Revisiting the Fiqhi Foundations of the Marital Bond after the Death of One Spouse, with Reference to Imami Ijtihadi Evidence

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Professor, Department of Family Fiqh, Center for Management of Women's Seminaries of Tehran Province, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

The issue of the marital bond is a practical question in fiqh generally and in medical fiqh in particular. It concerns whether the spousal relationship continues or is dissolved upon the death of one of the spouses. This question can play an important role in ijtihad and the derivation of Shari'ah rulings across different areas of fiqh, and, because it is connected with preventing confusion of lineage and reproductive material, it may serve as a fiqhi framework in other chapters of jurisprudence. The central question of this article is whether death dissolves the marital bond. Using library-based data collection and analytical examination of the materials, the study identifies three views: dissolution of the marital bond upon death; continuation of the bond until the end of the waiting period of widowhood; and perpetual continuation of the marital bond. The arguments for each view are presented and the objections to them are answered. The article concludes that the third view, and the evidence supporting continuation of the marital bond after the death of one spouse, is stronger. At a minimum, if the ijtihadi evidence and texts are considered incomplete because of ambiguity or omission, the practical principles of bara'ah and istishab apply and again reinforce the third view.

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Main Subjects

References

Reference

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Studies of Islamic Jurisprudence and Basis of Law
Volume 19, Issue 52 - Serial Number 52
January 2025
Pages 179-204

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