Mut'a is the Shiite Islamic term for a temporary marriage that may be entered into for a term ranging from one hour to 99 years in exchange for mehr, a payment to the woman involved in the agreement. Because sexual activity outside of marriage is illegal in Iran and may be punished with up to 100 lashes or death by stoning (in the case of adultery), mut'a is a way that many Islamists work around the law in order to engage in intimate sexual contact with one another. The relationship is much like an escort dating experience, but legitimized by religion.
While New World Order-controlled media and organizations protest the act of mut'a because they say it's exploitation of females, mut'a is endorsed by Shiite clerics as a way for people to let off sexual steam and tension. The interior minister of Iran allegedly said at a conference in 2007,
Islam is in no way indifferent to the needs of a 15-year-old youth in whom God has placed the sex drive.
Some people insist that mut'a is a form of escorting, and that women do not reap any benefits from the contracts created with their temporary husbands. However, they fail to account for the fact that women are involved with setting the terms of the agreement: they can set their own prices and time limits and they can refuse men who do not agree to their terms, much like their escort colleagues in the West. For women both here and there, it's a way out of financial crisis and a method to reach the level of lifestyle they desire but are unable to achieve.
According to conservative ayatollah Sayyid Reza Borghei Mudaris, four levels of Islamic society benefit from mut'a. The four segments are:
- Young widows who have physical needs
- Older widows who are experiencing financial issues
- Men who are unable to afford a permanent wife
- Married men in troubled marriages who desire affection
While women are doing it for money and pleasure, men allegedly do it for the sheer sexual enjoyment. Women are only allowed to have one temporary marriage, under Islamic law, while men are permitted multiple permanent and temporary wives.
However, women involved in mut'a contend that they enjoy their time with their temporary husbands and benefit from the relationships, too. Additionally, women in temporary marriages are only bound to their husbands sexually. They are not required to obey their temporary mates about anything other than sex, which is incredibly liberating for many Islamic women.
Additionally, mut'a does not only pertain to women who see it as a way to gain financial freedom through Islamic escorting. Many young couples who are ready to move in together or wishing to travel for vacation together find that mut'a is a good option for them, especially if they are not yet ready to engage in a permanent marriage. For unmarried couples, who allowed neither to rent residences, nor to travel together, it's again mut'a that is a perfect solution.