Chapter 4.1 - Book of Women

  

  

Who are the women men are forbidden to marry and mentioned in this verse (˹Also˺ forbidden to you for marriage are your mothers, your daughters, your sisters, your paternal and maternal aunts, your brother’s daughters, your sister’s daughters, your foster-mothers, your foster-sisters, your mothers-in-law, your stepdaughters under your guardianship if you have consummated marriage with their mothers—but if you have not, then you can marry them—nor the wives of your own sons, nor two sisters together at the same time—except what was done previously. Surely Allah is All-Forgiving, Most Merciful) ? Who is not mentioned in this verse and are forbidden to marry? من هن النساء التي يحرم على الرجل نكاحهن والمذكورات في هذه الآية ( حُرِّمَتْ عَلَيْكُمْ أُمَّهَاتُكُمْ وَبَنَاتُكُمْ وَأَخَوَاتُكُمْ وَعَمَّاتُكُمْ وَخَالَاتُكُمْ وَبَنَاتُ الْأَخِ وَبَنَاتُ الْأُخْتِ وَأُمَّهَاتُكُمُ اللَّاتِي أَرْضَعْنَكُمْ وَأَخَوَاتُكُم مِّنَ الرَّضَاعَةِ وَأُمَّهَاتُ نِسَائِكُمْ وَرَبَائِبُكُمُ اللَّاتِي فِي حُجُورِكُم مِّن نِّسَائِكُمُ اللَّاتِي دَخَلْتُم بِهِنَّ فَإِن لَّمْ تَكُونُوا دَخَلْتُم بِهِنَّ فَلَا جُنَاحَ عَلَيْكُمْ وَحَلَائِلُ أَبْنَائِكُمُ الَّذِينَ مِنْ أَصْلَابِكُمْ وَأَن تَجْمَعُوا بَيْنَ الْأُخْتَيْنِ إِلَّا مَا قَدْ سَلَفَ ۗ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ غَفُورًا رَّحِيمًا ‎؟ ومن هن اللاتي لم يذكرن في هذه الآية ويحرم نكاحهن؟

77 views 0 June 19, 2023 Updated on May 24, 2026

Who are the women men are forbidden to marry?

من هن النساء اللاتي يحرم على الرجل نكاحهن؟

In Islamic law, prohibitions for marriage fall into three primary categories: blood relations (Mahram by descent), nursing relations (Mahram by suckling), and marriage relations (Mahram by affinity). These categories ensure the preservation of family sanctity and clearly define who a person is forbidden to marry permanently or temporarily.
في الشريعة الإسلامية، تنقسم المحرمات من النساء إلى ثلاث فئات رئيسية: المحرمات بالنسب، والمحرمات بالرضاع، والمحرمات بالمصاهرة. تضمن هذه الفئات الحفاظ على قدسية الأسرة وتحدد بوضوح من يحرم على الشخص الزواج بهن تحريماً مؤبداً أو مؤقتاً.

The Quran explicitly delineates those forbidden for marriage to protect the integrity of kinship, familial relationships, and societal morality.

يحدد القرآن صراحة المحرمات من النساء لحماية سلامة القرابة والعلاقات الأسرية والأخلاق المجتمعية.

Categories of Forbidden Marriages | أقسام المحرمات من النساء

1. Forbidden by Blood (Nasab)
This includes seven types: Mothers and their ascendants, daughters and their descendants, sisters, paternal aunts, maternal aunts, nieces from brothers, and nieces from sisters.
1. المحرمات من النسب
وهن سبع: الأمهات وإن علون، والبنات وإن نزلن، والأخوات، والعمات، والخالات، وبنات الأخ، وبنات الأخت.

2. Forbidden by Nursing (Rida')
The general rule is that what is forbidden through blood relations is also forbidden through nursing. This includes the wet nurse, the nursing sister, the daughter through nursing, and others who share the same nursing lineage.
2. المحرمات من الرضاعة
القاعدة الشرعية: يحرم من الرضاع ما يحرم من النسب. وتشمل الأم من الرضاعة، والأخت من الرضاعة، والبنت من الرضاعة، والعمات والخالات من الرضاعة، وبنات الأخ والأخت من الرضاعة.

3. Forbidden by Affinity (Musahara)
This category includes the stepmother, the mother in law, the stepdaughter (if the marriage with her mother was consummated), and the daughter in law. It also includes temporary prohibitions like the wife's sister while married, or the sister in law.
3. المحرمات من المصاهرة
تشمل زوجة الأب، وأم الزوجة، وبنت الزوجة (الربيبة) بشرط الدخول بالأم، وزوجة الابن، وأخت الزوجة (تحريم مؤقت)، والجمع بين المرأة وعمتها أو خالتها.

Prohibitions Beyond the Verse | محرمات إضافية

Beyond those listed in the primary verse, other prohibitions include:
1. The father's wife (even if not listed in detail) and the wives of all male ascendants (grandfathers, great grandfathers).
2. A woman currently married to another man, until she completes her Iddah.
3. The simultaneous marriage of a woman and her paternal or maternal aunt.
ومن المحرمات غير المذكورات في الآية: زوجة الأب وإن علا (الأجداد)، والمرأة المتزوجة حتى تنقضي عدتها، والجمع بين المرأة وعمتها أو خالتها.

Scholarly Insight: In Islamic Jurisprudence, the distinction is made between "permanent prohibition" (Tahrim Mu'abbad) and "temporary prohibition" (Tahrim Mu'aqqat). Blood relatives, nursing relatives, and most affinity relations are permanently forbidden; they can never be married. However, relations such as a sister in law (wife's sister) or the aunt of a current wife are temporarily forbidden. If the marriage to the primary wife ends due to divorce or death, the temporary prohibition is lifted, and marriage to the sister or aunt may become permissible.

Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة

What is the difference between permanent and temporary prohibition?

Permanent prohibition (like sisters or mothers) means marriage is never permissible under any circumstance. Temporary prohibition (like a sister in law) means marriage is forbidden only while a specific condition exists, such as being currently married to her sister.

Does nursing create the same marriage prohibitions as blood relations?

Yes. The Prophet Muhammad pbuh stated: "What is forbidden through blood relations is also forbidden through nursing." This covers mothers, sisters, aunts, and nieces established through suckling.

Can a man marry his stepdaughter?

A man can only marry his stepdaughter if he never consummated the marriage with her mother. If he did consummate the marriage with the mother, the stepdaughter becomes permanently forbidden to him, regardless of whether he later divorces the mother.

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