Appropriate Mahr and the Mahr of al-Zahra - Jurisprudential Answers - Miscellaneous Issues, Vol 4

Ahmed al-Hasan Response:

I explained in a previous answer what the mahr of al-Zahra means in this time and in any time: it is the value of furnishing a home for two people. This is the standard-the mahr is an amount with which the home in which the spouses will live can be furnished. If you want a specific maximum figure, it is better for the mahr not to exceed the value of forty mithqals of eighteen-karat gold or its equivalent in any currency. If the mahr is divided into an immediate portion and a deferred portion, the stated value is divided between the two. In general it is better to avoid a high mahr even if the husband is financially comfortable, because this establishes a bad custom in the believing community. One sign of a woman's blessing is her acceptance of a small mahr, while raising the mahr and boasting about it is a cause of misfortune.