Buying and selling eyes for treatment

Question

There is a doctor here who takes other people’s eyes, removes the damaged eyes (of a patient) and puts (the others) in their place. There are two ways of obtaining the other eyes. (First:) when some poor people reach their final hour, the eyes are removed with their permission and sold; they sell for one or two thousand. The second way is that eyes are sold (by a person) while in good health. In such a case, may Zayd have his own damaged eyes removed and have other, healthy eyes put in?

Answer

It is not permissible for Zayd to use other people’s eyes in this way. The sale of a living person’s eyes is impermissible, and that of a dead person is impermissible too: [ar]الآدمي مكرم شرعًا وإن كان كافرًا، فإيراد العقد عليه وابتذاله به وإلحاقه بالجمادات إذلال له، أي وهو غير جائز، وبعضه في حكمه، وصرح في فتح القدير ببطلانه...

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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