THE PROPHETIC HOUSEHOLD
1.Khadijah Bint Khuwailid: In Makkah — prior to Hijra — the Prophet’s household comprised him
(Peace be upon him) and his wife Khadijah bint Khuwailid. He was twenty-five and she was forty
when they got married. She was the first woman he married. She was the only wife he had till
she died. He had sons and daughters with her. None of their sons lived long. They all died. Their
daughters were Zainab, Ruqaiya, Umm Kulthum and Fatimah.
l Zainab was married to her maternal cousin Abu Al‘As binAl-Rabi‘and that was before Al-Hijra.
Ruqaiya and Umm Kulthum were both married to ‘Uthman bin ‘Affan (May Allah be pleased with
him) successively (i.e. he married one after the death of her sister). Fatimah was married to ‘Ali
bin Abi Talib; and that was in the period between Badr and Uhud battles. The sons and daughters
that Fatimah and ‘Ali had were Al-Hasan, Al-Husain, Zainab and Umm Kulthum.
It is well-known that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) was exceptionally authorized to have
more than four wives for various reasons. The wives he married were thirteen. Nine of them
outlived him. Two died in his lifetime: Khadijah and the Mother of the poor (Umm Al-Masakeen)
— Zainab bint Khuzaima, besides two others with whom he did not consummate his marriage.
2.Sawdah bint Zam‘a: He married her in Shawwal, in the tenth year of Prophethood, a few days
after the death of Khadijah. Prior to that, she was married to a paternal cousin of hers called AsSakran
bin
‘Amr.in the sixth year of Al-Hijra.
9.Umm Habibah: Ramlah, the daughter of Abu Sufyan. She was married to ‘Ubaidullah bin Jahsh.
She migrated with him to Abyssinia (Ethiopia). When ‘Ubaidullah apostatized and became a
Christian, she stoodfast to her religion and refused to convert. However ‘Ubaidullah died there in
Abyssinia (Ethiopia). The Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) dispatched ‘Amr bin Omaiyah
Ad-Damri with a letter to Negus, the king, asking him for Umm Habibah’s hand — that was in
Muharram, in the seventh year of Al-Hijra. Negus agreed and sent her to the Prophet (Peace be
upon him) in the company of Sharhabeel
10.her after that conquest in the seventh year of Al-Hijra.
11.Maimunah bint Al-Harith: The daughter of Al-Harith, and the sister of Umm Al-Fadl Lubabah bint
Al-Harith. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) married her after the Compensatory ‘Umrah (Lesser
Pilgrimage). That was in Dhul-Qa‘dah in the seventh year of Al-Hijra.
Those were the eleven women that the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) had married and
consummated marriage with them. He outlived two of them — Khadijah and Zainab, the Umm AlMasakeen.
Whereas
the
other
nine
wives
outlived
him.
The two wives that he did not consummate marriage with were, one from Bani Kilab and the other from
Kindah and this was the one called Al-Jauniyah.
Besides these, he had two concubines. The first was Mariyah, the Coptic (an Egyptian Christian), a
present gift from Al-Muqauqis, vicegerent of Egypt — she gave birth to his son Ibrâhim, who died in
Madinah while still a little child, on the 28th or 29th of Shawwal in the year 10 A.H., i.e. 27th January,
632 A.D. The second one was Raihanah bint Zaid An-Nadriyah or Quraziyah, a captive from Bani
Quraiza. Some people say she was one of his wives. However, Ibn Al-Qaiyim gives more weight to the
first version. Abu ‘Ubaidah spoke of two more concubines, Jameelah, a captive, and another one, a
bondwoman granted to him by Zainab bint Jahsh.
Whosoever meditates on the life of the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him), will conceive that his
marriage to this great number of women in the late years of his lifetime, after he had almost spent
thirty years of his best days of youth sufficing himself to one old wife — Khadijah and later on to
Sawdah, was in no way an overwhelming lustful desire to be satisfied through such a number of wives.
These marriages were in fact motivated by aims and purposes much more glorious and greater than
what normal marriages usually aim at.
