 Polygamy, and the Prophet Muhammed.

a Proof of his Prophet HOOD AND testament to the truth of his Message.

evidences, proofs and testimonies on the message of the seal of the prophets and what he bought forth for the whole of humankind

By : Muhammed Al-sayed Muhammed.

 Introduction

All praises are due to Allah Lord of the worlds, Originator of the heavens and the Earth, the Creator of darkness and light, I testify that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah alone without ascribing any partners to him, and I testify that Muhammed peace and blessings of Allah be upon him is his slave and messenger. O’ Allah send your peace and blessing upon Muhammed the Prophet and seal of the Prophets and Messengers, and peace and blessings be upon his wives and his purified household and his blessed companions, and all those who were guided from his guidance, and emulated his way, and followed his traditions till the Day of Judgement.

As to what follows;

Surely Allah glorified and exalted be he is a defender of his Prophets, a protector of their lofty stations amongst humankind, be that in their lives or after their deaths respectively. Indeed Allah Almighty selected Muhammed peace and blessing of Allah be upon him for particular safeguard against attacks aimed at him, owing to the great opposition he encountered throughout the duration of his call to the religion of Islam. This is further emphasised when one considers the false accusations that arise from time to time from every mistaken misguider, whose aim is to harm the foundational creed of Islam a creed that Allah Almighty chose as the authentic creed for all of humankind to imbue.

This means that Allah’s protection for Muhammed peace and blessing of Allah be upon him was in direct opposition to the desires and wishes of those who were jealous of him and was opposing to their individual benefit.

Indeed Allah Almighty magnified the station of Muhammed (pbuh) the final of His Messengers and raised him in rank above and beyond all of humankind, out of kindness and love for him, decorating him with the qualities of leadership and outstanding mannerisms that will not be replicated in any other human being.

This brief treatise comprises the following:

- The wisdom of the Sharee’ah in recognising the natural needs of men in relation to his inclination to women.

- Polygamy in the nations and peoples of old and their differing legal systems.

- Testimonies of great western thinkers regarding what the Messenger (pbuh) bought to the world.

- The position of women before the Prophet was sent and after his Message.

- A refutation of the claims of some from the hypocrites and their lies surrounding the reasons for the Prophet taking a number of wives.

- Proofs and testament to his prophet hood in his taking of numerous wives.

- Some of the wisdoms and benefits that can be extracted from his taking of multiple wives.

- Some of the wisdoms and great benefits that can be extracted from the allowance of the Sharee’ah the concept of Polygyny.

- A warning from those who lay claim to Islam and what their ideologies permit in false marriages, and that they are not to be used to typify Islam.

- Some subtleties when looking objectively at the prophet hood of the Messenger that testifies to the truth of the religion that he bought.

- A short message of invitation

 Guidance.

To begin with I wanted to guide the reader in understanding the significance and wisdom of the Sharee’ah in regards to this topic and it is as follows:

Islam with its upright code of practice did not come to eradicate the desires of man and the natural instinct that he was created with, but rather it came to guide and direct it to what is right according to what Allah Almighty revealed and was pleased with for his slaves.

- Indeed vices of all types were commonplace in all societies non-more so the Arab society, and particularly sexual vices which were widespread as was the drinking of alcohol, this was before the sending of the Prophet with the enlightenment of Islam for the All-Knower the All wise.

- This is indicated by an anecdote that occurred after the prohibition of Zinaa or fornication, it is narrated that a young man approached the Prophet peace and blessings of Allah be upon him seeking permission from him to commit the sin of fornication due to his inability to abstain from it, and so the Messenger with a few wise words encouraged him to leave it and then prayed for him for purity, no sooner did this young man leave saying fornication is the most reviled thing to more after it had been the most beloved! This narration indicates the level of which fornication had become widespread.

- Likewise the drinking of alcohol was widespread, before the sending of the messenger with the enlightenment of the Sharee’ah that then prohibited this particular vice.

- The companions of the Messenger acting in accordance with the prohibition started to banish this vice from themselves and their households pouring it into the streets until it was as though there were rivers of alcohol flowing in Madinah. This again indicates the nature of how widespread alcohol had become before the sending of the Messenger.

- So the rulings of Islam came as a mercy to humankind and called to everything that is for the betterment of a healthy society built upon the wholesome righteousness of a divine methodology that Allah glorified and praised is he is pleased with, and with which he sent his Messenger.

- The Prophet did not order people with celibacy, nor did he seek to eradicate the desires that are natural in humankind nor did he encourage this.

- Neither did he peace and blessing of Allah be upon him discourage living with women, or prohibit marrying them but rather he prohibited these forms of extremes.

- But at the same time, he also did not permit that a human allow himself to become overwhelmed by his desires allowing it to dictate and doing according to it, making the human bestial and animalistic, instead he prohibited this and was vehement in his prohibitions.

- However the Messenger of Allah came with the best of all Sharee’ah from Allah for the entirety of humankind in all times and places until the Last Hour, Guiding the desires of people to what is straight and proper with no crookedness in accordance with what Allah decreed and was pleased with and so this is a proof from amongst his proofs.

A human’s natural disposition requires:

- That a man does not live and exist by himself instead he is in need of a women and is inclined towards her, and likewise a women does not live and exist by herself and she is in need of a man and is inclined towards him.

- And with that natural inclination marriages occur between them and offspring are sprout forth, and likewise in all of Allah’s other creatures in testament to what he said:

And among His Signs is this, that He created for you mates from among yourselves, that ye may dwell in tranquility with them, and He has put love and mercy between your (hearts): verily in that are Signs for those who reflect. [Quran Chapter 30 Verse 21]

So fulfilling the meaning of what Allah said:

‘He who created Death and Life, that He may try which of you is best in deed’ [Quran Chapter 67 Verse 2]

All of Allah’s creation is therefore in need of mating and procreating, and so this is another proof of Allah’s oneness and unity, and that is only for him glorified and exalted be he.

Allah is the Creator and Determiner for him is the most Beautiful names and lofty attributes and there is none similar to him.

He is The First without a beginning and so nothing preceded him, and he is the last without an end and nothing superseded him.

And so it becomes clear the wisdom of the Sharee’ah of Islam that was brought by Muhammed peace and blessing of Allah be upon him, in adopting the institution of marriage as a means of cohabiting between men and women (provided all the Islamic prerequisites and conditions are met) and as a means to procreate for humankind, is yet another proof of Allah’s oneness and unity and the wisdom in his decree for people who reflect.

Affirming what Allah said:

‘Say: He is Allah, the One and Only Allah, the Eternal, Absolute; He begetteth not, nor is He begotten; and there is none like unto Him.’ [Quran Chapter 112]

*****

 Polygamy In The Nations of the Past and Previous Legislatures.

If one poses the question, is Islam the first to legislate polygyny?

The answer will as we shall see, be no!

Jewish Law

Jewish law permitted polygamy without limit and it is well known that the Prophets of the Torah had many many wives, and so we find that polygyny is permissible according to them and narrated from their prophets themselves.

Christian Law

There cannot be found a definitive scriptural prohibition of polygyny in the New Testament, but one finds in the Christians of the first generations those who permitted the practice of polygyny being specific to certain places and particular circumstances. It is historically proven that some of these early generation Christians married more than one woman, this fact is confirmed by:

[Wester Mark] A scholar of the History of Marriage who says:

“Polygyny with the acknowledgement of the Church remained until the 17th century and it manifested itself in situations that were too enumerate to count both for the Church and the Country”. He also said, “some of the Christian kings and monarchs would marry more than one”.

Some of the denominations among the Christians even make obligatory the marrying of more then one wife.

So in Christian law there is no definitive text that prohibits its followers of marrying two or even multiple wives, but the leaders of their earlier generations found it sufficient to be married to one wife to protect the family coherence, and this is most manifest in the Roman Empire from their interpretation of their book the New Testament the verses related to Polygamy to the point it became prohibited to marry other than a single women, this is something not strange at all as it is well know the New Testament was distorted and entirely lost due to the changes that were made to it as was the Torah before it.

In the year 1947 A consultation Conference on the issue of Polygamy in Munich Germany seeking solutions to the problem of the population of women who outnumbered their male counterparts many folds after Germany had incurred huge losses to their male population after two World Wars. After much discussion the solution the found most suitable was to legalise polygyny to solve the imbalance.

And in 1949 Ahaly Bourn Germany raised the issue of the legalisation of polygyny and the introduction of it into German Law.

It was also widely reported in the press that the German government sought clarification from Al-Azhar Egypt in how to manage polygyny and saw it as a solution to the problem of increased numbers of females in their population.

As for the issue of polygyny in the Ancient societies one finds it prevalent in all of them more or less in some form or another, from the Ancient Athenians, the Chinese, the Ancient Hindus and the Babylonians, even to the Assyrians and Ancient Egyptian.

Islam came and approved the practice of polygyny according to the rules that govern it for what lies in it in great wisdom and benefit both to the individual and the society.

So this again is an evident proof to the prophet hood of the Messenger Muhammed peace and blessing of Allah be upon him, and the truth of the message he was sent with.

*****

 The Testimonies of noteworthy Western Scholars and Thinkers on the merits of what the Messenger bought for the whole of humankind.

Many works on Sociology and many of the west’s great thinkers testified to the Law that Muhammed peace and blessings of Allah be upon him bought, recognizing the many benefits that lie in the practice of polygyny. Some even encouraging the practice and calling for it.

Here are a few of their quotes:

(1) Gustav Loboon in his book The Civilisation of the Arabs

“ The practice of polygyny in the East a good practice, it raises the moral statue of those societies that practice it, it bring closer families and gives the women a dignity and happiness that we do not see in Europe.

(2) The great German philosopher Shorbinhour in his treatise A Word on Women

“The European Laws of marriage are wrong foundationally in making women equal to men. Limiting men to one wife thus taking away half of our right, weakening us from our responsibilities……and you will not find women in the societies that permit polygyny except they are married and looked after, and the married amongst us are few and those that are single are many, you see them without anyone to take care of them from virgins in the upper classes who have aged in despair, to weaker souls from the lower classes incurring great difficulties feeling spent and miserable, living in shame and despair. And in the city of London alone there are no less than eighty thousand prostitutes spilling the blood of their honour in the name of marriage. These are from the sacrifices of limiting ourselves to one wife, and the results are affecting the women of Europe, leaving her to answer her needs in reprehensible ways. Therefore we need to count polygyny as a real alternative for women in a family.

(3) Anne Beranette in her book The religions of India:

“When we weigh up the issues with absolute objectivity we find that the practice of polygyny in Islam is one that protects and shelters feeds and clothes women is much better in the balance of things then the western prostitution of women that allows for a man to take a women for the sole purpose of sexual gratification then discarding her into the street when he is done with her.

And one finds other then these in the appraisals of western thinkers who are not Muslims themselves who recognise the great benefits there are to the practice of polygyny in Islam to both the individual and the society as a whole.

*****

 A brief insight into the status of women before the message of Islam and after it.

It is important to note the status of women before the message of Islam if indeed women enjoyed any status at all before the onset of Islam and after it.

Pre-Islam

The status of women before the onset of Islam was one where she was subjugated and despised she did not have any status whatsoever that is worth mentioning, this is indicated by the following:

(1) Women did not inherit regardless of their status being a daughter a wife nor a mother meant she had a rights to inherit from her male counterparts.

(2) The widespread practice of infanticide was prevalent in the Days of Ignorance, to the point that a daughter was seen as a great shame so great that they would be unable to accept it and would bury their daughters alive, with no sorrow or regret. This is further illustrated by a famous stereotype that was well known in the Days of Ignorance pre-Islam

“A women: - her victory is screaming and piety to her farther is stealing”

The meaning of which is if she tried to assist her brother, farther, or husband she can only scream and if she sought to be obedient to her farther she can only steal from her husband.

This is from those reprehensible things that Islam came to banish that women were struggling with from the moment of birth through to wedlock and till death in the days of Ignorance before Islam.

(3) The refusal of women from eating from the sacrificial animal was another means which demonstrates her lowly status in the pre-Islamic era, something Islam would later rectify.

(4) The contempt with which they were treated when menstruating and the distancing away from them during this period is another demonstration.

And one finds many other methods deployed in the subjugation of women during this pre-Islamic period.

After the onset of Islam:

One finds that Islam came and rectified much of what was wrong with pre-Islamic attitudes toward women, guaranteeing her all her rights which were unavailable to her previously, raising her status to lofty heights, examples of theses are:

(1) Islam guaranteed women a portion of the inheritance taken her full due, regardless of her age, young or old.

(2) Islam also came with a complete outlaw of the practice of female Infanticide, recognising the preciousness of every individual soul. The Prophet Muhammed even stated that the one who was given a girl and raised her well, then this would be a shield for him on the Day of Judgement.

(3) Women were given equal rights and share of the sacrificial animal that was previously prohibited for them.

(4) Islam also guided men into dispelling any notion of staying away from women during their menstruation, allowing them to enjoy each other in light of everything that the religion permitted them except sexual intercourse, for what lies in it in harm that has been scientifically proven. This being another proof of the truth of Muhammed and the message that he bought.

(5) From the teaching that Islam bought was the recognition of the rights of wives upon their husbands to live harmoniously without the fear of oppression and in mutual dignity.

(6) From the teaching of the prophet Muhammed was the lofty station that belong to the mother in particular, giving her a raised status, prohibiting her disobedience, commanding that she is treated with piety and informing that this will lead to the pleasure of Allah, and that disobedience of the mother in particular leads to the wrath of Allah and a torrid life and hereafter for the one who is guilty of it.

Like these there are many other example of Islam and the prophet of Islam recognising and raising the status of women irrespective of whether she is a daughter a wife or a mother, so peace and blessing be upon Muhammed the one who brought this great example to follow for all of humankind.

*****

 An important point to note.

What every objective person should note is that if it is the case that the prophets marriage to eleven women nine of whom outlived him, was to be opposed by anyone then the tribe of Quraysh who were his foremost enemies and enemies to his cause were at the forefront of this most personal of attacks, using at their disposal all types of fabrications and lies against him.

The main focus of their attacks can be reduced to just two main points:

(1) The concept that the Prophet took for himself a fifth wife whilst only allowing for all others to take four simultaneously, with the fifth only being permitted upon the death of the fourth of her subsequent divorce.

(2) The concept of the Prophet marrying the wife of his previously adopted son Zaid before he received the revelation, and before the prohibition of considering adopted children, as though they were ones own, as the tribe of Quraysh considered marrying the wife of ones child from the most illicit of all acts.

A refutations of their attacks will follow soon but first we must seek to understand why they Quraysh, would be so vehement in their attacks of him. One must consider that Quraysh would utilise every opportunity to attack him, because of his disregard of their idols and statues, and even more the contempt with which he spoke of those who worshipped those idols.

