Answered by Shaykh Jamir Meah
Question: Assalamu alaykum
Should intercourse be avoided on certain nights?
Answer: Wa’laykum assalam. Jazakum Allah khayr for your question.
There is no authentic narration that dislikes or forbids conjugal relations on any specific night. As such, and particularly because you and your wife are trying to conceive, you should not be worried about what days or nights you are intimate with each other.
Marital relations
Allah Most High has permitted husbands and wives to enjoy each other regardless of time, with only a few exceptions, such as during the fasting day, during a women’s menses, or when in a state of ihram etc.
Times when intercourse has been ‘said’ to be disliked
Some scholars have mentioned a few times when one should avoid intercourse, though some of these are due to medical considerations, and / or from experience or observance, rather than based on any authentic religious text. Examples include avoiding marital relationships on a full stomach or during excessive hot or cold weather [Ibn al Qayyum’s Tibb al Nabawi].
The above referenced book also mentions that the Prophet ﷺ is reported to have advised Sayyidna ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) to avoid intercourse on the 14th night of each month due to the devils appearing in large amounts on this night. It is also reported that Sayidna Ali stated that intercourse is disliked during the first, middle (14th) and last night of each month [Rif’at al Muslimin].
Again, however, these are not established reports, and avoiding intercourse on certain nights of the week or month, even if mentioned by some scholars, carry no Islamic legal ruling for one to say they are disliked or not. Rather, they are mainly unauthenticated reports, some of which may or may not have some basis to them.
My advice would be to not be concerned with the times and specific times. More important is that you make sincere du’ to Allah to grant you pious children.
Supplication
Say the following supplication regularly,
ربنا هبلنا مِنْ لَّدُنْكَ ذُرِّيَّةً طَيِّبَةً، اِنَّكَ سَمِيْعُ الدُّعَآءِ
Our Lord, grant us from among our wives and offspring comfort to our eyes and make us an example for the righteous [25:74]
When it comes to intercourse, the husband should say the following supplication quietly to himself,
بسملة اللهم جنبنا الشيطان و جنب الشيطان ما رزقتنا
In the name of Allah, O Allah, protect us from Satan and protect whatever You give to us from Satan [Al Bukhari]
I pray that Allah grants you both pious and healthy children who will be the coolness of your eyes and a door of mercy for you both in the Hereafter.
Warmest salams,
[Shaykh] Jamir Meah
Shaykh Jamir Meah grew up in Hampstead, London. In 2007, he traveled to Tarim, Yemen, where he spent nine years studying the Islamic sciences on a one-to-one basis under the foremost scholars of the Ribaat, Tarim, with a main specialization and focus on Shafi’i fiqh. In early 2016, he moved to Amman, Jordan, where he continues advanced studies in a range of Islamic sciences, as well as teaching. Jamir is a qualified homeopath.