Qur’an and Social Sciences

Qur’an and Social Sciences

Revisiting the Verse of Mut‘ah (Qur’an 4:24) through the Lens of the Concept of Social Necessity

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
mohammad javad harati 1
elhame safaeizadeh 2
Pouran Mirzaei 3
1 Professor, Department of Political Science, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan, Iran (Corresponding Author)
2 PhD Candidate in Islamic Studies (Teaching), Qur’an and Hadith specialization, University of Qur’an and Hadith, Tehran, Iran
3 Associate Professor, Department of Hadith, Faculty of Hadith Sciences and Teachings, University of Qur’an and Hadith, Tehran, Iran
10.22034/arq.2025.234459
Abstract
The issue of mutʿah (temporary marriage), particularly in relation to verse 24 of Qur’an 4, has always been one of the most debated subjects in Qur’anic exegesis and Islamic jurisprudence, attracting extensive attention from Muslim exegetes and jurists, especially among the Imāmiyyah and Ahl al-Sunnah. The significance of this study lies in the fact that, despite the abundance of research on the legal ruling of mutʿah (temporary marriage), exegetical and social analyses of the verse with a focus on the concept of “necessity” at both the individual and social levels have received little attention. The main objective of this research is to elucidate the exegetical functions of the Verse of Istimtāʿ (Qur’an 4:24) within the framework of emerging human and social necessities and to reinterpret the concept of mutʿah (temporary marriage) in various social contexts. The research method is descriptive-analytical and based on library sources. In this regard, lexical and exegetical analyses of the verse are conducted alongside a review of the views of scholars from both schools of thought, as well as interpretations grounded in social conditions. The findings of the study indicate that, from the Imāmī exegetical perspective, the legitimacy of mutʿah (temporary marriage) is supported by the apparent meaning of the verse, the Prophetic tradition, and the narrations of the Ahl al-Bayt (AS), while emphasis on the expressions istimtāʿ and ujūrihunna implies the legality of temporary marriage. Furthermore, the concept of necessity occupies a central place in explaining the social function of mutʿah. The results reveal that mutʿah (temporary marriage), at the individual level, serves as a response to instinctive and psychological needs, and at the social level, it can function as a means of preserving society, particularly in critical situations such as war or scarcity of resources. Hence, collective necessities may give rise to individual necessity. Ultimately, revisiting the Verse of istimtāʿ based on the theory of necessity opens a new horizon for the social and comparative understanding of Sharīʿah rulings in the contemporary world.
Keywords
Mutʿah
Social exegesis
Verse of Istimtāʿ
Individual and Social necessity

Subjects

The Holy Qur’an
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  • Receive Date 15 May 2025
  • Revise Date 29 September 2025
  • Accept Date 29 September 2025