Sat 19 شعبان 1447 (07 Feb 2026)
On Dowries (Mahrs)
Mufti:
Alsayyed Muhammad b. Abdallah Awad Al-Muayyady
Fatwa number: 18181
Number of views: 4
On Dowries (Mahrs)
Fatwa number: 18181
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Question: Two men agreed that each would marry the other to his sister. Each fixed a dowry for his sister of three hundred qirsh (French coin). In the minds of the two men, if one sister would not remain with her husband, then the other man—whose son’s wife remained—would pay the three hundred to enable his in-law to marry. As for the dowry in the case the marriages proceed normally, their view is that it is the dowry of equals (mahr al-mithl). Their custom is that a woman does not demand her dowry except in anger or upon divorce.
If both women—or one of them—now demand the dowry, must the full three hundred be paid? Or only mahr al-mithl? Does their intention at the time of contract—though unspoken in the contract—have any effect? Or must an oath be taken? What should they do? And does a man sin if his wife demands the dowry and he does not give it—given that three hundred today might reach six hundred thousand Yemeni riyals and could lead to family strife? Please give us a ruling—may you be rewarded with the best of both abodes.
Answer—and Allah grants success: If the two men both acknowledge, or it is known from their circumstances at the time of the contract, that their real intent was that the dowry was twenty-four qirsh, and that the figure of three hundred mentioned in the contract was meant to cover the wedding expenses of the one whose wife did not remain—then the husband, if his wife now claims her dowry, is liable only for mahr al-mithl.
If the two men—or the husband and his wife—do not concur regarding what was intended at the time of the contract, nor is that known from their circumstances; and the husband claims that the true dowry was twenty-four, and the excess was for another purpose (the marriage expenses of the other man if his wife did not remain), while the other man or the wife denies it—then if the husband brings proof for his claim, judgment is rendered accordingly. Otherwise, the oath is upon the denier; if the denier swears, the wife is entitled to the entire amount. Better than this is reconciliation between the two sides: “And reconciliation is best.” [al-Nisāʾ:128]
Source: Min Thimār al-ʿIlm wa al-Ḥikmah vol.1
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