"And the virgin, even if she is of age"

The Shaykh : He said "And the virgin, even if she is of age", meaning that her consent is not a condition. This is a virgin woman who is twenty years old, sane, knowledgeable, and decisive; she is wiser than her father, better than her father, and more knowledgeable than her father. A man proposed to her, and she said, "I do not want him." Another man proposed to her, and she said, "I want him." In any case, her choice is taken into account here. However, if only one man proposed to her, her father has the right to force her to marry him, to marry this man, even if she says, "I do not want him." He forces her to do so. This is what the author (may Allah have mercy on him) held, and it is a very weak opinion that contradicts the Book and the Sunnah. As for the Book, Allah said This indicates that the woman is the one whose opinion matters, and her guardian is not permitted to prevent her from marrying the one she desires. As for the Sunnah, it is the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) . If we say that her father has the right to force her, what happens to seeking her permission? It has no benefit. What is the benefit of saying, "Do you desire to be married to this man?" and she says, "I absolutely do not desire it. I seek refuge in Allah; this man is an open sinner, or he is a suitable match, but I do not want him," and then it is said, "She is forced to do this"? This contradicts the explicit text, just as it contradicts correct analogical reasoning. If a father wanted to force his daughter to sell her ring, which is not worth one hundred riyals, could he force her? Answer, everyone? No, he cannot force her to sell any of her property, even for a trivial amount. So how can he force her to sell herself? In reality, marriage is like a wage. Allah the Exalted said . So marriage is like a lease. In fact, I will give an example closer to this. If a man asked this woman to lease herself for two days to sew clothes, and she is with her family, and he said, "By Allah, I am not in a position to sew these days," does her father have the right to force her to do so? No.

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh : No, okay, he does not have the right. Okay, and this lease would only take up two days of her time, and she is also with her family. So how can he force her to marry someone with whom she will be in distress from the contract until the separation? This is impossible. Forcing a woman to marry contradicts the transmitted text and the visible reason; it contradicts the report and the reasoning. Therefore, the correct view is that it is not permissible to force her to marry. But if someone said, "Let us leave aside the adult woman of sound mind; we agree with you that she is not forced. But if a person wants to force his young daughter, who is ten years old, to marry, or to marry her without her permission, because notice that if forcing is allowed, marrying her without her knowledge is even more so. Okay, if a person wants to marry his ten-year-old daughter and marries her, of course without her permission, does he have the right to do so? Her father? Everyone, he does not have the right. Since we have made consent a condition, he does not have the right. If it is asked, "What is the answer to the story of 'A'ishah with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)?" We say, "On our eyes and heads, and above our heads, but we need you to guarantee us three things: that you guarantee a husband like the Messenger, a guardian like Abu Bakr, and a daughter like 'A'ishah. Is there such a thing or not? There is not. Now, some people, and I seek refuge in Allah, are selling their daughters. They marry their young daughters because this man brings them a water carrier to water the sheep, brings a porter to carry the sheep for sale, yes, he gives the mother this and the father that, so they sell their daughters. It is not possible to analogize any of the marriages to the marriage of the Prophet of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) to the daughter of his close friend Abu Bakr. Who has a guardian like Abu Bakr? Who has a daughter like 'A'ishah? Who has a husband like the Messenger of Allah? This is impossible. And if 'A'ishah had reached maturity, could she have rejected this marriage? No, by Allah, she would not have rejected it. In fact, she is the most jealous of his wives, as far as we know, of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that another woman would be favored by him as 'A'ishah was favored. So the result is that there is no evidence for this, and the correct view is that it is not permissible to marry a girl before she reaches maturity, and that after she reaches maturity, she must be consulted and asked for permission. If she gives permission, that is what is required. If she does not give permission, it is obligatory... she is free. Okay, if someone said, "Some people say this is a small girl, meaning she is of age, but they say she is young and does not know things. Every time we tell her, 'So-and-so has proposed to you,' she says, 'I do not want him.' Every time a man proposes to her, she says, 'I do not want him,' even if he is a suitable match. She will never get married. What do we say?" We say, "Yes, she remains so, but we must convince her and tell her that remaining without a husband is a mistake. You will remain a widow. And her father says to her, 'I am not permanent for you, and your mother is not permanent. After that, you will remain with your brothers, who will be stingy with you and do you favors.' And she is convinced. And when a person is shown the reasons for acceptance or rejection, he will follow them if he is sane. Yes?