The tendency of the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) towards establishing a relationship by
marriage with both Abu Bakr and ‘Umar and his marriage to ‘Aishah and Hafsah — and getting his
daughter Fatimah married to ‘Ali bin Abi Talib, and the marriage of his two daughters, Ruqaiyah and
Umm Kulthum to ‘Uthman — indicate clearly that he aimed at confirming the relationship among the
four men — whose sacrifices and great achievements in the cause of Islam are well-known.
Besides this, there was that tradition of the Arabs to honour the in-law relations. For them a son or a
daughter-in-law was a means by which they sought the consolidation of relationship and affection with
various phratries. Hostility and fights against alliances and affinities would bring an unforgettable
shame, disgrace and degradation to them.
By marrying the Mothers of believers, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) wanted to demolish or break
down the Arab tribes’ enmity to Islam and extinguish their intense hatred. Umm Salamah was from
Bani Makhzum — the clan of Abu Jahl and Khalid bin Al-Waleed. Her marriage to the Messenger of Allâh
(Peace be upon him) produced good results. Khalid’s deliberately undecisive attitude at Uhud — for
instance — was due to the Messenger’s marriage to Umm Salamah. Khalid went even further than that,
in a short time he willingly became a keen obedient Muslim.
After the Messenger of Allâh’s marriage to Umm Habibah, Abu Sufyan, her father, did not encounter
him with any sort of hostility. Similarly his marriage to Juwairiyah and Safiyah made the two tribes stop
all sorts of provocation, aggression or hostility against Islam. Better still, Juwairiyah, herself, was one
of the greatest sources of blessing to her own people. On the occasion of her marriage to the Prophet
3. ‘Aishah bint Abu Bakr: He married her in the eleventh year of Prophethood, a year after his
marriage to Sawdah, and two years and five months before Al-Hijra. She was six years old when
he married her. However, he did not consummate the marriage with her till Shawwal seven
months after Al-Hijra, and that was in Madinah. She was nine then. She was the only virgin he
married, and the most beloved creature to him. As a woman she was the most learnèd woman in
jurisprudence.
4.Hafsah bint ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab: She was Aiyim (i.e. husbandless). Her ex-husband was
Khunais bin Hudhafa As-Sahmi in the period between Badr and Uhud battles. The Messenger of
Allâh (Peace be upon him) married her in the third year of Al-Hijra. (Peace be upon him), his Companions set a hundred families of her people free. They said: “It is for
their affinity with the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him).” No need to say what great good
impression this gratitude had on everybody’s soul. One of the greatest motives of all is Allâh’s bidding
his Prophet to educate and purify the souls of people who had known nothing whatsoever about
courtesy, education and culture. He had to teach them to comply with the necessities of civilization and
to contribute to the solidification and the establishment of a new Islamic society.
An essential fundamental rule of the Muslim society is to prohibit mixing of men and women. Providing
direct education for women, though highly compelling, is impossible in the light of this Islamic norm.
Therefore, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) had to select some women of different ages and talents,
and indoctrinate them systematically in order to educate she-bedouins and townswomen, old and
young, and thus furnish them with the instruments of propagating the true faith. The Mothers of
believers [i.e. wives of the Prophet (Peace be upon him)] were in such a convenient position that they
could convey the state of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) and his affairs to people (men and women).
Being educated and taught the teachings and rules of Islam, his wives, especially those who outlived
him, played a very important role in conveying Prophetic traditions Ahadith to the Muslims. ‘Aishah, for
instance, related a large number of the Prophet’s deeds and statements.
His marriage to his paternal cousin Zainab bint Jahsh was a peculiar case which aimed at eradicating a
deeply rooted pre-Islamic tradition — i.e. the adoption of children. In Al-Jahiliyah the Arabs used to
consider an adopted person exactly like a real son or daughter as far as rights and sanctities are
concerned. That Jahiliyah tradition had been so deeply rooted in their hearts that it was not easy to
remove or uproot it. This tradition in fact affronts the basic principles of Islam; especially those
concerned with marriage, divorce and inheritance and some other cases, and brought about lots of
corruptions and indecencies. Naturally Islam stands against such deeds, and attempts to remove them
from the Islamic society.
