Liaison office of Grand Ayatullah Sayyid Ali Al Sistani (L.M.H.L) in London, Europe, North and South America.
2507. A man who divorces his wife must be adult and sane, but if a boy
of ten years of age divorces his wife, precaution must be exercised. Similarly,
a man should divorce of his own free will, therefore, if someone compels him to
divorce his wife, that divorce will be void. It is also necessary that a man
seriously intends to divorce; therefore, if he pronounces the formula of divorce
jokingly, the divorce will not be valid.
2508. It is necessary that at the time of divorce, wife is Pak from
Haidth and Nifas, and that the husband should not have had sexual intercourse
with her during that period.
2509. It is valid to divorce a woman even if she is in Haidh or Nifas
in the following circumstances:
If the husband has not had sexual intercourse with her after marriage.
If it is known that she is pregnant. And if this fact is not known and
the husband divorces her during Haidh, and he comes to know later that she
was pregnant, that divorce will be valid, and as a recommended precaution he
should divorce her again.
If due to the husband's absence or imprisonment, he is not able to
ascertain whether or not she is Pak from Haidth or Nifas. But in this case,
as an obligatory precaution, man must wait for at least one month after
separation from his wife and then divorce.
2510. If a man thinks that his wife is Pak from Haidh and divorces
her, but it transpires later that at the time of divorce she was in the state of
Haidh, the divorce is void. And if he thinks that she is in the state of Haidh
and divorces her, and it is later known that she was Pak, the divorce is in
order.
2511. If a person who knows that his wife is in Haidh or Nifas, is
separated from her, like when he proceeds on a journey, and wishes to divorce
her, he should wait till such time when he becomes sure that his wife must have
become Pak from her Haidh or Nifas. Thereafter, having known that she is Pak, he
can divorce her. And if he is in doubt he will act according to rule no. 2509
for precaution.
2512. If a man who is separated from his wife wishes to divorce her
and can acquire information as to whether or not she is in the state of Haidh or
Nifas, even if that information is based on her habit, or any other signs known
in Shariah, if he divorces her and later finds out that his information was
wrong, the divorce will be void.
2513. If a man has sexual intercourse with his wife during her Pak
period, and then wishes to divorce her, he should wait till she enters into
Haidh again and becomes Pak. But if the wife has not completed her ninth year,
or if she is pregnant, she can be divorced after the sexual intercourse. The
same rule applies to a wife in menopause. The meaning of menopause has been
explained in rule no. 2457).
2514. If a person has sexual intercourse with a woman during her Pak
period and divorces her during the same period, and if it transpires later that
she was pregnant at the time of divorce, the divorce will be void. As a
recommended precaution, he should divorce her again.
2515. If a person had sexual intercourse with his wife during her Pak
period, and then separated from her, like, if he proceeded on journey and wishes
to divorce her then, not knowing whether she is Pak or not, he should wait till
such time when the wife enters into the state of Haidh and becomes Pak once
again. And, as an obligatory precaution, this period should not be less than one
month.
2516. If a man wishes to divorce his wife who does see blood of Haidh
at all by habit, or because of some disease, while other women of her age
habitually see Haidh, he should refrain from having sexual intercourse with her
for three months from the time he has had the intercourse, and then divorce her.
2517. It is necessary that the formula of divorce is pronounced in
correct Arabic using the word "Taliq"; and two just ('Adil) persons should hear
it. If the husband wishes to pronounce the formula of divorce himself and his
wife's name is, for example, Fatima, he should say: Zawjati Fatima taliq (i.e.
my wife Fatima is divorced) and if he appoints another person as his Wakil to
pronounce the formula of divorce, the Wakil should say: Zawjatu muwakkili Fatima
taliq (Fatima, the wife of my client is divorced). And if the woman is
identified, it is not necessary to mention her name. And if the husband cannot
pronounce divorce in Arabic, or cannot find a Wakil to do so, he can divorce in
any language using the words of the same meaning as in Arabic formula.
2518. There is no question of of divorce in the case of a woman with
whom temporary marriage is contracted, for example, for one month or one year.
She becomes free when the period of her marriage expires or when the man forgoes
the period of her marriage by saying: "I hereby exempt you from the remaining
time of marriage", and it is not necessary to have a witness nor that the woman
should be Pak from her Haidh.