Allah the Exalted said:
رياض الصالحينAbū Zakariyyā Muḥyī al-Dīn Yaḥyā ibn Sharaf al-Nawawī٣٤ - باب الوصية بالنساء
٣٤ - باب الوصية بالنساء
ۖ ۚ
O you who have believed, it is not lawful for you to inherit women by compulsion.1 And do not make difficulties for them in order to take [back] part of what you gave them2 unless they commit a clear immorality [i.e., adultery]. And live with them in kindness. For if you dislike them - perhaps you dislike a thing and Allāh makes therein much good.
And He the Exalted said:
وَلَن تَسْتَطِيعُوٓا۟ أَن تَعْدِلُوا۟ بَيْنَ ٱلنِّسَآءِ وَلَوْ حَرَصْتُمْ ۖ فَلَا تَمِيلُوا۟ كُلَّ ٱلْمَيْلِ فَتَذَرُوهَا كَٱلْمُعَلَّقَةِ ۚ وَإِن تُصْلِحُوا۟ وَتَتَّقُوا۟ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ غَفُورًا رَّحِيمًا
And you will never be able to be equal [in feeling] between wives, even if you should strive [to do so]. So do not incline completely [toward one] and leave another hanging.1 And if you amend [your affairs] and fear Allāh - then indeed, Allāh is ever Forgiving and Merciful.
وعن أَبي هريرة - ﵁ - قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُول الله - ﷺ: «اسْتَوْصُوا بالنِّساءِ خَيْرًا؛ فَإِنَّ المَرْأَةَ خُلِقَتْ مِنْ ضِلعٍ، وَإنَّ أعْوَجَ مَا في الضِّلَعِ أعْلاهُ، فَإنْ ذَهَبتَ تُقيمُهُ كَسَرْتَهُ، وَإنْ تَرَكْتَهُ، لَمْ يَزَلْ أعْوجَ، فَاسْتَوصُوا بالنِّساءِ». مُتَّفَقٌ عَلَيهِ. وفي رواية في الصحيحين: «المَرأةُ كالضِّلَعِ إنْ أقَمْتَهَا كَسَرْتَهَا، وَإن اسْتَمتَعْتَ بِهَا، اسْتَمتَعْتَ وفِيهَا عوَجٌ». وفي رواية لمسلم: «إنَّ المَرأةَ خُلِقَت مِنْ ضِلَع، لَنْ تَسْتَقِيمَ لَكَ عَلَى طَريقة، فإن اسْتَمْتَعْتَ بِهَا اسْتَمْتَعْتَ بِهَا وَفيهَا عوَجٌ، وإنْ ذَهَبْتَ تُقِيمُهَا كَسَرْتَها، وَكَسْرُهَا طَلاَقُهَا». قوله: «عَوَجٌ» هُوَ بفتح العينِ والواوِ.
On the authority of Abū Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “Treat women well, for woman was created from a rib, and the most crooked part of the rib is its upper portion. If you set about straightening it, you will break it, and if you leave it, it will remain crooked. So treat women well.” Agreed upon. In a narration in the two Ṣaḥīḥs: “Woman is like a rib; if you straighten her, you break her, and if you take enjoyment in her, you take enjoyment while she still has crookedness in her.” In a narration of Muslim: “Woman was created from a rib; she will never be straight for you in one way. If you take enjoyment in her, you take enjoyment in her while she has crookedness in her; and if you set about straightening her, you break her, and breaking her is divorcing her.” His statement “ʿawaj” (crookedness) is with a fatḥah on the ʿayn and the wāw.
وعن عبد الله بن زَمْعَةَ - ﵁: أنَّهُ سَمِعَ النَّبيّ - ﷺ - يَخْطُبُ، وَذَكَرَ النَّاقَةَ وَالَّذِي عَقَرَهَا، فَقَالَ رَسُول الله - ﷺ: «﴿إِذ انْبَعَثَ أشْقَاهَا﴾ انْبَعَثَ لَهَا رَجُلٌ عَزيزٌ، عَارِمٌ مَنيعٌ في رَهْطِهِ»، ثُمَّ ذَكَرَ النِّسَاءَ، فَوعَظَ فِيهنَّ، فَقَالَ: «يَعْمِدُ أحَدُكُمْ فَيَجْلِدُ امْرَأتَهُ جَلْدَ العَبْدِ فَلَعَلَّهُ يُضَاجِعُهَا مِنْ آخِرِ يَومِهِ» ثُمَّ وَعَظَهُمْ في ضَحِكِهمْ مِنَ الضَّرْطَةِ، وَقالَ: «لِمَ يَضْحَكُ أَحَدُكُمْ مِمَّا يَفْعَلُ؟! ». مُتَّفَقٌ عَلَيهِ. «وَالعَارِمُ» بالعين المهملة والراء: هُوَ الشِّرِّيرُ المفسِدُ، وقوله: «انْبَعَثَ»، أيْ: قَامَ بسرعة.
