.
Sharḥ Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 10/31❀ Views of Scholars:
ʿĀʾishah (RA) and later scholars like Ibn Ḥazm supported the permissibility of Raḍāʿat al-Kabīr based on this ḥadīth. Ibn Taymiyyah and al-Shawkānī also held the view that in situations of necessity, such an action could be permitted.However, this view is not the majority view and other wives of the Prophet ﷺ disagreed with ʿĀʾishah.
❀ Umm Salamah (RA) said:
"All the wives of the Prophet ﷺ refused to accept that such breastfeeding could establish a foster relationship."
They told ʿĀʾishah:
"By Allah, this was a special concession for Sālim only. No man should use this to claim a foster relationship with us or come before us."
Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 1454Even in their disagreement, they did not reject the ḥadīth itself, only its general applicability. They considered it a specific exception, not a rule.
Summary:
① Raḍāʿat al-Kabīr (breastfeeding an adult) is not a general ruling in Islam.
② The case of Sahlah and Sālim was a specific exception granted by the Prophet ﷺ.
③ The ḥadīth is authentic and well-accepted by the scholars of ḥadīth.
④ Attempts to reject this narration based on modern sensitivities or false logic are baseless and contradictory.
⑤ The majority of scholars, including the Prophet’s wives, treated this as a unique legal concession, not a norm.
