سورة الطلاق

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family): Marry and do not seek separation, for the Throne trembles from this separation.

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family): Any woman who asks her husband for divorce without reason, the fragrance of Paradise is forbidden to her.

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family): Do not divorce women except as a result of suspicion, for Allah does not love men who take many wives and women who take many husbands.

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family): No one swears an oath by divorce [of his wife], nor demands [from anyone] that he swear by it (divorcing his wife), except a hypocrite.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, sent down the Quran in seven categories ... and among its categories is that in which the one addressed is the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family), but the one intended is his ummah. Allah the Mighty and Majestic said: یا أَیُّهَا النَّبِیُّ إِذا طَلَّقْتُمُ النِّساءَ فَطَلِّقُوهُنَّ لِعِدَّتِهِنَّ [O Prophet! when you divorce women, divorce them for their prescribed time].

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): A man came to Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) and asked: "I divorced my wife three times in one sitting." He said: "It counts for nothing." Then he said: "Do you not read the Book of Allah the Exalted: یَا أَیُّهَا النَّبِیُّ إِذَا طَلَّقْتُمُ النِّسَاء فَطَلِّقُوهُنَّ لِعِدَّتِهِنَّ وَ أَحْصُوا الْعِدَّةَ وَ اتَّقُوا اللهَ رَبَّکُمْ لَا تُخْرِجُوهُنَّ مِن بُیُوتِهِنَّ وَ لَا یَخْرُجْنَ إِلَّا أَن یَأْتِینَ بِفَاحِشَةٍ مُّبَیِّنَةٍ [O Prophet! when you divorce women, divorce them for their prescribed time, and calculate the number of the days prescribed, and be careful of (your duty to) Allah, your Lord. Do not drive them out of their houses, nor should they themselves go forth, unless they commit an open indecency]?" Then he said: لَا تَدْرِی لَعَلَّ اللهَ یُحْدِثُ بَعْدَ ذَلِکَ أَمْرًا [You do not know that Allah may after that bring about reunion]. Then he said: "Whatever contradicts the Quran and the Sunnah will be returned to the Quran and the Sunnah."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Any divorce that is not according to the Sunnah, or any divorce that is not according to the ʿiddah (the prescribed waiting period), has no value. Zurarah said: I asked Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): "Explain to me the divorce of the Sunnah and the divorce of the ʿiddah." He said: "As for the divorce of the Sunnah, whenever a man wishes to divorce his wife, he must wait until she menstruates and then becomes pure. So when she has passed her menstrual period, he should divorce her once without having had intercourse with her, and bring two witnesses to this. Then he leaves her until she menstruates twice more, so her ʿiddah is completed with three menstruations, and at that point she is separated from him, and that man becomes one of her suitors — if he wishes he may marry her, and if he wishes he may not. As long as she is in her ʿiddah, her maintenance and lodging are the man's responsibility, and until the end of the ʿiddah they inherit from one another." He said: "As for the divorce of the ʿiddah, concerning which Allah the Exalted says: فَطَلِّقُوهُنَّ لِعِدَّتِهِنَّ وَ أَحْصُوا الْعِدَّةَ [divorce them for their prescribed time, and calculate the number of the days prescribed], [it must be said]: if a man among you wishes to divorce his wife with the divorce of the ʿiddah, he must wait until she menstruates and comes out of her menstruation, then divorce her once without having had intercourse with her, and bring two just witnesses. If he wishes, he may take her back on that same day or a few days after, before she menstruates. He must bring witnesses to his taking her back, and have intercourse with her, and remain with her until she menstruates. Then if she menstruates and comes out of her menstruation, he divorces her once again without having had intercourse with her, and brings witnesses to that. Then he may again, whenever he wishes, take her back before she menstruates, bring witnesses to his taking her back, have intercourse with her, and she remains with him until she menstruates for the third time. When she comes out of her third menstruation, he divorces her for the third time without having had intercourse with her, and brings witnesses to that. When he has done that, she is separated from him, and it is not lawful for him to marry her unless she marries another husband." It was said to him: "What if she is among those who do not menstruate?" He said: "Such a woman is divorced by the divorce of the Sunnah."