I noticed Sheik gave a fatwa on Marriage right, saying he personally would negate all a woman’s right in a marriage contract. Doesn’t the Quran say to "beware of the pledges you make and Hadith – Abu Dawud and AI-Hakim on the authority of Abi Hurairah, Sahih Al- Jami AI-Sayhir, (No. 6714) Regarding contracts the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said: The rights are decided by the conditions. Ibn Qudaamah (may Allah have mercy on him) said in his book Al-Mughni: If he married her on the condition that he should not make her move from her house or her city, then this condition is valid, because it was reported that the Prophet said: The most deserving of conditions to be fulfilled are those by means of which sexual intercourse becomes permissible for you. If he married her on the condition that he will not marry another wife, then she has the right to leave him if he does take another wife. In conclusion, then, the conditions of the marriage contract are divided into three types, one of which must be adhered to, which is of benefit to the wife, such as her being able to stipulate that he cannot make her move from her house or city, or travel with him, or take another wife or a concubine. He has to adhere to these conditions, and if he does not, then she has the right to annul the marriage. [Al-Mughni by Ibn Qudaamah, part 7, Kitaab al-Nikaah] So how can your so called Sheik (meaning wise or learned, negate such speech of the prophet???
All praise be to Allah and may His peace and blessings be on His final and greatest messenger, Muhammad.
Dear Enquirer,
No shaykh can negate the shariah. However, what a scholar says even if he was as great as Ibn Qudamah (may Allah bestow mercy on him) is not the Shariah, but his opinion/interpretation of shariah, unless it is a matter of consensus.
Even though, I agree with all of Ibn Qudamah’s statements here above, I realize that they are not all matters settled by consensus.
The conditions must be fulfilled, but which ones? What if she marries him on the condition that he never touches her? Should this be honored? Would that be marriage?
The scholars then disagreed on some conditions, because they either make prohibited that which Allah has allowed or they are not compatible with the essence or the necessary consequences of marriage.
For the Muslim public, one should seek an answer to his/her questions from the scholars s/he trusts the most. That means trusting their credibility as well as their knowledge. In the case of disputes, the judge in a Muslim country will settle the matter. In non-Muslim countries arbitration through a scholar, or preferably a panel thereof, if it was a very serious case, should be sought.
When it comes to marital problems, it is always important that the two parties first decide if this is a marriage they can tolerate or not. If the woman completely hates to be married to her husband, Islam gave her an exit, which is called khul’ (separation after returns the dowry). For the man, the exit is simply divorce.
If they decide that the marriage is salvageable, and they are interested in saving it, flexibility and compromise must be shown by both parties.
As for the beginning of your question, no shaykh can say that he would negate all of the rights of the woman in the marriage contract; such rights were given to her by God. He was either misunderstood, or he is not a shaykh (given shaykh here means a scholar)
Allah knows best.