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What is the wisdom behind attributing the child born of adultery to the husband of the adulterous woman, considering him his son even though he is not his son, with him being entitled to all the rights of legitimate children, especially since disavowal of his lineage is not possible except through li'an (oath of condemnation) or if he is born less than six months from the date of the marriage contract?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The child is attributed to the bed (i.e., to the husband) as long as he is born within the marriage and has not been disowned by the husband, unless the husband becomes certain or strongly presumes that the child is not his due to strong indicators. Examples include the child being born alive and fully formed in less than six months from the consummation of the marriage. In such a case, the husband must disown the child; otherwise, he is not permitted to disown him. These rulings are established in the purified Sunnah and the judgments of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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