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Ẓihār (Arabic: ظِهار) is a type of divorce from the Jahiliyya era in which a husband likened his wife to the back of his mother or one of his Maḥrams using a specific phrasing. In the Jahiliyya period, due to Zihar, the man and woman became permanently forbidden to each other, and there was no way to reverse it. Zihar is considered forbidden in Islam; if someone performs Zihar, sexual intercourse with thier wife becomes permissible only after paying a Kaffara (expiation). In the Quran, God mentions the expiation for it after reprimanding the act of Zihar.

The duty of the wife after Zihar is patience or referring to the Sharia ruler. The ruler gives the husband the choice between paying the expiation (to resume the marriage) or divorce. If he does not choose one of the options, after a period of three months, the ruler will issue a divorce verdict.

Semantics

Zihar or Muzahara[1] is derived from the word zahr, meaning "back".[2] In jurisprudential terminology, it refers to a husband likening his wife to the back of his mother or one of his Mahrams[3] by blood, affinity or fosterage (rida').[4] For example, the husband says to his wife: اَنْتِ عَلَیَّ کَظَهْرِ اُمّی (You are to me like my mother's back).[5] According to some jurists, likening the wife to the belly, thigh or other limbs of the mother using phrases such as اَنْتِ عَلَیَّ کَبَطْنِ اُمّی (You are to me like my mother's belly), کَرَأْسِ اُمّی (Like my mother's head), or کَفَرْجِ اُمّی (Like my mother's private part) also constitutes Zihar.[6]

According to verses and Islamic narrations, Zihar is a reprehensible (munkar) and forbidden act,[7] for which a religious ruling has been established. Therefore, if someone performs Zihar on his wife, she becomes forbidden to him, and he cannot have intercourse with her; however, this prohibition is not permanent, and the individual can return to his wife by paying Kaffara or divorcing her.[8] A consensus (ijma') has been claimed for this ruling[9] and a chapter is dedicated to narrations regarding Zihar in narrative sources.[10]

Zihar differs from Divorce and Khul' because with Zihar, intercourse with the wife becomes temporarily forbidden until the Kaffara is paid.[11] There is a difference of opinion regarding whether other forms of enjoyment and pleasure (other than intercourse) are permissible after Zihar and before paying the expiation; some consider it permissible[12] while others consider it Haram.[13] However, if a wife performs Zihar on her husband, no religious ruling is applicable.[14]

History

Zihar was one of the appendages of Divorce[15] and a common custom of the Jahiliyya era regarding the separation of husband and wife.[16] Due to anger and aversion towards his wife, the husband would recite the Zihar formula, separating from her, stripping himself of the right to return, and making her permanently forbidden to him.[17] This was because they believed that by performing Zihar, the wife became forbidden like a mother.[18] Zihar was considered a manifest oppression against women, paving the way for hardship and harm to them.[19] Zihar remained after the advent of Islam, but its effects and rulings changed.[20]

God condemned Zihar in the opening verses of Sura al-Mujadala, introducing this act as ugly and reprehensible and appointed a Kaffara in regret and returning to the wife. By revealing this verse, God invalidated the (Jahili) ruling of Zihar[21] and removed its negative effect,[22] i.e., the permanent prohibition of the couple to each other.[23] He also denied its other effect, which was that the wife being considered to be like a mother to the husband.[24]

See also: Verse of Zihar

Conditions of Realization

All conditions valid for Divorce are valid for Zihar;[25] therefore, conditions have been proposed for the validation of Zihar, and if one of these conditions is not met, Zihar is not valid and the religious ruling does not apply.[26] Some of these conditions concern the contract formula, some concern the person pronouncing Zihar, and others concern the person upon whom Zihar is pronounced.