With that in mind we see with absolute certainty the motivations of Quraysh become clear, as the first and foremost enemy to Islam and its Prophet, they were the first to prosper from any destruction of the religion of Islam, this is reflected in the ferocity with which they plotted and attacked him, setting the precedent that was to be followed by the Orientalists and Jews and Christians, in explaining the reasoning of his marriages to his eleven wives. Claiming that his marriages was only for the purpose of his own personal sexual gratification may Allah destroy them.

Their goals were only to harm the messenger and his message.

The hatred was a result of the great jealousy they felt toward the great Prophet of the last days the one who had been foretold of in the Torah and the New Testament before its many alterations. They had been waiting for this Prophet but rejected him when they the Jews saw he was not from them rather he was from their brethren the Arabs, in fact the Jews of Madinah had proclaimed the imminence of a Prophet being sent to them with whom they would fight. So when eventually it became clear he was sent amongst the Arab this caused them much despair and resulted in them rejecting him, but the people of Madinah had already heard their words and quickly became from those who accepted the Prophet into their hearts and eventually into their city. As for the Jews they only increased in their hatred of the Messenger and because of their pride they rejected him despite what they knew from the truth of his prophet hood.

From this we see that everyone who seeks with a pure heart to follow the truth, and does not follow his desires looking at the issue objectively without allowing himself to be deluded by others can only come to the recognition of Muhammed as a true Prophet and follow his teachings.

And the best testimony to that fact is the thousand and millions who have embraced the religions and teaching of the messenger and the seal of all the Prophets.

We see continuously more and more people embracing Islam especially from intellectuals who have seen first hand the truthfulness of the message of the Quran that was revealed upon Muhammed in informing upon thing that were previously in the realms of the unknown. Moreover we see the confirmation of scientific miracles in the Quran that was previously unknown and only recently discovered because of advances in science and technology.

And so Islam is in its ascent and has survived the tests of time when other religions are in decline, is yet another proof that it is Allah’s chosen religion for humankind and Muhammed is his chosen Prophet who was sent as a mercy for all of humankind.

*****

 Why did Quraysh not attack the Prophet (pbuh) from the angle of his multiple marriages to eleven wives, when they knew full well the dangers they faced from his message being embraced by the populous, from the destruction of their power to humbling them in place of their pride?

Answer: whilst it is true that Quraysh were the first and most ferocious enemy to the Prophet and what he was calling to in the worship of One God, without associating any partners with him.

Despite Quraysh’s knowledge of the truthfulness of Muhammed and the truth of his message they refused to humble themselves to his worship and to his revelation as it was in opposition to their desires and they pride.

So they started in their attempts to extinguish the light that he bought with his message torturing those who believed in his call.

Despite all of their attempts and the degree of their enmity it was widely know that the Messenger of Allah had numerous wives but there are no reports of Quraysh ever attacking him in the fashion that his spiteful enemies are attacking him with more recently, this is because of a number of reasons:

(1) The concept of polygamy was not something new to the Arabs, instead it was something that was considered the norm and was widespread amongst them.

(2) Polygamy was also considered amongst them something praiseworthy; it was an indication of ones manhood and responsibility that he would bear all of his women and all of their costs.

(3) It was also well known that not everyone was able to take more then one wife, and it was often the preserve of the most rich and elite in the society who would do it.

Sometimes you would find that a single man had many wives at the same time and rather then anyone blaming him for that he was held in high esteem.

It was the case that some of the Messengers own companions had more then four wives before their accepting Islam at which point they would keep four of them.

This is why the Messenger of Allah’s marriage to many wives was something the considered praise worthy according to their own standards in regards to polygamy.

This is why Quraysh did not attack the messenger in a personal fashion.

However it has become common place for those seeking to attack Islam to attack the very personality and person of Muhammed declaring their war not only him but all of his followers, in order to destroy his message and his religion, but this path will only lead to humiliation and regret for all those who take it.

Allah has promised that he has taken it on himself to protect his prophet against all of his enemies, and that he will ruin all of their plots and he will aid his religion and establish his Shareeah and people will enter his religion in crowds even if the disbelievers may hate it.

*****

 Secondly: Refutation of;

a) What the hypocrites claim regarding the Messengers fifth wife whilst prohibiting the Muslims from exceeding more then four women.

The hypocrites and others from the Jews etc. spread their lies surrounding the Prophet’s taken for himself eleven wives whilst limiting to only four wives for the rest of the Muslims arguing that there is a discrepancy in what he allowed for himself whilst limiting the rest of the Muslims.

We will now refute some of their false claims briefly as what follows will be a more detailed refutation, we will mention our unshakable proofs that cannot be rejected except by one who has gone astray, seeking in this clarification to make manifest the truth and to diminish falsehood.

The hypocrites and those who joined them from the Jews started their assault on the Prophet from the onset of his marriage to Zainab Bint Jahsh may Allah be pleased with her, who was the fifth wife of the Prophet after the death of both Khadijah and Zianab Bint Khuzymah who was also known as ‘ Umm al-Masaakeen’ or mother of the poor because of her concern for them.

1) Firstly one should recognise that the marriage of the Prophet to the number he married was a dispensation specific only to him, it and not permitted for anyone after him. This is similar to his continual fast that he prohibited the believers from trying to enact because of its difficulty.

2) There are from the Prophets that came before him who had married numerous times, like the Prophet Dawud (David) who had with him a hundred free women, or the Prophet Sulayman (Solomon) who had been given Kingship and prophet hood by Allah.

3) One should also consider the great lessons and wisdoms that can be derived from the Messenger of Allah many marriages.

4) The Prophet by marrying the number of times he married was following the path set for him by Allah in accordance with his commandments, and was not the least bit concerned with the false accusations thrown at him from his ignorant detractors. He had an unwavering belief in the aid and assistance of Allah for his message and that Allah would make it victorious, as he had not spoken from his desire he had only implemented what was revealed to him.

So one should also note that if it were the case that he was merely falsely claiming Prophet hood he could have, succumbed to their accusations by legislating what he and they wanted according to their desires, he could have taken a path that would appease his enemies. He could have permitted for the believers to take more than just the four wives. He could in theory have even allowed marrying any number of women, and he would have been assisted in that by:

1) The fact that Polygamy was the prevailing norm in Arab culture and was not something new to them.

2) In fact the taking of more then one wife was something considered praiseworthy and was indicative of strength and masculinity.

Nonetheless it would have been impossible and unthinkable for him (PBUH) to take any path but the one that Allah had designated for him. So it is clear that the Prophet was only following the commands that Allah had commanded fearless of what blame would be attributed to him that is yet a further sign of his Prophet hood and the truth of his Message.

*******

 Thirdly: A refutation of;

The claims of the hypocrites surrounding the marriage between the Prophet and the divorced wife of his adopted son Zaid, as the Arabs considered this a most abhorrent act.

Firstly one needs to understand the following.

1) What is “Adoption” according to the Arabs

2) Evils and harms that are associated with this form of adoption

By clarifying these points the wisdom of Islam and its sacred law will become clear along with the reason for its prohibition.

1) Adoption is the process by which a man claims a son for himself that he did not farther this son then becomes like his biological son in the rights that are due to him and the responsibilities that are upon him.

The harms that result from adoption.

a) It leads to confusion of the real identity of a person, and lead a person to be at a loss of who he really is.

b) It leads to people losing their right to inherit, as the adopted son can lay claim to an inheritance that is not due to him. Allah wanted to reinstate the right of everyone who is rightly deserving and confirming this Allah said:

“But kindred by blood are nearer to one another regarding inheritance in the decree ordained by Allâh.” [Quran Chapter 8 Verse 75]

c) It resulted in the restriction of the Muslims in marrying the divorced wives of their adopted sons, as they were treated like their actual sons. And likewise many other harms.

The Prophet had adopted Zaid Ibn Haritha may Allah be pleased with him, this after the Prophet had freed him from slavery dignifying and honouring him, and was beloved to the Prophet, the Prophet would call Usama the son of Zaid ‘The beloved son of the beloved’. Before Allah prohibited the practice, it used to be said Zaid the son of Muhammed.

The Prophet even married Zaid to his cousin Zainab Bint Jahsh Al-Usdiyyah the mother of whom is Umaymah bint Abdul Muattalib.

Zainab remained with Zaid for a year or more before they faced difficulty in their marriage. When Zaid came to complain to the Prophet he said to him “hold on to you wife and fear Allah!” [Saheeh Muslim]

Then a short time later they were separated.

After this the command came from Allah to the Messenger of Allah for him to marry Zainab who was previously married to Zaid his adopted son before he divorced her, this was to destroy the practice of adoption that was so deeply rooted in the Arab mindset.

Zainab would compare herself with the Prophets other wives and say “ you were all married by your families as for me I was married to the Prophet by Allah from above seven heavens”.

And so it was from the wisdom of Allah’s decree to his messenger to marry Zainab thus abolishing the practice of adoption that was so deep rooted amongst the Arab, so prohibiting a practise that had so many harms. Even more important when one considers that there will be no Shareeah after that which the Prophet (PBUH) bought. This requires that this Shareeah is a complete one, with nothing missing not even the slightest thing that would bring benefit to human kind and is in their best interest. Allah the Exalted said: “There is no blame on the Prophet (pbuh) in that which Allâh has made legal for him. That has been Allah's Way with those who have passed away of (the Prophets of) old. And the Command of Allâh is a decree determined. ” [Quran Chapter 33 Verse 38] meaning there is no difficulty that should be felt by the Prophet in what Allah made permissible for him in marrying Zainab the previously divorced wife of Zaid his adopted son. There is also an indication of how Allah ruled over his previous Prophets and Messengers, as Allah never ordered them with something that bought difficulty on them.

What we have shown here is a refutation of the notion proposed by the hypocrites that there was anything untoward or inappropriate about the marriage of the prophet to Zainab nor anything in it to detract from his message.

So the command of Allah was fulfilled and it occurred and none can say otherwise nor can anyone change it and whatever Allah willed took place and whatever he does not will cannot happen.

It is therefore praiseworthy of Islam that it bought about the end of this reprehensible custom, after it had become accepted and rooted among the Arabs.

This prohibition resulted in;

1) The protection of the identities of people and their lineage from being lost of distorted.

2) The protection of the rights of those who are legitimate inheritors to inherit, it also meant the reinstating of the rights of all those who rightfully deserve it as Allah said :

“But kindred by blood are nearer to one another regarding inheritance in the decree ordained by Allâh.” [Quran Chapter 8 Verse 75]

3) The lifting of any difficulty that resulted from the restriction of marrying the divorced wife of ones adopted son, in obedience to the command of Allah “so that (in future) there may be no difficulty to the believers in respect of (the marriage of) the wives of their adopted sons when the latter have no desire to keep them (i.e. they have divorced them). And Allâh's Command must be fulfilled.” [Quran Chapter 33 Verse 37]

So the blessed union between the Messenger of Allah and Zainab (may Allah be pleased with her) was a confirmation of his prophet hood and a proof of the authenticity of the Sacred Law that was revealed to him from Allah.

*****

 Fourth: A logical argument to contest those who throw doubt on the marriages of the Prophet to eleven of his wives with whom he remained until his death leaving nine of them behind.

To begin with before delving any further one should ask;

Is it a prerequisite of any given Prophet of Allah that they marry multiple wives and, is the truth of their messages conditional on that?

The answer is of course no!

As it is well know there are Prophets who did not marry at all like the Prophets Yahya and Eesa (Jesus).

Moreover there are some prophets who married many a women, like the Prophet Dawud (David) who had a hundred free women and similarly the Prophet Sulayman (Solomon) who Allah had given kingship and prophet hood and he was singled out for that honour. The Prophet of Allah in generality have things that are specific to themselves alone, none more specific then being recipient of his books and like in the case of Musa (Moses) who was chosen by Allah and was given the honour of speaking with him. Similarly the miraculous birth of Eesa (Jesus) without a father, and the miracle of the Prophet and his ascension through the heavens where he saw from amongst the greatest of Allah’s signs, he was selected for that most special of honours.

Therefore we cannot use the marriage of a Prophet or multiple marriage of a Prophet s a reason to doubt his prophet hood, especially in the example of the Prophet Muhammed peace be upon him who’s teaching exemplifies;

1) A sound creed; that is complete and perfect calling to the oneness of Allah and his lordship, that he Allah alone is the Creator and Provider and that he is the only one deserving of worship without any other association, no son that is attributed to him nor wife, and that Allah Almighty is free from any imperfections and everything that does not befit His names and attributes, and that his names are the epitome of absolute perfection, and that there is none like unto him. A creed free from any lies a pure and transparent creed that does not have any cloudiness in it.

2) A just and upright Sacred law; that enjoins everything that is good and encourages it like the justice and tying the bonds of kinship, a Law that prohibits every evil and discourages it like oppressions and all illicit acts.

3) A noble teaching. Principled in good behaviour and etiquettes that are the most high, raising both individual and society to a higher level of sophistication and civilisation.

4) Acts of worship that enrich; with sole dedication to Allah alone, not for showing off, or hypocrisy or seeking recognition, nor associating any partners with him. Not worship that entails celibacy but rather a middle way that genders harmony between the worldly and the sacred, acts of worship that lead to the straight path.

5) Governed transactions; built upon the principles of wholesome goodness between all people without oppression and discrimination at any of its levels.

6) A noble lineage and honourable status; a further proof that Allah Almighty chose him for prophet hood.

7) A lofty moral code and exemplary mannerism’s; his characteristics were of the highest nature like trustworthiness, so he was ideal as an example for those who follow him and believe in him to emulate his ways in all his affairs.

8) His eagerness to hasten to be the first to do what he was commanding others to do from acts of worship to daily transactions applying the Sacred Law that he bought from Allah, thus becoming the best example to follow.

9) Miracles; that were given to him by Allah to strengthen and support his call, miracles that none other then a prophet can bring forth, and so becoming the most unequivocal proof to the truth of his prophet hood.

So overwhelming are these proofs that one has no option but to recognise him and believe in him and follow his way, recognising that everything he said or done was inspired by the revelation that bought enlightenment to all those who believed in it and implemented all the commands of Allah and in that there is great wisdom and benefit even if some of it or all of it escapes some.

Further evidence is found in the reality that Allah Almighty did not dress the people in his religion in compulsion, nor did he waste away their efforts by rejecting them nor did he leave them in confusion or conjecture in their religious affairs, rather he sent a light more bright than the light of the sun in the middle of the day and as for falsehood then it is the blackest of all darkness.

We find that huge crowds of people answer the call of the Prophet (pbuh) first and foremost his companions, this after they had witnessed the signs of his prophet hood and miracle that came with him none more great then the Holy Qur’an itself. This left no weapon for those who possessed hatred for the Prophet to attack him with nor because of the clarity of his message could they pose the question to them why do you believe in Muhammed?

