Debunking the slander against the Prophet's Marriage to Ayesha Important Note: The age or even the name of Hazrat Ayesha (ra) is not mentioned in the Quran, which is believed to be the Revelation from the Creator of the Universe by ALL Muslims. Therefore, if any critic of Islam can prove with objective argument or solid evidence that a true Prophet of God cannot marry a girl of Hazrat Ayesha's age, then the hadiths that mention her age will be proven to be false automatically, and Muslims have no problem at all in rejecting those hadiths either. However, and unfortunately, no one will ever be able to prove it, anyway! Because they have no objective criterion to prove their case to begin with. Therefore, either way, the slanderer of the Prophet is in lose-lose situation, and hence there is no point of bringing up these kinds of non-issues to attack his character or to try to disprove the Quran. So, the anti-Islamic blind haters are dismantled right here, and that will surely end and refute the false accusations against the Prophet's marriage to Hazrat Ayesha once and for all. The funny thing is that the source they use to attack his character, the same source claims that he was a prophet of God! So, it's obvious that they are suffering from hatred and hallucination simultaneously. Introduction: The Prophet's marriage to Hazrat Ayasha is one of the most common attacks that critics of Islam use. Most of the time dumb uneducated haters accuse the Prophet of being a 'pedophile'. The same people, who accuse the Prophet of such a false charge, completely ignore the traditions at the time, the cultural context, and the facts about the marriage and the benefits the community received from this marriage. All the Muslim scholars agree that the Prophet and Hazrat Ayesha were engaged for nearly three years before marriage. And in these three years the Prophet did not have (sexual relations with her) until much later after the age of 9 years, according to hadith, once she reached puberty and moved in to the Prophet's house after the age of 9. Islam does not support pedophilia or child molestation under any circumstances. This is because the Quran associates marriage to physical and mental maturity and adulthood: The Quran 4:6: Make trial of orphans until they reach the age of marriage; if then you find sound judgment in them, release their property to them; but consume it not wastefully, nor in haste against their growing up. If the guardian is well off, let him claim no remuneration, but if he is poor, let him have for himself what is just and reasonable. When ye release their property to them, take witnesses in their presence: But all sufficient is God in taking account. The Quran 4:21: And how could ye take it when ye have gone in unto each other, and they have taken from you a solemn covenant? Both of these verses together indicate that marriage is a solemn covenant. Agreement between man and woman at the age of maturity and where they can make good judgments. Therefore, they have to be developed. 10 Easy Steps Refuting the Vicious Slander against the Prophet's Marriage to Hazrat Ayesha... Step 1: First of all it should be known to people that Hazrat Ayesha was engaged to Jubayr son of Mut'im before the Prophet. This is proof that Ayesha had reached the age of marriage and engagement in Prophet's time. However, the engagement was later nullified by Jubayr's parents due to Abu Bakr embracing Islam. This can be read in detail here: http://www.witness-pioneer.org/vil/Articles/companion/02_abu_bakr.htm#Holy%20Prophet Step 2: Hazrat Ayesha was a legal WIFE of the Prophet, and not anything else. Yet some evil minded Missionaries have invented the lie against the Prophet (i.e., he was a 'pedophile') to justify or hide the crimes of thousands of pedophile priests in their churches! Step 3: According to some Islamic sources, Hazrat Ayesha was in between 18-20 years old during the time of her marriage to the Prophet: http://www.islamicsupremecouncil.com/ayesha.htm Step 4: It's a biological fact that a young girl can produce a child and get married when she has had her menses. Here is the fact that Hazrat Ayesha had her menses at 9 years old: "The messenger of Allah (SAW) said to me: Get me the mat from the mosque. I said: I am menstruating. Upon this he remarked: Your menstruation is not in your hands." (Sahih Muslim, Hadith No. 15973) Step 5: Although puberty usually starts between ages 8 to 13 in girls, it may start earlier or later. Everyone's body changes at a different time. Whether you have breast at age 10 or have not started your period by age 14, do not worry. Everyone goes through puberty eventually. Proof from science health: http://www.healthtouch.com/bin/EContent_HT/cnoteShowLfts.asp?fname=07103&title=PUBERTY+IN+GIRLS+&cid=HTHLTH Here is another proof that when a young girl has reached her menses and gone through puberty she can produce a child even at 9 yrs old. Picture of Thailand mother at 9 years gives birth: http://www.answering-christianity.com/thai_girl.htm Step 6: Many Islam haters want to complain about the marriage of the Prophet to Hazrat Ayesha but they don't want to complain the age of Joseph, Mary's husband, who was "90 years old" when he married 12 to 14-year old Mary: http://www.catholic.com/library/Mary_Ever_Virgin.asphttp://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15464b.htm
