Wives of Muhammad

The Islamic Prophet Muhammad (A.D. 570-632) is regarded by Muslims as the last prophet of God. He was an Arab religious, political and military leader who founded Islam and the Muslim community (Arabic: أمة Ummah).

His life is traditionally defined into two epochs: pre-hijra (emigration) in Mecca, a city in northern Arabia, from the year 570 to 622, and post-hijra in Medina, from 622 until his death in 632. All but two of his marriages were contracted after the Hijra (migration to Medina).

The perceptions of the concept of marriage

In pre-Islamic Arabia, the institution of marriage was characterized by unquestioned male superiority. Marriage was viewed as a "status". There was no limitations on men's rights to marry or to obtain a divorce. Upon marriage a bride price was paid to the girl's father. A man could have several wives but a woman could not have several husbands at one time and could only take another husband after divorce.

History

During his life Muhammad married 11 or 13 women depending upon the differing accounts of who were his wives (not all at one time). However, not all Muslim scholars agree with these accounts.

Khadijah bint Khuwaylid

Main article: Khadijah bint Khuwaylid

At the age of 25, Muhammad married a woman named Khadijah who was 40 years old at the time and the marriage lasted for 25 years. She was the first woman he married and his only wife until she died. This marriage is described as "long" and "happy," and he relied upon Khadija in many ways. Their sons were Qasim and Abd-Allah (who was nicknamed al Tahir and al Tayyib). Their daughters were Zainab, Ruqaiya, Umm Kulthum and Fatimah. However, there is a dispute over the genealogy of Khadijah's Daughters as Shia scholars view them as born from previous marriages. During their marriage, Muhammad asked Khadija to buy Zaid bin Haritha, a slave up for sale. Upon purchase he adopted the young man as his son.

Hijra

The death of Khadija left Muhammad lonely, and, before he left for Medina, it was suggested to him that he marry Sawda bint Zama, who had suffered many hardships after she became a Muslim. Muhammad married her in Shawwal, when she was about 55 years old, in the tenth year of Prophethood, after the death of Khadijah. Prior to that, she was married to a paternal cousin of hers called As-Sakran bin ‘Amr. At about the same period, Aisha (daughter of his close friend Abu Bakr) was betrothed to Muhammad. Aisha was initially betrothed to Jubayr ibn Mut'im, a Muslim whose father, though pagan, was friendly to the Muslims. When Khawla bint Hakim suggested that Muhammad marry Aisha after the death of Muhammad's first wife (Khadijah bint Khuwaylid), the previous agreement regarding marriage of Aisha with ibn Mut'im was put aside by common consent.

As life became unbearable for him, Muhammad migrated to Medina. Because of Meccan attempts at his life Muhammad traveled only with Abu Bakr and the rest of his family traveled in stages. His wife Sawda and his daughters Fatimah and Umm Kulthum traveled with Zayd ibn Harithah, while his other wife Aisha travelled with her brother ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr. Regarding his other daughters: Zainab's husband prevented her from migrating, and Ruqayyah was with her husband Uthman Ibn Affan in Abyssinia and migrated much later.

Aisha was six or seven years old when betrothed to Muhammad. She stayed in her parents' home until the age of nine, when the marriage was consummated in Medina. Both Aisha and Sawda, his two wives, were given apartments adjoined to the Al-Masjid al-Nabawi mosque. Muhammad wished to divorce Sawda, who offered to give her turn of Muhammad's conjugal visit to Aisha to prevent this, and the incident is referred to in the Quran 4:127.

War widows

During the Muslim war with Mecca, many men were killed leaving behind widows and orphans.

Hafsa bint Umar, daughter of Umar (‘Umar bin Al-Khattab), was widowed at battle of Badr when her husband Khunais ibn Hudhaifa was killed in action. Muhammad married her in 3 A.H./625 C.E. Zaynab bint Khuzayma was also widowed at the battle of Badr. She was the wife of 'Ubaydah b. al-Hārith, a faithful Muslim and from the tribe of al-Muttalib, for which Muhammad had special responsibility. When her husband died, Muhammad aiming to provide for her, married her 4 A.H. She was nicknamed Umm Al-Masakeen (roughly translates as the mother of the poor), because of her kindness and charity.

Close to Aisha's age, both Hafsa and Zaynab were welcomed into the household. Sawda, who was much older, extended her motherly benevolence to the younger women. Aisha and Hafsa had a lasting relationship. As for Zaynab, however, she fell ill and passed away eight months after her marriage.

