Excerpt taken from the book “Aḥkām wa Masā’il – In the Light of the Qur’an and Sunnah” by Shaykh Mubashshir Ahmad Rabbānī
My father divorced my mother nearly three years ago and married another woman within the same week. My younger sister stayed with us for a few months but then went to live with our mother, who later arranged her marriage. Neither my father, myself, nor my younger brother were involved in this marriage. As a result, my father and I cut off ties with her. It has now been about one and a half to two years. My father and younger brother occasionally visit her. My questions are:
① Is my mother’s marriage valid?
② Is it permissible for my parents to continue interacting?
③ Is my sister’s marriage valid?
④ Is it permissible for us to meet our sister?
Your mother entered into another marriage within the same week after the divorce, which is strictly ḥarām (forbidden) and impermissible in Islam. This is because it is prohibited to marry during the ʿiddah (waiting period) after a divorce.
Allah Almighty says:
﴿وَلا تَعْزِمُوا عُقْدَةَ النِّكَاحِ حَتَّى يَبْلُغَ الْكِتَابُ أَجَلَهُ﴾
“Do not resolve on the marriage contract until the prescribed term (ʿiddah) is complete.”
— [Surah al-Baqarah: 235]
Imām al-Qurṭubī رحمه الله writes in the tafsīr of this verse:
"Allah has prohibited the marriage contract during the ʿiddah."
[Tafsīr al-Qurṭubī (3/27)]
He further writes:
"This verse is decisive and unanimously agreed upon in its interpretation that 'the term reaching its end' refers to the completion of ʿiddah."
It must also be noted that even making hints or indirect proposals of marriage during the ʿiddah of a revocable divorce (ṭalāq rajʿī) is not permitted, as she is still considered a wife. This is a matter of consensus (ijmāʿ).
Imām Ibn Kathīr رحمه الله writes:
"As for a woman who has received a revocable divorce, there is no difference of opinion that no one besides her husband may propose to her, neither explicitly nor implicitly."
— [Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr (1/573), edited by ʿAbd al-Razzāq al-Mahdī]
He further states:
"The scholars unanimously agree that a marriage contract during the ʿiddah period is not valid."
— [Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr (1/574)]
Therefore, your mother's marriage is not valid, and according to Sharīʿah, the two must be separated.
If your father made reconciliation (rujūʿ) during the ʿiddah after divorce, then your mother remains his wife and they may meet. In such a case, legal steps should be taken to annul the second marriage.
However, if the ʿiddah had ended without reconciliation, then she is no longer his wife, and interaction is not permitted.
A husband has the right to revoke the divorce within the ʿiddah, but after the ʿiddah ends, the marriage is considered terminated.
Your sister’s marriage took place without the presence or permission of a walī (guardian). A mother cannot act as a walī for her daughter, nor can any woman be a walī for another woman.
Sayyidunā Abū Hurayrah رضي الله عنه narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
لا تُزَوِّجُ المرأةُ المرأةَ، ولا تُزَوِّجُ المرأةُ نفسَها، فإن الزانيةَ هي التي تُزَوِّجُ نفسَها
“A woman should not arrange the marriage of another woman, nor should she arrange her own marriage. The one who does so is a fornicatress.”
— [Sunan Ibn Mājah: 1882; al-Sunan al-Kubrā of al-Bayhaqī: 13634–13635]
This ḥadīth is authentic based on corroborating evidences.
The Prophet ﷺ also said:
لا نكاح إلا بولي
“There is no valid nikāḥ without a walī.”
— [Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī: 1101]
Imām al-Suyūṭī رحمه الله states that the majority of scholars interpreted this narration to mean that the validity of the marriage depends upon the presence of a walī, while Imām Abū Ḥanīfah رحمه الله understood it as a matter of virtue (not validity).
Imām Mubārakpūrī رحمه الله writes:
“The correct and preferred opinion is that this hadith negates the validity (ṣihḥah) of the marriage without a walī.”
— [Tuḥfat al-Aḥwadhī (4/235)]
ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها narrated:
“Any woman who marries without the permission of her walī, her marriage is invalid.”
— [Sunan Abū Dāwūd: 2083; Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī: 1102]
This ḥadīth is graded ḥasan (good) and ṣaḥīḥ (authentic) by scholars like Ibn Ḥibbān, Ibn Khuzaymah, and al-Ḥākim.
Imām Ibn Qudāmah al-Maqdisī رحمه الله writes:
“A marriage is not valid without a walī. A woman cannot contract her own marriage, nor can she appoint another woman or anyone other than her walī as an agent for her marriage. If this is done, the nikāḥ is invalid.”
— [al-Mughnī (9/345)]
Hence, your sister’s marriage is invalid due to the absence of a walī’s consent. This is the consensus of the majority of scholars and experts in ḥadīth and Islamic law.
You should visit your sister with the intention of advising her about Islamic rulings, particularly the invalidity of her marriage. Perhaps Allah will guide her through your efforts.
(This is my understanding; and Allah knows best what is correct.)
