Question:
A man whose marriage has passed about one year, later took his sister-in-law somewhere, and it has been about four years since then. His wife’s question is whether she can now remarry or should she remain as she is? Please inform in the light of the Quran and Sunnah.
Answer:
In our society, distancing from Shariah rulings and disregard for Islamic teachings is common; people are victims of misconduct. Transgressing the limits set by Allah is considered trivial. There is no adherence to modesty and hijab, (except what Allah wills), due to which the doors of evil keep opening, and mischief penetrates deeply into the veins. When a man marries in a household, it becomes his responsibility to maintain its sanctity. It is necessary to respect the sanctity of sisters-in-law and mothers-in-law, etc. Since generally, Shariah hijab is not observed, and sisters-in-law sit and converse with their brothers-in-law without hijab, even in privacy they talk to each other, and the common saying in society is “Sister-in-law is half of the house,” due to which Satan infiltrates, and instead of the wife, a man starts forming a relationship with the sister-in-law.
Firstly: We must strictly adhere to Shariah limits so that the door to evil does not open. Parents should also fulfill their duties and responsibilities and train their children on the right path, provide them with a clean and pure household environment, closely monitor their children regarding social evils, and not allow any kind of wickedness to establish itself in their home. A person who allows wickedness to establish in his home is initially considered a “dayyuth” (one who lacks protective jealousy). Such people will not enter Paradise, and on the Day of Judgment, Allah Almighty will not look upon them with mercy.
When we do not observe Shariah limits in our homes, situations like the mentioned incident arise, which later cause embarrassment and humiliation. Therefore, all parents must ensure that they keep the household environment pure, clean, and free from evil.
Secondly: Whoever commits evil with his sister-in-law or elopes with her is committing a great sin. No condemnation is enough for this heinous act. The person who commits such an act should immediately seek forgiveness from Allah Almighty and repent to have his sin forgiven.
Thirdly: This forbidden act does not affect the validity of his previous lawful and correct marriage according to the correct opinion. Ikramah narrates that Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them) said:
إذا زنى بأخت امرأته لم تحرم عليه امرأته
“When a man commits adultery with his wife’s sister, his wife does not become unlawful for him.”
Ata (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
عن ابن عباس فى رجل زنى بأخت امرأته تعدى حرمة إلى حرمة ولم تحرم عليه امرأته
“Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them) said about a man who committed adultery with his wife’s sister that he violated one prohibition by another prohibition, and his wife did not become unlawful for him.”
The author Ibn Abi Shaybah writes:
حاوز حرمتين إلى حرمة ولم تحرم عليه امرأته
“He violated two prohibitions, and his wife did not become unlawful for him.”
Allama Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) says: إسناده صحيح على شرط مسلم “Its chain is authentic according to the conditions of Sahih Muslim.”
In a narration reported by Yahya bin Umar from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them):
لا حرمتان أن يخطأهما ولا يحرمهما ذٰلك عليه
“(Whoever commits adultery with his mother-in-law or sister-in-law) has violated two prohibitions, and they did not make his wife unlawful for him.”
Allama Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) says هٰذا إسناد صحيح على شرط الشيخين “This chain is authentic according to the conditions of the two Sheikhs.”
There is also a narration from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) to the contrary, Imam Bukhari (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
ويذكر عن أبى نصر أن ابن عباس حرمه وأبو نصر هٰذا لم يعرف بسماعه من ابن عباس
“It is mentioned from Abu Nasr that Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) declared it unlawful, but Abu Nasr’s hearing from Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) is not established.”
Hafiz Ibn Hajar Asqalani (may Allah have mercy on him) writes that this statement was narrated by Sufyan Thawri in his Jami’.
Harith bin Abdul Rahman bin Abi Dhabab says:
سألت ابن المسيب وعروة بن الزبير عن الرجل يزني بالمرأة هل تحل له ابنتها فقالا لا يحرم الحرام الحلال
“I asked Saeed bin Al-Musayyib and Urwah bin Az-Zubair about a man who commits adultery with a woman, is it lawful for him to marry her daughter? Both said: ‘It is unlawful; the lawful does not become unlawful.'”
This narration is also present with a Hasan chain in Sunan Saeed bin Mansur
. Yazid Ar-Rashk says:
سألت سعيد بن المسيب عن رجل يفجر بأم امرأة فقال أما الأم فحرام وأما البنت فحلال
“I asked Saeed bin Al-Musayyib about a man who commits adultery with his wife’s mother, and he said: ‘The mother is unlawful, the daughter is lawful.'”
