“Likewise, through the announcement, in case of any dispute that may involve children or lead to separation, every right of the woman would be protected.”Ī nikah contract is also an opportunity for the couple to negotiate their relationship and their rights - particularly protecting the bride’s financial security by establishing her groom’s responsibilities to her.Ĭhief among those responsibilities is financial support in the event of a divorce or widowing. The nikah makes the public stand as “witnesses that the marriage is legal and all its natural consequences are legitimate,” explained Imam Abdullah Dibba, who leads Philadelphia’s Bait-ul-Aafiyat Mosque. “Muslims believe that God himself lifts a divine prohibition on intimacy between two unmarried individuals.” “By the mere act of entering into a nikah … the heavens smile, and what was once forbidden becomes rewarded,” Khan said. The contract’s chief purpose is to make the couple’s union Islamically legal through a public declaration. In fact, Muslims are not even required to have a written contract. To be sure, an eye-catching contract is hardly necessary for an Islamic marriage. Photo courtesy of Nushmia KhanĪn example of Nikahnama’s Nusantari design. Photo courtesy of Nushmia KhanĪn example of Nikahnama’s ziya design. “I wanted to create a project that makes being Muslim a more beautiful experience,” she said.Īn example of Nikahnama’s rosette design. One design is modeled after the nikah nama of Princess Ziya-i-Sultaneh, an Iranian royal in the Qajar dynasty from the 1800s another is based on the design of an antique Malaysian illuminated manuscript the third is inspired by a Mughal folio. Working with Pakistani miniature artist and calligrapher Muhammad Farooq Ishaq, Khan created three hand-painted designs that are custom printed with the couple’s name and wedding date. “There’s clearly a need for beautifully designed nikah namas, but there’s a void in the market.” “It made me so sad that my own nikah contract wasn’t beautiful and that such options weren’t easily available,” she said. So last month, she launched a business called Nikahnama to make high-quality, decorative Islamic marriage contracts accessible to Muslim couples across the globe. Khan didn’t want other couples to have the same experience. I would be so embarrassed now to dig it up and show it to you.” “I was spending so much time finding all these beautiful texts to include in my nikah nama but it just looked like the ugliest thing in the world. But she was a busy bride with limited time, and things didn’t quite go the way she hoped. Khan, now a 29-year-old mother living in Allentown, Pa., spent hours going to craft stores, decorating the document with colorful embellishments, fancy paper and an elegant envelope.
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