The death of Zaynab coincided with the that of Abu Salamah, a devoted Muslim, as a result of his wounds from the Battle of Uhud. Abu Salamah's widow, Umm Salama Hind bint Abi Umayya also a devoted Muslim, had none but her young children. Her plight reportedly saddened the Muslims, and after her iddah some Muslims proposed marriage to her; but she declined. When Muhammad proposed her marriage, she was reluctant for three reasons: she claimed to suffer from jealousy and pointed out the prospect of an unsuccessful marriage, her old age, and her young family that needed support. But Muhammad replied that he would pray to God to free her from jealousy, that he too was of old age, and that her family was like his family. She married Muhammad. In 626, Raihanah bint Zaid, entered Muhammad's household as a widow, as her husband had been executed along with the men of Banu Qurayza. The sources regarding his status differ, but she eventually converted to Islam and was married by Muhammad.

Internal dissension

After Muhammad's final battle against his Meccan enemies, he diverted his attention to stopping the Banu Mustaliq's raid on Medina. Muhammad's marriage to Zaynab bint Jahsh, and allegations against his wife Aisha were the two key events.

Marriage to Zaynab bint Jahsh

Zaynab bint Jahsh was Muhammad's cousin, being the daughter of one of his father's sisters. In Medina, Muhammad arranged Zaynab, a widow, to Zayd ibn Harithah, a former slave of Khadija whom Muhammad had freed and adopted as a son. According to Ibn Sa'd, Zaynab rejected this proposal because of her relatively high social status as compared to Zayd, but Muhammad insisted. The marriage is however said to have not been harmonious.

According to a narrative, after the marriage, Muhammad went to pay Zayd a visit, but instead found Zaynab, scantily clad, and fell in love with her. Zaynab told Zayd about this, and Zayd offered to divorce her, but Muhammad told him to keep her. The story laid much stress on Zaynab's perceived beauty and Muhammad's supposedly disturbed set of mind. Watt doubts the accuracy of this portion of the narrative, since it does not occur in the earliest source, and that it is unlikely that Muhammad was attracted since Zaynab (after Khadija) was the most elderly woman Muhammad married. Nomani considers this story to be a rumor. Rodinson rejects Watt's argument, arguing that it is the traditional texts which lay stress on Muhammad's attraction to Zaynab. He notes that such behavior would not have produced criticism. Zaynab's marriage was unharmonious, eventually became became unbearable, and ended in divorce. When Zaynab's waiting period was complete, Muhammad married her.

The marriage seemed incestuous to Muhammad's contemporaries because Muhammad was marrying the former wife of his adopted son, and the adopted sons were counted the same as a biological son. According to Watt, this "conception of incest was bound up with old practices belonging to a lower, communalistic level of familial institutions where a child's paternity was not definitely known; and this lower level was in process being eliminated by Islam." The marriage was justified by verse 33:37 of the Qur'an, which implied that treating adopted sons as real sons was objectionable, and that there should now be a complete break with the past. According to Rodinson, doubters argued the verses were in exact conflict with social taboos and were too much to Muhammad's liking. The delivery of these verses, thus, did not end the dissent.

The necklace affair

Aisha had accompanied Muhammad on his skirmish with the Banu Mustaliq. On the way back, Aisha lost her wedding necklace (a treasured possession), and Muhammad required the army to stop so that it could be found. Many in the army were indignant over the requirement, and the incident proved to be an embarrassment. The necklace was found, but during the same journey, Aisha lost it again. This time, she quietly slipped out in search for it, but by the time she recovered it, the caravan had moved on. She was eventually taken home by Safw'an bin Mu'attal.

Rumors spread that something untoward have occurred although there were no witnesses to this. Disputes arose, and the community was split into factions. Meanwhile, Aisha had been ill, and unaware of the stories. At first Muhammad himself was unsure of what to believe, but eventually trusted Aisha's protestations of innocence. Eventually verses were revealed, establishing her innocence, and condemning the slanders and the libel. Although the episode was uneasy for both Muhammad and Aisha, in the end it reinforced their mutual love and trust.

Other wives

One of the captives from the skirmish with the Banu Mustaliq was Juwayriya bint al-Harith, who was the daughter of the tribe's chieftain. When made captive, Juwayriya went to Muhammad requesting that she, as the daughter of the lord of the Mustaliq, be released. Meanwhile her father approached Muhammad with ransom to secure her release, but her captor refused to ransom her. Muhammad then offered to marry her, and she accepted. When it became known that tribespersons of Mustaliq were kinsmen of the prophet of Islam through marriage, the Muslims released the nearly one hundred families they had captured.

