Chapter on Maintenance (Nafaqāt)
Introduction
Nafaqāt is the plural of nafaqa, following the same morphological pattern as thamarah (fruit).

Ibn Fāris states: “The consonants nūn, fā, and qāf form two authentic roots, one of which conveys the sense of something being spent and thereby disappearing; nafaqa derives from this, for the money goes on to its destination.”

Lexically, nafaqa denotes silver coins and similar forms of wealth.

In Islamic law it refers to providing sufficient support for those whose upkeep one is obliged to cover: food, clothing, housing, and whatever follows from these. Maintenance is of three kinds:
– maintenance of wives;
– maintenance of relatives;
– maintenance of dependents, whether slaves or animals.

The obligation of maintenance is established by the Quran: “Let a man of means spend according to his means” (al-Talāq 65:7).

It is likewise affirmed in the Sunnah, as in the hadith: “Begin with those whom you support,” and other similar reports.

The scholars are unanimously agreed, in principle, that maintenance is obligatory: a person must provide for himself, his wife, and his domesticated animals, whether he is in ease or in hardship.