❖ Question:
Was it permissible for a woman to gift herself in marriage to the Prophet ﷺ without a guardian (walī)?
Source: Fatāwā Amunpuri by Shaykh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amunpuri
✿ Answer:
Yes, this was a special privilege (khāṣṣiyyah) granted exclusively to the Prophet ﷺ. If a woman offered herself to the Prophet ﷺ and he accepted, the marriage would become valid without the need of a walī.
❀ Sayyidunā Sahl bin Saʿd رضي الله عنه narrated:
While we were sitting, a woman came and said: “O Messenger of Allah ﷺ! I offer myself to you.” She remained standing for a while. Then a man stood and said: “O Messenger of Allah ﷺ, marry her to me if you have no need of her.”
The Prophet ﷺ said: “Do you have anything (to give as mahr)?”
He replied: “No, not even an iron ring.”
The Prophet ﷺ asked him: “Do you know anything of the Qur’an?”
He said: “Yes, I know such-and-such surahs.”
The Prophet ﷺ said: “I marry her to you with what you know of the Qur’an.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 5149; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 1425)
Conclusion:
- For the Prophet ﷺ, a woman could lawfully gift herself in marriage, and if he accepted, no walī was required.
- This was a unique ruling (khāṣṣiyyah) specific to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and not applicable to the rest of the Ummah.