So the Accursed Jews of that time despite being ‘People of The Book’ through Allah sending of the Prophet Musa (Moses) to them with the Torah, continued in allowing their arrogance to prevail. Despite Musa (pbuh) having foretold the coming of the Prophet of End Times, this knowledge that they possessed was then transmitted to the Arabs from them the Jews, as they had been certain of the imminent arrival of the Prophet of End Times, announcing his arrival and thinking that he would be from them the Jewry, so when eventually the Prophet (pbuh) did arrive after migrating to Madinah from Mecca the people of Madinah understood knew this confirmed what the Jews had been saying concerning his appearance. So they hastened competing with one another in believing in him.

It would have been more befitting of the Jews that they are the ones who hastened toward him as they had been given the revelation and many prophets were sent to the Israelites informing of his coming. The Arabs on the other hand had all but lost the remnants of the teachings of Ibrahim (Abraham) and had taken idols and stones as gods besides Allah. This show the great wisdom of Allah, as the Jews had been well known for killing the prophets sent to them belying them and throwing false accusations at them, even changing their scriptures adding and subtracting as they pleased according to their desires.

Instead Allah Almighty willed that that he Muhammed be sent to an illiterate people amongst whom ignorance had prevailed in all spheres of life where all manners of evil and vices where widespread to lift them from this darkness to the heights of knowledge and worship, and pure monotheism to Allah built upon the foundation of goodness and generosity, enabling the Muslims followers of the tradition of Muhammed to reach levels of great distinction when they held firm to the teachings and message of the Prophet peace be upon him.

So the resolve of the Jews grew stronger and the rancour and animosity to the prophet even greater set about convincing Quraysh that the religion of Idolatry and Polytheism was the religion of their forefathers and that this religion was far better then the religion that Muhammed was calling to, the worship of one God and the abandonment of the ways of their forefathers, he called to worshipping Allah alone without associating any partners with him. They done this by answering the questions of Quraysh when they asked about the religion of the Jews and the religion that Muhammed had bought. They were successful in convincing them that leaving the ways of their forefathers was a disgrace and would result in the wrath of Allah being placed on them. Yet none of them could muster the courage to ask the believers why are you following Muhammed?!

This make its clear that the companions had sincerely submitted to Allah obeying his commandments and refraining from his prohibitions applying his laws until death came to them and they were upon that understanding of pure monotheism. This was during the time before the Prophet (pbuh) had four wives, as he only married four wives after he had passed fifty years of age.

This leads us to ask a few questions the answer of which are absolutely clear for people with any intellect.

The First Question: what is to be said regarding those who believed in the Prophet and his message worshipping Allah with sincerity following his commands and abstaining from his prohibitions applying his Law until they died upon that belief, what will be their end?

Is their end in the Paradise of the Most Merciful where they enjoy eternal bliss and where the pleasure of Allah is upon them, or to the Hellfire a place of eternal torment and his displeasure and punishment?

The answer and there can only be one is that their eventual destination will be to the Paradise of Allah and to his eternal bounties. This is clear from what has been made apparent and from what Allah promised them and what is confirmed in all of the ‘Heavenly books’.

The second question: what relation did the Prophet marrying again according to what Allah permitted for him, have to do with those that believed in him? Will Allah reject the efforts of those follower of the Prophet who had seen the sign of his prophet hood and his miracles, would all of that come to nothing because the Prophet took more than one wife or had taken many wives.

The answer is an absolute no. As with the justice of Allah these people would not be punished as they had turned to him, believing in him and worshiped him sincerely submitting themselves to him.

The third question: is it at all conceivable that those followers of the Prophet who had correct creed implementing the commands of Allah and refraining from his prohibitions, those who did not desecrate any of Allah’s sanctities nor transgress any of his boundaries, is it at all conceivable that their Just Lord would enter them in to the Hellfire for their eternal punishment and his wrath to be on them, all of this because their prophet was married to more then one wife? This would contradict everything that Allah revealed in all the Holy Scriptures. Take into consideration the fact that it is He, Allah, who selected this Prophet for them to begin with. The Answer again is an unequivocal no. It is not even conceivable that any other answer could be entertained except to those who are blind and have no sense.

The fourth question: what do we say about Muhammed (pbuh) and his message after he married multiple time after passing fifty year of age.

The answer is and there is no alternative answer that we cannot but believe in him. This is because Muhammed really is the true messenger of Allah, and that him marrying was only with the permission of Allah from what Allah has permitted for him. With particular reference to his marriage to Zainab through which Allah wanted to abolish the practice of Adoption and its evils, it is important to note that these things along with others were specific dispensations for him and this will be discussed further later. This is the truth and the whole truth wherein is no lie, and truth is enlightenment and falsehood is but darkness.

The fifth question: does it detract from the prophet hood of Muhammed (pbuh) him marrying a number of women, in light of the fact many Prophets married before him some many, many times?

The answer goes without saying; a definitive no. Its is well reported that the prophet Dawud (David) had more then a hundred free women, and Sulayman (Solomon) who Allah made a King and a Prophet married numerous times. Beyond that a man marrying many women is something praiseworthy and an indicator of his strength and masculinity, that he is able to provide for all of his wives is a sign of responsibly living harmoniously with them all is a sign of his maturity

The sixth question: what then is the correct conclusion to what we have proposed. The answer being undoubtedly we arrive at the following truths:

1) That Muhammed (pbuh) really is the true messenger of Allah, having looked at the irrefutable proofs that indicate his prophet hood and the miracles that confirmed his message, none more greater than the Holy Quran itself, that all point to the truth that he is the Last Messenger and the Seal of the Prophets.

2) That Allah does not disregard the faith and efforts of those who believed in him following his orders and leaving wrongdoing those who applied his Laws they did indeed humble themselves before Allah and he Shareeah.

3) That there can by no unity between truth and falsehood, like there cannot be between light and darkness as the result would be confusion and conjecture.

4) The when the Prophet (pbuh) eventually did marry eleven of his wives it was completely sanctions by Allah, and was a special dispensation given to him alone, he was permitted to exceed the four wives afforded to the rest of the believers.

5) That the statement of the Prophet and his actions and particularly his marriage to his different wives has in and of itself great lessons that can be extracted, even though it escapes some.

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 Fifth, the marriage of the Prophet to eleven wives, whilst only allowing the believers to marry four, as a proof of his prophet hood and a confirmation of the truthfulness of the message he bought from Allah.

The Prophet (pbuh) was married to eleven wives, of whom died in his lifetime, Khadijah and Zainab Bint Khuzaymah who was given the name ‘the mother of the poor’ signifying her concern for them. The Prophet (pbuh) would die leaving behind him nine of his wives.

Meanwhile the Prophet did not allow the Muslims to marry more than four wives in accordance with the tradition and law that was revealed to him.

Despite the best efforts of the hypocrites in attacking him for marrying more than four wives whilst at the same time limiting the Muslims to four wives, making personal attacks on him in order to bring into disrepute the message he was calling to and his prophet hood, despite all of this it did not serve to weaken his resolve in spreading his message.

If indeed the Prophet was falsely claiming prophet hood he would have surely taken a path other than that ordered by Allah by permitting the Muslims to also marry more than four women, as he stood to gain nothing from limiting them. He could have of permitted them to marry any number of wives they desired exceeding even the eleven that he himself married (pbuh), he would have been aided in that by;

1) The fact that marrying numerous women was the prevailing norm in Arab society and the concept was not a new one to them.

2) That having numerous wives was praiseworthy and a sign of ones masculinity and maturity in being able to live harmoniously with them all, and there were many examples of men practising it.

Some of the Companions of the Prophet (pbuh) had even married more than four women this, before they embraced Islam, as for after they embraced then they obeyed the command of Allah in holding onto only four of there wives, and divorcing the remaining wives.

By lifting the limit placed on the believers the Prophet would not have faced the claims of the Jews and the hypocrites regarding his prophet hood and teaching. The Prophet (pbuh) sought only to follow, the path that was determined for him by Allah without deviating in the slightest or allowing his desires to dictate to him. The Messenger of Allah did not fear the blame of the blamers instead he was steadfast in spreading the message that he was entrusted with, so this is another clear proof of his prophet hood and the truth of his message.

Victory is only realised with Allah’s permission and for the hypocrites and the Jews Allah exposed their plots and extinguished their fires, and lowered their banner, and Islam and the Muslims reigned supreme and flourished in the Earth with people entering into the religion of Allah in crowds all believing in one God and his final messenger.

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 The Temporary Marriage a reprehensible act that Islam did not permit.

It is important to note here, that the Prophet did not permit the Temporary Marriage contract nor did he allow the Muslims to practice it.

Temporary Marriage is in reality just the same as fornication. It allows for the man to marry a women but the marriage is only temporary until he has satisfied himself from his desire at which point he leaves her.

The Shareeah of Islam came to regulate all relationships none more important than the family dynamic, it came to strengthen the structure of the family and to protect the bonds that keep families together, thereby protecting peoples identities and lineage. It came also to protect the women and her status whether she is a wife tending to the needs of her husband or a mother who nurtures her children laying down rules that govern every individuals rights and responsibilities, both at the individual level and at the societal level.

None of these qualities are in temporary marriage arrangements and so are in opposition to the principles of Islam, rather it is practiced by the Shia and those that follow their ways may Allah destroy them! They are seeking to satisfy their desires and are not the people of Islam and so their behaviours is not typical of Islam and Muslims.

The reality of the Shia is that they are a deviant sect who claim to be from the Muslims, they have numerous denominations and splinter sects, their movement was started by Abdullah Ibn Saba’ the Jew who sought to undermine Islam from within.

Allah blessed human kind with intellect by which one determines what is right from what is wrong and what is good and what is bad, it is in using that intellect that the human realises the highest of possibilities always seeking betterment in everything.

Say for example a man is known for his generosity, and good character it is only right and proper that in our minds we consider him to have a high moral code. Should we not afford the same to our Lord who blessed us with intellect, magnifying him as he deserves to be magnified and that we remove from him all that is not befitting to be associated with him, his actions and his decree, removing him from all detractions and falsehood, enabling us to arrive at the authentic creed with no crookedness in it, a creed that befits Allah and his attributes without the need to philosophise.

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 A brief expose of the creed of those who practise ‘temporary marriage’.

Right from the onset, we find that the Shia possessed many of the traits of the Jews, this is no surprise as their founder was a Jew Abdullah Ibn Saba’ who claimed he was a Muslim and claimed to love the household of the Prophet (pbuh).

Here are a few ways that they are similar;

1) Both the Shia and the Jews believe that Allah is just a large body, may Allah be exalted from what they say about him, like the Jews are the first to believe in the Dajjal (Antichrist) the one who claims lordship then we find the Shia with the same stroke describe Allah with descriptions that do not befit his majesty.

2) The Shia also believe in the principle of ‘beginning’ which implies that ignorance proceeded it, and that there is no knowledge of the unseen, yet at the same time claim that their Imams know all things and nothing escapes them.

3) Both also have animosity toward the Archangel Gabriel the angel responsible for bring down the revelation, saying it is him who burdens humans with responsibilities, similarly the Shia claim that Gabriel mistakenly took the revelation to Muhammed (pbuh) in place of the rightful recipient.

4) They are also similar in that they both altered there holy scriptures, the Jews distorted the Torah and the Shia distorted the Quran claiming it is created contradicting the statement of Allah that he is the protector of his book.

As for the Christians then they had all but lost their scripture in its entirety, with nothing remaining from it but fables from the word of mouth that were given peoples own interpretation adding to it and taking away from it however whoever liked, removing it from its shell of religiosity and mixing it with the Paganism of old. It went so far as they even changed the language of the revelation, all documented in their early history from people in different place and different times. This is why we find such vastly different versions of the Bible, many contradicting each other, none more reliable than the other, and the revisions of the Bible increased till today and will continue in this light until the Day of Resurrection.

5) They also imitated the Jews in their treatment of Allah Prophets, as the Jews would harm their Prophets falsely accusing them of things they were free from, similarly we find the Shia harming the household of the Prophet, accusing his wife Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) of unspeakable thing, claiming she betrayed the Prophet, may Allah destroy them for thinking Allah was not going to protect the honour of his Prophet and his household.

And the similarities continue, and with no surprise considering their founder was a Jew as alluded to earlier.

They also took issue with the Companions of the Prophet swearing at them and claiming that all of the Companions of the Prophet bar three disbelieved in his message after the Prophets subsequent death. May Allah destroy them! Allah chose his Prophets and then chose for them companions who were honoured be being given the status of being companions of the Prophet lending him victory to his cause.

If one was to ask the Jews who are the best of your brethren they would reply the companions of Moses.

Likewise if one posed the same question to the Christians they would say the Disciples of Christ, but asking the Shia the same question would get the unbelievable reply that the very worst of people were the companions of Muhammed (pbuh), may Allah curse them!

The Companion’s of the Messenger of Allah were the first to answer his call and believe in him they sacrificed in giving victory to him and his religion, that is why after the Prophets they are the best of humankind.

The Shia also took some of the traits of the Christians; none more obvious then their marriages without the offering of dowry as was the practice of the Christians. Seeking only pleasure of a sexual nature from their men.

Al-Kaashaany one of their protagonist says defending the practice; “a child born out of temporary marriage is better then one born out of wedlock, and anyone who rejects the legality of temporary marriage is an apostate.”

Another of them Al-Qammy says; “Allah took away from the Shia the consumption of alcohol and replaced it with temporary marriage.”

Aside from the above mentioned ask any of them concerning temporary marriage and the answer would always be the same “marry a thousand of them if you like they are just like rented wives” and this is expressed in their books. Others proclaimed “they do not get divorced nor do they inherit they are just rented temporarily.”

Allah Almighty did not legislate the like of that for his Prophet, they simply followed what their desired dictated to them.

We are making mention of the Shia here merely to throw light upon their position regarding temporary marriage, so that none is confused concerning the reality of their beliefs that is widespread amongst them from Iran, to the Lebanon and parts of Iraq, clearly they hold opposing views regarding marriage to the real Muslim mainstream.

Clearly they are only but attributer of themselves to Islam and are not true practitioners and anyone wanted to expand their reading on the topic is encouraged to read:

1) For Allah and then for History by Hussain Al-Mawsowy from the scholar’s of Najaf who turned away from Shiaism and embraced true Islam. In it he seeks to expose the realities of their faith exposing their true disbelief.

2) Are you Please with Shiaism? By Muhammed Ibn Hisham

3) The Creed of The Shia by Abdullah Al-Salafiy

It was unbecoming of the Prophet for him to permit this type of marriage for what lie in it in harm and exploitation for individual’s families and the society as a whole, rather he came with a pure Shareeah one protected by Allah confirming the verse in the Quran “But Allâh will complete His Light even though the disbelievers hate (it).” [Quran Chapter 61Verse 8]

So peace and blessing of Allah be on this trustworthy Prophet who came with the best of Laws to abide by for all of humankind.

