The Childless

Childfree individuals, some of whom argue, “When a person has a child, it means they are making a decision on behalf of someone who did not exist and did not choose to be born, and who cannot be guaranteed a happy or problem-free life.” Consequently, logic and reason dictate: “If I cannot guarantee a happy life for them, why impose the experience of life on them in the first place?” Others contend that current economic conditions are difficult and jobs are scarcer than before. Based on this understanding, some remain single until death, indifferent to how society functions. Through this materialistic perspective and individualistic tendency, humanity is heading toward the abyss and the lowest moral depths, contradicting sound human nature.

First: Their words and actions stem from Satan’s arrogance, just as he acted toward their father Adam and Eve, peace be upon them, when he boasted before God and objected to His command to prostrate to Adam, saying, “He said, ‘What do you see of this one whom You have honored above me? If You delay me until the Day of Resurrection, I will surely destroy his descendants, except for a few.’” This means he would eradicate them through misguidance and lead them astray, except for a few. The phrase “I will surely destroy them” implies gaining control over them through doubts and desires, meaning he would lead them wherever he wished and guide them as he intended. The result was as God said, “And Satan had already confirmed his assumption about them, so they followed him.”

Satan continues to tempt and mislead humans with such deviant ideas, including “gender,” which posits a third gender—neither male nor female—with the right to live an abnormal life: a man marrying a man, a woman marrying a woman, and a priest officiating such unions. What religion is this? What law is this? What falsehood is this against God?

Second: Gender reassignment surgeries have spread alarmingly in some East Asian countries, to the point that one cannot distinguish whether a person on the street is male or female. These procedures involve surgical and hormonal interventions, transforming a person’s sex into a third category. This is a manipulation by Satan. God said about Satan and his influence on humans, “And I will surely command them to alter the creation of God.” Altering God’s creation includes changing a person’s sex from male to female or vice versa, as well as cosmetic surgeries for enlargement or reduction. All of this is forbidden because it constitutes altering God’s creation and deviating from sound human nature. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him and his family, cursed men who imitate women and women who imitate men.

Moreover, everything exists in God’s knowledge, as God decreed the destinies of creation before creating the heavens and the earth, as stated in the Hadith: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, his family, and his companions, said, “The first thing God created was the Pen. He said to it, ‘Write.’ It asked, ‘What should I write?’ He replied, ‘Write what will occur until the Day of Resurrection.’ Thus, the Pen wrote everything that would happen until the Day of Resurrection.” God recorded in the Preserved Tablet the destinies of all things: provisions, lifespans, crops, fruits, wars, disasters, diseases, death and life, winter and summer, prosperity and hardship, people’s words and actions. God said, “And God created you and what you do.” Therefore, all births—Arab, non-Arab, Turk, and Persian—are already known and recorded in God’s prior knowledge. It is not up to you to determine their existence. Another Hadith states, “When the fetus reaches four months, an angel is sent to it to record its provision, lifespan, deeds, and whether it will be blessed or wretched.” Thus, a person’s lifespan and provision are predetermined and calculated. It is not up to you to estimate, grant, or withhold them.

Furthermore, their claim that they cannot decide to have children due to difficult economic conditions is a fallacy. This objection was raised by the polytheists among the Quraysh, who preceded you in aligning with Satan on this matter.

God refuted their false claim, saying, “Did We not establish for them a secure, sacred sanctuary to which the fruits of all things are brought as provision from Us, but most of them do not know?” The meaning is that they say, “If we follow you and embrace Islam, people will become our enemies, economically isolate us, and we will be unable to buy or sell from them, leading to our starvation.”

God responded to them by asking, “Did We not make for them a secure sanctuary, even while they were disbelievers, so that no one would harm them, and blessings would reach them in summer and winter during their winter and summer journeys?” And they were disbelievers; so how much more so if they were to embrace Islam, believe, and remain steadfast? God Almighty said, “And if they had remained steadfast on the path, We would surely have given them abundant water.”

Finally, if we look at the social life in the West, where some have replaced the family system brought by Christ, peace be upon him, with systems of mistresses and concubines, abandoning procreation and reproduction within the institution of marriage, then illegitimate births have increased among them. In fact, they have exceeded 50%, and in some communities, they have approached 85% or even 90%. You can imagine a society where some withdraw from others without any moral conscience or value-based deterrent, to the extent that some of them exchange spouses on weekends.

Anyone who knows the extent of misery, deviance, and moral corruption experienced by some people in the West fully understands the blessing of Islam, which strongly encourages marriage and having many children. This is one of the distinctions about which the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, his family, and his companions, said: “Marry women who are loving and fertile, for I will indeed boast of your great numbers before the nations on the Day of Resurrection.” That is, He will boast of the large number of His followers among the believers.

As for the fear of poverty and the dread of destitution, this is the work of polytheists and the whispers of Satan. God said about them: “And do not kill your children for fear of poverty. We provide for them and for you. Indeed, their killing is ever a great sin.” This is from God’s mercy toward His servants, for He is more merciful to them than their parents. He forbade parents from killing their children out of fear of poverty, and God has guaranteed provision for all. He informed us that killing them, whether after birth or before it through abortion, is among the major sins, due to the loss of mercy from the heart, the great disobedience to children, and the audacity to kill children who have committed no sin or transgression.

“And when the baby girl buried alive is asked, for what sin she was killed.” You can imagine the surgeon’s scalpel cutting the fetus—which is a living cell—into pieces in order to extract it and throw it into medical waste!

Thus, those who do this are essentially degrading human dignity out of fear that their children will burden their parents with costly demands. So burden them with their own lives!

It is truly regrettable that I personally heard more than one prominent celebrity artist, as they aged in the later stages of their lives, say that during a period in their youth, when they were at the beginning of their careers and enjoying fame and stardom, they strongly and strictly embraced “childfree” lifestyles. However, when matters became clear to them in their later years, they wished they had married, had children, and lived among their offspring. (Wise is he who learns from others.)