Anas (May Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace
and blessings be upon him) said, "If the Hour (the dayof Resurrection)
is about to be established and one of you was holding apalm shoot, let
him take advantage of even one second before the Hour isestablished to
plant it."
The spirit of constructive positivism and active endeavor is one of
the principles stressed by Sunnah. This spirit shouldcontrol the
Muslim's mind, senses, thought, and conduct. It symbolizes interest in
deeds rather than verbal eloquence and rhetoric. It lays great
importance on construction rather than destruction, and in lighting
candles rather than cursing darkness.
This positive orientation is quite evident in the above hadith, that
calls for exerting one's utmostuntil the very last moment of one's
life even though the Last Hour is established or is about to be. Now,
why should a Muslim use this precious moment in planting a palm shoot?
Why should he busy himself with it, when the Last Hour is established
or is about to be, notwithstanding the fact that neither he nor anyone
else is going to benefit from it? How come he wastes that invaluable
second of the establishment of the Hour in planting a palm shoot that
will not yield before years to come?
This tiny shoot is a symbol of the value of activity per se. A Muslim
worships Allah through his work in constructing and developing the
land. He is to keep on working until his last breath.
This positive orientation is evident in elevating the mastery of one's
work to the level of obligation and worship. Encouraging Muslims to
attain the highest degreeof quality and perfection in their work, the
Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) told us that Allah likes one
to perfect one's work, no matter how bigor small this work.
This principle appears in many hadiths that prohibit cursing and
swearing. Even with regard to Satan, the open enemy to humans, we are
ordered not to waste a moment in cursing him; rather, we should busy
ourselves with more useful and fruitful acts such as remembering Allah
and seeking His support and help. Abu Hurairah reported that the
Prophet said, "Do not abuse Satan, but seek Allah's Refuge from his
evil" (Sahih al-Jami` as-Saghir).
Cursing Satan is futile. Instead, one should remember Allah the
Exalted and seek His refuge from the evils of Satan. One of the most
famous hadiths concerning this matter is as follows: Abu Tamimah
Al-Hujaimi reported: One day as I was riding behind the Prophet on a
donkey, it stumbled and Ishouted, "Let Satan perish!" The Prophet
said, "Do not say 'let Satan perish,' for if you say so he will feel
important and haughty and he will say, 'I thwarted him with my power!'
Instead say, 'In the name of Allah,' so that he will (feel humiliated
and) be smaller than a fly" (Sahih at-Targhib wat-Tarhib).
This means that the devil becomes puffed up with pride whenever one
curses him or invokes Allah against him. However, when one remembers
Allah and ignores Satan, then Satanfeels dwarfish and grovels.
Certainly, pronouncing "in the name of Allah" is a positive act
because it means that one is remembering Allah and seeking His refuge;
whereas saying "let Satan perish" is a negative act, as it does not
offer solutions nor achieve anything; thus Satan rejoices on
hearingit.
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Saturday, October 6, 2012
Do Not Expect Gratitude From Anyone
Almighty Allah has created His servants so that they may worship and
remember Him, and He has provided sustenance for them so that they may
be gratefulto Him. Nevertheless, many have worshipped other than Him,
and the majority of people are thankful not to Him, but to others.
Indeed, the characteristic of ingratitude is widespread among human
beings. So, do notbe dismayed when you find that others forget your
favors or disregard your kind acts. Some people might even despise you
and make you an enemy for no other reason than that you have shown
them kindness.
Almighty Allah says:
(And they could not find any cause to bear a grudge, except that Allah
and His Messenger had enriched them of His Bounty.] (ِAt-Tawbah 9:74)
From among the ever-repeating pages of history is a story of a father
and his son: The father raised his son, fed him, clothed him, and
taught him; he would stay up nights so that his son could sleep, stay
hungry so that his son could eat, and toil so thathis son could feel
comfort. And when the son became older and stronger, he rewarded his
father with disobedience, disrespect,and contempt.
So, be at peace if you arerequited with ungratefulness for the good
you have done. Rejoice in your knowledge that you will be rewarded
from the One Who has unlimited treasures at His disposal. This is not
to say that youshould refrain from performing acts of kindness toward
others; the point is that you should be mentally prepared for
ingratitude.
Perform acts of charity seeking solely Allah's pleasure, because with
this attitude you will assuredly be successful. The ungrateful person
cannot really harm you. Praise Allah that that person is the
transgressor and that you are the obedient servant. Also, remember
that the hand that gives is better than the hand that receives.
Allah, the Most-High, says:
[We feed you seeking Allah's Countenance only.We wish for neither
reward nor thanks from you.] (Al-Insan 76:9)
Many people are shockedat the nature of ingratitude in others, as
though they had never come across this verse and others like it, such
as:
[And when harm touches a person, he invokes Us [Allah], lying down on
hisside or sitting or standing. But when We have removed his harm from
him, he passes on his way as if he had never invoked Us for a harm
that touched him.] (Yunus 10:12)
Hence, do not be in a state of agitation if you give someone a pen as
a gift and he or she uses it to satirize you, or if you give someone a
walking stick to lean upon and hestrikes you with it. As pointed out
earlier, most human beings are ungrateful to their Lord, so what kind
of treatment should you and I expect?
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remember Him, and He has provided sustenance for them so that they may
be gratefulto Him. Nevertheless, many have worshipped other than Him,
and the majority of people are thankful not to Him, but to others.
Indeed, the characteristic of ingratitude is widespread among human
beings. So, do notbe dismayed when you find that others forget your
favors or disregard your kind acts. Some people might even despise you
and make you an enemy for no other reason than that you have shown
them kindness.
Almighty Allah says:
(And they could not find any cause to bear a grudge, except that Allah
and His Messenger had enriched them of His Bounty.] (ِAt-Tawbah 9:74)
From among the ever-repeating pages of history is a story of a father
and his son: The father raised his son, fed him, clothed him, and
taught him; he would stay up nights so that his son could sleep, stay
hungry so that his son could eat, and toil so thathis son could feel
comfort. And when the son became older and stronger, he rewarded his
father with disobedience, disrespect,and contempt.
So, be at peace if you arerequited with ungratefulness for the good
you have done. Rejoice in your knowledge that you will be rewarded
from the One Who has unlimited treasures at His disposal. This is not
to say that youshould refrain from performing acts of kindness toward
others; the point is that you should be mentally prepared for
ingratitude.
Perform acts of charity seeking solely Allah's pleasure, because with
this attitude you will assuredly be successful. The ungrateful person
cannot really harm you. Praise Allah that that person is the
transgressor and that you are the obedient servant. Also, remember
that the hand that gives is better than the hand that receives.
Allah, the Most-High, says:
[We feed you seeking Allah's Countenance only.We wish for neither
reward nor thanks from you.] (Al-Insan 76:9)
Many people are shockedat the nature of ingratitude in others, as
though they had never come across this verse and others like it, such
as:
[And when harm touches a person, he invokes Us [Allah], lying down on
hisside or sitting or standing. But when We have removed his harm from
him, he passes on his way as if he had never invoked Us for a harm
that touched him.] (Yunus 10:12)
Hence, do not be in a state of agitation if you give someone a pen as
a gift and he or she uses it to satirize you, or if you give someone a
walking stick to lean upon and hestrikes you with it. As pointed out
earlier, most human beings are ungrateful to their Lord, so what kind
of treatment should you and I expect?
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Red Fort Complex India
the new capital of the fifth Mughal Emperor of India, Shah Jahan.
Named for its massive enclosing walls of red sandstone, it is adjacent
to an older fort, the Salimgarh, built byIslam Shah Suri in 1546, with
which it forms the Red Fort Complex. The private apartments consist of
a row of pavilions connected by a continuous waterchannel, known as
the Nahr-i-Behisht (Stream of Paradise). The Red Fort is considered to
represent the zenith of Mughal creativity which, under the Shah Jahan,
was brought to a new level of refinement. The planning of the palace
is based on Islamic prototypes, but each pavilion reveals
architectural elements typical of Mughal building, reflecting a fusion
of Persian, Timurid and Hindu traditions The Red Fort's innovative
planning and architectural style, including the garden design,
strongly influenced later buildings and gardens in Rajasthan, Delhi,
Agra and further afield. (© UNESCO World Heritage Centre)
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Signs of Allah in Honey Bees
The bactericide (bacteria-killing) property of honey is named "the
inhibition effect". Experiments conducted on honey show that its
bactericideproperties increase twofold when diluted with water. It is
very interesting to note that newly born bees in the colony are
nourished with diluted honey by the bees responsible for their
supervision - as if they know this feature of the honey.
When a flower has already been visited, thehoneybee can understand
that anotherbee has earlier consumed the nectar of that flower, and
leave the flower immediately. This way, it saves both time and energy.
Well, how does the bee understand, without checking the flower, that
the nectar has earlier been consumed? This is made possible because
the bees which visited the flower earliermarked it by leaving a drop
on it with a special scent. Whenever a new bee looks in on the
sameflower, it smells the scent and understands that the flower is of
no use and so goes on towards another flower. Thus, bees do not waste
time on the same flower.
Honeybees are one of science's great mysteriesbecause they have
remained unchanged for20 million years. That is abig blow to the
evolutionists.
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- - - -
inhibition effect". Experiments conducted on honey show that its
bactericideproperties increase twofold when diluted with water. It is
very interesting to note that newly born bees in the colony are
nourished with diluted honey by the bees responsible for their
supervision - as if they know this feature of the honey.
When a flower has already been visited, thehoneybee can understand
that anotherbee has earlier consumed the nectar of that flower, and
leave the flower immediately. This way, it saves both time and energy.
Well, how does the bee understand, without checking the flower, that
the nectar has earlier been consumed? This is made possible because
the bees which visited the flower earliermarked it by leaving a drop
on it with a special scent. Whenever a new bee looks in on the
sameflower, it smells the scent and understands that the flower is of
no use and so goes on towards another flower. Thus, bees do not waste
time on the same flower.
Honeybees are one of science's great mysteriesbecause they have
remained unchanged for20 million years. That is abig blow to the
evolutionists.
--
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Did You Thank Allah for Your Eyesight?
held up a sign which said: "I am blind, please help." There were only
a few coins in the hat.
A man was walking by. He took a few coins fromhis pocket and dropped
them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote
some words. He put the sign back so thateveryone who walked by would
see the new words.
Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to
the blind boy. That afternoon the man who had changed the sign came to
see how things were. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, "Were
you the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write?"
The man said, "I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a
different way."
What he had written was: "Today is a beautiful day and I cannot see it."
Do you think the first sign and the second signwere saying the same thing?
Of course both signs toldpeople the boy was blind. But the first sign
simply said the boy was blind. The second sign told people they were
solucky that they were not blind. Should we be surprised that the
second sign was more effective?
"It is He, Who has created for you (the sense of) hearing (ears),
sight (eyes), and hearts (understanding). Little thanks you give."
[surah Al-Mu'minun; 78]
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Is it true that the Day of Judgement will come on a Friday, 10 th Muharram?
read in the sahih(accurate) hadith itis stated that the day of
judgement will come on friday(10th moharram).My question is if it is
friday in saudi arabia then it will be another day in USA and so
on....so basically it is never friday all over the world at one
time...please answer, this has been troubling me for sometime.
