Does your religion permit autoposy?

[Joe98]

If a person dies under suspicious circumstances an autopsy is standard procedure in most countries.

Does your religion allow autopsy?

Athiests are OK with autopsy.

Islam?
Hindus?
Christains?
Jews?

[Woodrow]

If a person dies under suspicious circumstances an autopsy is standard procedure in most countries.

Does your religion allow autopsy?

Athiests are OK with autopsy.

Islam?
Hindus?
Christains?
Jews?

For Muslims this is a difficult condition. A lot will depend on the purpose of the autopsy and who will be performing it.

* Autopsy is not permitted unless required by law.

Source: http://www.islam-usa.com/e40.html

[جوري]

I have had the displeasure of attending three autopsies-- I don't wish them on an enemy.. especially full body autopsies (i.e ones that include the brain)-- but they are a neccessary evil in certain circumstances, not just to determine cause of death and to learn surgical pathology, but in some instances to r/o foul play...

:w:

[August]

Some Christian groups don't allow them, the Catholic Church has no problem.

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[جوري]

The thing is, no matter who protests, if a fairly young healthy person or even elderly and very healthy (with no known dz or hospital records) drops dead all of a sudden, they are state property and get taken to county coroner... And I believe in a way, that is where necessity comes in.. you don't know if some new Dz is breaking out in that community or there was foul play involved in his/her death. It is unpleasant though. I know Pathologists get no joy out of it, they are human too!

[Joe98]

Is autopsy allowed under sharia law?

[جوري]

bros woodrow already gave you the ruling on that along with a source!

[vpb]

Question:
I am a medical student, and i wish to become a good doctor one day InshaAllah. Reguarding my education my problems are
1) My books contain figures of the human body both male and female, and I do not know if Hijab permits such knowledge to be learned,
2) As a student I have to cut open dead human bodies to study the various parts of the human body. I do not know if this is haraam or halaal
3) In exams students draw pictures of specific parts in their answers (not of the whole human body). I know the hadeeth that all picture makers will be in the fire, but i donot know if it is permissable to draw pictures for educational purposes.
Please advise me as I do not wish to go beyond the Islamic Shareeah.

Answer:
Praise be to Allaah. Fiqh councils and scientific committees have undertaken detailed studies to come up with the ruling on dissecting human bodies in order to learn medicine, and that is because this issue has to do with two important principles:
1 –The sanctity of the deceased in sharee’ah, and the strict instructions to respect and honour the deceased.
2 – The necessary interests that may be served by dissection in many cases.
We will quote fatwas that have been issued on this matter by academic bodies and some contemporary scholars, which may by summed up by noting that there is nothing wrong with using dead bodies for dissection to learn and teach medicine, but that is subject to the condition that the body not be that of someone whose life is protected by sharee’ah, and it should not be done more than is absolutely necessary.
It says in the statements of the Islamic Fiqh Council in Makkah al-Mukarramah, quoting from Fiqh al-Nawaazil by al-Jayzaani (4/208-209):
Based on necessities which call for dissection or autopsy of the dead body and in which dissection or autopsy serves an interest which outweighs the concern about violating the sanctity of the deceased, the Fiqh Council of the Muslim World League has determined the following:
1 – It is permissible to dissect a dead body for one of the following purposes:
(a) Examination in the case of a criminal investigation to find out the causes of death or what crime was committed; that is when the qaadi (judge) is uncertain of the causes of death and thinks that dissection or autopsy is the way to find out these causes.
(b) Investigation of diseases in cases where dissection or autopsy is called for so that in the light of this post mortem examination, precautions may be taken or suitable treatments may be determined for those diseases.
(c) Learning and teaching medicine as is done in schools of medicine.
2 – In the case of dissection for the purpose of teaching, attention should be paid to the following guidelines:
(a) If the body is that of a known person, it is essential that he have given permission before his death for his body to be dissected, or his heirs must give permission for that after his death. The body of a person whose life is protected by sharee’ah should not be dissected except in cases of necessity.
(b) The dissection should be limited to whatever is necessary, so as not to tamper unnecessarily with the body of the deceased.
(c) The bodies of women should not be dissected by anyone other than female doctors, unless there are none.
3 – In all cases, all parts of the dissected body must be buried afterwards.
In the book al-Buhooth al-‘Ilmiyyah by the Council of Senior Scholars in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (2/83-84) it says the following:
This matter may be divided into three categories:
1 – Dissection or autopsy in the case of a criminal investigation
2 – Dissection in the case of an investigation into an infectious disease, so that precautions may be taken in the light of this investigation to protect others from the disease
3 – Dissection for scientific purposes, for learning and teaching
After exchanging views, discussing and studying this issue, the Council has determined the following:
With regard to the first and second categories, the Council thinks that permitting them serves many interests in the fields of security, justice and protecting society from infectious diseases; the violation of the dissected body is outweighed by the many public interests that are served by that.
Hence the Council is unanimously agreed that it is permissible to dissect bodies for these two purposes, whether the body that is dissected belonged to someone who was protected by sharee’ah or not.
With regard to the third category, which is dissection for educational purposes, since Islam came to achieve and increase that which is in people’s interests, and to ward off and reduce that which is detrimental to their interests, and as it seeks to do the lesser of two evils in order to ward off the greater, then if there is a conflict of interests, the greater interest must be served;
And since dissecting animals other than humans cannot replace dissection of humans;
And since dissection serves many purposes that are seen in scientific progress in various fields of medicine;
Then the Council believes that it is permissible to dissect human bodies in general, but because Islam pays a great deal of attention to the dignity of the Muslim in death as in life, because of the report narrated by Imam Ahmad, Abu Dawood and Ibn Maajah from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her), that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Breaking the bone of the deceased is like breaking it when he was alive”;
And since dissecting involves a loss of dignity, and since there is no necessity for dissecting them because it is possible to obtain dead bodies that are not protected by sharee’ah, the Council believes that dissections should be restricted to such bodies and not bodies of people who are protected by sharee’ah. End quote.
In Majmoo’ Fataawa Ibn Baaz (22/349) it says the following:
If the deceased was protected by sharee’ah during his lifetime – whether he was a Muslim or a kaafir, whether a man or a woman – then it is not permissible to dissect the body, because that is mistreatment and violating his sanctity. It is proven that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Breaking the bone of the deceased is like breaking it when he was alive.” Narrated by Abu Dawood (2792).
But if he was not protected, such as an apostate or a non-Muslim in a state of war against the Muslims, then I do not see anything wrong with dissecting his body for medical purposes. End quote.
And Allaah knows best.