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 Sixthly; The marriage of the prophet to his eleven wives after surpassing fifty years of age, and his living and nurturing them until death as a proof of his Prophet hood and a testament to the Shareeah that he bought from unto Allah.

We must when looking into the life of the Prophet look to the period when he married eleven wives as alluded to this was after he had surpassed the age of fifty, this period was the final period of his life, this considering his asceticism from the worldly delights and his god fearing nature. Take into consideration that he was preoccupied with the propagation of his message, fighting wars and battles in protection of it to lift the banner of Monotheism and set the foundation for the Islamic state that he built , his efforts in teaching what was revealed to him from Allah, all indicate the truthfulness of his message and affirm his prophet hood. Then likewise his multiple marriages have great lessons for those with sound understanding. His marriages indicate right from the onset a taking over of huge personal responsibility as is the case with all marriages, only his did not distract him from his role as Prophet of Allah, nor did it take him away from worshiping Allah, to the contrary it aided and supported him and his cause through his guidance of them to the correct path.

His life before fifty:

The Prophet (pbuh) married for the first time at the age of twenty-five to Khadija who at the time was forty years old, fifteen years his senior. Khadijah (may Allah be pleased with her) had been married twice previously and so was not a virgin when the Prophet married her. She died three years before the migration of the Prophet to Madinah about ten years into his prophet hood.

Khadijah was the first person to believe in his message, supporting him through the early difficulties he face from the tribe of Quraysh.

She mothered for him both sons and daughters, however all of his sons died in childhood and he outlived all of his daughters apart from Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with her) who was informed by him that she would be the first to meet him from his household after he died i.e. first to die after him.

This was yet another proof of his prophet hood as he correctly prophesised the death of his daughter Fatimah and she indeed was the first to die, dying six months after his death making her the first to die from his household like he had said (pbuh).

And so they were the most blessed of families, and with what Allah blessed her with in beauty and good character the Prophet did not marry anyone along with her during her lifetime.

And let us ask why?

Why when it is well known that a man is at his pinnacle in terms of physical strength and desire for women in his youth, and yet the Prophet is married only to Khadijah and yet later in his fifties in the last part of his life, with the burden of spreading the message and fighting the enemies of Islam does he then embark on marrying numerous wives, is this as his detractors claim a proof of his want to satisfy his desire?

The answer is an unequivocal no, because if their claims were true we would see it in evident in his behaviour:

- He surely would have married a virgin in his first marriage and not someone married twice previously as was the case for Khadijah especially considering his high social class, his grandfather being the leader of Mecca.

- Add to that that he would surely have married a women who was young in age as they are more desirous then older women and yet we find him marrying Khadijah at the age of Forty, she had passed the days of her youth.

- Or with this assumption he could and should have married a women who had both these qualities i.e. a young virgin.

- Or again enjoy the physical strength of youth by marrying numerous times, particularly as it was the norm of the Arabs and he was the highest of the Arabs in status as indicated his grandfather was in charge of Mecca.

- Or we should find some evidence to suggest his love for the worldly life in possessions and covertness for what the life of this world has to offer.

And yet with extensive searching one is unable to find anything that indicates other then that he was a complete ascetic, a humble slave to his Lord.

In continuation, we all are aware that Allah sent his Prophet as an example to be emulated by us all in all aspects of life from our worship to our transactions and our treatment of our wives. Indeed in the Messenger of Allah we find a great example of how to build a healthy family life built upon the conciseness of Allah and ruling by his laws, abiding by his orders and abstaining from his prohibitions. So when one decides to get married he tries his utmost to ensure his marriage is built upon these principles of conciseness of Allah to prepare him for what lies in all marriages in difficulty like parenting, providing monetarily and the like. Also one would naturally want to protect ones marriage from bad influences whether that be from outside or by not living according to Allah’s decree or not properly nurturing and cultivation children to becoming upright human beings, all of which are time consuming. We note that despite doing all of this for the upkeep of his family one should not be doing it at the expense of his worship to Allah, did we not find the Prophet (pbuh) preoccupied with spreading his message and partaking in battles in defence of it, trying to lift the banner of Islam? Then what do we say when this person with all of these responsibilities and pressures is to marry again to another wife? No doubt another marriage would mean for this person more responsibilities and the need for more provisions along with a new problem to address that is living with two wives simultaneously.

What can be said if this poor person then marries a third wife or more a fourth?

The point that one can see from our discussion is that in our times it is rare to see someone marrying twice, and even rarer is to find someone concerned with the spiritual state of the families, or someone who is able to live in harmony with both of his wives not divorcing either of them.

But the Prophet was the best of all Allah’s slaves, and example for all after him to follow in;

1) His treatment of his wives (may Allah be pleased with them)

2) How he invited to the way of Allah to each individual wife taking into consideration their individual differences and treating them equally.

3) His nurturing of them on the principles of fearing Allah, abstention from worldly things, even worship to Allah.

We therefore find that the Prophet (pbuh) was able to live harmoniously with all of his wives at on given time, with the sustenance of Allah he set about setting up the Empire of Islam built upon the foundations of conciseness of Allah and the application of his Law.

So the Prophet is for us the best of examples, as someone who married eleven women in the latter years of his life, that did not take away from his worship of Allah nor did it distract him from his call, whilst he was simultaneously nurturing his own family and wives like he was nurturing the state of Islam, this is again a further proof of his prophet hood and the truth of his message.

Here we present a brief example of family life in the household of the Prophet.

The household of any person is his sanctuary, and his realities, any bad mannerism and frailties are exposed in this most personal of all places.

One finds the Messenger of Allah, was the quintessence of humbleness without any pretence, this despite him being the ‘man’ of the household, it was within his power and right to demand from his wives, as everyone under his command was weak, but we find he himself was in the service of his family. For he used to stitch his own clothes and milk his goat and would do things for himself.

On this point Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) wife of the Prophet (pbuh) said, “That she accompanied the Prophet on a certain journey. At that time she was a mere girl and was neither fat nor bulky. The Prophet asked the people to move on, and they marched ahead. Then the Prophet said to me, 'Come on, let us have a race'. Aisha says that she ran and remained much ahead of him. The Prophet kept quiet for some time. Later on when Aisha gained weight and became loose bodied, she forgot the previous incident. Again she accompanied the Prophet on some journey. The Prophet again asked the people to march ahead, and they moved ahead. Then the Prophet again asked her to have a race with him. This time the prophet defeated her and she lagged behind. Now the prophet laughed and said, 'this is in reply to our previous defeat'”

It is but a playful game they were enjoying, demonstrating the importance the Prophets showed toward his wife. Ordering the people to march forward so that he could race with his wife, thus entering pleasure and happiness into her heart, then the Prophet in the spirit of joy says to her “this is in reply for that”, which is why he is the best of teachers and the most deserving of guides to be followed.

We could have selected any number of anecdotes from his biography to demonstrate how life was living with him (pbuh) for his wives, and all of these have been protected by Allah as a clear guide for all people and times.

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 The wisdom of the Prophets (pbuh) marriages and the great benefits that resulted in it.

There were great benefits in the marriages of the Prophet (pbuh) to his wives and many lessons one could learn, from those great wisdoms is:

1) The important role of narrating his traditions, that are his statements and actions. His traditions are the second source of the Shareeah after the Quran, and the a major role of their preservation was given to the wives of the Prophet. So it is on their account that all of Islam benefits from the various narration of the Prophets speech and actions, narrated by them with absolute honesty due to their trustworthy nature. The people who specialize in the traditions and narrations of the prophet quote some three thousand narrations have come through the wives of the Prophet.

2) Spreading the message of Islam through his wives to the womenfolk of the society as all of his wives were women of nobility so widely revered.

3) Spreading Islamic regulation that is specific to women particularly ritual purification, a topic that is especially precise, that was understood and taught in a precise fashion by his wives.

4) In order to facilitate for all to see what the Prophet was like in his innermost core. The Prophet (pbuh) married Umm Habeebah and her father was an enemy to him, and he married Saffiyyah after the Muslims had killed her father, uncle and husband, so if he had not been the most complete in character they would have left him, but it was not unusual for his wives to love and prefer the Prophet to there own families.

5) In marrying his wives there was a further responsibility on him outside of the formidable task of spreading the message of his Lord and worshiping him.

6) His out of the ordinary ability to have multiple wives cohabiting with them all, despite have little food and fasting sometimes for two days continuously without food or water, considering he had ordered the youth who were unable to marry to observe the fast as it is something which lessens the desires, add to that his devotion to Allah in worship and undertaking the enormous task of spreading the call of Allah and the lifting of the banner of Monotheism.

So it was extraordinary that despite all of these things he was able to live happily with so many wives when a normal human would be unable, this is yet another sign that he was selected by Allah and given special powers not afforded to the average person.

7) It gave an opportunity to the believers for them to emulate their Prophet in his manners and ways especially in marriage and in the treatment of ones spouse. This is why we find his biography has been preserved so that Muslims can copy their Prophet.

8) It also allowed for the women of the world to emulate the wives of the Prophet according to how the Prophet nurtured them, teaching them manners and how to live in harmony with his other wives. This indicate the reason why the Shareeah permitted for the taking of more than one wife on condition that the correct rule are followed with the fear of Allah at the forefront.

9) His marriages also served to establish and bring closer his ties to his most important companions, who were like the pillars upholding Islam; by doing so he ensured the upkeep of Islam through his companions. In this light he married the daughter of Abu Bakr As-Siddique, and he married the daughter of Umar Ibn Al-Khattab, and he himself married his two daughters to Uthman when the first of them died he married the second and was called ‘the possessor of the two lights’. He also married his daughter Fatimah to Ali Ibn Abi Talib may Allah be pleased with them all.

10) As alluded to earlier from the wisdom in his marriage to Zainab Bint Jahsh was following the commandment of Allah in abolishing the practice of adoption that had become rampant in Arab society. So he was order to marry the divorced wife of his previously adopted son Zaid and by it abolishing the practice for the Muslims. Through this abolition preserving the rights of rightful inheritors to inherit and protecting the lineage of people from being confused. As Allah said:

“But kindred by blood are nearer to one another regarding inheritance in the decree ordained by Allâh. Verily, Allâh is the All-Knower of everything.” [Quran Chapter 8 Verse 75]

By doing this he was also lifting the restriction on the Arabs from marrying the divorced women of their adopted sons. This meant that by the Prophets marriage to Zainab it indicated that Zaid was not in actual fact the son of the Prophet as had previously been said, as it is prohibited to marry the wives of your son.

11) By marrying many women he was spreading his message by gaining helpers and caller to his way against his enemies who were calling to false Gods.

12) His marrying into the different tribes of the Arabs also made it easier for them to embrace Islam.

13) It should not go unmentioned that his marriages also mean naturally that his offspring would flourish, from amongst the characteristics he encouraged the believers to look for when getting married are the women who are child bearing, as he is proud of the numbers of his followers on the Day of Judgment.

14) That is was a praiseworthy quality among the Arab for a man to take more then one wife and it was an indication of his manhood, but add to the unique situation of the Prophet and his responsibility in spreading the message of Allah it make his marriages an even greater achievement. Rather than distracting him from his goal it instead acted as assistance for him, by teaching and nurturing them.

Thus you see clearly from the aforementioned points the wisdom that lied in his marrying many different wives, that the people of knowledge have extrapolated from us from his biography, so this again proves as an evidence of his prophet hood and the truth of the Shareeah he bought from Allah Almighty.

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 Seventhly; A description of the house of the Prophet as a proof of his prophet hood and a testament of truth to his message.

The description of the house provides for us the most conclusive proof of his prophet hood, and they he was sent as a mercy to all of mankind.

For he is the one who taught us; that in the act of copulating with ones spouse there is even in that reward from Allah, as they had done so under the umbrella of marriage, do you not see that had he pursued this outside of marriage he would be liable to punishment and sin for taking a path the then the path that Allah permitted. Indeed the sin of adultery is one of the major crimes that the one who does it incurs the wrath of Allah and his punishment.

The Prophet (pbuh) also encouraged for the believers to seek behind their worldly action the pleasure of Allah like Allah Almighty said “Say (O Muhammad (pbuh)): "Verily, my Salât (prayer), my sacrifice, my living, and my dying are for Allâh, the Lord of the 'Alamîn (mankind, jinns and all that exists)” [Quran Chapter 6 verse 162]

So the home life of the Prophet from his food, drink house and furniture were all for Allah seeking his pleasure.

Let us now shed some light on this blessed prophetic house and household so it is a further proof of his prophet hood and proof that he was not seeking the adornments of the worldly life.

On the authority of Abdullah Ibn Masud said that God's Messenger slept on a reed mat and got up with the mark of it on his body. He said, "O God's Messenger! I wish you would order us to spread something out for you and make something." The Prophet replied, "What have I to do with the world, I am like a rider who rests for a while under the shade of a tree, then goes off and leaves it." [Narrated by At-Tirmidhi].

The Prophet was indeed ascetic and a slave of Allah and we see this clearly in his household:

Firstly his House; before we glance at the diminutive nature of his house and the humble furniture therein we understand that despite Allah enriching his Prophet, this did not lead to the Prophet to have the love of money in his heart rather it was in his hand, with which he would spend in every gracious cause seeking with it the pleasure of Allah, he never sought the worldly life and its adornment rather the coolness of his eye was in his prayer.

His house was built with mud bricks and some stone bricks and its roof was made of palm leaves. Demonstrating the size of his house Al-Hasan narrates that he entered the house of the Prophet during the caliphate of Uthman and he could touch the roof with his hands.

The house of the Prophet and the private dwelling area of his wives were small in size but were full of Faith and obedience to Allah, and it was a house alive with the remembrance of Allah from his glorification and praise, ‘Glory be to Allah, All praise to Allah, there is no God but Allah, Allah is great.’ Frequently being recited therein were the verses of Allah’s book and the prayer was established there, so much did the Prophet used to pray at home that his feet used to crack from his long standing in prayer. An empty house but one full of faith and obedience.

Secondly his bed; Anan ibn Malik narrate that he was with the Prophet of Allah when a group of people entered his house among them was Umar, Umar entered Muhammad's house and noticed the state of the furniture in it. Muhammad (pbuh) himself had only one sheet of cloth round him to cover the lower part of his body. There was one simple bed, with one pillow filled with nut fiber; on one side of the room was some barley and in one corner near his feet was an animal skin. There were some water-bag skins hanging beside his bed. Umar said that on seeing this tears came into his eyes. God's Messenger asked the reason for his tears. He replied, "O God's Messenger! Why shouldn't I cry! The strings of the bed have left marks on your body. This is a small room with all your furniture, I can see what there is. The Kaiser of Rome and Kisra (ruler) of Persia enjoy luxurious living while you, God's Messenger, and the Chosen One, live like this." He said, "Ibn Khattab! Don't you like that they choose this world and we choose the Hereafter?” And Umar replied “and so it is as you say” [Narrated by Ahmed]

So we see that his bed was a mat that used to leave marks on his body, this was the degree of unimportance he gave to the worldly things.