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Abdullah ibn Muskan said: I asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about the divorce of the Sunnah (the divorce which was carried out in the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) with his approval). He said: "[A divorce which] takes place at a time other than menstruation (the time of purity), without any intercourse having taken place [in that time of purity], along with the testimony of two just witnesses [for the divorce]. And divorce is not permissible except with two witnesses and the observance of the ʿiddah (the prescribed waiting period), and this is the very saying of Allah: فَطَلِّقُوهُنَّ لِعِدَّتِهِنَّ وَ أَحْصُوا الْعِدَّةَ وَ اتَّقُوا اللهَ رَبَّکُمْ لا تُخْرِجُوهُنَّ مِنْ بُیُوتِهِنَّ وَ لا یَخْرُجْنَ إِلاَّ أَنْ یَأْتینَ بِفاحِشَةٍ مُبَیِّنَةٍ وَ تِلْکَ حُدُودُ اللهِ وَ مَنْ یَتَعَدَّ حُدُودَ اللهِ فَقَدْ ظَلَمَ نَفْسَهُ لا تَدْری لَعَلَّ اللهَ یُحْدِثُ بَعْدَ ذلِکَ أَمْراً [divorce them for their prescribed time, and calculate the number of the days prescribed, and be careful of (your duty to) Allah, your Lord. Do not drive them out of their houses, nor should they themselves go forth, unless they commit an open indecency; and these are the limits of Allah, and whoever goes beyond the limits of Allah, he indeed does injustice to his own soul. You do not know that Allah may after that bring about reunion]."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Allah has not permitted divorce for married women except in the presence of two just Muslim witnesses, and concerning other testimonies regarding wealth, properties, blood [killing] and private matters, He said: "وَ اسْتَشْهِدُوا شَهِیدَیْنِ مِنْ رِجالِکُمْ فَإِنْ لَمْ یَکُونا رَجُلَیْنِ فَرَجُلٌ وَ امْرَأَتانِ مِمَّنْ تَرْضَوْنَ مِنَ الشُّهَداءِ [And call to witness two just men from among you; and if there are not two men, then one man and two women from among those whom you approve of as witnesses]" (al-Baqarah 2:282). Allah the Mighty and Majestic clarified the conditions of divorce and said: يا أَیُّهَا النَّبِیُّ إِذا طَلَّقْتُمُ النِّساءَ فَطَلِّقُوهُنَّ لِعِدَّتِهِنَّ وَ أَحْصُوا الْعِدَّةَ وَ اتَّقُوا اللهَ رَبَّکُمْ [O Prophet! when you divorce women, divorce them for their prescribed time, and calculate the number of the days prescribed, and be careful of (your duty to) Allah, your Lord]. And if the divorced woman were to become separated by three pronouncements of divorce combined in a single word, or more, or less, [Allah would not have said this], for Allah said: وَ أَحْصُوا الْعِدَّةَ وَ اتَّقُوا اللهَ رَبَّکُمْ [and calculate the number of the days prescribed, and be careful of (your duty to) Allah, your Lord], up to: تِلْکَ حُدُودُ اللهِ وَ مَنْ یَتَعَدَّ حُدُودَ اللهِ فَقَدْ ظَلَمَ نَفْسَهُ لا تَدْرِی لَعَلَّ اللهَ یُحْدِثُ بَعْدَ ذلِکَ أَمْراً* فَإِذا بَلَغْنَ أَجَلَهُنَّ فَأَمْسِکُوهُنَّ بِمَعْرُوفٍ أَوْ فارِقُوهُنَّ بِمَعْرُوفٍ وَ أَشْهِدُوا ذَوَیْ عَدْلٍ مِنْکُمْ وَ أَقِیمُوا الشَّهادَةَ لِلهِ ذلِکُمْ یُوعَظُ بِهِ مَنْ کانَ یُؤْمِنُ بِاللهِ وَ الْیَوْمِ الْآخِرِ [these are the limits of Allah, and whoever goes beyond the limits of Allah, he indeed does injustice to his own soul. You do not know that Allah may after that bring about reunion. So when they have reached their prescribed time, then retain them with kindness or separate them with kindness, and call to witness two just persons from among you, and give upright testimony for Allah. With that is admonished he who believes in Allah and the Last Day]. And this saying of His: لا تَدْرِی لَعَلَّ اللهَ یُحْدِثُ بَعْدَ ذلِکَ أَمْراً [You do not know, perhaps Allah will bring about something new after that] indicates that something unpleasant may occur between the spouses, and he divorces her with the first divorce with the testimony of two just witnesses. The limit of the time of divorce is the end of the menstrual periods, and the qur' is menstruation, and divorce becomes obligatory at the last white point which descends after yellow and red discharge; and until the second and third divorce, Allah may bring about between them affection or remove what each of them dislikes in the other.