❖ Question:
My father divorced my mother nearly three years ago and married another woman within the same week. My younger sister stayed with us for a few months but then went to live with our mother, who later arranged her marriage. Neither my father, myself, nor my younger brother were involved in this marriage. As a result, my father and I cut off ties with her. It has now been about one and a half to two years. My father and younger brother occasionally visit her. My questions are:
① Is my mother’s marriage valid?
② Is it permissible for my parents to continue interacting?
③ Is my sister’s marriage valid?
④ Is it permissible for us to meet our sister?
❖ Answer:
① Regarding your mother’s marriage:
Your mother entered into another marriage within the same week after the divorce, which is strictly ḥarām (forbidden) and impermissible in Islam. This is because it is prohibited to marry during the ʿiddah (waiting period) after a divorce.
Allah Almighty says:
﴿وَلا تَعْزِمُوا عُقْدَةَ النِّكَاحِ حَتَّى يَبْلُغَ الْكِتَابُ أَجَلَهُ﴾
“Do not resolve on the marriage contract until the prescribed term (ʿiddah) is complete.”
— [Surah al-Baqarah: 235]
Imām al-Qurṭubī رحمه الله writes in the tafsīr of this verse:
"Allah has prohibited the marriage contract during the ʿiddah."
[Tafsīr al-Qurṭubī (3/27)]
He further writes:
"This verse is decisive and unanimously agreed upon in its interpretation that 'the term reaching its end' refers to the completion of ʿiddah."
It must also be noted that even making hints or indirect proposals of marriage during the ʿiddah of a revocable divorce (ṭalāq rajʿī) is not permitted, as she is still considered a wife. This is a matter of consensus (ijmāʿ).
Imām Ibn Kathīr رحمه الله writes:
"As for a woman who has received a revocable divorce, there is no difference of opinion that no one besides her husband may propose to her, neither explicitly nor implicitly."
— [Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr (1/573), edited by ʿAbd al-Razzāq al-Mahdī]
He further states:
"The scholars unanimously agree that a marriage contract during the ʿiddah period is not valid."
— [Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr (1/574)]
Therefore, your mother's marriage is not valid, and according to Sharīʿah, the two must be separated.
② Regarding whether your parents may interact:
If your father made reconciliation (rujūʿ) during the ʿiddah after divorce, then your mother remains his wife and they may meet. In such a case, legal steps should be taken to annul the second marriage.
However, if the ʿiddah had ended without reconciliation, then she is no longer his wife, and interaction is not permitted.
A husband has the right to revoke the divorce within the ʿiddah, but after the ʿiddah ends, the marriage is considered terminated.
③ Regarding your sister’s marriage:
Your sister’s marriage took place without the presence or permission of a walī (guardian). A mother cannot act as a walī for her daughter, nor can any woman be a walī for another woman.
Sayyidunā Abū Hurayrah رضي الله عنه narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
لا تُزَوِّجُ المرأةُ المرأةَ، ولا تُزَوِّجُ المرأةُ نفسَها، فإن الزانيةَ هي التي تُزَوِّجُ نفسَها
“A woman should not arrange the marriage of another woman, nor should she arrange her own marriage. The one who does so is a fornicatress.”
— [Sunan Ibn Mājah: 1882; al-Sunan al-Kubrā of al-Bayhaqī: 13634–13635]
This ḥadīth is authentic based on corroborating evidences.
The Prophet ﷺ also said:
لا نكاح إلا بولي
“There is no valid nikāḥ without a walī.”
— [Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī: 1101]
Imām al-Suyūṭī رحمه الله states that the majority of scholars interpreted this narration to mean that the validity of the marriage depends upon the presence of a walī, while Imām Abū Ḥanīfah رحمه الله understood it as a matter of virtue (not validity).
Imām Mubārakpūrī رحمه الله writes:
“The correct and preferred opinion is that this hadith negates the validity (ṣihḥah) of the marriage without a walī.”
— [Tuḥfat al-Aḥwadhī (4/235)]
ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها narrated:
“Any woman who marries without the permission of her walī, her marriage is invalid.”
— [Sunan Abū Dāwūd: 2083; Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī: 1102]
This ḥadīth is graded ḥasan (good) and ṣaḥīḥ (authentic) by scholars like Ibn Ḥibbān, Ibn Khuzaymah, and al-Ḥākim.
Imām Ibn Qudāmah al-Maqdisī رحمه الله writes:
“A marriage is not valid without a walī. A woman cannot contract her own marriage, nor can she appoint another woman or anyone other than her walī as an agent for her marriage. If this is done, the nikāḥ is invalid.”
— [al-Mughnī (9/345)]
Hence, your sister’s marriage is invalid due to the absence of a walī’s consent. This is the consensus of the majority of scholars and experts in ḥadīth and Islamic law.
④ Regarding whether you may visit your sister:
You should visit your sister with the intention of advising her about Islamic rulings, particularly the invalidity of her marriage. Perhaps Allah will guide her through your efforts.
(This is my understanding; and Allah knows best what is correct.)