Thirdly his clothing; the clothing of the Prophet (pbuh) was modest and was neither haughty nor overly frugal in that regard, rather they were humble, modest garments suiting the his own modesty, it used to be said of him that he is more shy then a ‘virgin behind her veil’.

He used to love perfume and none would smell better the perfume of the Messenger of Allah, and this is what was befitting for him as Allah is Beautiful and loves beauty in all things, his smell was indicative of his ritual and spiritual purity as he was continuously in receipt of revelation and was always in a state of remembrance and prayer, always calling to the way of Allah in a way that was the most correct and so was the ideal person to be emulated.

Fourthly his food and drink; the staple diet of the Prophet consisted of the ‘two blacks’ water and dates, as it is narrated that a new moon would be born and another and fire was not lit in the house of the Prophet meaning food was not cooked.

He was known not to eat to his bellies fill and would only eat enough to suffice him to keep his back upright.

All of this indicate to us that the house of the Prophet was basic free from the lavishes of the worldly life not seeking any of its luxuries, his first and foremost goal was the pleasure of Allah.

If he wanted it was within his ability to command those around him to build for him a palace and eating the most opulent of food and dress riding the best of vehicles, none of which was prohibited Islamically for him, but he was offered by Allah to be a King Prophet or a prophet and slave of Allah and he chose the latter to humble himself before Allah and it is a station that is no doubt better and higher.

What is it that was driving him to abandon the adornments of this life? And what was he seeking in that? And what does that indicate to us?

The answer is that his drive was the obedience of Allah doing all the he was commanded, being the first t apply the law that was revealed to him, he was seeking in that the pleasure of Allah.

That indicate to us the truthfulness of his message and that he was the true Prophet of Allah sent to humankind.

After our discussion is it at all feasible for someone with the least bit of intellect to suggest that his marrying to numerous wives was merely an act born out of his desires?

He is the one who taught us the words of Allah: “Say (O Muhammad (pbuh)): "Verily, my Salât (prayer), my sacrifice, my living, and my dying are for Allâh, the Lord of the 'Alamîn (mankind, jinns and all that exists)” [Quran Chapter 6 verse 162]

The answer is of course no.

- If it were the case that his marriages were for the sole reason of satisfying his desires we would have seen the following;

1) That this desire of his should have manifested in his love of other things that the human body also desires for like food and drink, and this is not evident in any of his houses rather one finds the opposite in that months have gone by and yet they is nothing being cooked in the house of prophet hood, nor any food consumed apart from a few dates and water. Apart from that lack of food it is a well established tradition of his that he used to fast a lot, he would fast Monday and Thursday of every week and the three middle days of every lunar month, six days of Shawwaal , this in addition to him fasting the entire months of Ramadan and the vast majority of Sha’baan and many days of Muharram and various other days scattered throughout the rest of the year like the Day of Arafah and the 10th of Muharram. It was also his custom that if he woke in the morning and there was no food to be served he would remain fasting till the end of the day, he would also occasionally fast for two consecutive days without breaking fast all of this in the scorching heat of Arabia. This was in addition to his efforts fighting battles in defence of his teaching.

2) It was more befitting of a man half the age of the Prophet to do what he done in his fifties marrying numerous wives whilst setting up the foundation of the state of Islam and fighting to protect the very existence of his message. But his heart was preoccupied with Allah and with the teachings that he taught to the Companions.

So the house of the Prophet and the description of his life therein is yet another undeniable proof of his prophet hood and the truth of his eternal message.

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 Eighthly: The Sacred Law that was sent to Muhammed (pbuh) and the allowance of its adherers to marry up to four times as a proof of his prophet hood and a testament to the truth of his message.

The Sacred Law that was sent to Muhammed (pbuh) and the allowance of its adherers to marry up to four times is indeed a proof of his prophet hood and a testament to the truth of his message. A message suitable for all people and all places.

None know the knowledge of the unseen save Allah, he is the sole know of what will take place in the future, and he is more aware o what is better for humankind then they are themselves and that is because he created them, so Allah sent a legal system that was in agreement to their present and to their future.

A nothing indicates to us this point more vividly then a look at the birth rate of both women and men. Moreover a look to the ratio of male and female birth rates is clearer evidence. This alone rubbishes the claims of those who demonstrate enmity to the Messenger of Allah and the religion that came with him, a religion that was protected from tampering unlike Judaism and Christianity.

The Sacred law that the Prophet bought allowing the practice of Polygamy because of it many individual and societal benefit, did not just leave it to the people to determine when or how or how many women to marry, instead it legislated strict conditions and prerequisites to anyone wanting to marry more than once.

1- Absolute justice and equality between the wives, and not oppressing anyone of them, so the husband should not lean to one of his wives more then the other. What is meant by ‘leaning’ is not the leaning of the heart where one is inclined more toward one wife over the others as this is a matter for the heart and something that no man is in control of. What ‘leaning’ means is leaving here unattended making life constricting and opening for her the doors of temptation.

2- The ability to provide the provisions for all his wives, it is not permissible for a man to exceed one wife if he is unable to provide for two wives making them live together for example and making people fill his short comings n their rights over him.

3- Dealing with them justly when providing for them. It is not allowed for any husband that he is misery to any of his women so that he does not oppress any of them.

4- Having intimate relations with each of his wives so closing the doors of temptation and sins.

It is from the wisdom of Allah Almighty who knew what was in the past and what is to be in the future that he allowed the practice of polygamy and it is a sign of his mercy to humankind that he permitted it, as it contains so many benefits for human kind.

 To mention but a few of these great benefit that result from the practice of polygany, that the Prophet practiced and was practised in Arab society:

1- It is from the laws of Allah and his wise decree that the numbers of men in comparison to women are always less, and that a man is more exposed to dangers and death then women in all walks of life especially war, and the two World Wars are examples of that leaving millions of women both married and not to lead lives without a husband.

And if every man limited himself to marrying just one women this would leave a large number of women without partners, leaving them no path in satisfying their desires apart from blameworthy ones satisfying their desires like animals satisfy their.

And the science of measuring rates of birth and deaths has been a slap in the face of every ignoramus. As they discovered that the numbers of female births far outstrip births of their male counterparts, proving the verse in the Quran :

“(This is) a Book, the Verses whereof are perfected (in every sphere of knowledge, etc.), and then explained in detail from One (Allâh), Who is All-Wise and Well-Acquainted (with all things).” [Quran Chapter 11Verse 1]

2- That women are normally reliant, it is with this in mind that in Islam a man is charged with the responsibility of clothing feeding and housing his wife, this is in addition to her right to a dowry and it is upon him to fulfil all of her needs. This is all to respect women, in contrast to what we see to day with many men fulfilling completely the rights of their wives because of poverty.

Therefore the reliance of a women to her husband is less then the reliance of a man to his wife, as she will not face poverty as he is likely to feel it because of his under taking of marriage.

If a man was to then limit himself to one wife it would mean the increase in the numbers of reliant women who do not have anyone tending to their needs, and would cause great social upheaval and to the spreading of indecent acts between humans. And this is evident in the Christian and Jewish traditions, even to the point where they do illicit thing in the various festivities.

3- Perhaps you find some men blessed with both extraordinary physical strength as well as above average financial wealth, and like we alluded to earlier; Islam did not come to eradicate the desires of man and the natural instinct that he was created with, but rather it came to guide and direct it to what is right according to what Allah Almighty revealed and was pleased with for his slaves.

Rather Allah Almighty legislated that for men who are like this, that they are allowed to take up to four wives, especially as there are periods where women menstruate or like the postpartum bleeding after childbirth where he cannot approach her sexually. So not only is it a mercy for the man but it is easier on his wife who may be his only wife and be unable to fulfil all of his needs.

5- There are men who for whatever reason travel between countries for long or short periods of time. It may not always be possible or feasible to accompany his wife on these journeys especially if he has children, so it was from the mercy of Allah that he allowed for such a man that he take more then one wife so that he can protect his name and honour and not fall into that which Allah prohibited. Especially if the country he is visiting is one where sexual vices are prevalent, where the moral fabric of the people is weaker and they may not even believe in a God.

Of course this is also not without conditions;

- He should ensure he is not absent from the wife he left behind for long periods that may bring harm to her.

- He should always deal justly between both wives in everything.

6- There are some men who want to see their offspring flourish, from what they have been endowed with by Allah in physical strength and financial stability, or perhaps they seek to emulate the advice of the Prophet when he said “ marry the women who are child bearing and make themselves beloved to you, as I am proud of your numbers on the Day of Judgement”, he is of course charged with bringing his children up according to the regulations of Islam.

Allah did not seek to restrict men who find themselves in the aforementioned categories by limiting them to one wife, but on condition of:

- His ability to make provisions for them including their religious well being by holding tight to the Shareeah of Allah.

- Secondly that he treat them with absolute justice.

This along with what we have shown demonstrate that the Prophets marriage to multiple wives and his allowance for the believers to do so is a definite proof of his prophet hood and a confirmation of his message.

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 Ninthly: The absolute obedience of the Prophet (pbuh) to the order of Allah in what Allah permitted him to marry from the women, as a further proof of his prophet hood and a confirmation of his message.

The Messenger of Allah married eleven women all with the dispensation of Allah and his permission, as Allah permitted his Prophet to marry numerously like the Prophets before him had married numerously also.

There for the obedience of the Prophet (pbuh) to the order of Allah in what Allah permitted him to marry from the women because of the great benefits of it for him primarily and his followers secondarily as we have already shown, as a further proof of his prophet hood and a confirmation of his message.

As we have already established his marriage to Zainab was ordained to him in order to abolish the despicable practice of adoption.

In fact in generality all of his actions were in accordance with what Allah commanded including his multiple marriages, he demonstrated the rules that Allah placed and his boundaries, always guarding his commandment and prohibitions.

He demonstrated this best when Allah decreed that the Prophet was no longer to marry any other wife after the wives he had nor was he to divorce any of them, Allah Almighty revealed to him:

“It is not lawful for you (to marry other) women after this, nor to change them for other wives even though their beauty attracts you, except those (captives or slaves) whom your right hand possesses. And Allâh is Ever a Watcher over all things.” [Quran Chapter 33 Verse 52]

This was a reward to the wives of the Messenger for their patience and good nature towards him, and their preference of the hereafter over this fleeting life.

Although this verse was eventually abrogated but remained read in the Quran , meaning the prohibition no longer stood on him not being able to marry, despite this we find that the Prophet remained steadfast and faithful to those of his wives he had consummated marriage with, not divorcing a single one of them nor marrying anyone on top of them. It was common for them that they would compete with on another always planning to see how and with what they could be the most beloved to the Messenger of Allah, and in return the Prophet remained with them patiently teaching and nurturing every single one of them with what he was inspired with from Allah. He may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him was the ideal husband and a complete example of what a husband should be like to his wives.

This because he would only ever do that which pleased Allah exalted is he. That is why you never find him calling his Companions to do something except he was the first in obeying the commandment or leaving the oppression. His glorious biography is a sufficient proof of his prophet hood and a testament to the truth of his teaching.

- In continuation, we can see from what we have discussed that in reality of the marriage of the Prophet was for him an increase in his responsibilities, this is because the Prophet had been ordered not to marry again nor to change any of his wives, in return for their perseverance and patience, even when the restriction was lifted the Prophet did not marry on his previous wives.

The Prophet marriages did not distract him from the work of prophet hood and to his personal dedication to the worship of Allah, nor did it distract him from calling to the way of Allah, instead it helped galvanise him and he taught them and nurtured them on the principles of loving the hereafter and abstaining from the adornment of the worldly life.

As for other than the Prophet (pbuh);

Then is allowed for all Muslims that they marry four women provided that they deal with them justly in all of their affairs like the Prophet (pbuh) did, although one can be excused for loving one more than the other as this is something outside of his control.

What if some accident caused the death of all of ones wives?

Then in that case it is allowed for the man to marry four other wives in place of those that died, which would make the total number of wives he had at eight wives.

What about if he then divorced all of his wives for an acceptable reason, as of course he cannot divorce them for no justifiable reason in the Shareeah.

Then the answer is that in that case it is allowed for the man to marry a further four wives in place of those that he divorces, which would make the total number of wives he had at twelve wives, a number that is more than the number of women that the Prophet married, and likewise if the previous two circumstances were to recur that would mean him marrying many, many wives.

As for the Prophet then that was not allowed for him as the verse in the Quran showed and although it was then abrogated, during the period the verse was actively acted upon, any of the believers could have married and divorced according to the situation that he might find himself in any number of women far in excess of those that the Prophet was ordered to remain with, the only limit being that they did not exceed four wives at any given time.

Another reason for the Prophets marriages being an additional burden of responsibility is that he was ordered not to allow for his love of his wives to distract him from the job of spreading the message given to him by Allah.

So this argument proves again the great wisdom that Allah bought forth in the marriage of the Prophet (pbuh) to his wives, and was yet another proof of him prophet hood and message.

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 Tenthly: The Marriages of the Prophet (pbuh) was a test of the faith and resolve of the believers from Almighty Allah.

The Marriages of the Prophet (pbuh) was indeed a test of the faith and resolve of the believers and their certainty of his prophet hood and message.

This is because the Jews and Hypocrites were hasty in looking for anything with which to attack the Prophet with, including falsifying lies about him, in order to take the people away from his message, and return those that believed in him to their religion of old. How could they achieve such a goal, when Allah has promised his Prophet that he will be victorious even if the disbelievers dislike it.

Islam is indeed a religion on the rise and people are embracing everyday, this make the affair of defending the religion a serious one.

Islam is in need of men who are believers in it to protect it from the onslaught of the disbelievers, men who take on the responsibility of spreading the true message of Islam who are unaffected by the lies and fabrication that are thrown at them. These men are like pillars holding up the religion. That is why those claims and attempts from the hypocrites was for the believers a test of their faith, none can withstand this onslaught only the most strongest of believers. This test is reminiscent of another test that faced the believers at the time of the Prophet; the changing of the Qibla (direction of Prayer) from the Sacred Al-Aqsa Mosque in Palestine to the Ka’bah in Mecca.

The Muslims along with the Prophet used to pray in the direction of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, until they were instructed by Allah to face the Ka’bah in Mecca.

“so turn your face in the direction of Al-Masjid- al-Harâm (at Makkah). And wheresoever you people are, turn your faces (in prayer) in that direction.” [Quran Chapter 2 Verse 144]

This after the Prophet and the believers had spent a period praying in that direction, the e hypocrites and Jews saw this as an opportunity to spread their lies and fabrications regarding the changing of the direction of the Qibla from ) from the Sacred Al-Aqsa Mosque in Palestine to the Ka’bah in Mecca.