Imam Kazim (peace be upon him): Sa'd ibn Abi Khalaf said: I asked Imam Kazim (peace be upon him) about a matter of divorce. He said: "If a man divorces his wife with a divorce in which there is no possibility of return, the woman is separated from him at that moment and becomes her own mistress, and the man has no right over her. She will complete her waiting period however she wishes and will have no maintenance." I said: "Did Allah the Mighty and Majestic not say: لَا تُخْرِجُوهُنَّ مِن بُیُوتِهِنَّ وَ لَا یَخْرُجْنَ [Do not drive them out of their houses, nor should they themselves go forth]?" He said: "Allah meant by that the woman who is divorced stage by stage; and this is the woman who does not go out and is not sent out, until she is divorced for the third time. When she is divorced for the third time, she is separated from that man and has no maintenance. As for the woman whom a man divorces once, he waits until her waiting period ends. This woman completes her waiting period in her husband's house, and until the time she completes her waiting period, she has the right to housing and maintenance."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Kalbi said: ... I said to Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): "A man said to his wife, 'I divorce you by the number of the stars in the sky.'" He said: "Have you not read Surah al-Talaq?" I said: "Yes." He said: "Read it!" I read: فَطَلِّقُوهُنَّ لِعِدَّتِهِنَّ وَ أَحْصُوا الْعِدَّةَ [So divorce them at their prescribed time and count the prescribed period]. He said: "Are the stars of the sky in this verse?" I said: "No." I said: "Master, what about a man who says to his wife, 'I have divorced you three times'?" He said: "He is referred back to the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family)." Then he said: "Divorce is not valid except during the woman's state of purity, provided he has not had intercourse with her, and with two just witnesses."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): I like it for a learned (discerning) man that, if he wishes to divorce his wife, he divorces her by the Sunnah divorce. And this is what Allah the Exalted says: لَعَلَّ اللهَ یُحْدِثُ بَعْدَ ذَلِکَ أَمْرًا [Perhaps Allah will bring about after that a matter] — meaning after the divorce and the completion of the waiting period; that is, marrying her again before she marries another man. And how much better and more forbearing it is for both of them, that he divorces his wife once during her state of purity and cleanliness without having had intercourse, and brings witnesses to it, then waits until three months or three periods of purity are complete, and then be among her suitors!

