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 wish to know if a person can marry a woman keeping an intension to divorce her later in life if situations become bad.Will such marraige be valid in the light of islam? 

(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:

Marriage with intention to divorce

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.

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: Will such marraige be valid in the light of islam? 

The intentions of the hearts are known either to the one who makes them or to The Lord All-Knowing Alone….thus as long as all the obligatory conditions of a ‘nikaah’ are appropriately and duely honored, regardless of whatever intentions the husband might have in his heart regarding divorce at the time of marriage, the ‘nikaah’ itself will be considered valid and lawful in the Sight of Shariah Law.

If a person marries a woman with the intention of divorcing her the next moment or the next day or even later in life…..provided all the obligatory conditions of a ‘nikaah’ are fulfilled, the marriage itself would be deemed lawful and valid in Shariah……but obviously such an intention on the part of the husband would not constitute piety and righteousness in the Sight of Allah Subhanah.

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