سورة النور

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Zurara said: I asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about the verse: الزَّانِی لَا یَنکِحُ إلَّا زَانِیَةً أَوْ مُشْرِکَةً [The fornicator shall not marry any but a fornicatress or idolatress]. He said: "What is meant are women and men who are well-known and recognised for fornication, and everyone knows them by this description, and people today are in this same situation. That is, anyone upon whom the hadd of fornication has been carried out, or who is accused of fornication, it is not fitting for anyone to marry them unless they know that the person has repented."

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): As for the verse whose wording is specific (that is, particular to one case) and whose meaning is general (that is, extending to other cases too), such as the verse: الزَّانِی لا یَنْکِحُ إِلَّا زانِیَةً أَوْ مُشْرِکَةً وَ الزَّانِیَةُ لا یَنْکِحُها إِلَّا زانٍ أَوْ مُشْرِکٌ وَ حُرِّمَ ذلِکَ عَلَی المُؤْمِنِینَ [The fornicator shall not marry any but a fornicatress or idolatress, and the fornicatress, none shall marry her but a fornicator or an idolater, and this is forbidden to the believers]; this verse was revealed concerning women of Mecca who [before the coming of Islam] were well-known for fornication, such as Sara, Hantama and Rabab, and Allah [by this verse] forbade marriage with them; nevertheless, [the ruling of] this verse also applies to other women who are like them.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Muhammad ibn Muslim narrates: Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) said concerning the verse: الزَّانِی لا یَنْکِحُ إِلَّا زانِیَةً أَوْ مُشْرِکَةً [The fornicator shall not marry any but a fornicatress or idolatress]: "They are men and women who in the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) were well-known for fornication, and Allah the Exalted forbade marriage with them, and people today are in this same situation; so do not marry anyone who is well-known for fornication and upon whom the hadd has been carried out, unless you know that he has repented."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Hakam ibn Hukaym narrates: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said concerning the verse: وَ الزَّانِیَةُ لا یَنْکِحُها إِلَّا زانٍ أَوْ مُشْرِکٌ [And the fornicatress, none shall marry her but a fornicator or an idolater]: "What is meant is open fornication." Then he said: "If a person commits fornication and thereafter repents, he may marry whomever he wishes."

Ali ibn Ibrahim: Allah the Mighty and Majestic has forbidden marriage with fornicators and said: الزَّانِی لا یَنْکِحُ إِلَّا زانِیَةً أَوْ مُشْرِکَةً وَ الزَّانِیَةُ لا یَنْکِحُها إِلَّا زانٍ أَوْ مُشْرِکٌ وَ حُرِّمَ ذلِکَ عَلَی المُؤْمِنِینَ [The fornicator shall not marry any but a fornicatress or idolatress, and (as for) the fornicatress, none shall marry her but a fornicator or an idolater; and it is forbidden to the believers]. And this verse is a refutation of the words of one who considers temporary (mut'a) and permanent marriage with fornicating women to be lawful, while these women are well-known and notorious in this world for committing fornication, and a man [by marrying them] cannot make them chaste. And this verse was revealed concerning women of Mecca who openly committed fornication — namely Sarah, Hantama and Rabab — whose occupation was that they used to sing verses satirizing the Messenger of Allah, so Allah [by this verse] forbade marriage with them; and after them [the ruling of this verse] shall apply to all women who are like them [notorious for committing fornication].

