marrying again. According to Hindu law marriage once performed can never be dissolved. Islām effected several reforms in divorce. It restricted the husband’s right to divorce while recognizing the wife’s right to it.
The Arabic word for divorce is ṭalāq which carries the literal significance of freeing or the undoing of a knot (R.). In the terminology of the jurists, the ṭalāq is called a khul‘ (meaning literally the putting off or taking off a thing), when it is claimed by the wife. Both from the Holy Qur’ān and the Ḥadīth it appears that, though divorce was permitted, yet the right could be exercised only under exceptional circumstances.
The Holy Prophet is reported to have said: “Never did Allāh allow anything more hateful to Him than divorce” (AD. 13:3). According to a report of lbn ‘Umar, he said: “With Allāh the most detestable of all things permitted is divorce” (ibid.). The Holy Qur’ān also approves of the Holy Prophet insisting that Zaid should not divorce his wife, notwithstanding a dissension of a sufficiently long standing. The incident is spoken of thus: “And when thou didst say to him to whom Allāh had shown favour and to whom thou hadst shown a favour. Keep thy wife to thyself (i.e., do not divorce her) and keep thy duty to Allāh” (33:37). Refraining from divorce is spoken of here as taqwā or righteousness. Elsewhere divorce is thus discouraged: “If you hate them (i.e., your wives), it may be that you dislike a thing while Allāh has placed abundant good in it” (4:19). Remedies are also suggested to avoid divorce as long as possible. “And if you fear a breach between the two (i.e., the husband and the wife), appoint an arbiter from his people and an arbiter from her people. If they both desire agreement, Allāh will effect harmony between them,” (4:35). It was due to such teachings of the Holy Qur’ān that the Holy Prophet declared divorce to be the most hateful of all permitted things. And it is due to this that, in spite of the facility with which it may be effected, divorce takes place only rarely among the Muslims, compared with the large number of divorces in Christian countries. The mentality of the Muslim is to face