Mysore Muslim weddings are auspicious occasions invoking blessings, for the couple to begin an admirable journey together. Widow remarriage is gaining wide acceptance in the contemporary world. It is a widow’s right to have a partner if she wishes to as death of the partner should not bar women from starting another marital life. But Islam puts forth certain conditions for widow remarriage, one such condition is Iddah or the period of waiting. Iddah is the period a woman must observe after the death of her husband or after a divorce, during which she may not marry another man. Its purpose is to fade out any doubts of pregnancy after the husband dies or divorces. Generally, the iddah period varies with circumstances. For a woman, whose husband has died, the iddah period is four months and for a woman who is divorced, the iddah period is three months. If a woman is pregnant when she is divorced or widowed the iddah lasts until she gives birth. If the divorcee or widow does not menstruate, she might have to observe iddah for a period of one year.
During the iddah period, a person may declare his intensions of marrying the widow- in a socially acceptable manner -or he may keep such intensions to himself but should not make any secret commitment with the widow. After divorce, iddah for a menstruating woman is three monthly periods and iddah for a non-menstruating woman is three lunar months. Remarriage for women in Islam cannot take place until the period of waiting removes all doubts regarding pregnancy. Iddah or waiting period is also associated with a widow’s ‘mourning’ for her deceased husband. Iddah serves the purpose of safeguarding a woman from defamation and slander. It is with this purpose that others are prohibited from making a secret commitment with the widow for remarriage before the waiting period gets over. When waiting period ends Muslim widows for marriage in Mysore register their profiles with leading matrimony sites like Mysore Nikah.
