The Reason Why The Prophet (Peace And Blessings Of Allaah Be Upon Him) Married 'Aa'ishah Despite The Age Difference
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Islamic Questions & Answers
A
Christian colleague of mine asked me why the Prophet
(Peace And Blessings Of Allaah Be Upon Him) married 'Aa'ishah
(may Allaah be pleased with her) when she was nine
years old and he was nearly sixty, and was he intimate
with her at that age or what? In fact I do not know
how to respond to that.
Praise be to Allaah.
The Prophet
(Peace And Blessings Of Allaah Be Upon Him) married 'Aa'ishah
(may Allaah be pleased with her) after he married
Sawdah bint Zam'ah (may Allaah be pleased with her).
She 'Aa'ishah was the only virgin whom he (Peace
And Blessings Of Allaah Be Upon Him) married. And he
consummated the marriage with her when she was nine
years old.
Among her virtues was the fact that the Revelation did
not descend when he under one cover with any of his
wives other than her. She was one of the dearest of
all people to the Prophet (Peace And Blessings Of
Allaah Be Upon Him), and news of her innocence was
revealed from above the seven heavens. She was one of
the most knowledgeable of his wives, and one of the
most knowledgeable women of the ummah as a whole. The
senior companions of the Prophet (Peace And Blessings
Of Allaah Be Upon Him) used to refer to her opinion
and consult her.
With regard to the story of her marriage, the Prophet
(Peace And Blessings Of Allaah Be Upon Him) had
grieved over the death of the Mother of the Believers
Khadeejah, who had supported him and stood by his
side, and he called the year in which she died The
Year of Sorrow. Then he (Peace And Blessings Of Allaah
Be Upon Him) married Sawdah, who was an older woman
and was not very beautiful; rather he married her to
console her after her husband had died and she stayed
among mushrik people. Four years later the Prophet
(Peace And Blessings Of Allaah Be Upon Him) married 'Aa'ishah
(may Allaah be pleased with her), and he was over
fifty. Perhaps the reasons for the marriage were as
follows:
1 He saw a dream about marrying her. It is proven in
al-Bukhaari from the hadeeth of 'Aa'ishah (may Allaah
be pleased with her) that the Prophet (Peace And
Blessings Of Allaah Be Upon Him) said to her: "You
were shown to me twice in a dream. I saw that you were
wrapped in a piece of silk, and it was said, 'This is
your wife.' I uncovered her and saw that it was you. I
said, 'If this is from Allaah then it will come to
pass.'" (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, no. 3682). As to
whether this is a prophetic vision as it appears to
be, or a regular dream that may be subject to
interpretation, there was a difference of opinion
among the scholars, as mentioned by al-Haafiz in Fath
al-Baari, 9/181.
2 The characteristics of intelligence and smartness
that the Prophet (Peace And Blessings Of Allaah Be
Upon Him) had noticed in 'Aa'ishah even as a small
child, so he wanted to marry her so that she would be
more able than others to transmit reports of what he
did and said. In fact, as stated above, she was a
reference point for the Sahaabah (may Allaah be
pleased with them) with regard to their affairs and
rulings.
3 The love of the Prophet (Peace And Blessings Of
Allaah Be Upon Him) for her father Abu Bakr (may
Allaah be pleased with him), and the persecution that
Abu Bakr (may Allaah be pleased with him) had suffered
for the sake of the call of truth, which he bore with
patience. He was the strongest of people in faith and
the most sincere in certain faith, after the Prophets.
It may be noted that among his wives were those who
were young and old, the daughter of his sworn enemy,
the daughter of his closest friend. One of them
occupied herself with raising orphans, another
distinguished herself from others by fasting and
praying qiyaam a great deal
They represented all
kinds of people, through whom the Messenger of Allaah
(Peace And Blessings Of Allaah Be Upon Him) was able
to set out a way for the Muslims showing how to deal
properly with all kinds of people. [See al-Seerah al-Nabawiyyah
fi Daw' al-Masaadir al-Asliyyah, p. 711].
With regard to the issue of her being young and your
being confused about that, you should note that the
Prophet (Peace And Blessings Of Allaah Be Upon Him)
grew up in a hot country, the Arabian Peninsula.
Usually in hot countries adolescence comes early and
people marry early. This is how the people of Arabia
were until recently. Moreover, women vary greatly in
their development and their physical readiness for
marriage.
If you think may Allaah guide you that the Prophet
(Peace And Blessings Of Allaah Be Upon Him) did not
marry any virgin other than 'Aa'ishah (may Allaah be
pleased with her), and that all his other wives had
been previously married, this will refute the notion
spread by many hostile sources, that the basic motive
behind the Prophet's marriages was physical desire and
enjoyment of women, because if that was his intention
he would have chosen only those who were virgins and
beautiful etc.
Such slanders against the Prophet of Mercy (Peace And
Blessings Of Allaah Be Upon Him) by kaafirs and others
of their ilk, are indicative of their inability to
find fault with the law and religion that he brought
from Allaah, so they try to find ways to criticize
Islam with regard to issues that are not related to
sharee'ah.
And Allaah is the Source of strength. May Allaah send
blessings and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad and his
family and companions.
For more information see Zaad al-Ma'aad, 1/106.
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