But the believers remained steadfast, resolute in their faith and obeyed the command of their Lord, a demonstration of this certainty in their belief is when a group of believers were informed concerning the changing of the direction of prayer as they were praying, and so they changed direction whilst they were in the act of bowing to Allah, all of them men and children completing their prayer in the direction of the Ka’bah in Mecca. This demonstrate they complete subservience to the commandment of Allah that they did not wait until after the prayer had ended rather they immediately changed direction, illustrating their complete certainty in the Messenger of Allah and his call.

An so the multiple marriages of the Prophet was a test to see how strong their faith was in him, and none is able to pass these tests except one with absolute certainty in what he believes.

A further proof of that is that those same companions fought and spread the words of Allah and the words of his Messenger both in the life of the Messenger (pbuh) and after his death taking his message to the corners of the Earth.

Merely a hundred years had elapsed since the death of the Prophet and yet his message had spread far in to the East and West and both North and South and the people entered into his religion in groups.

The Prophet was indeed the best of all teachers and the best of all examples to follow.

May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him.

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 The noble Characteristics of the Prophet as a husband.

The Prophet was the best of all husbands, in terms of his disposition and his zealous protection of his womenfolk, add to that the gentleness in his demeanour, his simplicity, his forbearance, his steadfastness in the face of difficulty, his manhood his justice, his strength, he was honourable in his dealing with his wives, curing their jealousy, fulfilling their wants and needs, being just in correcting them when they erred, accepting their consultation in the most significant affairs.

Whatever we say and however we word our statements about his qualities as a husband we would never be able to do him justice, as his married life constituted the fulfilling of second part of him, and in it is a whole school worth of meanings.

Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrated that the Prophet (pbuh) ‘never struck anything with his hand not a women nor a slave, except in the way of Allah, neither did he ever seek retribution in something from his own rights, however he would seek it if it was the right of Allah.” [Narrated by Muslim]

Anas reported that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) had in one of his journeys his slave who was called Anjasha along with him. He goaded by singing the songs of camel-driver. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Anjasha, drive slowly as you are driving (the mounts who are carrying) glass vessels. i.e. the women. [Narrated by Muslim]

Aishah said, "I used to drink (from a container) while I was menstruating. I would then pass it to the Messenger of Allah and he would drink from the same spot where I had put my lips." [Narrated by Muslim]

Al-Aswad narrated: I asked 'Aisha what did the Prophet use to do at home. She replied. "He used to keep himself busy serving his family and when it was time for the prayer, he would get up for prayer." [Narrated by Bukhari]

Aisha reported that the Messenger of Allah would say to her; “ I know when you are pleased with and I know when you are angry at me” so I said how do you know that to which he replies when you are pleased with me you say By the Lord of Muhammed! And when you are displeased you say By the Lord of Ibraheem! So I said By Allah O’ Messenger of Allah I do not but leave your name”. ." [Narrated by Bukhari]

This illustrates to us how well he knew his wives that he would notice every subtlety in their word.

The Prophet was in the same respect protective over the memory of his wives, he would protect the remembrance of Khadijah his first wife, this after she had been the first person to believe in him and assist him with her wealth and all her might, despite her people disbelieving in him, that is why he did not marry anyone else in her lifetime despite her marrying twice before and being much older then him entering into the last portion of her life whilst he was in the pinnacle of strength. He would protect her memory even many ears after her death as the following narration illustrates.

Aisha narrated : "I was not, jealous of any other wife of the Prophet as I was jealous of Khadijah, because of his constant mentioning of her and because God had commanded him to give her good tidings of a mansion in Paradise of precious stones. And whenever he sacrificed a sheep he would send a fair portion of it to those who had been her intimate friends. [Narrated Bukhari]

Look at how he remembers his wife Khadijah by even distributing the meat of sacrifice because of remembering her.

It is narrated in the books of history and biography, that an old lady visited the Prophet in the house of Aisha and he laid down his cloth for her, and sat her down on it, when she left Aisha enquired about her and was told she was a women who used to visit Khadijah.

It is reported that he would accept their opinion and go back on his in an issue they disliked.

He would assist them in their houses, he would fix his own shoes and stitch his own clothes and assist his servant in carrying out his duties.

He was the best of all examples and the Prophet (pbuh) never struck anything with his hand not a women nor a slave, except in the way of Allah.

He was the softest of people and the most generous of people and was always smiling.

He would divide his time equally between his wives spending a night with each one in turn.

If he embarked n a journey he would draw lots between them to choose who would accompany him on his journey in the spirit of justice.

When he performed the pilgrimage he took with him all of his wives.

When he was ill in his final illness and was unable to go from house to house he would ask “where am I tomorrow” seeking the day of Aisha and so his wives permitted him to remain with Aisha as long as he wanted and so he remained there and he died there peace be upon him.

And like his justice in dividing his time between his wives, he was also just in the way he spent on them and treated them.

He would take a reconciliatory position when dealing with the jealousy there was between them for his attention, and would occasionally become upset by things that normally upset women.

At-Tirmidhi narrates:

That Safiyyah wife of the Prophet (pbuh) who was from the Children of Israel that it reached her that Aisha and Hafsa said: ‘ we are better in the sight of the Prophet then you” so she mentioned that to the Prophet who said to her “ why did you not say to them, in what way are you better, when Muhammed is my husband and Haroun (Aaron) is my farther and Musa (Moses) is my uncle?”

So this was an example of how he was comprehensive in his dealings with his wives with wisdom, what we have shown from his characteristics are merely a few drops in the ocean that is his great character and is further testament to the truth of his prophet hood and the truth of his message.

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 A brief look at each individual marriage of the Prophet and the wisdom and benefit of each blessed union.

The Prophet had in any one time at most nine wives, this was after Khadija and Zainab Bint Kuzaymah had both passed away, this was a special dispensation for him alone and is not permitted for anyone apart from him, by the consensus of all the scholars. This is not unlike his other dispensations mentioned in the books of jurisprudence like his continual fasting, which he prohibited the companions from following because of the difficulty in it for them.

In fact the Prophet did not marry after the death of Khadijah until he migrated from Mecca to Madinah except to Sawdah may Allah be pleased with her. Nor did he marry again until Islam was manifest as a state in Madinah once he had entered his fifties, these marriage all served purposes for him and his cause.

1- Khadijah may Allah be pleased with her.

The Prophet (pbuh) married Khadijah when he was twenty-five years old and she was twice widowed, and forty years old, she lived with him for fifteen years before revelation came to him, and died three years before the migration at the age of sixty-five. The Prophet spent the best part of his youth with her and a good part of his manhood with her, she mothered children for him and he did not marry any other women during her time with him.

It was from Allah decree that he married her and their union was a blessed one, as she was the first to believe in him and his massage from womankind and believed in him where people had belied him, compensating him from her wealth when people had embargoed him, so she was for him the best of his wives and he did not prefer anyone over her.

2- Sawdah Bint Zum’ah may Allah be pleased with her.

She was the first woman the Prophet married after the death of Khadijah, the Prophet married her after her own husband had died returning from their second migratory trip to Ethiopia.

It was from the wisdom of the Prophet that he proposed marriage to her as she otherwise would have had to return to her family in Mecca where she would have faced persecution and been forced to leave the religion of Islam, she was married to him three years before he migrated to Madinah.

3- Aisha the daughter of Abu Bakr As-Siddique may Allah be pleased with her.

She was the most beloved of the Prophets wives to him after Khadijah, and the Prophet did not marry a virgin other than her, and this was after a year of his marriage to Sawdah, two years and five months before his migration. But he did not consummate his marriage with her until seven months after the migration, when the situation had become suitable for him to consummate with her.

She was unique amongst women in the eloquence of her speech, the strength of her intellect, the precision of her understanding, her overall intelligence and her ability to memorise, in addition to that she was a scholar of poetry and literature as well as genealogy and history of the Arabs and many men of knowledge have commented on the greatness of her knowledge.

The great Imam Az-Zuhry says: ‘If one gathered the knowledge of Aisha and compared it with the knowledge of the rest of the wives of the Prophet in fact with the rest of women you would find her knowledge to be more’

Hishaam Bin Urwah narrated on his farther Urwah who was the nephew of Aisha: ‘ indeed I have accompanied Aisha, but I have never seen someone more knowledgeable then her in a verse that was revealed, nor a prophetic tradition, no an obligation or superogatory act, nor poetry nor the stories of the Days of the Arabs, nor in genealogy nor in law or medicine.”

So the marriage of the Prophet to Aisha at this young age after her physical and mental faculties had fully developed, was a blessed union despite the vast age difference, this did not pose a problem for them, as the Prophet was the teacher of humankind, and so turned his attention to nurturing her and teaching along with his good treatment of her. And the stories of his married life are evidence enough in that regard.

It also served a purpose that was tying the knot that was between himself and her Farther even tighter, her farther who was the closet confidante to the prophet and his best friend and companion on the migration Abu Bakr As-Siddique, it was an honour for him that he married his daughter to the Prophet and at the same token it was an honour for Abu Bakr that the Prophet married his daughter. Abu Bakr was the first man to believe in him and trust his message and everything he was sent with.

So the marriage of the Prophet to Aisha strengthen that relationship the Prophet and one of his most important companions and the highest of them in status.

From among the benefit of this marriage is the following:

That the thing that exemplified Aisha from the other wives of the Prophet, was her ability in narrating his prophetic traditions, so one find the complete reliance on Aisha and her narrations by all the scholars of prophetic traditions, because her narrations were narrate truthfully they were held in extremely high regard.

The number of traditions that she narrates in totality is a massive two thousand two hundred and twenty traditions.

Imam Az-Zarakshy say: “a forth of the ruling of jurisprudence returns to her narrations”

She was a scholar in her own right, and would pass religious edicts during the caliphate of Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthmaan, they would all ask her for her opinions until she died in the year 57H (after Migration)

So her marriage to the Prophet was significant in terms of knowledge and its preservation, as the Prophet would regularly mention her virtue over the Muslim nation, and so served as a strake proof of his prophet hood and truth of his message.

4- Hafsah the Daughter of Umar Ibn Al-Khattab may Allah be pleased with her.

Hafsah was married to Bakhnees Bin Hudhaafa As-Sahmiyy who was from the first to migrate to the land of Ethiopia. He also witnessed the Battle of Badr and died from the wounds he suffered during the battle of Uhud. Umar saw it fit for her to get married and so he took the proposal to Abu Bakr who remained silent then to Utmaan who’s wife had died but Uthman said I have no desire to get married today. So this feeling mulled in the heart of Umar until he mentioned it to the Prophet. The Prophet then married her in the third year after the Migration, according to the most correct of opinions.

Hafsah was a pious women who would fast regularly and frequently pray, and so her marriage proved to be a strengthening of the ties between her farther one of the most important companions and the Messenger of Allah.

An indication of her importance to all Muslims is that she was entrusted to keep with her the handwritten copy of the entire Quran that was in book form.

5- Zainab Bint Khuzaymah may Allah be pleased with her.

She was called ‘the mother of the poor’ because of her kind regard and concern for them. She was married to Abdullah bin Jahsh who was martyred at Uhud, this before the Prophet married her in the year four Hijri (four years after Migration). She would live with him for four or five months before she herself died, may Allah be pleased with her.

It was from the wisdom of the Prophet that he married this women who was so mindful of the poor and their needs and became widowed herself, but gained in her marriage to the Prophet the honour of being his wife and being titled ‘a Mother of the Believers’.

6- Umm Salamah Hind Bint Abi Umayyah may Allah be pleased with her.

Umm Salamah was married to Abdullah Bin Abdil Asad Al-Makhzoomy, with whom she had migrated with to Ethiopia, he died after the Battle of Uhud and so she was widowed and had three orphans, Salamah, Umar and Zainab. She was older then the Prophet who married her in the year four Hijra.

From the wisdom of the Prophet in marrying her was his concern for her orphaned children as well as caring for a widow.

7- Zainab Bint Jahsh may Allah be pleased with her.

The Prophet even married Zaid his adopted son to his cousin Zainab Bint Jahsh Al-Usdiyyah the mother of whom is Umaymah bint Abdul Muattalib. The Prophet had adopted Zaid Ibn Haritha may Allah be pleased with him, this after the Prophet had freed him from slavery dignifying and honouring him, and was beloved to the Prophet, the Prophet would call Usama the son of Zaid ‘The beloved son of the beloved’. Before Allah prohibited the practice, it used to be said Zaid the son of Muhammed.

Zainab remained with Zaid for a year or more before they faced difficulty in their marriage. When Zaid came to complain to the Prophet he said to him “hold on to you wife and fear Allah!” [Saheeh Muslim]

Despite the prophet knowing from Allah that they would be divorced he did not inform Zaid, then a short time later they were separated.

After this the command came from Allah to the Messenger of Allah for him to marry Zainab who was previously married to Zaid his adopted son before he divorced her, this was to destroy the practice of adoption that was so deeply rooted in the Arab mindset.

The wisdom from this blessed marriage was the abolition of the abhorrent practice of adoption that was rooted in the Arabs. So her marriage served a great religious purpose may Allah be pleased with her.

8- Juwairiyyah Bint Al-Harith may Allah be pleased with her.

Her farther al-Harih was the leader of his people. She was among the many captives from the Battle of Bani Mustaliq, her husband, Mustafa bin Safwan, had been killed in the battle. She initially fell among the booty of Muhammad's companion Thabit Bin Qays Bin Al-Shammas. Troubled by this, Juwayriya sought a deed of redemption from Muhammad (pbuh) At the first opportunity [after her capture] she went to the Prophet, and pleaded her case with him in trying to set herself free by paying her own ransom. The Prophet was moved by her sorrowful plea and asked her if she would like to live as a free woman and be part of his household if he paid her ransom. She had never in her dreams expected this offer. Moved deeply by this unexpected elevation in her status, she exclaimed she would be more than happy to accept” this was in the sixth year after Migration.

From amongst the great benefits of her marriage to the Prophet was that it result freed her from the bondage of Thabit bin Qais and consequently ameliorated the condition of her captured tribe freeing all the prisoners of war Some time later her father and all the men of her tribe who had been freed also accepted Islam as their religion.

She proclaimed her Islam in front of her farther and the Prophet gave her a dowry of four hundred Dirham’s.

9- Umm Habibah Ramla Bint Abi Sufyaan may Allah be pleased with her.

Umm Habibah had embraced Islam in Mecca along with her husband, they then migrated to Abyssinia where he apostated and separated from her. The Prophet upon hearing the news sent the Negus of Abyssinia a proposal on his behalf as was the norm there, the king embraced Islam and proposed on behalf of the Prophet paying her a dowry of four hundred Dinar and gifting her many precious gifts on his behalf. When Umm Habibah returned to Madinah the Prophet consummated his marriage with her and this was in the seventh year after his migration.