Praise be to Allaah.
Everyone who gives a specific time or date for the onset of the Day of
Judgement is a fabricator and a liar. Theonset of the Day of
Resurrection is the "Hour" of which Allaah says (interpretation of the
meaning):
"They ask you about theHour (Day of Resurrection): 'When willbe its
appointed time?' Say: 'The knowledge thereof is with my Lord (Alone).
None can reveal its time but He'" [al-A'raaf 7:187]
But when the Day of Resurrection comes, at the time which is knownto
Allaah, which will be aFriday, then the system of this universe, with
its night and day, sun and moon and stars, will be changed. We do not
know whether the America which exists today will exist then or not,
for Allaah is Able to destroy whichever of these nations He wills
before the Day of Resurrection, for Allaah is Able to do all things.
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WOMEN'S LIBERATION THROUGH ISLAM
Today people think that women are liberated in the West and that the
women's liberation movement began in the 20th century. Actually, the
women's liberation movement was not begun by women but was revealed by
God to a man in the seventh century by the name of Muhammad (peace be
upon him), who is known as the last Prophet of Islam. The Qur'an and
the Traditions of the Prophet (Hadith or Sunnah) are the sources from
which every Muslim woman derives her rights and duties.
I. HUMAN RIGHTS
Islam, fourteen centuries ago, made women equally accountable to God
in glorifying and worshipping Him - setting no limits on her moral
progress. Also, Islam established a woman's equality in her humanity
with men. In the Qur'an, in the first verse of the chapter
entitled"Women," God says, "O mankind! Be careful of your duty to your
Lord Who created you from a single soul and from it its mate and from
them both have spread abroad a multitude of men and women. Be careful
of your duty toward Allah in Whom you claim (your rights) of one
another, and towards the wombs (that bore you). Lo! Allah has been a
Watcher over you." (4:1) Since men and women both came from the same
essence, they are equal in their humanity. Women cannot be by nature
evil (as some religious believe) or then men would be evil also.
Similarly, neither gender can be superior because it would be a
contradiction of equality.
II. CIVIL RIGHTS
In Islam, a woman has the basic freedom of choice and expression based
on recognition of her individual personality. First, she is free to
choose her religion. The Qur'an states: "There is no compulsion in
religion. Right has been made distinct from error." (2:256) Women are
encouraged in Islam to contribute their opinions and ideas. There are
many traditions of the Prophet (pbuh) which indicate women would pose
questions directly to him and offer their opinions concerning
religion, economics and social matters. A Muslim woman chooses her
husband and keeps her name after marriage. A Muslim woman's testimony
is valid in legal disputes. In fact, in areas in which women are more
familiar, their evidence is conclusive.
III. SOCIAL RIGHTS
The Prophet (pbuh) said: "Seeking knowledge is a mandate for every
Muslim (male and female)." This includes knowledge of the Qur'an and
the Hadith as well as other knowledge. Men and women both have the
capacity for learning and understanding. Since it is also their
obligation to promote good behaviorand condemn bad behavior in all
spheres of life, Muslim women must acquire the appropriate education
to perform this duty in accordance with their own natural talents and
interests. While maintenance of a home, providing support to her
husband, and bearing, raising and teaching of children are among the
first and very highly regarded roles for a woman, if she has the
skills to work outside the home for the good of the community, she may
do so as long as her family obligations are met. Islam recognizes and
fosters thenatural differences between men and women despite their
equality. Some types of work are more suitable for men and other types
for women. This in no way diminishes either's effort nor its benefit.
God willreward both sexes equally for the value of their work, though
it may not necessarily be the same activity. Concerning motherhood,
the Prophet (pbuh) said: "Heaven lies under the feet of mothers." This
implies that the success of a society can be traced to the mothers
that raised it. The firstand greatest influence on a person comes from
the sense of security, affection, and training received from the
mother. Therefore, a woman having children must be educated and
conscientious in order to be a skillful parent.
IV. POLITICAL RIGHTS
A right given to Muslim women by God 1400 years ago is the right to
vote. On any public matter, a woman may voice her opinion and
participate in politics. One example, narrated in the Qur'an (60:12),
is thatMuhammad (pbuh) is told that when the believing women come to
him and swear their allegiance to Islam, he must accept their oath.
This established the right of women to select their leader and
publicly declare so. Finally, Islam does not forbid a woman from
holding important positions in government. Abdur-Rahman Ibn Auf
consulted many women before he recommended Uthman Ibn Affan to be the
Caliph.
V. ECONOMIC RIGHTS
The Qur'an states: "By the creation ofthe male and female; Verily,
(the ends) ye strive for are diverse." (92:3-4) In these verses, God
declaresthat He created men and women to be different, with unique
roles, functions and skills. As in society, where there is a division
of labor, so too in a family; each member has different
responsibilities. Generally, Islam upholds that women are entrusted
with the nurturing role, and men, with the guardian role. Therefore,
women are given the right of financial support. The Qur'an states:
"Men are the maintainers of women because Allah has made some of them
to excel others and because they spend of their wealth (for the
support of women)." (4:34) This guardianship and greater financial
responsibility is given to men, requires that they provide women with
not only monetary support but also physical protection and kind and
respectful treatment. The Muslim woman has the privilege to earn
money, the right to own property, to enter into legal contractsand to
manage all of her assets in any way she pleases. She can run her own
business and no one has any claim on her earnings including her
husband. The Qur'an states:
"And in no wise covet those things in which Allah hath bestowed His
gifts more freely on some of you than on others; to men is allotted
what they earn, and to women, what they earn;but ask Allah of His
bounty, for Allah hath full knowledge of all things." (4:32)
A woman inherits from her relatives. The Qur'an states: "For men there
is ashare in what parents and relatives leave, and for women there is
a share of what parents and relatives leave, whether it be little or
much - an ordained share." (4:7)
VI. RIGHTS OF A WIFE
The Qur'an states: "And among His signs is that He created for you
matesfrom among yourselves that you maylive in tranquillity with them,
and He has put love and mercy between you;Verily, in that are signs
for people who reflect." (30:21) Marriage is therefore not just a
physical or emotional necessity, but in fact, a sign from God! It is a
relationship of mutual rights and obligations based on divine
guidance. God created men and women with complimentary natures, and in
the Qur'an, He laid out a system of laws to support harmonious
interaction between the sexes. "...They are your garments andyou are
their garments." (2:187) Clothing provides physical protection and
covers the beauty and faults of the body. Likewise, a spouse is viewed
this way. Each protects the other and hides the faults and compliments
the characteristics of the spouse. To foster the love and security
that comes with marriage, Muslim wives have various rights. The first
of the wife's rights is to receive mahr, a gift from the husband which
is part of the marriage contract and required for the legality of the
marriage. The second right of a wife is maintenance. Despite any
wealth she may have, her husband is obligated to provide her with
food, shelter and clothing. He is not forced, however, to spend beyond
his capability and his wife is not entitledto make unreasonable
demands. TheQur'an states:
"Let the man of means spend according to his means, and the man whose
resources are restricted, let him spend according to what Allah has
given him. Allah puts no burden on any person beyond what He has given
him." (65:7)
God tells us men are guardians over women and are afforded the
leadership in the family. His responsibility for obeying God extends
to guiding his family to obey God at all times. A wife's rights also
extend beyond material needs. She has the right to kind treatment.
The Prophet (pbuh) said: "The most perfect believers are the best in
conduct. And the best of you are those who are best to their wives."
God tells us He created mates and put love, mercy, and tranquillity
between them. Both men and women have a need for companionship and
sexual needs, and marriage is designed to fulfill those needs. For one
spouse to deny this satisfaction to the other, temptation exists to
seek it elsewhere.
VII. DUTIES OF A WIFE
With rights come responsibilities. Therefore, wives have certain
obligations to their husbands. The Qur'an states: "The good women in
the absence of their husbands guard their rights as Allah has enjoined
upon them to be guarded." (4:34) A wife is to keep her husband's
secrets and protect their marital privacy. Issues of intimacy or
faults of his thatwould dishonor him, are not to be shared by the
wife, just as he is expected to guard her honor. A wife must also
guard her husband's property. She must safeguard his home and
possessions, to the best of her ability, from theft or damage.
Sheshould manage the household affairswisely so as to prevent loss or
waste. he should not allow anyone to enter the house whom her husband
dislikes nor incur any expenses of which her husband disapproves. A
Muslim woman must cooperate and coordinate with her husband. There
cannot, however, be cooperation with a man who is disobedient to God.
She should not fulfill his requests if he wants her to do something
unlawful. A husband also should not take advantage of his wife, but be
considerate of her needsand happiness.
VIII. CONCLUSION
The Qur'an states:
"And it becomes not a believing man or a believing women, when Allah
and His Messenger (Muhammad) have decided on an affair (for them),
that they should (after that) claim any say in their affair; and whoso
is rebellious to Allah and His Messenger, he verily goes astray in
error manifest." (33:36)
The Muslim woman was given a role,duties and rights 1400 years ago
thatmost women do not enjoy today, even in the West. These are from
Godand are designed to keep balance in society; what may seem unjust
or missing in one place is compensated for or explained in another
place. Islam is a complete way of life.
Mary Ali and Anjum Ali
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women's liberation movement began in the 20th century. Actually, the
women's liberation movement was not begun by women but was revealed by
God to a man in the seventh century by the name of Muhammad (peace be
upon him), who is known as the last Prophet of Islam. The Qur'an and
the Traditions of the Prophet (Hadith or Sunnah) are the sources from
which every Muslim woman derives her rights and duties.
I. HUMAN RIGHTS
Islam, fourteen centuries ago, made women equally accountable to God
in glorifying and worshipping Him - setting no limits on her moral
progress. Also, Islam established a woman's equality in her humanity
with men. In the Qur'an, in the first verse of the chapter
entitled"Women," God says, "O mankind! Be careful of your duty to your
Lord Who created you from a single soul and from it its mate and from
them both have spread abroad a multitude of men and women. Be careful
of your duty toward Allah in Whom you claim (your rights) of one
another, and towards the wombs (that bore you). Lo! Allah has been a
Watcher over you." (4:1) Since men and women both came from the same
essence, they are equal in their humanity. Women cannot be by nature
evil (as some religious believe) or then men would be evil also.
Similarly, neither gender can be superior because it would be a
contradiction of equality.
II. CIVIL RIGHTS
In Islam, a woman has the basic freedom of choice and expression based
on recognition of her individual personality. First, she is free to
choose her religion. The Qur'an states: "There is no compulsion in
religion. Right has been made distinct from error." (2:256) Women are
encouraged in Islam to contribute their opinions and ideas. There are
many traditions of the Prophet (pbuh) which indicate women would pose
questions directly to him and offer their opinions concerning
religion, economics and social matters. A Muslim woman chooses her
husband and keeps her name after marriage. A Muslim woman's testimony
is valid in legal disputes. In fact, in areas in which women are more
familiar, their evidence is conclusive.