In the same year, Muhammad signed a peace treaty with his Meccan enemies, the Quraysh, effectively ending the state of war between the two parties. He soon married the daughter of the Quraysh leader, Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, aimed at further reconciling his opponent. He sent a proposal for marriage to Ramlah bint Abi-Sufyan who was in Abyssinia at the time, when he learned her husband had died. She had previously converted to Islam (in Mecca) against her father's will. After her migration to Abyssinia her husband had apostated to Christianity, and although she remained a steadfast Muslim, perhaps Muhammad feared that she too may apostate. Muhammad dispatched ‘Amr bin Omaiyah Ad-Damri with a letter to the Negus (king), asking him for Umm Habibah’s hand — that was in Muharram, in the seventh year of Al-Hijra. The Negus agreed and sent her to Muhammad in the company of Sharhabeel bin Hasnah.

Safiyya bint Huyayy was a member of a Jewish tribe Banu Nadir, and was married to a man named Kinana ibn al-Rabi when Muhammad defeated her people in battle at Khaybar (According to a tradition, before Kinana, she had been the wife of Salaam ibn Mas̲h̲kam, who had divorced her). While married to Kinana, she had a dream about her marriage to Muhammad for which he was beaten by her husband for desiring another man. Safiyya's beauty was known in Medina before the battle. According to Ibn Ishaq, after Muhammad had taken them captive, he threw his mantle over Safiyya as a sign that he had chosen her for himself and redeemed her from a Muslim named Dihya against seven head of cattle. Muhammad ordered Kinana tortured and eventually beheaded over a dispute about hidden treasure. He then convinced Safiyya to convert to Islam and marry him.Some scholars argues that Muhammad chose to marry Safiyya as part of reconciliation with the Jewish tribe and as a gesture of goodwill. Rodinson states that Muhammad was "violently attracted" to Safiyya, and violated his own previous commands regarding how long his followers had to wait before having sex with their captives the night he married her.

As part of the agreement of Hudaybiyah, Muhammad visited Mecca for the lesser pilgrimage. There he married Maymuna bint al-Harith, the sister-in-law of Abbas, a long time ally of his. By marrying her Muhammad also established kinship ties with the Makhzum, his previously fierce opponents.

Maria al-Qibtiyya was an Egyptian Coptic Christian slave, sent as a gift to Muhammad from Muqawqis, a Byzantine official. She is usually considered one of Muhammad's wives, though she may have remained his concubine. She bore him a son, Ibrahim ibn Muhammad, who died in his infancy.

Muhammad's widows

Muhammad delivered a verse of the Qur'an stating that after his death, none of his followers could marry his widows.

The extent of Muhammad's property at the time of his death is unclear. Although Quran [2.180] clearly addresses issues of inheritance, Abu Bakr, the new leader of the Muslim ummah, refused to divide Muhammad's property among his widows and heirs, saying that he had heard Muhammad say,

We (Prophets) do not have any heirs; what we leave behind is (to be given in) charity

However, Abu Bakr and the succeeding caliphs did make provision for Muhammad's widows and relatives out of the proceeds of the Muslim conquests. One-fifth of the spoils were to be given to the ruler, as public funds and part of this was devoted to pensions.

Neither the wives nor the relatives were satisfied with this decision, and there are many traditions recounting their complaints to Abu Bakr and succeeding caliphs.

List of Muhammad's wives and children

Name	Tribe	The women's status before marriage	Number of marriage	Muhammad's age	Her Age	Motive	Date of marriage	Date of death
Khadijah bint Khuwaylid	Bani Assad	widow	First marriage	25	40	Impressed with his good character, she proposed to him	married in 595	died 619
Sawda bint Zama	Banu Abd-Shams	widow	Second marriage (after his first wife died)	50	65	Charity, old/poor widowed returned émigré from Abyssinia	married soon after 619	died after Muhammad
Aisha	Banu Taym	single		53	6	Cement relations with Abu Bakr. Disputed.	married in 622	died after Muhammad
Hafsa bint Umar	Banu Adi	widow		56		Cement relations with Umar	married circa 624-625	died after Muhammad
Zaynab bint Khuzayma	Banu Hilal	widow		58		Zaynab asked Muhammad to marry her. She died eight months after the marriage	married circa 626-627	died soon afterwards
Umm Salama Hind bint Abi Umayya	Banu Makhzum	Uhud War widow		58	approx. 65	Charity, mother of 4	married in 626	died after Muhammad
Zaynab bint Jahsh	Bani Assad	widow and divorcee		58	35	differing views	married circa 625-627	died after Muhammad
Juwayriya bint al-Harith	Banu Mustaliq	widow; freed POW		59		possibly political	married circa 627-628	died after Muhammad
Ramlah bint Abi-Sufyan	Umayyad	divorcee - after the conversion of her husband to Christianity in Abyssinia		61		charity	an early émigré married 629 in absentia by the Abyssinian King	died after Muhammad
Safiyya bint Huyayy	Banu Nadir	widow; Ma malakat aymanukum (freed POW)		61	17	possibly political	married 629	died after Muhammad
Maymuna bint al-Harith	Banu Hashim	widow		60	36		married 629	died after Muhammad
Maria al-Qibtiyya	Copt	slave		61	20	political	circa 628-629	died after Muhammad

