Hadith 4574

حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الْعَزِيزِ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ، حَدَّثَنَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ سَعْدٍ ، عَنْ صَالِحِ بْنِ كَيْسَانَ ، عَنْ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ ، قَالَ : أَخْبَرَنِي عُرْوَةُ بْنُ الزُّبَيْرِ ، أَنَّهُ سَأَلَ عَائِشَةَ ، عَنْ قَوْلِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى وَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلَّا تُقْسِطُوا فِي الْيَتَامَى سورة النساء آية 3 ، فَقَالَتْ : " يَا ابْنَ أُخْتِي ، هَذِهِ الْيَتِيمَةُ تَكُونُ فِي حَجْرِ وَلِيِّهَا ، تَشْرَكُهُ فِي مَالِهِ وَيُعْجِبُهُ مَالُهَا وَجَمَالُهَا ، فَيُرِيدُ وَلِيُّهَا أَنْ يَتَزَوَّجَهَا بِغَيْرِ أَنْ يُقْسِطَ فِي صَدَاقِهَا ، فَيُعْطِيَهَا مِثْلَ مَا يُعْطِيهَا غَيْرُهُ ، فَنُهُوا عَنْ أَنْ يَنْكِحُوهُنَّ إِلَّا أَنْ يُقْسِطُوا لَهُنَّ ، وَيَبْلُغُوا لَهُنَّ أَعْلَى سُنَّتِهِنَّ فِي الصَّدَاقِ ، فَأُمِرُوا أَنْ يَنْكِحُوا مَا طَابَ لَهُمْ مِنَ النِّسَاءِ سِوَاهُنَّ ، قَالَ عُرْوَةُ : قَالَتْ عَائِشَةُ : " وَإِنَّ النَّاسَ اسْتَفْتَوْا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ بَعْدَ هَذِهِ الْآيَةِ ، فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ وَيَسْتَفْتُونَكَ فِي النِّسَاءِ سورة النساء آية 127 ، قَالَتْ عَائِشَةُ : وَقَوْلُ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى فِي آيَةٍ أُخْرَى : وَتَرْغَبُونَ أَنْ تَنْكِحُوهُنَّ سورة النساء آية 127 رَغْبَةُ أَحَدِكُمْ عَنْ يَتِيمَتِهِ حِينَ تَكُونُ قَلِيلَةَ الْمَالِ وَالْجَمَالِ ، قَالَتْ : " فَنُهُوا أَنْ يَنْكِحُوا عَنْ مَنْ رَغِبُوا فِي مَالِهِ وَجَمَالِهِ فِي يَتَامَى النِّسَاءِ إِلَّا بِالْقِسْطِ ، مِنْ أَجْلِ رَغْبَتِهِمْ عَنْهُنَّ إِذَا كُنَّ قَلِيلَاتِ الْمَالِ وَالْجَمَالِ " .
Narrated `Urwa bin Az-Zubair: That he asked `Aisha regarding the Statement of Allah: "If you fear that you shall not be able to deal justly with the orphan girls..." (4.3) She said, "O son of my sister! An Orphan girl used to be under the care of a guardian with whom she shared property. Her guardian, being attracted by her wealth and beauty, would intend to marry her without giving her a just Mahr, i.e. the same Mahr as any other person might give her (in case he married her). So such guardians were forbidden to do that unless they did justice to their female wards and gave them the highest Mahr their peers might get. They were ordered (by Allah, to marry women of their choice other than those orphan girls." `Aisha added," The people asked Allah's Messenger his instructions after the revelation of this Divine Verse whereupon Allah revealed: "They ask your instruction regarding women " (4.127) `Aisha further said, "And the Statement of Allah: "And yet whom you desire to marry." (4.127) as anyone of you refrains from marrying an orphan girl (under his guardianship) when she is lacking in property and beauty." `Aisha added, "So they were forbidden to marry those orphan girls for whose wealth and beauty they had a desire unless with justice, and that was because they would refrain from marrying them if they were lacking in property and beauty."
Hadith Reference صحيح البخاري / كتاب تفسير القرآن / 4574
Hadith Grading محدثین: أحاديث صحيح البخاريّ كلّها صحيحة
Explanation & Benefits
Shaykh Abdul Sattar al-Hammad
Hadith Commentary:

In this hadith, it is mentioned that Aisha (radi Allahu anha) cited the following verse:
﴿وَيَسْتَفْتُونَكَ فِي النِّسَاءِ﴾
After mentioning this, she said:
In another verse, Allah the Exalted says:
﴿وَتَرْغَبُونَ أَن تَنكِحُوهُنَّ﴾
Although both of these statements of Allah the Exalted are part of the same verse, in reality, the narration of Imam Bukhari rahimahullah is concise, whereas Imam Muslim rahimahullah has clarified that Aisha (radi Allahu anha) referred to:
﴿وَتَرْغَبُونَ أَن تَنكِحُوهُنَّ﴾
not in relation to ﴿وَيَسْتَفْتُونَكَ فِي النِّسَاءِ﴾, but rather as the "second verse" in relation to the opening verse of Surah An-Nisa:
﴿وَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلَّا تُقْسِطُوا فِي الْيَتَامَى﴾
(Sahih Muslim, Al-Tafsir, Hadith: 7528.
(3018)

In any case, in this noble verse, the guardians of orphan girls are prohibited from both types of injustice: whether the woman is of lesser beauty and wealth or is wealthy and beautiful, in both cases, if you are able to fulfill their rights, then marry them yourselves; otherwise, marry them to others.
Do not become an obstacle in between.
From this hadith, it is also understood that a guardian may himself marry the woman under his care.
Source: Hidayat al-Qari: Commentary on Sahih Bukhari, Urdu, Page: 4574