⚖️ Polygyny: rulings & justice · #67
After taking another wife, a husband wants to divorce his first wife because he now has a younger one. What is the ruling?
The talak itself is valid, but divorcing a wife who has sacrificed for years simply because there is now a replacement is a blameworthy injustice; the Shariah offers the better path of reconciliation.
Allah says that if a wife fears her husband turning away, there is no blame on them if they reconcile, and reconciliation is better (an-Nisa' 4:128). Sauda r.a., fearing divorce, gave her turn to ʿAisha r.a., and the Prophet ﷺ kept her as his wife (Sahih al-Bukhari 5212). Allah also reminds us not to forget the kindness between spouses (al-Baqarah 2:237). If the husband still divorces her, she is entitled to mut'ah for being divorced without just cause (Act 303 s.56), ʿiddah maintenance, jointly acquired property and rights relating to the children. Get advice from a Syariah lawyer and a counsellor. See a wife's rights after divorce.
Allah says that if a wife fears her husband turning away, there is no blame on them if they reconcile, and reconciliation is better (an-Nisa' 4:128). Sauda r.a., fearing divorce, gave her turn to ʿAisha r.a., and the Prophet ﷺ kept her as his wife (Sahih al-Bukhari 5212). Allah also reminds us not to forget the kindness between spouses (al-Baqarah 2:237). If the husband still divorces her, she is entitled to mut'ah for being divorced without just cause (Act 303 s.56), ʿiddah maintenance, jointly acquired property and rights relating to the children. Get advice from a Syariah lawyer and a counsellor. See a wife's rights after divorce.