needed, and the residence itself.

9. QUESTION: Which is to take precedence: the Huququ'llah, the debts of
the deceased or the cost of the funeral and burial?

ANSWER: The funeral and burial take precedence, then settlement of debts,
then payment of Huququ'llah. Should the property of the deceased prove
insufficient to cover his debts, the remainder of his estate should be
distributed among these debts in proportion to their size.

10. QUESTION: Shaving the head hath been forbidden in the Kitab-i-Aqdas
but enjoined in the Suriy-i-Hajj.

ANSWER: All are charged with obedience to the Kitab-i-Aqdas; whatsoever is
revealed therein is the Law of God amid His servants. The injunction on
pilgrims to the sacred House to shave the head hath been lifted.

11. QUESTION: If intercourse take place between a couple during their year
of patience, and they become estranged again thereafter, must they
recommence their year of patience, or may the days preceding the
intercourse be included in the reckoning of the year? And once divorce
hath taken place, is it necessary that a further period of waiting be
observed?

ANSWER: Should affection be renewed between the couple during their year
of patience, the marriage tie is valid, and what is commanded in the Book
of God must be observed; but once the year of patience hath been completed
and that which is decreed by God taketh place, a further period of waiting
is not required. Sexual intercourse between husband and wife is forbidden
during their year of patience, and whoso committeth this act must seek
God's forgiveness, and, as a punishment, render to the House of Justice a
fine of nineteen mit{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}h{~COMBINING MACRON BELOW~}qals of gold.

12. QUESTION: Should antipathy develop between a couple after the Marriage
Verses have been read and the dowry paid, may divorce take place without
observance of the year of patience?

ANSWER: Divorce may legitimately be sought after the reading of the
Marriage Verses and payment of the dowry, but before the consummation of
the marriage. In such circumstances there is no need for observance of a
year of patience, but recovery of the dowry payment is not permissible.

13. QUESTION: Is the consent of the parents on both sides prerequisite to
marriage, or is that of the parents on one side sufficient? Is this law
applicable only to virgins or to others as well?

ANSWER: Marriage is conditional upon the consent of the parents of