وَلَا تَنكِحُوا۟ مَا نَكَحَ ءَابَآؤُكُم مِّنَ ٱلنِّسَآءِ إِلَّا مَا قَدْ سَلَفَ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ فَـٰحِشَةً وَمَقْتًا وَسَآءَ سَبِيلًا 22
Translations
And do not marry those [women] whom your fathers married, except what has already occurred. Indeed, it was an immorality and hateful [to Allāh] and was evil as a way.
Transliteration
Wa la tankihoo ma nakaha aabaaokum minan nisaa illa ma qad salaf. Innahu kana fahisatan wa maqtan wa saa sabila.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah prohibits marrying women who were previously married to one's fathers, declaring such marriages to be a grave sin and morally repugnant. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari explain that this prohibition targets the pre-Islamic Arabian custom of inheriting widows of one's father, and the exception 'illa ma qad salaf' (except what has already occurred) refers to contracts made before this revelation, which were nullified upon Islam's establishment. The triple condemnation—fahisha (grave sin), maqt (abomination), and saa sabila (evil way)—emphasizes the severity of this prohibition and its violation of natural human decency and family honor.
Revelation Context
This ayah was revealed in Medina as part of Surah An-Nisa's comprehensive legislation on marriage and kinship relations. It addresses a pre-Islamic Arabian practice where men would inherit or marry the wives of their deceased fathers as property, treating women as possessions. The revelation came to establish the Islamic legal framework for marriage, protecting women's dignity and clarifying forbidden marriages within family relationships.
Related Hadiths
Sahih Bukhari records that 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar said: 'The most disliked of lawful things to Allah is divorce.' While not directly about this ayah, it relates to the protection of marital bonds. Additionally, the practice mentioned in this verse is condemned in various hadith collections discussing the pre-Islamic customs (jahiliyyah) that Islam abolished.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that Islamic law prioritizes human dignity, particularly for women, and firmly rejects exploitative social customs regardless of their prevalence. For modern readers, it underscores Islam's revolutionary stance on women's rights and reminds us that adherence to Islamic principles must supersede cultural traditions that contradict divine wisdom.
Related Ayahs
وَإِذَا ضَرَبْتُمْ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ فَلَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَن تَقْصُرُوا۟ مِنَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةِ إِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَن يَفْتِنَكُمُ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوٓا۟ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلْكَـٰفِرِينَ كَانُوا۟ لَكُمْ عَدُوًّا مُّبِينًا
And when you travel throughout the land, there is no blame upon you for shortening the prayer, [especially] if you fear that those who disbelieve may disrupt [or attack] you. Indeed, the disbelievers are ever to you a clear enemy.
وَمَن يَعْمَلْ سُوٓءًا أَوْ يَظْلِمْ نَفْسَهُۥ ثُمَّ يَسْتَغْفِرِ ٱللَّهَ يَجِدِ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورًا رَّحِيمًا
And whoever does a wrong or wrongs himself but then seeks forgiveness of Allāh will find Allāh Forgiving and Merciful.
۞ فَمَا لَكُمْ فِى ٱلْمُنَـٰفِقِينَ فِئَتَيْنِ وَٱللَّهُ أَرْكَسَهُم بِمَا كَسَبُوٓا۟ ۚ أَتُرِيدُونَ أَن تَهْدُوا۟ مَنْ أَضَلَّ ٱللَّهُ ۖ وَمَن يُضْلِلِ ٱللَّهُ فَلَن تَجِدَ لَهُۥ سَبِيلًا
What is [the matter] with you [that you are] two groups concerning the hypocrites, while Allāh has made them fall back [into error and disbelief] for what they earned. Do you wish to guide those whom Allāh has sent astray? And he whom Allāh sends astray - never will you find for him a way [of guidance].
مُّذَبْذَبِينَ بَيْنَ ذَٰلِكَ لَآ إِلَىٰ هَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ وَلَآ إِلَىٰ هَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ ۚ وَمَن يُضْلِلِ ٱللَّهُ فَلَن تَجِدَ لَهُۥ سَبِيلًا
Wavering between them, [belonging] neither to these [i.e., the believers] nor to those [i.e., the disbelievers]. And whoever Allāh sends astray - never will you find for him a way.