Her husband was absent for twenty years, then he divorced her
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Question: From 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn 'Abd Allah ibn Baz, to the honorable brother, the virtuous Shaykh / 'A. S. F. - Deputy Judge at the Court of Dhofar, may Allah grant him understanding in all good, amen.
Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. After that:
O Beloved: Your two noble letters, dated 28/2/1392 AH and 4/3/1392 AH, have arrived -may Allah grant you His pleasure- and I have reviewed the question attached to them. Here is its text and its answer:
A man was absent from his wife while traveling for twenty years. After this period, he sent her a divorce by khul' (divorce at the wife's request for compensation), which was a valid divorce. This woman wants to remarry. Does she have to observe the waiting period ('iddah), given that her husband traveled away from her twenty years ago and did not have sexual relations with her? Is the waiting period for the purpose of ensuring the purity of the womb, or for some other reason?
And the answer: If the situation is as you described, there is no doubt that she must observe the waiting period; because the waiting period is only established after divorce -even if the husband's absence from the divorced wife has been prolonged- due to the saying of Allah the Exalted:[Al-Baqarah 2:228] the verse [al-Baqarah:228].
As for the wisdom behind this, the scholar Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned a valuable discussion on this topic in his book (I'lam al-Muwaqqi'in). He also stated that the wisdom is not limited to the intention of ensuring the purity of the womb, but there are other wisdoms; for this reason, the waiting period is obligatory for a woman whose husband has died, even if he did not have sexual relations with her, and even if she is a young girl who is suspected of being pregnant, and likewise for a woman who has passed the age of menstruation. From this, it is known that Allah the Exalted has wisdoms in the waiting periods other than the purity of the womb.
However, if the woman you mentioned gave him money and he divorced her on that basis, then she is thereby a woman who has undergone khul' (divorce at the wife's request for compensation). It is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) what indicates that for a woman who has undergone khul', one menstruation is sufficient. 'Uthman ibn 'Affan (may Allah be pleased with him) and a group of the Salaf (earliest generations) and Khalaf (later generations) issued a ruling to this effect, and the Shaykh al-Islam: Ibn Taymiyyah, and his student Ibn al-Qayyim -may Allah have mercy on them both- chose this position, and it is the correct one -if Allah wills- especially if there is a pressing need for it; out of fear of missing out on a suitable match if he is asked to wait for three menstruations, or three months in the case of a woman who has passed the age of menstruation and the like.
And I ask Allah to grant us and you and all our brothers success in understanding His religion and steadfastness upon it; indeed, He is Generous and Noble.
And peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. After that:
O Beloved: Your two noble letters, dated 28/2/1392 AH and 4/3/1392 AH, have arrived -may Allah grant you His pleasure- and I have reviewed the question attached to them. Here is its text and its answer:
A man was absent from his wife while traveling for twenty years. After this period, he sent her a divorce by khul' (divorce at the wife's request for compensation), which was a valid divorce. This woman wants to remarry. Does she have to observe the waiting period ('iddah), given that her husband traveled away from her twenty years ago and did not have sexual relations with her? Is the waiting period for the purpose of ensuring the purity of the womb, or for some other reason?
And the answer: If the situation is as you described, there is no doubt that she must observe the waiting period; because the waiting period is only established after divorce -even if the husband's absence from the divorced wife has been prolonged- due to the saying of Allah the Exalted:
Divorced women remain in waiting for three periods
وَالْمُطَلَّقَاتُ يَتَرَبَّصْنَ بِأَنفُسِهِنَّ ثَلاَثَةَ قُرُوَءٍAs for the wisdom behind this, the scholar Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned a valuable discussion on this topic in his book (I'lam al-Muwaqqi'in). He also stated that the wisdom is not limited to the intention of ensuring the purity of the womb, but there are other wisdoms; for this reason, the waiting period is obligatory for a woman whose husband has died, even if he did not have sexual relations with her, and even if she is a young girl who is suspected of being pregnant, and likewise for a woman who has passed the age of menstruation. From this, it is known that Allah the Exalted has wisdoms in the waiting periods other than the purity of the womb.
However, if the woman you mentioned gave him money and he divorced her on that basis, then she is thereby a woman who has undergone khul' (divorce at the wife's request for compensation). It is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) what indicates that for a woman who has undergone khul', one menstruation is sufficient. 'Uthman ibn 'Affan (may Allah be pleased with him) and a group of the Salaf (earliest generations) and Khalaf (later generations) issued a ruling to this effect, and the Shaykh al-Islam: Ibn Taymiyyah, and his student Ibn al-Qayyim -may Allah have mercy on them both- chose this position, and it is the correct one -if Allah wills- especially if there is a pressing need for it; out of fear of missing out on a suitable match if he is asked to wait for three menstruations, or three months in the case of a woman who has passed the age of menstruation and the like.
And I ask Allah to grant us and you and all our brothers success in understanding His religion and steadfastness upon it; indeed, He is Generous and Noble.
And peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.