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:

Dear Brother in Islam,

One of my friend has been telling that a Girl/Woman who never gets married during her teen, in spite of repeatedly telling by her mother/father/brothers/sisters/relatives/and friends and for other reasons, is forbidden to Enter Heaven.

Please clarify me on this issue how far is this above statement in true.

Expecting to hear from your end at the earliest.

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:

Unmarried women will not enter paradise

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.

Firstly, the sacred institution of marriage is considered an extremely preferred Sunnah (voluntary act), and not a ‘Fard’ (obligatory act) in Shariah.

Thus as un-natural as remaining unmarried might be, if one chooses to remain unmarried for any reason, to the best of our knowledge we have not across anything in the authentic and established hadiths which declare that those who choose never to marry (man or woman) will be forbidden to enter Paradise!

Your friend who told you that unmarried woman will be forbidden to enter Paradise should be asked to provide evidence from the Quran or the Sunnah for her declaration! If she cannot provide the evidence for her declaration from the Quran or the Sunnah, and we assure you there is none, then know with absolute certainty that the declaration is a mere figment of her imagination and her invention and nothing to do with the Guidance of Truth revealed by Allah Subhanah!

If one trusts, obeys, and follows the guidance and commands of Allah and His Messenger (saws), one can be assured of never ever being misled; but if one believes, obeys and follows any other guidance, other than that of Allah and His Messenger (saws), one can be assured of being led astray.

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