Navigating Family Tensions Over Marriage Choices - Seeking Islamic Guidance
Asalaam U Alaikum, I'm a young man facing a really tough situation with my family regarding marriage and would appreciate some advice. For context, I left university to avoid riba and focus on building financial stability in a halal way. I've now found a job I'm happy with and will be moving to another city soon. I met a woman I'm interested in marrying. I involved my parents and arranged a meeting between both families, but it went very poorly. My parents strongly disliked her family and made serious accusations (like saying they practice black magic, are disrespectful, and don't like where she's from), none of which I personally saw or found evidence for, which made me lose trust in their advice. After that, things got worse. My parents: - Verbally and emotionally abused me - Manipulated me using Islam to try to stop me from getting married - Slandered and cursed both the woman and me - Said I would go to hell if I married her - Threatened to cut me off if I left university or married without their approval At the time, I wasn't financially stable yet, so I delayed things hoping they might change their minds. Now that I have a job and am moving out, I brought up the topic again and their reaction was even more intense. This time I also told them about leaving university and moving for the job, which upset them more than me having a stable job I'm happy with. They've: - Repeated the same accusations about her and me - Told me never to come back home - Said my mother will never forgive me if I marry her - Justified taking interest-based loans, saying it's normal in non-Muslim countries - Said they will make dua that I go to Jahannam and that my life becomes miserable - Said I'll never find success in this life or the next - Said I'll never have their duas again I've decided to create some distance by moving away because the situation has become emotionally and verbally abusive. The woman I hope to marry knows about my situation and is still willing to go through this and support me after we're married. I intend to protect her throughout this process. My intention is still to maintain ties, support my family, and be there for them, but I also want to move forward with marriage in a halal way. I've tried to keep respect and kindness towards my parents throughout this entire process as much as I could. Alhamdulillah I have the patience to stay calm in front of them. I'm planning to propose again soon and start arranging the marriage, but now I feel completely alone. I don't think my parents will attend the nikkah, and my siblings haven't supported me or even listened to my side. Right now, my family isn't contacting me, and it feels like they want to cut ties. I still plan to reach out and keep contact as much as possible. I've constantly apologized for hurting them but told them this is my firm decision and I believe it's best for me. My questions are: - How do I handle this situation Islamically and emotionally? - How can I maintain family ties without compromising my future? - How can I make my family understand what they did wrong while still respecting them, since whenever I mention anything they immediately shout or get defensive? - Is there anything I can do better moving forward? - Has anyone gone through something similar? - Will their hearts soften over time since they promised they would never be in my life again and said I should assume they are dead? JazakAllah khair for any advice.