The Book of Marriage

Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Ali reported to us; he said: Muhammad ibn Kathir narrated to us, from al-Fazari, from Humayd, from Anas, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: ‘There is no jalab, janab, or shighar in Islam.’ Abu Abd al-Rahman said: ‘This is a grave error; the correct report is the hadith of Bishr.’

Harun ibn Abd Allah reported to us; he said: Ma'n narrated to us; he said: Malik narrated to us, from Nafi. And al-Harith ibn Miskin, by recitation to him while I listened, from Ibn al-Qasim, said: Malik narrated to me, from Nafi, from Ibn Umar, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) prohibited shighar. Shighar is when a man gives his daughter in marriage to another man on the condition that the other gives his daughter in marriage to him, with no bridal dower between them.

Muhammad ibn Ibrahim and Abd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad ibn Sallam reported to us; they said: Ishaq al-Azraq narrated to us, from Ubayd Allah, from Abu al-Zinad, from al-A'raj, from Abu Hurayrah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) prohibited shighar. Ubayd Allah said: Shighar was when a man gave his daughter in marriage on the condition that the other man give his sister in marriage to him.

Qutaybah reported to us; he said: Ya'qub narrated to us, from Abu Hazim, from Sahl ibn Sa'd: A woman came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, I have come to offer myself to you.’ The Messenger of Allah looked at her from head to foot, then lowered his head. When the woman saw that he had made no decision about her, she sat down. One of his Companions stood and said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, if you have no need of her, marry her to me.’ He asked, ‘Do you have anything?’ He said, ‘No, by Allah, I have found nothing.’ He said, ‘Look for something, even an iron ring.’ The man went away, then returned and said, ‘No, by Allah, O Messenger of Allah—not even an iron ring. But I have this waist wrapper’—Sahl said: ‘He had no cloak’—‘so she may have half of it.’ The Messenger of Allah said, ‘What would you do with your waist wrapper? If you wore it, she would have none of it; and if she wore it, you would have none of it.’ The man sat for a long time, then stood to leave. The Messenger of Allah saw him turning away and ordered that he be called back. When he came, he asked, ‘What do you know of the Qur’an?’ He named several surahs. He asked, ‘Can you recite them from memory?’ He said, ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘I have given her to you in marriage in consideration of what you know of the Qur’an.’

Qutaybah reported to us; he said: Muhammad ibn Musa narrated to us, from Abd Allah ibn Abd Allah ibn Abi Talhah, from Anas, who said: Abu Talhah married Umm Sulaym, and Islam was the bridal dower between them. Umm Sulaym had embraced Islam before Abu Talhah. He proposed to her, and she said, ‘I have embraced Islam; if you embrace Islam, I will marry you.’ He embraced Islam, and that was the bridal dower between them.

Muhammad ibn al-Nadr ibn Musawir reported to us; he said: Ja'far ibn Sulayman informed us, from Thabit, from Anas, who said: Abu Talhah proposed to Umm Sulaym. She said, ‘By Allah, Abu Talhah, a man like you is not to be turned away, but you are an unbeliever and I am a Muslim woman, and it is not lawful for me to marry you. If you embrace Islam, that will be my bridal dower; I ask nothing else.’ He embraced Islam, and that was her bridal dower. Thabit said: ‘I have never heard of a woman whose bridal dower was more noble than Umm Sulaym’s: Islam.’ He consummated the marriage with her, and she bore him a child.

Qutaybah reported to us; he said: Abu Awanah narrated to us, from Qatadah and Abd al-Aziz—meaning Ibn Suhayb—from Anas ibn Malik. And Qutaybah informed us; he said: Hammad narrated to us, from Thabit and Shu'ayb, from Anas: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) freed Safiyyah and made her emancipation her bridal dower.

Muhammad ibn Rafi' reported to us; he said: Yahya ibn Adam narrated to us; he said: Sufyan narrated to us. And Amr ibn Mansur informed us; he said: Abu Nu'aym narrated to us; he said: Sufyan narrated to us, from Yunus, from Ibn al-Habhah, from Anas: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) freed Safiyyah and made her emancipation her bridal dower. The wording is Muhammad’s.

