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Is there a legitimate way to practice polygyny under Arab laws that prohibit and penalize it?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Muslims must reject any law that permits what Allah has forbidden or forbids what Allah has permitted, and strive to change it through legitimate means, especially laws that criminalize polygyny, due to their grave consequences. To implement Allah's Sharia, one must reform and nurture the self to glorify Allah's command and the obligation of ruling by His Sharia, for "And whoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed – then it is those who are the disbelievers." (Quran 5:44). After that comes enjoining good and forbidding evil. As for polygyny without the state's knowledge, it is permissible if the conditions of a valid Islamic marriage are met, along with safety for oneself and one's property from the oppressive state's punishments.

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

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