Grand Ayatollah Shirazi Remarks on Surrogacy Conditions During Daily Scholarly Session

Another daily scholarly session was led by Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Sadiq Hosseini al-Shirazi on Sunday, the 4th of Rajab, in his honourable residence. As in previous sessions, the Supreme Marja addressed attendees’ questions regarding various jurisprudential issues.

Regarding the ruling on the fertilization of a foreign man’s sperm in a woman’s womb, Grand Ayatollah Shirazi stated that the woman must meet specific conditions, including being unmarried, not being in her waiting period (iddah), and having a close relation (mahram) with the sperm donor.

He further explained that if the woman has divorced her husband and is not in her waiting period, she can enter into a temporary marriage (mut’ah) with the sperm donor. This contract, even if lasting only an hour or a few hours, would create a relationship that resolves any legal issues.

He emphasized that the child born through this method would not be considered the child of the woman’s original husband; the biological father would be the sperm donor.

Grand Ayatollah Shirazi concluded by stating that if no marriage contract is established, while the act is not considered adultery (zina), it is still not permissible from a religious standpoint and is deemed haram (forbidden).