Regarding Maria al-Qibtiyya ("Maria the Copt"): she was a slave given to Muhammad by the ruler of Egypt. Some say that she remained a slave; some say that she was freed and that Muhammad married her; the mother of Muhammad's short-lived son Ibrahim in 630.

Children of Khadijah:

Sons:

• Qasim ibn Muhammad
• Abd-Allah ibn Muhammad

Daughters:

• Ruqayyah bint Muhammad
• Umm Kulthum bint Muhammad
• Zainab bint Muhammad
• Fatimah

Children of Maria:

• Ibrahim ibn Muhammad

Views

Muslim view

Muslims title all Muhammad's wives as Mother of the Believers, a title given to them in the Qur'an.

Sunni view

The Sunni view is that all wives were the best of women, a view they say is supported by the Qur'an.

Shia view

The Shia view is that there is no merit in itself for being a wife of Muhammad, the merit is in each of the wives' individual actions.

See also

• Criticism of Muhammad

References

• Bullough, Vern (1998). The Subordinated Sex: A History of Attitudes Toward Women. University of Georgia Press. ISBN 978-0820323695. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
• Esposito, John (1998). Islam: The Straight Path. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-511233-4.
• Freyer Stowasser, Barbara (1996). Women in the Qur'an, Traditions, and Interpretation. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195111484.
• Guillaume, Alfred (1955). The Life of Muhammad: A Translation of Ibn Ishaq's Sirat Rasul Allah. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-1963-6033-1.
• Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (1976). The Life of Muhammad.
• Khadduri, Majid (1978). "Marriage in Islamic Law: The Modernist Viewpoints". American Journal of Comparative Law. 26 (2). The American Society of Comparative Law: pp. 213-218. {{cite journal}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
• Lings, Martin (1983). Muhammad: his life based on the earliest sources. Inner traditions international.
• Maududi, S. Abul A'la (1967). The Meaning of the Qur'an. Islamic publications ltd.
• Nomani, Shibli (1970). Sirat Al-Nabi. Pakistan Historical Society.
• Reeves, Minou (2003). Muhammad in Europe: A Thousand Years of Western Myth-Making. NYU Press. ISBN 978-0814775646.
• Rodinson, Maxime (1971). Muhammad. Allen Lane the Penguin Press.
• Watt, William Montgomery (1956). Muhammad at Medina. Clarendon Press. ISBN 0195772865.
• Watt, William Montgomery (1974). Muhammad: Prophet and Statesman. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0198810784.
• Watt, W. Montgomery. "Aisha bint Abu Bakr". In P.J. Bearman, Th. Bianquis, C.E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel and W.P. Heinrichs (ed.). Encyclopaedia of Islam Online. Brill Academic Publishers. ISSN.{{cite encyclopedia}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: editors list (link)

External links

• 1.Why was the prophet polygamous?
• 2.^ Bahishti Zewar by Maulana Ashraf Thanvi
• 3.^ THE SEALED NECTAR Memoirs of the Noble Prophet. Chapter on the Prophetic Household by Saifur Rahman al-Mubarakpuri
• 4.^ THE SEALED NECTAR Memoirs of the Noble Prophet. Chapter on the Prophetic Household by Saifur Rahman al-Mubarakpuri
• 5.^ THE SEALED NECTAR Memoirs of the Noble Prophet. Chapter on the Prophetic Household by Saifur Rahman al-Mubarakpuri
• 6.^ Bahishti Zewar by Maulana Ashraf Thanvi
• 7.^ THE SEALED NECTAR Memoirs of the Noble Prophet. Chapter on the Prophetic Household by Saifur Rahman al-Mubarakpuri