41 – Counsel to the Married Couple
In conclusion, I offer the following advice to both spouses:
First: Cooperate with one another and mutually exhort each other to obey Allah, adhering to the definitive rulings found in the Qur’an and the Sunnah. Do not give precedence to mere imitation, prevailing custom, or any particular school of thought over them. Allah, exalted is He, says: “It is not for a believing man or a believing woman, when Allah and His Messenger have decided a matter, to have any choice in their affair; and whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger has certainly strayed into clear error” (al-Ahzab 33:36).
Second: Each spouse must faithfully carry out the duties and rights that Allah has imposed toward the other. Thus, the wife should not claim total parity with the husband in every one of his rights, nor should the husband exploit the degree of authority with which Allah has favored him over her.