We have said that the dower and the maintenance are a cause and the peculiar position of woman with regard to inheritance is its effect. This point is not a new discovery. It came up even in the early days of Islam.
In the second century of the Hijri era there lived a man named Ibn Abi al-'Awja, who did not believe in religion. Taking advantage of the religious freedom of that period, he openly gave expression to his atheistic ideas. Sometimes he even came to the Masjid al-Haram (in Mecca) or Masjid al-Nabi (in Madina) and engaged in arguments on the principles of Islam with the scholars of that time. One of his objections against Islam concerned inheritance. He used to say: "What is the fault of the poor woman that she gets one share whereas the man gets two". According to him, this was injustice to woman, the Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq (P), in reply to him, said that it was so, because woman was exempted from performing military service. Further, Islam had enjoined upon man to pay her dower and maintenance and, in certain criminal cases where the kinsmen of the offender had to contribute to the blood-money, she was exempted from such payment. These were the reasons why her share had been reduced. Thus Imam Sadiq expressly attributed woman's peculiar position, with regard to inheritance, to the existence of the law regarding dower and maintenance and her exemption from military service and the payment of blood- money.
The other Imams also answered likewise when a similar question was put to them
Divorce
DIVORCE - I
In no age other than ours has so much attention been paid to the danger of the disintegration of the family and its harmful consequences, and again, in no age other than ours has man been faced with the real danger of such a disintegration.
THE GROWTH OF DIVORCE IN MODERN LIFE
In the past much attention was not paid to the problem of divorce, its causes and its harmful effects, nor were any measures devised to prevent its incidence, yet the cases of divorce were few and far between. There is no doubt that the difference between the past and the present is due to the fact that now the causes, which lead to divorce, have increased. The social life has taken such a turn that now there are more chances of the disruption of the family bond, and that is why the efforts of the intellectuals and the public-spirited people have, so far, borne no fruit. Regrettably, the future bodes more danger.
The American magazine, 'Newsweek' in an interesting article under the heading, 'Divorce in America', writes that it is easier in America, to get a divorce than to get a taxi.
'Newsweek' further writes that two proverbs about divorce are better known among the American people than any other. One is that "the hardest conciliation between husband and wife is better than divorce". It is 400 years old. The other which represents a diametrically opposite view has gained currency during the second-half of the 20th century. It says that "the second love is more pleasant than the first".
The article shows that the second proverb is more operative in America. The illusion of divorce attracts to itself, not only the newly-wed, but even their mothers, and the couple who were married a long time ago. Since the Second World War onward, on an average, the number of cases of divorce has not been less than 400,000 per annum. Out of the dissolved marriages, 40% had remained intact for 10 years or more and 13% for more than 20 years. The average age of two million women divorces was 45 years. Some 62% of them had children under 18 at the time of the dissolution of their marriages. These women, in fact form a special generation.
Though the American woman feels quite free after divorce, yet the divorced, whether young or the middle- aged, are not happy. Their unhappiness can be gauged from the ever-increasing number of women who call on the psychiatrists or have recourse to alcoholism. Out of every four women divorcees, one is an alcoholic. The average cases of suicide among these women are three times more than among women having husbands. In short as soon as a woman comes victorious out of a divorce court she realises that life after divorce is not a bed of roses. The world can hardly have a good opinion of a woman who dissolves her marriage, the strongest form of human relationship. Society may respect such a woman and even envy her, but cannot look upon her as a person who entered the life of another and brought about happiness.
In the course of this article in Newsweek the question has been raised whether the ever-growing cases of divorce are mostly due to temperamental incompatibility between husband and wife, or some other causes. The writer of the article says that even if incompatibility is accepted to be the cause of separation among the newly-wed couples, how can one explain the cases of those who had been leading a married life for a long time. Taking into consideration the facilities which the American law provides in connection with divorce it may be said that incompatibility is not the reason of separation in the case of a marriage which has lasted out for 10 or 20 years. In the age of contraceptive pills, sexual revolution and improvement in their legal status, many women have come to believe that delight and pleasure are preferable to the stability of married life. You often see that a husband and a wife live together for years, have children, share each others' joy and grief and then suddenly the wife seeks a divorce, without any palpable change having taken place in the material or conventional position of the husband. The reason is that, till yesterday, the woman was willing to bear the boredom of life, but today she is not inclined to do so.