When her farther Sufiyaan who was from the most relentless enemies of the Prophet heard the news of what the Prophet had done he praised him, and was the start of his eventual embracing of Islam the year after when the Prophet returned and opened Mecca. So from amongst the great wisdom of the Prophets marriage to Umm Habibah was to reward her for her patience on her religion in spite of the huge setback that was the apostasy of her husband who tried to convince her to apostate with him. The Prophet also sought to compensate her for after she was left stranded in a foreign land with her young daughter Habibah. And perhaps one of the more significant benefits was that her marriage was the beginning of her father’s embracing of Islam, after he saw what the Prophet had done for his daughter.

10- Saffiyyah Bint Huyyay Bin Akhtab may Allah be pleased with her.

She was from the Children of Israel, as she was from the Jews of Bani Nadeer and she was taken captive after her husband was killed in the Battle of Khyber, she was a leading figure in her community, the Prophet freed her and set the precedent that meant the companions also freed their captives from war. The Prophet had given her the choice of freeing her and keeping her as a wife or sending her back to her family, to which she chose the former after believing in his message, this was in the seventh year after the migration.

So from the distinct benefit of her marriage to the prophet was:

a) The encouragement to free the captives of war, and slaves.

b) An invitation to the Jews to embrace Islam, and lessen their enmity to Islam

11- Maymoonah Bint Al-Harith may Allah be pleased with her.

Maymoonah had been a widow from the age of twenty-six after her husband died, and she wanted to be the wife of the Messenger, so therefore Al-Abbas encouraged the Prophet to marry her and he did, giving her a dowry of four hundred Dirham’s. This was in the year seven after the migration of the Prophet.

Aisha used to say that: “by Allah she was the most God-fearing of us all and the one most connected to her ties of kinship”

So from the wisdom of the Prophet in marrying her was to lift the difficulty of life as a widow in her young age.

Also from the notable benefits of her marriage was that she narrated forty-six prophetic traditions on the Prophet.

In addition to his wives the Prophet had two concubines from what his right hand possessed, the first was Maria The Copt who was a Christian and given to him as a gift from Al-Muqawqis, the Prophet had a son with her Ibrahim who died whilst still young in Madinah during his lifetime.

The second was Rayhana Bint Zaid Al-Quraydhiyah a Jewess and was from the concubines of the battle of Bani Quraydha. Both of them embraced Islam and believed in his message.

From what we derive from our brief study is that the wives of the Prophet were not all the same, we find he married Arabs and non-Arabs like Safiyyah who was from the Children of Israel, likewise we find they did not all belong to the same religion, we find Safiyyah Bin Hayyay was a Jews and Maria was a Coptic Christian and Rayhana Bint Zaid was a Jewess this is before they all embrace Islam.

We find that the Prophet combined in his wives those who were from his tribe and those who were not, we find he combined wives who were Jews and Christians with wives who were Muslims, wives who were virgins with wives who were widows, wives who were rich with wives who were poor, and this was all in facilitation of his message in wiping out discrimination and racism, and so was yet another proof of his Prophet hood.

One can divide his marital life into four distinct parts:

1) The first stage: from his birth till twenty-five years of age where the Prophet is not married but is single pure and chaste.

2) The second stage: from twenty five till fifty where he is happily married to Khadijah and does not marry again until after her death

3) The third stage: from fifty to sixty, where he marries a number of his wives for personal, social and political reasons with great benefit emanating from those marriages.

4) The third stage; from sixty to his death at sixty three and four days. The Prophet did not marry anyone during this period applying the command of Allah on him:

“It is not lawful for you (to marry other) women after this, nor to change them for other wives even though their beauty attracts you, except those (captives or slaves) whom your right hand possesses. And Allâh is Ever a Watcher over all things.” [Quran Chapter 33 Verse 52]

Despite the abrogation the Prophet did not marry again rewarding them for choosing him Allah over the adornment of this worldly life, after he had given them the choice, as demonstrated by the Verse of the Choice:

“O Prophet (Muhammad pbuh)! Say to your wives: If you desire the life of this world, and its glitter, Then come! I will make a provision for you and set you free in a handsome manner (divorce). But if you desire Allâh and His Messenger, and the home of the Hereafter, then verily, Allâh has prepared for AlMuhsinât (gooddoers) amongst you an enormous reward.” [Quran Chapter 33 Verse 28/29]

And with that in conclusion we see that the Prophet marriages to numerous wives was for a far greater reason and higher objective, as he gathered women of different types, statuses, races and religions and live with all of them harmoniously which is again yet another proof of his Prophet hood and the truth of his message.

*****

 The Sermon on the Farewell Pilgrimage yet another poof of his Prophet hood. And indications of his inevitable death (pbuh).

A) The Farewell Pilgrimage

The job of spreading the message of Islam was at its last stage, and the Prophet was successful in building a new society base on the Lordship of Allah and the rejection of all other deities and on the foundations built around the teachings of Muhammed (pbuh).

When the process of Prophet hood was nearing the end with Islam prevailing, the imminent signs of the Prophets inevitable farewell started to show in his statements and in his actions:

1) He remained secluded in the Mosque for a period of twenty days when it use to be his norm to remain there for ten days, this was in the tenth year after the Migration.

2) The Angel Gabriel recited upon him the holy Qur’an Twice when every other year he would only recite it to him once, it was of course in Ramadan that the holy Qur’an was initially revealed to Muhammed (pbuh).

3) The statement of the Prophet to Mu’adh when sending him to The Yemen,: "Perhaps, Mu'adh, you may not meet me after this year, but perhaps, you may pass this mosque of mine and my grave." Mu'adh wept from grief over the departure of Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him). The Prophet (peace be upon him) then turned facing Medina and said, "Those nearest to me are the pious, whoever they are and whenever they are."

4) His statement on the Farewell Pilgrimage; “ I do not know, perhaps I will never again see you in the standing place ever again”

5) His statement while stoning the Large Pillar of Aqabah: “take from me your rites as I do not know perhaps I will not perform the pilgrimage after this year”.

That the chapter ‘ The Help’ in the Quran was revealed to him.

“When comes the Help of Allâh (to you, O Muhammad (Peace be upon him) against your enemies) and the conquest (of Makkah). And you see that the people enter Allâh's religion (Islâm) in crowds. So glorify the Praises of your Lord, and ask for His Forgiveness. Verily, He is the One Who accepts the repentance and forgives.” [Quran Chapter 110] this was in the last days of Hajj.

In what we have shown there were clear indications and signs that indicated that the Prophet was beginning his departure from this Earth and it was noticed by the most attentive of his companions, he had long strived to arrive at the truth, a testament to him and the words that he uttered not from himself rather from what was inspired to him from Allah. So the subtle signs and indications the he gave of his death proved correct, along with those acts of farewell that he took part in.

Allah wanted for his Prophet that he see the fruits of his efforts, that he had long strived to achieve and so he gathered the leader of the tribes in Mecca and they took from him the ruling of the religion and he would take their covenant that he had passed on to them the trust, and had conveyed the message.

The Prophet made his positions clear on this farewell pilgrimage, ‘the Hajj of Islam’ as it was known he did not perform another Hajj after it.

The Muslims gathered on the Hajj like they had done so never before, over one hundred and twenty four thousand or forty four thousand of them performed the pilgrimage seeking to be led by their beloved Prophet, imagine the picture that Allah showed him of the fruits from a completed mission, one hundred thousand believers and more all calling One Lord, coming from differing places seeking to have the leadership of the Prophet and his nearness on the pilgrimage. All of this after he had been chased out of his beloved birth place Mecca by the Polytheists, who threatened to kill him.

Yet here is the Prophet just a few years later lifting the banner of Monotheism high, on the most blessed of all places, Mecca, establishing the state of Islam based on the worship of one Lord and the application of his Laws, all of this in the space of a few years like the tenure of a king or a president, within a period of twenty three years he witnessed the victory of Allah for his religion, and so was a further proof of his Prophet hood and the truth of his religion.

B) From the amazing subtle coincidences, on the Farewell Pilgrimage.

1) The ‘day of Hajj’ the ninth day of Dhul-Hijjah (the twelfth month in the Islamic Calendar) coincided with the day of Friday, which for the Muslims is the holiest day of the week and treated like an Enid.

On the Day of Arafah the mercy of Allah descends on all of those present at Arafah and on this blessed day Allah revealed to his Prophet:

“This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islâm as your religion. ” [Quran Chapter 5 Verse 3]

1) That the Pilgrimage of the Prophet took place after the ‘House of Allah’ the Ka’bah had been purified, of the idols and statues that the Polytheists used to worship, there used to be over three hundred different statues.

This was after the previous year the ninth after the Migration, when the Prophet sent Abu Bakr to lead a contingent of the Believers wherein one of them proclaimed “ no polytheist is to perform the Hajj after this year and no one is to circumambulate around the Ka’bah naked”

This was in fact a call that bought about the end of Idolatry in the Arabian Peninsular.

Then came the year for the Hajj of the Prophet (pbuh) and the fulfilment of his Prophet hood as a sign to all, the truth of his message.

C- - The Sermon of the Prophet on the Day of Arafah and his counsel regarding women.

Here we would like to look in more detail as it concerns the topic at hand, in addition to what we alluded to earlier as a proof of his prophet hood.

The sermon delivered by the Prophet on the Day of Arafah was an all-inclusive advice, comprising of every virtue and guiding to that which is correct. From what he said on that day is:

‘O people: fear Allah in regard to your women, verily you owe your women their rights, and they owe you yours. Remember that you have taken them as your wives only under Allah's trust and with His permission. They may not lay with another men in your beds, let anyone into your houses you do not want without your permission, or commit indecency. If they do, Allah has given you leave to debar them, send them from your beds, or [finally] strike them in a way that does no harm. But if they desist, and obey you, then you must provide for them and clothe them fittingly. The women who live with you are like captives, unable to manage for themselves: you took them as a trust from Allah, and enjoyed their sex as lawful through a word [legal ruling] from Allah. So fear Allah in respect to women, and concern yourselves with their welfare for verily, I have left among you that which if you take it, you will never stray after me: the Book of Allah. Have I given the message? – O Allah, be my witness. [Narrated Muslim]

So we see the Prophet raising the status of women after they were debased in society. He was always occupied with their affairs always concerned of their rights. Even as he was dying some of his final words were “ the Prayer! The Prayer! And what your right hand possesses.” [Narrated Bukhari]

So he combined the mentioning of Prayer the highest act of worship with the mentioning of women, in order for people to take heed.

Never before had women enjoyed such respect as they had in the Shareeah of the Prophet (pbuh), as they had been guaranteed their rights and given status and respect, proving yet again another decisive proof of his prophet hood and the truth of his message.

*****

The Verse: “Say (O Muhammad SAW):"I am not a new thing among the Messengers (of Allah) (i.e. I am not the first Messenger)” [Quran Chapter 46 Verse 9]

The verse indicates: that the Messenger of Allah was not but a single Prophet in a line of many Prophets, nor was he bringing a new doctrine, he was instead just following through what was inspired to him from Allah.

a) The origins of his call.

We find that the Prophet was not the first Prophet that Allah sent to Human kind, so his message could not be rejected for being something new.

Instead we find Allah had sent thousands of Prophets before the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) to every people, they all called to one message, of singling out Allah as the only One deserving of praise and worship, not associating any other in his Lordship and respecting his Law and boundaries, that he Allah is the sole Creator, Sustainers and Provider of all things.

The religion with Allah has always been Islam, Islam meaning the act of total submission to Allah, and so no Prophet was sent except with the doctrine of Islam even though their legal systems may have differed.

The Arabs did not have an issue recognising the Lordship of Allah they knew he was their Lord, their disbelief revolved around not recognizing his unity in being worshipped, as they used to associate partners with him in the forms of idols and statues.

They therefore rejected the Message of the Prophet, as they knew it would mean their power being usurped, and they would be made to be humble to Allah showing humility.

They knew that the Prophet had bought that which was bought before him by the succession of prophets that came before him.

b) His following through of the commands of Allah;

As we have shown the Prophet was not bringing a message unknown to human kind nor was he bringing a new doctrine, he was also not bringing something from within himself.

This is best demonstrated by his fulfilling of the command of Allah when Allah ordered him to marry Zainab the divorced wife of Zaid his previously adopted son. Allah commanded:

“So when Zaid had accomplished his desire from her (i.e. divorced her), We gave her to you in marriage” [Quran Chapter 33 Verse 37]

This marriage facilitated the abolition of the practice of adoption and put an end to the evils that result from it.

1- The Prophets marriage to Khadijah who was in her forties while he was only twenty-five, was his first marriage and she mothered for him both girls and boys.

2- He then followed his first marriage with his second to Sawdah may Allah be pleased with her this was in the month of Shawwal in the tenth year of his Prophet hood, she had already been married before.

3- Thereafter he married Aisha the daughter of Abu Bakr may Allah be pleased with them both. This was in the eleventh year after prophet hood, and two years before the Migration

4- He followed that by marrying Hafsa may Allah be please with her, the daughter of Umar Ibn Al-Khattab, this was in the third year after Migration.

5- He married Zainab may Allah be please with her next, in the forth year after Migration, after her husband was martyred at the battle of Uhud she was known as ‘the mother of the poor’ because of her mercy toward them. She died just two months after her marriage to the Prophet.

6- Next her married Umm Salamah Hind may Allah be please with her this was in Shawwal in the fourth year after Migration, this after her husband died leaving her widowed.

This mean that his marriage to Zainab Bint Jahsh may Allah be please with her, was his fifth if you consider the deaths of both Khadijah and Zainab. Then after the marriage of Zainab Al-Usdiyyah he married:

1- Juwayriyyah Bint Al-Haarith may Allah be please with her in the month of Sha’baan in the year six after Migration, after she was captive from the Battle of Bani Mustaliq.

2- The Prophet then married Umm Habibah Ramlah Bint Abi Sufiyaan may Allah be please with her in the seventh year after Migration, after her husband migrated to Abyssinia and apostated and died there.

3- The prophet then married Saffiyyah Bin Huyyay may Allah be please with her who was from the Children of Israel after she had embraced Islam; this was shortly after the Opening of Mecca in the seventh year after the Migration.

4- He then married Maymoonah Bint Al-Haarith, which was also in the seventh year after Migration in the month of Dhul-Qi’dah.

These were all his wives that he consummated with and with some of them he had children, two of whom died during his lifetime and he left nine of them behind after his death. There were two others that he had a marriage contract with but did not consummate with.

As from war, then Rayhanna was from the captives of the Battle of Bani Quraydha and Maria the Copt was gifted to him from Al-Muqawqis.

However, none of his marriages were as controversial as his marriage to Zainab Bint Jahsh, and he was attacked because of his marriage to her by the hypocrites who professed Islam outwardly but remained disbelievers in their hearts; they contested his marriage on the following grounds:

1) That he had married the wife of his adopted son Zaid after he had divorced her.