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): الزَّانِی لا یَنْکِحُ إِلَّا زانِیَةً أَوْ مُشْرِکَةً وَ الزَّانِیَةُ لا یَنْکِحُها إِلَّا زانٍ أَوْ مُشْرِکٌ وَ حُرِّمَ ذلِکَ عَلَی الْمؤْمِنِینَ [The fornicator shall not marry any but a fornicatress or idolatress, and (as for) the fornicatress, none shall marry her but a fornicator or an idolater; and it is forbidden to the believers]; this verse was revealed concerning idolatress women who were notorious for [committing] fornication — women who, in the time of Jahiliyya in Mecca, would openly hire themselves out for fornication; such as Hantama, Rabab, and Sarah — the same Sarah whose blood the Messenger of Allah declared lawful on the day of the conquest of Mecca, because Sarah used to incite the idolaters to fight against the Messenger of Allah.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): This verse was revealed concerning women who [in the time of Jahiliyya] were possessors of banners (women whose occupation was committing fornication, and in order to be recognized would raise a banner over the doors of their houses); but it is permissible to marry other women (who have committed fornication but are not notorious for committing it), so that her husband may prevent her from committing fornication; although it is better that marriage take place with someone other than them.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Allah revealed in Medina the verses concerning fornication: الزَّانِی لا یَنْکِحُ إِلَّا زانِیَةً أَوْ مُشْرِکَةً وَ الزَّانِیَةُ لا یَنْکِحُها إِلَّا زانٍ أَوْ مُشْرِکٌ وَ حُرِّمَ ذلِکَ عَلَی الْمُؤْمِنِینَ [The fornicator shall not marry any but a fornicatress or an idolatress, and the fornicatress, none shall marry her but a fornicator or an idolater; and it is forbidden to the believers]. Allah has not named the male fornicator a believer, nor the female fornicator a believer." And the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) said: "The people of knowledge have no doubt in this: the fornicator, at the time he commits fornication, is not a believer, and the thief, at the time he steals, has no faith, because at the moment of committing the act faith departs from him just as a shirt is removed from the body." Allah the Exalted revealed in Medina: وَ الَّذِینَ یَرْمُونَ الْمُحْصَناتِ ثُمَّ لَمْ یَأْتُوا بِأَرْبَعَةِ شُهَداءَ فَاجْلِدُوهُمْ ثَمانِینَ جَلْدَةً وَ لا تَقْبَلُوا لَهُمْ شَهادَةً أَبَداً وَ أُولئِکَ هُمُ الْفاسِقُونَ إِلَّا الَّذِینَ تابُوا مِنْ بَعْدِ ذلِکَ وَ أَصْلَحُوا فَإِنَّ اللهَ غَفُورٌ رَحِیمٌ [And those who accuse chaste women and do not bring four witnesses, flog them with eighty lashes and never accept any testimony from them, and those are the transgressors; except those who repent after that and reform, for indeed Allah is Forgiving, Merciful]. Here Allah has counted those who slander as being outside faith." In another place He said: "Is one who is a believer like one who is a transgressor? No, never are these two equal." (Sajdah/18) Allah the Exalted has counted the transgressor among the hypocrites and said: "Indeed the hypocrites are the transgressors," and Allah has introduced the transgressors as friends of Satan and said: "Except Iblis, who was of the jinn and disobeyed the command of his Lord, and was counted among the transgressors." (Kahf/50) The Lord has deemed accursed those who accuse chaste, believing women and slander them, and said: إِنَّ الَّذِینَ یَرْمُونَ الْمُحْصَناتِ الْغافِلاتِ الْمُؤْمِناتِ لُعِنُوا فِی الدُّنْیا وَ الْآخِرَةِ وَ لَهُمْ عَذابٌ عَظِیمٌ یَوْمَ تَشْهَدُ عَلَیْهِمْ أَلْسِنَتُهُمْ وَ أَیْدِیهِمْ وَ أَرْجُلُهُمْ بِما کانُوا یَعْمَلُون [Indeed those who accuse chaste, unwary, believing women are cursed in this world and the Hereafter, and for them is a great punishment on the day when their tongues, their hands and their feet bear witness against them for what they used to do].

Imam Rida (peace be upon him): Muhammad ibn Ismail said: A man asked Imam Rida (peace be upon him), while I was listening: "A man contracted a mut'a (temporary) marriage with a woman and stipulated with her that he would not want a child from her; then the woman brought a child and the man denied his child." It weighed heavily on the Imam (peace be upon him) and he said: "Does he deny him? How does he deny him — considering the gravity of that?" The man said: "What if he suspects her?" The Imam said: "It is not fitting for you to marry a woman except one who is a believer or a Muslim (trustworthy and reliable), for Allah the Mighty and Majestic says: الزَّانِی لا یَنْکِحُ إِلَّا زانِیَةً أَوْ مُشْرِکَةً وَ الزَّانِیَةُ لا یَنْکِحُها إِلَّا زانٍ أَوْ مُشْرِکٌ وَ حُرِّمَ ذلِکَ عَلَی الْمُؤْمِنِینَ [The fornicator shall not marry any but a fornicatress or an idolatress, and the fornicatress, none shall marry her but a fornicator or an idolater; and it is forbidden to the believers]."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Halabi said: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) was asked about a man who buys a slave-girl who has committed fornication — can he have intercourse with her? The Imam said: "Yes! The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) only considered marriage with those women of the people of Mecca who openly committed fornication in the days of Jahiliyyah to be disliked, and Allah revealed: الزَّانِی لا یَنْکِحُ إِلَّا زانِیَةً أَوْ مُشْرِکَةً [The fornicator shall not marry any but a fornicatress or idolatress]. What is meant is women who openly hired themselves out for fornication, such as Hantama, Rabab and Sarah — the same Sarah whose blood the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) declared lawful on the day of the conquest of Mecca, because she used to incite the polytheists to fight the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family)." And she used to say to them: "Your father used to do such and such and used to do this and that, but you are afraid of fighting Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) and have submitted to him." So Allah [by this verse] has forbidden marriage with a woman or a man who has openly committed fornication and is known for fornication, until such time as his repentance becomes evident.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Mu'awiya ibn Wahb said: I asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about a man who married a woman and after marrying her found out that this woman had previously committed fornication — what is his ruling? The Imam (peace be upon him) said: "If her husband wishes he can [continue this married life and] take back the dowry [that he paid to the woman] from the woman's guardian [because it was he who married such a woman to this man and did not tell him of the woman's defect, so he must bear the loss and pay the dowry], and the dowry [that the woman received from her husband] belongs to the woman [and is not to be reclaimed], because the man has had intercourse with her; and if the husband wishes he may divorce the woman."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): الزَّانِی لا یَنْکِحُ إِلَّا زانِیَةً أَوْ مُشْرِکَةً [The fornicator shall not marry any but a fornicatress or idolatress]; this ruling is regarding open fornication. And if someone has committed fornication and then repents, he may marry whenever he wishes.

Imam Rida (peace be upon him): The verse الزَّانِی لا یَنْکِحُ إِلَّا زانِیَةً أَوْ مُشْرِکَةً [The fornicator shall not marry any but a fornicatress or idolatress] ... the intent of the verse [the marriage of a fornicator] is in [his] homeland [and place of residence]; but if the fornicator goes [from his homeland] to another place, he may marry whenever he wishes.