What is the ruling if a man divorces one of his wives without specifying which one, and the waiting periods of all potential wives expire?
Chapter on Divorce by Calculation
Al-Mughni
Book of Divorce
Primary text
If a man divorces one of his wives, whether he specified her or not, and the waiting period expires for all of them, he may contract a marriage with a fifth woman before specification (by naming or casting lots). This is based on the fact that the divorce occurred upon its utterance, establishing its ruling regarding the prohibition of intercourse and the denial of inheritance from the husband, even before specification. Specification merely reveals what had already occurred.
Supporting text
Ibn Hamid held a view that marrying a fifth woman is invalid. This dissenting view argues that the divorced woman remains in the status of his wives concerning the obligation of maintenance and the prohibition of marriage for her sake. Since it is certain that one woman among them is irrevocably divorced (ba'in) and outside his marriage and waiting period, she cannot be considered his wife. Maintenance is only due to her because she is detained and prevented from marrying another due to ambiguity. Another view, held by Abu Hanifa and some Shafi'i scholars, states that the waiting period begins from the time of specification, but this is incorrect because the divorce took effect at the time of utterance.