Mahr

In Islam Mahr is a fixed amount of money or possessions (or a combination of both) paid by the groom to the bride during the wedding ceremony.  It is a mandatory requirement for the wedding to take place. Mahr mostly consist of money but it can be anything such as jewelry, home goods, furniture, a dwelling etc. It is paid to the wife in honor and respect. It shows the man’s desire to marry her and sense of responsibility and obligation or effort on his part.

Allah says in the Qur'an: "And give the women their dowries with a good heart..." [Noble Quran 4:4]

And he (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “The best of mahrs is the simplest (or most affordable).” (Narrated by al-Haakim and al-Bayhaqi, Sahih al-Jaami’, 3279)

Mahr is an important part of Islamic marriage. It is obligatory unless the wife by her own will expresses to forgive him or returns it to him. If she takes the mahr then it belongs entirely to her and no one can take it from her forcibly. There are only two conditions under which mahr is forgiven i.e. either the wife has forgiven it or the marriage ended without consummation, then in that situation her guardian can also forgive the mahr on her behalf. If a husband dies without paying mahr to his wife, it will be an outstanding debt on him and it must be paid before the distribution of his inheritance among his heirs. Now a day’s Mahr and dowry are often misunderstood. There is no concept of dowry in Islam. It is a man made obligation in marriages. Dowry means money, property, household furniture, car etc that are required by the bride to bring along in her marriage as a gift for her in laws. Mahr simply means a bride gift from her husband.