In this blog we will focus on donating organs from a dead Muslim that are not necessary to save the life of the other – just to improve the well-being of the other person. Of course, those scholars who only allow donating an organ to save the life of a Muslim would not consider this section relevant to them.
Therefore, the focus here is on Ayatullah Fadlallah’s view on the topic. His position is quite simple, and is actually based on the discussions in the previous blog i.e. if when you way the pros and cons of the situation, and consider the improvement in life of the other person, more important than the negative on the dead individual (of e.g. taking out an eye that he has no relationship with), then you can perform the operation – otherwise you cannot.
He also then moves onto the fact that if someone makes it clear that they want to give up some of their organs after they die, as many do in organ cards…etc – and if it is a serious intention (not just a joke as some do), then this has serious value and is like a will. And in such a situation, there is no issue of respecting the dead individual, because a person is respected based on the personal honour of the individual, and by making this will/signing the card, they are negating their right for their body not to be cut.
Ayatullah Fadlallah also uses the Qur’an to back up this view and considers it more an act of goodness and preference, which is something that is praised from the legal perspective. The Quranic verse he uses is (1):
“but give them preference over themselves, even though poverty was their (own lot)” (Hashr: 9)
Ayatullah Mohsini also discusses Ayatullah Khui’s view here, and notes that if we say that it is allowed for a mu’min to gift his kidney to his brother for example, and there is no darar (harm) for him, and he is not disgraced (based on the ‘urf), what is the problem in allowing to take it after his death if there is a will? Not to save life only, but also to eliminate harm from him. Perhaps for this reason, Sayyid al-Hakim and al-Khui allowed this, if there is a will.
If there is no will, then it is not possible. There is a question when a life of someone is reliant on it but the wujub of saving someone’s life is not absolute, given the right of the person alive, even if it is allowed (or required) in cases. However, no shii scholar allows this.
Now what about amputating organs of dead person for anatomy or teaching students of medicine, based on the wajib kifa`i of teaching medicine?
Ayatullah Muhsini mentions the point that there is no doubt if it is a non-Muslim and if there are non-Muslim dead bodies available, then that would be allowed – even importing such bodies from another country – this would be a way to maintain the respect of a dead body. However, he notes that there is an opinion that this is allowed if it is in the will of the individual, as long as it still results in a burial in the end. Ayatullah Fadlallah (in the texts I read – did not comment on this point directly).
In the next two blogs, we will focus on the more agreed-upon issue about organ transplantation from a live donor.
(1) Medical morality and the morality of life; a lecture by Ayatullah Fadlallah at the university of Qadis Yusuf, 1 March 2002
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