man: four daughters and a son. My life with him is simply wrong. He prevents me from wearing the proper hijab, and he has sworn a three-fold divorce oath that if he ever sees me praying he will tear up my prayer clothes. Whenever Ramadan comes, he forbids me to fast, until I am forced to leave the house and not return except under certain conditions. Yet once I am back he goes right back to his old ways—indeed, he becomes even worse—so I pray in secret, fearing that if he sees me he will beat me and rip my prayer garments.

He keeps company only with wicked people, stays out until the latter part of the night, and comes home drunk and unconscious. He neglects his responsibilities, even domestic chores and the household expenses. His language is extremely foul, his treatment harsh. I am afraid to leave him for the sake of my daughters—even though he is their father—because he does not know Allah, and I fear the worst from him; we seek Allah’s protection. What is the ruling on my remaining with my husband under such circumstances?

Answer: First, when arranging a marriage one must choose righteous husbands who are steadfast in their religion and who honour the sanctity of marriage and good companionship. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “When someone whose religion and character please you comes to you, then marry [your daughter] to him.” This shows that, at the time of marriage, diligence and careful selection of a man committed to his faith are required and that it is impermissible to be lax in this matter. Sadly, in our perilous era such negligence has become widespread: people have been marrying off their daughters and female wards to men who do not fear Allah or the Last Day, and the women have begun to complain—exactly like the case mentioned by the questioner—of men who squander the religion of Allah, commit sins, treat their wives badly, and leave them bewildered about how to deal with such husbands. Had they investigated the man