If a wife stipulates upon her husband not to divorce her as long as he has intellect
Question:
A man divorced his wife, then he wanted to take her back so she said she won’t come back until he places a pledge upon himself that he won’t divorce her as long as his intellect is with him?
Answer:
If it’s a revocable divorce then let him take her back, whether she’s pleased or not, and if she doesn’t want him then she can do khul’a after returning, for indeed he possess the returning of her even if her inheritors or his inheritors die in a revocable divorce, before the ending of the waiting period, and if the waiting period finishes or it’s the third divorce after she’s married another husband and she made this a condition that he he give her his word that he won’t divorce her as long as his intellect is with him and he’s pleased with it, he fulfils it, ya’ni if he wants to stick by it within the boundaries of what he can bare, and that which he can’t bare it become a false condition.
(فَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ مَا ٱسْتَطَعْتُمْ)
“So keep your duty to Allah and fear Him as much as you can.” [At-Taghaabun, 16]
(وَمَا جَعَلَ عَلَيْكُمْ فِى ٱلدِّينِ مِنْ حَرَجٍۚ)
“He has not laid upon you in religion any hardship.” [Al-Hajj, 78]
So he sticks to the pledge according to what he can bare, if he wants that and if he doesn’t its not binding upon him and he can marry other than her, for verily if he gives her this pledge that he won’t divorce her for the time she is with him she might use this as an opportunity to deal with him in a bad manner and to be haughty against him and harm him until it becomes difficult for him and she will say he gave me his word and if he breaks the pledge it will be an opportunity for her to be disobedient and cause harm and this is not befitting for her, but if he gives her a pledge according to the limits of what he can bare, but let him avoid this and women other than her are plenty.
Answered by: Shaykh, the Allamah, the Trustworthy Advisor, Abu Abdirrahman Yahya bin Ali Al-Hajuri – may Allah preserve him
Source: https://t.me/sh_yahia_duroos/9203
Translated by: Abū ‘Abdillāh ‘Omar bin Yahya Al-‘Akawi