Ya'qub ibn Ibrahim reported to us; he said: Ibn Abi Za'idah narrated to us; he said: Salih ibn Salih narrated to me, from Amir, from Abu Burdah ibn Abi Musa, from Abu Musa, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: ‘There are three who will receive their reward twice: a man who has an enslaved woman, disciplines her well, teaches her well, then frees her and marries her; an enslaved man who fulfills both Allah’s due and the due of his masters; and a believer from the People of the Book.’

Hannad ibn al-Sari reported to us, from Abu Zubayd Abthar ibn al-Qasim, from Mutarrif, from Amir, from Abu Burdah, from Abu Musa, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: ‘Whoever frees his enslaved woman and then marries her will have two rewards.’

Yunus ibn Abd al-A'la and Sulayman ibn Dawud reported to us, from Ibn Wahb; he said: Yunus informed me, from Ibn Shihab, who said: Urwah ibn al-Zubayr informed me that he asked A'ishah about Allah’s saying: ‘If you fear that you will not deal justly with the orphan girls, then marry women of your choice.’ She said, ‘My sister’s son, this concerns an orphan girl who is under her guardian’s care and shares in his property. Her wealth and beauty please him, and he wants to marry her without giving her a fair bridal dower—without giving her what another man would give her. They were forbidden to marry such girls unless they dealt justly with them and gave them the highest customary dower. They were then told to marry other women they found suitable.’ Urwah said: A'ishah also said that later people asked the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) for a ruling about women, and Allah, Mighty and Exalted, revealed: ‘They ask you for a ruling concerning women. Say: Allah gives you a ruling about them…’ up to His words, ‘…and you wish to marry them.’ A'ishah said: ‘What Allah mentions as being recited in the Book is the first verse: “If you fear that you will not deal justly with the orphan girls, then marry women of your choice.”’ She said that Allah’s words in the other verse, ‘and you wish to marry them,’ refer to a man’s reluctance to marry the orphan girl in his care when she has little wealth and beauty. They were forbidden to marry orphan girls whose wealth they desired unless they acted justly toward them, because they were unwilling to marry those girls.’

Ishaq ibn Ibrahim reported to us; he said: Abd al-Aziz ibn Muhammad narrated to us, from Yazid ibn Abd Allah ibn al-Had, from Muhammad ibn Ibrahim, from Abu Salamah, who said: I asked A'ishah about that, and she said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) did so for twelve uqiyyahs and one nash; that is five hundred dirhams.

Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn al-Mubarak reported to us; he said: Abd al-Rahman ibn Mahdi narrated to us; he said: Dawud ibn Qays narrated to us, from Musa ibn Yasar, from Abu Hurayrah, who said: In the time when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was among us, the bridal dower was ten uqiyyahs.

Ali ibn Hujr ibn Iyas ibn Muqatil ibn Mushamrikh ibn Khalid reported to us; he said: Isma'il ibn Ibrahim narrated to us, from Ayyub, Ibn Awn, Salamah ibn Alqamah, and Hisham ibn Hassan—their reports are interwoven—from Muhammad ibn Sirin. Salamah’s version says that Muhammad ibn Sirin was informed from Abu al-Ajfa; the others transmit from Muhammad ibn Sirin, from Abu al-Ajfa. Abu al-Ajfa said: Umar ibn al-Khattab said: ‘Do not be excessive in women’s bridal dowers. If a high dower were an honor in this world or a mark of piety before Allah, Mighty and Exalted, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) would have been most entitled to it. The Messenger of Allah did not give any of his wives, nor was any of his daughters given, more than twelve uqiyyahs. A man may make his wife’s dower so burdensome that resentment toward her takes root in him, until he says, “I have been made to bear for your sake even the waterskin’s hanging strap.” I was a young Arab raised among settled people, and I did not know what “the waterskin’s hanging strap” meant.’ He continued: ‘Another thing you say about those killed in your campaigns or who die is, “So-and-so was killed as a martyr,” or “So-and-so died a martyr.” Yet he may have loaded his mount with gold or silver while seeking trade. So do not say that; say instead what the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever is killed in Allah’s cause or dies is in Paradise.”’

