In Islam, marriage has been declared
obligatory, and except in the case of a disability, celibacy is forbidden.
Therefore, the Holy Prophetsaw states: To marry is part of my
practice, and he who does not follow my practice is not of me. 1
Holy Prophet Muhammadsaw
was a human being like the rest of us. He was commanded in the Holy Quran
(18:111):
Tell them: I am but a man like unto
you; it is revealed to me that your God is One God. So let him who hopes to
meet his Lord work righteously and let him associate no one in the worship of
his Lord.
Every prophet of God is said to be a
man. Each of them was a guide to his respective followers. A superhuman being
cannot be a prophet that is raised for the benefits of human beings. If a
prophet is superhuman, His faculties, capacities, sentiments, reactions,
reflexes, and all his values would be different from those of men. Even if he
could understand men in every respect, men would not be able to understand,
appraise and assess him completely. Thus, being a man like unto other men, Holy
Prophet Muhammadsaw was not different from them; he had similar
faculties and capacities and he could understand them perfectly. So would they,
if they tried being able to understand him.
It may be said that a prophet is
different from other men. This is true in a certain sense, but the difference
is only one of degree, and not of kind. Every human being has a distinct
personality and thus differs from his fellows in certain respects. His physical
and mental characteristics and equipment may differ from those of the men with
whom he associates and among whom he moves about. The only specialty of a
prophet in respect of which he is distinguished from other men is that he
enjoys an intense degree of communion with God. But even in that respect, those
who believe in him and associate with him can share with him, to a greater or
lesser degree, in such communion. They can understand him perfectly. 2
In view of the above, it is expected
that the Holy Prophetsaw would live his life like a man and not
otherwise. And more so that Allah the Almighty Himself declares him to be one
of human beings:
Surely, a Messenger has come unto you
from among yourselves…
[Holy Qur’an 9:128]
One of the obligatory aspects of a
man is marriage. It is this aspect of the Prophetsaw’s life that we
intend to look at in this piece.
Marriage for a prophet, a
law-bearing prophet, for that matter, is especially necessary, not only that he
may set a model of superior domestic relations before his community, but also
that his wives may facilitate the teaching of religious injunctions. The skill,
by which a woman can perform the demonstration and education of affairs
relevant to women, cannot be done by a man in the same way. As a matter of
fact, if there is no hindrance, a prophet should, as far as possible, marry
more than once, so that the task of preaching and educating can be further
facilitated. Therefore, we see that a majority of the earlier prophets (on whom
be peace), practised polygamy. A majority of the prophets of the Bani Isra’il
were those who had more than one wife: Mosesas, Davidas,
Solomonas, and several others for instance. It is
strange that the critics, especially the Christians, accuse the Holy Prophetsaw and
Muslims on account of this issue, but they do not stop to cast a glance at
their own holy men, whom they believe to be the intimate and chosen messengers
of God. Similarly, the prophets of other nations also practised polygamy. Therefore,
it is the custom of prophets (on whom be peace) to marry, and if possible, more
than once.3 Therefore, if anyone intends to look at the married life
of the Holy prophetsaw, it is through the above lens that it should
be viewed.
However, when some not well informed
people hear that the prophet had many wives they conclude without much thought
that the prophet was a sensuous man. They would say that the Holy Prophetsaw
was a womanizer, and objections are raised against his marriages. Allah the
Almighty knew, however, that such allegations and questions would be raised in
the future and so facilitated such incidents which provide the rebuttal to
these allegations.4
The number of the Prophetsaw’s
wives remains controversial as the circumstances through which he married them.
Some writers record his wives to be eleven, some twelve, some thirteen and some
even more. Whereas, in pre-Islamic Arabia, there was no limitation on the
number of wives one may have, but Muhammadsaw, prior to his ministry
maintained a monogamous relationship with his wife Khadijard, while
the norm was to have many. With the dawn of Islam, the number came to be
limited to four. However, Muhammadsaw, according to Quranic
injunction was permitted more due to his status as a Prophet; while history
also tells that most of his marriages were of a political nature, to cement
political alliances5 and for the removal of social stigmas the then
society had placed on some particular classes of women.
