To deal with this problem, Allah revealed the verse permitting men to be polygamous. Given the tragedy of the battle of Uhud, Allah could have sanctioned the existing practice of unlimited polygyny; but instead, while allowing men to be polygynous, Allah restricted the number to four.
Muslim societies allow for up to four wives, but not without specific rules and regulations.
If you fear that you shall not be able to deal justly with the orphans, Marry women of your choice, Two or three or four; but if you fear that you shall not be able to deal justly (with them), then only one, or (a captive) that your right hands possess, that will be more suitable, to prevent you from doing injustice.
Polygamy. According to the Sharia (Law), Muslims are allowed to practice polygyny. According to the Quran, a man may have up to four legal wives only if there is a fear of being unjust to non-married orphan girls. Even then, the husband is required to treat all wives equally.
The Koran restricted the practice of Polygamy and suggests MONOGAMY as the ONLY acceptable form of marriage for Society in general. Polygamy is only encouraged by the Koran where it concerns "oppressed or the orphans among women" (4:3), if justice can be done by marrying more than one.
There is only one Quranic passage (Surah 4: An-Nisa': 2-3) in which specific reference is made to polygyny as a social institution and permission to marry more than one wife is given under highly exceptional circumstances and with extremely stringent conditions.
The classical or traditional jurists interpreted this verse as allowing a man to marry up to four wives, while the modernists as well as contextualists observed that this verse legislates monogamy and allows polygamy only under exceptional circumstances.
For example, in some Islamic, Hindu, and even Christian countries, polygamy is a normal practice or is otherwise tolerated. Some Native American, Indigenous Australian, and Mongolian peoples practice “group marriage,” where the nuclear family consists of multiple husbands and multiple wives.
He married each of his wives thereafter for a social or political purpose; such that he wanted to honor the pious women, or wanted the loyalty of certain tribes so that Islam would spread amongst them.
"In the case of polygamy, there is a universal standard – it is understood to be a sin, therefore polygamists are not admitted to positions of leadership including Holy Orders, nor after acceptance of the Gospel can a convert take another wife, nor, in some areas, are they admitted to Holy Communion."
The prophet Jeremiah, who apparently chose not to have children, is the only prophet who did not marry.
In most Muslim traditions, Khadija bint Khuwaylid is described as Muhammad's most beloved and favored wife; Sunni tradition places Aisha as second only to Khadija. There are several hadiths, or stories or sayings of Muhammad, that support this belief.
The Quran prefers that a man marry his concubine, as opposed to having sexual relations with her as a slave. Marriage between free men and concubines is encouraged. If a man wishes to marry his concubine, he must free her prior to marriage. This was a means of emancipation for concubines.
Buddhism. Buddhism has no religious concept of marriage (see Buddhist view of marriage).
Polygyny has several economic, social, and health advantages over monogamy. In most cultures, women contribute significantly to the wealth of the household and can thus materially benefit from the labour of an additional spouse.
Practically, the justification for being in a polygamous relationship differs for men and women. Most men do so, because of their desire to have a larger number of offspring and most effectively increase their fitness by having many sexual partners.
in Muslim contexts
❖ Setting the minimum age of marriage at 18 is 'un-Islamic' because it goes against the practice of the Prophet Muhammad, who married Aishah when she was six years old, and consummated the marriage when she reached puberty at the age of nine.
If after the divorce is finalised, the couple decide to re-marry each other, a new marriage contract and Mahr must be agreed. Re-marrying each other can only be done twice after which the law states that after the third divorce they cannot remarry each other again.
In Islam, the husband pronounces the phrase “I divorce you” (in Arabic, talaq) to his wife. A man may divorce his wife three times, taking her back after the first two (reconciling). After the third talaq they can't get back together until she marries someone else.
There is no discipline for second marriage in Islam without permission of first wife. The main condition for consent to wed again is that the spouse can give similarly to the two wives.
Lady Yehenara, otherwise known as Empress Dowager Cixi, was arguably one of the most successful concubines in Chinese history. Cixi first entered the court as a concubine to Xianfeng Emperor and gave birth to his only surviving son, who later became Tongzhi Emperor.
The Quran also draws upon Lot's wife as an "example for the unbelievers" as she was married to a righteous man but refused to believe in his message and was thus condemned to Hell. The people of the twin cities transgressed against the bounds of God.
Mary (Maryam)
Mary, the mother of Jesus, is the most important woman in the Quran, as she is the only one identified by name.
She said: "Zaynab was my equal in beauty and in the Prophet's love for her." Umm Salama said of Zaynab: "The Messenger of Allah liked her and he also used to become vexed with her." On two occasions, when Muhammad divided a gift of food among all his wives, Zaynab was displeased with her portion and sent it back to him ...