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): The prescribed period is purity from menstruation. وَ أَحْصُوا الْعِدَّةَ [And count the prescribed period] — that is, you wait until she menstruates; then when she has menstruated and become pure and taken the ritual bath, he divorces her once without having had intercourse with her, and when he divorces her he brings witnesses to it. Then if he wishes he may return to her, and he must bring witnesses to his return. And if he wishes to divorce her a second time, then when she menstruates and becomes pure and takes the ritual bath, he divorces her a second time and brings witnesses to that divorce, without having had intercourse with her. Then if he wishes he may return to her and bring witnesses to his return, then he waits until she menstruates and becomes pure, and when she takes the ritual bath he divorces her a third time. During that intervening period, before he pronounces the third divorce, he has more control over her than at any other time: if he wishes he may return to her; however, if he returns to her and then decides to divorce her, he takes the previous divorce into account. This is the Sunnah in divorce. Divorce takes place only when the woman is pure from her menstruation, without intercourse having taken place, as I have described. Likewise, whenever he wishes to return to her, he must bring witnesses. If he divorces his wife and then returns to her, he keeps her as long as he wishes. Then if he divorces her a second time and returns to her again, he may, for one such return, keep her as long as he wishes. Then if, after returning to her, he pronounces that one remaining divorce as well, she observes three periods of purity — which are three menstrual cycles — as her waiting period; and if she does not menstruate, then three months; and if she is pregnant, her term ends when she gives birth.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) and Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Zurarah narrated from Imam Muhammad Baqir (peace be upon him) that: ... As for the divorce of iddah, concerning which Allah the Exalted says: فَطَلِّقُوهُنَّ لِعِدَّتِهِنَّ وَأَحْصُوا الْعِدَّةَ [So divorce them for their prescribed time and calculate the number of the days prescribed], (it must be said:) if a man among you wishes to give his wife the divorce of iddah, he must wait until she menstruates and then becomes clean of her menstruation, then, without having intercourse with her, he divorces her once and brings two just witnesses. If he wishes, he can take her back on the same day or a few days later, before she menstruates. He must bring witnesses to the taking her back, have intercourse with her, and remain with her until she menstruates. Then when she menstruates and becomes clean of her menstruation, without having intercourse with her he divorces her once and brings witnesses to it. Then, whenever he wishes, before she menstruates, he may take her back and bring witnesses to his taking her back and have intercourse with her, and she remains with him until she menstruates for the third time. When she comes out of her third menstruation, without intercourse he divorces her for the third time and brings witnesses to it. When he has done this, the woman is separated from him, and in that case marrying her is not lawful for the man unless she marries another man. If she is among those women who do not menstruate, [the man] divorces her over the course of several months. And if he has divorced her once in accordance with what we have described and then changed his mind and wishes to keep his wife, he has two more divorces after that. And if he has divorced his wife twice and then changed his mind and wishes to keep her, one divorce remains with him. But if he divorces her three times [under the conditions we have described], he no longer has the right to take her back [and keep her], and that woman is no longer lawful for him unless she marries another man [and that man dies after intimacy with her or divorces her].

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Divorce takes place solely in accordance with the Book and the Sunnah, because it is one of the limits of Allah the Mighty and Majestic. Allah says in His Qur'an: إِذا طَلَّقْتُمُ النِّساءَ فَطَلِّقُوهُنَّ لِعِدَّتِهِنَّ وَ أَحْصُوا الْعِدَّةَ [When you divorce women, divorce them for their prescribed time, and calculate the number of the days prescribed]. He also says: وَ أَشْهِدُوا ذَوَیْ عَدْلٍ مِنْکُمْ [And call to witness two just persons from among you]. And He also says: وَ تِلْکَ حُدُودُ اللهِ وَ مَنْ یَتَعَدَّ حُدُودَ اللهِ فَقَدْ ظَلَمَ نَفْسَهُ [These are the limits of Allah, and whoever transgresses the limits of Allah has indeed wronged himself]. And the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) rejected the divorce of Abdullah ibn Umar because it was contrary to the Book and the Sunnah.

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): Abdullah ibn Umar divorced his wife once while she was menstruating. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) ordered him to take her back, then to keep her until she becomes clean, then to menstruate with him (the husband) once more, then to give her respite until she becomes clean of her menstruation. Then, if he wished to divorce her, he should divorce her at a time when she is clean (not menstruating), before he has had intercourse with her [during that state of purity]. This is the very iddah with which Allah has commanded that women be divorced.