Allah the Almighty says in chapter
33 verse number 51:
O Prophet! We have made lawful to
thee thy wives whom thou has paid their dowries, and those whom thy right hand
possesses from among those whom Allah has given thee as gains of war, and the
daughters of thy paternal uncle, and the daughters of thy paternal aunts, and
the daughters of thy maternal uncle, and the daughters of thy maternal aunts
who have emigrated with thee and any other believing woman if she offers
herself for marriage to the prophet provided the prophet desires to marry her:
this provision is only for thee, as against other believers- we have already
made known what we have enjoined on them concerning their wives and those whom
their right hands possess- in order that there may be no difficulty for thee in
the discharge of thy work. And Allah is Most Forgiving, Merciful.
The first marriage of the Holy
Prophetsaw was solemnized when he was age 25. He remained with only
one wife, Hadhrat Khadijahra, who was 15years older, for the next
25years after which the holy consort Khadijahrd passed on. The Prophetsaw
was 50 and prophethood had begun. It was only after her death that the Prophetsaw
married all other wives. The first two wives married after Khadijahrd
were Hadhrat Saudah bint Zam‘ahra and Hadhrat Aaisha bin Abi Bakrrd.
The above quoted verse, therefore, discusses the marriages of the prophet after
these two marriages. The verse refers to the three kinds of women whom the Holy
Prophetsaw could marry in addition to his already wedded wives:
1. Women who were taken prisoner in
wars against Islam;
2. Women who had migrated to medina
with the holy prophet, and
3. A woman who should offer herself for
marriage to him.
This shows that the Holy Prophetsaw’s
marriages were motivated by considerations other than sensuous gratification as
his ignorant and mischievous critics try to depict. Those who had left their
hearths and homes for the sake of Islam and those whose husbands had been
killed in wars fighting in defence of Islam had special claim on the Holy Prophetsaw’s
consideration. It is in view of these considerations that he married most of
his wives.6
Apart from the already mentioned two
wives (Saudahrd and Aa’ishahrd), therefore, the Prophetsaw
married Hafsahrd whose husband was killed in the battle of Badr,
Zainab bint Khuzaimahrd whose husband was killed in the battle of
Uhud, Umm Salmahrd whose husband died in 4 A.H., and Umm Habibahrd,
daughter of Abu Sufyan, who became widow in 5 or 6 A.H. (in exile in
Abyssinia). He married Juwairiyyahrd and Safiyyahrd, both
widows, in 5 A.H. and 7 A.H. respectively, seeking a union with and
pacification of their tribes. It is worthy of note that a hundred families of
the Bani Mustaliq were librated by Muslims when the Prophetsaw
married Juwairiyyahrd. Maimunahrd was another widow. It
is recorded that she offered herself to be married by the Prophetsaw.
The Prophetsaw accepted the offer in the interest of the education
and training of Muslim women. He married Zainabrd, the divorcee of
Zaid bin Haarithrd in 5 A.H. in order to put a stop to a foolish
custom prevailing among the Arabs and in order to assuage her wounded feelings
as the respected lady had felt deeply humiliated at being divorced by Zaidrd.
He married Mariahrd in 7 A.H. and thus by raising a freed slave girl
to the highly eminent spiritual status of the ‘Mother of Faithful’ he gave a
death blow to slavery. The Prophetsaw of Islam married all these
wives between 2 A.H. and 7 A.H., a period when he was constantly engaged in
active fighting and his life perpetually in danger and the fate of Islam itself
hung in the balance. After this he lived for about three years as a virtual
ruler of the whole of Arabia when comforts and amenities of life were at his
disposal and yet he entered into no further marriage.7
From the above analysis, it is
crystal clear that the marriages of the Holy Prophetsaw were not to
satisfy any sensual desire but for the fulfillment of his prophetic
assignments. All his marriages were to fulfill the
responsibilities of his prophethood; to pass on Islam to the next generations as
a practical legacy. By marrying these pious women, he was able to insure that
the female population was adequately trained in the new religion. With his
marriages he taught Muslims compassion with women and abolished certain
customs, and removed the social stigmas that were so firmly attached to slaves,
widows, elderly women and divorcees. To the Muslim society, he proved that
there was nothing undesirable in these types of women as marriage prospects.
