An operation carried without anesthesia and which is obviously very painful. Nowadays, it is practiced by surgeon’s doctors under anesthesia but without forgetting the pleasure that is introduced to people.

There were at the time, some barbers ended up making circumcision as their main job, to name a few; (ROMANI, BOUKHIT and ALI BEN YOUSSEF) who are the most reputed of the city.

Along the whole first week while the small kid is surrounded by relatives, friends and neighbors from the "houma" is prepared psychologically with the act, they put “henna” and "harkous” on his hands and feet of "henna", they offers him gifts and organizes a party practically every night, sometimes with "darbouka" and obligatorily with a "hezb" or "banga" the day before "tehour".
At the proper time, the small kid wearing a traditional dress (jebba, chechia and Kontra) is taken along to the surgeon in a motorcade of cars or in horseback of pure Arabic blood with brass band "Mouzika" without forgetting to do one visit "ziyara" to “sidi sahib”.

While heading home, the act of achieving the blessing of god one breaks a "Mokhfia" (Water jug) filled with candies causing the joy of small kids who try to collect the thrown candies even from the ground. Since, the "Mtaher" (the circumcised boy) deserves the status of a man.

Religious reasons :

The most religious reasons, in particular in the Judaism and Islam. In the Muslim tradition the circumcision represents a spiritual purification.

It is a "sounnah" of the Prophet Ibrâhim "Alayhis Salâm" who was circumcised at the age of 80 years. Allah integrated into Islam by the intermediary of the following verse (The Bees: verse 123: ) recommending us to follow the way of Ibrâhim "Alayhis Salâm" : “Then We revealed to you: Follow the faith of Ibrâhim, the upright one, and he was not of the polytheists”.

The circumcision for the man is thus a symbol "Shi' âr" of Islâm. The prophets Jesus and Issa "Alayhima Salâm" were circumcised and invited their people to make it the same way. The Prophet Mohamed "Sallallâhou Alayhi wa sallam", also, indicated to his community this rule of hygiene towards which Allah directed his messengers.

The Prophet Mohamed “Sallallâhou Alayhi wa sallam” said: "Four aspects belongs to the life style of the Prophets (and among them) modesty (or decency), the circumcision, the perfume, “Miswâk” (to use a special wood to clean the teeth) and the marriage was also reported".

The Prophet Mohamed "Sallallâhou Alayhi wa sallam" also said: "Five things belongs to the human nature (fitra): the circumcision, the fact of shaving pilosity (present on the pubis), cutting the moustache, cutting the nails and of depilating pilosity present under the armpits.

Concerning the status of the circumcision for boys, it differs according to schools from jurisprudence: “Hanafites” as well as “Mâlikites” think that it is "Sounnat Mou'akkadah" (it means, it is strongly recommended). “Châfé'ites” as well as “Hanbalites” think rather to be "Wâdjib" (obligatory).

Concerning the age of the circumcision, there is no exact age to do it according to the "sounnah". It can be made at any time, as long as the child did not become teenagers; it is a matter to facilitate the matter. It thus up to the parents to get information at the most favorable time for the circumcision.

But if it could not be carried out in childhood (in the case or the person converts to Islam at the adulthood for example), it will be always recommended to do it even at the adulthood. However, if the practice of the circumcision is harmful for him or there are not able to support it because of extreme old age it is allowed for him to remain uncircumcised.

Circumcision and the 27th day of Ramadan :

La circoncision, des garçons en âge pré-scolaire est une de nos traditions arabo-musulmanes. Celle-ci peut être réalisé à n'importe quelle période de l'année.

Certaines familles choisissent la saison estivale correspondant aux vacances scolaires pour effectuer ce rite dans une atmosphère festive qui n'a parfois rien à envier aux cérémonies de fiançailles ou de mariage. Outre les périodes de congé scolaire, le mois de ramadan est également une période propice pour y effectuer cette circoncision.

