Divorce in Islam In Quran and Hadith:

Divorce in Islam In Quran and Hadith:
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Divorce is one legitimate thing which Allah dislikes most. There is a complete separate chapter in Qur’an about the details of divorce (Surah At-Talaq, Chapter No. 65). The details related to divorce are too big to be covered fully here. So, we shall restrict our talk to major points only.

First thing to remember is that a husband can divorce his wife, but it cannot be the other way around (i.e. a wife cannot divorce her husband).

But does that mean a wife has to keep bearing the ill-effects of her strained relation with her husband? No; a woman can ask for Al-Khul.
Al-Khul:
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Al-Khul means parting of wife from her husband by giving him certain compensation. Refer to following verse:
فَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلاَّ يُقِيمَا حُدُودَ اللَّهِ فَلا جُنَاحَ عَلَيْهِمَا فِيمَا افْتَدَتْ بِهِ
“Then if you fear that they would not be able to keep the limits ordained by Allah, then there is no sin on either of them if she gives back for her Al-Khul;”
(Aayah No. 229, Surah Al-Baqarah, Chapter No. 2, Holy Qur’an).

But she should not use this unless there is a genuine reason, because it is told to us by the Prophet (PBUH) that Paradise is prohibited for such a woman:

It was narrated from Thawban (RA) that Allah’s Messenger (PBUH) said, “Any woman who asks her husband for a divorce when it is not absolutely necessary, the fragrance of Paradise will be forbidden to her.”
(Hadith No. 2055, Chapters on Divorce, Sunan Ibn Majah, Vol. 3).
Al-Ila:
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Al-Ila refers to an oath taken by a husband that he would not approach his wife for a certain period.

This is referred to in following verse of Holy Qur’an:

لِلَّذِينَ يُؤْلُونَ مِنْ نِسَائِهِمْ تَرَبُّصُ أَرْبَعَةِ أَشْهُرٍ فَإِنْ فَاءُوا فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ

“Those who take oath not to have sexual relation with their wives for four months, then if they return (change their idea in this period), verily, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.”
(Aayah No. 226, Surah Al-Baqarah, Chapter No. 2, Holy Qur’an).
This is something which husbands and wives should be careful about. If a husband announces Al-Ila, then he has to complete the period he has announced. But there is something which requires caution related to this. Refer to following hadith:

Narrated Nafi: Ibn Umar (RA) used to say about Al-Ila which Allah defined, “If the period of Ila expires, then the husband has either to retain his wife in a handsome manner or to divorce her as Allah has ordered.” Ibn Umar (RA) added, “When the period of four months has expired, the husband should be put in prison so that he should divorce his wife, but the divorce does not occur unless the husband himself declares it. This has been mentioned by Uthman (RA), Ali (RA), Abu Ad-Darda (RA), Aishah (RA) and twelve other Companions of the Prophet (PBUH).”
(Hadith No. 5290, Book of Divorce, Sahih Bukhari, Vol. 7).

This tells us that the maximum period for a safe Al-Ila is four months. If someone announces Al-Ila for a period less than four months, he can take back his wife. But if the period of Al-Ila exceeds four months, then it becomes obligatory on the husband to divorce his wife after completion of the period of Al-Ila.