Circumcision of the foreskin in men implies its removal by surgical intervention. This operation can be viewed from two completely different points of view: religious and medical. In Muslim and Jewish peoples, male circumcision is determined by cultural traditions rather than medical indications.
Let us turn to reliable historical facts. The researchers found that the act of circumcision of the foreskin was a mandatory religious ritual through which every man of the tribe who had reached a certain age had to go through. Initially, circumcision replaced the pagan rites of human sacrifice. Male circumcision in Judaism performed almost the same function, it was a sign of the boy’s acceptance into a certain religious community. The practice of circumcision of the male foreskin in Middle Eastern Muslim countries takes place only from the end of the 3rd millennium BC.
Turks circumcised the foreskin of boys over 8-13 years of age, in Arab countries the ritual was performed on the 6th year of a child’s life, Muslim boys of the Malay archipelago underwent surgery to reach 10-13 years of age. The act of circumcision in these countries was accompanied, as a rule, by festivities that were partly religious and partly social. For carrying out the operation-ritual, a clergyman or a medicine doctor was invited. In Christianity, circumcision was a type of baptism. In the very first Christian communities, all men without exception were subjected to this procedure; mention of it is also present on the pages of the New Testament. By the way, circumcision of the foreskin was the main reason for the persecution of Jews in the 1st century A.D.
Male circumcision is not only religious in nature. It can be performed for medical reasons. One of them is the presence of a disease such as phimosis - a narrowing of the foreskin with the subsequent impossibility of exposing the glans penis. This disease manifests itself at an early age, it interferes with the normal process of emptying the bladder and causes a lot of inconvenience. Phimosis in an adult male leads to impaired renal function, has a negative effect on sex life or makes it impossible. If there is evidence, male circumcision is performed under local anesthesia, the entire operation takes no more than 20 minutes.
It is known that circumcision helps to increase the duration of sexual intercourse. This is due to a gradual decrease in the sensitivity of the glans penis. Male circumcision reduces the chance of a partner becoming infected with the HPV virus that causes cervical cancer. Moreover, circumcision is often associated with a high level of hygiene. Permanently in the open state, the head of the penis is really more hygienic, the presence of skin folds, on the contrary, contributes to the rapid multiplication of pathogenic bacteria.
Circumcision is still a surgical intervention, which means it can cause complications. In addition, opponents of this procedure are confident that everything in a person is ideally provided for by nature, including the foreskin. They claim that in our body there are no extra tissues and organs, and circumcision of one’s own free will is just violence over one’s own body. Everyone has the right to their point of view. Whether or not to agree to such an operation is a private matter for everyone. However, the fact that modern men are much more fortunate than their ancient predecessors is undeniable. Today, circumcision is performed only in a clinical setting with a surgeon’s scalpel, regardless of whether this act is a manifestation of a man’s religious affiliation or has medical indications.