{"fatawa":{"id":11859,"title":"Is it haraam to marry a woman who cannot have children?","slug":"is-it-haraam-to-marry-a-woman-who-cannot-have-children","order":" ","question":"<p>I had tried to get a clear answer for my question for 3 yrs but in vain  hope inshallah i get a reply from u.i am 23 yr old,i hav one sister.my  mom and dad have been married for 25 yrs.3yrs back my father married a  hindu widow women converting her to islam.and we have had problems in  home from then on.she has two sons from her first husband who died. the  issue is the second wife was working at the same place where my father  worked,and the rumour is my father had an affair with her and married  her later,and Allah knows better is it true or not.she was known to be a  women of not so good characters and she dresses very provocatively.  even after three years of marraige there is no islamic signs on her and  she still dresses in a very provocative manner, she had done  sterilization operation after her children were born from her first  husband.so my father knoingly married a women who could not bear  children. so the issue is , is the marraige valid since Muhamed(sal) had  prohibited marraige with a women who could not bear children. and if so  then what about the two sons of her who have been given islamic names  and are studying in a muslim boarding school. and what should be the  attitude of my mother and also my attitude towards this issue .<\/p>","answer":"<div class=\"list-group-item-text ftwa-single-answer font-nrmal\"><span class=\"line_height\"> Praise be to Allaah.\r\n<p>Firstly:&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>In your      question you said that your father married a Hindu woman and made her become      Muslim. If the marriage contract was done when she was a Hindu, and she      became a Muslim after that, then the marriage is invalid, and your father      should do a new marriage contract, because Allaah has forbidden Muslim men      to marry mushrik women until they become Muslim. Allaah says (interpretation      of the meaning):&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p><em>&ldquo;And do      not marry Al-Mushrikaat (idolatresses) till they believe (worship Allaah      Alone)&rdquo;<\/em><\/p>\r\n<p><em> [al-Baqarah 2:221]<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>If the      marriage contract was done after she became Muslim, then the marriage is      valid.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>Secondly:<\/p>\r\n<p>&nbsp;It is not      permissible for your father to marry a woman who is as you describe. Islam      encourages marriage to religiously-committed women. Her dressing in a      provocative manner prevents the Muslim from making this choice. You have to      advise your father in the way that is better to urge her to adhere to      Islamic rulings, which includes telling her to wear hijab and behave in a      proper manner.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>Thirdly:&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>The      Messenger  (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) encouraged      marriage to women who are fertile. It was narrated that Anas ibn Maalik (may      Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allaah  (peace and      blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to say: &ldquo;Marry the one who is loving      and fertile, for I will feel proud of your large numbers before the other      Prophets on the Day of Resurrection.&rdquo; Narrated by Ahmad (12202). Classed as      saheeh by Ibn Hibbaan (3\/338) and by al-Haythami in <em>Majma&rsquo; al-Zawaa&rsquo;id<\/em> (4\/474).&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>Sham al-Deen      Abaadi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: &nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>Wudood      (loving) means she loves her husband.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>Wulood      (fertile) means the one who bears many children.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>These two      conditions are mentioned together because if a fertile woman is not loving,      her husband will feel no desire for her, and if a loving woman is not      fertile, the desired aim will not be achieved, which is to increase the      numbers of the ummah by producing many children. These two characteristics      may be known in the case of virgins from the behaviour of their relatives,      because in most cases relatives are similar in behaviour and      characteristics.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p><em>&lsquo;Awn      al-Ma&rsquo;bood<\/em> (6\/33-34)&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>The Prophet       (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) told men not to marry      infertile women. It was narrated that Ma&rsquo;qil ibn Yasaar (may Allaah be      pleased with him) said: A man came to the Prophet  (peace and blessings      of Allaah be upon him) and said: I have found a woman who is of good lineage      and beautiful, but she cannot have children. Should I marry her? He said:      No. Then he came to him a second time, and he told him not (to marry that      woman). Then he came to him a third time and he said: &ldquo;Marry the one who is      loving and fertile, for I will be proud of your great numbers before the      nations.&rdquo; Narrated by al-Nasaa&rsquo;i (3227) and Abu Dawood (2050). Classed as      saheeh by Ibn Hibbaan (9\/363) and by al-Albaani in <em>Saheeh al-Targheeb<\/em> (1921).&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>This      prohibition does not mean that it is haraam, rather it is makrooh. The      scholars stated that choosing a fertile woman is mustahabb, not obligatory.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>Ibn Qudaamah      said in <em>al-Mughni<\/em>:&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>It is      mustahabb that she be from a family whose women are known to bear many      children. End quote.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>Al-Manaawi      said in <em>Fayd al-Qadeer<\/em> (6. hadeeth 9775):&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>Marrying a      woman who is not fertile is makrooh. End quote.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>Just as it      is permissible for a woman to marry an infertile man, it is also permissible      for a man to marry an infertile woman.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>Al-Haafiz      said in <em>al-Fath<\/em>:&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>As for one      who cannot have children or who has no desire for women or for intimacy,      this (marriage) is permissible in his case, if the woman is aware of that      and agrees to it. End quote.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>Fourthly:&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>With regard      to your father&rsquo;s wife giving her sons Muslim names and putting them in an      Islamic school, these are good things that your father has done. Changing      bad names or foreign names to Arab and Muslim names is a good thing. See the      answer to questions no. <a href=\"http:\/\/islamqa.info\/en\/23273\">23273<\/a>,      <a href=\"http:\/\/islamqa.info\/en\/14622\">14622<\/a> and      <a href=\"http:\/\/islamqa.info\/en\/12617\">12617<\/a>. Putting them into an Islamic      school is a means of introducing them to true Islam and convincing them of      it, and we hope that they will become good Muslims.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>Fifthly:&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>You have to      honour your mother and take care of her, and advise her to give your father      his rights. It is not permissible for her to go against his command unless      he tells her to do something that is disobedient to Allaah. You should also      advise your father&rsquo;s wife and show her the way to do good. You should pay      attention to her sons and help them to get to know Islam and follow its      rulings.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>We ask      Allaah to set your family&rsquo;s affairs straight, and to guide you to obey Him,      and help you to worship Him properly.&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>And Allaah      knows best.<\/p>\r\n<\/span><\/div>\r\n<div style=\"padding: 3px; padding-right: 6px; text-align: right;\">Islam Q&amp;A<\/div>","status":1,"created_at":"2015-04-17T20:52:00.000000Z","updated_at":"2015-04-17T20:52:00.000000Z","language_id":1,"fatawacate_id":44,"parent_id":11858,"author_id":"","books":[],"articles":[],"videos":[],"audios":[],"author_name":"","category_name":"\u0627\u0644\u0639\u0634\u0631\u0629 \u0628\u064a\u0646 \u0627\u0644\u0632\u0648\u062c\u064a\u0646","category_slug":"","get_date":"2015-04-17"},"translations":[],"fatawa_books":[],"fatawa_articles":[],"fatawa_videos":[],"fatawa_audios":[],"url":"http:\/\/islamland.com\/eng\/api\/fatawas\/11859"}