The increase in the cases of divorce is not confined to America. Wherever the modern Western ways have permeated to a considerable degree, the figures of divorce have gone up. Even in the East, divorce is far more common in the modernised big cities than in the small towns and the countryside.
THE DIVORCE-GENERATING ATMOSPHERE OF AMERICA
We have already quoted Newsweek as saying that the American woman gives preference to merry-making over the stability of domestic life. Now let us take a step forward and see why she has adopted such an attitude. It is certain that this attitude is not natural and inherent. It has certain social reasons behind it. It is the American atmosphere which has given this mentality to the American woman. Some Westerners are working hard to push the woman of the East to the way the American women have gone. If they succeed, the fate of the Eastern woman and the Eastern family will not be different from that of the American woman and the American family.
A prominent French daily writes that in more than 200 restaurants and cabaret houses in California waitresses work in topless outfits. The topless swimming costume has been recognised as the working-dress in San Francisco and Los Angeles. In the city of New York there are many cinema halls which show only sexy films and the nude pictures of women can be seen displayed in front of their entrances. The names of sexy films are of this kind: "The men who swap their wives", "The girls who are immoral", 'The dress which does not hide anything". ~ the libraries there are very few fiction books which do not bear a nude photo of a woman on their covers. Even the classical books are no exception. Such titles as "Sexual Behaviour of American Husbands", "Sexual Behaviour of a Man of the West", ' Sexual Behaviour of Young Men Below 20", "New Sexual Methods Based on the Latest Information", are very common. The writer of the article in the French daily asks with surprise and apprehension: "Whither America?"
In such an atmosphere, if the American woman has lost her balance and gives preference to pleasure-seeking over faithfulness to her husband and family she is not to blame. It is the social atmosphere which has struck at the very root of the sacred family system.
It is surprising that the leaders of our age give, on the one hand, an impetus to the causes of divorce and the disintegration of family life and, on the other, raise a hue and cry that the rate of divorce has gone up so high. This is just like putting a man to sweep a chimney and then asking him not to stain his clothes.
FIVE THEORIES
Now let us see whether, in principle, divorce is good or bad.
The question is whether it is good to keep the door to divorce wide open, even at the risk of the disintegration of family life? If it is good, there is no harm if the rate of divorce goes up. In case, however it is not advisable, should a total ban be imposed on divorce, and conjugal union be made eternal? The third alternative is that divorce should not be banned legally, for in certain circumstances it is unavoidable, but at the same time society should take every possible action to do away with the causes of friction and separation between the husbands and the wives, and save the children from becoming homeless. Obviously, the law can do nothing if society itself encourages the causes which lead to divorce.
If divorce is not to be totally banned, in what form should it be allowed? Who should exercise the right of divorce, should only man or only woman, or both? In the last alternative, should man and woman have the same procedure for severing the bond of marriage, or should each sex have a separate procedure?
In all, these are the five theories in respect of divorce:
(1) Free divorce without any legal or moral restriction. There are those who look at marriage only from a viewpoint of pleasure-seeking; who attach no sanctity to it; and who do not take into consideration the social value of home and family. They think that the sooner the bonds of marriage are removed and replaced, the more pleasure will be afforded to man and woman. He who says that the second love is more pleasant supports this theory. In this theory not only has the social value of the family been forgotten, but also the delight and satisfaction, which the stability of a conjugal union affords, has been ignored. So, this theory is the most puerile and immature.
(2) Marriage is a sacred undertaking. It is a union of hearts and souls which must be kept safe and intact. The word divorce should be expunged from the dictionary of human society. The woman and the man who marry each other should know that, except for death, nothing can separate them.
This is the same theory, which for centuries has been advocated by the Catholic Church, and is still being advocated.
