FAMILY MANAGEMENT AND PARENTING

CCFM 2052

Rights and Responsibilities of Spouses

Semester 1, 2014/2015

Names:

Fatin Hazimah binti Kamal-ludin (1313522)

Nurin Fatini binti Abdul Ghani
Nur Farhanah binti Zainal

(1318254)

(1310062)

Noor Syahida binti Mohd Akik (1316024)

Nurunnaja binti Ahmad Nadzri
Section:

37

Lecturers name: Mahfuth Khamis Amafua

(1313098)

Table of Contents
Mahar and mutual rights between spouses... 1
Rights of the wife ..... 2
Rights of the husband 3
? Research Methodology................................................................................................... 4
? Findings and Discussion.... 5-10
References.........11

Right of the Wife over the Husband

It is undeniable that women are crucial to the existence of the human population as we all
know that women are the ones who give births, not the men. Allah has created Adam and his
mate, Hawa, and Allah has also created the partner for each of us even before we were born. The
prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) taught us to get married and told the men
to treat women with kindness. In a marriage, both husband and wife have their own obligations
that they must fulfill. This chapter will discuss on the rights of the wife over the husbands in
detail.
First and foremost, one of the rights of wife towards the husband is the mahr or also
known as dowry. Allah has mentioned in the Al-Quran, Surah An-Nisa, verse 4,

And give the women [upon marriage] their [bridal] gifts graciously. But if they give up
willingly to you anything of it, then take it in satisfaction and ease. (Noble Quran 4:4)
The giving of the mahr from the husband towards the wife is obligatory and it will be considered
as a debt if the man fails to give the mahr to the woman whom he married with. Nevertheless, if
the wife willingly and freely gives up her right towards it, hence the husband will escape from
that obligation.
Secondly, nafaqah (support) is also one of the husbands obligations towards his wife.
Allah has stated in Surah Al-Baqarah, verse 233, ...Upon the father is the mothers' provision
and their clothing according to what is acceptable. No person is charged with more than his
capacity.... This clearly shows that it is the mans obligation to give nafaqah towards his wife.
One of the main reasons the men will receive more wealth compared to the women when the
parents were dead is because they need to look after the women.
The third one is a kind and proper treatment by the husband towards the wife. Allah has
stated in the Quran, verse 19, Surah An-Nisa that men need to treat their wife with kindness and
in a beautiful manner. The husband should look at the wife with a smile in his face and be gentle
towards her.
Next, the fourth obligation of the husband towards his wife is physical relations. This
obligation is actually a mutual obligation between the husband and wife. The man should not
perform Ibadah and neglect his wife as his wife has the right over him. This has been explained

by the prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h) in one of the hadith narrated by Abdullah bin `Amr bin Al`As:
Observe the fast sometimes and also leave them (the fast) at other times; stand up for
the prayer at night and also sleep at night. Your body has a right over you, your eyes have a right
over you and your wife has a right over you. (Sahih al-Bukhari 5199)
Then, the fifth obligation that a man has towards his wife is justice. This is necessarily
important especially towards those men who have more than one wife. The men need to do
justice towards their wives in terms of physical things such as house, clothes and food as well as
the nights spent with each of them. Allah has also said in the Al-Quran regarding this issue in
verse 129, Surah An-Nisa,

The prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h) has discussed this issue and indicated that there are two forms
of justice, one which can be fulfilled such as the physical things that have been mentioned earlier
and the other one is the form which is beyond human ability. One of the examples for the form
which is beyond our ability is the feeling of the heart. Nevertheless, the man should not neglect
one of his wives if he loves the other one more.
Last but not least, the obligation of the husband to teach his wife about Islam. The
prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h) mentioned that, The ruler is a shepherd and shall be asked about
his wards. The man is a shepherd of his family and will be asked about his wards (Sahih alBukhari 5188). It is obligatory for the husband to teach his wife regarding the obligatory things
in Islam such as prayer, fasting, and her responsibilities towards her parents, children as well as
the societies. If the husband has teach his wife and children about Islam, then he has fulfilled his
obligation and will not be asked about the sins of his wife and children. If he fails to fulfill this,
then he himself will be asked about their sins and their going astray based on his shortcomings in
not fulfilling his obligations in this regard.
All in all, these are the six main obligations of the husband towards his wife. The
husband should fulfill the rights towards his wife just like the wife should fulfill the rights
towards his husband. If both of the husband and wife carry out their responsibilities, in sha Allah,
the family will be filled with happiness and barakah from Allah.

References
Al-Quranul Karim. http://quran.com/
Sahih al-Bukari. http://sunnah.com/bukhari