Part 3

Wednesday, 26 Rajab 1426 31 August 2005

CHAPTER 1 A BLESSED BOND

Marriage Is One of Allah’s Laws

Allah ($8) created our world and the laws that govern it. Among Allah’s laws is that we need food to survive, air to breathe, rain for vegetation, and so on.

One of Allah’s important laws is that things are created in pairs; and from these pairs, reproduction occurs, Allah says:

This applies to human beings who are made of male-female pairs as well. Humankind started with our father, Adam, and our mother, Hawwa’ (Eve). From that pair, Allah (8%) created all of the other people, as He (3) says:

1 Ath-Thariyat 51:49. 2 An-Nisa’*4:1.

This continues to be the way of reproduction for humans, as Allah (8%) says:

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Islam Urges the Muslims to Marry DEFINITION

The word commonly used in Islamic texts for marriage is nikah. In the original Arabic language, it means “intercourse”. But it was then applied to the marriage agreement because it is a means to intercourse. *

Thus the statement, “He performed nikah on the daughter of so and so,” normally means that he executed an agreement for marriage. On

1 Al-Hujurat 49:13. 3 Livan ul-‘Arab.

Quest for Love & Mercy 3 A Blessed Bond

the other hand, the statement, “He performed nikah on his wife,” means intercourse. In this book, we will mostly replace the word “nikah” with its English equivalents to avoid confusion.

A COMMAND FROM ALLAH AND His MESSENGER

Allah (8%) commands the believers to marry and help those under their charge to marry as well. He says:

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Also, Allih’s Messenger (8) commanded the young people to marry, and advised those of them who could not afford it to fast as a means of controlling their sexual desire. Ibn Mas‘id (4) reported, “We were with the Prophet (@%) while we were young and had no wealth whatsoever. So Allah’s Messenger (8) said:

<Young men, those among you who can afford marriage should do so, for it helps lower the gaze and guard the private parts (from zind@). And those who cannot afford it should fast, for fasting is a repression (of desire) for him.” *

Similarly, Anas (4) reported that the Prophet (8) said:

2 Recorded by al-Bukhati, Muslim, and others.

<You should marry. And those who cannot afford it should fast, because it restrains their desire. '

And ‘Uthman (445) reported that Allah’s Messenger (88) said: pad) atl ols. Cifiehs yb 18 Sie alS gan

<Anyone among you who has the ability should marry, because it helps lower the (lustful) gaze and guard the private parts, And whoever cannot afford it should fast, because fasting is a restraint (of desire) for him. *

1 Recorded by at-Tabarani (in al-Awsat) and ad-Diya ul-Maqdisi. Verified to be authentic by al-Albani (Sahih ul-Jami' no. 4058).

2 Recorded by an-Nasa’r. Verified to be authentic by al-Albani (Sahth ul-Jami' no.

3 A slave who makes a contract with his master to purchase his freedom. Recorded by Ahmad, at-Tirmithi, an-Nasa’T, and others. Verified to be hasan by al-

Quest for Love & Mercy 5 A Blessed Bond

In another report, Abi Hurayrah (#5) said that Allah’s Messenger (8%) said:

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<It is a right upon Allah to help one who seeks to marry for the purpose of avoiding what Allah has prohibited.> '

A strange phenomenon has recently developed among Muslims, without being confined to one country or nationality — a phenomenon whose consequences can prove to be most devastating to the Muslim community. This phenomenon is the alarming number of unmarried Muslim men and women,

On an individual level, it may appear that bachelorship poses a very insignificant threat to the Islamic world. However, in Islam, unlike other religions, matters are weighed in light of their benefits or harms to the community as a whole. So, what is the effect of single unmarried men and women on the community? To find the answer to this question, all one has to do is look at the non-Muslim communities. Every day we are confronted by the perversion and sinful practices that the non-Muslims find acceptable in their societies. This occurs because of their unnatural decision to abstain from marriage.

No Muslim would want the Muslim Ummah to fall into lifestyles like those of Pompeii or Sodom and Gomorrah ~ towns that Allah totally destroyed because of their perversion and disobedience. Protection against a fate similar to that can only be through lawful marriage.

Albani (Sahih ul-Jami’ no. 3050). 1 Recorded by Ibn ‘Adiyy. Verified to be hasan by al-Albant (Sahth ul-Jami' no.

Marriage Is a Practice of the Prophets PREVIOUS PROPHETS

The Prophet Muhammad (&) indicated that marriage is part of his Sunnah, and that whoever neglects it is not of his true followers. Even though he derived the greatest pleasure and highest satisfaction from the prayer, Allah’s Messenger (@$) expressed that he still had the desire for worldly pleasures such as women and perfume. This is only natural for a human messenger. Anas (4%) reported that Allah’s Messenger (8) said:

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<Of your worldly life, I haye been made to desire women and perfume. But the satisfaction of my eye has been made in the salah. *

‘Mishah (t@) reported that Allah’s Messenger (8) said: EeNB SB NS NS cgay Rabel age pl SK BIR BU

2 Recorded by Ahmad, an-Nas@’i, and others. Verified to be authentic by al-Albant (Sahih ul-Jami‘ no. 3124).

Quest for Love & Mercy 7 A Blessed Bond

<Marriage is a sunnah (way) of mine; and whoever does not follow my Sunnah is not of my followers. Marry because I will display your outnumbering the other nations on Resurrection Day. Whoever has wealth should marry, and whoever does not should fast, because fasting is a restraint for him. '

Ibn “Abbas (ts) said to Said Bin Jubayr (#8):

“Marry; indeed, the best of this Ummah (the Prophet #8) had the most wives,” ?

No MOoNnASTICISM IN ISLAM

Some of the followers of the earlier prophets tried monasticism as a self discipline that could possibly bring them closer to Allah, However, they were not able to fulfill it as well as they had hoped. The reason is simply that it contradicts human nature, and that is why it is not permitted in Islam.

1 Recorded by Ibn Majah. Verified to be authentic by al-Albani (as-Sahihah no. 2 Recorded by al-Bukhari and Ahmad.

In another report by ‘A’ishah (ts), Allah’s Messenger (8) said

As we have seen above, fulfilling a natural desire in a lawful way is

not wrong, and it does not represent a lack of piety. Rather, that is the way of the Prophet (&) who is the most pious of all people.