The reason why the Prophet (PBUH) married ‘Aa’ishah despite the age difference

Abu Sarah

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The reason why the Prophet :)saw:) married ‘Aa’ishah despite the age difference

The Prophet :saw: (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 :saw:(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 :saw:(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 :saw:(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 :saw: (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 :saw:(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 :saw:(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 :saw:(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 :saw: (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 :saw:(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 :saw: (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 :saw:(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 :saw:(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 :saw:(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 :saw:and his family and companions.


For more information see Zaad al-Ma’aad, 1/106.
 

hayat84

I'm not what you believe
I have a question about the age of 'Aisha AS:even if she was the only virgin who the prophet SAWS married,she was very young,so how could a man above 50 years spend his first night of marriage with a girl?I'd like to believe it,but I can't imagine,so don't get angry if I asked such a direct question.give me believable explaination please
 

Ibn Uthaymin

Junior member
I have a question about the age of 'Aisha AS:even if she was the only virgin who the prophet SAWS married,she was very young,so how could a man above 50 years spend his first night of marriage with a girl?I'd like to believe it,but I can't imagine,so don't get angry if I asked such a direct question.give me believable explaination please

Assalamu alykum

Please check this thread out:

http://www.turntoislam.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2585
 

MahyarEL-Prince

Studying Islam...
I have a question about the age of 'Aisha AS:even if she was the only virgin who the prophet SAWS married,she was very young,so how could a man above 50 years spend his first night of marriage with a girl?I'd like to believe it,but I can't imagine,so don't get angry if I asked such a direct question.give me believable explaination please
Man if you ever read the bible, we see Solomon had SOOOOO many wives, I think 700 wives and 300 consorts. He was 120 years old with a 15 year old girl.
This is no way to refute the case of aisha it's just a fun fact about what the bible says lol.
 

Valerie

Junior Member
Man if you ever read the bible, we see Solomon had SOOOOO many wives, I think 700 wives and 300 consorts. He was 120 years old with a 15 year old girl.
This is no way to refute the case of aisha it's just a fun fact about what the bible says lol.


I'll have to read the thread that was posted (thank you for it, I'll have to read it tomorrow when my contact lenses aren't trying to jump out of my eyes hehe)... But in comparison, a 15 year old is very different, physically, from a 9 year old.

Like someone else, I'm curious, not trying to be disrespectful.
 

Asja

Pearl of Islaam
I'll have to read the thread that was posted (thank you for it, I'll have to read it tomorrow when my contact lenses aren't trying to jump out of my eyes hehe)... But in comparison, a 15 year old is very different, physically, from a 9 year old.

Like someone else, I'm curious, not trying to be disrespectful.

Assalamu allaicum Velerie

I hope Inshallah you wil reed the article about our beloved Prophet Mohammed sallahu alyhe wa salam and understand the reason of his marriege with Aisha r.a. If Aisha r.a. has 9 years, it may be that she looked in that time like she has 15 years because that is only understdable, because we can not understand the life time in which they have lived, only Allah knows the best. Also there is opinion among truthfull Scholars that she had 19- 20 years when she married Prophet s.a.w.s. We can not know that for sure, but we can know for sure that in life of our Prophet there is nothing which is out of moral, because Prophet Mohammed s.a.w.s has been married with his wife Khadiya for 20 years and did not marry more wifes, untill came message of Islaam,and he married with more wifes for the sake of Islaam. Inshallah you can find that in many authentic Islamic books,

May Allah guide us all.

:wasalam:
 

saifkhan

abd-Allah
Salam Alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuhu...

Its not so unbeleivable...atleast in my country...Inshaa'Allah Ta'la....
In my country, a time ppl used to marry girl @ 6/7yrs....then the husband use to teach them general education/good manners and habits/everything....and they lived happily,infact they used to have alot of children like 15 to 20 children...and they lived Inshaa'Allah more than a hundred years. Yet there are some ppl in coutryside area....i knoe personally them......who got married in the age of 10/12...and still they are alive...they are at the age of 100/120+.....but yet they can walk alone and see without glasses...inshaa'Allah ta'la...
And the matters happen....why it is not possible.....It was Allah's will....Allah wanted Aisha' RA to be the Ummul Mu'minah being the wife of Prophet Muhammd SAWS.

Some one asked about the Question that...how can a Man age of 50 marry a 9yrs old Girl...and how they passed the first night?...
They were not like us....actually we r not like them...and we'll never be like them....they didnt marry to fulfill their/His/Her desire...but they married because of the will of Allah SWT.Yet A'isha RA was physically fit ...which science may say....its dangerous.....but again it was the will of Allah SWT.

we have to understand the majesty of Allah SWT.
will you going to marry a girl of age 9?....no...but the Prophet Muhammad SAWS did...coz we r not like Him....and will never ever like Him...never...we cant think of....that...we just can follow His doings..the Sunnah...to get ourselves in the right Way.
Will anyone of us(sister) at the age of 9 will be gpoing to marry a man of 50?...no But A'isha RA did this.....and so She's the Ummul Mu'minah.....these was because the will of Allah SWT.
Allah chose them to make an example before us....to show His majesty...


May Allah Guide us all and forgive us all...inshaa'Allah Ta'la....

Jazakallahu Khairn wa barakallahu feek
wassalam
 
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