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Wedding Rings

Answered as per Hanafi Fiqh by Darulifta Azaadville

Question:

Is it permissible to have a wedding ring in Islam? People these days marry and use wedding rings as a symbol of their commitment to each other and because it has now become symbolic of marriage. 

 

Answer:

There is no harm in women possessing rings as part of their jewellery collection and wearing them (with the purpose of adornment for their spouses) with the proviso that it is made from gold and silver only. Similarly, men are permitted to wear silver rings provided that the nett weight of the ring does not exceed 4.374g.

However, the custom of giving a “wedding ring” at the time of marriage can be traced back to the Ancient Eygptians who wore it on the fourth finger of the left hand as they believed that there was a ‘vein of love’ that ran directly from this finger to the heart. Such a belief in baseless, as we are aware that it is Allah Ta’aala alone that creates love between the spouses as understood from the Quraan Sharif.

It is perhaps a symbol of commitment for many in this day and age. However, this belief too is baseless in terms of Shariah. Rasulullahpractically demonstrated the meaning of commitment (to one’s spouse) to the Ummat. There couldn’t have been a better husband than Rasulullah yet we do not find any narration stating that he gave any of his wives a wedding ring on the occasion of Nikah to confirm his commitment.

In conclusion, the custom of a “wedding ring” is a concept foreign to Islam and should be discarded.

However, as we mentioned above, there is no harm in purchasing a ring as a gift for one’s wife (i.e. after living together as man and wife) which she can wear to adorn herself in order to please her husband. It should not be given and/or put on the wife’s finger as a “token of love” at the time of solemnizing the marriage (as is the norm and custom), as this is something alien to Islam.

This answer was collected from the official Ifta website of Darul Uloom Azaadville, South Africa. Most of the answers are checked and approved by Mufti Muhammed Saeed Motara Saheb D.B.

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