The Hadith of Radha’ah as a Demonstration of Wisdom, Not an Exception

The hadith concerning radha’ah (breastfeeding) in Islam establishes that mahram status (prohibition of marriage) is formed only if five breastfeedings occur before the age of two. However, the hadith regarding Salim al-Mawla Abu Hudhaifah, who was breastfed as an adult and became a mahram, raises a fundamental question: is this an exception that nullifies the general ruling, or is it actually a demonstration of deeper wisdom? This paper proposes an interpretive hypothesis that the Hadith of Salim is not a permissive exception, but rather a demonstration of a wisdom warning that unveils the psychobiological mechanism behind the mahram status of radha’ah. This mechanism works in two directions: (1) Primary effect on the nursing mother (hormonal transformation through oxytocin which creates maternal-filial bonding and prolactin which significantly suppresses sexual function – well-established empirical data from postpartum studies indicate a drastic decrease in libido, vaginal dryness, and dyspareunia in exclusively breastfeeding mothers); and (2) Secondary effect on the adult recipient (limited oral ab- sorption of oxytocin in adults with low bioavailability of 4-11%, although RAGE receptors are effective in infants – status: hypothetical and requires validation). The case of Salim indicates the strength of this mechanism, especially the transformation in the mother which can create relational disorientation (the wife sees the husband as more maternal/child-like, the husband potentially experiences a perceptual shift although the effect is weak). The Sharia protects the institution of marriage by limiting radha’ah to infants (age < 2 years, ≥ 5 feedings) and prohibiting the husband from drinking his wife’s breast milk to prevent bidirectional relational disorientation that could damage marital harmony. Methodological Note: This research is interdisciplinary and interpretive. Biological data on hormonal effects of lactation on nursing mothers are empirically established with strong support from postpartum sexual function literature. However, application to the context of adult recipients of breast milk (the case of Salim) is a hypothetical extrapolation requiring further validation. This pa- per is not a medical claim, but an effort of textual-contextual reconciliation with maqashid and applied science perspectives.