Chapter on the Bridal Gift
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The Shaykh : Listen!
The Reader: The author (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "Chapter on the Bridal Gift": "And from Anas (may Allah be pleased with him)".
The Shaykh : No, from Anas with a waw?
The Reader: From Anas (may Allah be pleased with him).
The Shaykh : If the hadith is at the beginning of the chapter, what do you say? A waw? Because the waw is for something conjoined from before, yes, that is right.
The Reader: "From Anas (may Allah be pleased with him): From the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):Bulugh al-Maram 8:74 Agreed upon.
And from Abu Salama ibn Abd al-Rahman (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: I asked Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her):Bulugh al-Maram 8:75.
She said: Do you know what a nash is? I said: No. She said: Half an uqiyah. So that is five hundred dirhams. This is the bridal gift of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) for his wives. Narrated by Muslim.
And from Ibn Abbas that he said:Bulugh al-Maram 8:76 Narrated by Abu Dawud and al-Nasa'i, and al-Hakim graded it as authentic ".
The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful:
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment:
The author (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "Chapter on the Bridal Gift":
The bridal gift (sadaq) is a verbal noun from the verb "to give a bridal gift" (asdaq), because the verbal noun of "to give a bridal gift" is "giving a bridal gift" (isdaq). The bridal gift is a verbal noun. Grammarians define a verbal noun as that which indicates the meaning of the verbal noun but does not contain its letters. For example, "speech" (kalam) indicates "talking" (takalim), but it does not contain the letters of the verbal noun, so it is called a verbal noun. "Peace" (salam) is the same, meaning "greeting" (taslim), but it does not contain its letters. The bridal gift means "giving a bridal gift" (isdaq), but it does not contain its letters.
And the bridal gift is: the compensation given to the woman by the marriage contract and what is attached to it. This bridal gift: "is what is given to the woman by the marriage contract and what is attached to it".
So our saying "by the marriage contract" excludes the price of a concubine. If a man buys a slave woman for the purpose of enjoying her, this is not called a bridal gift. Why?
Because it is not a marriage contract, but a sale contract. Even if the purpose of it is the same as the purpose of marriage, it is not a marriage contract.
And our saying "and what is attached to it" is to include the case where a man has intercourse with a woman under a false impression. If a man has intercourse with a woman under a false impression, he must pay her the bridal gift of her like (mahr al-mithl), even if there was no marriage contract. Likewise, if he forced himself on her, she is entitled to the bridal gift of her like, though there is disagreement on this issue, which may come up if Allah wills.
So, the bridal gift is: "the compensation here that is given to the woman by the marriage contract and what is attached to it".
It is called a bridal gift because offering it indicates the sincerity of the suitor's request, or if you wish, say: the one who contracts the marriage. Offering this mahr indicates the sincerity of the one who contracts the marriage's request.
The point is that wealth is beloved to souls, as Allah the Exalted said:[Al-Fajr 89:20], and the beloved is not offered except for something of equal value or greater. So if a man offers it, it indicates the sincerity of his desire and request for this woman whom he gave the bridal gift to.
Then, the mahr has no limit in the Shari'ah according to the correct opinion. Rather, whatever the woman is pleased with is sufficient, even if it is little, due to the saying of Allah the Exalted:[An-Nisa 4:4]:
This includes the case where she is pleased with all of the bridal gift except, for example, one dirham from it. Then a man may eat it with ease and comfort.
Then, the delegation of the matter to the woman:[An-Nisa 4:4] indicates that it is a pure right belonging to her. And the legal principle is that if a person's pure right is waived, or if they are pleased with a little of it, then that is permissible, because the matter is up to them.
So if someone asks: Does not this refute your claim that you validate marriage by gift?
We say: It does not refute it, because marriage by gift is a pure act of generosity without compensation, unlike the little mahr, which is called compensation. For this reason, the mahr must be valid as a price or a wage. That is, it must be valid to be given as a price for a thing or a wage for a thing in exchange for a benefit.
So if he said: I give her a grain of barley as a bridal gift. A grain of barley is a thing, isn't it?
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : Fine, and she agreed. She said: A grain of barley is enough for me as a bridal gift, okay?
The Student: It is not a bridal gift.
The Shaykh : Why? Because it is not wealth that is usually accumulated, and it is not valid as a price or a wage. What person says: I sold you this thing for a grain of barley? What person says: I rented you this room or this villa or this apartment for a grain of barley?!
So it must be valid as what? A price or a wage.
So if it cannot be a price or a wage, it is not valid to be a mahr.
Fine, so if someone asks: Does this include benefits?