The supporters of this theory are on the decrease in the world. Now only Italy and the Catholic Spain adhere to it. We often hear that, even in Italy, men and women are raising their voices against this law and efforts are being made that the law of divorce should be officially recognised. Many people are no longer willing to continue to suffer the boredom of their unsuccessful marriages.
Some years ago, the Daily Express published an article under the heading, "Marriage in Italy Means Bondage for Woman". This article said that, at present, owing to the non-existence of divorce, many people in Italy have to resort to unlawful sexual relations. More than five million Italians believed that their lives were nothing but sin.
An Italian daily wrote that the prohibition of divorce had created a big problem for the Italian people. Many of them had renounced their Italian nationality for that very reason. When an Italian agency organised an opinion-poll, 97% of the women replied in the negative to the question whether divorce was repugnant to the religious principles.
Still the Church sticks to its view and continues to adduce arguments in support of it.
There is no doubt that marriage is a sacred bond and it should be lasting and durable. But it can last only as long as both the spouses co-operate with each other. There are situations when a mutual understanding between a wife and her husband is not possible. In such circumstances the forces of law cannot be used to keep them attached to each other in the name of a conjugal bond. The theory of the Church has been a complete failure. It is not unlikely that the Church itself may be compelled soon to revise its views. Hence, we need not discuss this theory any further.
(3) Marriage is dissoluble by man and not by woman. In the ancient world many people held such a view, but now we do not think it has any supporters. So we need not discuss it also.
(4) Marriage is a sacred institution and the domestic system is respectable, but the way to divorce, with certain conditions, should be open to both the spouses and the procedure of dissolving a marriage should be the same for both of them.
The upholders of similarity of family rights, wrongly called equality of rights between man and woman, support this theory. According to these people the same conditions, the same limits and the same restrictions as exist in the case of woman, should also exist in the case of man and the same ways, to get out of the deadlock, as are open to man should be open to woman also. They reject any other solution, which is unjust and discriminating.
(5) No doubt the marriage institution is sacred, the domestic system is respectable, divorce is abominable and it is an essential duty of society to remove the causes which lead to divorce, yet divorce cannot be totally banned and the way out of a deadlock must be kept open to both man and woman. Anyhow, the procedure to be adopted for the dissolution of marriage should be different in their respective cases. Divorce is one of the instances of dissimilar rights of man and woman.
This is the theory which represents the Islamic point of view, and the Muslim countries are partially following it.
DIVORCE (II)
In our age divorce has become a world problem as all grumble and complain about it. Those whose laws prohibit divorce totally complain of the non-existence of a way to escape from unsuccessful and unsuitable marriages. On the other hand, those who have opened the door of divorce, equally for both man and woman, complain about the growing rate of divorce and the instability of domestic life, and its harmful effects. Those who have given the right of divorce to men only express their dissatisfaction on two accounts:
Firstly, some mean people, after years of married life, unexpectedly divorce their old wives who had spent the best part of their youth with them, simply because they suddenly feel eager to have a new wife.
Secondly, some unchivalrous people refuse to divorce a wife, with whom there is absolutely no possibility of a mutual understanding and a continued joint life.
It often happens that, for some reasons, the differences between a husband and a wife reach such a stage that no possibility of reconciliation is left, and they practically separate from each other. In such circumstances, the only sensible way is to sever, legally, the relations which have already been practically severed, and to allow both of them to choose new partners-in-life. But some men, to harass their wives and to deprive them of enjoying a conjugal life, decline to divorce them. They leave the woman, in the words of the Qur'an, "in a state of hanging".
Such people are far away from the teachings of Islam, though they use the authority of the Islamic law for their improper behaviour. Their conduct gives an impression to those who are not acquainted with the depth and the spirit of the teachings of Islam, that this is the way Islam wants divorce to be.
The critics ask sarcastically whether Islam has really allowed men to harass their wives as much as they like, sometimes by divorcing them and sometimes withholding divorce, and at the same time to have the mental satisfaction that they have only used their lawful and legal right.
The critics say that such an action constitutes a glaring example of injustice and cruelty. They ask "If it is true, as the Muslims claim, that the Islamic laws have been organised on the basis of justice and righteousness, what measures have Islam taken to prevent this kind of injustice?"