On the authority of ʿAbd Allah ibn Zamʿah (may Allah be pleased with him): that he heard the Prophet (ﷺ) delivering a sermon, and he mentioned the she-camel and the one who hamstrung her. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “˹When the most wretched of them rose up˺ — there rose up for it a man mighty, fierce, and well-protected within his clan.” Then he mentioned women and admonished concerning them, saying: “One of you deliberately flogs his wife as a slave is flogged, and then perhaps he lies with her at the end of his day.” Then he admonished them about their laughing at breaking wind, and said: “Why does one of you laugh at what he himself does?!” Agreed upon. “Al-ʿārim,” with the undotted ʿayn and the rāʾ: he is the malicious, corrupting one. And his statement “inbaʿatha” means: he rose up quickly.
وعن أَبي هريرة - ﵁ - قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُول الله - ﷺ: «لاَ يَفْرَكْ مُؤْمِنٌ مُؤْمِنَةً إنْ كَرِهَ مِنْهَا خُلُقًا رَضِيَ مِنْهَا آخَرَ»، أَوْ قَالَ: «غَيْرَهُ». رواه مسلم. وقولُهُ: «يَفْرَكْ» هُوَ بفتح الياءِ وإسكان الفاء وفتح الراءِ معناه: يُبْغِضُ، يقالُ: فَرِكَتِ المَرأةُ زَوْجَهَا، وَفَرِكَهَا زَوْجُهَا، بكسر الراء يفْرَكُهَا بفتحها: أيْ أبْغَضَهَا، والله أعلم.
On the authority of Abū Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “Let no believing man hate a believing woman: if he dislikes one trait in her, he will be pleased with another,” or he said: “with another [trait].” Muslim narrated it. His statement “yafruk” is with a fatḥah on the yāʾ, a sukūn on the fāʾ, and a fatḥah on the rāʾ; its meaning is: he detests. It is said: “farikat al-marʾatu zawjahā” (the woman detested her husband) and “farikahā zawjuhā” (her husband detested her), with a kasrah on the rāʾ [in the past tense], “yafrukuhā” with a fatḥah on it [in the present]: that is, he detested her. And Allah knows best.
وعن عمرو بن الأحوصِ الجُشَمي - ﵁: أنَّهُ سَمِعَ النَّبيّ - ﷺ - في حَجَّةِ الوَدَاعِ يَقُولُ بَعْدَ أَنْ حَمِدَ الله تَعَالَى، وَأثْنَى عَلَيهِ وَذَكَّرَ وَوَعظَ، ثُمَّ قَالَ: «ألا وَاسْتَوصُوا بالنِّساءِ خَيْرًا، فَإِنَّمَا هُنَّ عَوَانٍ عِنْدَكُمْ لَيْسَ تَمْلِكُونَ مِنْهُنَّ شَيْئًا غَيْرَ ذلِكَ إلاَّ أَنْ يَأتِينَ بِفَاحِشَةٍ مُبَيِّنَةٍ، فَإنْ فَعَلْنَ فَاهْجُرُوهُنَّ في المَضَاجِع، وَاضْرِبُوهُنَّ ضَربًا غَيْرَ مُبَرِّحٍ، فإنْ أطَعْنَكُمْ فَلا تَبْغُوا عَلَيهنَّ سَبيلًا؛ ألاَ إنَّ لَكُمْ عَلَى نِسَائِكُمْ حَقًّا، وَلِنِسَائِكُمْ عَلَيْكُمْ حَقًّا؛ فَحَقُّكُمْ عَلَيهِنَّ أَنْ لا يُوطِئْنَ فُرُشَكُمْ مَنْ تَكْرَهُونَ، وَلا يَأْذَنَّ في بُيُوتِكُمْ لِمَنْ تَكْرَهُونَ؛ ألاَ وَحَقُّهُنَّ عَلَيْكُمْ أَنْ تُحْسِنُوا إِلَيْهِنَّ في كِسْوَتِهنَّ وَطَعَامِهنَّ». رواه الترمذي، وَقالَ: «حديث حسن صحيح». قوله - ﷺ: «عَوان» أيْ: أسِيرَاتٌ جَمْع عَانِيَة، بالعَيْنِ المُهْمَلَةِ، وَهِيَ الأسِيرَةُ، والعاني: الأسير. شَبَّهَ رسولُ الله - ﷺ - المرأةَ في دخولِها تَحْتَ حُكْمِ الزَّوْجِ بالأَسيرِ «وَالضَّرْبُ المبَرِّحُ»: هُوَ الشَّاقُ الشَّدِيد وقوله - ﷺ: «فَلاَ تَبْغُوا عَلَيهنَّ سَبِيلًا» أيْ: لاَ تَطْلُبُوا طَريقًا تَحْتَجُّونَ بِهِ عَلَيهِنَّ وَتُؤْذُونَهُنَّ بِهِ، والله أعلم.
