Chapter 02 - Compatibility in Marriage and the Right to Choose

306. Scholars have differed over the definition of compatibility, and most of them are of the opinion that the most important aspect is that of in religiousness.



1033. Ibn 'Umar narrated that the Messenger of Allah said, "Arabs are equivalent to one another (in marriage) and clients (slaves) are equivalent to one another, save a weaver or a cupper," Related by Al-Hakim but all its chains of narrators are extremely weak, and most scholars considered it to be a false tradition.





1034. Al-Bazzar transmitted a similar narration on the authority of Mu'Adh bin Jabal , but with a disconnected chain of narrators.





1035. Fatimah the daughter of Qais narrated that the Messenger of Allah said to her. "Marry Usamah." (307) Related by Muslim.

307. Fatimah bint Qais was from the tribe of Quraish, i.e. of a noble lineage, while Usamah was his slave and the son of his client Zaid.





1036. Abu Hurairah narrated that the Messenger of Allah said. "0 sons of Bayadah (Banu Bayadah) marry Abu Hind (308) to (someone of) your women, and marry his women (his daughters)," and he was a cupper.' Related by Abu Dawud and Al-Hakim with a good chain of narrators.

308. Abu Hind or Yasar, cupped the Prophet this hadith and the previous one, are proof that it is not only tho lineage which counts in equivalence. It was also reported that Bilal , who was a slave before he was manumitted by Abu Bakr , married Halah the sister of 'Abdur Rahman bin Auf, and 'Umar offered his daughter Hafsah in marriage to Salman al-Farisi (aPersian slave) before she married the Prophet





1037. Aishah narrated, 'When Barirah was manumitted, she was given the choice to remain with her husband (Mughith) who was a slave at that time, or to leave him.' (part of a long tradition) Agreed upon.

In a version by Muslim: 'Her husband was a slave.' He also related on the authority of Aishah 'He was a free man.' But the first narration (that he was a slave) is stronger.

Al-Bukhari also related on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas that he was a salve.





1038. Ad-Dahhak bin Fairuz Ad-Dailami narrated on the authority of his father 'O Messenger of Allah! I have embraced Islam and I am married to two sisters.'(309) The Messenger of Allah said to him, "Divorce whichever of them you wish to leave," Related by Ahmad and the four Imams except for An-Nasa'i, Ibn Hibban, ad-Daraqutni and al-Baihaqi graded it as Sahih.

309. It is prohibited in Islam to marry two sisters together at tha same time.





1039. Salim narrated on the authority of his father , 'Ghailan bin Salamah who embraced Islam and he had ten wives (at the time) who all accepted Islam with him, The Messenger of Allah commanded him to choose only four of them.' Related by Ahmad and At-Tirmidhi. Ibn Hibban and al-Hakim graded it as Sahih but al-Bukhari, Abu Zurah and Abu Hatim graded it as a defected Hadith.






1040. Ibn 'Abbas narrated, 'The Messenger of Allah restored his daughter Zainab to Abu Al-As bin ar-Rabi' (310) after six years (of separation) according to (the contract of the) first marriage and did not make a new one. Related by Ahmad and the four Imams save An-Nasa'i. Ahmad and al-Hakim graded it as Sahih.

310. Abu Al-'As bin ar-Rabi was tho husband of the Prophet's daughter (Zainab) . She embraced Islam with the family of the Prophet 'while he remained a polytheist and was taken as a prisoner of war in the Battle of Badr. Zainab sent her necklace (which was given to her by her mother
Khadijah) to the Prophet as a ransom to set him free, the Prophet accepted it and stipulated that Abu Al-As let her migrate to the Prophet in Madtnah. She migrated and in the year 6 of al-Hijrah of the Prophet the verse which prohibits the marriage of a Muslim woman to a disbeliever was revealed. She remained for two years and her marriage was suspended until Abu Al-As embraced Islam (during the 8th year of al-Hijrah) and the Prophet restored her to him.




1041. 'Amro bin Shuaib narrated on the authority of his father on the authority of his grandfather that the Messenger of Allah restored his daughter Zainab to Abu al-As with a new marriage contract- (311) Imam At-Tirmidhi said that the hadith of Ibn 'Abbas is related with a stronger chain of narrators.

311. Ahma and Ad-Darqutni said that this is a weak hadith. The stronger narration is the one that says that the Prophet consented to the first marriage after Abu Al-As embraced Islam. Imam Ibnul Qaiyim said that the hadith related by Ibn 'Abbas indicates that the marriage was suspended. If the husband embraces Islam before her Iddat is over, then she is still his wife and there is no need to renew the marriage. If the husband embraced Islam after the 'Iddah of his wife is over, then they must be separated at the termination of 'Iddah and remarry with a new contract.





1042. Ibn 'Abbas narrated, 'A woman embraced Islam then got married. Her (first) husband came and said, '0 Messenger of Allah, I have accepted Islam and she knew that (before she got married).' The Messenger of Allah then took her away from the second husband and gave her back to the first one.' Related by Ahmad, Abu Dawud and Ibn Majah, Ibn Hibban and al-Hakim graded it as Sahih.





1043. Zaid bin Kab bin 'Ujrah narrated on the authority of his father, 'The Messenger of Allah married al-'Aliyah from Bani Ghifar. When she had entered his presence and doffed her clothes, the Prophet saw the whiteness on her flanks. Thereupon, he said to her, "Put on your clothes and go back to your family," and he gave her the dower. Related by Al-Hakim, but there is Jamil bin Zaid in the chain of narrators who is not trustworthy.





1044. Said bin al-Musaiyab narrated tbat ''Umar bin al·Khattab said, 'If a man married a woman and when he has had sexual intercourse with her, he discovered that she is leprous or insane, she is entitled to get her dower for having had intercourse with her and he is to get back what he paid from the one who deceived him by marrying him to her (and he knew of her defects).' Related by Said bin Mansur and Malik bin Abi Shaibah with a trustworthy chain of narrators.





1045. Said bin al-Musaiyab narrated a similar narration on the authority of Ali and added. 'or had a defect in her vagina (like a protrusion that impedes having normal sexual relation with her), her husband then has the choice to keep her or divorce her. If he had intercourse with her, then she gets her dower for him having enjoyed her private parts.




1046. Said bin al-Musaiyab also narrated Umar ordained that an impotent husband must be given a chance for a year before divorcing him from his wife.' It is transmitted with a trustworthy chain of narrators.