Ch 5: Misconception 6
All Muslim men marry four wives:
The religion of Islam was revealed for
all societies and all times, and as it is, it accommodates widely differing social requirements.
Circumstances may warrant the taking of another wife
but the right is granted, according to the Holy Qur'an, only on condition that the
husband is scrupulously fair. No woman can be forced into this kind of marriage if they do not wish it, and they also have the
right to exclude it in their marriage contract.
Polygamy is neither mandatory, nor
encouraged, but merely permitted. Images of "sheikhs
with harems" are not consistent with Islam, as a man is only allowed at most
four wives only if he can fulfill the stringent
conditions of treating each fairly and providing each
with separate housing etc. Permission to practice polygamy is not associated with mere satisfaction of passion. It is rather
associated with compassion toward widows and orphans.
It was the Holy Qur'an that limited and put conditions
on the practice of polygamy among the Arabs, who had as
many as ten or more wives and considered them "property".
It is both honest and accurate to say
that it is Islam that regulated this practice, limited it, made it more humane, and instituted equal rights and
status for all wives. What the Qur'anic decrees amount to, taken together is discouragement
of polygamy unless necessity for it exists. It is also
evident that the general rule in Islam is monogamy and not polygamy. It is a very tiny percentage of Muslims that
practice it over the world. However, permission to
practice limited polygamy is only consistent with Islam's realistic view of the nature of man and woman and of various
social needs, problems and cultural variations.
The question is, however far more than
the inherent flexibility of Islam; it also is the frank
and straightforward approach of Islam in dealing with practical problems. Rather than requiring hypocritical and superficial
compliance, Islam delves deeper into the problems of
individuals and societies, and provides for legitimate and clean solutions which are far more beneficial than would be the
case if they were ignored. There is no doubt that the
second wife legally married and treated kindly is better off than a mistress without any legal rights or permanence. It is
quite true that man in the United States of
America and Europe gets
married to a one woman, but alas, the percentage of the betrayal of the husbands
trespasses the number of four that is legally accepted in Islam. A Western man
marries only one woman, but meanwhile, he can have an abundant number of illegal
relationships with other women! Islam restricted this chaos by imposing the
rules of polygamy with quite certain rules that keep the honor of the woman as a
respectful human being and not a mere device for pleasure.
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