III. SOCIAL RIGHTS
The Prophet (pbuh) said: "Seeking knowledge is a mandate for every
Muslim (male and female)." This includes knowledge of the Qur'an and
the Hadith as well as other knowledge. Men and women both have the
capacity for learning and understanding. Since it is also their
obligation to promote good behaviorand condemn bad behavior in all
spheres of life, Muslim women must acquire the appropriate education
to perform this duty in accordance with their own natural talents and
interests. While maintenance of a home, providing support to her
husband, and bearing, raising and teaching of children are among the
first and very highly regarded roles for a woman, if she has the
skills to work outside the home for the good of the community, she may
do so as long as her family obligations are met. Islam recognizes and
fosters thenatural differences between men and women despite their
equality. Some types of work are more suitable for men and other types
for women. This in no way diminishes either's effort nor its benefit.
God willreward both sexes equally for the value of their work, though
it may not necessarily be the same activity. Concerning motherhood,
the Prophet (pbuh) said: "Heaven lies under the feet of mothers." This
implies that the success of a society can be traced to the mothers
that raised it. The firstand greatest influence on a person comes from
the sense of security, affection, and training received from the
mother. Therefore, a woman having children must be educated and
conscientious in order to be a skillful parent.
IV. POLITICAL RIGHTS
A right given to Muslim women by God 1400 years ago is the right to
vote. On any public matter, a woman may voice her opinion and
participate in politics. One example, narrated in the Qur'an (60:12),
is thatMuhammad (pbuh) is told that when the believing women come to
him and swear their allegiance to Islam, he must accept their oath.
This established the right of women to select their leader and
publicly declare so. Finally, Islam does not forbid a woman from
holding important positions in government. Abdur-Rahman Ibn Auf
consulted many women before he recommended Uthman Ibn Affan to be the
Caliph.
V. ECONOMIC RIGHTS
The Qur'an states: "By the creation ofthe male and female; Verily,
(the ends) ye strive for are diverse." (92:3-4) In these verses, God
declaresthat He created men and women to be different, with unique
roles, functions and skills. As in society, where there is a division
of labor, so too in a family; each member has different
responsibilities. Generally, Islam upholds that women are entrusted
with the nurturing role, and men, with the guardian role. Therefore,
women are given the right of financial support. The Qur'an states:
"Men are the maintainers of women because Allah has made some of them
to excel others and because they spend of their wealth (for the
support of women)." (4:34) This guardianship and greater financial
responsibility is given to men, requires that they provide women with
not only monetary support but also physical protection and kind and
respectful treatment. The Muslim woman has the privilege to earn
money, the right to own property, to enter into legal contractsand to
manage all of her assets in any way she pleases. She can run her own
business and no one has any claim on her earnings including her
husband. The Qur'an states:
"And in no wise covet those things in which Allah hath bestowed His
gifts more freely on some of you than on others; to men is allotted
what they earn, and to women, what they earn;but ask Allah of His
bounty, for Allah hath full knowledge of all things." (4:32)
A woman inherits from her relatives. The Qur'an states: "For men there
is ashare in what parents and relatives leave, and for women there is
a share of what parents and relatives leave, whether it be little or
much - an ordained share." (4:7)
VI. RIGHTS OF A WIFE
The Qur'an states: "And among His signs is that He created for you
matesfrom among yourselves that you maylive in tranquillity with them,
and He has put love and mercy between you;Verily, in that are signs
for people who reflect." (30:21) Marriage is therefore not just a
physical or emotional necessity, but in fact, a sign from God! It is a
relationship of mutual rights and obligations based on divine
guidance. God created men and women with complimentary natures, and in
the Qur'an, He laid out a system of laws to support harmonious
interaction between the sexes. "...They are your garments andyou are
their garments." (2:187) Clothing provides physical protection and
covers the beauty and faults of the body. Likewise, a spouse is viewed
this way. Each protects the other and hides the faults and compliments
the characteristics of the spouse. To foster the love and security
that comes with marriage, Muslim wives have various rights. The first
of the wife's rights is to receive mahr, a gift from the husband which
is part of the marriage contract and required for the legality of the
marriage. The second right of a wife is maintenance. Despite any
wealth she may have, her husband is obligated to provide her with
food, shelter and clothing. He is not forced, however, to spend beyond
his capability and his wife is not entitledto make unreasonable
demands. TheQur'an states:
"Let the man of means spend according to his means, and the man whose
resources are restricted, let him spend according to what Allah has
given him. Allah puts no burden on any person beyond what He has given
him." (65:7)
God tells us men are guardians over women and are afforded the
leadership in the family. His responsibility for obeying God extends
to guiding his family to obey God at all times. A wife's rights also
extend beyond material needs. She has the right to kind treatment.
The Prophet (pbuh) said: "The most perfect believers are the best in
conduct. And the best of you are those who are best to their wives."
God tells us He created mates and put love, mercy, and tranquillity
between them. Both men and women have a need for companionship and
sexual needs, and marriage is designed to fulfill those needs. For one
spouse to deny this satisfaction to the other, temptation exists to
seek it elsewhere.
VII. DUTIES OF A WIFE
With rights come responsibilities. Therefore, wives have certain
obligations to their husbands. The Qur'an states: "The good women in
the absence of their husbands guard their rights as Allah has enjoined
upon them to be guarded." (4:34) A wife is to keep her husband's
secrets and protect their marital privacy. Issues of intimacy or
faults of his thatwould dishonor him, are not to be shared by the
wife, just as he is expected to guard her honor. A wife must also
guard her husband's property. She must safeguard his home and
possessions, to the best of her ability, from theft or damage.
Sheshould manage the household affairswisely so as to prevent loss or
waste. he should not allow anyone to enter the house whom her husband
dislikes nor incur any expenses of which her husband disapproves. A
Muslim woman must cooperate and coordinate with her husband. There
cannot, however, be cooperation with a man who is disobedient to God.
She should not fulfill his requests if he wants her to do something
unlawful. A husband also should not take advantage of his wife, but be
considerate of her needsand happiness.
VIII. CONCLUSION
The Qur'an states:
"And it becomes not a believing man or a believing women, when Allah
and His Messenger (Muhammad) have decided on an affair (for them),
that they should (after that) claim any say in their affair; and whoso
is rebellious to Allah and His Messenger, he verily goes astray in
error manifest." (33:36)
The Muslim woman was given a role,duties and rights 1400 years ago
thatmost women do not enjoy today, even in the West. These are from
Godand are designed to keep balance in society; what may seem unjust
or missing in one place is compensated for or explained in another
place. Islam is a complete way of life.
Mary Ali and Anjum Ali
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1b. Which angels take the soul of the Muslim, the angels of mercy or the angels of wrath?
"Taste the punishment of the blazing Fire"
[al-Anfaal 8:50].
And there are other similarverses. End quote from Adwa' al-Bayaan, 3/3
Perhaps it may be said here -- and Allah knows best -- that the
situation of those who commit acts of disobedience and majorsins, at
the time of death, varies according to their level of disobedience and
obedience. For the person who is one of those who affirm Tawheed and
are good and righteous, they will have the glad tidings and good
situation that Allah has promised here, and that the one who mixed
good deeds with bad deeds will find himselfin a mixed situation, so he
will be deprived of the glad tidings and good situation and merciful
treatment by the angels, according to his situation and deed
And Allah knows best.
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1a. Which angels take the soul of the Muslim, the angels of mercy or the angels of wrath?
It was narrated from al-Bara' ibn 'Aazib (may Allah be pleased with
him)that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said
-- in a lengthy hadeeth in which he described the situation of the
believer and the evildoer when their souls are taken --:
"… as for the evildoer, when he is about to enter the Hereafter and
depart from this world, the Angel of Death comes to him and sits by
his head. Therecome down to him angels from heaven with black faces,
bringing with them sackcloth. They sit with him as far as the eye can
see. Then the Angel of Death and says, 'O evil soul, come out to the
wrath and anger of Allaah…' .
This was narrated by al-Haakim in al-Mustadrak (1/93) and classed as
saheeh by Shaykh al-Albaani in Ahkaam al-Janaa'iz (no. 108). The
hadeeth is also narrated inal-Sunan. Ibn Tooloon compiled in his book
al-Tahreer al-Mursakh fi Ahwaal al-Barzakh (p. 75-112) the hadeeths
and reports which speak of this matter.
But if we say that what is meant by the evildoer or the bad man in
these reports is the disbeliever who is mentioned in the other
reports, then all the versions of the hadeeth are in accordance, as
seems to be the case. So that means that there is nothing definite
about Muslims who commit wrong actions and major sins. And Allah knows
best.
Shaykh al-Shanqeeti (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
"Those whose lives the angels take while they arein a pious state
(i.e. pure from all evil, and worshipping none but Allaah Alone)
saying (to them): Salaamun 'Alaikum (peace be on you) enter you
Paradise, because of that (the good) which you used to do (in the
world)"
[al-Nahl 16:32 –interpretation of the meaning].
In this verse Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, stated that the
pious who obeyed the commands of their Lord and avoided that which He
forbade willhave their souls taken by the angels when they are in a
good state, i.e., pure and free of shirk and sin -- according to the
soundest commentaries -- and they will give them the glad tidings of
Paradise and greet them with salaam..
This meaning is also stated elsewhere, as in theverses in which Allah
says (interpretation of the meaning):
"Verily, those who say: "Our Lord is Allaah (Alone)," and then they
stand firm, on them the angels will descend (at thetime of their
death) (saying): "Fear not, nor grieve! But receive the glad tidings
of Paradise which you have been promised!"
[Fussilat 41:30]
"and its keepers will say: Salaamun 'Alaykum (peacebe upon you)! You
have done well, so enter here toabide therein"
[al-Zumar 39:74]
"And angels shall enter unto them from every gate (saying):
24. "Salâmun 'Alaikum (peace be upon you) for you persevered in
patience! Excellent indeed is the final home!"
[al-Ra'd 13:23-24]
The glad tidings are given at the time of death, and when they entered
Paradise from one gate, because they are glad tidings of good after
moving to the Hereafter.
From the description of those whose souls are taken when they are in a
good state and to whom itis said ' peace be upon you, enter Paradise,'
it may be understood that those who are not described as pious will
notbe taken by the angels in that noble state or be greeted or given
glad tidings.
Allah has stated this meaning elsewhere, such as in the verses where
He says (interpretation of the meaning):
"Those whose lives the angels take while they aredoing wrong to
themselves (by disbelief and by associating partners in worship with
Allaah and by committing all kinds of crimes and evildeeds)." Then,
they will make (false) submission"
[al-Nahl 16:28]
"Verily, as for those whom the angels take (in death) while they are
wronging themselves (as they stayed among the disbelievers even though
emigration was obligatoryfor them), they (angels) say (to them): 'In
what (condition) were you?' They reply: 'We were weak and oppressed on
the earth.' They (angels) say: 'Was not the earth of Allaah spacious
enough foryou to emigrate therein?' Such men will find their abode in
Hell — what an evil destination!"
[al-Nisa' 4:97]
"And if you could see when the angels take away the souls of those who
disbelieve (at death); they smite their faces and their backs,
(saying): :->
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1. Which angels take the soul of the Muslim, the angels of mercy or the angels of wrath?