Islam Q&A

[cihad]

How is an autoposy done?

[vpb]

How is an autoposy done?

The person's body is treated with great respect at all times.

The pathologist carries out a detailed external and internal examination of the body. The technical and scientific staff in the mortuary assist the pathologist.

Techniques similar to those used in surgical operations are involved. The major organs of the body are examined. After the autopsy, small specimens are taken for further detailed scientific and medical examination.

These examinations may include tests for:

• Infection (microbiology)
• Changes in body tissues and organs (anatomical histology)
• Chemicals, e.g. medication, drugs or poisons (toxicology and pharmacology)

These tests are carried out on samples of blood or tissue which are taken from the person's body and retained for that purpose. Occasionally it is necessary to retain larger portions of tissue or whole organs for medical tests in relation to the investigation of the death.



Source:http://www.coronerscourt.wa.gov.au/H...5712-1798-8409

[Joe98]

3 – Dissection for scientific purposes, for learning and teaching

And since dissecting involves a loss of dignity, and since there is no necessity for dissecting them because it is possible to obtain dead bodies that are not protected by sharee’ah, the Council believes that dissections should be restricted to such bodies and not bodies of people who are protected by sharee’ah.

If the deceased was protected by sharee’ah during his lifetime – whether he was a Muslim or a kaafir, whether a man or a woman – then it is not permissible to dissect the body, because that is mistreatment and violating his sanctity.

But if he was not protected, such as an apostate or a non-Muslim in a state of war against the Muslims, then I do not see anything wrong with dissecting his body for scientific purposes and learning.

From this we learn:

- Autopsy is allowed under sharia law


- When all the world becomes Muslim, dissection for scientific purposes, for learning and teaching will come to an end.


-

[Trumble]

because it is possible to obtain dead bodies that are not protected by sharee’ah, the Council believes that dissections should be restricted to such bodies and not bodies of people who are protected by sharee’ah

Charming.

[vpb]

- When all the world becomes Muslim,

inshaAllah. bi idhnillah it will get in every house :)

dissection for scientific purposes, for learning and teaching will come to an end.

don';t worry cuz by that time biomedical engineering will be very advanced, that you will have to take from you just an image of your body , MRI image, and you'll will just have to go home and rest and they will be able to bring a 3D construction of your body :).

but even if we look the other way, muslims were leader in any scientific field before others had dreams to go to study in an islamic university :) so don't worry :)

[Malaikah]

- When all the world becomes Muslim, dissection for scientific purposes, for learning and teaching will come to an end.

Nah, the prophecy says that the whole world will only be Muslim after a massive war. I'm sure the number of dead bodies will be more than enough for the Muslims to work with, we just need to make sure we freeze and preserve them quick enough so they don't decay.:rollseyes

[Philosopher]

Judaism does not allow autopsy.

[Ra`eesah]

Islam honors dead bodies and it is from one of the conditions to bury a body quickly. A body that died in the state of Islam that is. There are some Muslims who die in the state of kufr (disbelief) and for that we are not allowed to pray upon them nor do we execute the Islamic burial rites.

[جوري]

How is an autoposy done?

you really don't want to know, talking about it, is different than attending it. It is nothing like Anatomy dissection where people are already embalmed, and they don't seem real and reek of formaldehyde-- Anyhow like with any other field of medicine it depends on the attending doctor. Some are very nonchalant and detached, and some take great care and respect the deceased. It isn't a bad field in medicine. obviously pathology isn't just about autopsies.

it is also very necessary, just a recent case, where a man was lively one minute and was desaturating the next, when they decided to administer CPR, it seemed to really hasten his arrest. Upon autopsy they found out he had an aortic aneurysm, the more the doctors pumped on his chest, the more the blood pooled in the false lumen, he was a goner. They would have never found that out if there was no autopsy. It is really unfortunate that it was found out about in such a way. But autopsy was important, I mean this is a high liability case already, as this should have been diagnosed with some imaging studies, but on the upside, if there is one, is that it was so huge, it was beyond surgical repair. So it really wasn't the doctor's fault... Anyhow, I think it is usually important that the person passing the fatwa is also a doctor, as well as an Islamic scholar, and I believe the fatwa given here was very good.

thank you
:w:

[Muezzin]

- When all the world becomes Muslim, dissection for scientific purposes, for learning and teaching will come to an end.


-

By that time, such practices will be rendered obsolete, as has been said earlier.

And it wouldn't be a day too soon for those practices to come to an end. Dissection of anything's corpse, be it human or animal, for mere 'scientific purposes' or 'discovery' strikes me as extremely disrespectful. If it's to solve a crime, cure a disease or find the true cause of death when it is unclear, that's fine. If not, it's like a curious little boy pulling the legs off a spider to see how many it needs to walk.