For the eradication of this tradition, Allâh, the Exalted, bid His Messenger (Peace be upon him) to marry
his cousin Zainab bint Jahsh, who was an ex-wife to Zaid. She was at variance with Zaid to an extent
that he intended to divorce her — that was at the time when the Confederates (Al-Ahzab) were making
an evil alliance against the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) and against the Muslims. The
Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) feared that the hypocrites, the idolaters, and the Jews would
make a propaganda out of it and try to influence some Muslims of weak hearts. That was why he urged
Zaid not to divorce her, in order not to get involved into that trial.
Undoubtedly this hesitation and partiality were alien to the character of the Prophet (Peace be upon
him). They did not apply to the power of determination and will with which he had been sent. Allâh, the
Exalted, blamed him for that by saying:
l “
And (remember) when you said to him [Zaid bin Haritha (May Allah be pleased with him) — the
freed slave of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) ] on whom Allâh has bestowed grace (by guiding
him to Islam) and you [O Muhammad (Peace be upon him) ] have done favour (by manumitting
him), ‘Keep your wife to yourself, and fear Allâh.’ But you did hide in yourself (i.e. what Allâh has
already made known to you that He will give her to you in marriage) that which Allâh will make
manifest, you did fear the people [i.e. Muhammad (Peace be upon him) ] married the divorced
wife of his manumitted slave] whereas Allâh had a better right that you should fear
him.” [33:37]
Finally Zaid divorced Zainab and the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) married her at the time
he laid siege to Bani Quraiza. That was after she had finished her Iddat (i.e. period during which a
widow or a divorcee may not remarry). Allâh Himself had already ordained it, and so gave him no other
alternative. Allâh had even started the marriage Himself by saying:
l “So when Zaid had accomplished his desire from her (i.e. divorced her), We gave her to you in
marriage, 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.
5.Zainab bint Khuzaimah: She was from Bani Hilal bin ‘Amir bin Sa‘sa‘a. Was nicknamed Umm
6.Umm Salamah Hind bint Abi Omaiyah: She used to be the wife of Abu Salamah, who died in
Jumada Al-Akhir, in the fourth year of Al-Hijra. The Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him)
married her in Shawwal of the same year.
7.Zainab bint Jahsh bin Riyab: She was from Bani Asad bin Khuzaimah and was the Messenger’s
paternal cousin. She was married to Zaid bin Haritha — who was then considered son of the
Prophet (Peace be upon him) . However, Zaid divorced her. Allâh sent down some Qur’ânic
verses with this respect:
l “So when Zaid had accomplished his desire from her (i.e., divorced her), We gave her to you in
marriage.” [33:37]
About her, Allâh has sent down some verses of Al-Ahzab Chapter that discussed the adoption of
children in detail — anyway we will discuss this later. The Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon
him) married her in Dhul-Qa‘dah, the fifth year of Al-Hijra.
8.Juwairiyah bint Al-Harith: Al-Harith was the head of Bani Al-Mustaliq of Khuza‘ah. Juwairiyah was
among the booty that fell to the Muslims from Bani Al-Mustaliq. She was a portion of Thabit bin
Qais bin Shammas’ share. He made her a covenant to set her free at a certain time. The
Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) accomplished the covenant and married her in Sha‘ban they have divorced them).” [33:37]
And that was in order to break down the tradition of child adoption in practice after He had done it in
words:
l “Call them (adopted sons) by (the names of) their fathers, that is more just near Allâh.” [33:5]
“
Muhammad (Peace be upon him) ] is not the father of any man among you, but he is the
Messenger of Allâh, and the last (end) of the Prophets.” [33:40]
Lots of deeply-rooted traditions cannot be uprooted or demolished or even adjusted by mere words.
They must be matched and associated with the action of the advocate of the Message himself.
