Answer
Wa `alaykum As-Salamu waRahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
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:
1- There seems to be no specific hadith stating that conducting the marriage (nikah) ceremony on Fridays or after Asr prayers is Sunnah or more rewarding. As such, it is perfectly acceptable to hold the marriage on any given time of any given day of the week – without dislike.
2- However, many classical scholars and jurists state that given the fact Friday is the most blessed day of the week and much significance is attached to it, it is preferable and recommended to conduct the marriage ceremony on this day.
In his answer to your question, Mufti Muhammad Ibn Adam Al-Kawthari, Director and researcher at the Institute of Islamic Jurisprudence (Darul Iftaa, www.daruliftaa.com), Member of the Al-Qalam Shari`ah Scholars Panel, and advisor on Islamic Banking, states:
There seems to be no specific hadith stating that conducting the marriage (nikah) ceremony on Fridays or after `Asr prayers is Sunnah or more rewarding. As such, it is perfectly acceptable to hold the marriage on any given time of any given day of the week – without dislike.
However, many classical scholars and jurists state that given the fact Friday is the most blessed day of the week and much significance is attached to it, it is preferable and recommended to conduct the marriage ceremony on this day.
Mulla Ali al-`Qari (Allah have mercy on him) – whilst commentating on the hadith “Announce the marriage, conduct it in the Mosques, and beat the duff over it” (At-Tirmidhi) – states:
[The directive to] “Conduct it in the Mosques” is because it leads to more publicity for the marriage, or to attain the blessings of the location. It is recommended to try and attain the blessings of the time also, so that the illumination and happiness is doubled. Imam Ibn al-Humam said, ‘It is recommended to conduct the marriage in a Mosque because it is a form of worship, and on a Friday because it gives hope for more attendance or there is hope for more reward.’” (Mirqat al-Mafatih 6/217)
Another Hanafi jurist Imam al-Haskafi (Allah have mercy on him) states in his Al-Durr al-Mukhtar, “It is recommended to conduct the marriage on a Friday.” The commentator Imam Tahtawi provides the reason saying, “Because it is the most blessed day of the week.” (Hashiyat al-Tahtawi `ala al-Durr al-Mukhtar 2/5)
The Hanbali jurist Imam Ibn Qudamah states, “It is recommended to hold the marriage contract on a Friday.” (Al-Mughni 7/64.
As such, the recommendation to conduct the marriage on a Friday is based on the general blessedness of the day, and thus it is hoped that a marriage conducted on a blessed day will also be blessed. However, it is not specifically established as a Sunnah from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).
Accordingly, one may aim to conduct the marriage on other blessed times as well such as the day of `Eid, the night preceding the day of Jumu`ah, during Ramadan, the day of `Arafah, and so-on-and-so-forth.
In regards to conducting marriage after `Asr prayers on Friday, this again is not established as a Sunnah. However, since the time between `Asr and Maghrib prayers is a blessed time – especially on Fridays – some scholars consider it to be a good time to conduct it.
Others say it is better after Jumu`ah prayers since more people are likely to attend the ceremony, which will help in the desired publicity as well as be a means of obtaining their supplications (du`aa’).
Almighty Allah knows best.
Editor’s note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholar’s archive and was originally published at an earlier date.