Q: When my father proposed to my mother, he dedicated Surah Al-Imran, which he memorized off heart, as her “Mahr” (dowry). And when my husband proposed to me, my father told him that he would have to memorize a Surah of the Quran as my mahr. The wedding will not go on unless I’ve received my mahr I was asked to pick one of the surahs. I chose Surah Al-Noor. For all the laws that Surah contained within it and for the fact that it seemed hard to memorize on my behalf. And before our wedding day; aside of being busy preparing for our “Newly wedded Nest”, the Quran wouldn’t leave my husband’s hand an entire month as he was memorizing the Surah. A few day before our wedding day, my husband came to recite to my father the Surah which he had completed. My father told him every time you make a mistake, you would have to start from the beginning all over again. My husband began reciting Surah Al-Noor with his calm/gentle voice in such a “beautiful” scene which I will never forget. My mother and I would look at one another and would smile awaiting my husband to make a mistake so he would have to start all over again and by that increase my “Reward”. But my husband – May Allah bless him – had memorized the Surah off heart and didn’t even forget one single verse of it. Once he finished my father hugged him and said to him: “Today I shall marry my daughter to you, for you have fulfilled her mahr and your pledge to me..” He didn’t pay me a financial mahr, and we didn’t buy gold worth tens of thousands. He sufficed me with Allah’s words as an oath/contract between us.
Regarding the story above, is this type of mahr accepted in Islam?
A: He should give a mahr as was the general practice of Nabi (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) and the Sahaabah (radhiyallahu anhum).
And Allah Ta’ala (الله تعالى) knows best.
Answered by:
Mufti Ebrahim Salejee (Isipingo Beach)