Importance and Signing of Nikah in Muslim Wedding

Muslim wedding is based on some necessary rituals such as the proposal by man’s family to the bride’s father, the mehr and then to the Nikahnama ceremony. The proposal sent by the groom’s family is considered as a matter of dignity between both families. After the bride’s family accept the proposal, the proposing husband gives Mehr to the bride.  

Mehr is the amount that is gifted to her by the groom and must be given to her before the nikahnama. The amount needs to be discussed and agreed upon by both the partners. It is not a dowry or a gift or any price of an exchange. However, it can be encashed as per the agreement between both wife and husband.

After the proposal acceptance and fulfilment of Mehr activities, the nikah between bride and groom takes place. The ceremony is held to officially bond the bride and groom in a wedlock. Nikahnama is the piece of document which has to be signed by the Bride at the time of a wedding ceremony.

Nikahnama is the legal wedding license between the bride and groom. It also specified the rights of bride and the groom addressing serious issues in case of problems in the marriage. Everything is agreed upon before signing in to avoid troubles later on.

The Nikahnama also contain important sections which has to be signed by the bride after agreeing to every principle. On of those consist of a right to divorce. If it is not agreed upon then the wife is not able to get a divorce from her husband. In that case, she can take khula from court by giving up her mehr. Age is also written in the nikahnama. The girl needs to be at least 16 years of age to be married. The girl can also mention the maintenance allowance and the dowry she gets in another document attached to the Nikahnama.

Lastly, the Mehr amount paid by the bridegroom is mentioned with the payment. It is also mentioned if the Mehr is paid promptly or later until the wife demands it. In case the amount is given, it needs to be mentioned between both the parties. If the groom is already married, he needs to state it in the nikahnama.

Signing the document of nikahnama may be a complicated process but has to include the advice of a matchmaker. Fortunately there are online marriage bureaus providing matrimonial services to guide you about the entire process.