Answer
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
There is no specific mention in Islamic teachings about the intellectual compatibility as a pre-requisite for marriage. You say that the husband is a good man. Then what is wrong? What are these requirements he has to meet in order to be considered a good husband? How to claim that you can accept him as a friend but not as a husband? This is totally unreasonable. You should fear Allah and keep your life stable and show love to your husband.
Highlighting this fact, Sheikh `Abdel-Khaliq Hasan Ash-Shareef, A prominent Muslim scholar, states:
You have to keep in mind the fact that divorce is the most hated permissible thing in the sight of Allah. It dissolves families and deprives children the family atmosphere.
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: “The most hateful permissible thing in the sight of Allah is divorce.” (Abu Dawud and Ibn Majah)
The spouses should avoid divorce as much as possible. If they have difficulties and problems, they should be patient and forbearing. They have to try to work out their differences and seek help from their relatives, friends or professional counselors.
Also, Prophet Muhammad warned spouses against seeking divorce without justification, saying: “If any woman asks her husband divorce without a genuine reason, the fragrance of Paradise will be prohibited for her.” (Abu Dawud and At-Tirnidhi)
It is not love only that maintains families. Mutual respect and shouldering the responsibility of the children are other factors that help the family get stronger.
In Islam, both husband and wife are commanded to show respect to each other and pay each other’s rights.
In this sister’s case, she admits that her husband is a nice one and does not deny her any of her rights. Then, why seeking divorce?
Let this sister fear Allah and avoid making herself subject to His wrath.
Being of a middle education does not give her the right to ask for divorce. Divorce is resorted to in cases where there is a valid reason for doing so. Seeking divorce without justification is not permissible
A Muslim woman should look at the shining and the bright side of her husband’s character. He is loving and gentle. What is better than this? Education and money can never make family life a happy one. Thus, a Muslim woman should fear Allah and never think in this way.
Almighty Allah knows best.
Editor’s note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholar’s archive and was originally published at an earlier date.