Yunus bin Yazid says that Imam Zahri was asked about a man who commits adultery with a woman, can he marry her daughter? He said:
قد قال بعض العلماء لا يفسد الله حلالا بحرام
“Some scholars have said that Allah does not make lawful things unlawful through unlawful means.”
Muammar narrates that Imam Zahri said:
إذا زنى الرجل بأخت امرأته فإنها لا تحرم عليه لا يحرم حرام حلالا
“If a man commits adultery with his sister-in-law, his wife does not become unlawful for him because the unlawful does not make the lawful unlawful.”
Imam Bukhari (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
وسمى زوجها سعيد بن المسيب وعروة والزهري (Sahih al-Bukhari, under Hadith (5105))
“It has been declared permissible by Saeed bin Al-Musayyib, Urwah, and Zahri.”
There are also some Marfoo’ narrations in this regard:
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:
لا يحرم الحرام الحلال
“The unlawful does not make the lawful unlawful.”
This chain is weak; Ishaq bin Muhammad al-Farawi is weak.
It is narrated from Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
لا يفسد الحلال بالحرام
“The lawful will not be corrupted by the unlawful.”
In its chain is Uthman bin Abdul Rahman al-Waqasi; Imam Bayhaqi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
تفرد به عثمان بن عبد الرحمن الواصي وهو ضعيف قاله يحيى بن معين وغيره من أئمة الحديث والصحيح عن ابن شهاب الزهري عن على رضى الله عنه مرسلا وموقوفا عنه، وعند بعض العلماء حديث عبد الله العمري أمثل والله أعلم
“Uthman bin Abdul Rahman al-Waqasi is unique and weak in narrating this hadith. This is the opinion of Yahya bin Ma’in and other hadith scholars. The correct view is that this narration is Marsool and Mauqoof from Ibn Shihab az-Zahri from Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). According to some scholars, the narration of Abdullah al-Umari is better, and Allah knows best.”
The narration of Abdullah al-Umari refers to the above-mentioned hadith of Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them), whose chain includes Abdullah bin Umar al-Umari.
Hafiz Ibn Hajar Asqalani (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
استاده أصلح من الأول
“The chain of the hadith narrated from Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) is more authentic than the hadith narrated from Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her).”
From studying the Holy Quran, it is understood that after mentioning the forbidden relationships by blood, in-laws, and breastfeeding, Allah Almighty says:
﴿وَأَحَلَّ لَكُمْ مَا وَرَاءَ ذَلِكُمْ﴾
“And all other relationships besides them are lawful for you.”
Since the Quran does not mention this relationship among the forbidden ones, why do we need to make it unlawful by far-fetched interpretations? The kinship by marriage (in-laws) mentioned in the Quran refers to the relationship that comes into effect after a lawful marriage contract. Declaring a lawful relationship unlawful solely due to adultery is an imposition because adultery and fornication do not establish rights such as dowry, waiting period, inheritance, etc. Hafiz Ibn Hajar Asqalani (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
“Those who declare it unlawful have been denied by the majority of the scholars of hadith. Their argument is that in Shariah, marriage applies to the contract, not just the guardian, and similarly, adultery does not establish rights like dowry, waiting period, or inheritance.”
Imam Ibn Abdul Barr (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
وقد أجمع أهل الفتوى من الأمصار على أنه لا يحرم على الزاني تزوج من زنى بها فتزوج أمها وبنتها أحق
“There is consensus among the muftis living in different cities that it is not unlawful for an adulterer to marry the woman with whom he committed adultery, so marrying her mother and daughter is absolutely permissible.”
From the above details, it is clear and evident that a person who elopes with his sister-in-law has committed a forbidden act, but due to this forbidden act, his wife does not become unlawful for him; he remains married to her. If the woman desires marriage elsewhere, she has the right to divorce her husband, observe the waiting period, and then marry elsewhere. The man should repent and seek forgiveness from Allah Almighty for his vile sin and impure act, leave the sister-in-law, and return to his wife. Those who declare it unlawful present a narration that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:
من نظر إلى فرج امرأة لم تحل له أمها ولا ابنتها
“Whoever looks at the private parts of a woman, her mother and daughter do not become lawful for him.”
Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) says: “This narration is weak; it has an unknown narrator in its chain.”
Imam Bayhaqi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
وهذا منقطع ومجهول وضعيف الحجاج بن أرطاة لا يحتج به فيما يرويه مسندا فكيف بما يرسله عمن لا يعرف والله أعلم
“This narration is disconnected, unknown, and weak. Hajjaj bin Arta’ah is not reliable in his narrated musnads, so how can his narrations from unknown narrators be reliable? (And Allah knows best).”
