The Choices

“I once asked abu Ja‘far (a.s.), about choices. He (the Imam) said, ‘Who is he and what is that; it was something only for the Messenger of Allah, O Allah, grant compensation to Muhammad and his family worthy of their services to Your cause.’”

“I once said to abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), that I once heard your father saying, ‘The Messenger of Allah, O Allah, grant compensation to Muhammad and his family worthy of their services to Your cause, offered his wives the choice and they chose Allah and His Messenger. He did not keep them for divorce. Had they chosen themselves they would become strangers.’ He (the Imam) said, ‘This is a Hadith that my father would narrate from ‘A’ishah. What people have to do with choice! It was something with which Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious, specially treated His Messenger.’”

“I once asked abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), about the case of a man who gives his wife the choice; if she becomes stranger for him. He (the Imam) said, ‘No, this was something especially for the Messenger of Allah, O Allah, grant compensation to Muhammad and his family worthy of their services to Your cause . He (the Messenger of Allah) was commanded to do so and if they were to choose themselves he would divorce them. This is in the words of Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious, ‘Say to your wives, “If you want the worldly life and its beauty, then be prepared, so he (the Messenger of Allah) benefits you and allows you to be free with fairness.” (33:28)’”

“I once asked abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), about the case of a man who leaves the affairs of his wife in her own hands. He (the Imam) said, ‘He has given the matter in the hands of someone who is not proper for it, thus, he has opposed the Sunnah and has not made marriage permissible.’”