I have a sister and a brother who have reached the age of marriage, and we have relatives. So my father stood up and proposed a daughter of one of the relatives for my brother, and likewise the family of the girl proposed my sister for the girl's brother, and they agreed.
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The questioner : He says the problem is that I have a sister and a brother who have reached the age of marriage, and we have relatives, so he stood up.
The Shaykh : The age of marriage.
The questioner : Of course, he means the age of marriage, but I am reading the message as it came to me: "I have a sister and a brother who have reached the age of marriage, and we have relatives, so my father stood up and proposed a daughter of one of the relatives for my brother, and likewise the family of the girl proposed my sister for the girl's brother. The fathers agreed that it should be one for one, without either of them paying anything, and that each one should equip his daughter. My sister was forced into it, and the marriage took place. I tried to stand against it, but I was unable to. What is the ruling in this matter?"
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions and those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment. This contract that the brother referred to combines two prohibitions. One of them is that it is *shighar*, which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade, and he said regarding it:Sunan Ibn Majah 1885Sahih (Darussalam) This is because each of them married the other's ward on the condition that the other would marry his ward, and this is the *shighar* that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade.
The questioner : O Allah, send blessings and peace upon him.
The Shaykh : Especially since there was no *mahr* between them. As for the second prohibition, it is forcing the woman, the daughter, into marriage. This is *haram* and not permissible, and the marriage is not valid with coercion, due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):Sahih al-Bukhari 6968 And he was asked about the permission of the virgin, and he said: And in a narration: .
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And in a narration by Muslim: So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) explicitly mentioned the virgin in this hadith and explicitly mentioned the father. In this is evidence for the weakness of the statement of those among the scholars who say that it is permissible for the father to force the virgin into marriage. For this hadith is an explicit, clear text regarding the virgin and regarding the father .
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Therefore, it is not permissible for a Muslim to force his daughter into marriage, whether she is a virgin or a previously married woman. In this case, if he is presenting to her those who are proposing to her, but she does not accept, in this case there is no sin on him, even if she dies without having married, there is no sin on him if it is she who does not want to marry. The sin is only if she desires to marry a man who is suitable in his religion and character, and then the father comes and prevents that. Then this is *haram* upon him and not permissible. And the scholars have mentioned that if this thing repeats from him, he becomes an open sinner with no guardianship over his daughter, and the guardianship transfers to the next most suitable person to marry her off after him.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : In any case, this question that the brother asked about, the two contracts in it are not valid if the matter is as the questioner brother described.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And what I see in this issue is that it must be brought to the Shari'ah court to look into the matter, in verifying that, and in what is required regarding this contract and these two contracts, whether to keep them or annul them.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : You have done well. So we say to the brother H.S.A., after hearing this answer, and his message is also very long, and we have summarized it with what was mentioned, we say to him that he must turn to the court if he has what proves that, and he will have a way out in that, if Allah wills, and his sister will have one too.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : This message came from Jordan. It says the sender of the message is me, the sister, Umm Waleed Maqaddasi, from Jordan, a resident of the city of Amman. I ask about the following.
The Shaykh : The age of marriage.
The questioner : Of course, he means the age of marriage, but I am reading the message as it came to me: "I have a sister and a brother who have reached the age of marriage, and we have relatives, so my father stood up and proposed a daughter of one of the relatives for my brother, and likewise the family of the girl proposed my sister for the girl's brother. The fathers agreed that it should be one for one, without either of them paying anything, and that each one should equip his daughter. My sister was forced into it, and the marriage took place. I tried to stand against it, but I was unable to. What is the ruling in this matter?"
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions and those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment. This contract that the brother referred to combines two prohibitions. One of them is that it is *shighar*, which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade, and he said regarding it:
There is no Shighar in Islam.
لا شغار في الإسلامThe questioner : O Allah, send blessings and peace upon him.
The Shaykh : Especially since there was no *mahr* between them. As for the second prohibition, it is forcing the woman, the daughter, into marriage. This is *haram* and not permissible, and the marriage is not valid with coercion, due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
A virgin should not be married till she is asked for her consent; and the matron should not be married till she is asked whether she agrees to marry or not.
لا تُنكح البكر حتى تستأذن ولا تنكح الأيم حتى تستأمرThat she remains silent.
أن تسكتTheir permission is their silence.
إذنها صماتهاThe questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And in a narration by Muslim:
The father consults the virgin.
البكر يستأمرها أبوهاThe father consults the virgin.
البكر يستأمرها أبوهاThe questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Therefore, it is not permissible for a Muslim to force his daughter into marriage, whether she is a virgin or a previously married woman. In this case, if he is presenting to her those who are proposing to her, but she does not accept, in this case there is no sin on him, even if she dies without having married, there is no sin on him if it is she who does not want to marry. The sin is only if she desires to marry a man who is suitable in his religion and character, and then the father comes and prevents that. Then this is *haram* upon him and not permissible. And the scholars have mentioned that if this thing repeats from him, he becomes an open sinner with no guardianship over his daughter, and the guardianship transfers to the next most suitable person to marry her off after him.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : In any case, this question that the brother asked about, the two contracts in it are not valid if the matter is as the questioner brother described.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And what I see in this issue is that it must be brought to the Shari'ah court to look into the matter, in verifying that, and in what is required regarding this contract and these two contracts, whether to keep them or annul them.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : You have done well. So we say to the brother H.S.A., after hearing this answer, and his message is also very long, and we have summarized it with what was mentioned, we say to him that he must turn to the court if he has what proves that, and he will have a way out in that, if Allah wills, and his sister will have one too.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : This message came from Jordan. It says the sender of the message is me, the sister, Umm Waleed Maqaddasi, from Jordan, a resident of the city of Amman. I ask about the following.