If a Muslim who sins dies, is his soul taken by the angels of mercy or
the angels of wrath? Please note that he prays, but he commits some
sins such aslooking at haraam things or listening to music.
May Allah reward you withgood.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
The majority of texts that speak of this matter dividepeople into two
categories:
1. Believers. The angels of mercy take their souls and lift them
up to heavenwith great care, coming with glad tidings, calling them by
the most loved oftheir names, so they feel joy, blessing and happiness
which makes them steadfast.
2. Disbelievers and hypocrites. The angels of wrath take their
souls, coming with harshness and warnings, and the gates of heaven are
closedin their faces, so they are thrown in the earth to face woe and
punishmentsas recompense for what they did in this world of
wrongdoing, disbelief and enmity.
Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, mentioned that in the Holy
Qur'aan, where He says (interpretation of the meaning):
"By those (angels) who pull out (the souls of the disbelievers and the
wicked) with great violence.
2. By those (angels) who gently take out (the souls of the believers).
3. And by those that swim along (i.e. angels or planets in their orbits)"
[al-Naazi'aat 79:1-3].
Al-Haafiz ibn Katheer (mayAllah have mercy on him) said:
Ibn Mas'ood, Ibn 'Abbaas, Masrooq, Sa'eed ibn Jubayr, Abu Saalih,
Abu'l-Duha and al-Suddi said: "By those who pull out" refers to the
angels, i.e., when they pull out the souls of the sons of Adam. There
are some whose soul is taken forcefully andthey suffer when it is
taken out, and there are some whose soul is taken gently, which is
referred toin the verse, "and those who gently take out." Thiswas
stated by Ibn 'Abbaas.
It was also narrated from Ibn 'Abbaas that al-naazi'aat refers to the
souls of the disbelievers, which are taken out, then plunged into the
Fire. This was narrated by Ibn Abi Haatim. End quote.
Tafseer al-Qur'aan al-Kareem, 8/312
Secondly:
There is fear for the Muslim who commits sin or is an evildoer -- and
what is meant is the one who persists in committing major sins or
transgresses against people and dies in that state. To which of the
two groups mentioned above does he belong? Is his soultaken by the
angels of mercy and treated in the same manner as the believers, or is
it taken by the angels of wrath and treated in the same manner as the
disbelievers?
This is a matter of the unseen and we have not found any text that
clearlyand definitively states the situation of the one who commits
major sins.
But there are some references that may indicate that the angels of
wrath take the souls of those who commit major sins. For example:
1.
The hadeeth about the man who killed one hundred people, then he
repented to Allah, may He be glorified and exalted. When he died, the
angels of mercy and the angels ofwrath disputed as to which of them
would takehis soul and take it up to heaven. The story was narrated by
Abu Sa'eed al-Khudri from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him):
The angels of mercy and the angels of torment disputed over him. The
angels of mercy said: he came repenting and turning wholeheartedly
towards Allaah. The angelsof torment said: He never did anything good.
Then an angel in the form of a man came to them and they appointed him
(to decide) between them. He said: Measure the distance between the
two lands, and whichever is closer, that is where he belongs. So they
measured it and they found that he was closer to the land that he was
heading for, so the angels of mercy took him."
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (3740) and Muslim (2766).
Think about how the angels of wrath wanted totake the soul of this
sinnerwho had killed one hundred people. Were it not for the sincerity
of his repentance, his soul wouldhave fallen to the share of the
angels of wrath. So there is the fear for all of those who commit
major sins that the angels of wrath may take their soulsif they do not
repent to Allah, may He be glorified and exalted.
2.
There are many hadeeths which describe how the angels come to take the
soul of the one who is dying and take it up to thehighest heavens;
these hadeeths compare and contrast the situation of the believers and
that of the disbelievers. In some of these hadeeths it says al-faajir
(evildoer) instead of al-kaafir (disbeliever). And in some of them it
describes him as al-rajul al-su' (the bad man). This may also indicate
that the one who commits major sins is in great danger in this regard.
:->
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Reconciling between the reports that Jibreel, Adam and Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon them) sawParadise, and the hadeeth “… that which no eye has seen…”
It is well known that in Paradise there is that which no eye has seen
andno ear has heard, but wasn't Adam in Paradise? Didn't the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) enter Paradise too?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that
theProphet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: "Allaah
says: 'I have prepared for My righteous slaves that which no eye has
seen, no ear has heard and it has never crossed the mind of man. All
of that is reserved, besides which allthat you have known is as
nothing.' Then he recited: 'No person knows what is kept hidden for
them of joy as a reward for what they used to do' [al-Sajdah32:17 –
interpretation of the meaning]."
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (3072) and Muslim (2824) -- the report
narrated by Muslim adds: "apart from that of which Allaah has informed
you."
Secondly:
With regard to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
seeing Paradise and entering it, that is proven in many hadeeths. Imam
al-Bukhaari, in his book al-Sharee'ah, quoted someof these hadeeths
under the chapter heading Baab Dukhool al-Nabi (sall Allahu 'alayhi wa
sallam) al-Jannah (The Prophet's entering Paradise) in which he
narrated several hadeeths, including the following:
It was narrated from Anas ibn Maalik that the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) said: Whilst I was walking in Paradise, I
saw a river whose banks were domes of hollow pearls." I said, "What is
this, O Jibreel?" He said: "This is al-Kawthar which your Lord has
given to you." The angel struck it with his hand and its mud or
itsperfume was of the most fragrant (or pure) musk.
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (6201).
According to another report: When the Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) was taken up to heaven (the Mi'raaj), [he said:] I
came to a river whose banks …
According to a version narrated in Musnad Ahmad (19/66): "I entered
Paradise and saw a river whose banks were pavilions of pearls."
Thirdly:
With regard to the issue mentioned by the questioner, it may be
said:This that has been prepared in Paradise for the righteous slaves
of Allah has not been seen byanyone, as it states in the texts. As for
what Adam and our Prophet Muhammad (blessings andpeace of Allah be
upon them) saw, it was only part of in Paradise becauseParadise, "in
which there is that which no eye has seen" is not necessarily that
which no one has ever seen. Rather it may be that there are in it
things that some eyes have seen, even though there is in it that which
is stored up and hidden, no eye has seen it and no ear has heard, and
no one can imagine it or describe it.
Perhaps the above meaning is supported by the hadeeth of al-Mugheerah
ibn Shu'bah,who said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) said: "Moosa asked his Lord: 'Who will be the
lowest of the people of Paradise in status?' He said: 'He will be a
man who will come after I haveadmitted the people of Paradise to
Paradise and itwill be said to him: "Enter Paradise." He will say: "O
Lord, how, when the people have taken their places and been given
their portions?" It will be said to him: "Would it please you if you
had the like of what one of the kings of the world had?" He will say:
"I would be pleased, O Lord." He will say, "You will have that, and as
much again, and as much again, and as much again, and as much
again."The fifth time, he will say, "I am pleased, O Lord." He will
say: "You will have that and ten times as much, and you will have what
your heart desires and what will delight youreyes." He will say: "I am
pleased, O Lord."' (Moosa) said: 'My Lord, who will bethe highest of
them in status?' He said, 'They will be the ones whom I have chosen,
and I have plantedtheir honour with My own hand. I have set a seal
over it and no eye has seen, no ear has heard, norhas it entered the
heart of man.'" He said: And the confirmation thereof is in the Book
of Allaah, may Hebe glorified and exalted: "No person knows what is
kept hidden for them of joy as a reward for what they used to do"
[al-Sajdah 32:17].
Narrated by Muslim, 189.
It is as if those who are highest in status are thosewho have the
greatest share of this hidden treasure and blessing that no eye has
seen and no mind has imagined.
And Allah knows best.
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andno ear has heard, but wasn't Adam in Paradise? Didn't the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) enter Paradise too?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that
theProphet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: "Allaah
says: 'I have prepared for My righteous slaves that which no eye has
seen, no ear has heard and it has never crossed the mind of man. All
of that is reserved, besides which allthat you have known is as
nothing.' Then he recited: 'No person knows what is kept hidden for
them of joy as a reward for what they used to do' [al-Sajdah32:17 –
interpretation of the meaning]."
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (3072) and Muslim (2824) -- the report
narrated by Muslim adds: "apart from that of which Allaah has informed
you."
Secondly:
With regard to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
seeing Paradise and entering it, that is proven in many hadeeths. Imam
al-Bukhaari, in his book al-Sharee'ah, quoted someof these hadeeths
under the chapter heading Baab Dukhool al-Nabi (sall Allahu 'alayhi wa
sallam) al-Jannah (The Prophet's entering Paradise) in which he
narrated several hadeeths, including the following:
It was narrated from Anas ibn Maalik that the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) said: Whilst I was walking in Paradise, I
saw a river whose banks were domes of hollow pearls." I said, "What is
this, O Jibreel?" He said: "This is al-Kawthar which your Lord has
given to you." The angel struck it with his hand and its mud or
itsperfume was of the most fragrant (or pure) musk.
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (6201).
According to another report: When the Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) was taken up to heaven (the Mi'raaj), [he said:] I
came to a river whose banks …
According to a version narrated in Musnad Ahmad (19/66): "I entered
Paradise and saw a river whose banks were pavilions of pearls."
Thirdly:
With regard to the issue mentioned by the questioner, it may be
said:This that has been prepared in Paradise for the righteous slaves
of Allah has not been seen byanyone, as it states in the texts. As for
what Adam and our Prophet Muhammad (blessings andpeace of Allah be
upon them) saw, it was only part of in Paradise becauseParadise, "in
which there is that which no eye has seen" is not necessarily that
which no one has ever seen. Rather it may be that there are in it
things that some eyes have seen, even though there is in it that which
is stored up and hidden, no eye has seen it and no ear has heard, and
no one can imagine it or describe it.
Perhaps the above meaning is supported by the hadeeth of al-Mugheerah
ibn Shu'bah,who said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) said: "Moosa asked his Lord: 'Who will be the
lowest of the people of Paradise in status?' He said: 'He will be a
man who will come after I haveadmitted the people of Paradise to
Paradise and itwill be said to him: "Enter Paradise." He will say: "O
Lord, how, when the people have taken their places and been given
their portions?" It will be said to him: "Would it please you if you
had the like of what one of the kings of the world had?" He will say:
"I would be pleased, O Lord." He will say, "You will have that, and as
much again, and as much again, and as much again, and as much
again."The fifth time, he will say, "I am pleased, O Lord." He will
say: "You will have that and ten times as much, and you will have what
your heart desires and what will delight youreyes." He will say: "I am
pleased, O Lord."' (Moosa) said: 'My Lord, who will bethe highest of
them in status?' He said, 'They will be the ones whom I have chosen,
and I have plantedtheir honour with My own hand. I have set a seal
over it and no eye has seen, no ear has heard, norhas it entered the
heart of man.'" He said: And the confirmation thereof is in the Book
of Allaah, may Hebe glorified and exalted: "No person knows what is
kept hidden for them of joy as a reward for what they used to do"
[al-Sajdah 32:17].
Narrated by Muslim, 189.
It is as if those who are highest in status are thosewho have the
greatest share of this hidden treasure and blessing that no eye has
seen and no mind has imagined.
And Allah knows best.
