Men should beat wives with 'meswak' or handkerchief, says Muslim family therapist

Saudi family therapist releases video on how to 'discipline' wives

A Saudi family therapist released a video this week on the "correct way" for Muslim men to discipline their wives.

Khaled Al-Saqaby lays out three steps to effectively discipline wives -- first talk to them, then 'forsake them in bed' and finally beat them.

However, he urges men to not abuse their wives, calling on them to hit their wives only with a sewak (tooth-cleaning twig) or a handkerchief, “because the goal is merely to make the wife feel that she was wrong in the way she treated her husband.”



At the start of the footage, recorded by Washington DC based Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), Al-Saqaby admits that the issue of wife beating is a ‘thorny’ one.

“Welcome to our show, which will deal with wife beating. I am aware that this issue is thorny one, which contains many hazards, but Allah willing, we will cross this bridge safely.”

He outlines the three steps, saying that a few of the reasons for marital problems was the faulty upbringing of the husbands and “unfortunately, some wives want to live a life of equality with the husband.”

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“First, remind her of your rights and of her duties, according to Allah. Then comes the second step - forsaking her in bed.”

However, he advises men to refrain from leaving the house altogether and spending the night elsewhere because “the point of forsaking her in bed is to discipline the wife, and not to air your dirty laundry in public.”

Interestingly, he goes on to recount what a woman once told him about the effectiveness of the second step. “As a woman once told me, this is the most ingenious way to discipline a wife. If the husband leaves the room it is easier for her than if he remains but turns his back to her or if he sleeps on the floor or vice versa.”

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The third step is physical action, although Al-Saqaby stresses it should not be a way for a husband to "vent one's anger".

“The beating should not be performed with a rod, nor should it be a headband, or a sharp object which, I am sad to say, some husbands use. It should be done with something like the sewak tooth-cleaning twig or with a handkerchief,” he clarifies.

Al-Saqaby adds there are some situations where a wife may hit her husband because of the "faulty upbringing of some husbands" who may have seen their fathers hit their wives and be "imitating their behaviour".

He was also saddened to say that “there are some women who say 'Go ahead. If you are a real man, beat me.' She provokes them.”

Watch the video here:


This article originally appeared on Daily Mail