2) That he married her whilst only allowing the Muslims to marry four wives at any one time.

What is important to note, is that the Prophet knew the opposition he would face from the hypocrites and the likes of them, and yet he followed through with the command of Allah, and it was not befitting of the Prophet other than to follow the command of Allah. And his blessed biography is littered with example of this obedience.

Never before had the biography of any prophet been documented in the manner the biography of the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) was documented, both before his prophet hood and especially after it, so that who ever wanted to see who he was (pbuh) was able to in all time, a biography that shows that he did not ever lie and is a certain proof of his prophet hood.

Likewise we find the biographies of his companions also preserved and the notables of those that followed the companions and then those that followed them, we find an entire science dedicated to the preservation and narration of the Prophets traditions, and that is no surprise as they took it upon themselves to preserve the words of their Prophet and his Lord for all generations that were to follow, knowing that the Messenger of Allah was the Final Prophet of Allah and that his Shareeah was the message from Allah to his slaves.

Allah said in confirmation of this: “Let there arise out of you a group of people inviting to all that is good (Islâm), enjoining Al-Ma'rûf (i.e. Islâmic Monotheism and all that Islâm orders one to do) and forbidding Al-Munkar (polytheism and disbelief and all that Islâm has forbidden). And it is they who are the successful.”

[Quran Chapter 3 Verse 104]

“You [true believers in Islâmic Monotheism, and real followers of Prophet Muhammad SAW and his Sunnah (legal ways, etc.)] are the best of peoples ever raised up for mankind; you enjoin Al-Ma'rûf (i.e. Islâmic Monotheism and all that Islâm has ordained) and forbid Al-Munkar (polytheism, disbelief and all that Islâm has forbidden), and you believe in Allâh”

[Quran Chapetr 3 Verse 110]

So Allah preserved the saying and actions of his Prophet like he preserved his own word in the Book, a Book that is the lasting miracle of the Prophet, a miracle so great that the entire human race was challenged and was unable to bring a single chapter like it, this is aside from the great secrets in the Quran that in only modern times we have discovered, scientific miracles that are in the word of Allah and the words of his Messenger.

Therefore the miracle that are related to the knowledge of the unseen have a far greater impact on humans then the miracle that can be sensed like the miracles that are seen by the eye for example, that is why it was only right that the Children of Adam believe in their Prophets when they are shown these great Miracles.

Allah decreed in his infinite wisdom that he was not to send another Prophet after Muhammed (pbuh), despite him sending many Prophets to the Children of Israel.

- they would kill their Prophets and belie their signs and disbelieve in their miracles, so they were in continuous need of Prophets from Allah to guide them in their religious affairs. This after Allah had preferred them by sending them numerous Prophets, but they were not trustworthy recipient of their Messengers often changing their Scriptures and disbelieving in their Prophets, so Allah sent the Prophet with a different approach to the pure message of Islam.

- They would alter and distort their Holy Scriptures like the Bible and Torah of the Christians and the Jews.

- Never was a Prophet sent to them except with a miracle that was limited to those who saw it and were present with the Prophet at the time of the miracle, as for the miracle of the Prophet Muhammed it was an eternal miracle the Miracle of The Holy Qur’an, this is because he is the Prophet of all people and all times so his miracle reflected that.

- Never did Allah burden the believers of the previous Prophets with the responsibility of calling to his religion and spreading it as Allah was continuously sending them prophets, however the followers of the Prophet Muhammed have been commanded to spread his message, as there is no other religion that is to follow Islam nor any Prophet who will follow Muhammed (pbuh).

- In addition to the alteration of their books, they bought ruin to the correct creed by introducing the worship of Idols to their traditions, or taking their holy men as Gods beside Allah, like the Jews who’s Rabbi’s would permit what Allah prohibit and prohibit what Allah had permitted, they would say despicable things about Allah like that he took the angels as daughters, or like the Christians said that he took Jesus as his son. And the deviant beliefs among tem were plenty especially when the period between Prophets being sent to them was long.

- Yet in this period with all of this confusion Allah sent his Messenger with a pure creed.

- The Prophet came and abolished the worship of idols and statues and everything worshiped other then Allah.

- He purified the first House place on Earth for the Worship of Allah, purifying it from the filth that was Idols place in and around it.

- He came to sanctify the name of Allah after people had claimed that Allah took the angels as daughters and that he took Eesa (Jesus) as he begotten son.

- He (pbuh) came also to magnify and praise the station of the prophets after the Jews had bought into disrepute the name of Eesa, describing him in the most despicable of ways.

As Allah says;

“(Remember) when the angels said: "O Maryam (Mary)! Verily, Allâh gives you the glad tidings of a Word ["Be!" - and he was! i.e. 'Iesa (Jesus) the son of Maryam (Mary)] from Him, his name will be the Messiah 'Iesa (Jesus), the son of Maryam (Mary), held in honour in this world and in the Hereafter, and will be one of those who are near to Allâh." [Quran Chapter 3 Verse 45]

Allah also said: “The Messiah ['Iesa (Jesus)], son of Maryam (Mary), was no more than a Messenger; many were the Messengers that passed away before him.” [Quran Chapter 5 Verse 75]

and after the Jews described Maryam (Mary) using the most heinous of words.

As Allah says:

“And Maryam (Mary), the daughter of 'Imrân who guarded her chastity; and We breathed into (the sleeve of her shirt or her garment) through Our Rûh [i.e. Jibrael (Gabriel)], and she testified to the truth of the Words of her Lord [i.e. believed in the Words of Allâh: "Be!" and he was; that is 'Iesa (Jesus) son of Maryam (Mary); as a Messenger of Allâh], and (also believed in) His Scriptures, and she was of the Qanitîn (i.e. obedient to Allâh).”

[Quran Chapter 66 Verse 12]

- Indeed the Prophet (pbuh) bought the clearest of all creeds and the best of all Sahreeah and he himself was the best of all husbands, the best of all teachers and nurtures, until the Day of Judgment. May Allah send his peace and blessings on this most trustworthy of people, the one sent to the entirety of human kind.

c- There were Prophets who married far more time then the marriage of the Prophet (pbuh)

It is surprising that those who have animosity to the religion of Allah and to Allah’s Messenger attacking him personally on the issue of his multiple marriages do this, knowing full well that there are Prophets before him who had married far in excess of the number of wives he married.

- the Prophet Dawud ( David ) had a hundred free ladies to himself.

- The Prophet Sulaymaan (Solomon) who Allah endowed Kingship as well as prophet hood, it is reported in fact in the Torah itself that he married seven hundred free women and three hundred from the women who were slaves. This is just an indication of the great virtue Allah place over his Prophets.

It is unsurprising then because of their heedlessness concerning the prophets of old that they so vehemently attacked the Last of Allah’s Messengers.

So in summary:

- Allah chose his Prophets and gave the bounties that were specific dispensations for them alone.

- That Allah choose what He like for who He likes, and an example of that is his remittance for the Messenger of Allah to take eleven wives, while at the same time prohibiting the believers from exceeding more then four wives.

From the previous points the following becomes clear;

That the Messenger of Allah was but a single Prophet in a line of many Prophets, and that the religion was he bringing was not a new doctrine, he was instead just following through what was inspired to him from Allah. So everything that he did was in the application of Allah’s rules and the clarification of those rules for the whole of human kind.

And every man of intellect should see that his multiple marriage were nothing, other then a sign of his prophet hood and a confirmation of the truth in his Message. May the peace and blessings of Allah be forever upon him.

******

 In Conclusions;

It is clear from our discussion that Islam with its upright code of practice did not come to eradicate the desires of man and the natural instinct that he was created with, but rather it came to guide and direct it to what is right according to what Allah Almighty revealed and was pleased with for his slaves.

Allah for that reason allowed for men to get married and if need be get married multiple time, where there is need and great benefit that results in the institution that is marriage, provided he does not go beyond the restriction to four wives.

Likewise at the same time Allah gave special dispensation to his Prophet Muhammed to marry in excess of what the believers were permitted to marry like the prophets before him had married numerous times, this was owing to his greater status as a Prophet of Allah. We also learned the great benefits that resulted from the marriages of the Prophet (pbuh), none greater then his marriages being in itself a proof of his Prophet hood.

His marriages testified that he was of truly noble characteristics and mannerisms.

These characteristics were also recognised by respected thinker and scholars in the West both before his prophet hood and after it, in the field of teaching, preaching , politicising , commanding armies, judging as well as his more personal role as a son, a loving husband, a farther, a grandfather a family man and above all a human.

From among their testimonies is;

Lamartine- the famous writer, poet and historian said : "It is impossible for anyone who studies the life and character of the great prophet of Arabia, who knows how he taught and how he live, to feel anything but reverence for that mighty Prophet, one of the great messengers of the Supreme. And although in what I put to you I shall say many things which may be familiar to many, yet I myself feel whenever I re-read them, a new way of admiration, a new of reverence for that mighty Arabian teacher. [Lamartine, Historic de la Turquie, Paris 1854, Vol. 11 pp. 276-2727]

There are numerous other examples of these notable commentators praising him (pbuh) and like it is said “truth is what even your enemies attest to”. May the blessing of Allah be upon his Prophet, the seal of the Prophets.

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 An Open Letter.

It is upon us that we recognise:

That once it has been absolutely proven beyond any doubt the Prophet hood of Muahmmed, through his miracles and the proofs that we have shown in our discourse, then it is a must mean only one thing he was inspired by Allah.

In addition to that point every one of his statements and actions therefore have rulings and great benefits that are derived from them, and the scholars are charged with the responsibility of extracting these rules and benefits, as Allah said :

“so ask the people of the Reminder [Scriptures - the Taurât (Torah), the Injeel (Gospel)] if you do not know.” [Quran Chapter 21 Verse 7]

Allah said:

“Nor does he speak of (his own) desire. It is only an Inspiration that is inspired.” [Quran Chapter 53 Verses 3-5]

Therefore this further means that everything that he done was permissible for him, in light of the Law that was given to him. There is no need to listen then to the claims of his detractors, claims that are not built upon facts but rather plain conjecture born out of animosity and hatred.

Islam is without any doubt the religion of truth. Had it been otherwise it would have disappeared just as quickly as it appeared, it is like a light that is forever putting out darkness as everything in it is truth, and what is after truth but falsehood?

Muhammed (pbuh) is therefore the Prophet of truth, who did not say or do anything except what was inspired to him, and Allah is his defender both during his life and after his death.

Islam is still spreading as we speak, and people are embracing it in every part of the world.

It is incumbent on us then to:

1) hold firm to the Book of Allah, the book that was revealed to the Prophet (pbuh) and to memorise it in our hearts and to perfect its recital, to expand and study upon its vast meanings, to understand it a correct understanding, to appreciate those thing that were mentioned in it concerning the unseen world, to learn the miraculous nature of the scientific miracles uniquely in the book, miracles that are only now being discovered, and perhaps most importantly to apply it in our lives in our worship and daily transactions, and apply its law in every small and big issue. Until it is said about us as it was said about the Prophet “ his mannerisms was the Qur’an”

2) know that Allah has taken the responsibility to protect the traditions of the Messenger of Allah, through the efforts of the scholars of the science of narration, who place stringent rules and regulations on the narration and acceptance of his traditions. A science that is unique to the Muslims. We should also appreciate the many prophecies that he foretold of in those traditions, and the scientific miracles that are in his traditions also, miracles that no one learned or ignorant has ever denied and can deny , some of them occurring eight hundred years after his death. For he was not uttering from unto himself it was but revelation inspired to him.

Abdullah Bin Amr Bin Al-Aas narrates: “ One day while we were sitting with the Prophet of Allah (pbuh) writing when a man asked; ‘ which of the two cities will be opened first Constantinople or Rome?’ so the Prophet replied the city of Heraclius with be opened first (meaning Constantinople) [Narrated Ahmed]

Constantinople is modern day Istanbul, which fell to the Muslim at the hands Muhammed Al-Faatih in the year 857H, it was then ordered that the Islamic Call of Prayer be announced in the Cathedral of Sophia turning it from a cathedral to a mosque, it was the seat of orthodoxy like the Vatican is for Catholicism, and with the fall of this city the Byzantine civilisation also fell. And Istanbul became the seat and powerhouse to the Ottoman Caliphate. And so we see modern day Turkey a country in Europe testifying to the truth of the Prophet (pbuh). With the will of Allah the city of Rome, Italy will also fall to Islam, in affirmation of the message of the Prophet of Islam.

Perhaps the second opening mentions in the prophetic traditions will bring with it a return to the Noble Caliphate, like the Prophet said:

"The prophet-hood will last as long as Allah (S.W.T.) is willing, then he will lift it. Then, a rightly guided Khilafah will be according to the prophet’s way and will last as long as Allah is willing, then Allah will lift it. Then, there will be a hereditary power that will last as long as Allah is willing, and then Allah will lift it. Then, there will be dictatorships that will last as long as Allah is willing, and then Allah will lift it. Then, there will be a Khilafah according to the prophet’s way. The prophet, then fell silent."

[Authentic Hadith reported by Imams Ahmad, Al-Bazar and At-Tabrani.]

Anyone who looks at this tradition will note the truth of his Prophecy, by following the stages that are mentioned in the narrations, indeed after prophet hood there was Caliphate on the methodology of the Prophet, then from the rule of Mu’awiyah was the beginning of hereditary power leading to the Abbasid ere.

3- it is upon us to recognise that he is the Messenger of truth and there for accept everything he said and ordered us to do, as after him being sent Allah will not accept any other religion but his.

4- We must read his biography, looking at the different milestones that passed during his time extracting the vast benefits that there are in it.

5- Learn and act upon his authentic traditions as have been narrated on him.

6- Follow his way in everything, starting with those thing that are obligatory

7- Seek to emulate him in everything up to even every one of his likes and dislikes.

8- Know his noble character and descriptions, before his prophet hood and after it.

9- Know his position in regard of his wives and how he treated them, his companions and his neighbours.

10- Know his virtues and the things that were specific to him.

11- Spread this knowledge by printing books of his biography in foreign languages and distributing them at missionaries and libraries all over the world.

12- Refuting the western media led campaigns against his prophet hood by clarifying the misconceptions.

13- Using the mediums of the satellite, radio and magazine distributions in order to let the world know about the religion of Islam and its Prophet (pbuh), in different languages especially English.

14- Setting up websites on the World Wide Web, that specialise in his Prophetic traditions, and especially in the English language.

Using every means at our disposal in order to give victory to this religion, and to the Prophet of this religion Muhammed (pbuh), the Prophet who was chosen to be the Last and Seal of all the Prophets of Allah.

O’ Allah send your peace and blessing upon Muhammed the Prophet and seal of the Prophets and Messengers, and peace and blessings be upon his wives and his purified household and his blessed companions, and all those who were guided from his guidance, and emulated his way, and followed his traditions till the Day of Judgement.

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