وَأُحِلَّ
لَكُمْ مَا
وَرَاءَ
ذَلِكُمْ
أَنْ
تَبْتَغُوا
بِأَمْوَالِكُمْ
مُحْصِنِينَ
غَيْرَ
مُسَافِحِينَ
فَمَا
اسْتَمْتَعْتُمْ
بِهِ
مِنْهُنَّ
فَآتُوهُنَّ
أُجُورَهُنَّ
فَرِيضَةً
وَلَا
جُنَاحَ
عَلَيْكُمْ
فِيمَا
تَرَاضَيْتُمْ
بِهِ مِنْ
بَعْدِ
الْفَرِيضَةِ
إِنَّ
اللَّهَ
كَانَ
عَلِيمًا
حَكِيمًا(24:4)
And all other women are except for those [specified] are
lawful to you such that you seek [them in marriage] through your wealth,
desiring chastity, not lust. [Consequently, if you have not paid their
dowers as yet], pay them their dowers as [your] obligation for the benefit
you have derived from them. If after a dower is prescribed, you agree mutually
on something there is no blame on you and Allah is All- Knowing All-Wise.
(4:24)
The pre-requisites of Nikah which
this verse outlines are:
First, a Nikah should be conducted
through wealth – which here means dower. The Qur’an emphasizes that
the Almighty has ordained this payment as an essential pre-requisite of
marriage. Consequently, it has directed Muslims to immediately complete
this obligation if they have not yet done so. However, once a dower has
been ascertained with the realization that it is an obligation of a Muslim
husband, he and his wife can mutually change its amount as well as the
time of its payment. Everyone must nevertheless know that the Originator
of this law is All-Knowing and All-Wise. All His directives are based on
flawless knowledge and deep wisdom. Hence neither should anyone attempt
to disobey it nor dare change it in any way.
It needs to be appreciated that the
dower has special significance: When a man and a woman pledge to marry,
it is the man who takes the financial responsibility of the woman he is
bringing home. The dower is nothing but a symbolic expression of this responsibility.
The Qur’an uses
the
words ‘صَدَقَه’
(S@adaqah)
and ‘اَجَر’
(Ajar) for it. Both words imply money which
is given to a wife for her needs in return for her companionship. Like
Nikah
and the Nikah sermon, dower payment is an ancient practice that
was in vogue in Arabia before the advent of the Prophet Muhammad (sws).
It is mentioned in the Bible in similar terms.1
While commenting upon the importance
of this age-old custom Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi writes:
Matters in which payment of money is a pre-condition
and the payment itself is not a favor but an obligation, such that it is
understood even though it may not be mentioned and its payment is an obligation
dependent on the social status of the lady – then such matters are serious
ones both as regards the Shari‘ah and the norms of society. No sensible
person will become party to such a contract unless after deep consideration,
he prepares himself to fulfill its responsibilities – [it is] for these
benefits that the payment of the dower has been made essential. Those who
have overlooked these benefits deem that the payment of the dower money
has relegated the status of a woman to a salable commodity. This of course
is the result of not properly perceiving the underlying reason for the
payment of the dower. The reason for this payment sounds a warning to every
person seeking to enter the sacred bond of marriage that he must think
over the extent of responsibility this step will entail. Marital matters
must be taken seriously. Even words said in light-hearted manner in such
matters have a sober status. It is like walking on the edge of a sharp
sword.2
No amount has been fixed by the Shari‘ah
for the dower. It has been left to the norms and traditions of society.
Consequently, it can be fixed according to the social status of the woman
and the financial status of the man who is to become her husband. Narratives
from the Prophet (sws) in this regard also endorse this viewpoint:
Sahal Ibn Sa‘ad narrates that once a lady
came to the Prophet (sws) and said: ‘O Messenger of God I have come to
present myself to you [in marriage]’. Sahal says that the Prophet
(sws) glanced at her, casting a look upon her from head to toe and then
lowered his head. [Upon this], the lady concluded that the Prophet (sws)
had not made a decision on her proposal and so she sat down. In the meantime,
a person from among the Companions of the Prophet (sws) got up and remarked:
‘O Prophet (sws) if you do not want her then wed her to me’. The Prophet
(sws) asked: ‘Do you have anything [to pay as dower]’. The person replied:
‘By God, O Prophet (sws) of God, I have nothing’. The Prophet (sws) remarked:
‘Go to your home and see if you can find anything’. He went over to his
house, came back and swore before the Prophet (sws) that he had found nothing.
The Prophet (sws) again said: ‘Look again even if you have an iron ring’.
He went to his house again, returned and said: ‘God shall bear witness
that I do not even have that; I do have this loin cloth – Sahal said that
he had no sheet to wear – He requested: ‘Please give half of this loin-cloth
to her’. The Prophet (sws) said: ‘What will she do with this; if you wear
it she would have nothing to wear, and if she wears it you would have nothing
to wear’. At this, that person sat down. After much time elapsed, he got
up to go. When the Prophet (sws) saw him turning his back, he sent for
him. So he was called back. The Prophet (sws) then asked: ‘How much Qur’an
do you know’. He informed the Prophet (sws) of the specific surahs
that he knew. The Prophet (sws) inquired: ‘Do you know them by heart’.
