Muslim world (especially in the Arab world and the Indian
subcontinent) make it difficult and even impossible to meet marriage
partners outside one's immediate circle. On the other hand, people see
their cousins at family functions and are able to interact with them
and get to know them. So they end up developing attachments and
falling for their cousins.
The other thing that happens is that families arrange cousin marriages
as a way of keeping wealth inside the family circle, or because they
don't trust outsiders, or as an expression of extreme racism and
caste-consciousness.
The problem is that persistent cousin marriage is unhealthy for the
children and for society.
Increased Chance of Birth Defects
I'm totally against first cousin marriage. For one thing, first cousin
marriages have a statistically higher chance of resulting in children
with serious birth defects. This is especially true when consecutive
generations of first cousins marry.
A study of Pakistani families in Britain– which are known to have
high rates of first cousin marriage – found a double than normal rate
of children with congenital abnormalities. Six percent of all
Pakistani-origin babies in the study had birth defects. Six percent!
I personally know of one married couple – first cousins – whose son is
severely autistic, and another couple whose son is badly deformed and
mentally retarded. Inbreeding causes a wide variety of maladies,
collectively known as inbreeding depression.
Mad Royals
When we read about the royals and emperors of the past, so many of
them were psychotic, retarded or physically deformed. The insanity of
kings wasn't just power madness. It was the result of persistent
inbreeding among royal families.
King Charles II of Spain was a well-known example. He was severely
disfigured from birth with a huge elongated head, a misshapen body and
a jaw that could not close. He was considered and idiot and was given
no education. Carlos' relatives all died leaving him the throne and an
over-bearing mother to rule in his stead. He thought of himself as
bewitched because of his suffering, but today most of what he suffered
would have been recognized as a result of inbreeding. Fortunately he
was also infertile, and his death ended the Habsburg line forever.
History is replete with such stories of mad, inbred royals.
Narrow Mindedness and Tribalism
Beyond the increased incidence of birth defects, persistent cousin
marriage leads to inbred mental attitudes, if you will. I've noticed
that cultures that consistently interbreed tend to be narrow minded
and tribal. They are closed off to new ways of thinking and doing
things, closed off to different cultures, and suspicious of outsiders
in general, even when those "outsiders" are Muslims.
If you examine the particular cultures that have the highest rates of
cousin marriage, you'll find that they are societies that are highly
fragmented into castes, tribes, and religious sects. In some cases
these societies are wracked by violence. I'm not saying that cousin
marriage is responsible for that, but it's reflective of a wider
xenophobia in these societies.
Use Common Sense
Obviously Islam has allowed cousin marriage, so I'm not saying it
should be banned. The occasional cousin marriage is not a problem.
It's when it becomes a persistent pattern that problems emerge.
There are many things that are allowed in Islam that are nevertheless
unhealthy. One would not eat fried foods and half a pound of salt
every day and expect to remain healthy. We know that constant
overexposure to the sun can cause skin cancer. Yet these things are
not haram. We must use common sense when making important life
decisions.
We need to open our eyes and look beyond our own families for marriage
partners. We must build bonds among the Ummah, bring in fresh blood
and share our unique cultural traditions. The world is wide, and full
of new and exciting cultures. Let's open our minds and embrace people
outside our circle. In doing so we will have healthier children
Insha'Allah, and a healthier Ummah.
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Published by NAJIMUDEEN M
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