What is the ruling regarding a husband saying to his wife, "You are forbidden to me as my mother is forbidden to me," while he is asleep and angry? Does this constitute a divorce? And what is the ruling on his saying, "You are divorced by three," while claiming he did not utter it consciously?
A Muslim is not held accountable for actions committed unintentionally or without choice. Therefore, if you utter words of prohibition (tahrim) or divorce while unaware of what you are saying, no consequence follows. If a dispute arises between spouses regarding divorce, the husband's statement is the one considered. If you utter words of prohibition while aware, this is an explicit 'zihar'. Anger does not preclude accountability unless the angry person loses consciousness. If the wife is certain that the husband uttered the triple divorce while fully conscious and aware, then it is impermissible for her to allow him to have conjugal relations with her.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/125019
Where this answer came from
- Source platform
- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 125019
- Added here
- . This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
- Text
- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
- Read the full ruling
- Read the full answer on Ftawy