“O mankind! Be careful of your duty to your Lord Who created you from a single soul and from it created its mate and from them twain hath spread abroad a multitude of men and women. Be careful of your duty toward Allah in Whom ye claim ( your rights ) of one another, and toward the wombs (that bore you ). Lo! Allah hath been a Watcher over you.” (an Nisaa’ 4:1)

A'bdullah ibn U'mar reported that Nabi (saw) said "Beware, everyone of you is a guardian and everyone of you is accountable for his guardianship. So the Imaam over his people [naas] is a guardian and he is accountable for his guardianship and the man is a guardian over the people of his household [ahli baytihi] and he is accountable for his guardianship and the lady is a guardian over the people of the household [ahli baytihi] of her husband and his children and she is accountable for them and a slave [a'bd] of a man is guardian over the wealth of his master [sayyidihi] and he is accountable for it. Beware, because everyone of you is a guardian and everyone of you is accountable for his guardianship." (BUKHAARI kitaabul Ahkaam [vol.9 no.252]) and in another version A'bdullah (ibn U’mar) reported that Nabi (saw) "Everyone of you is a guardian and is accountable for his guardianship so the ameer over his people is a guardian and is accountable for them. And the lady is a guardian over the house and children and she is accountable for them and the slave [a'bdu] is a guardian over the wealth of his master [sayyidihi] and he is accountable for it so everyone of you is a guardian [raa'in] and everyone of you is accountable for your guardianship." (BUKHAARI [vol.3 no.730] This hadeeth was narrated with several different versions by BUKHAARI see [vol.3 no.592, 733] kitaabul Juma'h [vol.2 no.18] kitaabul Wasayyah [vol.4 no.14] kitaabun Nikah [vol.7 no.116,128] and similar was narrated by MUSLIM in his ‘Jaami’us Saheeh’ kitaabul Imaarah MUSLIM [no.4496-4499])

The Rights of the Husband

1) To be corrected in the Deen
2) Obedience
“Men are in charge of women, because Allah hath men the one of them to excel the other, and because they spend of their property (for the support of women). So good women are the obedient, guarding in secret that which Allah hath guarded. As for those from whom ye fear rebellion, admonish them and banish them to beds apart, and scourge them. Then if they obey you, seek not a way against them. Lo! Allah is ever High Exalted, Great.” (an Nisaa’ 4:33)

The Rights of the Wife

1) To be taught knowledge of the Deen
“O you who believe! Protect [qoo] yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is men and stones, over which are severe angels, who disobey not the commands they receive from Allah, but do that which they are commanded.” (at Tahreem 66:6) If the husband can not teach the wife what she needs to know from the deen by necessity then he must arrange for another person to do so.

2) To be Corrected in the Deen
[Amr bil Ma’roof wan Nahi anil Munkar] “And the believing men and the believingwomen are awliyaa’ of one another, they command the ma’roof and forbid the munkar, they establish the salah and give the zakah and obey Allah and His messenger. Allah will have His mercy on them. Allah is A’zeezun Hakeem.” (at Tawbah 9:71)

3) To be treated with justice
I’yaad bin Himaar reports Nabi (saw) “…The inmates of paradise will be of three kinds sultaanin muqsit mutasaddiq muwaffaq (the one in authority who is just, truthful and given success to do good), and a person full of mercy and tender hearted towards his relatives and Muslims and a pious self restraining person having a family….” (MUSLIM kitaabul Jannah wa Sifaat naa’imaha wa ahliha [no.6853]) “…marry of the women, who seem good to you, two or three or four; and if ye fear that ye cannot do justice (to so many) then one (only) or (the captives) that your right hands possess. Thus it is more likely that ye will not do injustice.” (an Nisaa’ 4:3)

4) To be treated with kindness
“And of His signs is this: He created for you helpmeets from yourselves that ye might find rest in them, and He ordained between you love and mercy. Lo, herein indeed are portents for folk who reflect” (ar Room 30:21) “And treat them with kindness” (an Nisaa’ 4:19)

5) Mahr
“And give unto the women, (whom ye marry) free gift of their marriage portions; but if they of their own accord remit unto you a part thereof, then ye are welcome to absorb it (in your wealth).” (an Nisaa’ 4:4) “…And those of whom ye seek content (by marrying them), give unto them their portions as a duty. And there is no sin for you in what ye do by mutual agreement after the duty (hath been done). Lo! Allah is ever Knower, Wise.” (an Nisaa’ 4:24) However in these days of jaahileeyah when many are suffering and starving many people squander wealth and make great shows but Nabi is reported to have said “The best matter is the easiest” (HAAKIM, BAYHAQI, ABU DAWOOD)

6) Not to take back the mahr
“And if ye wish to exchange one wife for another and ye have given unto one of them a sum of money (however great), take nothing from it. Would ye take it by the way of calumny and open wrong? How can ye take it (back) after one of you hath gone in unto the other, and they have taken a strong pledge from you?” (an Nisaa’ 4:20-21)

