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:

I m married for past 10 years n have 2 kids. recently i learnt tht my husband has slept with not just another female but also with shemale n gays. What does Islam say about such marriages. Please advice me asap. 

(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:

Adulterous impious 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 none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Your Question: What does Islam say about such marriages.

The one and only thing which breaks one’s ‘nikaah’ in Shariah is the establishment of divorce.

As grave and as heinous an abomination as ‘zina’ your husband might have committed, the crime of ‘zina’ by itself does not invalidate your ‘nikaah’ with your husband in the least. Rest absolutely assured sister, regardless of the enormity of the crime committed by your husband, you will remain in his ‘nikaah’ as long as he decides to divorce you, or you choose to divorce him.

Your Question: Please advice me asap. 

Respected sister in Islam, the time to thoroughly satisfy oneself with the character and the practice of religion of one’s husband is before one agrees to marry such a person, nor after one has married him! If you or your guardians did not take the required striving to investigate or had prior knowledge of your husband’s negligence in his practice of the ‘deen’, and you still chose to marry the person ….then obviously you have chosen to put yourself in a trial with your own hands and you have no one to blame but yourself for the condition you find yourself in!

If you believe that your husband fears Allah and the Last Day in some corner of his heart, but was swayed by emotion or circumstances to transgress the prescribed Boundaries of his Lord Creator….and you have hope that in due time he would one day turn back to his Lord Creator in repentance and amend his conduct….then it would only be prudent that you strive your absolute utmost, with extreme patience and wisdom, at every given opportunity to instill the fear of Allah Subahnah into him…..and thus save your marriage.

But if after your best striving there is absolutely no change in the conduct of your husband, or you have totally lost hope that he will ever turn to his Lord in ‘taubah’ and amend his conduct, or you find that his non-practice of the religion puts your own belief and your own practice of religion on trial ….you are obviously well within your rights to initiate a separation from such an impious husband through the institution of divorce.

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

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan