(a)Define the term Nikāh. (b)Enumerate ten categories of people prohibited to be married according to Qur’ān 4:22-24.

Answer Details

(a) Definition of Nikah

Nikah is the lawful marriage contract in Islam by which a man and a woman are joined together as husband and wife through a valid offer and acceptance, in the presence of witnesses, with the payment of a dowry (mahr). It legalises companionship and intimacy between the couple, establishes a family, and is a Sunnah of the Prophet (S.A.W.) which safeguards chastity and the continuation of the human race.

(b) Ten categories of people prohibited in marriage (Q.4:22-24)

Allah forbids marrying the following:

1. Your mother.
2. Your daughter.
3. Your sister.
4. Your father's sister (paternal aunt).
5. Your mother's sister (maternal aunt).
6. Your brother's daughter (niece).
7. Your sister's daughter (niece).
8. Your foster-mother who breast-fed you, and your foster-sister through suckling.
9. Your wife's mother (mother-in-law).
10. Your step-daughter under your care, born of a wife with whom you have consummated marriage; and your daughter-in-law (the wife of your own son).

The passage also forbids marrying the woman one's father married (step-mother), and taking two sisters in marriage at the same time, as well as women already married to others. These prohibitions protect family sanctity and moral order.