Ask a muslim scholar July 2020
Is it permissible to donate blood? Blood donation is considered an extremely meritorious and rewarding act of charity in Islam; since Islam exhorts us to be charitable to all of God's creation; we cannot think of any charity greater than a gift of life. It is a matter of common knowledge that in many cases, persons injured in accidents, etc. can only be saved from imminent death if they are given enough blood to replace what they have lost. So by giving blood, which is in short supply today, Muslims are helping people live; by doing this they are indeed carrying out the order of Allah,"Whoever saves the life of a single person, it is as if he has saved all of humanity." (Al-Ma'idah: 32) Based on the above and similar considerations, scholars and jurists have agreed that Muslims should have no inhibitions whatsoever in donating blood in the communities they are living. They should consider such activities as a most rewarding act of charity. We cannot make any distinction between Muslims and non-Muslims in donating and receiving blood; all of our bodies and faculties are in a way Muslim (obedient to the laws of Allah). Just as Islam encourages…