The book An Examination of the Independence of Virgins and Women in Marriage written in Persian by Dr. Javad Habibi-Tabar has been published in 378 pages by the Research Institute of Fiqh and Law and the Publications Department of the Islamic Sciences and Culture Academy. The work focuses on a jurisprudential–legal analysis of the concept of the “guardian’s consent in marriage” (idḥn al-walī fī al-nikāḥ) for virgins and women, examining the critical topic of women’s independence in marriage.
In the book’s introduction, it is emphasized that although the marriage contract (nikāḥ) is a formal legal act, these formalities should not become an obstacle to meeting the sexual needs of young people. In other words, Islamic law should provide legitimate mechanisms for the fulfillment of these natural instinctual needs. This study examines the capacity of Islamic jurisprudence—particularly the jurisprudence of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them)—to facilitate planning in the stage prior to family formation, with the aim of enabling young people to satisfy their sexual needs through lawful means. The broader objective is to prevent the tendency toward illicit relationships and the moral decline associated with phenomena such as cohabitation or so-called “white marriage.”
Dr. Javad Habibi-Tabar, a researcher and lecturer at several prominent Iranian universities, including the University of Tehran and the University of Qom, has previously authored other Persian works such as Step by Step with Family Law, Fiqh and Law of Family Formation, Fiqh and Law of Family Administration, and Fiqh and Law of the Dissolution of Marriage. This new publication continues and complements his earlier studies in the field of family law, addressing women’s independence in marriage as one of the significant jurisprudential and legal challenges in this field.