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The Bible on marriage of young girls with much older men
As it is Christian evangelists and other believers in the Bible who
have been bitterly reviling the Holy Prophet Muhammad on account of
his marriage with Aisha, we put to them thepractices of the great
patriarchs and prophets that are recorded in the Bible itself in this
connection. The main accusations regarding the marriage of Aisha
arethat she was too young in age while the Holy Prophet was a much
older man, being fifty years of age, and that consent to marriage was
either not obtained from her or she was not capable of giving it.
Abraham
In the book of Genesis in the Bible it is recorded about Abraham:
"Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. But she had an
Egyptian maidservant named Hagar; so she saidto Abram, 'The Lord has
kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I
can build a family through her.' Abram agreed to what Sarai said. So
after Abram had been living in Canaan tenyears, Sarai his wife took
her Egyptian maidservantHagar and gave her to her husband to be his
wife. He slept with Hagar,and she conceived. … So Hagar bore Abram a
son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne. Abram
was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael." (Genesis,
chapter 16, verses 1–4, and 15–16, New International Version. Bolding
is mine.)
Firstly, it is evident that as Abraham (who then had the name Abram)
was 86 years old, Hagar must have been some fifty years younger than
him, and probably even younger, to bear a child. Secondly, the Bible
speaks of Sarai giving her maidservant Hagar toAbraham. So Hagar's
consent was not obtained but rather she was commanded by Saraito go
and become Abraham's wife.
David
The first book of Kings in the Bible begins as follows:
"When King David was old and well advanced in years, he could not keep
warm even when they put covers over him. So his servants said to him,
'Let us look for a young virgin to attend the king and take care of
him. Shecan lie beside him so thatour lord the king may keep warm.'
Then they searched throughout Israel for a beautiful girl and found
Abishag, a Shunammite, and brought her to the king. The girl was very
beautiful; she took care of the king and waited on him, but the king
had no intimate relations with her." (1 Kings, chapter 1, verses 1–4,
New International Version. Bolding is mine.)
So there seems nothing wrong, according to the Bible, in procuring a
young virgin, again apparently without her consent, whose duties
include lying with the elderly king in bed. The intention was
certainly for sexual enjoyment, otherwise there was no necessity of
looking for a young, beautiful virgin. Amuch older woman, perhaps a
widow, could have performed all these duties, including lying with the
king to keep him warm.
Mary and Joseph
The most famous marriage in Christianity isno doubt that of Mary,
Jesus' mother, with Joseph. While the following details are not in the
canonical Gospels in the Bible, it appears from other early
Christianwritings (known as apocryphal writings) thatMary was twelve
years old when the temple elders decided to find a husband for her.
They selected the husband by drawing lots, and Joseph whom they chose
was an elderly man, being according to some accounts ninety years old.
The husband was selected and Mary was handed over to him, and she
played no part in his selection.
These accounts are summed up in the Catholic Encyclopedia, 1913
edition, which is available online, as follows:
"It will not be without interest to recall here, unreliable though
they are, the lengthy stories concerning St. Joseph's marriage
contained in the apocryphal writings. When forty years of age, Joseph
married a womancalled Melcha or Escha by some, Salome by others; they
lived forty-nine years together and had six children … A year afterhis
wife's death, as the priests announced through Judea that they wished
to find in the tribe of Juda a respectable man to espouse Mary, then
twelve to fourteen years of age, Joseph, who was at the time ninety
years old, went up to Jerusalemamong the candidates; a miracle
manifested the choice God had made of Joseph …" [13] (Bolding ismine.)
Although these apocryphal accounts are not now accepted by many
Christians, and the Catholic Encyclopedia says that they "are void of
authority", yet it also speaks of their influence as follows:
"they nevertheless acquired in the course of ages some popularity; in
them some ecclesiastical writers sought the answer to the well-known
difficulty arising from the mention in the Gospel of the Lord's
brothers; from them also popular credulity has, contrary to all
probability, as well as to the tradition witnessed by old works of
art, retained the beliefthat St. Joseph was an oldman at the time of
marriage with the Mother of God."
However, these accounts are accepted by the Eastern churches. The
website of the Ukrainian Orthodoxy has an article on this subject
entitled An Elderly Joseph which agrees with the presentation in the
apocryphal writings "of Joseph as an elderly man,a widower with adult
children". It concludes:
"The Christian East's picture of Joseph as a courageous, faithful,
God-centred elderly widower rings true." [14]
We give below, as Appendix, a quotation from one of these apocryphal
books, The Infancy Gospel of James, describing how Mary's husband was
selected.
While the Western Christian churches may not accept these accountsas
authentic, the Eastern churches in Europe do accept that Mary was 12
years old and Joseph a widower 90 years old when they married.
Moreover, there is nothing in the Gospels of the New Testament to
contradict these accounts, and the Gospel stories are not at all
inconsistent with these ages for Mary and Joseph.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
References
[1]. Tirmidhi, Abwab-ul-Manaqib, i.e. Chapters on Excellences, under
'Virtues of Aisha'.
[2]. Muslim Saints and Mystics, abridged English translation of
Tadhkirat-ul-Auliya, by A.J. Arberry, p. 40.
[3]. Bukhari, Book of Qualities of the Ansar, chapter: 'The Holy
Prophet's marriage with Aisha, and his coming to Madina and the
consummation of marriage with her'. For Muhsin Khan's translation, see
this link and go down to reports listed as Volume 5, Book 58, Number
234 and 236.
[4]. Living Thoughts of the Prophet Muhammad, 1992 U.S.A. edition, p.
30, note 40.
[4a]. This Urdu pamphlet was published by the Ahmadiyya Anjuman
Isha'at Islam, Bombay, India. A partial English translation is
available at this Lahore Ahmadiyya website.
[5]. Tarikh Tabari, vol. 4, p. 50.
[6]. Mishkat al-Masabih, Edition with Urdu translation published in
Lahore, 1986, vol. 3, p. 300–301. (Go here to see an image of the full
entryin Urdu.)
[7]. Vol. 8, p. 346.
[8]. Those four places in Sahih Bukhari are the following:
Kitab-us-Salat, ch. 'A mosque which is in the way but does not
inconvenience people'; Kitab-ul-Kafalat, ch. 'Abu Bakr under the
protection of a non-Muslim in the time ofthe Holy Prophet and his pact
with him'; Kitab Manaqib-ul-Ansar, ch. 'Emigration of the Holy Prophet
and his Companions to Madina'; and Kitab-ul-Adab, ch. 'Should a person
visit everyday, or morning and evening'.
[9]. Muhsin Khan's Englishtranslation of Bukhari, Volume 3, Book 37,
Number 494. See this link.
[10]. Fadl-ul-Bari, vol. 1, p. 501, footnote 1.
[11]. Sahih Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Jihad wal-Siyar, Chapter: 'Women in war
and their fighting alongside men'. See this link in Muhsin Khan's
translation and go down to report listed as Volume4, Book 52, Number
131.
[12]. Fadl-ul-Bari, vol. 1, p. 651.
[13]. In article St. Joseph, under letter J. Here is a link to this
article in the online Catholic Encyclopedia.
[14]. Here is a link to this article An Elderly Joseph.
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have been bitterly reviling the Holy Prophet Muhammad on account of
his marriage with Aisha, we put to them thepractices of the great
patriarchs and prophets that are recorded in the Bible itself in this
connection. The main accusations regarding the marriage of Aisha
arethat she was too young in age while the Holy Prophet was a much
older man, being fifty years of age, and that consent to marriage was
either not obtained from her or she was not capable of giving it.
Abraham
In the book of Genesis in the Bible it is recorded about Abraham:
"Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. But she had an
Egyptian maidservant named Hagar; so she saidto Abram, 'The Lord has
kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I
can build a family through her.' Abram agreed to what Sarai said. So
after Abram had been living in Canaan tenyears, Sarai his wife took
her Egyptian maidservantHagar and gave her to her husband to be his
wife. He slept with Hagar,and she conceived. … So Hagar bore Abram a
son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne. Abram
was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael." (Genesis,
chapter 16, verses 1–4, and 15–16, New International Version. Bolding
is mine.)
Firstly, it is evident that as Abraham (who then had the name Abram)
was 86 years old, Hagar must have been some fifty years younger than
him, and probably even younger, to bear a child. Secondly, the Bible
speaks of Sarai giving her maidservant Hagar toAbraham. So Hagar's
consent was not obtained but rather she was commanded by Saraito go
and become Abraham's wife.
David
The first book of Kings in the Bible begins as follows:
"When King David was old and well advanced in years, he could not keep
warm even when they put covers over him. So his servants said to him,
'Let us look for a young virgin to attend the king and take care of
him. Shecan lie beside him so thatour lord the king may keep warm.'
Then they searched throughout Israel for a beautiful girl and found
Abishag, a Shunammite, and brought her to the king. The girl was very
beautiful; she took care of the king and waited on him, but the king
had no intimate relations with her." (1 Kings, chapter 1, verses 1–4,
New International Version. Bolding is mine.)
So there seems nothing wrong, according to the Bible, in procuring a
young virgin, again apparently without her consent, whose duties
include lying with the elderly king in bed. The intention was
certainly for sexual enjoyment, otherwise there was no necessity of
looking for a young, beautiful virgin. Amuch older woman, perhaps a
widow, could have performed all these duties, including lying with the
king to keep him warm.
Mary and Joseph
The most famous marriage in Christianity isno doubt that of Mary,
Jesus' mother, with Joseph. While the following details are not in the
canonical Gospels in the Bible, it appears from other early
Christianwritings (known as apocryphal writings) thatMary was twelve
years old when the temple elders decided to find a husband for her.
They selected the husband by drawing lots, and Joseph whom they chose
was an elderly man, being according to some accounts ninety years old.
The husband was selected and Mary was handed over to him, and she
played no part in his selection.
These accounts are summed up in the Catholic Encyclopedia, 1913
edition, which is available online, as follows:
"It will not be without interest to recall here, unreliable though
they are, the lengthy stories concerning St. Joseph's marriage
contained in the apocryphal writings. When forty years of age, Joseph
married a womancalled Melcha or Escha by some, Salome by others; they
lived forty-nine years together and had six children … A year afterhis
wife's death, as the priests announced through Judea that they wished
to find in the tribe of Juda a respectable man to espouse Mary, then
twelve to fourteen years of age, Joseph, who was at the time ninety
years old, went up to Jerusalemamong the candidates; a miracle
manifested the choice God had made of Joseph …" [13] (Bolding ismine.)
Although these apocryphal accounts are not now accepted by many
Christians, and the Catholic Encyclopedia says that they "are void of
authority", yet it also speaks of their influence as follows:
"they nevertheless acquired in the course of ages some popularity; in
them some ecclesiastical writers sought the answer to the well-known
difficulty arising from the mention in the Gospel of the Lord's
brothers; from them also popular credulity has, contrary to all
probability, as well as to the tradition witnessed by old works of
art, retained the beliefthat St. Joseph was an oldman at the time of
marriage with the Mother of God."
