Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Assalam-Alaikum Wa Rehmatuallahi Wa Barakatahu,

Dear Brother, a friend of mine has this question. I felt it better to consult you for the right answer rather than giving an inaccurate answer:

(1) Islam allows a woman to stay in a separate house with her husband, away from her in-laws if she wishes so. And Islam makes it obligatory for the husband to listen to this desire of his wife if she wants to stay separately. Is this true? Please confirm..

(2) If the above is true, what happens to the parents if they do not have any other child? It is highly impractical that the son will stay separately with his wife and yet look after his old parents. We all know that just providing monetary support is not sufficient. How does he tackle this situation?

May Allah Bless You For Your Good Work,,,, (Aameen),,,,

Take care. Please pray for us. Allah hafiz,

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Wife has right to live in separate house with husband

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Your statement: Islam allows a woman to stay in a separate house with her husband, away from her in-laws if she wishes so. And Islam makes it obligatory for the husband to listen to this desire of his wife if she wants to stay separately. Is this true? Please confirm..

It is indeed true that amongst the many rights given to the wife in Islam, one of them is that if she desires and so wishes, she may demand that her husband arrange for a separate house for her to live in away from her in-laws. The husband must try his best to fulfill this demand and right of his wife to the best of his ability.

Your statement: If the above is true, what happens to the parents if they do not have any other child? It is highly impractical that the son will stay separately with his wife and yet look after his old parents. We all know that just providing monetary support is not sufficient. How does he tackle this situation?

If one has one or both parents alive, and the wife demands to live separately from her in-laws; it is the duty of the husband to comply with his wife’s demand. But at the same time, he must balance the rights that are due to his parents.

The wife has a right to demand a house of her own separate from her in-laws, but she does not have a right to demand that her husband leave his family and live with her! The way the husband could balance his duty and give both, his parents and his wife, their rights, is to stay with his parents and attend to their needs; and regularly visit his wife and attend to her needs. He must fulfill his duties and give both, his parents and his wife, their rights without compromising the rights of the other.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan