There is a consensus among Muslims on the legality of the Muta'a marriage, which was applied at the time of Muhammad, Abu Bakr and part of the caliphate of Omar.

Then the non-Shiite sects illegalized it, while the Shiites continued to say that it is legal. The Muta'a marriage is called also temporary or timed marriage. It is not concluded in public but remains a secret between the husband and wife. There are some scholars who call for registering it in the authorized courts and governmental departments including the former Iranian President, Hashimi Rafsangani, who holds an important position in the Muslim regime of Iran. The Religious Authority, Sayyed Muhammad Hussein Fadlullah also calls for registering the Marriage, to avoid any foreseeable problems between the couples in the future. Some religious scholars say that there are some courts in Bahrain that register this marriage.

Nahar Ash-Shabab asked the Sayyed about this Marriage, noting that some accuse the Shiites of being "practical" towards the sexual issue, in comparison with the other Islamic sects and other religions.

What in your view is the reason of this?

The Sayyed answered:" The Shiites insist on regulating this issue to avoid any negative aspects. We have suggested that the religious courts should register this marriage, because certain practices have produced negative results owing to the absence of any regulation.

That is why we call for registering these Marriages".

His Eminence added:

"The permanent marriage was not able to solve the problem of sex.

That is why we see that all nations have illegitimate relations, along with the legitimate ones. This is why we notice in the West in particular, that they do not accept polygamy but they accept the multiplicity of mistresses.

"The unavailability of permanent marriage for those who can not afford it owing to the financial difficulties is increasing the number of spinsters in our societies.”

The Sayyed stresses the fact that the Mutaa marriage includes a contract and a fixed time period that both parties agree on. When the period terminates, the contract too ends. If the woman gets pregnant the child is 100% legitimate and the parents should bare their responsibilities towards him.

The Sayyed does not accept the abortion of the Muta'a child under any consideration except, as in the permanent marriage, when the mother's life is threatened. Whoever does that would be committing a crime even if the pregnancy is still in the very early stages. If they resort to abortion they would be committing the crime of murder.

The Sayyed does not agree with those who say that the Muta'a marriage is similar to other illegitimate sexual relationships, since legitimacy lies in the legal form that controls this relationship.

On the other hand, the Sayyed rejects any chaos in marriage whether permanent or Muta'a, since there are certain marriages that are not registered while others take advantage of the women's needs, knowing some marry women to trade with their bodies. Any marriage based on exploitation, that is using the woman as a means, is invalid.

Similar forms of Marriage

The Sunni sect has a similar kind of marriage that serves the same gaol, the legal fulfilment of sexual desires. The only differences lie in the details.

In the Gulf and especially Saudi Arabia there is the "Missiar" marriage which is signed by two witnesses but it remains secret in view of the social and familial circumstances of the couple.

In Egypt it is called the "Urfi" marriage, and the wife should be either divorced or a widow, although virgin girls are also holding such marriages that enjoy sometimes the approval of the parents. The children born of such marriage are legitimate.

In the end, the Muta'a marriage remains an option in a world full of increasing temptation.