Post by Ebrahim on May 11, 2005 23:12:29 GMT -5
People from different religions often point fingers at the permissibility of Polygamy in Islam. This is due to their lack of understanding as far as polygamy in Islam is concerned. In due course of this article which I intend to keep short and sweet, I will explain what polygamy in Islam is.
According to the Online Merriam Webster Dictionary
Polygamy: marriage in which a spouse of either sex may have more than one mate at the same time.
Polygyny: the state or practice of having more than one wife or female mate at one time
Polyandry: the state or practice of having more than one husband or male mate at one time
Hence it would only be appropriate to mention that polygyny is allowed in Islam and not polygamy as a general term. But in this article I will refer to it as polygamy for the ease of the reader.
It should be pointed out that Islam never introduced Polygamy. It was already prevalent. Probably the only religion that does claim to prohibit it is Christianity but in reality the Bible never prohibited Polygamy. I will discuss the Bible as regards to Polygamy towards the end.
In the Quran, Surah Nisa, verse 3, it is mentioned:
“If ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly with the orphans, Marry women of your choice, Two or three or four; but if ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly (with them), then only one, or (a captive) that your right hands possess, that will be more suitable, to prevent you from doing injustice.” [Quran 4:3]
This verse was revealed after the Battle of Uhud in which nearly half the Muslim population was wiped out. Hence Allah (swt) in all His Wisdom told Muslims to:
FIRST opt for adopting an orphan.
If injustice was feared,
THEN if you can be just, opt for marrying up to four women.
If injustice was feared,
THEN marry only ONE.
As it is from the above verse it is clear that polygamy was never the first choice. The purpose of this Noble Verse was two folds:
1) To give protection to the orphans
2) To increase the Muslim population primarily by adopting and giving protection to the orphans.
Hence despite the fact that the Muslims had lost a lot of men Allah (swt) still did not want polygamy to take place and the first option that He (swt) gave was for them to adopt. Regarding polygamy He (swt) strictly said that you have to be just between your wives otherwise only marry ONE.
Being “Just” with your wives is not an option but a compulsion. Hence if a man fears that he might not be able to be just with his wives then he cannot marry more than one woman.
From the verse it is also clear that Polygamy is not something compulsory but only permissible. Everything that is permissible is not compulsory. Also no one can force anyone to marry. In Islam both the parties have equal rights to choose their partners hence a man cannot force a woman to marry him.
Many scholars have also suggested that if we calculate the entire female population of the world, it is greater than the male population.
The 2001 census for UK showed the following:
Females: 30.2 million
Males: 28.6 million
If every male marries one female, then there is a total of 1.6 million unmarried females in the UK. Which means 1.6 million women will never get married and the desire to be married and have a family and children would never be fulfilled.
Similarly, according to the CIA Factbook on United States the following is seen:
Females (15-64 years): 99,324,126
Males (15-64 years): 98,914,382
Again if every man marries a woman, there is a total of 409,744 females who will never be married.
Islam provides a solution for these problems. Polygamy ensures that every woman’s desire to have a family and children would be fulfilled. She would not have to seek illicit relationships just to satisfy her sexual needs. Islam recognizes the sexual needs of a woman and provides a solution to ensure a cleaner and better society with greater morals.
Comparing Polyandry to Polygyny
Some people including feminists often argue why Polyandry is not permitted. Why can the female not have more than one husband and why is man allowed more than one wife. If polyandry were allowed then greater problems would be faced as compared to monogamy. Below I will analyze the points discussed above and some more points in light of polyandry.
1) If in a case like loss of male population e.g. that which occurred after the Battle of Uhud, we practice polyandry, then the purpose of repopulation is defeated. I would like the people who advocate for polyandry, use their wisdom and explain how repopulation can be achieved with polyandry.
2) If we take the rule of population and then analyze them in light of polyandry, then there will be greater differences. Islam allows a man to have upto 4 wives i.e. he can have 2, 3 or 4. For ease of calculation we will pick an average. Lets say 1 woman marries 2 males and not more. Now let’s analyze UK according to the 2001 census:
Females: 30.2 million
Males: 28.6 million
Total males available for marriage = 28.6 million
Total Number of females getting married to 2 males = 28.6 million / 2 = 14.3 million
Hence total number of females who will never get married = 15.9 million
Unmarried women due to monogamy = 1.6 million
Unmarried women due to polyandry = 15.9 million
The difference is clear. Try this method for the population of United States as well. It will be obvious how polyandry only worsens the social problem.
3) Further it should also be noted that a female is highly likely to develop STD when she has multiple sexual partners e.g. Bacterial Vaginosis
4) Imagine a woman with more than one husband, and all her husbands want to have a child. Who will have it first? Fine they agree on turns. So this year one husband has a child the next it’s the other. Again medically this is unhealthy for the woman. She will be having children every year!! Would she be able to tend to all her husbands and her infants? No way is it practical. Any logical sane mind would accept that it is not possible.
