LessonsDetermining the Intended Meaning of Texts and Recognizing Weak InferencesQuiz

حُرِّمَتْ عَلَيْكُمْ أُمَّهَاتُكُمْ وَبَنَاتُكُمْ
Your mothers and daughters have been forbidden to you in marriage.

The application of “daughters” raises a distinction between biological daughterhood and legally recognized lineage. In the Hanafi analysis, a girl born from illicit intercourse is prohibited in marriage to her biological father because the underlying literal relationship exists even though certain other lineage rules do not apply.

The Shafiʿi analysis treats legally established lineage differently in this question. The dispute is not simply about translation: it concerns which legally relevant sense controls the marriage prohibition.

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Daughters: a literal and a legal sense

Determining the Intended Meaning of Texts and Recognizing Weak Inferences

حُرِّمَتْ عَلَيْكُمْ أُمَّهَاتُكُمْ وَبَنَاتُكُمْ
Your mothers and daughters have been forbidden to you in marriage.

The application of “daughters” raises a distinction between biological daughterhood and legally recognized lineage. In the Hanafi analysis, a girl born from illicit intercourse is prohibited in marriage to her biological father because the underlying literal relationship exists even though certain other lineage rules do not apply.

The Shafiʿi analysis treats legally established lineage differently in this question. The dispute is not simply about translation: it concerns which legally relevant sense controls the marriage prohibition.