Question 425: I agreed on a Mehr al-Sunnah (Prophetic-endorsed dowry) with my spouse at the time of marriage, but due to Taqiyya and the non-acceptance of some relatives, we introduced a nominal/mechanical dowry and even documented it. Now our marriage has ended in divorce, and my wife is claiming the documented nominal dowry. Am I obliged to pay the Mehr al-Sunnah or just this documented dowry?
Answer
✅Answer: Consider the following narration:
1 عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ يَحْيَى عَنْ أَيُّوبَ بْنِ نُوحٍ عَنْ صَفْوَانَ عَنْ مُوسَى بْنِ بَكْرٍ عَنْ زُرَارَةَ بْنِ أَعْيَنَ عَنْ أَبِي جَعْفَرٍ فِي رَجُلٍ أَسَرَّ صَدَاقاً وَ أَعْلَنَ أَكْثَرَ مِنْهُ فَقَالَ هُوَ الَّذِي أَسَرَّ وَ كَانَ عَلَيْهِ النِّكَاحُ.
📚 Al-Tahdhib, vol.7, p.363
Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) said regarding a person who sets a hidden dowry but declares another publicly: The true dowry (Sadaq) is that which was hidden and on the basis of which the marriage took place.
✅According to this narration, the dowry agreed upon at the time of the marriage—the one on which the marriage was actually based—is the valid one. Nominal or documented dowries introduced for Taqiyya or convenience without genuine mutual intention have no real validity. Even if the wife, by law and with a documented record, can claim it, anything beyond the agreed Mehr al-Sunnah is taken impermissibly.
اللَّهُمَّ فَصَلِّ عَلَی مُحَمَّدٍ وَ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ وَ عَجِّلْ لِوَلِیِّکَ الْفَرَجَ وَ الْعَافِیَةَ وَ النَّصْرَ