and anyone who regards it as lawful is a disbeliever who must be called upon to repent. Likewise, if an ignorant Muslim marries a woman during her waiting period, as ignorant Bedouins do, and has intercourse with her believing her to be his wife, the child born to him through her is attributed to him and inherits from him, by unanimous agreement of the Muslims. There are many such examples. “Establishing paternity” does not require the marriage to be valid in reality. Rather, the child belongs to the marital bed, as the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said:

“The child belongs to the marital bed, and the fornicator has nothing.”

Thus, if a man pronounces three divorces against his wife and has intercourse with her believing that the divorce has not taken effect—whether through ignorance, because he followed an erroneous ruling given by a mufti, or for some other reason—the child is attributed to him, and father and child inherit from one another, by unanimous agreement. Indeed, her waiting period is not reckoned until he ceases to have intercourse with her. Since he was having intercourse with her believing her to be his wife, she remained his partner in bed; her waiting period from him therefore does not begin until she ceases to share his bed.

If a man marries a woman in an “invalid marriage,” whether its invalidity is agreed upon or disputed; acquires ownership of her under an invalid title, whether its invalidity is agreed upon or disputed; or has intercourse with her believing her to be his free wife or a slave woman whom he owns, then the child born to him through her is attributed to him, and father and child inherit from one another, by unanimous agreement of the Muslims. The child is also free, even if the woman with whom he had intercourse actually belongs to someone else and the intercourse took place without her master’s permission. Yet, since the man was deceived concerning her—being married to her and told, “She is free,” or purchasing her when she was sold, believing that she belonged to the seller—he only had intercourse with a woman whom