However, these accounts are accepted by the Eastern churches. The
website of the Ukrainian Orthodoxy has an article on this subject
entitled An Elderly Joseph which agrees with the presentation in the
apocryphal writings "of Joseph as an elderly man,a widower with adult
children". It concludes:
"The Christian East's picture of Joseph as a courageous, faithful,
God-centred elderly widower rings true." [14]
We give below, as Appendix, a quotation from one of these apocryphal
books, The Infancy Gospel of James, describing how Mary's husband was
selected.
While the Western Christian churches may not accept these accountsas
authentic, the Eastern churches in Europe do accept that Mary was 12
years old and Joseph a widower 90 years old when they married.
Moreover, there is nothing in the Gospels of the New Testament to
contradict these accounts, and the Gospel stories are not at all
inconsistent with these ages for Mary and Joseph.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
References
[1]. Tirmidhi, Abwab-ul-Manaqib, i.e. Chapters on Excellences, under
'Virtues of Aisha'.
[2]. Muslim Saints and Mystics, abridged English translation of
Tadhkirat-ul-Auliya, by A.J. Arberry, p. 40.
[3]. Bukhari, Book of Qualities of the Ansar, chapter: 'The Holy
Prophet's marriage with Aisha, and his coming to Madina and the
consummation of marriage with her'. For Muhsin Khan's translation, see
this link and go down to reports listed as Volume 5, Book 58, Number
234 and 236.
[4]. Living Thoughts of the Prophet Muhammad, 1992 U.S.A. edition, p.
30, note 40.
[4a]. This Urdu pamphlet was published by the Ahmadiyya Anjuman
Isha'at Islam, Bombay, India. A partial English translation is
available at this Lahore Ahmadiyya website.
[5]. Tarikh Tabari, vol. 4, p. 50.
[6]. Mishkat al-Masabih, Edition with Urdu translation published in
Lahore, 1986, vol. 3, p. 300–301. (Go here to see an image of the full
entryin Urdu.)
[7]. Vol. 8, p. 346.
[8]. Those four places in Sahih Bukhari are the following:
Kitab-us-Salat, ch. 'A mosque which is in the way but does not
inconvenience people'; Kitab-ul-Kafalat, ch. 'Abu Bakr under the
protection of a non-Muslim in the time ofthe Holy Prophet and his pact
with him'; Kitab Manaqib-ul-Ansar, ch. 'Emigration of the Holy Prophet
and his Companions to Madina'; and Kitab-ul-Adab, ch. 'Should a person
visit everyday, or morning and evening'.
[9]. Muhsin Khan's Englishtranslation of Bukhari, Volume 3, Book 37,
Number 494. See this link.
[10]. Fadl-ul-Bari, vol. 1, p. 501, footnote 1.
[11]. Sahih Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Jihad wal-Siyar, Chapter: 'Women in war
and their fighting alongside men'. See this link in Muhsin Khan's
translation and go down to report listed as Volume4, Book 52, Number
131.
[12]. Fadl-ul-Bari, vol. 1, p. 651.
[13]. In article St. Joseph, under letter J. Here is a link to this
article in the online Catholic Encyclopedia.
[14]. Here is a link to this article An Elderly Joseph.
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Qualities of Aisha and herrole in Islam
(Note: The name spelt in this article as Aisha is properly
transliterated as'Á'ishah)
In any discussion on the age of Aisha (ra: may Allah be pleased with
her) at the time of her marriage with the Holy Prophet Muhammad (may
peace and the blessings of Allah be upon him), it is of the greatest
relevance to note the pivotal role she played as a teacher, exponent
and interpreterof the religion of Islam. Aisha was an exceptionally
intelligent and astute woman, a young prodigy, and this was the main
reason whyshe was got married to the Holy Prophet, as is clearly
proved by events after the Holy Prophet's life. She entered his
household, shortly after his emigration to Madina,just at the time
when the teachings of Islam in all fields of life for the Muslim
community were starting to be revealed tothe Holy Prophet and
demonstrated by him by his example and practice.An intellectually
gifted person was required who would have daily contact with the Holy
Prophet at the closest and most personal level, so as to absorb the
teachings that he was giving on all aspects of life by his words and
actions. Such a person would need to possess the following qualities:
an excellent, precise memory to retain a vast amount of detail accurately,
the understanding to grasp the significance and the principles of the teachings,
powers of reasoning, criticism and deduction to resolve problems on
the basis of those teachings,
the skills to convey knowledge to a wide range of audience,
and, finally, have the prospect of living for a considerable period of
time after the death of the Holy Prophet in orderto spread his message
to distant generations.
That Aisha possessed all these qualities and carried out this mission
isan absolutely positive and undeniable, historical fact. After the
Holy Prophet's death, she acted as a teacher and interpreter of Islam,
providing guidance to even the greatest of the male Companions of the
Holy Prophet Muhammad.They made a special point of going to her to
gain knowledge and seek her opinion. A vast number of sayings and
actions of the Holy Prophet are reported from her in books of Hadith.
She not only quoted his sayings and reported her observations of
events, but interpreted them to provide solutions to questions.
Whenever necessary, she corrected the views of the greatest of the
Companions of the Holy Prophet. She made rulings and judgments onwhich
Islamic law is based.
The following are two examples of what the Holy Prophet's male
Companions said about her:
"Abu Musa said: Whenever there was any hadith that was difficult [to
understand] for us, the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, and we
asked Aisha we always found that she had knowledge about that hadith."
"Musa ibn Talha said: I never saw anyone more eloquent than Aisha." [1]
In the famous compilation of the lives of saints in Islam,
Tadhkirat-ul-Auliya, the author Farid-ud-Din Attar, who lived eight
centuries ago, introducesthe life of the early female saint Rabia of
Basra as follows:
"If anyone says, 'Why have you included Rabia in the rank of men?', my
answer is that the Prophet himself said, 'God does not regard your
outward forms'. … Moreover, if it is proper to derive two-thirds of
our religion from Aisha, surely it is permissible to take religious
instruction from a handmaid of Aisha." [2]
It is thus recognised, from the earliest times in Islam, that some
two-thirds of Islamic Sharia is based on reports and interpretations
that have come from Aisha.
In view of these exceptional qualities of Aisha and the towering role
played by her in the transmission of the teachings of Islam, it is
simply preposterous and outrageous to suggest that she was the victim
ofsome form of child and marital abuse. We ask in particular the
Christian and Jewish critics of Islam, who are reviling the Holy
Prophet Muhammad on the basis of his marriage with Aisha, whether they
can point out any example of a woman in their religions who played a
role like that of Aisha in learning the religion from its founder and
becoming the teacher and instructor of all his followers, including
men,after his death.
Age of Aisha at time of marriage with Holy Prophet Muhammad
It is believed on the authority of some Hadith reports that the
marriageceremony (known as nikah, amounting to betrothal) of Aisha
with the Holy Prophet Muhammad took place when she was six years of
age, and that she joined the Holy Prophet as his wife three years
later at the age of nine. We quote below from two such reports in
Bukhari.
"It is reported from Aisha that she said: The Prophet entered into
marriage with me when Iwas a girl of six … and at the time [of joining
his household] I was a girl ofnine years of age."
"Khadija died three yearsbefore the Prophet departed to Medina. He
stayed [alone] for two years or so. He married Aisha when she was a
girlof six years of age, and he consummated that marriage when she was
nine years old." [3]
As to the authenticity of these reports, it may be noted that the
compilers of the books of Hadith did not apply the same stringent
tests when accepting reports relating to historical matters as they
did before accepting reports relating to the practical teachings and
laws of Islam. The reason is that the former type of reportwas
regarded as merely of academic interest while the latter type of
report had a direct bearing on the practical duties of a Muslim and
onwhat was allowed to them and what was prohibited. Thus the
occurrence of reports such as the above about the marriage of Aisha in
books of Hadith, even in Bukhari, is not necessarily a proof of their
credibility.
Determination of the trueage of Aisha
It appears that Maulana Muhammad Ali was the first Islamic scholar
directly to challenge the notion that Aisha was aged six and nine,
respectively, at the time of her nikah and consummation of marriage.
This he did in, at least, the following writings: his English booklet
Prophet of Islam, his larger English book Muhammad, the Prophet,and in
the footnotes in his voluminous Urdu translation and commentary of
Sahih Bukhari entitled Fadl-ul-Bari, these three writingsbeing
published in the 1920s and 1930s. In the booklet Prophet of Islam,
which was later incorporated in 1948 as the first chapter of his book
Living Thoughts of the Prophet Muhammad, he writes in a lengthy
footnote as follows:
"A great misconception prevails as to the age at which Aisha was taken
inmarriage by the Prophet. Ibn Sa'd has stated in the Tabaqat that
when Abu Bakr [father of Aisha] was approached on behalf of the Holy
Prophet, he replied that the girl had already beenbetrothed to Jubair,
and that he would have to settle the matter first with him. This shows
thatAisha must have been approaching majority at the time. Again, the
Isaba, speaking of the Prophet's daughter Fatima, says that she was
born five years before the Call and was about five years older than
Aisha. This shows that Aisha must have been about ten years at the
time of her betrothal to the Prophet, and not six years as she is
generally supposed to be. This is further borne out by the fact that
Aisha herself is reported to have stated that when the chapter [of the
Holy Quran] entitled The Moon, the fifty-fourth chapter, was revealed,
she was a girl playing about and remembered certain verses then
revealed. Now the fifty-fourth chapter was undoubtedlyrevealed before
the sixth year of the Call. All these considerations point to but one
conclusion, viz., that Aisha could not havebeen less than ten years of
age at the time of her nikah, which was virtually only a betrothal.
And there is one report inthe Tabaqat that Aisha was nine years of age
at the time of nikah. Again it is a fact admitted on allhands that the
nikah of Aisha took place in the tenth year of the Call in the month
of Shawwal, while there is also preponderance of evidence as to the
consummation of her marriage taking place in the second year of Hijra
in the same month, which shows that full fiveyears had elapsed between
the nikah and the consummation. Hence there is not the least doubt
that Aisha was at least nine or ten years of age at the time of
betrothal, and fourteen or fifteen years at the time of marriage." [4]
(Bolding is mine.)
To facilitate understanding dates of these events, please note that it
was in the tenth year of the Call, i.e. the tenth year after the Holy
Prophet Muhammad received his calling from God to his mission of
prophethood, that his wife Khadija passed away, and the approach was
made to Abu Bakr for the hand of his daughter Aisha. The hijra or
emigration of the HolyProphet to Madina took place three years later,
and Aisha came to the household of the Holy Prophet in the second year
after hijra. So if Aisha was born in the year of the Call, she would
be ten years old atthe time of the nikah andfifteen years old at the
time of the consummation of the marriage.
Later research
Research subsequent to the time of Maulana Muhammad Ali has shown that
she was olderthan this. An excellent short work presenting such
evidence is the Urdupamphlet Rukhsati kai waqt Sayyida Aisha Siddiqa
ki umar ('The ageof Lady Aisha at the time of the start of her married
life') by Abu Tahir Irfani.[4a] Points 1 to 3 below have been brought
to light in this pamphlet.
1. The famous classical historian of Islam, Ibn Jarir Tabari, wrote in
his 'History':
"In the time before Islam,Abu Bakr married two women. The first was
Fatila daughter of Abdul Uzza, from whom Abdullah and Asma were born.
