Q264 :I have been working in Saudi Arabia for the
last five years. According to the terms of my contract, I am entitled
to a one month vacation and a ticket every two years. My netpany
stipulates that I cannot bring in my family. Therefore my wife stays
home. I have been told that according to Islamic rules, one must not be
absent from one’s wife for more than six months, otherwise, divorce
takes place. I am further told that to stay away from one’s wife for
more than six months is forbidden. Please netment.
A264 : According to Islam, marriage establishes
certain rights to and imposes duties on both man and wife. One of the
rights of a wife is marital netpanionship. A woman needs to be looked
after by her husband for the personal, physical and social, points of
view. She is also entitled to sexual fulfillment. When her husband is
away from home for a long period, her sense of lack of fulfillment may
weigh down heavily on her. Once Umar Ibn Al Khattab, the second
caliph, was walking through the streets of Madinah to find out how the
people fared, as was his habit, when he overheard a woman chanting
lines of poetry which described her sense of loss as a result of her
husband’s absence. He went to his daughter, Hafsah, one of the
Prophet’s wives, and asked her how long a woman could tolerate the
absence of her husband. She told him that four months were the maximum
period. Since many Muslims needed to be absent from home, because they
were fighting with Muslim armies against Byzantine and Persian empires,
Umer sent (directive) to all his netmanders that every soldier, is
entitled to have a home leave every four months. On the basis of this
event, scholars agree that a man may be absent from home, in
connection with his work or with some other purpose, for a maximum
period of four months, unless his wife freely agrees to a longer
period. Many workers and employees are in the same situation as you
are. They choose to travel because they get better jobs and they are
able to support their families better. If any of them makes the
decision to work abroad in consultation with his wife and she willingly
accepts that he may stay away for long periods, then there is nothing
wrong with that. If she does not agree to his prolonged absence, he may
not exceed four months. However, if he does, his marriage is not
dissolved automatically, as was suggested by your friends. His wife may
apply to an Islamic court to grant her divorce, and the court may rule
in her favour. He does not netmit a sin by being absent for a long
period, but he is in breach of his duties towards his wife.
Our Dialogue ( Source : Arab News – Jeddah )