Under what conditions is a child born to a wife considered illegitimate and thus separated from the husband's lineage?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Mutual Imprecation (Li'an)
Primary text
A child born to the wife is legally considered the husband's if the child is potentially his, based on the principle that 'The child belongs to the bed' (*Al-walad lil-firash*). The child is only negated from the husband's lineage if the husband completely negates paternity through a perfect *Li'an* that meets four stipulated conditions. The primary opinion holds that both spouses must engage in the mutual cursing. This is the position held by the majority of scholars.
Supporting text
Al-Shafi'i holds that the husband's *Li'an* alone suffices to negate paternity, as the negation stems from his oath, not the wife's oath which serves only to avert punishment from herself, in line with the verse: 'And it shall avert the punishment from her if she swears four oaths by Allah that he is of those who lie' (Quran 24:8).