Question: It
is known that some great persons of Muslim history never married. Imam
Ibn Taymiyyah and Imam Bukhari are two examples. Did not they disobey
the Prophet (sws) who has directed his followers to marry?
Answer: Like
all directives of Islam, the directive to marry also has common sense exceptions.
In normal circumstances marriage is something which a person must
undertake because it sprouts from his very instincts. Consequently, Prophets
prior to Muhammad (sws) also directed their believers to marry and refrain
from celibacy. However, if in certain exceptional circumstances a person
is not able to do so, he should have a genuine plea. In other words, a
person who does not marry should not idealize celibacy or some similar
ideology. He or she should remain a bachelor or a spinster because of some
genuine reason.
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