The bridal gift of a woman divorced before consummation after the marriage contract
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The first message in this episode is from a listener (A. S. Q) from Makkah al-Mukarramah. He asks your Eminence, may Allah reward you with good, about a man who contracted a marriage with a woman, paid her full bridal gift, and then divorced her before consummation: Is he entitled to reclaim the full bridal gift, and if he reclaims it, does he commit a sin? May Allah reward you with good?
Answer: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, and may Allah send blessings and peace upon the Messenger of Allah, upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow his guidance.
To proceed: Allah the Exalted has clarified in His great Book that if a husband divorces his wife before consummation, he is entitled to half, not the whole. Allah the Exalted said: [al-Baqarah:237]. The husband is entitled to half, and the woman is entitled to half, if he divorces her before sexual intercourse, meaning before consummation, before intercourse, and before seclusion with her. Seclusion is treated as equivalent to intercourse, as the Rightly Guided Caliphs (may Allah be pleased with them) ruled in their fatwa ; because it is a place where sexual intercourse is likely to occur. So, if he divorces her before consummation and seclusion, he is entitled to half. If he divorces her after consummation or after seclusion with her, he is entitled to nothing; the bridal gift belongs to her in full.
Likewise, the gifts that follow the bridal gift, which are given for the sake of the marriage, or what the woman is given on the night of consummation, follow the marriage according to the prevailing custom, and they are ancillary to the bridal gift. However, if they differ and dispute, and she requests a divorce and they agree on a settlement, there is no harm in that. This is called khul'. If she requests a divorce, or if he agrees with her to divorce her for half the bridal gift, or a third, or less, or more, or if she gives him all the money and he divorces her, there is no harm in that. This is called khul'.
The point is that if a divorce occurs before consummation and seclusion, the mahr is split in half if it was specified. However, if nothing was specified for her, she is only entitled to a gift of consolation (mut'ah). He gives her a gift of consolation, whatever Allah makes easy, such as clothing or money. He gives her a gift of consolation only, as the Exalted said: [Al-Ahzab:49]. The Exalted said: [Al-Baqarah:241]. So if he divorces her and did not specify a mahr for her before consummation and seclusion, he gives her only a gift of consolation; she has no mahr, only a gift of consolation, based on the noble verse: [Al-Ahzab:49]. This verse in Surat al-Ahzab clarifies for us that the mahr of a woman divorced before consummation and seclusion, if no mahr was specified for her, is the gift of consolation. But if the mahr was specified for her, she is given half, as in the verse of Al-Baqarah. And if he gives her the gift of consolation in addition to the half, this is an extra favor due to the generality of the saying of the Exalted: [Al-Baqarah:241]. If he gives her the half and gives her a gift of consolation in the form of clothing, other dirhams, or something that benefits her, this is from excellence (ihsan) and what is right (ma'ruf). It is narrated that al-Hasan ibn 'Ali (may Allah have mercy on him) and his father divorced two of his wives and sent them a gift of consolation valued at ten thousand for each one. One of them accepted it and said, "May Allah reward him with good," and remained silent. The other said, "A small gift from a beloved who is parting." When her words reached him, he proposed to her again and took her back. May Allah have mercy on him and be pleased with him.
The point is that the gift contains good and compensates for the calamity, because divorce is a calamity. If he compensates her with the half by good conduct, or gives her the full bridal gift and takes nothing back to compensate her, or takes the half but gives her a gift of clothing or other dirhams, or a house or land or a servant if slaves were available, he gives her a slave woman, all of this is from the good gift and the noble qualities of character. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good.
Answer: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, and may Allah send blessings and peace upon the Messenger of Allah, upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow his guidance.
To proceed: Allah the Exalted has clarified in His great Book that if a husband divorces his wife before consummation, he is entitled to half, not the whole. Allah the Exalted said:
And if you divorce them before you have touched them and you have already specified for them an obligation, then [give] half of what you specified - unless they forego the right or the one in whose hand is the marriage contract foregoes it
وَإِنْ طَلَّقْتُمُوهُنَّ مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ تَمَسُّوهُنَّ وَقَدْ فَرَضْتُمْ لَهُنَّ فَرِيضَةً فَنِصْفُ مَا فَرَضْتُمْ إِلَّا أَنْ يَعْفُونَ أَوْ يَعْفُوَ الَّذِي بِيَدِهِ عُقْدَةُ النِّكَاحِLikewise, the gifts that follow the bridal gift, which are given for the sake of the marriage, or what the woman is given on the night of consummation, follow the marriage according to the prevailing custom, and they are ancillary to the bridal gift. However, if they differ and dispute, and she requests a divorce and they agree on a settlement, there is no harm in that. This is called khul'. If she requests a divorce, or if he agrees with her to divorce her for half the bridal gift, or a third, or less, or more, or if she gives him all the money and he divorces her, there is no harm in that. This is called khul'.
The point is that if a divorce occurs before consummation and seclusion, the mahr is split in half if it was specified. However, if nothing was specified for her, she is only entitled to a gift of consolation (mut'ah). He gives her a gift of consolation, whatever Allah makes easy, such as clothing or money. He gives her a gift of consolation only, as the Exalted said:
O You who have believed, when you marry believing women and then divorce them before you have touched them, then there is not for you any waiting period to count concerning them. So provide for them and give them a gracious release.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِذَا نَكَحْتُمُ الْمُؤْمِنَاتِ ثُمَّ طَلَّقْتُمُوهُنَّ مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ تَمَسُّوهُنَّ فَمَا لَكُمْ عَلَيْهِنَّ مِنْ عِدَّةٍ تَعْتَدُّونَهَا فَمَتِّعُوهُنَّ وَسَرِّحُوهُنَّ سَرَاحًا جَمِيلًاAnd for divorced women is a provision according to what is acceptable - a duty upon the righteous.
وَلِلْمُطَلَّقَاتِ مَتَاعٌ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ حَقًّا عَلَى الْمُتَّقِينَO You who have believed, when you marry believing women and then divorce them before you have touched them, then there is not for you any waiting period to count concerning them. So provide for them and give them a gracious release.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِذَا نَكَحْتُمُ الْمُؤْمِنَاتِ ثُمَّ طَلَّقْتُمُوهُنَّ مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ تَمَسُّوهُنَّ فَمَا لَكُمْ عَلَيْهِنَّ مِنْ عِدَّةٍ تَعْتَدُّونَهَا فَمَتِّعُوهُنَّ وَسَرِّحُوهُنَّ سَرَاحًا جَمِيلًاAnd for the divorced women is a gift
وَلِلْمُطَلَّقَاتِ مَتَاعٌThe point is that the gift contains good and compensates for the calamity, because divorce is a calamity. If he compensates her with the half by good conduct, or gives her the full bridal gift and takes nothing back to compensate her, or takes the half but gives her a gift of clothing or other dirhams, or a house or land or a servant if slaves were available, he gives her a slave woman, all of this is from the good gift and the noble qualities of character. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.