The Deception of Misyar Marriages

Описание: Misyar is Arab Hypocrisy, Not Islam

Misyar marriage is a controversial marital arrangement from Saudi Arabia, in which a man marries a woman with the undisclosed intention to divorce her after a certain period of time.

A typical scenario would be that a man would go overseas to study. While abroad, he would "marry" a woman with the undisclosed intention to divorce her upon the completion of his studies.

Initially, the grand mufti of Saudi Arabia, Shaykh Abdul Aziz bin Baz, considered this marriage to be lawful, and that this marriage is distinguishable from a temporary marriage (zawaj al-mut’ah) because the man did not disclose his divorce intention, thereby he considered it to be a different type of marriage, technically.

Shaykh Muhammad bin al-Uthaymin, a highly respected jurist in Saudi Arabia, argued that this msiyar marriage is unlawful because it involves deception. Al-Uthaymin contends that Hanbali jurists have agreed that such a marriage is invalid.

Following Ibn Baz’s fatwa, many Saudi men used and abused this form of marriage in Egypt, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

The misyar marital contract may also involve the wife giving up certain marital rights, such as the right to cohabitation and financial support. In many cases, misyar marriages are short-term secret liaisons without the knowledge of the man’s wife.

Some religious leaders and Salafi Muslims have exploited this legal loophole to have secret marriages with unsuspecting divorced women, single mothers, and sex workers. Critics have argued that misyar marriage is legalised prostitution or a temporary marriage in reality.

In the UK, the misyar phenomenon has become popular amongst Salafi-shaykhs, religious preachers known as "Dawah Bros," and sexually frustrated Muslim men. For such, ‘practising’ Muslim men, misyar is a way to have ‘halal sex’ without commitment and financial responsibility.

Interestingly, the same men bashing Western culture for dating, Shia for temporary marriage and female sex workers for prostitution, are exploiting legal loopholes to have sex and then divorce a vulnerable woman, and not even maintain her financially. They are also quick to demean feminism and Muslim women for seeking their God-given right to justice and fair treatment.

There are also many women who enter a misyar marriage as a secret second wife, then regret it. This is also an issue that is rarely spoken about.

The Qur'an commands Muslim men to be truthful and just in relationships with women.

The Prophet Muhammad never engaged in secret marriages, and he never endorsed men marrying women without responsibility.

Misyar is a modern-day Arab cultural practice that contradicts Islamic teachings.

"Misyar marriage" appeals to individuals who want fiqh without ethics, Islam by technicality, following the letter not the spirit of the law, a legalistic not principles-based approach to religion.