Then he married Umm Ruman, from whomAbdur Rahman and Aisha were born.
These four were born before Islam." [5]
Being born before Islam means being born beforethe Call.
2. The compiler of the famous Hadith collection Mishkat al-Masabih,
ImamWali-ud-Din Muhammad ibn Abdullah Al-Khatib, who died 700 years
ago, has also written brief biographical notes on the narrators of
Hadith reports. He writes under Asma, the older daughterof Abu Bakr:
"She was the sister of Aisha Siddiqa, wife of theHoly Prophet, and was
ten years older than her.… In 73 A.H. … Asma died at the age of one
hundred years." [6]
(Go here to see an image of the full entry in Urdu.)
This would make Asma 28years of age in 1 A.H., the year of the Hijra,
thus making Aisha 18 years old in 1 A.H. So Aisha would be 19 years
old at the time of the consummation of her marriage, and 14 or 15
years old at the time of her nikah. It would place her year of birth
at four or five years before the Call.
3. The same statement is made by the famous classical commentator of
the Holy Quran, Ibn Kathir, in his book Al-bidayya wal-nihaya:
"Asma died in 73 A.H. at the age of one hundred years. She was ten
years older than her sister Aisha." [7]
Apart from these three evidences, which are presented in the Urdu
pamphlet referred to above, we also note that the birth of Aisha being
alittle before the Call is consistent with the opening words of a
statement by her which isrecorded four times in Bukhari. Those words
areas follows:
"Ever since I can remember (or understand things) my parents were
following the religion of Islam." [8]
This is tantamount to saying that she was born sometime before her
parents accepted Islam but she can only remember them practising
Islam. No doubt she and her parents knew well whether she was born
before or after they accepted Islam, as their acceptance of Islam was
such a landmark event in their life which took place just after the
Holy Prophet received his mission from God. If she had been born after
they accepted Islam it would make no sense for her to say that she
always remembered them as following Islam. Only if she was born before
theyaccepted Islam, would it make sense for her to saythat she can
only remember them being Muslims, as she was too young to remember
things before their conversion. This is consistent with her beingborn
before the Call, and being perhaps four or five years old at the time
of the Call, which was also almost the time when her parents accepted
Islam.
Two further evidences cited by Maulana Muhammad Ali
In the footnotes of his Urdu translation and commentary of Sahih
Bukhari, entitled Fadl-ul-Bari, Maulana Muhammad Ali had pointed out
reports of two events which show that Aisha could not havebeen born
later than the year of the Call. These areas follows.
1. The above mentioned statement by Aisha in Bukhari, about her
earliest memory of her parents being that they were followers of
Islam, begins with the following words in its version in Bukhari's
Kitab-ul-Kafalat. We quote this from the English translation of
Bukhari by M. Muhsin Khan:
"Since I reached the age when I could remember things, I have seen my
parents worshipping according to the right faith of Islam. Not a
single day passed but Allah's Apostle visited us both in the morning
and in the evening. When theMuslims were persecuted,Abu Bakr set out
for Ethiopia as an emigrant."[9]
Commenting on this report, Maulana Muhammad Ali writes:
"This report sheds some light on the question of the age of Aisha. …
The mention of the persecution of Muslims along with the emigration to
Ethiopia clearly shows that this refers to the fifth or the sixth year
of the Call. … Atthat time Aisha was of an age to discern things, and
so her birth could not have been later than the first year of the
Call." [10]
Again, this would make her more than fourteen at the time of the
consummation of her marriage.
2. There is a report in Sahih Bukhari as follows:
"On the day (of the battle) of Uhud when (some) people retreated and
left the Prophet, I saw Aisha daughter of Abu Bakr and Umm Sulaim,
with their robes tucked up so that the bangles around their ankles
were visible hurrying with their water skins (in another narration it
is said, 'carrying the water skins on their backs'). Then they would
pour the water in the mouths of the people, and return tofill the
water skins again and came back again to pour water in the mouthsof
the people." [11]
Maulana Muhammad Ali writes in a footnote under this report:
"It should also be noted that Aisha joined the HolyProphet's household
onlyone year before the battle of Uhud. Accordingto the common view
she would be only ten years of age at this time, whichis certainly not
a suitable age for the work she did on this occasion. This alsoshows
that she was not so young at this time." [12]
If, as shown in the previous section above, Aisha was nineteen at
thetime of the consummation of her marriage, then she would be twenty
years old at the time of the battle of Uhud. It may be added that on
the earlier occasion of the battle of Badr when some Muslim youths
tried, out of eagerness, to go along with the Muslim army to the field
of battle, the Holy Prophet Muhammad sent them back on account of
their young age (allowing only one such youngster, Umair ibn Abi
Waqqas, to accompany his older brother the famous Companion Sa'd ibn
Abi Waqqas). It seems, therefore, highly unlikelythat if Aisha was ten
years old the Holy Prophet would have allowed her to accompany the
army to the field of battle.
We conclude from all the evidence cited above that Aisha (may Allah be
pleased with her) was nineteen years old when she joined the Holy
Prophet as his wife in theyear 2 A.H., the nikah or betrothal having
taken place five years previously.
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transliterated as'Á'ishah)
In any discussion on the age of Aisha (ra: may Allah be pleased with
her) at the time of her marriage with the Holy Prophet Muhammad (may
peace and the blessings of Allah be upon him), it is of the greatest
relevance to note the pivotal role she played as a teacher, exponent
and interpreterof the religion of Islam. Aisha was an exceptionally
intelligent and astute woman, a young prodigy, and this was the main
reason whyshe was got married to the Holy Prophet, as is clearly
proved by events after the Holy Prophet's life. She entered his
household, shortly after his emigration to Madina,just at the time
when the teachings of Islam in all fields of life for the Muslim
community were starting to be revealed tothe Holy Prophet and
demonstrated by him by his example and practice.An intellectually
gifted person was required who would have daily contact with the Holy
Prophet at the closest and most personal level, so as to absorb the
teachings that he was giving on all aspects of life by his words and
actions. Such a person would need to possess the following qualities:
an excellent, precise memory to retain a vast amount of detail accurately,
the understanding to grasp the significance and the principles of the teachings,
powers of reasoning, criticism and deduction to resolve problems on
the basis of those teachings,
the skills to convey knowledge to a wide range of audience,
and, finally, have the prospect of living for a considerable period of
time after the death of the Holy Prophet in orderto spread his message
to distant generations.
That Aisha possessed all these qualities and carried out this mission
isan absolutely positive and undeniable, historical fact. After the
Holy Prophet's death, she acted as a teacher and interpreter of Islam,
providing guidance to even the greatest of the male Companions of the
Holy Prophet Muhammad.They made a special point of going to her to
gain knowledge and seek her opinion. A vast number of sayings and
actions of the Holy Prophet are reported from her in books of Hadith.
She not only quoted his sayings and reported her observations of
events, but interpreted them to provide solutions to questions.
Whenever necessary, she corrected the views of the greatest of the
Companions of the Holy Prophet. She made rulings and judgments onwhich
Islamic law is based.
The following are two examples of what the Holy Prophet's male
Companions said about her:
"Abu Musa said: Whenever there was any hadith that was difficult [to
understand] for us, the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, and we
asked Aisha we always found that she had knowledge about that hadith."
"Musa ibn Talha said: I never saw anyone more eloquent than Aisha." [1]
In the famous compilation of the lives of saints in Islam,
Tadhkirat-ul-Auliya, the author Farid-ud-Din Attar, who lived eight
centuries ago, introducesthe life of the early female saint Rabia of
Basra as follows:
"If anyone says, 'Why have you included Rabia in the rank of men?', my
answer is that the Prophet himself said, 'God does not regard your
outward forms'. … Moreover, if it is proper to derive two-thirds of
our religion from Aisha, surely it is permissible to take religious
instruction from a handmaid of Aisha." [2]
It is thus recognised, from the earliest times in Islam, that some
two-thirds of Islamic Sharia is based on reports and interpretations
that have come from Aisha.
In view of these exceptional qualities of Aisha and the towering role
played by her in the transmission of the teachings of Islam, it is
simply preposterous and outrageous to suggest that she was the victim
ofsome form of child and marital abuse. We ask in particular the
Christian and Jewish critics of Islam, who are reviling the Holy
Prophet Muhammad on the basis of his marriage with Aisha, whether they
can point out any example of a woman in their religions who played a
role like that of Aisha in learning the religion from its founder and
becoming the teacher and instructor of all his followers, including
men,after his death.
Age of Aisha at time of marriage with Holy Prophet Muhammad
It is believed on the authority of some Hadith reports that the
marriageceremony (known as nikah, amounting to betrothal) of Aisha
with the Holy Prophet Muhammad took place when she was six years of
age, and that she joined the Holy Prophet as his wife three years
later at the age of nine. We quote below from two such reports in
Bukhari.
"It is reported from Aisha that she said: The Prophet entered into
marriage with me when Iwas a girl of six … and at the time [of joining
his household] I was a girl ofnine years of age."
"Khadija died three yearsbefore the Prophet departed to Medina. He
stayed [alone] for two years or so. He married Aisha when she was a
girlof six years of age, and he consummated that marriage when she was
nine years old." [3]
As to the authenticity of these reports, it may be noted that the
compilers of the books of Hadith did not apply the same stringent
tests when accepting reports relating to historical matters as they
did before accepting reports relating to the practical teachings and
laws of Islam. The reason is that the former type of reportwas
regarded as merely of academic interest while the latter type of
report had a direct bearing on the practical duties of a Muslim and
onwhat was allowed to them and what was prohibited. Thus the
occurrence of reports such as the above about the marriage of Aisha in
books of Hadith, even in Bukhari, is not necessarily a proof of their
credibility.
Determination of the trueage of Aisha
It appears that Maulana Muhammad Ali was the first Islamic scholar
directly to challenge the notion that Aisha was aged six and nine,
respectively, at the time of her nikah and consummation of marriage.
This he did in, at least, the following writings: his English booklet
Prophet of Islam, his larger English book Muhammad, the Prophet,and in
the footnotes in his voluminous Urdu translation and commentary of
Sahih Bukhari entitled Fadl-ul-Bari, these three writingsbeing
published in the 1920s and 1930s. In the booklet Prophet of Islam,
which was later incorporated in 1948 as the first chapter of his book
Living Thoughts of the Prophet Muhammad, he writes in a lengthy
footnote as follows:
"A great misconception prevails as to the age at which Aisha was taken
inmarriage by the Prophet. Ibn Sa'd has stated in the Tabaqat that
when Abu Bakr [father of Aisha] was approached on behalf of the Holy
Prophet, he replied that the girl had already beenbetrothed to Jubair,
and that he would have to settle the matter first with him. This shows
thatAisha must have been approaching majority at the time. Again, the
Isaba, speaking of the Prophet's daughter Fatima, says that she was
born five years before the Call and was about five years older than
Aisha. This shows that Aisha must have been about ten years at the
time of her betrothal to the Prophet, and not six years as she is
generally supposed to be. This is further borne out by the fact that
Aisha herself is reported to have stated that when the chapter [of the
Holy Quran] entitled The Moon, the fifty-fourth chapter, was revealed,
she was a girl playing about and remembered certain verses then
revealed. Now the fifty-fourth chapter was undoubtedlyrevealed before
the sixth year of the Call. All these considerations point to but one
conclusion, viz., that Aisha could not havebeen less than ten years of
age at the time of her nikah, which was virtually only a betrothal.
