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"But do you mean to tell
me that the man who in the full flush of youthful vigour, a young man of
four and twenty (24), married a woman much his senior, and remained
faithful to her for six and twenty years (26), at fifty years of age when
the passions are dying married for lust and sexual passion? Not thus are
men's lives to be judged. And you look at the women whom he married, you
will find that by every one of them an alliance was made for his people,
or something was gained for his followers, or the woman was in sore need
of protection."
- - Dr Annie Besant (Dr Annie Besant in 'The Life and Teachings of Mohammad,' Madras, 1932)
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A noted British author has observed: "No
great religious leader has been so maligned as Prophet Mohammed. Attacked
in the past as a heretic, an impostor, or a sensualist, it is still
possible to find him referred to as "the false prophet." A
modern German writer accuses Prophet Mohammed of sensuality, surrounding
himself with young women. This man was not married until he was
twenty-five years of age, then he and his wife lived in happiness and
fidelity for twenty-four years, until her death when he was fourty-nine.
Only between the age of fifty and his death at sixty-two did Prophet
Mohammed take other wives, only one of whom was a virgin, and most of them
were taken for dynastic and political reasons. Certainly the Prophet's
record was better than the head of the Church of England, Henry
VIII." Geoffrey Parrinder, Mysticism in the World's Religions (New York: Oxford University
Press, 1976, pg. 121) |
Every time the Muslims talk about Prophet Muhammad (saw) to the heretics, they use
a point against the saintly character of Prophet(saw) by pointing fingers
towards his marriage with a girl named Ayesha(ra), who was presumably, 12 years
old at the time of her marriage to Prophet and another woman named Zainab, whom
he married after she divorced a man named Zaid whom Prophet had adopted as his
son. Muslims
on the other hand are commanded to hold her in highest regards according to the
will and decree of Allah(swt) as is evident from the verse above. Moreover, it's
a historical fact that
A'ishah (ra) was one who possessed exceptional qualities, and Holy Prophet saw in her a great woman of the future who was best
suited to perform the duties of a wife and of a teacher whose words and deeds had to
be preserved for the guidance of mankind. A'ishah(ra) turned out to be one of the
greatest woman scholars for Islam, thus setting an example for future
generations of Muslim women. Aishah(ra) was said to be the most knowledgeable in Islam,
even by the
male companions of the Prophet's times and was in fact one of the most learned
amongst them. Companions had to come
to her and seek the knowledge that only she knew that only she was privy to. Her
significant example of being highly regarded especially among the men plays an
important role in removing beyond a shadow of a doubt any uncertainties
regarding women to be inferior to men in aspects of faith or false notions condemning women to be
hindered from earning a high status in society, especially in terms of spiritual
growth and morality. Compare this to the history of other major religions in
which women were regarded to remain subordinate to men especially in terms
of spiritual development. All
his wives, especially A'ishah(ra), transmitted many scholarly works (sayings, deeds,
and actions) from Prophet Muhammad pbuh. Aishah's father, Abu Bakr, was a key
figure in the history of Islam as well as a close friend and trusted advisor of
Muhammad. The joining in marriage of Muhammad and Abu Bakr's daughter solidified
the relationship between him and the Prophet. When Muhammad(saw) died, there was
a need for a new Muslim leader. Abu Bakr was chosen khalifah due to his close
knit relationship with Muhammad and the marriage between Muhammad and his
daughter, A'ishah.
From the non-Muslim front, there is a terrible hypocritical approach to this
whole affair of Prophet's multiple marriages. It
has been effectively proven by scholars that the age of Ayesha(ra) which is
written in few Hadith books is contradictory and
can be false.
See, 'How
infallible are Sahih Hadiths?' in this regard.
Nowhere in Holy Qur'an, even a passing reference has been made to this aspect of
Prophet's wife. But, before I direct you that part of the
scholarly study, let's agree for argument's sake, that the charges
are true and you still want to hold this argument against ethics of Islam then
try to have a look into your own backyard and let's see, what other major religions talk
about such marriage concepts.
