Kafa'ah (compatibility) in marriage

1Maksud kafa'ah

Dari segi bahasa, kafa'ah bermaksud setara atau sepadan. Dari segi istilah fiqh, ia ialah kesepadanan suami dengan isteri dalam unsur-unsur tertentu yang, jika tiada, dianggap boleh menjatuhkan maruah wanita atau walinya dan menggugat keharmonian rumah tangga.

• Kafa'ah is measured in the man: the man must be a suitable match for the woman. The woman is not required to be a match for the man — a man may marry a woman of lower standing.
• Kafa'ah is assessed at the time of the contract. Changes after the contract (for example, the husband becoming poor) do not annul the marriage.
• Its purpose is to protect women, not to perpetuate caste. Islam affirms: "Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most God-conscious of you" (Surah al-Hujurat 49:13).

2Dalil dan asas

The Prophet ﷺ said: "When someone whose religion and character you are pleased with comes to you (to propose), then marry him. If you do not, there will be tribulation on earth and great corruption." (Sunan at-Tirmidhi 1084, from Abu Hurairah; graded hasan with the support of other narrations, including the narration of Abu Hatim al-Muzani in Sunan at-Tirmidhi).

The Prophet ﷺ also said: "A woman is married for four things: her wealth, her lineage, her beauty and her religion. Choose the one who is religious, and you will prosper." (Sahih al-Bukhari 5090; Sahih Muslim 1466).

The Sirah shows marriages across status: Zaid bin Harithah (a former slave) married Zainab binti Jahsy of the Quraisy (see Surah al-Ahzab 33:36–37), and Fatimah binti Qais of the Quraisy was advised to marry Usamah bin Zaid (Sahih Muslim 1480). This is the basis for treating kafa'ah as a right that can be waived, not an absolute bar.

3Unsur kafa'ah menurut empat mazhab

All schools agree that religion is an element of kafa'ah — a sinful (fasik) man is not a match for a righteous woman. They differ on the other elements:

4Hak wanita dan wali

According to the majority (Hanafi, Maliki, Syafi'i and the authoritative Hanbali view), kafa'ah is a binding condition (syarat lazim), not a condition of validity. It is a right shared by the woman and her wali:

• Syafi'i: jika wanita dan semua wali yang sedarjat reda dengan lelaki yang tidak sekufu, nikah itu sah. Jika wali mujbir menikahkan anak daranya dengan lelaki tidak sekufu tanpa keredaannya, nikah itu tidak sah menurut pendapat azhar. Wali hakim tidak boleh menikahkan wanita dengan lelaki tidak sekufu.
• Hanafi: wanita dewasa boleh menikahkan dirinya; tetapi jika dengan lelaki tidak sekufu, wali 'asabah berhak memohon qadi membubarkan nikah itu selagi wanita itu belum hamil atau melahirkan. Ulama mutakhir Hanafi memfatwakan riwayat al-Hasan daripada Abu Hanifah bahawa nikah itu tidak sah langsung jika dia mempunyai wali yang tidak reda.
• Maliki: kafa'ah dalam agama adalah hak yang tidak boleh diabaikan oleh wali; kesepadanan lain boleh digugurkan dengan persetujuan wanita dan wali.
• Hanbali: ada satu riwayat daripada Imam Ahmad bahawa kafa'ah adalah syarat sah; pendapat muktamad mazhab ialah ia syarat lazim yang boleh digugurkan.

Conversely, if the man is a suitable match and the woman chooses him, the wali may not refuse without a valid Shariah reason. Such a refusal makes the wali adhal (unjustly obstructive) and the woman may apply for a judge as wali (wali hakim) (see The marriage wali).

5Agama dan akhlak sebagai ukuran utama

Although the schools differ on the other elements, the hadith in at-Tirmidhi 1084 and Bukhari 5090 put religion and character first. In practice, this means assessing:

• Prayer, trustworthiness, honesty and how he treats family.
• Record of responsibility — payment of maintenance (nafkah) to an existing wife or children, debts and criminal record.
• Anger management and attitude towards domestic violence.
• Compatibility of creed; the marriage of a Muslim woman to a non-Muslim man is invalid (Surah al-Baqarah 2:221; Surah al-Mumtahanah 60:10) — this is a question of validity, not merely of kafa'ah.

6Kafa'ah dalam konteks poligami

Bagi lelaki yang ingin berkahwin lagi, isu kafa'ah sering bergabung dengan isu kemampuan:

• Dalam mazhab Hanafi dan Hanbali, kemampuan membayar mahar dan nafkah adalah unsur kafa'ah. Dalam mazhab Syafi'i, walaupun harta bukan unsur kafa'ah, keadilan dan nafkah tetap kewajipan yang dinilai sebelum berpoligami.
• The woman and her wali have the right to know his marital status, number of dependants and actual income before giving consent.
• Di Malaysia, permohonan poligami dinilai oleh Mahkamah Syariah dari segi kemampuan kewangan dan keadilan (Akta 303 s.23 dan peruntukan setara dalam enakmen negeri).

7Amalan semasa

Malaysia: undang-undang keluarga Islam negeri tidak menyenaraikan unsur kafa'ah secara khusus, tetapi ia diambil kira melalui hukum syarak (mazhab Syafi'i) apabila mahkamah menilai permohonan wali hakim kerana wali enggan. Mahkamah biasanya bertanya: adakah lelaki itu beragama dan berakhlak, mampu menanggung nafkah, dan adakah alasan wali munasabah?

• Isu nasab (contohnya keluarga Syed/Sharifah) masih timbul dalam sebahagian komuniti; menurut mazhab Syafi'i, ia hak yang boleh digugurkan dengan keredaan wanita dan wali.
• Differences in education and income are now disputed more often than lineage. Contemporary jurists stress that local custom (uruf) can determine what counts as 'an equivalent occupation'.
• Marriage across nations and ethnicities is permissible; what is assessed is religion, character and means, not citizenship.

Negara lain: kebanyakan undang-undang keluarga moden di negara Arab memasukkan kafa'ah dengan memberi hak kepada wali memohon pembubaran jika tiada kesepadanan; butiran berbeza mengikut negara (perlu disahkan bagi setiap negara).

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