Assalamu Alaikum ua rahmatullahi ua barakatuh, mufti saheeb!
Is it possible to do an ultrasound for a pregnant Muslim woman with only one purpose – to find out the sex of the child?
And after they found out, for example, that the child is a boy, is it allowed to buy clothes and toys for the boy?
Answer
Wa’alaykum as Salām wa rahmatullāhi wa barakātuhu,
An ultrasound may only be conducted by a female doctor since it entails a female revealing parts of her body to another.
If an ultrasound is conducted for a different purpose and one wishes to then know the gender of the child, then there is no problem.
However, the information provided after an ultrasound in respect to the gender of a child has, in some cases, been quite inaccurate. This is as per the experience of others as well.
Therefore, we advise against doing an ultrasound for the mere purpose of knowing the gender of the child.
Whilst there is no problem in purchasing clothing and toys for a child before birth, one may purchase such clothing which is of a neutral or unisex color to be worn by the child during the first few days, thereafter, one may purchase clothing and toys according to the gender of the child.
And Allaah Ta’aala knows best
Wassalaam,
Ismail Moosa (Mufti)