Denying a spouse’s rights – whether physical or financial – is something that will inevitably bring about the wrath of Allaah, unless Allaah grants His mercy to the sinner.

Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: ‘If a man calls his wife to his bed and she refuses [and does not come], and he spends the night angry with her, the angels will curse her until morning.’”

(Reported by al-Bukhaari, 4794; the additional phrase quoted in square brackets is from Abu Dawood, al-Sunan, Kitaab al-Nikaah, Bab haqq al-zawj ‘ala’l-mar’ah).

In the phrase “if a man calls his wife to his bed,” the word “bed” is obviously a metaphor for intercourse. Metaphors are used in the Qur’aan and Sunnah to refer to things about which people usually feel shy.

Does this apply only to the nighttime, or does it include daytime too? The answer may be found in a hadeeth narrated by Muslim:

“By the One in Whose hand is my soul, there is no man who calls his wife to his bed and she refuses, but the One Who is above the heavens [i.e. Allaah] will be angry with her, until he (her husband) is pleased with her.”

Ibn Khuzaymah and Ibn Hibbaan report a hadeeth narrated by Jaabir:

“There are three whose prayers will not be accepted and none of whose good deeds will ascend to heaven: a runaway slave, until he returns to his master; a drunken man until he becomes sober; and a woman with whom her husband is angry, until he is pleased with her.”

These are general terms, which include both night and day.

The phrase “and he spends the night angry with her” refers to the cause of the angels’ curse, because this confirms that she is a sinner, which is a different matter than if he accepts her excuse and is not angry with her, or lets the matter drop.

Is she to blame if he keeps her away from his bed? The answer is: no, unless she is the one who started the separation and he is keeping away from her because of it, and she did not apologize but prolonged the separation. But if he is the one who started it, and is thus treating her unfairly, then she is not to blame.

In one report, instead of the words “the angels curse her until morning,” the wording is “… until she returns” – and this is a useful variant.

This hadeeth tells us that denying a spouse’s rights – whether physical or financial – is something that will inevitably bring about the wrath of Allaah, unless Allaah grants His mercy to the sinner.

We also learn that the angels will pray against a sinner so long as he or she persists in the sin.

The hadeeth also directs a wife to help her husband and seek his satisfaction, because a man is less patient than a woman when it comes to doing without intercourse. The most disturbing thing for a man is his sexual impulse, so Islam urges women to help their husbands in this regard.

(Adapted and abbreviated from the commentary by al-Haafiz Ibn Hijr – may Allaah have mercy on him – on this hadeeth in Fath al-Baari).

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