This could be perceived through the deeds practised by the Muslims at Al-Hudaibiyah ‘Umrah (Lesser
Pilgrimage) during which ‘Urwah bin Mas‘ud Al-Thaqafi saw certain Muslims tend to pick up any
expectoration that fell down from the Prophet ﻢﻠﺳو ﻪﯿﻠﻋ ﷲا ﻰﻠﺻ . He also saw them race to the water of his
ablution and they almost quarrelled for it. There were others who competed to pledge allegiance to
death and some others pledged not to flee from (the battlefield). Among those people, were eminent
Companions like ‘Umar and Abu Bak, who although dedicated all their lives to the Prophet (Peace be
upon him) and to the cause of Islam, but refused to carry out the Messenger’s ordres with respect to
slaughtering sacrificial animals after the ratification of Al-Hudaibiyah Peace Treaty, the thing that
perturbed and caused the Prophet (Peace be upon him) to feel anxious. However, when Umm Salamah
(May Allah be pleased with her) advised that he take the initiative and sacrifice his animals, his
followers raced to follow his example; a clear evidence in support of the saying: Actions speak louder
than words, in the process of exterminating a deeply-established tradition.
Hypocrites aroused a lot of suspicions and made a broad false propaganda against that marriage. Their
acts and talks about that marriage had ill-effects on those Muslims whose Faith was still weak,
particularly that Zainab was the fifth wife — and the Noble Qur’ân limited the number up to four only;
Zaid was traditionally his son, and so a father marrying his son’s divorcee was a heinous sin in the eyes
of the Arabians.
Al-Ahzab Surah was revealed to shed full light on the two issues, i.e. Islam does not recognize adoption
of children, and the Prophet (Peace be upon him) is given (by Allâh) more freedom as regards the
number of wives he can hold than other Muslims in order to achieve noble and honourable purposes.
However, the treatment of the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) to his wives was of honourable,
noble, and superb nature. His wives were on tops in respect of honour, satisfaction, patience, modesty,
and service (that is to say the performance of housework and marriage duties). Although the
Messenger’s house-life was hard and unbearable, none of his wives complained. Anas said about the
Prophet’s life: “According to my knowledge, the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) has never
tasted a thin flattened loaf in all his lifetime, nor has he ever seen with his own eyes roasted mutton.”
‘Aishah said: “Over two months have elapsed — during which we have seen three crescents — and yet
no fire has been kindled in the houses of the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) (i.e. they did not
cook food).” “What did you eat to sustain yourselves?” ‘Urwah asked. She said “The two blacks: dates
and water”. Lots of information about the hard life of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) were told.
In spite of these hardships, straits and adversity of life in the house of the Prophet (Peace be upon
him), none of his wives uttered a word of complaint worthy of reproach — but once. This exception was
required by human instinctive inclinations. However, it was not so important and consequently it did not
require the decree of a legislative rule. Allâh has given them an opportunity to choose between two
things, as clearly stated in the following verses: l “O Prophet [Muhammad (Peace be upon him) ]! 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 Al-Muhsinat (good doers) amongst you an
enormous reward.’” [33:28,29]
They were so noble and honest that none of them preferred ‘the life of this world and its glitter’ to the
abode in the Hereafter.
Although they were many in number, nothing of the dispute occurrences that normally happen among
co-wives, took place in their houses. Very few cases could be the only exception; but they were quite
normal. Allâh reproached them for that, so they ceased to do such a thing. This incident is mentioned in
At-Tahreem Chapter:
l “O Prophet! Why do you ban (for yourself) that which Allâh has made lawful to you …” [66:1] (to
the end of the fifth verse).
Discussing polygamy — in my opinion — is not a necessity; since a person who is familiar with the
Europeans, and indecent practices, sufferings, wickedness, their sorrows and distresses, the horrible
crimes they commit in this respect as well as the trials, the disasters that they are involved in, and
which emanate directly from their disregard of the principle of polygamy form a good reason (to justify
the soundness of polygamy). The distorted picture of life in Europe with the ill-practices featuring it,
could truthfully justify the existence and practice of polygamy. In this, there are Divine signs for all
people possessed of lucid mind.
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