Importance of Marriage in Islam Allah has created men and women as company for one another, and so that they can procreate and live in peace and tranquillity according to the commandments of Allah and the directions of His Messenger. The Qur'an says: And among His signs is this, that He created for you mates from among yourselves, that you may dwell in tranquillity with them, and He has put love and mercy between your hearts. Undoubtedly in these are signs for those who reflect. (30:21) And Allah has made for you your mates of your own nature, and made for you, out of them, sons and daughters and grandchildren, and provided for you sustenance of the best. (16:72) These verses of the Noble Qur'an clearly show that in contrast to other religions like Christianity, Buddhism, Judaism etc. which consider celibacy or monasticism as a great virtue and a means of salvation, Islam considers marriage as one of the most virtuous and approved institutions. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) declared, "There is no monasticism in Islam." He further ordained, "O you young men! Whoever is able to marry should marry, for that will help him to lower his gaze and guard his modesty." (Al-Bukhari) Modesty was regarded as a great virtue by the Prophet. He said, "Modesty is part of faith." (Al-Bukhari) The importance of the institution or marriage receives its greatest emphasis from the following hadith of the Prophet, "Marriage is my sunna. Whosoever keeps away from it is not from me." With these Qur'anic injunctions and the guidance from the Prophet (peace be upon him) in mind, we shall examine the institution of marriage in the Shari'ah. The word zawaj is used in the Qur'an to signify a pair or a mate. But in common parlance it stands for marriage. Since the family is the nucleus of Islamic society, and marriage is the only way to bring families into existence, the Prophet (peace be upon him) insisted upon his followers entering into marriage The Shari'ah prescribes rules to regulate the functioning of the family so that both spouses can live together in love, security, and tranquillity. Marriage in Islam has aspects of both 'ibadah (worship) of Allah and mu'amalah (transactions between human beings). In its 'ibadah aspect, marriage is an act pleasing to Allah because it is in accordance with his commandments that husband and wife love each other and help each other to make efforts to continue the human race and rear and nurse their children to become true servants of Allah. In its mu'amalah aspect, marriage being a lawful response to the basic biological instinct to have sexual intercourse and to procreate children, the Shari'ah has prescribed detailed rules for translating this response into a living human institution reinforced by a whole framework of legally enforceable rights and duties, not only of the spouses, but also of their offspring. These aspects are beautifully explained in a tradition of the Prophet. It is narrated by Anas that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, "When a man marries, he has fulfilled half of his religion, so let him fear Allah regarding the remaining half." The Prophet considered marriage for a Muslim as half of his religion because it shields him from promiscuity, adultery, fornication, homosexuality etc., which ultimately lead to many other evils like slander, quarreling, homicide, loss of property and disintegration of the family. According to the Prophet (peace be upon him) the remaining half of the faith can be saved by taqwa. Conditions of Marriage Careful consideration of the Qur'anic injunctions and the traditions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) clearly show that marriage is compulsory (wajib) for a man who has the means to easily pay the mahr (dowry) and to support a wife and children, and is healthy, and fears that if does not marry, he may be tempted to commit fornication (zina). It is also compulsory for a woman who has no other means of maintaining herself and who fears that her sexual urge may push her into fornication. But even for a person who has a strong will to control his sexual desire, who has no wish to have children, and who feels that marriage will keep him away from his devotion to Allah, it is commendable (mandub). However, according to the Maliki school, under certain conditions it is obligatory (fard) for a Muslim to marry even if he is not in a position to earn his living: * If he fears that by not marrying he will commit fornication (zina). * If he is unable to fast to control his passions or his fasting does not help him to refrain from zina. * Even if he is unable to find a slave girl or a destitute girl to marry. However some jurists suggest that if a man cannot procure a lawful livelihood, he must not marry because if he marries without any hope of getting lawful bread, he may commit theft, and in order to avoid one evil (his passion

The geologist smiled. Today had been a hard day today. Soon she would be rewarded though; the team's astrophysicist had pulled her aside this morning, and told her to go to the southern hemisphere. Distress, a large moon with a thick nitrogen atmosphere, would start its annual pass through Hiyacena’s atmosphere today. It was an unusual celestial event that few people had ever witnessed – and not one of them had witnessed it in person. Driving her rover over a small ridge, she made sure she had a good view of Hiyacena and Distress. Suiting up, she hit the airlock and stepped outside. Looking about her, she admired the weird geometry of Epitaph’s ice fields. For years the abstract ice patterns and purple geysers had intrigued her. Looking at her wrist computer, she saw she had fifteen minutes till the eclipse. Just enough time to climb to the top of the ridge. Reaching the top, she wasn’t prepared for the breathtaking view. Hiyacena and Distress hung low on the horizon, and in the distance, two geysers were erupting into a purple haze. Pulling out here camera, she took a picture. Lining up to take another shot, she was surprised when a shadow slid across the moonscape. Looking up, she nearly dropped the camera. Directly overhead was the largest ship she had ever seen. Pulling the camera up, she took a few pictures. Suddenly there was a flash of light, and smoke trails erupted silently from the side. As they arched over her, she realized what they were. Missiles. Heart beating faster now, she followed their trails. Then realization hit. There was only one habitable place north of her that they could hit – the portable habitat that she and her colleagues called Home Base. The upcoming eclipse forgotton, she Sprinted for her rover. Diving into the airlock, she hit the emergency valve. She battled her way inside as the rover atmosphere vented past her. Climbing into the driver seat in a vacuum, she knew it would be awkward to drive in the suit. It didn’t really matter though, all she could think about was getting back. ** ** ** The two hour drive back to home base had seemed to take forever. Now all that stood between her and Home Base was a hill. As she crested it the rover skidded to a stop. Looking around she felt her heart drop and tears come to her eyes. Nothing was left but craters and a few shards of scorched debris. Un-buckling, she stood up. Walking to the back of the rover, she pulled out a small emergency beacon. Fearing the ship might return, she decided not to activate it until the ship had left the system. At that point, she'd signal for the supply ship, which would hopefully return in a few weeks. For now though, she was alone on Epitaph – an apt name for this world she darkly supposed.