Conditions Concerning the Formula of Zihar

  • Some believe that Zihar is only valid by using the with the word zahr (back)[27] and if likened to other parts of the mother, Zihar is not valid.[28]
  • If instead of "anti" (you), one says "hadhihi" (this one), "zawjati" (my wife), or "fulana" (name of the woman), and instead of " 'alayya" (to me), one says "minni" (from me), " 'indi" (with me), or "ma'i" (with me), Zihar will be valid.[29]
  • The presence of two just Muslim witnesses at the time of pronouncing the Zihar formula.[30]

Conditions Concerning the Pronouncer (Husband)

  • The pronouncer must be sane and an adult (baligh).[31]
  • It must be done with intention and will.[32] If it is done out of forgetfulness or jest, it is invalid.[33]
  • It should not be under duress, compulsion, anger, intoxication or in a state of necessity/distress (idtirar).[34]

Conditions Concerning the Subject (Wife)

  • The woman should not be menstruating (Hayd), and should not have engaged in sexual intercourse from the time of purity until Zihar.[35] Some jurists have also considered purity from lochia (nifas) a condition for the subject of Zihar.[36]
  • The wife must be specifically identified; if he performs Zihar on one of his wives without specifying which one, Zihar will not be valid.[37]
  • Some believe that the wife must be a free woman, and if she is a slave, Zihar will not be valid;[38] however, others see no difference between a free woman and a slave.[39] There is also a difference of opinion regarding a woman in temporary marriage (mut'a), a wife with whom intercourse has not yet occurred, and Zihar, which was made conditional upon something.[40]

Expiation for Zihar

In Islamic fiqh, according to Quranic verses, if a person commits Zihar, he must pay a Kaffara (expiation) before returning to his wife, and paying the expiation before sexual intercourse is obligatory.[41]

Three types of expiation have been set for Zihar, and observing the order of choice is necessary. That is, one cannot move to the second option if they are able to perform the first.[42] The first option is that one must free a slave; if he is unable to do so, he must fast for sixty consecutive days; and if he is unable to do that as well, he must feed sixty poor people.[43] There is a difference of opinion regarding the ruling for someone who is unable to perform any of the expiations.[44] Some believe that in case of inability to pay the expiation, seeking forgiveness suffices.[45]

There is a disagreement among jurists regarding whether intercourse before paying the Kaffara causes another expiation to become obligatory.[46] Imam Khomeini has issued a fatwa that the expiation is repeated (doubled).[47] If the person divorces his wife after Zihar, the expiation is lifted from him.[48]

Some have identified the philosophy behind setting expiation for Zihar as learning a lesson,[49] self-discipline,[50] preventing oppression against wives and preserving the family system.[51]

Wife's Duty Regarding Zihar

In the event of Zihar, the wife must either exhibit patience or refer to the Shari'a ruler. The ruler will then give the husband the choice between paying the Kaffara and returning to his wife or divorcing her,[52] and a decision should be reached by the husband within 3 months. However, if he accepts neither, he is imprisoned and forced to choose one of the two paths (return or Divorce),[53] and if he does not choose one of the items, some believe that the ruler will proceed to issue the divorce on his behalf.[54] Others believe that the ruler can not force one who pronounced Zihar to choose one of the two (divorce or expiation) and can not issue the divorce on his behalf.[55]

