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What is the ruling on polygyny in Islam? Is there a prophetic hadith that encourages it? Is polygyny prohibited if it harms the wife? What are the conditions for its permissibility? Is it permissible for a man who is remiss in his family duties to marry again?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Polygyny is permissible in principle, and the juristic rulings surrounding it vary according to each case. There is no specific Hadith that encourages it, apart from the general Ahadith that encourage marriage. Ibn Abbas said: "The best of this Ummah are those who have the most wives." If a permissible act is done with good intention, the servant will be rewarded for it. As for a man marrying if he knows he will harm his wife, we say that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said to Ali when he intended to marry another woman while married to Fatimah: "I do not forbid what is lawful nor permit what is unlawful, and indeed Fatimah is a part of me; what troubles her troubles me, and what harms her harms me. And I fear that she may be tempted away from her religion." The husband does not sin in this case. If the wife fears temptation regarding her religion, she has the right to seek divorce or redeem herself from the husband.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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