I’m a new muslim. I got married 6 months ago.. My husband told me by text message I DIVORCE YOU 3 times I don’t speak arabic, I don’t what he means after he said that. He never told me front of me after that day we were living in the same house like normal marriage. he was so angry at the moment the text me . We are divorce?
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Assalaamu `alaykum waRahmatullahi Wabarakatuh
It is unclear from your query whether your husband sent you a text message saying “I divorce you three times” or whether he sent you three text messages, each message saying “I divorce you”. The ruling may be different in both cases. Hereunder are the rulings for both cases:
1) If your husband sent you a text message saying “I divorce you three times”, then three talaaqs (divorces) have taken place whether he intended talaaq (divorce) or not. You are no longer husband and wife. Your iddah (waiting period) started the moment he wrote the text message. You cannot marry anyone before the expiry of your waiting period. The waiting period is three menstruations if not pregnant or birth of the child if pregnant. You cannot marry him again unless you marry someone else, consummate the marriage and happen to get divorced again.
الكتابة على نوعين : مرسومة وغير مرسومة ، ونعني بالمرسومة أن يكون مصدرا ومعنونا مثل ما يكتب إلى الغائب … ( وبعد أسطر ) … وإن كانت مرسومة يقع الطلاق نوى أو لم ينو ثم المرسومة لا تخلو إما أن أرسل الطلاق بأن كتب : أما بعد فأنت طالق ، فكما كتب هذا يقع الطلاق وتلزمها العدة من وقت الكتابة إلخ ( رد المحتار: ج 4 ص 442 ط دار المعرفة )
2) If your husband sent you three text messages and in each text message he said “I divorce you”, then in this case also three talaaqs (divorces) have taken place and the same rulings as above will apply.
If, however, by sending the second and third text messages, the intention of your husband was merely to emphasize the talaaq (divorce), then in this case one revocable divorce (talaaq raj’i) has taken place. In a revocable divorce, the husband may take his wife back during her iddah (waiting period) by saying “I am taking you back into my nikah (marriage)” or “I am going to maintain you as my wife and I will not let you go.” or by kissing or fondling her, etc. If your waiting period has expired and both of you wish to get back together, then you may do your nikah again.
( فتاوى دار العلوم ديوبند: ج 9 ص 150 ط دار الإشاعت )
( بهشتي زيور: ج 1 ص 463 )
في الدر المختار: كرر لفظ الطلاق وقع الكل ، وإن نوى التأكيد دين ؛ وفي حاشية ابن عابدين: ( قوله كرر لفظ الطلاق ) بأن قال للمدخولة : أنت طالق أنت طالق أو قد طلقتك قد طلقتك أو أنت طالق قد طلقتك أو أنت طالق وأنت طالق إلخ ( قوله وإن نوى التأكيد دين ) أي ووقع الكل قضاء ( رد المحتار: ج 4 ص 510 ط دار المعرفة )
Please note that the rulings mentioned above will not change because of the fact that your husband was angry when he sent you the text message/s; and neither will the rulings change because of you not having understood what he meant by the text message/s.
And Allah Ta’ala Knows Best
Wassalaamu `alaykum
Ml. Faizal Riza
Correspondence Iftaa Student, Australia
Checked and Approved by:
Mufti Ebrahim Desai
Darul Iftaa, Madrassah In’aamiyyah