See Also

Notes

  1. ↑ Qurashī, Qāmūs-i Qurʾān, vol. 4, p. 276.
  2. ↑ Najafī, Jawāhir al-kalām, vol. 33, p. 96; Muḥammadī, Sharḥ tabṣirat al-mutaʿallimīn, vol. 2, p. 252.
  3. ↑ Mufīd, al-Muqniʿa, p. 523; Sallār al-Daylamī, al-Marāsim al-ʿAlawiyya, p. 160; Ḥillī, Tabṣirat al-mutaʿallimīn, p. 148; Shihābī, Adwār-i fiqh, vol. 1, p. 309.
  4. ↑ Ḥillī, Kanz al-ʿirfān, vol. 2, p. 288; Bahāʾ al-Dīn al-ʿĀmilī, Jāmiʿ-i ʿAbbāsī, pp. 724–725.
  5. ↑ Najafī, Jawāhir al-kalām, vol. 33, p. 96; Ṭūsī, al-Nihāya, p. 524.
  6. ↑ Khomeinī, Taḥrīr al-wasīla, vol. 2, p. 354.
  7. ↑ Muḥaqqiq al-Ḥillī, Sharāʾiʿ al-Islām, vol. 3, p. 48; Ḥillī, Kanz al-ʿirfān, vol. 2, pp. 288, 290; Muḥammadī, Sharḥ tabṣirat al-mutaʿallimīn, vol. 2, p. 252.
  8. ↑ Sallār al-Daylamī, al-Marāsim al-ʿAlawiyya, p. 160.
  9. ↑ Sharīf al-Murtaḍā, al-Intiṣār, p. 321.
  10. ↑ Kulaynī, al-Kāfī, vol. 6, p. 152; Maghribī, Daʿāʾim al-Islām, vol. 2, p. 274; Ṣadūq, Man lā yaḥḍuruh al-faqīh, vol. 3, p. 525; Ṭūsī, Tahdhīb al-aḥkām, vol. 8, p. 9.
  11. ↑ Muḥammadī, Sharḥ tabṣirat al-mutaʿallimīn, vol. 2, p. 254; Shaʿrānī, Tarjuma wa sharḥ-i Tabṣirat al-mutaʿallimīn, vol. 2, p. 590.
  12. ↑ Khomeinī, Taḥrīr al-wasīla, vol. 2, p. 355.
  13. ↑ Qazwīnī, Ṣīgh al-ʿuqūd wa l-īqāʿāt, p. 351.
  14. ↑ Khomeinī, Taḥrīr al-wasīla, vol. 2, p. 355.
  15. ↑ Ḥillī, Kanz al-ʿirfān, vol. 2, p. 288.
  16. ↑ Shihābī, Adwār-i fiqh, vol. 1, p. 309; Ṣadr, Mā warāʾ al-fiqh, vol. 6, p. 367.
  17. ↑ Najafī, Jawāhir al-kalām, vol. 33, p. 96; Khomeinī, Taḥrīr al-wasīla, vol. 2, p. 354.
  18. ↑ Qurashī, Qāmūs-i Qurʾān, vol. 4, p. 276; Shaʿrānī, Tarjuma wa sharḥ-i Tabṣirat al-mutaʿallimīn, vol. 2, pp. 588–589; Muḥammadī, Sharḥ tabṣirat al-mutaʿallimīn, vol. 2, p. 252.
  19. ↑ Qarāʾatī, Tafsīr-i nūr, vol. 9, p. 500.
  20. ↑ Khomeinī, Taḥrīr al-wasīla, vol. 2, p. 354; Ṣadr, Mā warāʾ al-fiqh, vol. 6, p. 367.
  21. ↑ Zamakhsharī, al-Kashshāf, vol. 4, p. 485; Ṭabarsī, Tafsīr jawāmiʿ al-jāmiʿ, vol. 4, p. 255.
  22. ↑ Quṭb, Fī ẓilāl al-Qurʾān, vol. 6, p. 3506.
  23. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 19, p. 178.
  24. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 19, p. 178.
  25. ↑ Ḥillī, Kanz al-ʿirfān, vol. 2, p. 289; Anṣārī, Ṣīgh al-ʿuqūd wa l-īqāʿāt, p. 165.
  26. ↑ Mufīd, al-Muqniʿa, p. 524; Sharīf al-Murtaḍā, al-Intiṣār, p. 321; Ṭūsī, al-Nihāya, pp. 524–525.
  27. ↑ Shahīd al-Awwal, al-Lumʿa al-Dimashqiyya, p. 201.
