The Significance of Human Organ Donation and Transplant Surgery According to Maqāṣid Sharīʿah

Abstract

Organ failure is incurable; once an organ is damaged, nothing can be done to reverse the process. Without new organ substitutions, patients have to go through a painful death, as the failure of an organ to operate in the human body leads to various illnesses. Furthermore, the number of patients who need organ transplants is mounting year by year. Although over 30 years have passed since its first organ transplant, the total number of transplants conducted in Malaysia is still disappointingly low. This paper is essential to prove a strong basis concerning the ruling of organ donation or transplant in Islam by reviewing its acceptability through the principle of Maqāṣid Sharīʿah. This paper is qualitative, and the data collection process is done through content analysis. The data sources are the collections of data from the holy Quran, Sunnah, Islamic legal maxims, classical books (turāth), contemporary legal books, article journals, and other document references. Thus, this study seeks to determine the permissibility of organ donation and transplant to another person according to Maqāṣid Sharīʿah.