Sunday, November 24, 2013

Did the Prophet Muhammad invent Islam so he could have many wives?

DID THE PROPHET MUHAMMAD INVENT ISLAM SO HE COULD HAVE MANY WIVES? 

The chiefs of Mecca offered Muhammad "as many wives as you want in marriage," together with wealth, political power and the services of a competent exorcist, if only he would stop insulting their gods. Muhammad refused this offer, which was made while Khadijah was still alive.Al-Tabari, Vol. 6, pp. 106-107

For Chronological Order of the Prophet Muhammad's wives see Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, pp. 127-128Al-Tabari, Vol. 39, pp. 3-4Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, pp. 128-130Al-Tabari, Vol. 39, pp. 169-170., Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, pp. 128-131Al-Tabari, Vol. 39, pp. 171-174Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, pp. 131-132Al-Tabari, Vol. 39, pp. 174-175Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, p. 138Al-Tabari, Vol. 39, pp. 63-64.Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, p. 132Al-Tabari, Vol. 39, pp. 175-177Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, p. 134Al-Tabari, Vol. 39, pp. 180-182.Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, p. 133Al-Tabari, Vol. 39, pp. 182-184.

MOST OF THESE EXTRA CONCUBINES OR DIVORCED WIVES OF THE PROPHET MUHAMMAD COME FROM WEAK SOURCES LIKE AL-TABARI, IBN SAD, Ibn Hisham, ETC. MUSLIMS SCHOLARS DON'T ACCEPT THESE SOURCES. 

As for refuting arguements made against the Prophet's marriages with Aisha, Saudwah, Zanyab bint Jash, Rahaynah, Juwayriyah bint Al-Harith, Safiyah bint HuyayyMariyah bint Shamoon al-Quptiya see Refuting Arguments made against the Prophet Muhammad on this blog.

According to Islamic belief, the main objectives of Muhammad's marriages can be divided into four.[7]
  1. Helping out the widows of his companions.
  2. Creating family bonds between him and his companions (Muhammad married the daughters of Abu Bakr and Umar, whereas Uthman and Ali married his daughters. He therefore had family bonds with all the first four Caliphs).
  3. Spreading the message by uniting different clans through marriage.
  4. Increasing credibility and sources for conveying his private family life. If he only had one wife, then it would have been a tremendous responsibility on her to convey Muhammad's private acts of worship and family life, and people would try to discredit her to destroy the credibility of these practices. However, with multiple wives, there were a lot more sources to the knowledge, making it more difficult to discredit. Therefore his marriages gave more women the opportunity to learn and teach the matters of his private life.
Muhammad's first marriage was at the age of 25 to the 40-year old Khadijah. He was married to one woman until the age of 50, after which he is believed to have had multiple wives for the four reasons explained above. With the exception of Aisha, Muhammad only married widows and divorced women.

Umm Habib bint Al-Abbas: She was Muhammad's cousin. He saw her as a baby crawling around and remarked, "If I am alive when she grows up, I will marry her." He changed his mind when he found out that her father had been his foster-brother and died soon afterwards.Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, p. 140 Ibn Sad Volume 8 Page 36, However these are weak sources, Muslim scholars don't accept them. 

Al-Shanba’ bint Amr She was from a Bedouin tribe who appeared friendly to Muhammad but who had also been friends of the Qurayza tribe. Al-Shanba’ insulted Muhammad on the first day by implying that he was not a true prophet, and he divorced her immediately.Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, p. 136.

Mohammed married 15 women and consummated his marriages with 13. (al-Tabari vol.9 p.126-127)

Comments: However Al-Tabari is a weak source, Muslim scholars don't accept him. 

Bukhari is the most accurate, and Bukhari states that the Prophet Muhammad at one time, had nine wives: 

Bukhari vol.1 Book 5 ch.25 no.282 p.172-173 said that [at one time] Mohammed had nine wives.

According to Anas ibn Malik, the Prophet Muhammad used to visit all eleven of his wives in one night; but he could manage this, as he had the sexual prowess of thirty men.

EXPLNATION OF THIS HADITH: 

Prophet Muhammad visiting all his wives in one night?

Some of the Christians use the following tradition and yell obscenities against the Holy Prophet, may Allah bless him, saying that he had passion for women.
Narrated Anas: "The Prophet I used to go round (have sexual relations with) all his wives in one night, and he had nine wives."
But as a matter of fact this is clearly wrong translation and the words within parenthesis do not find any place here.