According to the Online Merriam Webster Dictionary
Polygamy: marriage in which a spouse of either sex may have more than one mate at the same time.
Polygyny: the state or practice of having more than one wife or female mate at one time
Polyandry: the state or practice of having more than one husband or male mate at one time
Hence it would only be appropriate to mention that polygyny is allowed in Islam and not polygamy as a general term. But in this article I will refer to it as polygamy for the ease of the reader.
It should be pointed out that Islam never introduced Polygamy. It was already prevalent. Probably the only religion that does claim to prohibit it is Christianity but in reality the Bible never prohibited Polygamy. I will discuss the Bible as regards to Polygamy towards the end.
In the Quran, Surah Nisa, verse 3, it is mentioned:
“If ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly with the orphans, Marry women of your choice, Two or three or four; but if ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly (with them), then only one, or (a captive) that your right hands possess, that will be more suitable, to prevent you from doing injustice.” [Quran 4:3]
This verse was revealed after the Battle of Uhud in which nearly half the Muslim population was wiped out. Hence Allah (swt) in all His Wisdom told Muslims to:
FIRST opt for adopting an orphan.
If injustice was feared,
THEN if you can be just, opt for marrying up to four women.
If injustice was feared,
THEN marry only ONE.
As it is from the above verse it is clear that polygamy was never the first choice. The purpose of this Noble Verse was two folds:
1) To give protection to the orphans
2) To increase the Muslim population primarily by adopting and giving protection to the orphans.
Hence despite the fact that the Muslims had lost a lot of men Allah (swt) still did not want polygamy to take place and the first option that He (swt) gave was for them to adopt. Regarding polygamy He (swt) strictly said that you have to be just between your wives otherwise only marry ONE.
Being “Just” with your wives is not an option but a compulsion. Hence if a man fears that he might not be able to be just with his wives then he cannot marry more than one woman.
From the verse it is also clear that Polygamy is not something compulsory but only permissible. Everything that is permissible is not compulsory. Also no one can force anyone to marry. In Islam both the parties have equal rights to choose their partners hence a man cannot force a woman to marry him.
Many scholars have also suggested that if we calculate the entire female population of the world, it is greater than the male population.
The 2001 census for UK showed the following:
Females: 30.2 million
Males: 28.6 million
If every male marries one female, then there is a total of 1.6 million unmarried females in the UK. Which means 1.6 million women will never get married and the desire to be married and have a family and children would never be fulfilled.
Similarly, according to the CIA Factbook on United States the following is seen:
Females (15-64 years): 99,324,126
Males (15-64 years): 98,914,382
Again if every man marries a woman, there is a total of 409,744 females who will never be married.
Islam provides a solution for these problems. Polygamy ensures that every woman’s desire to have a family and children would be fulfilled. She would not have to seek illicit relationships just to satisfy her sexual needs. Islam recognizes the sexual needs of a woman and provides a solution to ensure a cleaner and better society with greater morals.
Comparing Polyandry to Polygyny
Some people including feminists often argue why Polyandry is not permitted. Why can the female not have more than one husband and why is man allowed more than one wife. If polyandry were allowed then greater problems would be faced as compared to monogamy. Below I will analyze the points discussed above and some more points in light of polyandry.
1) If in a case like loss of male population e.g. that which occurred after the Battle of Uhud, we practice polyandry, then the purpose of repopulation is defeated. I would like the people who advocate for polyandry, use their wisdom and explain how repopulation can be achieved with polyandry.
2) If we take the rule of population and then analyze them in light of polyandry, then there will be greater differences. Islam allows a man to have upto 4 wives i.e. he can have 2, 3 or 4. For ease of calculation we will pick an average. Lets say 1 woman marries 2 males and not more. Now let’s analyze UK according to the 2001 census:
Females: 30.2 million
Males: 28.6 million
Total males available for marriage = 28.6 million
Total Number of females getting married to 2 males = 28.6 million / 2 = 14.3 million
Hence total number of females who will never get married = 15.9 million
Unmarried women due to monogamy = 1.6 million
Unmarried women due to polyandry = 15.9 million
The difference is clear. Try this method for the population of United States as well. It will be obvious how polyandry only worsens the social problem.
3) Further it should also be noted that a female is highly likely to develop STD when she has multiple sexual partners e.g. Bacterial Vaginosis
4) Imagine a woman with more than one husband, and all her husbands want to have a child. Who will have it first? Fine they agree on turns. So this year one husband has a child the next it’s the other. Again medically this is unhealthy for the woman. She will be having children every year!! Would she be able to tend to all her husbands and her infants? No way is it practical. Any logical sane mind would accept that it is not possible.