ISLAM AND EARLY MARRIAGE
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Early marriages are originally recommended
for Muslims; it is healthy and helps for
chastity. Delay of
marriages is very helpful for the Shaytan.
When a girl reaches the level of maturity
(physically and
psychologically), it is recommended to marry
them off as soon as possible.
One of the main aim of encouraging early
marriage is to preserve the chastity of our
youths. Allah has
created human beings with sexual desires. As
such, when a boy or girl reaches puberty and
develop sexual
organs, the best, the very best the parent can
do is to prepare them for a life of
responsibility, marital
life.
The urge for sex can be very strong,
especially in adolescence and in most cases,
it (the urge) must be
satisfied, either in a halal way or in a haram
way. The desire for such satisfaction has
made young boys
and girls engage in actions that are
unthinkable. Vibrators and other intimacy gadgets are
everywhere in our
neighborhood.
That said, no one need to tell you how
rampant pre-marital sex is in our secondary
schools (even before
universities). Teenage pregnancies are
nothing new, and so is abortion and the
health risks those innocent
girls are subjected to.
Islam has a provision for everything. Islam is
for all seasons and all reasons. There is
nothing about our
lives that Allah (SWT) has not addressed in
the Quran, with good explanations from the
actions and sayings
of the Prophet (pbuh).
Allah (SWT) says: “And marry such of you as
are solitary and the pious of your slaves and
maid servants.
If they be poor; Allah will enrich them of His
bounty. Allah is of ample means, Aware.” [An-
Nur: 32]
The father of a girl must not delay marriage
of his daughter if a proposal is received from
a compatible
man of equal status who is of sound religion
and character.
From the Hadith of Prophet Muhammad
(pbuh)
The Prophet (pbuh) said: “Three matters
should not be delayed: prayer when its time
comes, burial when
the funeral has arrived, and the marriage of a
single woman when a well-suited man has
proposed. ” [Tirmidhi]
Why should you delay marriages then?
The Prophet (pbuh) addressed the youths
encouraging them to get married as soon as
they are capable of
shouldering the responsipility of marriage
saying:
“O youth! Whoever amongst you is able to
marry, let him marry, because it helps him
keep his eyes away
from lustful looks and preserve his chastity.
And whoever is not able to marry, let him
observe fasting, as
it is a shield for him (i.e. protection from
lapsing in fornication).” [Agreed Upon]
Early marriage doesn’t mean that the spouses
could be not mature and responsible, the
Qur’an hints
saying:
“If you find them of sound judgement.” (An-
Nisa': 6) That means puberty or marriageable
age is not
enough to be qualified for marriage. If a son
is capable to run a household life and he is
able to maitain
mentally, psychologically and financially and
everything of his wife, then early marriage is
the only way to
keep our children away from haram.
In this context, Dr. Muhammad Sa`eed
Hawwa, professor of Shari`ah at the
University of Mu’tah, Jordan,
states:
“Earlymarriage is recommended as long as
the requirements of marriage are met
including the ability of
each of the spouses to fulfill his marital
duties and protect his/her partner against
temptation. The
husband should also be able to shoulder the
financial responsibilities at the sufficiency
level. There is no
specific age for marriage according to
Shari`ah but the criterion is the capability of
both spouses.”
Among the benefits of early marriages is that
“Married couples perform better at school or
university and
are more emotionally stable than singles.
Also, living together with one’s wife will cost
one much less than
if each one of them lived separately. The
benefits of early marriage are extreme and it
is highly
encouraged in Islam if both of spouses are
mature and responsible, and if the husband
can support the
family on the financial side.”
Most people confuse early marriage with the
marriage of a girl who is not capable (what
some refer to
underage marriage). I believe there is a
difference between the two. The reference in
Quran 4:6 has
stated RUSHD (intellect) as a vital condition
for a girl to be married.
Allah knows best.