The Default in Marriage: Between One Wife and Multiple Wives
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
And another asks: Is the default in marriage one wife, with polygamy arising as a response to specific causes, or is it the other way around?
Answer:
The default is multiple wives; the default is multiple wives. One wife is the limit one settles for when unable to manage more. Allah the Exalted said: “If you fear that you will not be just, then [marry] one woman or those your right hands possess.” So if you fear that you will not be just, settle for one. The evidence is that the default is polygamy, so one marries two, three, or four, because this is closer to chastity for the man and to increasing offspring. If he is unable, he settles for one. If he fears that he will not be just, he settles for one, along with whatever slave women are available to him. Yes.
And another asks: Is the default in marriage one wife, with polygamy arising as a response to specific causes, or is it the other way around?
Answer:
The default is multiple wives; the default is multiple wives. One wife is the limit one settles for when unable to manage more. Allah the Exalted said: “If you fear that you will not be just, then [marry] one woman or those your right hands possess.” So if you fear that you will not be just, settle for one. The evidence is that the default is polygamy, so one marries two, three, or four, because this is closer to chastity for the man and to increasing offspring. If he is unable, he settles for one. If he fears that he will not be just, he settles for one, along with whatever slave women are available to him. Yes.
Source
ندوات الجامع الكبير مع الأسئلة - 26 — archive.org (1:21:27)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.