“It is one of those that roam among you, male and female.” (1) Likewise, the lion has many names, because it is proverbial for courage. As for something that occurs only rarely, you will find that it has only a few names.

It is recommended to keep the dower modest and to specify it in the contract, at an amount from four hundred to five hundred dirhams, ...

His statement, “It is recommended to keep it modest,” means that the sunnah is for it to be modest. The evidence for this is as follows:

First: the practice of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, for his dowers were modest. The dowers he gave, peace and blessings be upon him, and those of his daughters ranged from four hundred (2) to five hundred dirhams (3). This was generally the case, though he may at times have given a lesser amount as a dower. If we say that the dirham is determined by weight, then four hundred dirhams would be a small sum. But if we say that it is determined by number—as was the view preferred by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him—then this entails some increase. If we say that the dirham is determined by weight, four hundred dirhams would amount to one hundred and twelve, because two hundred dirhams equal fifty-six riyals, which is the minimum threshold for silver; multiplying that by two gives one hundred and twelve