Principle of Adjustment

MARRIAGE IN ISLAM has the other cog, and both need communion so that a joint effort may be possible. I know many marriages in which both parties, being aware of this fact, tried to make adjustments. But they were quite conscious that their doing so was not merely for adjustment but mutual sharing. Thus, their marriage proved to be successful. One essential aspect of marriage is what I call intellectual partnership. Every day, we face problems; every day, there are some new issues; every day, we have to make some decisions; every day, we want to explore some new area in the world of ideas. This is important for everyone, man and woman. Every one of us needs to have an intellectual partner with whom we can have verbal exchanges, have a dialogue, and try to discover better options. And according to my experience, the best intellectual partner is your spouse. Everyone has adopted what may be called the adjustment culture—the businessman with his customers, every working man or woman with his or her boss. I think this is good, although the goal of this adjustment is only the money to be earned. However, this adjustment culture is also essential for husbands and wives. Adopting this adjustment culture in married life means making something far more important than money. My personal experience is that conversing with your partner is bound to give rise to new ideas. In this sense, the process of intellectual partnership leads to intellectual