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): فَطَلِّقُوهُنَّ [So divorce them] — divorce them before their iddah.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): By Allah, if I had any control over the affairs of the people (government), I would compel them with the sword and the whip [if they wish to divorce] to divorce with observance of the iddah, as Allah the Mighty and Majestic has commanded.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) was asked about a woman who heard from a man that her husband had divorced her, but her husband denied [the divorce]: "Should that woman live with that man [or separate from him because she has heard that he divorced her]?" He said: "Yes; [she should live with him]; because his divorce, which was without the presence of witnesses, is not a divorce, and a divorce not according to the iddah is not a divorce, and it is not lawful for that man to do this (a divorce not according to the iddah) and to divorce that woman without the presence of witnesses, and [it is not permissible] to divorce [her] other than according to the iddah which Allah the Mighty and Majestic has commanded."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): The divorce which Allah the Mighty and Majestic has commanded in His Book and upon which the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) acted is [this:] that the man leaves his wife alone. When she has menstruated and become pure from her menstruation, he calls two just men as witnesses to her divorce, and this while the woman is pure [from her menses] and he has not had intercourse with her [in this new period of purity]; and he (the husband) is the most entitled of men to take her back as long as the three purities (the period of the divorce waiting) have not ended. And every divorce other than this is invalid and is no divorce.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): If a man wishes to divorce his wife, he should divorce her before the waiting period and without intercourse.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Muhammad ibn Muslim asked Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) about a man who said to his wife, "You are forbidden to me" [is this a valid divorce?]. He said: "All of these have no effect. Divorce is only that before the waiting period, and after the woman has become pure from her menstruation, and before he has had intercourse with her, he says to her (his wife): أنت طالق [You are divorced], or that he withdraws from her, and by this act he intends divorce, and he calls two just men as witnesses to it (the divorce)."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): The divorce of the waiting period (talaq al-iddi) is that the man divorces his wife during every period of purity she is in, and sends word to her: "Begin your waiting period, for so-and-so has indeed divorced you"; and he is the most entitled to take her back as long as her waiting period has not ended.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said regarding a woman whose husband dies: "She may go out for Hajj and Umrah, but the woman who has been divorced does not go out, because Allah the Exalted says: وَ لَا یَخْرُجْنَ [nor shall they go out], unless she was divorced while on a journey."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Sama'a ibn Mihran said: I asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about the divorced woman, where she must spend the days of her ʿidda (waiting period). He said: "In the house in which she was living, and if she wishes to go for ziyarat she should go before midnight and return after midnight, and she should not go out of the house during the day, and she cannot go for Hajj until her ʿidda is completed."

Imam Rida (peace be upon him): Ma'mun asked Imam Rida (peace be upon him) about the words of Allah the Mighty and Majestic: لَا تُخْرِجُوهُنَّ مِن بُیُوتِهِنَّ وَ لَا یَخْرُجْنَ إِلَّا أَن یَأْتِینَ بِفَاحِشَةٍ مُّبَیِّنَةٍ [Do not drive them out of their houses, nor should they themselves go forth, unless they commit an open indecency]. He said: "What is meant by open indecency is that she causes harm to her husband's family; so if she does this, then if he wishes, he may expel her before her ʿidda comes to an end."

Ali ibn Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him): لا تُخْرِجُوهُنَّ مِنْ بُیُوتِهِنَّ وَ لا یَخْرُجْنَ إِلَّا أَنْ یَأْتِینَ بِفاحِشَةٍ مُبَیِّنَةٍ وَ تِلْکَ حُدُودُ اللهِ [Do not drive them out of their houses, nor should they themselves go forth, unless they commit an open indecency; and these are the limits of Allah]. It is not permissible for a man, if he divorces his wife, to expel her from his house, while the man still has the right of return (rujuʿ) to his divorced wife in the house; nor is it permissible for the woman to leave her house, إِلَّا أَن یَأْتِینَ بِفَاحِشَةٍ مُّبَیِّنَةٍ [unless they commit an open indecency]. The meaning of fahisha is that she commits zina (fornication), or that she hides herself from the sight of her husband. Among the things that are counted as fahisha is foul speech and insolence towards her husband; and if she commits any of these things, her husband is permitted to drive her out.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) was asked about the words of Allah the Mighty and Majestic: لَا تُخْرِجُوهُنَّ مِن بُیُوتِهِنَّ وَ لَا یَخْرُجْنَ إِلَّا أَن یَأْتِینَ بِفَاحِشَةٍ مُّبَیِّنَةٍ [Do not drive them out of their houses, nor should they themselves go forth, unless they commit an open indecency]. He said: "Unless she commits zina, in which case the hadd (prescribed punishment) is carried out upon her."

