Importance
of Marriage in Islam
Allah
has created men and women as company for one another, and so that they
can procreate and live in peace and tranquility according to the commandments
of Allah and the directions of His Messenger. The Qur'an says:
"Marry those among you who are single and (marry) your slaves,
male and female, that are righteous" (Quran 24:32)
And among His signs is this, that He created
for you mates from among yourselves, that you may dwell in tranquility
with them, and He has put love and mercy between your hearts. Undoubtedly
in these are signs for those who reflect. (Quran : 30:21)
And
Allah has made for you your mates of your own nature, and made for you,
out of them, sons and daughters and grandchildren, and provided for
you sustenance of the best. (16:72)
These
verses of the Noble Qur'an clearly show that in contrast to other religions
like Christianity, Buddhism,
Judaism etc. which consider celibacy or monasticism as a great virtue
and a means of salvation, Islam considers marriage as one of the most
virtuous and approved institutions. The Messenger of Allah (peace be
upon him) declared, "There is no monasticism in Islam."
He further ordained,
"O
you young men! Whoever is able to marry should marry, for that will
help him to lower his gaze and guard his modesty." (Al-Bukhari)
Modesty
was regarded as a great virtue by the Prophet. He said, "Modesty
is part of faith." (Al-Bukhari)
Marriage, in fact, is specifically considered the tradition (sunnah)
of Prophet Muhammad (S) when he declared:
"Marriage is my Sunnah, whoever disregards my (sunnah) path is
not from among us". (ibn Majah)
With
these Qur'anic injunctions and the guidance from the Prophet (peace
be upon him) in mind, we shall examine the institution of marriage in
the Shari'ah.
The
word zawaj is used in the Qur'an to signify a pair or a mate.
But in common parlance it stands for marriage. Since the family is the
nucleus of Islamic society, and marriage is the only way to bring families
into existence, the Prophet (peace be upon him) insisted upon his followers
entering into marriage The Shari'ah prescribes rules to regulate the
functioning of the family so that both spouses can live together in
love, security, and tranquillity. Marriage in Islam has aspects of both
'ibadah (worship) of Allah and mu'amalah (transactions between human
beings).
In
its 'ibadah aspect, marriage is an act pleasing to Allah
because it is in accordance with his commandments that husband and wife
love each other and help each other to make efforts to continue the
human race and rear and nurse their children to become true servants
of Allah.
In
its mu'amalah aspect, marriage being a lawful response to the basic
biological instinct to have sexual intercourse and to procreate children,
the Shari'ah has prescribed detailed rules for translating this response
into a living human institution reinforced by a whole framework of legally
enforceable rights and duties, not only of the spouses, but also of
their offspring.
These
aspects are beautifully explained in a tradition of the Prophet. It
is narrated by Anas that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)
said,
"When
a man marries, he has fulfilled half of his religion, so let him fear
Allah regarding the remaining half."
The
Prophet considered marriage for a Muslim as half of his religion because
it shields him from promiscuity, adultery, fornication, homosexuality
etc., which ultimately lead to many other evils like slander, quarreling,
homicide, loss of property and disintegration of the family. According
to the Prophet (peace be upon him) the remaining half of the faith can
be saved by taqwa.
Prophet Muhammad (S) declared:
"When the servant of Allah marries, he has fulfilled half the (responsibilities
laid on him by the) faith; so let him be God conscious with respect
to the other half". (Mishkat)
Marriage has also been commended as the way of the prophets.
"We indeed sent messengers before you (O Muhammad), and We assigned
them wives and children" (Quran 13:38)
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