About the cruelty and injustice of such acts there can be no doubt. Islam, as we shall show, has taken cognisance of this situation and has thought of measures to counteract it. The important question is: What is the proper way of preventing this injustice and cruelty? Are the acts of injustice due to any inherent defect in the law of divorce, or should their real cause be looked for somewhere else? Can they be stopped by modifying the law or are some other measures required?
Islam has its own view as to the solution of the social problems. Some people think that they can be solved either by framing a new law or by changing the existing one. But Islam realises that a law has its own limits. It can be effective only within the range of the dry contractual relations. As for the sentimental relations, it alone cannot do much, and we should have recourse to other measures also.
As we shall show latter, Islam has fully utilised the force of law as far as it can be effective. It has not failed in this respect.
IGNOBLE DIVORCES
First, we take up the present day problem of ignoble divorces.
As a matter of principle, Islam is strongly opposed to divorce. It wants that it should not take place as far as practicable. It allows it only as a last resort in the cases where separation is unavoidable. Those who frequently take a new wife and divorce the old one are denounced by Islam as the enemies of Allah.
The well-known book of traditions, al-Kafi, narrates the following story:
The Holy Prophet asked a man: "What have you done with your wife?"
"I have divorced her", he said.
'Did you find her doing anything wrong?"
"No, I didn't"
The man married again. The Holy Prophet asked him:
"Have you taken another wife in marriage?
"Yes".
Some time later, the Holy Prophet asked him again:
"What have you done with the new wife?"
"I have divorced her".
"Had she done anything wrong?"
"No. She hadn't".
The man married a third time. The Prophet asked him again if he had taken in marriage a new wife. He replied in the affirmative.
After some time the Prophet asked him again:
"What have you done with this wife?"
"I have divorced her also".
"Did you find anything wrong with her?"
No, I didn't"
The Holy Prophet said that Allah dislikes and hates the man who regularly changes his wives, and the woman who regularly changes her husbands. Such people are the enemies of Allah.
It was reported to the Holy Prophet that Abu Ayyub Ansari had decided to divorce his wife. The Prophet knew the woman personally. He also knew that Abu Ayyub's decision was not justified. He said: "Divorcing Umme Ayyub (Abu Ayyub's wife) is a deadly sin".
The Holy Prophet said that Gabriel had exhorted and counselled him so much in respect of women that he felt that it was not permissible to divorce a woman, except when she was guilty of adultery.
Imam Sadiq (P) has reported that the Holy Prophet said:
"There is nothing more pleasing to Allah than the house where a marriage takes place, and nothing is more displeasing to Him than the house where it is severed by divorce"
Imam Sadiq (P) has also said that the word 'divorce' has been mentioned in the Qur'an time and again and its details have been given because Allah hates separation of couples.
AI-Tabarsi in the Makarim al-Aklaq has quoted the Prophet as saying: "Do marry but do not divorce, for divorce shakes the throne of Allah".
Imam Sadiq (P) has said: "No permissible act is more displeasing to Allah than divorce. Allah dislikes those who resort to divorce again and again".
Similar traditions are found in the Sunni books also. Abu Daud in his book, 'Sunan' has reported the Prophet as having said: "Allah has not permitted anything more hateful than divorce' . In other words, though Allah has permitted divorce, He dislikes it the most.
The great religious leaders (Imams) have abstained from divorcing, as far as possible. In their lives the cases of divorce were extremely rare. They resorted to such an action only when they had very solid grounds for it. For instance, Imam Baqir (P) married a woman. She became his favourite, but on one occasion he noticed that the woman was inimical to Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib and cherished malice against him in her heart. He had to divorce her.
In reply to the question as to why he had divorced her when he liked her so much, the Imam said that he did not want to have a piece of the fire of Hell by his side.