On the authority of ʿAmr ibn al-Aḥwaṣ al-Jushamī (may Allah be pleased with him): that he heard the Prophet (ﷺ) say during the Farewell Pilgrimage, after he had praised Allah the Exalted, extolled Him, and given reminder and admonition, then said: “Behold, treat women well, for they are but captives with you; you possess nothing of them beyond that, unless they commit a flagrant indecency. If they do, then forsake them in their beds and strike them with a blow that is not severe. But if they obey you, then seek no [further] way against them. Behold, you have a right over your women, and your women have a right over you. Your right over them is that they do not let anyone you dislike tread your bedding, and that they do not admit into your houses anyone you dislike. Behold, and their right over you is that you treat them well in their clothing and their food.” Al-Tirmidhī narrated it and said: “A good and sound hadith.” His statement (ﷺ) “ʿawān” means: female captives; it is the plural of “ʿāniyah,” with the undotted ʿayn, which is the female captive; and “al-ʿānī” is the male captive. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) likened the woman, in her coming under the authority of the husband, to a captive. “Al-ḍarb al-mubarriḥ” (the severe blow): it is the painful, harsh one. And his statement (ﷺ) “fa-lā tabghū ʿalayhinna sabīlā” means: do not seek a way by which to argue against them and harm them. And Allah knows best.
وعن معاوية بن حيدة - ﵁ - قَالَ: قُلْتُ: يَا رَسُول الله، مَا حق زَوجَةِ أَحَدِنَا عَلَيهِ؟ قَالَ: «أنْ تُطْعِمَهَا إِذَا طعِمْتَ، وَتَكْسُوهَا إِذَا اكْتَسَيْتَ، وَلاَ تَضْرِبِ الوَجْهَ، وَلا تُقَبِّحْ، وَلا تَهْجُرْ إلاَّ في البَيْتِ» حديثٌ حسنٌ رواه أَبُو داود وَقالَ: معنى «لا تُقَبِّحْ» أي: لا تقل: قبحكِ الله.
On the authority of Muʿāwiyah ibn Ḥaydah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: I said: O Messenger of Allah, what is the right of the wife of one of us over him? He said: “That you feed her when you eat, clothe her when you clothe yourself, do not strike the face, do not revile [her], and do not shun [her] except within the house.” A good hadith, narrated by Abū Dāwūd, who said: the meaning of “lā tuqabbiḥ” is: do not say, “May Allah make you ugly.”
وعن أَبي هريرة - ﵁ - قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُول الله - ﷺ: «أكْمَلُ المُؤمِنِينَ إيمَانًا أحْسَنُهُمْ خُلُقًا، وخِيَارُكُمْ خياركم لِنِسَائِهِمْ». رواه الترمذي، وَقالَ: «حديث حسن صحيح».
On the authority of Abū Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “The most complete of the believers in faith are those best of them in character, and the best of you are those who are best to their women.” Al-Tirmidhī narrated it and said: “A good and sound hadith.”
وعن إياس بن عبد الله بن أَبي ذباب - ﵁ - قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُول الله - ﷺ: «لاَ تَضْرِبُوا إمَاء الله» فجاء عُمَرُ - ﵁ - إِلَى رسولِ الله - ﷺ - فَقَالَ: ذَئِرْنَ النِّسَاءُ عَلَى أزْوَاجِهِنَّ، فَرَخَّصَ في ضَرْبِهِنَّ، فَأطَافَ بآلِ رَسُول الله - ﷺ - نِسَاءٌ كَثيرٌ يَشْكُونَ أزْواجَهُنَّ، فَقَالَ رَسُول الله - ﷺ: «لَقَدْ أطَافَ بِآلِ بَيتِ مُحَمَّدٍ نِسَاءٌ كثيرٌ يَشْكُونَ أزْوَاجَهُنَّ لَيْسَ أولَئكَ بخيَارِكُمْ». رواه أَبُو داود بإسناد صحيح. قوله: «ذَئِرنَ» هُوَ بذَال مُعْجَمَة مفْتوحَة، ثُمَّ هَمْزة مَكْسُورَة، ثُمَّ راءٍ سَاكِنَة، ثُمَّ نُون، أي: اجْتَرَأْنَ، قوله: «أطَافَ» أيْ: أحَاطَ.
On the authority of Iyās ibn ʿAbd Allah ibn Abī Dhubāb (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “Do not strike the female servants of Allah.” Then ʿUmar (may Allah be pleased with him) came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said: The women have grown bold against their husbands. So he gave licence to strike them. Then many women thronged around the family of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) complaining of their husbands, so the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “Many women have thronged around the household of Muḥammad complaining of their husbands; those [men] are not the best of you.” Abū Dāwūd narrated it with a sound chain. His statement “dhaʾirna” is with a dotted dhāl with fatḥah, then a hamzah with kasrah, then a quiescent rāʾ, then a nūn; that is: they grew bold. His statement “aṭāfa” means: he encompassed.
وعن عبد الله بن عمرو بن العاص ﵄: أنَّ رَسُول الله - ﷺ - قَالَ: «الدُّنْيَا مَتَاعٌ، وَخَيرُ مَتَاعِهَا المَرْأَةُ الصَّالِحَةُ». رواه مسلم.
On the authority of ʿAbd Allah ibn ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ (may Allah be pleased with them both): that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: “The world is but enjoyment, and the best enjoyment of the world is a righteous woman.” Muslim narrated it.