We say: Yes, it includes benefits. So if the husband says: I give her as a bridal gift that I will graze her camels for one year, this is permissible and there is no harm in it. And Musa gave the man of Madyan as a bridal gift that he would work for him for eight years, and if he completed ten, that would be on him. So it is valid, for example, to make the mahr a benefit that the wife can enjoy, either bodily or financial. Bodily means working in her orchard, or grazing her camels, or working in her workshop, or the like. This is bodily.
We said: Or financial, such as letting her live in his house, other than the residence he is obligated to provide, for one year, for example. He says: The mahr is that I give you the garage as a storage place for your car or your goods, or the like.
Fine, so if someone asks: Does that include personal service for her?
That is, the husband serves her personally by saying: The mahr is that I serve her personally for one year, for example?
The answer is: This is a matter of disagreement among scholars:
Some said: It is valid because it is a benefit. And some said: It is not valid, because how can he be a servant when he is the one who has authority over her?
You say to him: For example, "Son, sweep the house today," "Son, milk the cow." Yes, he invites her to the bed, and she says: "I will milk the cow." Yes, there is a contradiction in this. So some scholars said: It is not valid for the mahr to be the personal service of the woman, due to the contradiction and inconsistency.
Fine, so if someone asks: Is it valid for the mahr to be teaching, that is, to teach her something?
The answer is: There is a detail according to the madhhab. They say: If it is teaching the Qur'an, it is not valid, and if it is other than that, there is no harm.
But the correct opinion is that it is valid for the mahr to be teaching, whether in the Qur'an or other than the Qur'an, and this will come up in the hadiths, if Allah wills.
The Student: What is the ruling on service?
The Shaykh : Yes, we are hesitant on this, because if we look at service as a benefit that makes her dispense with a servant, whose wage might be five hundred riyals a month, yes, and six thousand riyals a year, and sometimes we say: This is contradictory. How can the servant be served? There is a contradiction in this.
So we say: Instead of this, he makes the mahr that he brings her a servant, instead of him being the servant, he brings her a servant. But he might say: I do not have the ability, I do not have the ability. If this awkward situation occurs, perhaps Allah will make a way for us to determine the stronger position.
The Reader: The author (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "Chapter on the Bridal Gift": "And from Anas (may Allah be pleased with him)".
The Shaykh : No, from Anas with a waw?
The Reader: From Anas (may Allah be pleased with him).
The Shaykh : If the hadith is at the beginning of the chapter, what do you say? A waw? Because the waw is for something conjoined from before, yes, that is right.
The Reader: "From Anas (may Allah be pleased with him): From the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
The Prophet (ﷺ) set Safiyah (RA) free, and made her freedom her dowry.
أنه أعتق صفية وجعل عتقها صداقهاAnd from Abu Salama ibn Abd al-Rahman (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: I asked Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her):
How much had Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) given as dowry?" She replied, "His dowry to his wives was twelve Uqiya and Nashsh.
كم كان صداق رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم قالت : كان صداقه لأزواجه اثنتي عشرة أوقية ونشاShe said: Do you know what a nash is? I said: No. She said: Half an uqiyah. So that is five hundred dirhams. This is the bridal gift of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) for his wives. Narrated by Muslim.
And from Ibn Abbas that he said:
When 'Ali (RA) married Fatimah (RA) Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said to him, "Give her something (as dowry)." He replied, "I have nothing." He said, "Where is your Hutamiya coat of mail?"
لما تزوج علي فاطمة قال له رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : أعطها شيئا، قال : ما عندي شيء، قال: فأين درعك الحطميةThe Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful:
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment:
The author (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "Chapter on the Bridal Gift":
The bridal gift (sadaq) is a verbal noun from the verb "to give a bridal gift" (asdaq), because the verbal noun of "to give a bridal gift" is "giving a bridal gift" (isdaq). The bridal gift is a verbal noun. Grammarians define a verbal noun as that which indicates the meaning of the verbal noun but does not contain its letters. For example, "speech" (kalam) indicates "talking" (takalim), but it does not contain the letters of the verbal noun, so it is called a verbal noun. "Peace" (salam) is the same, meaning "greeting" (taslim), but it does not contain its letters. The bridal gift means "giving a bridal gift" (isdaq), but it does not contain its letters.
And the bridal gift is: the compensation given to the woman by the marriage contract and what is attached to it. This bridal gift: "is what is given to the woman by the marriage contract and what is attached to it".
So our saying "by the marriage contract" excludes the price of a concubine. If a man buys a slave woman for the purpose of enjoying her, this is not called a bridal gift. Why?
Because it is not a marriage contract, but a sale contract. Even if the purpose of it is the same as the purpose of marriage, it is not a marriage contract.
