Some of the Companions had a wife who pressed him for a divorce because she did not wish to remain with him, so she said to him, “Divorce me with one revocable divorce,” and she was close to giving birth, so he divorced her.
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The questioner : He mentioned in it a story from the time of the Companions that his wife was pressing him for a divorce.
The Shaykh : What is it?
The questioner : His wife was pressing him for a divorce because she did not wish to remain with him.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : So she was pressing him, and among the things she said to him was ... with one revocable divorce. The point is that the woman was pregnant and knew she was close to giving birth, so he said to her, “Okay, fine, you are divorced.” According to what the Shaykh mentioned, he went to pray and then returned, and she gave birth, so she became free on her own. Is this narration considered authentic? And if it is authentic, do you think it affects the conditions you mentioned regarding divorce?
The Shaykh : What I have in mind is that the story has a continuation, either this one or another, that the matter was raised to 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, and he annulled the divorce.
The questioner : It is not authentic.
The Shaykh : Yes, that is the first point. And secondly, it is permissible for a divorce to occur now, as it does, by the judgment of a judge or the fatwa of a mufti. It is permissible for a divorce that contradicts the Shari'ah to occur, because the Messenger of Allah did not mention this in this story. It is an incident related to a Companion. 'Umar ibn al-Khattab considered a divorce pronounced with the phrase “three” to be three divorces. This was his independent legal reasoning. This is different from what is stated in a hadith. In that case, there would be a problem regarding what we mentioned earlier. Do you understand me?
The questioner : Yes, yes.
The Shaykh : Very well.
The Shaykh : What is it?
The questioner : His wife was pressing him for a divorce because she did not wish to remain with him.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : So she was pressing him, and among the things she said to him was ... with one revocable divorce. The point is that the woman was pregnant and knew she was close to giving birth, so he said to her, “Okay, fine, you are divorced.” According to what the Shaykh mentioned, he went to pray and then returned, and she gave birth, so she became free on her own. Is this narration considered authentic? And if it is authentic, do you think it affects the conditions you mentioned regarding divorce?
The Shaykh : What I have in mind is that the story has a continuation, either this one or another, that the matter was raised to 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, and he annulled the divorce.
The questioner : It is not authentic.
The Shaykh : Yes, that is the first point. And secondly, it is permissible for a divorce to occur now, as it does, by the judgment of a judge or the fatwa of a mufti. It is permissible for a divorce that contradicts the Shari'ah to occur, because the Messenger of Allah did not mention this in this story. It is an incident related to a Companion. 'Umar ibn al-Khattab considered a divorce pronounced with the phrase “three” to be three divorces. This was his independent legal reasoning. This is different from what is stated in a hadith. In that case, there would be a problem regarding what we mentioned earlier. Do you understand me?
The questioner : Yes, yes.
The Shaykh : Very well.