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Description of God’s and His Emissary’s Prohibitions
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٢٥١ 251 Description of God’s and His Emissary’s Prohibitions “Give me,” he requested, “a complete summary of God’s prohibition (He is mighty and sublime), and then of the Prophet’s prohibition, in general terms, and leave nothing out.” I said to him: God’s prohibition encompasses two senses. One is that the thing that He prohibits is unlawful in general, but might be lawful in some limited respect that God indicates in His Book or through the words of His Prophet. If God’s Emissary prohibits something of that kind, then his prohibition makes it forbidden. In that case, it can only be understood as an instance of forbidding something absolutely, unless it is done for a specific reason, as I have just explained. “Explain to me that aspect of the prohibition with which you began your discussion,” he requested, “using an example that indicates what else could be within its scope.” So I said to him: All women are forbidden except for one of two reasons, marriage or concubinage. Those are the two reasons on the basis of which God permitted them. God’s Emissary established practices for concluding marriages, and marriage makes sexual access to women licit, though it is illicit beforehand. His practices showed that there should be a guardian, witnesses, and consent on the part of the nonvirgin bride. His practice concerning the bride’s consent indicates that concluding a marriage also involves the consent of the groom, with no difference between the two. Thus, if four things are present in marriage—that the nonvirgin bride consent, that the groom consent, that the guardian be the one to marry off the woman, and that it be concluded before witnesses—then the marriage is lawful, except in some instances that I will mention, God willing. If the marriage lacks one of those elements, then it is void because it was not concluded according to the practices of God’s Emissary in the way that makes marriage lawful. If one were to specify a dowry, that would be preferable to me, but it does not invalidate the marriage to omit the dowry, because God confirmed in His Book the validity of a marriage without a dowry. I have written about this elsewhere.296 It is the same whether the woman is noble or lowly: both are in the same situation in regard to what makes marriage lawful, and what makes it unlawful, and in regard to what rights they have 419 420 421 ٢٥٢ 252 DEÁ ! X bVDE [ z{ X bV gK6 ٤٢٢ ٤٢٣ ٤٢٤ ٤٢٥ g × ¯ I Ä8¿ Å ufï ^ ù KÍ Î Ï Ð7 !DE ² : IUV # Z §K6DE 01 ¡¢f g × ¯ ù KÍ Î Ï Ð7 ¡ # DE x p k l m n o9 : DE ¡ [ z{ X × 78 â I iDEÁ¦ §K1 ù KÍ Î Ï Ð7 Ò 2ª ١´ ³ #k l m n o $&g bV $& gK> " # I1 # Ì . ù KÍ Î Ï Ð7 01 g × ù ú t N O Ð 78 # Èuf "DE . ù K DEÁ¦ §K1 Èuf $& Ì g × X bV p k l m n o9 : ù KÍ Î Ï Ð7 ¹Qº8 I ¡¢fDE Ñ7 Ò 22Ï I UV [ z{ X × 78 $&I Ö DE ´1 9 : ù ú t N O Ð 78 # DE ufïAB à áQº8 5 | } : [ z{ X bV $& Ì DE I UV # É1 Z i # de fv w ù ú t N O Ð 78 DE # g ×ã1 QÌ N 2O # 5 | } : # I3uf Ù a· i 5 ! # ¡c # I UV [ z{ g × 78 # x I I ß 5 ! # ¡c # defÜ .g bV $& ¡ # ÉÅ ù ú t N O Ð 78 # DE Èuf " x I X bV $& Ì DE g ×7 v wDE # g × ã|ÿ ¡¢f # ÉÅ ¯ 0 23 4 v w k l m n o I1 $&g¬DE $& gK> X bV $&I Ö # Èuf "DE ù ú û½ # èuf Ò 2ªuf ¡ # x I i èuf Ò 2ª ü k l m n o £ v wã1 - .I J _` a b DE 23 4 â I iã1 pDE Y7 Ü I¼ ] ^ Ì g × ¯ X bVDEG IL L É g × ¯ =>I Ò 2ª DE f," ü k l m n o k l m n o [ z{ ZÄ8 Ò 2ª " # I iã1 j a! #k l m n o DE I .I Ç X bV x y P%Q QI £ #¹Q´ defg ¾K M # g × ¯ É1 # DE èufg ¾K M # x Ë QI v w ½K M £ ´ µÔ K1 ´µ i k l m n o DE uf ï_ b d± I¼ï X bV I¼ï # # ¡¢f d± $&I UV X J DE I UV!DEÛ ¨K ß N 2O I§ bV O¸¿ Å ] ^ Ì DE Y 78 I J¬ Q´ de f ¯ I UV!DEÛ ¨K ß N 2O Èuf " ¡ # Q´³1 # É1 # O¸¿ Å DE . !DEÛ QI uf(© 2ª´¦ îQèuf # É1 # de f ´¦ îQ I3uf...
