Darul Iftaa Mahmudiyyah

Is cousin marriage obligatory in Islam?

Published as Marrying Cousins

· 24 Safar 1440 AH1 min readFatwa 40574English

Question

Is cousin marriage obligatory in Islam? If all Muslims are equal, why we must go for our cousins even if they're not connected to Deen, are known to be violent and disrespectful, instead of keeping piousness as our criteria?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

Islam permits marrying one’s cousin. It is not obligatory to marry one’s cousin.[1]

When looking for a spouse, piety should be the priority.

Consider the following hadith:

It is narrated from Abu Hurayra (radhiallahu ‘anhu) that Nabi (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “A woman is married for four reasons: her wealth, her lineage, her beauty, and her piety, so you should definitely try to marry the woman with piety.”

(Sahih al-Bukhari, 5090)

Your understanding is correct. One does not have to marry one’s cousin especially when he or she is far from Deen.

And Allah Ta‘ālā Knows Best.

Checked and Approved by:
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.

References (Arabic / Urdu sources)

عن أبي هريرة رضي الله عنه، عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال: تنكح المرأة لأربع: لمالها ولحسبها وجمالها ولدينها، فاظفر بذات الدين، تربت يداك

[1]

حاشية الجمل على شرح المنهج = فتوحات الوهاب بتوضيح شرح منهج الطلاب (٤/١١٩)

(غَيْرُ ذَاتِ قَرَابَةٍ قَرِيبَةٍ) بِأَنْ تَكُونَ أَجْنَبِيَّةً أَوْ ذَاتَ قَرَابَةٍ بَعِيدَةٍ لِضَعْفِ الشَّهْوَةِ فِي الْقَرِيبَةِ فَيَجِيءُ الْوَلَدُ نَحِيفًا وَالْبَعِيدَةُ أَوْلَى مِنْ الْأَجْنَبِيَّةِ لَكِنْ ذَكَرَ صَاحِبُ الْبَحْرِ وَالْبَيَانِ أَنَّ الشَّافِعِيَّ نَصَّ عَلَى أَنَّهُ يُسَنُّ لَهُ أَنْ لَا يَتَزَوَّجَ مِنْ عَشِيرَتِهِ؛ لِأَنَّ الْغَالِبَ حِينَئِذٍ عَلَى الْوَلَدِ الْحُمْقُ فَيُحْمَلُ نَصُّهُ عَلَى عَشِيرَتِهِ الْأَدْنَيْنَ...

(قَوْلُهُ: غَيْرُ ذَاتِ قَرَابَةٍ قَرِيبَةٍ) الْمُرَادُ بِالْقَرَابَةِ مَنْ هِيَ فِي أَوَّلِ دَرَجَاتِ الخئولة أَوْ الْعُمُومَةِ

Checked & approved by
Mufti Ebrahim Desai
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Where scholars differ, it’s safer to take the more cautious view.

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Source: Darul Iftaa Mahmudiyyah — https://askimam.org/public/question_detail/40574
Fatawa SA: https://fatawa.co.za/fatwa/askimam-40574

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