Ayesha(ra) was engaged to someone else before she got engaged to Muhammad(saw):
Lady Ayesha(ra) was already engaged to a non-Muslim man named Jober Ibn Al-Moteam Ibn Oday. Back then, the people of Mecca
did not object to Ayesha(ra)'s engagement to Jober because she was physically
mature enough to be considered for
marriage. Her parents saw that and they engaged her to Jober.
The only reason why Ayesha (ra)'s father, Abu Baker Al Siddeek, broke her engagement with Jober is
because he was a non-Muslim. Later, a woman named Kholeah Bint Hakeem suggested for
Muhammad (saw) to marry Ayesha(ra), because Muhammad (saw) and Abu Baker became best friends.
Muhammad (saw) engaged Ayesha(ra) for 2 years before he married her.
Abű Bakr (ra) is also recorded to
have spoken these words: "There are three things I cherish most: a look
at your face, to spend my wealth on you and that my daughter is thy wife."
All Muslim scholars agree 100% that Muhammad(saw) and Aisha(ra) were engaged for 2 years before marriage.
Prophet Muhammad(saw) was a Noble Messenger of
God. Muhammad(saw) lived in a society and culture that existed 1400 years ago, and we must not judge what
he or others did based on the standards we have set today. It is wrong and foolish to do so!.
Another major (seemingly oldest) religion of the east, Hinduism, finds it's
roots in early marriages of the girls. Child marriage of daughters 5-6 years old
was common due to the custom of dowry and to avoid scandals [Nand 17] [Basham
167-8] [Yadav 70] [Altekar 16] [Banerjee 70]. Hindu Law books prescribe that the
best partner for a man in one-third his age. Thus a man 18 year old should marry
a girl 6 years old! –
"A man, aged thirty
years, shall marry a maiden of twelve who pleases him, or a man of
twenty-four a girl of eight years of age; if (the performance of) his duties
would otherwise be impeded, he must marry sooner." [Manu
IX.94]
This was meant to prevent any
scandals. Narada states that some of the defects to be avoided in brides are if
they already had a relationship with another man or have their minds set on
another, they should not be selected [Sheth
67].
So, what we have to keep in mind
is, not only was it a custom in the Arab society as well, to Engage/Marry a young girl it was also common in the
other olden world societies.
Also, the case
of Mary the mother of Jesus comes to mind, in non-biblical sources she was between 11-14 years old when she
conceived Jesus (peace be upon him). Mary (may peace be upon her) had already been 'betrothed' to Joseph before conceiving
Jesus. Joseph was a much older man and Mary(ra) was younger than 11-14 years of age when she was
'betrothed' to Joseph. We, as Muslims, would never call Joseph a wrong doer, nor would we
ever refer to the 'Holy Ghost' of the Bible, that
'Impregnated' Mary as a "Rapist" ...and
Allah Almighty knows best. Not to mention, the present day misguided Priests of
the church, painting the world red with their escapades that involve countless
crimes of 'Pedophilia'
and Rapes', where Susan
Archibald, 37, a now retired Air Force officer who said a Catholic Air Force
chaplain abused her starting in the 1980's, when she was an 18-year-old cadet at
the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. He was 38. In her testimony she said
that, "When my
chaplain first began to abuse me, he told me that God had sent me to him as a
gift." A gift to use and throw.
| I hope the
response above would have cleared some of the doubts in the minds of the sick
who act as self-appointed judges on self made citadels on the issues of
criticizing other religions except their own.
However, those who are interested in scholarly studies and wish to distill
truth from falsehood based on some logical and historical facts, please
hit the given link below: |
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References:
- [Manu] = `Manu Smirti’, Manu, Aryavartta, 4400
B.C-1500 B.C. ? translations exist..
- [Manu Smrti, Doniger and Smith] = `The Laws of Manu’
W.Doniger and B.K.Smith, Penguin India N.Delhi 1991
- [Sheth] = `Religion and Society in The Brahma Purana’
- S.Sheth, Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd. N.Delhi 1979
- Prophet's
marriages - Removing misconceptions
-
Muhammed's (saw) Wives - A virtual Encyclopedia (Islamonline)
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