Publisher's Preface

عرض ناشر

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

Islam is a complete religion and a comprehensive system of life. Muslims are required not only to fulfil their acts of worship but to bring all their daily conduct within the circle of the Islamic system, guided by the Qur'an and the Sunnah — and the scholars of every era are there to assist them in every stage of life.

Divorce is permissible in Islam, but it is nevertheless the most reprehensible of lawful acts. It is therefore not easy for every Muslim to study the books of Qur'an, Hadith, and jurisprudence pertaining to it. For this reason it was felt necessary that Muslims be made aware of these issues. With this in view, the tafsir (exegesis) written by the great scholar Hazrat Bahr-ul-Uloom — may Allah have mercy upon him — former Professor and Head of the Department of Religious Studies, Osmania University, Hyderabad, is being presented. It covers only the verses of Surah al-Baqarah and Surah al-Talaq on the subject of divorce, and will be explained from two angles.

It is hoped that from a study of this work it will become abundantly clear when divorce should be given and how it should be given. There are two forms of divorce, and the rulings organised within them — the waiting period ('iddah), its computation, and so on.

It is clear that divorce is an extremely delicate and serious matter. Some people find it very difficult and problematic. If a judge is consulted and the decision to separate is made, the pronouncement of divorce must be made using the words recorded in the fatawa of the great fuqaha (jurists). This practice has full and complete backing in the divorce rulings of those scholars. Without it, they may end up with the situation of pronouncing divorce three times in one sitting — which leads to the grave sin of pronouncing divorce in an impermissible manner. The result of this is that one's wife becomes permanently forbidden without the means of reunion, and another woman suffers the same fate.

اللَّهُمَّ اهدِنَا الصِّرَاطَ المُستَقِيمَ وَوَفِّقنَا انتِبَاع هَدى نَبِيِّكَ الكَرِيمِ وَقِنَّا المَعَاصِي وَالتَّحرِيمَ

"O Allah, guide us to the straight path, grant us the ability to follow the guidance of Your Noble Prophet, and protect us from sins and from what is forbidden. Amin."

Muhammad Abbas Alim Dar Siddiqui. 14 Shawwal al-Mukarram 1415 AH / 19 March 1995 CE. Hasrat Academy Publishers and Maktabah Bahr al-Uloom. Siddiq Gulshan, Hyderabad.