  28. ↑ Sharīf al-Murtaḍā, al-Intiṣār, pp. 322–323; Bahāʾ al-Dīn al-ʿĀmilī, Jāmiʿ-i ʿAbbāsī, p. 726; Anṣārī, Ṣīgh al-ʿuqūd wa l-īqāʿāt, p. 165.
  29. ↑ Majlisī, Yak dawra fiqh-i kāmil-i Fārsī, p. 160.
  30. ↑ Mufīd, al-Muqniʿa, p. 523; Bahāʾ al-Dīn al-ʿĀmilī, Jāmiʿ-i ʿAbbāsī, p. 725; Khomeinī, Taḥrīr al-wasīla, vol. 2, p. 355.
  31. ↑ Ibn Idrīs al-Ḥillī, al-Sarāʾir, vol. 2, p. 707; Muḥaqqiq al-Ḥillī, Sharāʾiʿ al-Islām, vol. 3, p. 47; Shahīd al-Awwal, al-Lumʿa al-Dimashqiyya, p. 201; Khomeinī, Taḥrīr al-wasīla, vol. 2, p. 355.
  32. ↑ Sharīf al-Murtaḍā, al-Intiṣār, p. 320; Muḥaqqiq al-Ḥillī, Sharāʾiʿ al-Islām, vol. 3, p. 47.
  33. ↑ Khomeinī, Taḥrīr al-wasīla, vol. 2, p. 338.
  34. ↑ Ṭūsī, al-Nihāya, p. 526; Muḥaqqiq al-Ḥillī, Sharāʾiʿ al-Islām, vol. 3, p. 47; Bahāʾ al-Dīn al-ʿĀmilī, Jāmiʿ-i ʿAbbāsī, p. 725.
  35. ↑ Mufīd, al-Muqniʿa, p. 523; Muḥaqqiq al-Ḥillī, Sharāʾiʿ al-Islām, vol. 3, p. 47; Shahīd al-Awwal, al-Lumʿa al-Dimashqiyya, p. 201.
  36. ↑ Khomeinī, Taḥrīr al-wasīla, vol. 2, p. 338.
  37. ↑ Sharīf al-Murtaḍā, al-Intiṣār, pp. 321–322.
  38. ↑ Mufīd, al-Muqniʿa, p. 524.
  39. ↑ See for example: Ṭūsī, al-Nihāya, p. 527.
  40. ↑ Ḥillī, Tabṣirat al-mutaʿallimīn, p. 148.
  41. ↑ Ḥillī, Tabṣirat al-mutaʿallimīn, pp. 148–149; Ḥillī, Kanz al-ʿirfān, vol. 2, p. 290.
  42. ↑ Ḥillī, Kanz al-ʿirfān, vol. 2, p. 290.
  43. ↑ Mufīd, al-Muqniʿa, p. 524; Ṭūsī, al-Nihāya, p. 525.
  44. ↑ Muḥaqqiq al-Ḥillī, Sharāʾiʿ al-Islām, vol. 3, p. 49.
  45. ↑ Ḥillī, Tabṣirat al-mutaʿallimīn, p. 149; Muḥaqqiq al-Ḥillī, Sharāʾiʿ al-Islām, vol. 3, p. 49; Anṣārī, Ṣīgh al-ʿuqūd wa l-īqāʿāt, p. 165.
  46. ↑ Sharīf al-Murtaḍā, al-Intiṣār, p. 323.
  47. ↑ Khomeinī, Taḥrīr al-wasīla, vol. 2, p. 338.
  48. ↑ Mufīd, al-Muqniʿa, p. 524; Ṭūsī, al-Nihāya, p. 526.
  49. ↑ Ṭabarsī, Tafsīr jawāmiʿ al-jāmiʿ, vol. 4, p. 256; Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 19, p. 179.
  50. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 23, p. 413.
  51. ↑ Qarāʾatī, Tafsīr-i nūr, vol. 9, p. 503.
  52. ↑ Mufīd, al-Muqniʿa, pp. 524–525; Sallār al-Daylamī, al-Marāsim al-ʿAlawiyya, p. 160.
  53. ↑ Muḥaqqiq al-Ḥillī, Sharāʾiʿ al-Islām, vol. 3, p. 49; Shahīd al-Awwal, al-Lumʿa al-Dimashqiyya, p. 201; Ḥillī, Kanz al-ʿirfān, vol. 2, p. 290.
  54. ↑ Muḥaqqiq Dāmād, Qawāʿid-i fiqh, vol. 3, p. 229.
  55. ↑ Khomeinī, Taḥrīr al-wasīla, vol. 2, p. 339.

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