🏡 Rights & responsibilities · #58
A husband often goes away for months for preaching or religious programmes. What about his wife's rights?
Preaching is noble, but it must not neglect the rights of wife and children; its duration, the maintenance left behind and the wife's agreement must be arranged.
The Prophet ﷺ corrected ʿAbdullah ibn ʿAmr r.a., who was overzealous in worship, saying that your wife, your guests and your own self have a right over you (Sahih al-Bukhari 1975, 5199). Scholars take the four-month period in the verse of ilaʾ (al-Baqarah 2:226) as a guide to the longest a husband should be away without his wife's consent. Before leaving: make sure enough maintenance is left, the home is safe, someone can help, and the wife truly agrees rather than feels forced. Neglecting maintenance or marital relations over a long period can be grounds for fasakh (Act 303 s.52). The best preaching begins at home (at-Tahrim 66:6). See the question on a husband working far away.
The Prophet ﷺ corrected ʿAbdullah ibn ʿAmr r.a., who was overzealous in worship, saying that your wife, your guests and your own self have a right over you (Sahih al-Bukhari 1975, 5199). Scholars take the four-month period in the verse of ilaʾ (al-Baqarah 2:226) as a guide to the longest a husband should be away without his wife's consent. Before leaving: make sure enough maintenance is left, the home is safe, someone can help, and the wife truly agrees rather than feels forced. Neglecting maintenance or marital relations over a long period can be grounds for fasakh (Act 303 s.52). The best preaching begins at home (at-Tahrim 66:6). See the question on a husband working far away.