are those whose cost is the lightest,” recorded by Ahmad, al-Bayhaqi, al-Hakim, and others.

ʿUmar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “Do not go to extremes in the dowries of women. Had extravagant dowries been a mark of honor in this world or an act of piety before Allah, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would have been the first of you to practice it. Yet the Messenger of Allah ﷺ never gave any of his wives—nor was any of his daughters given in marriage—more than twelve uqiyyahs. Indeed, a man may inflate his wife’s dowry until it breeds enmity in his heart, so that he says, ‘Because of you I have been made to pay even the thong of the waterskin!’ ” Reported by al-Nasa’i and Abu Dawud.

From this you learn that a swollen dowry can lead a husband to harbor dislike for his wife whenever he recalls its magnitude. Hence the most blessed women are those whose marriage expenses are light, as in ʿAishah’s hadith; facilitating the dowry brings blessing to the wife and sows love for her in her husband’s heart.

The wisdom behind prescribing the dowry is that it constitutes compensation for conjugal enjoyment and strengthens the wife’s position, affirming her worth in the eyes of her husband.

It is recommended to mention the dowry explicitly and fix its amount in the contract so as to forestall disputes. Nevertheless, it may also be stipulated and specified after the contract, for Allah says, “There is no blame upon you if you divorce women before you have touched them or appointed for them a bridal gift” (Quran 2:236). This verse indicates that fixing the dowry can, at times, be deferred until after the contract.