Al-Sharḥ al-Mumtiʿ - Ibn al-'Uthaymin - (12/122)

Al-Sharḥ al-MumtiʿIbn al-'Uthaymin

and the daughters of her descendants include both the daughters of her sons and the daughters of her daughters, because when the term “children” is used without qualification, it includes both males and females. Thus, a wife’s daughter and the daughters of her descendants do not become forbidden to the husband unless he has consummated the marriage with her mother. What is meant here by consummation is sexual intercourse. Therefore, if a man marries a woman, is alone with her in seclusion, but does not find her pleasing and divorces her, he may marry her daughter, whether she is from a previous husband or a subsequent husband, due to Allah Most High’s words:

“Your stepdaughters under your care, born of your wives with whom you have consummated marriage.” [al-Nisa’ 4:23]

With regard to a man’s stepdaughter, Allah Most High has stipulated two conditions:

First: that she be under the husband’s care.

Second: that he has consummated the marriage with her mother.

Of these two conditions, Allah Most High mentioned the understood implication of one, but did not mention the understood implication of the other. He said:

“But if you have not consummated marriage with them, there is no blame upon you.” [al-Nisa’ 4:23]

He did not say, “And if they are not under your care, there is no blame upon you.” Thus, He explicitly stated the understood implication of the second qualification—“with whom you have consummated marriage”—but remained silent concerning the understood implication of the first. This indicates that the first qualification is not legally operative. This is the view of most scholars, although there is a view among both the early and later scholars that it is a condition. However, we say that it is not a condition, because Allah Most High explicitly stated the understood implication of the second qualification, which shows that the understood implication of the first qualification is not legally operative.

If someone were to ask: “If it is not legally operative, then how do you explain the verse?”

The answer is that we understand it as describing what is generally the case and as indicating the underlying reason,

وبنات الأولاد يشمل بنات الأبناء، وبنات البنات؛ لأن الأولاد إذا أطلقت شملت البنين والبنات، فبنت الزوجة وبنات أولادها لا يُحرَّمن على الزوج إلا بالدخول بالأم، والمراد بالدخول هنا الوطء يعني الجماع، فلو تزوج امرأة وخلا بها، ولم تعجبه وطلقها فله أن يتزوج بنتها، سواء كانت من زوج سابق، أو من زوج لاحق لقول الله تعالى: ﴿وَرَبَائِبُكُمُ اللاَّتِي فِي حُجُورِكُمْ مِنْ نِسَائِكُمُ اللَاَّّتِي دَخَلْتُمْ بِهِنَّ﴾ [النساء: ٢٣]. فربيبة الزوج اشترط الله تعالى فيها شرطين: الأول: أن تكون في حجر الزوج. الثاني: أن يكون قد دخل بأمها. هذان الشرطان ذكر الله تعالى مفهوم أحدهما، ولم يذكر مفهوم الآخر، فقال: ﴿فَإِنْ لَمْ تَكُونُوا دَخَلْتُمْ بِهِنَّ فَلَا جُنَاحَ عَلَيْكُمْ﴾ [النساء: ٢٣] ولم يقل: وإن لم يكُنَّ في حجوركم فلا جناح عليكم، فصرح بمفهوم القيد الثاني، وهو قوله: ﴿اللَاَّّتِي دَخَلْتُمْ بِهِنَّ﴾ وسكت عن مفهوم الأول، فيستدل بهذا على أن القيد الأول غير معتبر؛، وأكثر العلماء على ذلك، وإن كان هناك قول للسلف والخلف أنه شرط، ولكننا نقول: ليس بشرط؛ لأن الله تعالى صرح بمفهوم القيد الثاني، فدل ذلك على أن مفهوم القيد الأول غير معتبر. فإن قال قائل: إذا كان غير معتبر فعلى أي شيء تخرجون الآية؟ فالجواب: أننا نخرجها بناءً على الغالب، وإشارةً للعلة،