He replied in the affirmative. The Prophet (sws) then said: ‘I wed her
to you in lieu of the Qur’an that you have learned’.3
The second pre-requisite of marriage stated
in the verse is chastity. No adulterer has the right to marry a chaste
woman and no adulteress has the right to marry a chaste man, except if
the matter has not gone to court and the two purify themselves of this
sin by sincere repentance. The words
‘مُحْصِنِينَ
غَيْرَ
مُسَافِحِينَ’
point
to this pre-requisite. At another place, the Qur’an says:
الزَّانِي
لَا
يَنكِحُ
إلَّا
زَانِيَةً
أَوْ
مُشْرِكَةً
وَالزَّانِيَةُ
لَا
يَنكِحُهَا
إِلَّا زَانٍ
أَوْ
مُشْرِكٌ
وَحُرِّمَ
ذَلِكَ عَلَى
الْمُؤْمِنِينَ
(24 : 3)
The man guilty of fornication may only marry
a woman similarly guilty or an idolatress and the woman guilty of fornication
may only marry such a man or an idolater. The believers are forbidden such
marriages.4 (24:3)
It is obvious from this verse and is also
evident from divine scriptures that fornication and polytheism are exactly
similar to one another. Just as it cannot be acceptable in any way that
a husband or wife commit marital unfaithfulness, similarly, it is totally
unacceptable for a Muslim that someone else besides the Almighty be worshipped
in his house. In fact, this is more detestable a sin than sleeping with
some other woman. This similarity between fornication and polytheism could
have been deduced; however, the following Qur’anic verse explicitly
states it:
وَلَا
تَنكِحُوا
الْمُشْرِكَاتِ
حَتَّى
يُؤْمِنَّ
وَلَأَمَةٌ
مُؤْمِنَةٌ
خَيْرٌ مِنْ
مُشْرِكَةٍ
وَلَوْأَعْجَبَتْكُمْ
وَلَا
تُنكِحُوا
الْمُشْرِكِينَ
حَتَّى
يُؤْمِنُوا
وَلَعَبْدٌ
مُؤْمِنٌ
خَيْرٌ مِنْ
مُشْرِكٍ
وَلَوْ
أَعْجَبَكُمْ
(221:2)
Wed not idolatrous women, unless they embrace
faith. And [remember] a believing slave-girl is better than an idolatrous
woman, although you may fancy her. Nor shall you wed your women to the
Idolaters, unless they embrace faith. And [remember] a believing slave
is better than an Idolater, although you may fancy him.5
(2:221)
The Jews and Christians of the Prophet’s
times were also deeply incriminated with the filth of polytheism. However,
since they were basically monotheists, the Almighty was lenient enough
to Muslims to allow marriage with their chaste women:
وَالْمُحْصَنَاتُ
مِنْ
الَّذِينَ
أُوتُوا
الْكِتَابَ
مِنْ
قَبْلِكُمْ
إِذَا
آتَيْتُمُوهُنَّ
أُجُورَهُنَّ
مُحْصِنِينَ
غَيْرَ
مُسَافِحِينَ
وَلَا
مُتَّخِذِي
أَخْدَانٍ
وَمَنْ
يَكْفُرْ
بِالْإِيمَانِ
فَقَدْ
حَبِطَ
عَمَلُهُ
وَهُوَ فِي
الْآخِرَةِ
مِنْ
الْخَاسِرِينَ(5:5)
[Lawful to you in marriage] are also chaste women
from among the People of the Book before you, – when you give them their
due dowers, and desire chastity, not lewdness, nor secret paramours. (5:5)
It is evident from the context of the
above verse that this permission was granted when no confusion remained
regarding Tawhid (monotheism) and it prevailed over polytheistic Arab society
in every manner. The verse quoted above begins with
the word
‘اَلْيَوْم’
(this day). This word shows that the permission given was also very much
dependent on the circumstances of those times: It was expected that if
Muslim men would marry among the People of the Book these women would be
positively influenced by Islam. In this way not only would there be no
clash with polytheism, but also there was a great chance that most of them
would accept Islam.
Consequently, Muslims today must necessarily take this
aspect into consideration.
Similarly, it should be kept in mind
that it is essential for the sanctity of the institution of family – the
very institution marriage creates – that marriage take place with the consent
and presence of the elders of the family. There is no doubt about the fact
that the decision of marriage is primarily taken by the concerned man and
woman. However, if the marriage does not take place through the consent
of the guardians or the elders of a family, then there must be a solid
reason for this. In the absence of such a reason, a state has the authority
to annul such a marriage.6
Narratives such as
‘لَا
نِكَاحَ
اِلَّا
بِوَلِى’
(No marriage should take
place without the [permission of] the guardian)7
and other similar ones actually allude to this aspect. Since the rebellion
of a lady in this matter can cause great disruption in a family, the Prophet
(sws) made it clear upon the guardians, through both his words and the
measures he took, that they must not take any decision in this regard without
her consent. If the lady wants, their decision can be revoked.
It is narrated by Abu Hurayrah
(rta) that the Prophet (sws) is reported to have said: ‘A widow must
not be married off without her consent and the consent of a virgin is [also]
necessary’. People inquired: ‘How should her consent be obtained’. The
Prophet answered: ‘If she stays quiet it means that she agrees to it’.8
Ibn ‘Abbas narrates from the
Prophet (sws): ‘A widow can take her decision herself and permission must
be sought from a virgin’.9
Binti Khudham says that when
she became a widow, her father solemnized her marriage. She did not like
the decision. So she came over to the Prophet (sws) and he gave her the
permission to revoke her marriage.10
(Translated from ‘Mizan’ by Shehzad Saleem)
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