And there is one report inthe Tabaqat that Aisha was nine years of age
at the time of nikah. Again it is a fact admitted on allhands that the
nikah of Aisha took place in the tenth year of the Call in the month
of Shawwal, while there is also preponderance of evidence as to the
consummation of her marriage taking place in the second year of Hijra
in the same month, which shows that full fiveyears had elapsed between
the nikah and the consummation. Hence there is not the least doubt
that Aisha was at least nine or ten years of age at the time of
betrothal, and fourteen or fifteen years at the time of marriage." [4]
(Bolding is mine.)
To facilitate understanding dates of these events, please note that it
was in the tenth year of the Call, i.e. the tenth year after the Holy
Prophet Muhammad received his calling from God to his mission of
prophethood, that his wife Khadija passed away, and the approach was
made to Abu Bakr for the hand of his daughter Aisha. The hijra or
emigration of the HolyProphet to Madina took place three years later,
and Aisha came to the household of the Holy Prophet in the second year
after hijra. So if Aisha was born in the year of the Call, she would
be ten years old atthe time of the nikah andfifteen years old at the
time of the consummation of the marriage.
Later research
Research subsequent to the time of Maulana Muhammad Ali has shown that
she was olderthan this. An excellent short work presenting such
evidence is the Urdupamphlet Rukhsati kai waqt Sayyida Aisha Siddiqa
ki umar ('The ageof Lady Aisha at the time of the start of her married
life') by Abu Tahir Irfani.[4a] Points 1 to 3 below have been brought
to light in this pamphlet.
1. The famous classical historian of Islam, Ibn Jarir Tabari, wrote in
his 'History':
"In the time before Islam,Abu Bakr married two women. The first was
Fatila daughter of Abdul Uzza, from whom Abdullah and Asma were born.
Then he married Umm Ruman, from whomAbdur Rahman and Aisha were born.
These four were born before Islam." [5]
Being born before Islam means being born beforethe Call.
2. The compiler of the famous Hadith collection Mishkat al-Masabih,
ImamWali-ud-Din Muhammad ibn Abdullah Al-Khatib, who died 700 years
ago, has also written brief biographical notes on the narrators of
Hadith reports. He writes under Asma, the older daughterof Abu Bakr:
"She was the sister of Aisha Siddiqa, wife of theHoly Prophet, and was
ten years older than her.… In 73 A.H. … Asma died at the age of one
hundred years." [6]
(Go here to see an image of the full entry in Urdu.)
This would make Asma 28years of age in 1 A.H., the year of the Hijra,
thus making Aisha 18 years old in 1 A.H. So Aisha would be 19 years
old at the time of the consummation of her marriage, and 14 or 15
years old at the time of her nikah. It would place her year of birth
at four or five years before the Call.
3. The same statement is made by the famous classical commentator of
the Holy Quran, Ibn Kathir, in his book Al-bidayya wal-nihaya:
"Asma died in 73 A.H. at the age of one hundred years. She was ten
years older than her sister Aisha." [7]
Apart from these three evidences, which are presented in the Urdu
pamphlet referred to above, we also note that the birth of Aisha being
alittle before the Call is consistent with the opening words of a
statement by her which isrecorded four times in Bukhari. Those words
areas follows:
"Ever since I can remember (or understand things) my parents were
following the religion of Islam." [8]
This is tantamount to saying that she was born sometime before her
parents accepted Islam but she can only remember them practising
Islam. No doubt she and her parents knew well whether she was born
before or after they accepted Islam, as their acceptance of Islam was
such a landmark event in their life which took place just after the
Holy Prophet received his mission from God. If she had been born after
they accepted Islam it would make no sense for her to say that she
always remembered them as following Islam. Only if she was born before
theyaccepted Islam, would it make sense for her to saythat she can
only remember them being Muslims, as she was too young to remember
things before their conversion. This is consistent with her beingborn
before the Call, and being perhaps four or five years old at the time
of the Call, which was also almost the time when her parents accepted
Islam.
Two further evidences cited by Maulana Muhammad Ali
In the footnotes of his Urdu translation and commentary of Sahih
Bukhari, entitled Fadl-ul-Bari, Maulana Muhammad Ali had pointed out
reports of two events which show that Aisha could not havebeen born
later than the year of the Call. These areas follows.
1. The above mentioned statement by Aisha in Bukhari, about her
earliest memory of her parents being that they were followers of
Islam, begins with the following words in its version in Bukhari's
Kitab-ul-Kafalat. We quote this from the English translation of
Bukhari by M. Muhsin Khan:
"Since I reached the age when I could remember things, I have seen my
parents worshipping according to the right faith of Islam. Not a
single day passed but Allah's Apostle visited us both in the morning
and in the evening. When theMuslims were persecuted,Abu Bakr set out
for Ethiopia as an emigrant."[9]
Commenting on this report, Maulana Muhammad Ali writes:
"This report sheds some light on the question of the age of Aisha. …
The mention of the persecution of Muslims along with the emigration to
Ethiopia clearly shows that this refers to the fifth or the sixth year
of the Call. … Atthat time Aisha was of an age to discern things, and
so her birth could not have been later than the first year of the
Call." [10]
Again, this would make her more than fourteen at the time of the
consummation of her marriage.
2. There is a report in Sahih Bukhari as follows:
"On the day (of the battle) of Uhud when (some) people retreated and
left the Prophet, I saw Aisha daughter of Abu Bakr and Umm Sulaim,
with their robes tucked up so that the bangles around their ankles
were visible hurrying with their water skins (in another narration it
is said, 'carrying the water skins on their backs'). Then they would
pour the water in the mouths of the people, and return tofill the
water skins again and came back again to pour water in the mouthsof
the people." [11]
Maulana Muhammad Ali writes in a footnote under this report:
"It should also be noted that Aisha joined the HolyProphet's household
onlyone year before the battle of Uhud. Accordingto the common view
she would be only ten years of age at this time, whichis certainly not
a suitable age for the work she did on this occasion. This alsoshows
that she was not so young at this time." [12]
If, as shown in the previous section above, Aisha was nineteen at
thetime of the consummation of her marriage, then she would be twenty
years old at the time of the battle of Uhud. It may be added that on
the earlier occasion of the battle of Badr when some Muslim youths
tried, out of eagerness, to go along with the Muslim army to the field
of battle, the Holy Prophet Muhammad sent them back on account of
their young age (allowing only one such youngster, Umair ibn Abi
Waqqas, to accompany his older brother the famous Companion Sa'd ibn
Abi Waqqas). It seems, therefore, highly unlikelythat if Aisha was ten
years old the Holy Prophet would have allowed her to accompany the
army to the field of battle.
We conclude from all the evidence cited above that Aisha (may Allah be
pleased with her) was nineteen years old when she joined the Holy
Prophet as his wife in theyear 2 A.H., the nikah or betrothal having
taken place five years previously.
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Do Islam, Christianity, and Judaism have different Origins?
prophets reaching back to Adam all came from the One True God. This
common origin explains their similarities inmany beliefs and values.
Abraham is mentioned in the Qur'an as one of the great Prophets and
was honored with the title,"Friend of God." Abraham and his eldest
son, Ishmael,were commanded by God to build a place of worship,the
Ka'bah, in what is today the city of Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
The Ka'bah is a simple stone construction erected as a sanctuary for
the worship of the One God. The Qur'an states that God commanded
Abraham to summon all humankind to visit this place, and when pilgrims
go there today they say "At your service, OLord," in response to
Abraham's call. The Ka'bah is the central place of worship toward
which all Muslims face in prayer to God, Almighty.
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Tour news - Ships carrying tourists move on Lijiang River
China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Oct. 4, 2012. According to
local government, Lijiang River, a famous tourist destination in south
China,attracted visitors of 13,700 person times on Thursday, and is
expected to receive tourists of 70,000 person times during the
Mid-Autumn Festival and Chinese National Day holiday, which lasts from
Sept. 30 to Oct. 7. (Xinhua/Lu Boan)
Ships carrying tourists move on the Lijiang River in Guilin, south
China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Oct. 4, 2012. According to
local government, Lijiang River, a famous tourist destination in south
China,attracted visitors of 13,700 person times on Thursday, and is
expected to receive tourists of 70,000 person times during the
Mid-Autumn Festival and Chinese National Day holiday, which lasts from
Sept. 30 to Oct. 7. (Xinhua/Lu Boan)
Ships carrying tourists move on the Lijiang River in Guilin, south
China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Oct. 4, 2012. According to
local government, Lijiang River, a famous tourist destination in south
China,attracted visitors of 13,700 person times on Thursday, and is
expected to receive tourists of 70,000 person times during the
Mid-Autumn Festival and Chinese National Day holiday, which lasts from
Sept. 30 to Oct. 7. (Xinhua/Lu Boan)
Ships carrying tourists move on the Lijiang River in Guilin, south
China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Oct. 4, 2012. According to
local government, Lijiang River, a famous tourist destination in south
China,attracted visitors of 13,700 person times on Thursday, and is
expected to receive tourists of 70,000 person times during the
Mid-Autumn Festival and Chinese National Day holiday, which lasts from
Sept. 30 to Oct. 7. (Xinhua/Lu Boan)
Visitors view scenery on ships on the Lijiang River in Guilin, south
China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Oct. 4, 2012. According to
local government, Lijiang River, a famous tourist destination in south
China,attracted visitors of 13,700 person times on Thursday, and is
expected to receive tourists of 70,000 person times during the
Mid-Autumn Festival and Chinese National Day holiday, which lasts from
Sept. 30 to Oct. 7. (Xinhua/Lu Boan)
According to local government, Lijiang River, a famous tourist
destination in south China,attracted visitors of 13,700 person times
on Thursday, and is expected to receive tourists of 70,000 person
times during the Mid-Autumn Festival and Chinese National Day holiday,
which lasts from Sept. 30 to Oct. 7.
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Chosen Bondsmen
him to Yemen, he gave him this advice: "O M'aad", he said, "Avoid
luxury. The chosen bondsmen of the Lord are not ease-loving and
self-indulgent."
-Musnad-i-Ahmad
Commentary:
Though it is not forbidden to lead a life of ease and luxury, it does
not befit theworthy bondmen of the Lord. They would better abstain
from it. O Lord! There is no joy other than the joy of Futurity
denotes the ideal rule of conduct for them.
Sending Blessings Upon the Prophet
Sending Blessings Upon Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم ) by Shaykh Abdur Raheem.
This lecture is by Sheikh ul hadith Abdur Raheem Abu Nauman. Shaykh
takes an opportunity to recharge our iman, and indeed it is agreat
honour and necessityto sit with the friends of Allah and benefit from
them.
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This lecture is by Sheikh ul hadith Abdur Raheem Abu Nauman. Shaykh
takes an opportunity to recharge our iman, and indeed it is agreat
honour and necessityto sit with the friends of Allah and benefit from
them.
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