Surah 1-2 - YasSarNal QuR'aN

Al-Baqarah (The Cow) | THE FAMILY: THE FOUNDATION OF HUMAN SOCIETYbounds set by God; do not, then, transgress them.” While one warns against drawing nearto the act of wrongdoing itself, the other warns against transgression.In the first instance, the warning was against being attracted or tempted by certaindesires and it was appropriate to talk of resisting those temptations and keepingaway from them. In the second instance, the subject matter involves conflict andacrimonious disputes, and the danger here is of either party overreaching orexceeding their limits, so it is more pertinent to advise restraint and., steering awayfrom transgression.This is a good example of the remarkably precise diction of the Qur’ān.The sūrah continues, giving more rulings relating to divorce: “Should he divorce her[a third time], she shall not thereafter be lawful for him to remarry until she has weddedanother husband. If the latter’ then divorces her it shall be no offence for either of the two ifthey return to one another, if they feel that they will be able to keep within the bounds set byGod Such are the bounds set by God He makes them plain for people who have knowledge.”(Verse 230)If a third divorce takes place in a marriage, it could only be a sign of serious andirreversible deterioration within that relationship. The best solution in this casewould be permanent separation, and for each partner to seek happiness withsomeone else. However, if any or all of the three divorces were pronounced by theman lightly, or out of spite, or in the heat of the moment, here again, a drasticmeasure must be taken to prevent men abusing their divorce privilege. Such s anunhappy relationship should not be perpetuated, since the man has no appreciationfor it, nor is keen to protect it.The question may here be put, therefore, as to why the woman should have tosuffer the consequences of a rash utterance by her husband, thereby jeopardizing herlife, peace and security? The answer is that the ruling has to be realistic. Let us lookat this more closely and ask: What would be the alternative solution? Should the manbe forced to live with a woman in a marriage he has little or no respect for? Shouldhe be told that his repeated divorcing of his wife is not enforceable and that his wifeis his responsibility, whether he likes it or not? This, in fact, would be far morehumiliating for the wife, and degrading to the marriage itself, neither of which Islamwould condone. A more proper censure of the man’s behaviour would be to deprivehim of the right to his wife and make him in the first and second divorces liable topay a new dowry, under a new marriage contract, after he had failed to take her backbefore the passing of the waiting period. The third time a man resorts to divorce, theseparation shall be deemed final and the woman has to marry someone else and belegally divorced by him before being able to return to her former husband. The firsthusband would stand to forfeit the dowry he had paid as well as all the costs he had307