7) Security and Tranquillity
“And of His signs is this: He created for you helpmeets from yourselves that ye might find rest in them, and He ordained between you love and mercy. Lo, herein indeed are portents for folk who reflect.” (ar Room 30:21)

8) Maintenance
This includes food, shelter and clothing. “Men are in charge of women, because Allah hath men the one of them to excel the other, and because they spend of their property (for the support of women). So good women are the obedient, guarding in secret that which Allah hath guarded. As for those from whom ye fear rebellion, admonish them and banish them to beds apart, and scourge them. Then if they obey you, seek not a way against them. Lo! Allah is ever High Exalted, Great.” (an Nisaa’ 4:33) Hakeem bin Mua’wiyah al Qushayri reported on his father’s authority that he asked ‘O Rasool Allah, what are the rights of the wife of one of us upon her husband?’ Nabi (saw) answered “That you should give her food when you eat and clothe her when you clothe yourself, not strike her on the face and do not revile her or desert her except within the house.” (AHMAD, ABU DAWOOD, NASAA’I, IBN MAAJAH graded ‘saheeh’ by IBN HIBBAAN and AL HAAKIM) Jaabir narrated that Nabi (saw) said with regard to women “It is upon you to provide them with their food and clothing in a reasonable manner.” (MUSLIM, Bulooghul Maraam [no.979]) and A’bdullah ibn U’mar reportes that Nabi (saw) said “It is sinful enough for a person not to fend for those he bound to sustain.” (NASAA’I and in the version of MUSLIM “…to withhold food from the one whose food he possesses.”) Abu Hurayrah reported that Rasool Allah (saw) said “The upper hand is better than the lower one and one of you should spend first on those he is responible for providing for, lest a woman should say ‘feed me or divorce me’” (DARAQUTNI, declared ‘hasan’ by IBN HAJR in ‘Bulooghul Maraam’ [no.982]) and Abu Hurayrah reported that a man came to Nabi (saw) and said ‘I have a deenaar’ He (saw) said “Spend it on yourself” He said ‘I have another’ He (saw) said “Spend it on your children” He said ‘I have another’ He (saw) said “Spend it on your wife” He said ‘I have another’ He (saw) said “Spend it on your servant” He said ‘I have another’ He (saw) said “You know best” (ASH SHAFI’I, ABU DAWOOD the wife precede the children in the version from NASAA’I and AL HAAKIM)

9) Not to be hated
“…But consort with them in kindness, for if ye hate them it may happen that ye hate a thing wherein Allah hath placed much good.” (an Nisaa’ 4:19) Hakeem bin Mua’wiyah al Qushayri reported on his father’s authority that he asked ‘O Rasool Allah, what are the rights of the wife of one of us upon her husband?’ Nabi (saw) answered “…do not revile her or desert her…” (AHMAD, ABU DAWOOD, NASAA’I, IBN MAAJAH graded ‘saheeh’ by IBN HIBBAAN and AL HAAKIM)

10) Not to be inherited (i.e. married) against her wishes
“O ye who believe! It is not lawful for you forcibly to inherit the women (of your deceased kinsmen), nor (that) ye should put constraint upon them that ye may take away a part of that which ye have given them, unless they be guilty of flagrant lewdness. But consort with them in kindness, for if ye hate them it may happen that ye hate a thing wherein Allah hath placed much good” (an Nisaa’ 4:19)

11) To be commanded to pray
“Enjoin prayer on thy people and be constant therein. We ask thee not to provide sustenance: We provide it for thee. But the (fruit of) the Hereafter is for Righteousness.” (Ta Ha 20:132) The Husband and wife must commanded eachother to pray and if they constantly neglect this then they must divorce. This is because the salah is the pillar of the deen and so if this is neglected then the deen is meaningless to them and they should not be together. The one who does not pray will be executed by an Islamic government according to the hadd and to some it is for kufr due to the several authentic ahadeeth that indicated that.

12) Not to strike her on the face
Hakeem bin Mua’wiyah al Qushayri reported on his father’s authority that he asked ‘O Rasool Allah, what are the rights of the wife of one of us upon her husband?’ Nabi (saw) answered “That you should give her food when you eat and clothe her when you clothe yourself, not strike her on the face and do not revile her or desert her except within the house.” (AHMAD, ABU DAWOOD, NASAA’I, IBN MAAJAH graded ‘saheeh’ by IBN HIBBAAN and AL HAAKIM)

13) Not to make hijrah (of discipline) from wife except within the house
Hakeem bin Mua’wiyah al Qushayri reported on his father’s authority that he asked ‘O Rasool Allah, what are the rights of the wife of one of us upon her husband?’ Nabi (saw) answered “That you should give her food when you eat and clothe her when you clothe yourself, not strike her on the face and do not revile her or desert her except within the house.” (AHMAD, ABU DAWOOD, NASAA’I, IBN MAAJAH graded ‘saheeh’ by IBN HIBBAAN and AL HAAKIM)

14) To meet the blood relations
The wife has the right to meet her family and silaatur rahm is a major Islamic obligation