Most of his marriages were after migration to Medina. During those
eight years he had to fight defensive wars, as mentioned earlier. He had to
teach Islam, lead daily prayers, and he was spending most of his nights in
prayer. If one analyzes the kind of heavy responsibilities he had during that
time period, one would wonder how much time he was spending with his wives. It
must also be remembered that the faith that he preached forbade intoxicants,
looked unfavorably on comforts and luxuries, and that the Holy Prophetsaw’s
own life was a model of simplicity and rigorous asceticism. The Holy Qur'an has
inculcated the spirit that should inspire the relationship between husband and
wife: ‘Of His Signs it is that He has created mates for you of your own species
that you may find peace of mind through them, and He has put love and
tenderness between you.’ (30:22). Then there is the admonition, ‘Consort with them
graciously. Should you dislike them, it may be that you dislike something in which
Allah has placed much good’ (4:20).
The Holy Prophet summed it up in these words, ‘The best among you
is the one who treats his spouse well and in that respect I am better than all
of you.’ (Tirmidhi). 8
An American Justice Pierre Craibites has rightly observed:
Muhammad,
1300 years ago assured to the mothers, wives, and daughters of Islam a rank and
dignity not yet generally assured to women by the laws of the West.9
Karen Armstrong also wrote in her book Muhammad: a Prophet for
our times:
The
Qur’anic institution of polygamy was a piece of social legislation. It was
designed not to gratify the male sexual appetite, but to correct the injustices
done to widows, orphans, and other female dependants, who were especially
vulnerable.10
What a marvelous light
And
radiance is to be found
In the life and person
Of Muhammad! Indeed this is a mine
Wonderfully rich in rubies
Of priceless worth.
Look wheresoever I may,
In the two worlds
I can absolutely find no one
With the greatness and grandeur
Of this greatest benefactor
Of the human race.
If thou long to obtain
Deliverance from the lust
Of thy mind, then come
To include thyself
Among his devotees.
And if at all thou desire
That Allah should hold thee
Worthy of praise,
From the bottom of thy heart
Begin to sing his praises.
Of this if thou long for proof,
Become thou his admirer, and lover,
Then watch for the results,
For the life and person
Of Muhammad, in themselves,
Constitute conclusive and shining
Proof of his greatness.11
Endnotes:
- Hadhrat
Mirza Bashir Ahmad, ‘The Life and Character of the Seal of the Prophets’,
The Review of Religions, February 2012, vol. 107, issue two,
pp. 17
- Zafrullah
Khan, Muhammad: The Seal of Prophets, Routledge & Kegan Paul,
London, 1980
- Hadhrat
Mirza Bashir Ahmad, op. cit,
- Hadhrat
Mirza Masroor Ahmad, The True Love of Holy Prophetsaw,
Islam International Publications, United Kingdom, 2012, pp. 15
- http://www.alislam.org/egazette/articles/CONFUCIUS-BUDDHA-JESUS- MUHAMMAD. Last date accessed: 4/12/2012
14:28:00
- Hadhrat Mirza Bashiruddeen Mahmud Ahmad,
The Holy Quran with English Translation and Commentary, Vol. 4,
Islam International Publications, United Kingdom, 1988, pp 2129-2130.
- Ibid
- Khaula
Rehman MD, ‘Polygamy in the Holy Qur'an and the life of Holy Prophetsaw’,
The Muslim Sunrise, spring
2010, Vol. 90, issue 1
- Ibid
- Karen Armstrong, Muhammad: A Prophet for our times.
Harper Collins, 2006.
- Hadhrat
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, The Promised Messiah, ‘Light of Muhammad’, The
Review of Religions, Vol. LXXXVI NO.2 February 1991, pp 36
