Marriage in Islam
SUMMARY
No society can function without healthy marriages. Generally speaking, not many children can grow into religiously and morally successful human beings without a stable and healthy marriage existing between parents.
Islam therefore offers a formula and a system of marital responsibilities to ensure as much as possible a successful community of believers, both in their emotional and religious well beings
Husbands have many responsibilities in Islam. Among these responsibilities, it is to provide their wives with maintenance. This maintenance includes:
- Shelter
- Food that satiates
- Adequate clothing
- Creams, perfumes, cosmetics
- Things which she was used to under her father’s house
If a wife requests it, a husband must provide his wife with a maid to help around in the house. If the husband cannot afford to do so, then he must become the maid himself.
According to Islam, the act of serving one’s wife in household or domestic affairs brings about the grace of God and great spiritual reward. So it is in the husband’s interests that he help his wife.
Wives have fewer responsibilities. Like husbands, wives are to encourage their husbands in leading the morally and religiously good life. If the husband falters in his religious and moral duties, wives, like husbands, must remind their spouses of their responsibilities on this earth.
However, their primary responsibility is to be available sexually to their husbands.
This may sound a bit weird or even offensive to some, but we need to understand where Islam is coming from with this ruling. According to Islam, the greatest sin that humans, especially men are prone to are sexual sins and sins of immodesty. This means that men in particular are susceptible to gazing at the haram or engaging in zina, that is, fornication.
As Islam sees it, and as people can often observe, many men are prone to compulsive sexual behavior. So just like the husband is obligated to work and provide for his wife and fulfill her intrinsic need for security, a wife must also make sure to protect her husband from sin and spiritually damaging behavior.
To learn more, please tune into the full version of this lesson.