How many times should a woman suckle her adopted child to become mahram?

Question

After knowing that, if a couple adopts a child, the child will still be non-mahram for the woman if it was a boy or vice-versa for her husband.

Alhamdulillah these restrictions will not be applied, if the woman suckled the adopted child before (s)he reaches the age of two.

Is it allowed in Islam to suckle a child who can't give birth, with milk produced through medicinal means?

I found that it was allowed in Islam to suckle using medicinal mens to make a child mahram.

I have two questions regarding this:

• How many times should a woman suckle her adopted child to become his mahram? Is doing it just once enough? Since taking medicines continuously may have a negative affect on the mother's health.

• If the adopted child is female and if the woman suckled the child, then does that child become mahram to her husband?

Answer 1

First of all, Yes, breastfeeding a boy infant makes the boy mahram for the woman, when the kid is grown up. And, also to her daughters, if she have any. (I don't know the English term for it) That kid, and her daughter(s) are then milk-binded-siblings. Similarly, breastfeeding a girl infant will render that girl (when grown up) mahram to that lady's husband as well as her(who breastfed) own sons. Not sure about her step-sons, though.

I don't know if taking medicine to produce milk without pregnancy is okay or not.

How many times should a mother breast feed her adopted child to become mahram?

Breast-feeding once is enough to enact this ruling.

Answer 2

How many times should a mother breast feed her adopted child to become mahram?

Rule number 2483 of Ayatollah Sistani's collection of Islamic Laws states:

... The suckling should be of such quantity that it could be said that the bones of the child were strengthened and the flesh allowed to grow. And if that cannot be ascertained, then if a child suckles for one full day and night, or if it suckles fifteen times to its fill, as will be explained later, it will be sufficient. But if it is known that in spite of the child having suckled for one full day and night, or for fifteen times, the milk has not had any effect on the bones and the growth of flesh of the child, then one should not ignore exercising the precaution. ...

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if the adopted child is female and if the mother fed the child, then Does the child become mahram to the husband of the mother?

Rule number 2486 of the above collection also states:

If a woman suckles several children from the milk of one husband, all of them become Mahram of one another, as well as of the husband, and of the woman who suckled them.

I don't assume feeding done by a women who can't give birth to child (hence no natural milk, save the abnormalities) has much of a say in this, but can't say for sure.

One subtle question arises from that of your regarding can't give birth. What if the woman is/has not married, and suckles a non-biological and under two child with milk that is produced through medicinal/non-natural means?

Answer 3

As far as I know, there is no guidance available for our holy Prophet (PBUH), on how many times a child need to suckle to become a mahram. Different Imams have given their views on this. Some have mentioned 3 sucklings, some 7. One view is that it does not depends on the number of times a child suckles, but the intention of the mother. If she has made intention to make a child her, then one suckling is good enough. This view is based on the hadith "Actions are according to intentions..."

I would recommend to go through the reasoning of each view and use your best judgement.