C'est généralement durant le deuxième quinzaine de ce mois sacré qu'à lieu la circoncision et la journée du 27ème jour "Leilat El kadr" est particulièrement prisée par les familles.

Si pendant longtemps, la circoncision s'est faite par des barbiers puis par le personnel paramédical, actuellement c'est un acte chirurgical effectué par un médecin ou un chirurgien parfois sous anesthésie générale, le plus souvent sous anesthésie locale

Hygienic reasons :

It can also be practiced for hygienic reasons: to remove the foreskin makes it possible to prevent accumulation, around the nipple, of the smegma, this white substance secreted by the glands of the foreskin.

American chooses to circumcise almost systematically their new born baby boys. But these medical arguments are still being discussed.

In fact, a good hygiene (to uncap the nipple and to wash it) is enough to prevent the accumulation of the smegma and to avoid irritations or infections.
The circumcision is also indicated in the event of phimosis (malformation of the foreskin which is too tight around the penis).

Dr. Muhammad Ali Al-Bar, member of Royal Faculties of Medicine of the United Kingdom and adviser at the Islamic Department of Medicine in the Center of King Fahd for the medical Research at the University of King Abd Al-Aziz in Djeddah, said in his book on the circumcision: "the circumcision of the new-born babies (during the first month of their life) makes it possible to obtain many medical advantages, here are the most important ones:

1/ Protection against the inflammations of the penis which results from the uncircumcision, state called the narrowness of the foreskin which causes the retention of urine. The treatment of the inflammation of the nipple of the rod of the penis and other affections requires the circumcision.
Because if they last, they expose the future of the child to many other diseases of which most dangerous remains the cancer of the penis.

2/ Infection of the urinary tracts
There are many research showed that the children not circumcised expose themselves to an increasing number of infections of urinary tracts.
According to certain studies the rate of affection is 39 times higher in the children not circumcised. According to others, the rate of affection is 10 times higher.
Other studies then indicated that 95 % of the children who suffer from inflammations of the urinary tracts are not circumcised; only 5 % of the children circumcised suffer from it. These inflammations are dangerous for the children in certain cases. A study undertaken by Wazowel on 88 children reached of infections of the urinary tracts revealed that 36 % of them had in their blood the same bacterium which causes the disease and which three of them suffered from meningitis and two others died because of the blossoming of pathological microbes in their body.

3/ Protection against penis cancer
The studies are unanimous to affirm that the cancer of the penis misses almost all the circumcised whereas there is a considerable rate at the non circumcised cases.
In the United States, the rate of affection by this cancer for the circumcised is 0 whereas it is about 2.2 out of 100.000 inhabitants not circumcised. The majority of the inhabitants of the USA being circumcised, the cases of cancer are limited to 750 to 1000 cases annually.
If there were no circumcision, the number would pass to 3000 cases. In the countries where the circumcision is not practiced like China, Uganda and Puerto Rico, this cancer represents between 12 and 22 % of the whole of cancers patients between men. Which is considered a very high rate?

4/ Sexual diseases
The researchers discovered that the sexual diseases are transmitted through the sexual contact (generally adultery and sodomy). These diseases are propagated in a more significant and more dangerous way within the non circumcised. It is especially true for syphilis, the candidiasis, the gonorrhea and the sexual warts.
There are many other recent research which confirms that the circumcision decreases the possibility of the attack by AIDS by a higher rate than those non circumcised. But that does not exclude that the exposed circumcised with the consecutive contagion with a sexual contact with a patient of the AIDS can contract this dangerous disease. The circumcision does not immunize anybody against such disease because there is no true means of protection against the multiple sexual diseases apart from the distance of adultery, the fornication, sodomy and others condemnable practices. (This enables us to know wisdom of the Islamic law which prohibits adultery and sodomy)

5/ Protection against uterus cancer for women
The researchers noted that the wives who are married to circumcised partner are less exposed to this cancer than those who are married to un circumcised.

Mohamed Rebai
info@kairouan.org