The Opinion of His Eminence, Shaikh Muhammad Ibn 'Uthaimin on This Marriage

Question :

This is a person who wanted to go abroad. Since he is being sent to study, he wanted to protect his private parts (from illegal sexual intercourse) by marrying a woman there for a fixed period of time, after which he divorces this wife, without informing her that he will divorce her. What is the ruling on this?

Answer:

This marriage with the intention of divorce does not fall outside of two categories: Either it is made a condition in the contract that he will marry for a (definite) period, such as a month or a year, or until his studies are completed this is Nikah Al-Mut'ah, which is forbidden. Or he makes the intention to do this, without making it a condition, and it is well known from the Mathhab of the Hanbalis that it is unlawful, and that the contract is invalid, because they say that something which is intended is like something which is made a condition, according to the words of the Prophet:
"Deeds are by intentions and every person shall have that which he intended."

and because if a man marries a woman from a person who has divorced her three times, in order to make her permissible for him, then he divorces her, then the contract is invalid, even if it was without conditions. Because something which is intended is the same as something which is made conditional. So if the intention was to make her permissible, the contract would be invalid, and likewise, the intention of Al-Mut'ah invalidates the contract. This is the view of the Hanbalis.

The second view held by the scholars in this matter is that it is correct for him to marry a woman with the intention of divorcing her when he leaves the country. Such as those strangers who go to study and the like. They said that this is because it was not made a condition, and that the difference between it and Al-Mut'ah is that in the case of Al-Mut'ah, when the period of time is completed, divorce takes place, whether the husband wishes it or not, as opposed to this (i.e., marriage with the intention of divorce). This is because it is possible that he may want his wife, and so she remains with him. This is one of the two sayings of Shaikh Al-Islam Ibn Taimiyyah.

In my view, this is correct; it is not Al-Mut'ah, because the description of Al-Mutah does not apply to it, but it is unlawful. This is because it involves cheating the wife and her family, and the Prophet has forbidden cheating and deception. For if the wife knew that this man only wanted to marry her for this limited period, she would not have married him, nor would her family have agreed to it. Just as he would not accept that a person marry his daughter with the intention of divorcing her when he no longer needs her. So how can he accepts for himself that he treats another in a way which he would not accept for himself? This contradicts (true) faith, according to the words of the Prophet:
"None of you has (complete) faith until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself."

I have heard that some people have used this saying as a pretext for something which is not said by anyone, which is that they go to other countries in order to marry only. That is, they go to these countries in order to marry, then they remain as long as Allah wills with the women whom they have married, with the intention that the marriage to them will be temporary, then they return. This issue is also strongly forbidden, so closing this door to it is preferable. This is because of the cheating, deception and trickery which it involves, and because it opens up the door to actions such as this, since people are ignorant, and the desires of most of them do not prevent them from transgressing Allah's prohibitions.

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