Fatwa ID: 08963
Answered by Maulana Abdurrahman Persaud
Question:
Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh,
I would like to ask about the validity of my marriage (nikah).
My husband and his entire family were previously members of the Ahmadi (Qadiani) community. About 10 years ago, my husband and his immediate family formally accepted Sunni Islam. They signed the official declaration in Pakistan, confirming their belief in the finality of the Prophethood of Muhammad ﷺ and rejecting Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s claims.
Since their conversion, they have been practicing as Sunni Muslims — offering prayers in Sunni mosques, fasting in Ramadan, giving zakat, etc.
I myself am Sunni Muslim by birth and belief.
Our nikah was performed about one year ago, long after his conversion, and by a Sunni imam.
Recently, when I informed my parents of his and his family’s past Ahmadi background, they became very concerned. They are unsure if the conversion is genuine or if my marriage remains Islamically valid.
My questions are:
- Given that my husband and his family converted around 10 years ago and affirm full belief in Sunni Islam, is our nikah valid and halal?
Thankyou
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Answer:
Usamah bin Zaid (May Allah be pleased with them) reported:
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) sent us to Huraqat, a tribe of Juhainah. We attacked that tribe early in the morning and defeated them. Then, A man from the Ansar and I caught hold of a man (of the defeated tribe). When we overcame him, he said: ‘La ilaha illallah (There is no true god except Allah).’ At that moment, the Ansari spared him, but I attacked him with my spear and killed him. By the time we went back to Al-Madinah, news had already reached Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). He said to me, “O Usamah, did you kill him after he professed La ilaha illallah (There is no true god except Allah)?” I said, “O Messenger of Allah! He professed it only to save his life.” Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) repeated, “Did you kill him after he had professed La ilaha illallah?” He went on repeating this to me until I wished I had not embraced Islam before that day (so that I would not have committed this sin).
Another narration is: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, “Did you kill him despite his professing La ilaha illallah?” I said, “O Messenger of Allah! He said out of fear of our arms.” He (ﷺ) said, “Why did you not cut his heart open to find out whether he had done so sincerely or not?” He continued repeating it until I wished that I had embraced Islam only that day.
In principle, once a person declares the shahadah (testimony of faith) and has the fundamentals of imaan, which are the belief in the oneness of Allah ﷻ, his angels, his revelations, his messengers, destiny, life after death, and resurrection, then his imaan is sound and should not be doubted.
These can be the whispers of Shaytan trying to infiltrate our relationships and cause harm.
Wasawis are of various categories and affect a person in different aspects. Some are more common than others, but the cause of all is the same, and the remedy is more or less also the same. It should be noted that not every person is affected by Wasawis, and some people are more affected than others. Since these are whisperings of Shaitaan, a person should not be perturbed, and he should learn to ignore them. In the Hadith, Rasulullah (ﷺ) has consoled us and informed us that Allah will not hold a person accountable for the Wasawis that he is troubled with as long as he does not act on it or verbally express it.[1]
Constantly seek protection from these whispers. Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with them) narrates that Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) said, “Satan comes to one of you and says, ‘Who created so-and-so? ’till he says, ‘Who has created your Lord?’ So, when he inspires such a question, one should seek refuge with Allah and give up such thoughts.”[2]
To conclude, your nikah is valid, providing it was done correctly according to the Sunni method, and these doubts from your family should not have any bearing or weight on your marriage. There is a ruling in sharee’a that says “certainty is not removed by doubt.”[3]
Meaning an established certainty remains true despite subsequent doubts, which are disregarded unless they become certainties themselves.
Only Allah ﷻ knows best.
Written by Maulana Abdurrahman Persaud
Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah
Darul Ifta Birmingham
References:
[1]
حَدَّثَنَا الْحُمَيْدِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ، حَدَّثَنَا مِسْعَرٌ، عَنْ قَتَادَةَ، عَنْ زُرَارَةَ بْنِ أَوْفَى، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ قَالَ قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم ” إِنَّ اللَّهَ تَجَاوَزَ لِي عَنْ أُمَّتِي مَا وَسْوَسَتْ بِهِ صُدُورُهَا، مَا لَمْ تَعْمَلْ أَوْ تَكَلَّمْ ”.
Sahih al-Bukhari 2528
[2]
حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ بُكَيْرٍ، حَدَّثَنَا اللَّيْثُ، عَنْ عُقَيْلٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ، قَالَ أَخْبَرَنِي عُرْوَةُ، قَالَ أَبُو هُرَيْرَةَ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ” يَأْتِي الشَّيْطَانُ أَحَدَكُمْ فَيَقُولُ مَنْ خَلَقَ كَذَا مَنْ خَلَقَ كَذَا حَتَّى يَقُولَ مَنْ خَلَقَ رَبَّكَ فَإِذَا بَلَغَهُ فَلْيَسْتَعِذْ بِاللَّهِ، وَلْيَنْتَهِ ”.
Sahih al-Bukhari 3276
[3]
إِنَّ ٱلظَّنَّ لَا يُغْنِى مِنَ ٱلْحَقِّ شَيْـًٔا
(Surah Yunus 10:36)
الأشباه والنظائر على مذاهب أبي حنيفة النعمان
ابن نجيم – زين الدين بن إبراهيم بن محمد
القاعدة الثالثة اليقين لا يزول بالشك ص: 193