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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books The Shia Rebuts Question 18: What is meant by “temporary marriage” {mut‘ah} and why do the Shi‘ah regard it as lawful? Reply: Marriage { nikah } is an agreement between a man and a woman. Sometimes this bond has a permanent effect and the contract { ‘aqd } does not have time limit, and sometimes its effect is temporary and its time limit is fixed.

Both kinds are recognized as legal and the only difference between them is that one is “permanent” and the other is “temporary”. In other aspects they are the same. The conditions below render valid both mut‘ah “temporary” marriage and “permanent” marriage: There should be no such religious prohibitions like consanguineous and affinitive relationships or the like which render the contract null and void. The dowry { mahr } agreed upon by both sides has to be stipulated in the contract.

The duration of marriage has to be fixed. The contract must be performed. The child that they will beget is considered their legitimate child. Just as a birth certificate that is granted to a child born out of permanent marriage, a child that is born due to a temporary marriage has to be granted a birth certificate. So, there is no difference between permanent and temporary contracts in this regard.

The expenditure on the child or children is one of the duties of the father, and the child or children are to inherit from the father and from the mother. When the marriage contract expires, the woman who has not reached menopause has to observe a waiting period { ‘iddah }. If during the waiting period she is found pregnant, she has to refrain from any type of marriage during pregnancy. Also, the other laws of permanent marriage have to be observed in mut‘ah .

The only difference between the two is that since mut‘ah has been ordained to fulfill man’s needs, the expenses of the woman is not incumbent on man. If, during signing of the contract, the woman did not make it a condition that she can have a share from the inheritance, she shall not inherit from her husband. It is clear that these two differences have no effect on the nature of marriage. We all know that the Islamic creed is the eternal and final law, which can satisfy all needs.

Nowadays, we see the situation of the youth, who have to spend many years of study in a foreign country or city. On account of the limited resources, they cannot afford permanent marriage, and have one of these three alternatives to choose: a.