The remainder of the answer to: Is the fatwa attributed to Ibn Baz and to you regarding the permissibility of marrying with the intention of divorce valid?
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The questioner : May Allah reward you, O honorable Shaykh: We heard a fatwa attributed to Shaykh 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn Baz (may Allah preserve him), and that you have also issued a ruling to that effect, stating that it is permissible for a man to marry with the intention of divorce. What is the validity of this fatwa?
The Shaykh : Yes, Shaykh 'Abd al-'Aziz and the Permanent Committee mentioned that it is permissible for a stranger to marry with the intention of divorce in order to prevent what is feared of falling into fornication. They distinguished this from the marriage of pleasure (mut'ah), which is delayed for a specified term; when the term ends, the marriage is dissolved. The marriage of pleasure is forbidden. There is disagreement among scholars regarding this issue. Some held this view and said there is no harm in a stranger marrying with the intention of divorce, meaning he marries her as long as he is in this country, with the intention that if he travels, he will divorce her.
Some scholars said that it is not permissible, and this is the well-known position in the madhhab of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on him). It is known in the books of his later followers that it is not permissible for a stranger to marry with the intention of divorce. They said: Because this is the intention of a marriage of pleasure. If you asked this stranger why he married, would you want your wife to be a source of tranquility for you? Would you want children to be born to you from her? He would say: I do not want this or that. I want to enjoy her as long as I am in this country, and to protect myself from what I fear of falling into fornication. So we say: Then you did not intend the legal purpose of marriage in this marriage, because the legal purpose of marriage is for the woman to be a source of tranquility for the husband, as Allah the Exalted said:[Ar-Rum 30:21] Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih al-Bukhari 1.
Then this view may be exploited by those weak in faith for bad purposes. As we have heard, some people started going during the break, meaning the vacation from lessons, to other countries to marry only with the intention of divorce. It was reported to me that some of them marry several times during this vacation only, so it is as if they went to satisfy their desire, which is similar to fornication, may Allah protect us.
And for this reason, we see that even if permissibility is stated, it should not be opened up, because it has become a means to what I mentioned to you.
As for my opinion in this, I say: The marriage contract is valid in itself, because every person who marries intends to stay with the woman if he desires, and to leave her if he does not. So it is forbidden from this aspect. The deception and fraud is that if the wife and her guardian knew this husband's intention, and that he intends to enjoy her for a period and then divorce her, they would not have married him to him. So there is deception and fraud towards them. If he explained to them that he wants to stay with her for the duration of his stay in this country and they agreed to that, it becomes a marriage of pleasure. Therefore, I see that it is forbidden. But if someone dares to do it, the marriage is valid.
The Shaykh : Yes, Shaykh 'Abd al-'Aziz and the Permanent Committee mentioned that it is permissible for a stranger to marry with the intention of divorce in order to prevent what is feared of falling into fornication. They distinguished this from the marriage of pleasure (mut'ah), which is delayed for a specified term; when the term ends, the marriage is dissolved. The marriage of pleasure is forbidden. There is disagreement among scholars regarding this issue. Some held this view and said there is no harm in a stranger marrying with the intention of divorce, meaning he marries her as long as he is in this country, with the intention that if he travels, he will divorce her.
Some scholars said that it is not permissible, and this is the well-known position in the madhhab of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on him). It is known in the books of his later followers that it is not permissible for a stranger to marry with the intention of divorce. They said: Because this is the intention of a marriage of pleasure. If you asked this stranger why he married, would you want your wife to be a source of tranquility for you? Would you want children to be born to you from her? He would say: I do not want this or that. I want to enjoy her as long as I am in this country, and to protect myself from what I fear of falling into fornication. So we say: Then you did not intend the legal purpose of marriage in this marriage, because the legal purpose of marriage is for the woman to be a source of tranquility for the husband, as Allah the Exalted said:
And of His signs is that He created for you from yourselves mates that you may find tranquillity in them
وَمِنْ آيَاتِهِ أَنْ خَلَقَ لَكُمْ مِنْ أَنْفُسِكُمْ أَزْوَاجاً لِتَسْكُنُوا إِلَيْهَاThe reward of deeds depends upon the intentions and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended.
إنما الأعمال بالنيات، وإنما لكل امرئ ما نوىThen this view may be exploited by those weak in faith for bad purposes. As we have heard, some people started going during the break, meaning the vacation from lessons, to other countries to marry only with the intention of divorce. It was reported to me that some of them marry several times during this vacation only, so it is as if they went to satisfy their desire, which is similar to fornication, may Allah protect us.
And for this reason, we see that even if permissibility is stated, it should not be opened up, because it has become a means to what I mentioned to you.
As for my opinion in this, I say: The marriage contract is valid in itself, because every person who marries intends to stay with the woman if he desires, and to leave her if he does not. So it is forbidden from this aspect. The deception and fraud is that if the wife and her guardian knew this husband's intention, and that he intends to enjoy her for a period and then divorce her, they would not have married him to him. So there is deception and fraud towards them. If he explained to them that he wants to stay with her for the duration of his stay in this country and they agreed to that, it becomes a marriage of pleasure. Therefore, I see that it is forbidden. But if someone dares to do it, the marriage is valid.