Muslim Perception of Marriage and Culture

By Sheikh Muhammad Kamaludin

Muslim Perception of Marriage and Culture

The title was carefully chosen because the contents of this book aim to address and offer solutions to the multiplicity of marital problems that is prevalent among humans all over the world irrespective of race, religion, national

• Language: English
• Publisher: URLink Print & Media, LLC
• Release date: Dec 9, 2021
• ISBN: 9781684860456

Book preview

In the Beginning

Based upon man’s first experience of being deceived by the Devil, Allah advised mankind in general.

Oh, Children of Adam! Let not Satan seduce you as he caused your (first) parents to go forth from the Garden and tore off from them their robe (of innocence) that he might manifest their shame to them. Lo! He See ‘eth you he and his tribe, from whence ye see him not. Lo! We have made the devils protecting friends for those who believe not. (7/27)

The woman was created by Allah, and she been given four possessions reflecting her role in the family. (1) Mother, (2) Daughter, (3) Sister, and (4) Wife. Likewise, 1the man, who has the same Creator, has been given his role in the family and can only function as, (1) Father, (2) Son, (3) Brother, and (4) Husband. That being the case, the two important issues that I will try to address in this narrative are our responsibilities towards our wives and our mothers.

Permit me to say that I find the Holy Quran to be the mother of all the sciences of life, and from it springs forth the different sciences of living as have been exemplified in the Sunnah of our beloved Prophet Mohammed (pbuh).

Therefore, I will address each subject as one of the sciences of human relati0n. Hence marriage being one of the sciences in Islam should be studied by the people who are about to become involved in this relationship, in order to find out and to understand the protocols of marriage life that has being ordained by the Creator of this institution.

Also, all the people who are already involved in a marital relationship and have not familiarise themselves with the correct understanding of this great science, should take some time out to acquaint themselves with what is of them to be that wife or husband that is able to fulfil the rights and obligations of each other.

Also, since Allah has made the lawful reproduction of humans to be generated through marital relationship, the couple should learn and teach their children their obligations to their parents, respective members of the family, elders, respect for the rule of law, and their teachers etc. which Allah has made obligatory on all mankind.

Only when this is observed and put into practice, this relation will be enhanced blissfully, and we would have made our contributions to a society in which the fear of Allah become the foundation upon which the human relation relationship is based. A proof of this understanding is based upon the statement of Allah:

O mankind! Be dutiful to your Lord, who created you from a single person (Adam), and from him (Adam) He created his wife [Hawwa (Eve)], and from them both He created many men and women and fear Allah through Whom you demand your mutual (rights), and do not cut the relations of the wombs (kinship). Surely, Allah is Ever an All¬ Watcher over you. (4/1)

There is a principle in the fundamentals of the religion of Islam that to be successful in any matter, knowledge must precede the action. It is therefore expedient that who is about to become involved in a marital relationship should pay strict attention to the above-mentioned verse of the Holy Quran, since it contains one of the most valuable advice regarding the rights and the obligations of wife, the husband and the extended family throughout their married life.

We should also be conscious of the fact that we cannot hide in the darkest crevice of the earth and abuse each other feeling safe that we have not been seen, for the One through whom we claim our mutual rights is a constant watcher over us.

It is also extremely important that this advice in the Holy Quran is not only addressing Muslims as some may be led to believe because the information is coming from the Quran. However, when Allah wish to address the Muslims, He would say oh believers. However, in this verse of the Holy Quran addressing the foundation and the principles upon which marriage relationship is based, He, Allah says, Oh mankind which is an address to all humans the male and the female, since He Allah is the Creator of humans, and it is He who initiated the institution of marriage, through which the Lawful reproduction of all human takes place.

So, the Holy Quran being the final revelation sent to humans, and Mohammed (pbuh) being the final Prophet sent to humans, Allah confirm His favours upon all of us, and He is calling on all of mankind irrespective of race, religion,, ethnicity, or status of life, to follow the instructions and the guidance that He has laid down for all of us, and in this case specifically those of us who are involve in a marital relationship if we want to secure a blissful married life.

Marriage As An Institution

It is also particularly important that we all understand that the institution of marriage is not one of man’s inventions, since its origin goes back to the Creator Himself who created Adam and created for him his wife and placed them both in the Garden, and the proof is as follows:

ِO Adam! Dwell thou and thy wife in the Garden and enjoy (its good things) as ye wish but approach not this tree, or ye run into harm and transgression. (7/19)

So, in this verse of the Holy Quran, it is made clear that marriage is one of the divine institutions that Allah Himself created and He is pleased with it, thus the Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) informed us in an authentic Hadith in which he has stated; ‘Marriage is part of my Sunnah, and he who diverts from it is not following me. Also, in another Hadith he (pbuh) tells us marriage completes half of our religion, so spend the other half in the worship of Allah.

Therefore, marriage has been enjoined upon the children of Adam (pbuh), as it was enjoined their father. It is only within the institution of marriage that the lawful reproduction of humans takes place in a manner that is pleasing to the Creator. The Almighty says.

And among His Signs is He created for you mates from among yourselves, that ye may dwell in tranquillity with them, and He has put love and mercy between your (hearts): verily in that are Signs for those who reflect. (30/21)

Furthermore, in Islam marriage is considers to be a contract between a man and a woman in which rights and obligations are two of the most important fundamental pillars to be observed, and Allah has puts love and mercy as the two checks and balance at the disposal of the couple, and He conclude by reminding them to fear Him through whom they both claim their mutual rights. Allahu Akbar.

When this is understood and used in its proper context the couple will have a blissful life. For in times of trials and fitnah, when the Shaytaan causes the love to be lost, we will move to the other resort which is not violence and oppression, but that which Allah in His Supreme Wisdom has given them Rahman (mercy), and by resorting to the qualities of mercy love can once again be restored.

So, marriage is not an institution in which violence, intimidation, and oppression, of either party becomes a way of life, but one in which by virtue of rights and obligation, cooperation, and respect for each other both parties can enjoy a blissful life, guaranteed security for themselves, their children, other members of the family, and the society at large.

Walliship

The Willi is the father and guardian of his daughter.

In a case where the parents of the man or the woman object to the marriage taking place between their respective children, and the couple has a reasonable basis for the marriage to take place against the wishes of their families, they can take the matter to the Islamic court, which has the power to decide in favour of both the man and the woman or the parent.

This principle is a corollary of the social directives of Islam and is corroborated by the following Hadith reported by in Termidi in Kitabal-Nikah in which the Prophet (pbuh) said: A Nikah does not solemnise unless it takes place through the Willi, and, if someone does not have Willi, the ruler of the Muslims is the. In his article on Parental Consent in Marriage, Shehzad Saleem writes:

This Hadith is a corollary of the social directives of Islam pertaining to the institution of families and is based on great wisdom. Since the preservation and protection of the family set up is of paramount importance to