Imam al-Mahdi (may Allah hasten his noble reappearance): Sa'd ibn Abd Allah narrated from the Sahib al-Zaman (may Allah hasten his noble reappearance) that he was asked: "If a woman commits an open indecency during the days of her ʿidda, is her husband permitted to expel her from his house?" He said: "The open indecency is sahq (lesbianism), not zina; for if a woman commits zina and the hadd is carried out upon her, a man who desires her will not refrain, on account of the hadd, from marrying her afterwards. But if she commits musahaqa (lesbianism), then rajm (stoning) becomes obligatory upon her, and rajm is disgrace. Whomever Allah has commanded to be stoned, He has disgraced; and whomever He has disgraced, He has driven far away; and whomever He has driven far away, no one may draw near to him."

Ibn Abbas (may Allah have mercy on him): Every act of disobedience toward Allah the Exalted that is open is fahisha (an indecency).

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Mufaddal ibn Umar said: I asked my master Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): ... "My master! What are the conditions of mut'a (temporary marriage)?" He said: "O Mufaddal, it has seventy conditions, and whoever violates a single one of them has wronged himself."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): It is narrated from Mufaddal ibn Umar that Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said: "As for what you mentioned, that the Shia — several men — lie with a single woman: I seek refuge in Allah that such a thing should be the way of Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him and his family). The religion of Allah is that you regard the lawful as lawful and the unlawful as unlawful. Among the things Allah has made lawful is mut'a (temporary marriage) in the Qur'an, and the other is Hajj al-Tamattu'. These two He made lawful and did not afterward forbid. When a Muslim man decides to contract a mut'a with a woman, in accordance with the command of Allah and the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), it is a marriage, not fornication. When the two agree upon the sum and the duration, as Allah says in this verse: فَمَا اسْتَمْتَعْتُمْ بِهِ مِنْهُنَّ فَآتُوهُنَّ أُجُورَهُنَّ فَرِیضَةً وَ لا جُناحَ عَلَیْکُمْ فِیما تَراضَیْتُمْ بِهِ مِنْ بَعْدِ الْفَرِیضَةِ [So for whatever you enjoy of them, give them their bridal-gifts as a duty; and there is no blame upon you for whatever you mutually agree upon after the duty]. If both wish to extend the term, for the same sum, on the last day before sunset they may add whatever they wish to the term; but if the last day has passed, they can no longer add to it except by a new contract. There is no waiting period between them, unless she wishes to be with another man, in which case she observes forty-five days of waiting. In such a marriage there is no inheritance. Afterward, if she wishes, she may marry another man. This act is lawful for them until the Day of Resurrection — with seven men, or with twenty men, so long as she is alive; all of this is lawful for both of them. All within the limits which Allah has set out through the tongue of His Prophet: وَمَن یَتَعدَّ حُدُودَ اللهِ فَقَدْ ظَلَمَ نَفْسَهُ [And whoever transgresses the limits of Allah has indeed wronged himself]."

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): A man may act for seventy years like the people of Paradise, then in his will wrong the rights of others and act unjustly, and his end is sealed with the deeds of the people of the Fire. And a man may act for seventy years like the people of the Fire, yet in his will enjoin right and justice, and his end is sealed with the deeds of the people of Paradise. Then he recited: وَ مَنْ یَتَعَدَّ حُدُودَ اللهِ [And whoever transgresses the limits of Allah], or he said: تِلْکَ حُدُودُ اللهِ [These are the limits of Allah].

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): A divorced woman may apply kohl to her eyes, dye herself with henna, perfume herself and wear the finest clothes she has; for Allah the Mighty and Majestic says: لَعَلَّ اللهَ یُحْدِثُ بَعْدَ ذَلِکَ أَمْرًا [Perhaps Allah will bring about after that some new matter] — in the hope that she may fall pleasing in his heart and he may take her back.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) and Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): The divorced woman should complete her ʿidda (waiting period) in her own house, and let her display her adornment to her husband, لَعَلَّ اللهَ یُحْدِثُ بَعْدَ ذلِکَ أَمْراً [perhaps Allah will bring about after that a new situation].