SAMAWA: Jurnal Hukum Keluarga Islam
Vol 6 No 2 (2026): Juli

Post-marital kafā’ah: reconstructing marital equality theory through maqāṣid al-sharī‘ah for redefining divorce legitimacy

Zaenal Arifin (Institut Agama Islam Darul Falah Bondowoso, Indonesia)
Adelia Idris (Institut Agama Islam Darul Falah Bondowoso, Indonesia)
Muhammad Mahbubi Ali (Universitas Islam Internasional Malaysia, Malaysia)



Article Info

Publish Date
30 Jul 2026

Abstract

The concept of kafā'ah in Islamic law has traditionally been confined to premarital compatibility between prospective spouses, while the legality of divorce has generally been assessed through formal juridical grounds without adequately considering the continuity of substantive marital equality. This study aims to reconstruct kafā'ah into a Post-Marital Kafā'ah Theory grounded in Maqāṣid al-Sharī'ah as a framework for redefining divorce legality in Islamic family law. Using a normative-conceptual legal research design with statutory, conceptual, comparative, and Islamic legal philosophy approaches, the study argues that kafā'ah should function as a continuous principle of marital compatibility encompassing spiritual, moral, psychological, intellectual, social, and economic dimensions, together with the reciprocal fulfillment of spouses' rights and obligations. Persistent deterioration of these dimensions, resulting in the loss of maṣlaḥah and the failure to achieve the objectives of Maqāṣid al-Sharī'ah, may therefore constitute substantive grounds for divorce. The study's novelty lies in proposing the Post-Marital Kafā'ah Theory, which integrates kafā'ah, Maqāṣid al-Sharī'ah, and divorce law into a Maqāṣid-oriented paradigm for a more adaptive, progressive, and welfare-oriented Islamic family law.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

samawa

Publisher

Subject

Religion Law, Crime, Criminology & Criminal Justice

Description

SAMAWA: Jurnal Hukum Keluarga Islam adalah jurnal akademik yang ditelaah sejawat (peer-reviewed) dan berfungsi sebagai wadah ilmiah untuk pengembangan kajian Hukum Keluarga Islam. Jurnal ini memuat hasil penelitian teoretis maupun empiris yang bertujuan memberikan kontribusi terhadap wacana klasik ...