Fatwa ID: 02927

Answered by:  Maulana Tahsin Alam​

Question:

Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullah

I would like to know quite clearly what Arabic words are used for Mahr which is considered to be prompt and for a Mahr which is to be deferred, along with some brief explanation of those words.

Answer:

In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

‘Mahr,’ ‘ṣadāq’ or ‘ṣidāq’ are the Arabic terms for dowry. There are two types of Mahar:

1.    Mahar Muʿajjal (with a ʿayn): The giving of a partial sum of the dowry to the wife before the marriage is consummated. This is a recommended practice due to the narration; Nabi SAW prevented Ali RA from consummating the marriage with his daughter (Fāṭima RA) until he gave her something before.

2.    Mahar Mu’ajjal (with a hamza): The total payment of dowry, to be given to the wife, whose payment was deferred to a later date.^[1] 

Only Allah Ta’ala knows best

Written by Maulana Tahsin Alam

Checked and approved by Ustadha Sabrina al-Faarsiyyah

Darul Ifta Birmingham

^[1] Mulla ʿAli al-Qāri, Mirqāt al-Mafātīḥ (Pakistan: Maktabah Rashediyah, n.d.) volume 6 pg. 327.