Sanctity in marriage indicates the spiritual and sacred part of marriage that brings one man and a woman together. Allah SWT created us in pairs and created our partners so that we can find tranquility in them.
If you randomly ask a young person ‘What is the sanctity of marriage?’, that person most likely will not be able to give a proper answer to this question.
In today’s world, marriage is considered as a contract between two individuals to live together. Although there are commitments, the sanctity part is rare, even in Western Muslim societies.
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This article tells you about the sanctity of marriage in the light of the Quran and Hadith so that you can understand the actual meaning of marriage.
What is the Sanctity of Marriage
The word sanctity refers to being holy, sacred, and saintly. So, marriage is a holy or sacred thing considering the fact that a man and woman are living together after marriage in a halal way. They are enjoying each other in a halal way, giving birth to children with the recognition of their parents.
On the flip side, there are people who live together, have physical intimacy, and give birth to children without knowing about his/her father. These couples are doing the same thing, but without getting married, and making the relationship halal.
Allah’s Pleasure
When the word sanctity or sacred or holy comes to a marriage, it automatically connects the marriage bonding to Allah SWT. This refers to a relationship where a man and a woman come together to fulfill their basic needs and objectives in a way that pleases Allah SWT.
The above paragraph should clear the sanctity of marriage to you.
Doing Each Other’s Duty for the Sake of Allah
When the husband feeds his wife and children thinking that Allah SWT made it obligatory upon him to feed his family, the husband gets rewards for each action.
When the wife guards her modesty and takes care of the children, the wealth of the husband, and the house keeping in mind that these are obligatory upon her from Allah SWT, the wife gets rewards for these actions too.
Raising Kids
Both individuals raise children as Allah-fearing and kind human beings. They raise their kids according to the Quran and Sunnah to make sure whenever the kids do any good deed, the parents get rewarded for that.
Why is the Sanctity of Marriage Important?
Marriage is the only relationship that was created up in heaven and will end up in heaven in the hereafter. A number of Quranic verses and hadiths that talk about the afterlife in heaven, mention how a husband and wife will be living together. You will hardly find any narration mentioning if a man will be searching for his parents and child.
Whenever a Muslim man and woman get married after choosing the right life partner, if they make their intention like this that Allah told people to get married and Prophet Muhammad ﷺ got married, that is why I am getting married to protect my chastity and private parts, then that person will be rewarded from the marriage.
When they are married, they have duties to maintain towards each other. Not fulfilling the duties will be considered as a sin, which includes not providing for the family, disobeying the wife, not fulfilling the physical demands of each other, and the list goes on.
So, from a religious point of view, marriage carries much weight.
When the Marriage is Only a Contract
People who do not take religion seriously often say that they do not validate ‘Sanctity of Marriage’ because their view of marriage is different.
According to them, a couple can get married with some paperwork done as it is only a matter of contract. If this is the only understanding of marriage to them, then, that marriage will not be a sacred thing.
Although in such a marriage, there is commitment, there is betrayal as well. Setting a moral ground to keep the commitment sounds weaker than the commitment of people who get married only for Allah’s pleasure. They cannot cheat knowing the fact that Allah is watching, and there will be consequences in both worldly life and hereafter.
Do not get me wrong, people who are not religious, who do agree with the ‘Sanctity of Marriage’ thing, their married lives also last. But if you look at the percentage of them getting divorced or cheating on their spouses, this category of people is much larger in numbers.
On the other hand, for people who consider marriage a sanctity, their percentage of cheating and getting divorced is quite low compared to the people who consider marriage only as a contract and commitment.
There are also people who believe in Allah but do not think marriage is sacred. This group of people cheat and get divorced for one or multiple reasons more than people who take marriage as a medium to please Allah SWT.
In summary, the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman secures marital bonding even better, and the commitment here is much stronger than doing anything haram, the person has to hold accountability for him/herself to Allah SWT in the hereafter.
Family is an Ideal Field of Practicing Islam
In Islam, some indirect forms of worship cannot be done without getting married. In the Quran, there is a verse telling people to protect their families from hellfire. This indicates doing dawah in the family so that everyone can make it to Jannah, the ultimate destination.
Raising children, paying for the family, teaching children how to make wudu, how to read the Quran, how to pray, how to fast, there are many other rewarding acts that one can do living with a family.
FAQs
What does the sanctity of marriage mean?
The sanctity of marriage definition refers to the sacred and holy marriage bonding between a man and woman who get together with a common purpose of fulfilling their needs the way Allah SWT allows. This marriage life also helps to attain Allah’s pleasure in lots of ways.
What is the importance of marriage?
The first and foremost importance of marriage is to protect one’s chastity by not engaging in sinful or haram acts.
Marriage is the beginning of a family that helps both the husband and wife to do their responsibilities and duties towards each other.
Muslim couples help each other by obeying Allah SWT and staying away from forbidden things. Also, in a family, people can get reminders about religious obligations.
Other than the religious stuff, marriage helps people to understand each other, endure patience, accept the faults of others, and support each other during hardships and trials.
Why is it important to know the sanctity of nikah?
Muslim men and women get married to fulfill their basic as well as sexual needs the way Allah SWT has permitted. Their creator is the reason why they got married and agreed upon the fact that they will not cheat each other, act irresponsibly, and whatnot.
If a person does not understand the sanctity of nikah, then cheating or not keeping the commitment will be a lot easier, especially in a world where adultery and fornication are widespread.
What did Prophet Muhammad ﷺ say about marriage?
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said in a hadith –
“O young men, whoever among you can afford it, let him get married, for it is more effective in lowering the gaze and guarding one’s chastity. And whoever cannot afford it should fast, for it will be a shield for him.”
From this hadith, the Prophet’s ﷺ teachings are, among us, who can afford the living expense of another person, should he get married. This will help both the man and woman to keep their gaze lower and their private parts protected.
But if someone cannot afford the expense, he should fast to diminish his desires. The same goes for women. Fasting will reduce the urge significantly if the fasting person does not eat until the stomach is full.
Final Words
The sanctity of marriage will depend on how much the husband and wife are devoted to Allah SWT. The better the connection with the Lord, the better the married life goes, and sanctity remains as it was before. So, choosing the right spouse is vital here.
Now, if someone asks you ‘What is sanctity of marriage?’; hopefully, you will be able to make a good impression while explaining this matter.
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