"The night has grown long, and its side has darkened; it is long, for there is no intimate friend to frolic with.

By Allah, were it not for the fear of Allah alone, the sides of this bed would be stirred."

'Umar asked about her, and it was said to him: "This is so-and-so, whose husband is absent in the path of Allah." He sent a woman to be with her, and sent word to her husband, requiring him to return. Then he entered upon Hafsa and said: "O my daughter, how long can a woman endure the absence of her husband?" She replied: "Subhan Allah! One like you asks one like me about this?" He said: "Were it not that I wish to look after the affairs of the Muslims, I would not have asked you." She said: "Five months, six months." So he set a limit for the people in their military expeditions of six months: they travel for a month, stay for four, and travel for a month on their way back. Ahmad was asked: "How long may a man be absent from his family?" He said: "It is reported as six months." Sometimes a man may be absent for longer than that for a matter (31) that is necessary for him. If he is absent for longer than that without an excuse, some of our scholars said: "The judge shall write to him, and if he refuses to come, he shall annul his marriage." And whoever says that his marriage is not annulled if he abandons intercourse while he is present, then this situation is more deserving of such a ruling. In all of these cases, annulment is not permitted according to those who deem it valid, except by the decree of a judge, because it is a matter of disagreement.

Section: Ahmad was asked: "Is a man rewarded for having intercourse with his wife when he has no sexual desire?" He said: "Yes, by Allah, he seeks the reward for offspring." "And what if he does not want offspring?" He says: "This is a young woman, why would he not be rewarded?" This is correct, for Abu Dharr narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "Your intercourse with your spouse is a charity." I said: "O Messenger of Allah, we fulfill our desire and are rewarded for it?" He said: "Do you see that if he were to place it in a forbidden way, he would incur a sin?" I said: "Yes." He said: "So do you seek reward for the bad deed, but do not seek reward for the good one?" (32) And because it is a means toward having children, shielding himself and his wife, lowering his gaze, and attaining tranquility.