What is the ruling on a human being changing his gender from male to female or female to male?
ما حكم تغيير الإنسان لجنسه من ذكر لأنثى أو أنثى لذكر؟
Changing one's gender is forbidden in Shari'ah, because it is forbidden for the woman to resemble the man, and it is forbidden for the man to resemble the woman, so how about being actually transformed to the other gender!?
إن تغيير الإنسان لجنسه محرم في الشرع لأن ﷲ حرم تشبه المرأة لرجل أو الرجل لمرأة فكيف لو تحول فعلا!؟
The Reasons for Prohibition | أسباب التحريم
1. Altering Allah's Creation
Allah the Almighty mentions in the Quran that Shaitan (Satan) orders people to alter Allah's creation in the following Ayah:
(Also, I will order them and they will slit the ears of cattle and alter Allah’s creation. And whoever takes Satan as a guardian instead of Allah has certainly suffered a tremendous loss) [An-Nisa'a 4: 119]
1. تغيير خلق الله
وأيضًا فإن ﷲ حكى في القرآن أن الشيطان من فعله في بني البشر أنه أمرهم بتغيير خلق ﷲ التي خلق الناس عليها كما قال تعالى: (وَلَآمُرَنَّهُمْ فَلَيُغَيِّرُنَّ خَلْقَ اللَّـهِ ۚ) [النساء 4: 119]
2. The Biological Impossibility
Well, the question is, does a man really have the ability to change his gender? The answer is absolutely not, because in fact man can only change the apparent organs that are visible on his body, but he will never be able to get pregnant and give birth, because the original creation is contrary to that. This case is similar to the one who wants to transform a rock into a living being; no matter how hard he tries, he will never be able to transform a rock into a living being.
2. الاستحالة التكوينية
إن السؤال هل للإنسان قدرة على تغيير جنسه؟ و الجواب قطعا لأ لأن الإنسان في الحقيقة لا يغير إلا الصورة الظاهرة من أعضاء ظاهرة على بدنه أما أن يكون للرجل قدرة على الحمل و الولادة فهذا مستحيل أن يكون لأن أصل الخلق مخالف لذلك، فهذا يشبه ما لو أراد الإنسان تحويل الصخر إلى كائن حي، مهما فعل فهو غير قادر على تحويل الصخرة إلى كائن حي.
Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
Is it permissible for a person to change their gender in Islam?
No, changing one's gender is strictly forbidden in Shari'ah. Since it is forbidden for a man to resemble a woman or a woman to resemble a man, physically transforming into the opposite gender is entirely impermissible.
What does the Quran say about altering creation?
The Quran links the unnecessary alteration of Allah's creation to the whispers and commands of Shaitan (Satan), as stated in Surah An-Nisa'a (4:119), marking it as a sinful deviation from the natural order.
Can a person truly change their biological gender completely?
No. The text explains that a person can only superficially alter visible organs, but they cannot change their fundamental biological capabilities, such as a man acquiring the ability to get pregnant and give birth.