It is quite hypocritical of Jews and Christians to criticize the marriage of Hazrat Ayesha. Talmud (Jewish scripture) says: "Marrying off one's daughter as soon after she reaches adulthood as possible, even to one's Slave." (Talmud, Pesachim 113a) In Biblical times adulthood could refer to the age of puberty or even younger age. Regarding the marriage of Mary to Joseph, Catholic Encyclopedia (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08504a.htm), says: "When forty years of age, Joseph married a woman called Melcha or Escha by some, Salome by others; they lived forty-nine years together and had six children, two daughters and four sons, the youngest of whom was James (the Less, "the Lord's brother"). A year after his wife's death, as the priests announced through Judea that they wished to find in the tribe of Juda a respectable man to espouse Mary, then twelve to fourteen years of age, Joseph, who was at the time ninety years old, went up to Jerusalem among the candidates; a miracle manifested the choice God had made of Joseph, and two years later the Annunciation took place." Note: That article on Catholic Encyclopedia obtains its information from early Christian writing including apocryphal writings. The Catholic Encyclopedia goes on to conclude "...retained the belief that St. Joseph was an old man at the time of marriage with the Mother of God." If Christians do not find any difficulty in accepting "Mother of God" (according to Catholic Encyclopedia), who was 12-14, marrying a 90 year old man then why do they raise objection towards the marriage of Hazrat Ayesha to the Prophet? Step 7: Morality varies from culture to culture and society to society. What is perceived to be moral in USA may not apply to other parts of the world, such as Africa or Asia. Morality is also linked to time, sexual intercourse, and dating not long ago was regarded as a matter of shame for the family and was almost never spoken of. However, now this is a common, dating could start as early as at the age of 10. You often see children going out with other to pizza parlors or cinemas. The way people dress has changed a lot over time also, people used to dress very modestly in the early 19th century, and that has completely changed now. So obviously societies change quickly, so we need to examine the age of marriage in history and judge Prophet's marriage from that. Historically, the age at which a girl was considered ready to be married was puberty; this also was the case in Biblical times. In an article called "Ancient Israelite Marriage Customs", by Jim West, PhD - a Baptist minister writes: "The wife was to be taken from within the larger family circle (usually at the outset of puberty or around the age of 13) in order to maintain the purity of the family line." While discussing the meaning of the word 'almah, which is the Hebrew word for "young woman" or "adolescent female", Gerald Segal, in his book "The Jew and the Christian Missionary", Ktav Publishing House, 1981, page 28 says: "It should be noted, however, that in Biblical times females married at an early age." The Campaign To Raise The Age Of Consent, 1885-1994 (http://womhist.binghamton.edu/teacher/aoc.htm) [note the education domain] states: "American reformers were shocked to discover that the laws of most states set the age of consent at the age of ten or twelve, and in one state, Delaware, the age of consent was only seven." It was completely normal to be married at a young age. This is why the people of Quraish and other tribes at Prophet's time found absolutely no fault in their marriage. These people hated Islam, they did everything to demonize the Prophet, they tried to stop Islam from spreading and even tried to kill the Prophet and these same people made no objection to the marriage of the Prophet to Hazrat Ayesha since at those times such a thing was not considered immoral. Nabia Abbott, who is a western female orientalist and has written many anti-Islam materials, writes in her book Ayesha-The Beloved of Mohammad, Al-Saqi Books, London, 1985, page 7: "It is not clear just when the marriage actually took place. According to some versions, it was in the month of Shawwal of the Year 1, that is, some seven or eight months after the arrival at Medina; but, according to others, it was not until after the Battle of Badr, that is, in Shawwal of the second year of the Hijrah. In no version is there any comment made on the disparity of the ages between Mohammed and Ayesha or on the tender age of the bride who, at the most, could not have been over ten years old and who was still much enamored with her play." Even in our times in certain parts of the world the age of marriage is still relatively low. According to a chart on (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_consent#Ages_of_consent_in_various_countries) the age of consent in Mexico and Philippines is only 12. In Guyana, Japan, South Korea, Spain and Swaziland the age of consent is 13. Hence even in 'Today's Times' a young marriage is not abnormal, as some in the west think. Should the people of the United Kingdom, where the age limit is higher, be correct in slandering the people of Philippines/Mexico where the age limit is much lower and thus married at young age? Of course not! Or if within few centuries the age of marriage rises up to 20, then should those people have a right to slander those who lived at our times and married before 20? By the same token, we should not criticize the marriage of the Prophet based on the norm of our time. History shows that the age of the marriage was lower and relative to olden times, the marriage of the Prophet was normal and there was nothing immoral about it. It was a norm at Biblical times to be wedded at puberty or earlier, the age of consent one century ago in a 'modern country' was as low as 10 or 12, even 7 in Delaware! Even in our times, in certain societies, the age of consent is as low as 12 or 13. In the light of historical evidences, the marriage cannot be criticized. Step 8: BIBLE AND JEWISH TALMUD ACCEPT HAVING SEX WITH CHILDREN! (Bible Numbers 31:17-18: "Now kill all the boys. And kill every woman who has slept with a man, but save for yourselves every girl who has never slept with a man.") It is only natural for girls who have never slept with any man to be young in age! In the case of the time that these verses occurred, the girls were as young as three. Step 9: I want to raise a question to Christian Missionaries. Would you marry your daughter to Jesus if she reached her menses, and if Jesus asked for her hand? If Yes, then you need to be consistent. If No, then are you saying that you don't trust your lord Jesus?! Step 10: Lust for women? The Prophet's first wife was twice widowed before and she was 15 years older than him. And this was the only woman the Prophet ever married from his birth until age 50. All his wives except Hazrat Ayesha and Marya were widows. Therefore, it's obvious that Prophet's marriage with Hazrat Ayesha was more of an exception and Prophet did indeed find adult relationship. Prophet waited for Hazrat Ayesha to mature and reach puberty before the marriage was consummated, this obviously is contrary to the characteristics of a pedophile. If there had been anything wrong with the marriage, Abu Bakr and others would have objected. If the father of Hazrat Ayesha found no fault with the marriage then why should people 1400 years later raise objections? Naturally, Abu Bakr must have had the best interests in his heart for his daughter. And both Hazrat Ayesha and Abu Bakr lived after the Prophet passed away. Dr. Annie Besant has this to say about this allegation: "But do you mean to tell me that the man who in the full flush of youthful vigor, a young man of four and twenty (24), married a woman much his senior, and remained faithful to her for six and twenty years (26), at fifty years of age when the passions are dying married for lust and sexual passion? Not thus are men’s lives to be judged. And you look at the women whom he married, you will find that by every one of them an alliance was made for his people, or something was gained for his followers, or the woman was in sore need of protection." (Dr. Annie Besant) Conclusion: It has been proved with solid evidences that the marriage of the Prophet to Hazrat Ayesha is Biblically validated, scientifically correct, and even historically correct amongst Christians! History shows that the age of marriage was low, in olden times women married when they reached puberty or even earlier. Even in USA, a century ago, age of consent was low, 7 in Delaware, even today in some countries like Mexico and Philippines, age of consent is as low as 12. It should not be too astonishing to find therefore that Ayesha was mature enough, as the medical evidences states that puberty can occur at the age of 9. Ayesha played a vital role for Islam. The marriage also strengthened the relationship between the Prophet and Abu Bakr the First Caliph. The Prophet does not fulfill the characteristics of a pedophile. Let us not forget that the Prophet waited 3 years before the marriage with Ayesha was consummated and that all his other wives were older than 16. It is quite hypocritical of Christian Missionaries to criticize the marriage of Ayesha when Mary, who according to Catholic Encyclopedia was between 12 and 14, and yet married Joseph who was 90 years old! So! There is no logical and rational reason to be apologetic for the marriage of the Prophet to Hazrat Ayesha 1400 years ago! Sources of this write-up: http://muslim-defence.com/Aisha.aspx http://www.scribd.com/doc/7421982/10-Easy-Step-More-Intense ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- My Bangla Blog on Theism-Atheism and Religion: http://amarblog.com/smraihan [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
