Temporary Marriages
Several cultures have practiced temporary and conditional marriages. Examples include the Celtic practice of handfasting and fixed-term marriages in the Muslim community. Pre-Islamic Arabs practiced a form of temporary marriage that carries on today in the practice of Nikah Mut'ah, a fixed-term marriage contract. The prophet Muhammad sanctioned a temporary marriage—sigheh in Iran and muta'a in Iraq— which can provide a legitimizing cover for sex workers. Muslim controversies related to Nikah Mut'ah have resulted in the practice being confined mostly to Shi'ite communities.
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Famous quotes containing the words temporary and/or marriages:
“It is the custom of the immortal gods to grant temporary prosperity and a fairly long period of impunity to those whom they plan to punish for their crimes, so that they may feel it all the more keenly as a result of the change in their fortunes.”
—Julius Caesar [Gaius Julius Caesar] (100–44 B.C.)
“Those Marriages generally abound most with Love and Constancy, that are preceded by a long Courtship.”
—Joseph Addison (1672–1719)