Chapter on the Divorce of an Absent Person

سَأَلْتُهُ عَنْ رَجُلٍ قَالَ لِرَجُلٍ اُكْتُبْ يَا فُلاَنُ إِلَى اِمْرَأَتِي بِطَلاَقِهَا أَوْ قَالَ اُكْتُبْ إِلَى عَبْدِي بِعِتْقِهِ أَ يَكُونُ ذَلِكَ طَلاَقاً أَوْ عِتْقاً قَالَ "لاَ يَكُونُ طَلاَقٌ وَ لاَ عِتْقٌ حَتَّى يَنْطِقَ بِهِ اَللِّسَانُ أَوْ يَخُطَّ بِيَدِهِ وَ هُوَ يُرِيدُ اَلطَّلاَقَ أَوِ اَلْعِتْقَ وَ يَكُونَ ذَلِكَ مِنْهُ بِالْأَهِلَّةِ وَ اَلشُّهُودِ وَ يَكُونَ غَائِباً عَنْ أَهْلِهِ".

"I asked him about a man who said to another, 'Write to my wife regarding her divorce,' or said: 'Write to my slave regarding his emancipation.' Would that constitute a divorce or emancipation?" Imam (as) replied: "There is no divorce nor emancipation until it is spoken by the tongue or written by his own hand with the

قُلْتُ لِأَبِي إِبْرَاهِيمَ ع الْغَائِبُ الَّذِي يُطَلِّقُ كَمْ غَيْبَتُهُ قَالَ خَمْسَةُ أَشْهُرٍ أَوْ سِتَّةُ أَشْهُرٍ قُلْتُ حَدٌّ فِيهِ دُونَ ذَا قَالَ ثَلَاثَةُ أَشْهُرٍ.

"I asked Abu Ibrahim (Imam Musa ibn Jafar Al-Kadhim (as)) about the absent man who divorces his wife. How long must his absence be?" Imam (as) replied: "Five or six months." I asked: "Is there a shorter period than that?" Imam (as) said: "Three months."

الْغَائِبُ إِذَا أَرَادَ أَنْ يُطَلِّقَ امْرَأَتَهُ تَرَكَهَا شَهْراً[1].

Hadith.4768 - Muḥammad ibn Abi Ḥamzah narrated from Isḥaq ibn ʿAmmar who reported from Abu Abdullah (as) that he said: "If an absent man wants to divorce his wife, he should leave her for one month."