Al-Abbas ibn Muhammad al-Duri reported to us; he said: Ali ibn al-Hasan ibn Shaqiq narrated to us; he said: Abd Allah ibn al-Mubarak informed us, from Ma'mar, from al-Zuhri, from Urwah ibn al-Zubayr, from Umm Habibah: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) married her while she was in Abyssinia. The Negus arranged her marriage, gave her a dower of four thousand, furnished her from his own means, and sent her with Shurahbil ibn Hasanah. The Messenger of Allah had sent her nothing. The dowers of his other wives were four hundred dirhams.

Muhammad ibn Salamah reported to us—and al-Harith ibn Miskin, by recitation to him while I listened; the wording is Muhammad’s—from Ibn al-Qasim, from Malik, from Humayd al-Tawil, from Anas ibn Malik: Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf came to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) with traces of saffron on him. The Messenger of Allah asked him about it, and he told him that he had married a woman from the Ansar. The Messenger of Allah said, ‘How much did you give her?’ He said, ‘The weight of a date stone in gold.’ The Messenger of Allah said, ‘Hold a wedding feast, even if only with a sheep.’

Ishaq ibn Ibrahim reported to us; he said: al-Nadr ibn Shumayl narrated to us; he said: Shu'bah narrated to us; he said: Abd al-Aziz ibn Suhayb narrated to us; he said: I heard Anas say: Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf said, ‘The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saw the signs of a wedding’s joy on me, so I said, “I have married a woman from the Ansar.”’ He asked, ‘How much bridal dower did you give her?’ He said, ‘The weight of a date stone in gold.’

Hilal ibn al-Ala' reported to us; he said: Hajjaj narrated to us; Ibn Jurayj said: Amr ibn Shu'ayb narrated to me. And Abd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Tamim informed me; he said: I heard Hajjaj say: Ibn Jurayj said, from Amr ibn Shu'ayb, from his father, from Abd Allah ibn Amr, that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: ‘Any woman whose marriage is agreed upon for a bridal dower, a gift, or a promise of a gift before the marriage contract—the agreed amount or gift belongs to her. Whatever is given after the marriage contract belongs to the person to whom it was given. The person a man is most bound to honor is his daughter or sister.’ The wording is Abd Allah’s.

Abd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Abd al-Rahman reported to us; he said: Abu Sa'id Abd al-Rahman ibn Abd Allah narrated to us, from Za'idah ibn Qudamah, from Mansur, from Ibrahim, from Alqamah and al-Aswad, who said: A case was brought to Abd Allah concerning a man who married a woman without specifying her dower, then died before consummating the marriage. Abd Allah said, ‘Ask whether you can find a precedent about this.’ They said, ‘O Abu Abd al-Rahman, we cannot find a precedent for it.’ He said, ‘I will give my opinion; if it is correct, then it is from Allah. She is entitled to a dower equal to that of women like her, neither less nor excessive; she is entitled to inheritance, and she must observe the waiting period.’ A man from Ashja' stood and said, ‘In a case like this, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) ruled among us concerning a woman named Barwa' bint Washiq. She married a man who died before consummating the marriage, and the Messenger of Allah ruled that she was entitled to a dower equal to that of women like her, inheritance, and the waiting period.’ Abd Allah raised his hands and said, ‘Allah is the Greatest.’ Abu Abd al-Rahman said: ‘No one includes al-Aswad in the chain of this report besides Za'idah.’

Ahmad ibn Sulayman reported to us; he said: Yazid narrated to us; he said: Sufyan narrated to us, from Mansur, from Ibrahim, from Alqamah, from Abd Allah: A case was brought to him concerning a woman whom a man had married and then died, without specifying a dower for her and without consummating the marriage. They disputed the matter before him for nearly a month, and he gave them no ruling. Then he said, ‘I think she is entitled to a dower equal to that of women like her, neither less nor excessive; she is entitled to inheritance, and she must observe the waiting period.’ Ma'qil ibn Sinan al-Ashja'i testified that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) ruled concerning Barwa' bint Washiq exactly as you have ruled.