A BASELESS RUMOUR
It is worthwhile to refer here to a baseless rumour fabricated by the unscrupulous Abbasid caliphs. It gained so much currency that it was recorded by a number of prominent writers in their books. According to this rumour, Imam Hasan Mujtaba (P), son of Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib (P) was one of those who took many wives and divorced them. The rumour was spread nearly a century after the demise of the Imam. It was given currency so vehemently that even many of his devotees believed it, without paying attention to the fact that such an obnoxious act was not worthy of the great Imam and could not be expected of a person who used to go on pilgrimage on foot, and who, more than twenty times, distributed 50% of his entire wealth and property among the poor.
As we know, unlike the descendants of Imam Husayn (P) who were headed at that time by Imam Sadiq (P), the descendants of Imam Hasan (P) co-operated with the Abbasids, during their insurrection against the Umayyads. In the beginning the Abbasids acknowledged their fidelity and devotion to the descendants of Imam Hasan (P), but on becoming successful in seizing power, they betrayed them and put most of them out of their way, either by killing them or by imprisoning them. In pursuance of their policy, the Abbasids started a propaganda campaign against the descendants of Imam Hasan (P), in the course of which they invented many calumnies, one of them being the charge that Imam Hasan's grandfather and the Holy Prophet's uncle, Abu Talib (P), did not embrace Islam and died as an infidel. They wanted to bring out that they themselves, being the descendants of the Prophet's other uncle, who had embraced Islam, were more deserving of being the caliphs. To achieve their purpose they spent huge amounts of money and fabricated a number of stories. A section of the Sunnis, influenced by this propaganda, still believes that Abu Talib was a disbeliever. Though the latest research by some Sunni scholars have clarified the position to a great extent, yet some doubts still linger among a section of them.
Another calumny, fabricated by the Abbasids, was that Imam Hasan (P) succeeded to the caliphate after his father, but, being a licentious person, he could not acquit himself well and had to surrender the caliphate to his keenest rival, Mu'awiyah, from whom he took money, and made himself busy with marrying and divorcing.
Luckily, the research scholars of our age have exposed the source of this fabrication. The first known person who uttered this lie was a Qazi appointed by Caliph Mansur, and detailed by him to concoct and spread rumours against the Imam. A historian, commenting on this lie, observes that if it is true that Imam Hasan (P) took so many women in marriage, then where are his children? Why is their number so small? After all, the Imam was not sterile and contraception and abortion also was not customary at that time.
We wonder at the simplicity of some of the compilers of the Shi'ah traditions. How could they write that Imam Hasan (P) was in the habit of divorcing women, when they themselves report that the Holy Prophet and the Imams have said that Allah dislikes and denounces a man who habitually divorces their wives. It never occurred to these gentlemen that they had to choose one out of the following three alternatives: (i) Divorce is not a bad thing; (ii) Imam Hasan (P) was not a habitual divorcer or (ii) Imam Hasan (P) did not adhere to the teachings of Islam. But they, strangely, not only believe in the authenticity of the traditions, saying that divorce is detestable to Allah, but also, at the same time, despite being devotees of the Imam, quote the reports that he was a habitual divorcer. They skip over such reports without making any comments on them.
Some of the traditionalists have gone to such an extent that they have reported that Imam Ali (P) was not happy with the way his son behaved. In a public speech he asked the people not to give their daughters in marriage to him, for he was in the habit of divorcing them. But, it is said, the people replied that it was a matter of pride for them that their daughters could become the marriage-partners of a descendant of the Prophet even for a short time.
It appears that some people are of the opinion that divorce is not bad, if the woman concerned and her family consent to it. They think that divorce is loathsome only if the other party does not agree to it, but there can be no objection to it if the woman is content to pass only a few days with the man in whom she takes pride.
Anyhow, that is not the real position. The consent of the woman or her parents does not mitigate the detestableness of divorce. It is detestable because Islam wants marriage to be lasting and the family life to be stable. The consent of the couple concerned does not make the position any different. Islam does not consider divorce to be loathsome only for the sake of any particular class of women. It is a matter of principle.
We have dealt with the question of Imam Hasan (P), not only with a view to repeating a false historical charge against a historical personality, but so to warn those unconscientious people who may indulge in such acts and then to justify their behaviour, may try to cite Imam Hasan (P) as an authority.
There is no denying the fact that divorce as such is loathsome and detestable in Islam.
