The Islamic Ruling on a Shi'ah Girl Whose Sect's Authority Prevents Her from Marrying
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Q: From 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn 'Abd Allah ibn Baz to the honorable Miss F. H. 'A., may Allah guide her to what pleases Him, ease her affairs, and rectify her situation, amen. Peace be upon you, and Allah's mercy and blessings. After that:
Your letter has reached me, informing that you are a girl of twenty-three years of age, and that you are of the sect of the Shi'ah followers of Dawud Bohra, represented by the authority of the aforementioned sect, who resides in Kenya, and that he prevents the marriage officer of Mombasa city from contracting your marriage, and you requested clarification of the Islamic ruling in that matter.
A: There is no doubt that it is obligatory for the authorities of all sects claiming affiliation with Islam to adhere to the ruling of Islam in all matters, and to beware of what contradicts that. It is known from the Islamic Shari'ah that it is obligatory for the guardians to marry off their wards if suitable suitors propose to them; based on the saying of Allah, the Exalted: [Surat al-Nur: 32] and based on what was narrated from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1084Da'if (Darussalam) It was recorded by the Imam al-Tirmidhi and others.
Based on this, if your closest guardian among your awliya marries you to one of your suitable suitors, then the representative of the Bohra sect has no right to object to you, and the marriage contract is valid if its conditions are met. It should be done through the Shari'ah court in Mombasa, so that the representative of the Bohra sect cannot object to the marriage. And if the marriage is conducted in the manner described, then your children will be legitimate children, and the Bohra sect or anyone else has no right to deny that.
And if your relatives refuse to marry you to a suitable suitor in order to please the representative of the Bohra sect, then their guardianship is invalidated by that, and the Shari'ah judge has the right to conduct the marriage contract for you with one of the suitable suitors who proposed to you; based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):Sunan Abi Dawud 2083Sahih (Al-Albani).
The judge is the deputy of the Sultan, so he takes his place in that matter, and the ruling of the withholding guardian is the ruling of one who is absent.
This is my advice to you and to those like you: to abandon affiliation with the Bohra sect or any other of the Shi'ah sects; because they are sects that contradict the Islamic Muhammadan way in many aspects. So it is obligatory to abandon them and move away from them to the methodology of the people of the Sunnah and the community, who follow the requirements of the Book and the Sunnah and the methodology of the Salaf of the Ummah, the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and those who followed them with excellence.
And I ask Allah to guide this sect and other sects that have deviated from the path of truth, and to take their hands to the path of the truth, and to grant us and you and all Muslims success in what leads to salvation and happiness in this world and the Hereafter. He is the One who has the power to do that and is capable of it. And peace be upon you, and Allah's mercy and blessings.
Your letter has reached me, informing that you are a girl of twenty-three years of age, and that you are of the sect of the Shi'ah followers of Dawud Bohra, represented by the authority of the aforementioned sect, who resides in Kenya, and that he prevents the marriage officer of Mombasa city from contracting your marriage, and you requested clarification of the Islamic ruling in that matter.
A: There is no doubt that it is obligatory for the authorities of all sects claiming affiliation with Islam to adhere to the ruling of Islam in all matters, and to beware of what contradicts that. It is known from the Islamic Shari'ah that it is obligatory for the guardians to marry off their wards if suitable suitors propose to them; based on the saying of Allah, the Exalted:
And marry the unmarried among you and the righteous among your male slaves and female slaves. If they should be poor, Allah will enrich them from His bounty, and Allah is all-Encompassing and Knowing.
وَأَنْكِحُوا الْأَيَامَى مِنْكُمْ وَالصَّالِحِينَ مِنْ عِبَادِكُمْ وَإِمَائِكُمْ إِنْ يَكُونُوا فُقَرَاءَ يُغْنِهِمُ اللَّهُ مِنْ فَضْلِهِ وَاللَّهُ وَاسِعٌ عليمWhen someone whose religion and character you are pleased with proposes to (someone under the care) of one of you, then marry to him. If you do not do so, then there will be turmoil (Fitnah) in the land and abounding discord (Fasad).
إذا خطب إليكم من ترضون دينه وخلقه فزوجوه، إلا تفعلوا تكن فتنة في الأرض وفساد عريضBased on this, if your closest guardian among your awliya marries you to one of your suitable suitors, then the representative of the Bohra sect has no right to object to you, and the marriage contract is valid if its conditions are met. It should be done through the Shari'ah court in Mombasa, so that the representative of the Bohra sect cannot object to the marriage. And if the marriage is conducted in the manner described, then your children will be legitimate children, and the Bohra sect or anyone else has no right to deny that.
And if your relatives refuse to marry you to a suitable suitor in order to please the representative of the Bohra sect, then their guardianship is invalidated by that, and the Shari'ah judge has the right to conduct the marriage contract for you with one of the suitable suitors who proposed to you; based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
the sultan (man in authority) is the guardian of one who has none
السلطان ولي من لا ولي لهThe judge is the deputy of the Sultan, so he takes his place in that matter, and the ruling of the withholding guardian is the ruling of one who is absent.
This is my advice to you and to those like you: to abandon affiliation with the Bohra sect or any other of the Shi'ah sects; because they are sects that contradict the Islamic Muhammadan way in many aspects. So it is obligatory to abandon them and move away from them to the methodology of the people of the Sunnah and the community, who follow the requirements of the Book and the Sunnah and the methodology of the Salaf of the Ummah, the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and those who followed them with excellence.
And I ask Allah to guide this sect and other sects that have deviated from the path of truth, and to take their hands to the path of the truth, and to grant us and you and all Muslims success in what leads to salvation and happiness in this world and the Hereafter. He is the One who has the power to do that and is capable of it. And peace be upon you, and Allah's mercy and blessings.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.