The obstacles of marriage

Various kinds of forbidden woman are mentioned in the Holy Koran i.e. woman with whom you can not marry.

« Forbidden to you to marry are your mothers, and your daughters, and your sisters, and your paternal aunts and your maternal aunts, and your brother's daughters, and your sister's daughters, and your mothers in suckling, and your sisters in suckling, and the mothers of your wives, and your step daughters who are in guardianship being born in of your wives with whom you have consummated marriage, but if you have not consummated marriage with them, there is no blame on you in marrying them, and the wives of your sons who are of your own loins, and that you should not have in marriage two sisters together, except what has already passed… » [Sûrat An-Nisa/the Women, 23].

1- Eternal obstacles: They are related to a particular type of women (women who are eternally forbidden).

a) Because of lineage: They are women with whom a man has a bloody lineage. There are four kinds.

-The ancestors: the mother, the mother's mother and the father's mother and their ancestors, as God the Almighty says:  «your mothers were forbidden to marry them… »

-The Descendents: they are the daughters, grand daughters and their descendents as God the Almighty says: «… and your daughters … ».

-Parent's descendents:  They are the sisters or half sisters, the nieces. «And your sisters and the daughters of the brothers and the daughters of the sisters…».

-Direct descendents of the grand fathers and the grand mothers: They are women of the first degree i.e. the aunts (the mother' sisters and the father's ones) «…and your aunts».

b) Because of the relationship by marriage.

-The ancestors' spouses: they are the step mother and the grand father's wife «… and do not marry the women that your fathers have married, except what has already happened … ».

-The spouses of the descents: They are daughters in law and the grand sons wives « and the wives of your sons who are of your own loins»

-The spouses' ancestors: They are the mother and the paternal and the maternal grand mothers in accordance with the Fiqh rule which says: "contracting a marriage with daughters forbids their mothers".

-The descents of the spouses after consummating marriage: They are the step daughters. Allah says « … and your step daughters who are in guardianship being born of your wives with whom you have consummated marriage, but if you have not consummated marriage with them, there is no blame on you in marrying them». ]sûrat Al- Nissa /the women, 23].And in accordance with the Fiqh rule which says:  "daughters are forbidden once you have consummated marriage with their mothers".

c) Because of suckling:

Suckling is an eternal obstacle to marriage. The prophet may peace be upon him said: «It is forbidden by suckling what is forbidden by lineage».

¨      The age of suckling:

The suckling that is taken into account is what happened during the two first years.

The prophet -may peace be upon him said: «No suckling except what was during the two years».

¨      The amount of the milk suckled: The Ulemas did not agree on its amount. The Malikis and the Hanefites did not delimitate it, either too much or too little, once or more. Their argument was that its amount is not delimitated in the Koran and in the Sunna. The Almighty Allah says: « … and your mothers who suckled you, and your sisters in suckling … » ]sûrat Al -Nissa /the women, 23.[

And the prophet -may Peace be upon him said: «It is forbidden by suckling what is forbidden by lineage».

The Hanabilas limited it to three separate and satiated suckling, and the Chafiist conditioned five satiated ducklings.

¨      Ways of proving suckling:

It is proved by two ways:

a) Acknowledgement: It means the confession and the witness of a trustworthy person. The Ulemas claim that acknowledgement is the master of pleas.

b) Clear proof: evidence is ordered to he who claims it and swear to the one who disowns.

¨      The forbidden women by suckling:

-The ancestors of the person by suckling.

« … and your mothers who suckled you…»] sûrat An- Nissâ /the women, 23.[

-The descendants of the person by suckling.

-The descendants of the parents by suckling.

«… and your sisters by suckling … ». ]sûrat An -Nissâ /the women, 23.[

-Direct descendents of  the grand mothers and the grand fathers by suckling.

-The wife's mother and grand mother by suckling even before consummating marriage.

-The wife's daughters and grand-daughters by suckling.

-The step mother and the grand father's wife by suckling.

-The daughter in law and her grand daughters.

2- Temporary obstacles: They are reasons related to particular types of women. If these reasons go away, marriage with these women become allowable. These women are:

a) The married woman: she is the one who gets married either by "Fatiha" or by a contraction of marriage. «And the married women … » ]sûrat An- Nissa/the women, 24.[

b) The divorced woman three times to her divorcee: She is forbidden to her divorcee unless she marries another man and gets divorced or widowed, but she has to wait until the end of her legal waiting term if she wants to get remarried to him.

c) The retreated woman from divorce or death:

The retreated woman from death has to wait four months and ten days. She should not be engaged to some one else, but a hint of betrothal can be made during this period. The Almighty Allah says: «And there is no blame on you if you make indirect proposal of marriage to widows during their waiting term…» [Sûrat Al Baqara/the Heifer, 235] .The reason for this is to preserve what might be resulted from the first marriage (pregnancy), and to show sorrow and sadness.    .

Unlike the retreated woman from death, the retreated from divorce must not be asked in marriage explicitly or implicitly during her waiting term. Allah the Great says: «And divorced women must wait for a trial period of three menstruations…» [Sûrat Al Baqara/the Heifer, 228]. She has to stay at her home. «…Do not expel them from their houses, nor shall they leave…God may change the situation (reconciliation) after that». [Sûrat At-Talaq/ Divorce, 1]. Because at that period the husband has the better right to take her back as Allah the Great says: «And their husbands are best entitled to take them back in that period…». َ[Sûrat Al Baqara/the Heifer, 228].

d) The fifth woman, for a man who gets married to four women. (All of them are still his wives).

e) A Woman that doesn't profess a Divine religion: The Islamic charia allows to a Muslim man to marry the monotheist woman (the one that is adherent to a revealed religion), but it forbids to him the marriage with an atheist, communist, those believing on stars, idolater …

f) The Muslim woman's marriage with non Muslim: «Then if you find them to be believing women, do not return them to the unbelievers» [Sûrat Al-Mumtahana/the Examined one, 10]

g) To marry two sisters or the woman and her aunts at the same time. « And that you should not have in marriage two sisters together, except what has already passed…» [Sûrat An-Nissâ /the women, 23.[

h) To marry a woman during her performance of pilgrimage.

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