Question:
Assalamu alaykum
Please would you be so kind as to answer the following questions by e-mail to me ASAP.
My daughter and son-in-law are getting divorced soon due to his serious gambling addiction. He has spent all my daughters’ savings and when she first found out about his financial crisis, he owes money to lots of banks and to private individuals; she took out a bank loan in her name to try and help him.
She has a full time job in the City. After the talaq, she will have to observe iddah and not go work. The money for the loan repayments come from her monthly salary. He has no money to pay the instalments for three and a half months. In this instance, is she allowed to continue to go to work only and come straight home?
Also her job is at risk if she takes this time off. What can she do?
Please make dua for us all.
Jzk
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Answer: حامدا و مصلّيا ومسلّما
Firstly it should be remembered that the ruling with regards to women spending iddat at home after the divorce has taken place is the commandment of Allah (جلّ و عزّ), as He commands us in the Quran:
لا تخرجوهنّ من بيوتہنّ ولا يخرجن الا أن يأتين بفاحشة مبيّنة
”Do not remove them (ie. women who are in iddat) from their homes and the women should not leave the homes unless they were to transgress openly”.
Imam Kasani has mentioned that this verse also clearly indicates towards the fact that for women to leave the home in the iddat period is in itself a form of transgressing openly, which certainly will be curse invoking as well as going against the command of Allah (swt)
Therefore the seriousness of this matter is clear as well as the fact that this would unquestionably invoke the wrath of Allah (جلّ و عزّ).
Taking the above into account, it would not be permissible for a woman in iddat to leave the house without any necessity; otherwise she would be extremely sinful.
However, your situation shows that there is dire necessity. The fuqaha have permitted going out due to necessity.
Since your daughter has no other means, she may leave the house. However it is important that she does not leave the house without this dire need and once this need has been fulfilled she does not spend any extra time outside but rather returns without delay.
Also if it is possible for her to change or adjust the working hours in such a way that minimal time is spent outside then she must certainly do so.
However if she faces the threat of losing her job due to the stated adjustments and changes, then she may continue to work as normal but she should seek Allah’s forgiveness for the weakness with regards to fulfilling Allah’s command due to the aforementioned desperation. و الله أعلم بالصواب
دليل:
– امّا المتوفّى عنها زوجها فلأنّه لا نفقة لها فتحتاج إلى الخروج نهارا لطلب المعاش و قد ىمتدّ إلى أن ىحجم اللىل و لا كذالك المطلّقة-لأنّ النفقة دارة علىها من مال زوجها-قال فى الفتح: والحاصل أنّ مدار حلّ خروجها بسب قىام شغل المعىشة فلىقّدر بقدره فمتى انقضت حاجتها لا ىحلّ لها بعد ذالك صرف الزمان خارج بيتها-وبهذا اندفع قول البحر من كلامهم جواز خروج المعتدّة عن وفاة نهارا و لو كان عندها نفقة و إلّا لقالوا لاتخرج المعتدّة عن طلاق أو موت إلّا لضرورة فإنّ المطلّقة تخرج لضرورة لىلا او نهارا – و وجه الدفع أنّ المعتدّة الموت لما كانت فى العادة محتاجة إلى الخروج لأجل أن تكتسب للنفقة قالوا إنّما تخرج فى النّهار و بعض اللىل بخلاف المطلّقة-و أمّا الخروج للضرورة فلا فرق بىنهما كما نصوا –(شامي ص536 جلد 3)
(Tahir/ P 3/12)