THE ISLAMIC WAY

8. Polygamy and Islam ~ 193 ~ man’s desires, would give us a commandment which is neither possible nor practical? The Encyclopaedia Britannica (1984) aptly concludes that one reason for adopting polygamy is the surplus of women. Among most peoples who permit or prefer it, the large majority of men live in a state of monogamy because of the limited number of women.160 To have more than one wife is not an ideal in Islam. It is, in essence, a practical solution to a social problem. 160. Encyclopaedia Britannica (1984), 8/97. CONCLUSION In terms of the birth rate, men and women are almost equal in number. But, subsequently, for a variety of reasons, the number of men in society decreases, leaving an excess of women. Now the question arises as to what should be the solution to this problem. In view of the inevitability of this imbalance, how is a healthy relationship between the sexes to be established?