Actual text of the Hadith and correct translation:

Now the Hadīth goes as;
أَنَّ نَبِيَّ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ كَانَ يَطُوفُ عَلَى نِسَائِهِ فِي اللَّيْلَةِ الْوَاحِدَةِ وَلَهُ يَوْمَئِذٍ تِسْعُ نِسْوَةٍ
The word, يَطُوفُ like طواف i.e. circumambulating the Holy Ka’ba only refers to going around and has no other nuance whatsoever. So the correct translation of the Hadīth is:
Narrated Anas: The Prophet I used to go round all his wives in one night, and he had nine wives.”(Bukhari, Hadīth 275)
There is nothing special in the Hadīth. It infact shows that he cared for all his wives and went to see them.
The query probably rises from the famous translation of this Hadīth which is there in well known software. In that software it reads;
"The Prophet I used to go round (have sexual relations with) all his wives in one night, and he had nine wives."
One can clearly see that the words ‘have sexual relations with’ are in parenthesis, that is to say these are not the direct meanings of the Arabic words but addition by the translator to help understand according to his understanding.
But I disagree with his understanding and thus believe that these words in the parentheses are not helping to understand better but are rather misleading. Holy Prophet, may Allah bless him, did visit them all but its not that he had sexual relations with each of them.
Details of Prophet’s visits to his wives:
Urwa reported on the authority of his father:
‘Aisha said: "O my nephew, the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bdid not prefer one of us to other in respect of his division of time of his staying with us. It was very rare that he did not visit any of us any day. He would come near each of his wives without having any intercourse with her until he reached the one who had her day (i.e. her turn) and passed his night with her...."
(Sunan Abū Dawūd Hadīth 2135. Albāni classified it as Hasan Sahih)
Besides Sunan Abu Dawud the narration is found in ,
Musnad Ahmad (No. 23621)
Baihaqi's Sunan Al-Kubra (No. 13434, 14754)
Mustadrak Al-Hakim (No. 2710)

It is found in Sunan Darqutni (No.3781) too with more explicit wording.

Imam Shaukani has taken the hadith on same account. He writes;

وَكَذَلِكَ يَجُوزُ لِلزَّوْجِ دُخُولُ بَيْتِ غَيْرِ صَاحِبَةِ النَّوْبَةِ وَالدُّنُوُّ مِنْهَا وَاللَّمْسُ إلَّا الْجِمَاعَ كَمَا فِي حَدِيثِ عَائِشَةَ الْمَذْكُورِ

"Similarly it is allowed for the husband to enter upon the wife [even if, it being] without her turn [to spend night with] and to come closer to her and touch her except the intercourse as in the Hadith of Aisha mentioned above." (Nayl al-Awtar 10/213)

It makes it clear beyond all doubt here that he visited all of them just to see them and dint have intercourse with each of them but only with the one whose turn was it that day.

Further clarification:

One may refer to the narration from Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, in which he related the same issue of Prophet, may Allah bless him, all his wives in a single with him being given the "strength of thirty men." One may say this implies the Prophet, may Allah bless him, used to have intercourse with all his wives. But how can the implied understanding of some other companion be taken in precedence over a direct authentic report from none other than the wife of the Holy Prophet, may Allah bless him? Who else would have been more knowledgeable of such intimate details of the Prophet's personal life?
Similarly even the word يَطُوفُ implies 'intercourse' when used in relation to a person going to his wife [or wives] it will not work here for an explicit authentic report from the wife of the Prophet, may Allah bless him, bars us.
INDEED ALLAH KNOWS THE BEST!

The Story of Mulayka bint Kaab comes from a weak source, Al-Tabari, Volume Al-Tabari, Vol. 39, p. 165. However this story is weak, Muslim scholars don't accept it.

Did the Prophet Muhammad have Concubines? 

According to Ibn al-Qayyim, Zaad al-Ma’ad 1:114, Al Tabari, Volume 9, Page 137, Volume 39, Page 164-165, The Prophet Muhammad had concubines, but these sources are weak, Muslim scholars don't accept them. Ibn al-Qayyim, Zaad al-Ma’ad 1:114

REASONS FOR THE PROPHET MUHAMMAD'S VARIOUS MARRIAGES: Most of his wives were widows, Such as Maymunah bint Al-Harith (Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, p. 135Al-Tabari, Vol. 39, pp. 185-186.) Sawda bint Zam'a, Hafsa, Hind (Umm Salama) bint Abi Umayya, Rayhana bint Zayd ibn Amr, Zaynab bint Khuzayma (For Example see Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, p. 138Al-Tabari, Vol. 39, pp. 63-64.

Another reason for various marriages was to form alliances with various tribes in Arabia ( The example of Asma bint Al-Numan Ibn Hisham note 918 (here he has apparently confused her with Amra bint Yazid), Ibn Sad Volume 8 Pages 101-105, 153 Abu Dawud 12:2219 ; Abu Dawud 12:2220 ; Abu Dawud 12:2221 .Al-Muwatta 20 10.31b. Ibn Sad 8:109-111

SO THE REASONS WHY ARABS DID POLYGAMY WAS TO FORM ALLIANCES OR POLITICAL ALLIANCES WITH OTHER TRIBES OR LEADERS OF TRIBES, ETC. ( FOR EXAMPLES OF THIS SEE AL-TABARI VOLUME 9, PAGE 139, AL-TABARI VOLUME 39, PAGE 166, Ibn Sad Voume 8:Pages 108-109, 231

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