❖ Source:
This ruling is taken from the book “500 Questions & Answers for Women”, a compilation of fatwas by the Scholars of the Ḥaramayn, translated by Ḥāfiẓ ʿAbdullāh Salīm.
✿ Question:
Is it permissible for a woman not to remarry after the death of her first husband? And is it permissible for a man to command his wife that if he dies before her, she must not remarry?
✿ Answer:
It is not permissible for a woman to abstain from remarrying after the death of her husband, as doing so is not legislated in Islam. This restriction was specific only to the wives of the Prophet ﷺ.
Likewise, it is not permissible for a man to stipulate or command that his wife should not marry another man after his death, nor is it obligatory for the woman to obey him in such a matter.
This is because of the statement of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ:
«إِنَّمَا الطَّاعَةُ فِي الْمَعْرُوفِ»
“Obedience is only in that which is good.”
[Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 6726 | Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 180]
Hence, obedience in matters of sin or that which contradicts Islamic law is not obligatory. A woman may remarry if she wishes, and no one has the right to prevent her from doing so after the completion of her ʿiddah.
[Saudi Fatwa Committee]