Bringing the bride to her husband

It is narrated from Ikrimah and Abu Yazid al-Madini (may Allah have mercy on them both) that when Sayyidah Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with her) was sent off to the house of Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) sent a message to Ali (may Allah be pleased with him): "Do not go near your wife until I come to you." The female narrator relates: Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came and called for water; he (peace and blessings be upon him) recited over it whatever supplication Allah willed, and then sprinkled that water on the chest and face of Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) called Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with her), and she came stumbling in her garment out of shyness and modesty, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) sprinkled water on her too. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) looked, and there seemed to be a shadowy figure behind the house. He (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "Who is this?" Sayyidah Asma (may Allah be pleased with her) said: It is me. He (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "Are you Asma bint Umays?" She said: Yes. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Have you come with the daughter of the Messenger of Allah to honour and attend to her?" I said: Yes. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) made a supplication for me which in my view is more precious than all my deeds. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O Fatimah! I have spared no effort in marrying you to the one of my family who is most beloved to me." Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) came out and said to Ali (may Allah be pleased with him): "Now take care of your wife." Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) turned towards his apartment and kept supplicating for the two of them until he entered his blessed apartment.
I (Ibn Hajar) say: All the narrators of this narration are thiqat (trustworthy); however, Asma bint Umays was at that time, without any disagreement, in the land of Abyssinia with her husband Ja'far (may Allah be pleased with him), so it is most likely that this was her sister Salma bint Umays, who was the wife of Sayyiduna Hamzah bin Abd al-Muttalib (may Allah be pleased with him).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him) that a man came into the blessed presence of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said that a woman has greatly appealed to me but she is barren; shall I marry her? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "No." At this the man held back, but then his heart grew restless with desire for that woman, so he came again to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah! That woman and her beauty appeal to me greatly, her coquettish manner and her bearing please me; so shall I marry her? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "No! A black woman who bears many children is far better in my view than her (this beautiful barren woman); do you not know that on the Day of Resurrection I will take pride before the other nations in your great numbers? So the children of the Muslims (who died in childhood) will be brought holding on to the hems of their fathers, and it will be said to them: Enter Paradise; until I will see the miscarried child (al-siqt), who will be sitting stubbornly in a state of anger (refusing to go in without his parents), and it will be said to him: Enter Paradise! He will say: O my Lord! What about my parents? Then Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, will say: Enter Paradise yourself, and let your parents enter Paradise too."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Leave the beautiful but barren woman (and do not marry her), and hold fast to the dark-skinned (black) woman who bears many children, for I will take pride (on the Day of Resurrection) before the other nations in your great numbers, so much so that even the child who was born prematurely (incomplete) and died will stop stubbornly (with insistence) at the gate of Paradise; it will be said to him: 'Enter Paradise!' and he will say: '(I will not go in) until my parents enter along with me.'"

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ka'b bin Ujrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Shall I not tell you about those of your women who are among the people of Paradise? The woman who is intensely loving (towards her husband) and bears many children, and who is such (patient and conciliatory) that if she has wronged (her husband) or has been wronged herself, she (comes to her husband and) says: 'La adhuqu ghamdan hatta tarda', meaning: I will not taste the pleasure of sleep until you are pleased with me."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever marries has indeed been granted double (twofold) the virtue and blessing of worship."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Najih al-Sulami (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever has the ability and means to marry and yet does not marry has nothing to do with us (that is, with our way and Sunnah)."

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ubayd bin Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever loves my fitrah (the natural religion) should follow my Sunnah, and indeed marriage is part of my Sunnah."

It is narrated from Imam Tawus (may Allah have mercy on him) that he said: "A young man's worship, abstinence and piety do not reach completion until he is joined in the bond of marriage."
What is meant by this saying is that during youth marriage is a strong shield of protection against the desires of the self and against temptations; and as long as a person has not safeguarded his chastity and purity through marriage, his acts of worship do not acquire the composure of heart and spiritual maturity that are the aim of servitude. That is why marriage holds fundamental importance for building a righteous society and for attaining individual piety.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Talhah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "O young men of Quraysh, do not commit fornication (zina); remember that whoever's youth remains safe (from the stain of sins) will enter Paradise."

It is narrated from Atiyyah bin Busr that Sayyiduna Attaf bin Wada'ah al-Hilali (may Allah be pleased with him) came into the noble presence of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he (peace and blessings be upon him) asked him: "O Attaf, do you have a wife?" He replied: No. He (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "And not even a slave-woman?" He replied: No. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "And you are healthy and well-off?" He replied: Yes, 'Alhamdu lillah' (all praise is for Allah). Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Then you are one of the brothers of the devils; either you adopt the monasticism of the Christians, in which case you will be counted among them, or, if you are one of us, then do as we do, for marriage is part of our Sunnah.
The worst of you are your unmarried ones, and the lowest of your dead are those who died unmarried; indeed Satan has no weapon more effective against righteous men than women, except against those who are married, for they are the ones who are purified and kept free from obscenity and indecency.
Woe to you, O Attaf! Indeed these (women) are the companions of Dawud, Ayyub and Yusuf (peace be upon them), and the companions of Kursuf.
May mercy be upon you, O Attaf! Marry, for you are among those who should be a means of increase (of the human race)." Attaf (may Allah be pleased with him) said: O Messenger of Allah, I will not marry until you yourself marry me to whomever you wish. Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I have married you, in the name of Allah Almighty and with His blessing, 'ala ismillahi ta'ala wa barakatihi' (in the name of Allah Almighty and with His blessing), to Karimah bint Kulthum al-Himyari."