Naming the Mahr at the Contract: Is It Necessary to Specify the Actual Amount?
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The questioner : Does the statement of Shaykh Abd al-Rahman (may Allah have mercy on him) include, for example, if he names a large amount like one hundred thousand and gold, meaning many things, and then says, for instance, "for fifty thousand, ten thousand," while...?
The Shaykh : No, it is not just a naming; it is necessary to name the whole amount if we want to apply what the jurists said about specifying it in the contract. This is because he might die, or divorce her, or the marriage might be annulled, and we would return to the mahr, which could lead to a dispute.
The questioner : Shaykh, is this obligatory?
The Shaykh : No, no. It was mentioned to us yesterday that specifying it is a recommended practice (sunnah). But if he says "for a mahr of one riyal" while the mahr is actually a large amount, that is a mistake. Suppose, for example, he divorced her before consummation. Do you understand? He says, "Give me everything I paid," but you only... half a riyal. He says, "I ask you: if he said, 'I give you my daughter in marriage for a mahr of one riyal,' and he had already given him a bedroom and many things worth fifty thousand, and he said, 'I give you my daughter in marriage for a mahr of one riyal,' and then he divorced her before consummation. If he divorced her before consummation, how much is the woman entitled to? Half. How much does he give her based on this? Half a riyal. And he takes back the rest. He returns it to him. That is a problem.
The questioner : So we say: either he names the whole amount, or he leaves it all unspecified.
The Shaykh : No, it is not just a naming; it is necessary to name the whole amount if we want to apply what the jurists said about specifying it in the contract. This is because he might die, or divorce her, or the marriage might be annulled, and we would return to the mahr, which could lead to a dispute.
The questioner : Shaykh, is this obligatory?
The Shaykh : No, no. It was mentioned to us yesterday that specifying it is a recommended practice (sunnah). But if he says "for a mahr of one riyal" while the mahr is actually a large amount, that is a mistake. Suppose, for example, he divorced her before consummation. Do you understand? He says, "Give me everything I paid," but you only... half a riyal. He says, "I ask you: if he said, 'I give you my daughter in marriage for a mahr of one riyal,' and he had already given him a bedroom and many things worth fifty thousand, and he said, 'I give you my daughter in marriage for a mahr of one riyal,' and then he divorced her before consummation. If he divorced her before consummation, how much is the woman entitled to? Half. How much does he give her based on this? Half a riyal. And he takes back the rest. He returns it to him. That is a problem.
The questioner : So we say: either he names the whole amount, or he leaves it all unspecified.