And our saying "and what is attached to it" is to include the case where a man has intercourse with a woman under a false impression. If a man has intercourse with a woman under a false impression, he must pay her the bridal gift of her like (mahr al-mithl), even if there was no marriage contract. Likewise, if he forced himself on her, she is entitled to the bridal gift of her like, though there is disagreement on this issue, which may come up if Allah wills.
So, the bridal gift is: "the compensation here that is given to the woman by the marriage contract and what is attached to it".
It is called a bridal gift because offering it indicates the sincerity of the suitor's request, or if you wish, say: the one who contracts the marriage. Offering this mahr indicates the sincerity of the one who contracts the marriage's request.
The point is that wealth is beloved to souls, as Allah the Exalted said:
And you love wealth with immense love.
وتحبون المال حبا جماThen, the mahr has no limit in the Shari'ah according to the correct opinion. Rather, whatever the woman is pleased with is sufficient, even if it is little, due to the saying of Allah the Exalted:
And give the women [upon marriage] their [bridal] gifts graciously. But if they give up willingly to you anything of it, then take it in satisfaction and ease.
وآتوا النساء صدقاتهن نحلة فإن طبن لكم عن شيء منه نفسا فكلوه هنيئا مريئاThis includes the case where she is pleased with all of the bridal gift except, for example, one dirham from it. Then a man may eat it with ease and comfort.
Then, the delegation of the matter to the woman:
if they give up willingly to you anything of it
إن طبن لكم عن شيء منه نفساًSo if someone asks: Does not this refute your claim that you validate marriage by gift?
We say: It does not refute it, because marriage by gift is a pure act of generosity without compensation, unlike the little mahr, which is called compensation. For this reason, the mahr must be valid as a price or a wage. That is, it must be valid to be given as a price for a thing or a wage for a thing in exchange for a benefit.
So if he said: I give her a grain of barley as a bridal gift. A grain of barley is a thing, isn't it?
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : Fine, and she agreed. She said: A grain of barley is enough for me as a bridal gift, okay?
The Student: It is not a bridal gift.
The Shaykh : Why? Because it is not wealth that is usually accumulated, and it is not valid as a price or a wage. What person says: I sold you this thing for a grain of barley? What person says: I rented you this room or this villa or this apartment for a grain of barley?!
So it must be valid as what? A price or a wage.
So if it cannot be a price or a wage, it is not valid to be a mahr.
Fine, so if someone asks: Does this include benefits?
We say: Yes, it includes benefits. So if the husband says: I give her as a bridal gift that I will graze her camels for one year, this is permissible and there is no harm in it. And Musa gave the man of Madyan as a bridal gift that he would work for him for eight years, and if he completed ten, that would be on him. So it is valid, for example, to make the mahr a benefit that the wife can enjoy, either bodily or financial. Bodily means working in her orchard, or grazing her camels, or working in her workshop, or the like. This is bodily.
We said: Or financial, such as letting her live in his house, other than the residence he is obligated to provide, for one year, for example. He says: The mahr is that I give you the garage as a storage place for your car or your goods, or the like.
Fine, so if someone asks: Does that include personal service for her?
That is, the husband serves her personally by saying: The mahr is that I serve her personally for one year, for example?
The answer is: This is a matter of disagreement among scholars:
Some said: It is valid because it is a benefit. And some said: It is not valid, because how can he be a servant when he is the one who has authority over her?
You say to him: For example, "Son, sweep the house today," "Son, milk the cow." Yes, he invites her to the bed, and she says: "I will milk the cow." Yes, there is a contradiction in this. So some scholars said: It is not valid for the mahr to be the personal service of the woman, due to the contradiction and inconsistency.
Fine, so if someone asks: Is it valid for the mahr to be teaching, that is, to teach her something?
The answer is: There is a detail according to the madhhab. They say: If it is teaching the Qur'an, it is not valid, and if it is other than that, there is no harm.
But the correct opinion is that it is valid for the mahr to be teaching, whether in the Qur'an or other than the Qur'an, and this will come up in the hadiths, if Allah wills.
The Student: What is the ruling on service?
The Shaykh : Yes, we are hesitant on this, because if we look at service as a benefit that makes her dispense with a servant, whose wage might be five hundred riyals a month, yes, and six thousand riyals a year, and sometimes we say: This is contradictory. How can the servant be served? There is a contradiction in this.
So we say: Instead of this, he makes the mahr that he brings her a servant, instead of him being the servant, he brings her a servant. But he might say: I do not have the ability, I do not have the ability. If this awkward situation occurs, perhaps Allah will make a way for us to determine the stronger position.