An example of this is a man who gives a woman a specified bridal gift of ten thousand riyals. A full lunar year then passes without his having consummated the marriage with her. According to the established position of the school, she must pay zakat on the entire ten thousand riyals—that is, two hundred and fifty riyals.
According to the second view, if he consummates the marriage with her, the bridal gift becomes firmly established, and she must pay its zakat in full. Otherwise, if he divorces her, she is liable for half the zakat, while the other half is payable by the husband, since it becomes clear that she owned only half.
According to the school’s position, however, if he divorces her before consummation after she has paid the zakat, leaving her with nine thousand seven hundred and fifty riyals, she must give the husband the full five thousand, and the reduction caused by the zakat is borne by her.
If he divorces her before consummation or seclusion, he is legally entitled to half of it, but not to its separate increase. As for its attached increase, he is entitled to half of its value excluding the increase, ..........
His statement, “If he divorces her before consummation or seclusion, he is legally entitled to half of it”: this concerns cases in which the bridal gift is reduced by half. What is meant here by consummation is sexual intercourse. Thus, if he divorces her before consummation, she is entitled to half.
His statement, “or seclusion,” means: or before seclusion; in that case too, she is entitled to half. Seclusion means that he is alone with her without the presence of a discerning person—that is, they are alone in a place where there is no one present who can discern and understand. For in such a situation, he is able to kiss her and have intercourse with her. If there is an infant in a cradle with them, his presence is tantamount to his absence, since, whatever they may do, he would not know. But if there is with them a discerning, intelligent, and alert child, this is not considered seclusion, because the husband cannot do anything, as there is an eye watching him—in other words, a spy.
Some scholars said that if the spouses agree that intercourse did not take place, then seclusion does not make the bridal gift binding in full. This is because the basis for holding that seclusion makes the bridal gift binding in full is that it gives rise to the presumption of intercourse. Hence, we stipulated that there should not be anyone with them