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Question asked by Anonymous from India on 30-Apr-1998.
Title:
What was Ayesha's (ra) Age at the Time of Her Marriage to the Prophet
(pbuh)?
Question:
What was Ayesha's (ra) age at the time of her marriage?
It is normally believed that she was nine years old at the time of her
marriage with Mohammad (sws) was consummated. I do think it was according to
the traditions of the Arab culture, as otherwise people would have objected
to this marriage. But unfortunately, the modern day man is not satisfied
with an answer as simple as that.
Answer:
To begin with [1], I think it is the responsibility of all those who believe
that marrying a girl as young as nine years old was an accepted norm of the
Arab culture, to provide at least a few examples to substantiate their point
of view. I have not yet been able to find a single reliable instance in the
books of Arab history where a girl as young as nine years old was given away
in marriage. Unless such examples are given, we do not have any reasonable
grounds to believe that it really was an accepted norm.
In my opinion, the age of Ayesha (ra) has been grossly misreported in the
narratives of the incident. Not only that, I think that the narratives
reporting this event are not only highly unreliable but also that on the
basis of other historical data, the event reported, is quite an unlikely
happening. Let us look at the issue from an objective stand point. My
reservations in accepting the narratives, on the basis of which, Ayesha's
(ra) age at the time of her marriage with the Prophet (pbuh) is held to be
nine years are:
* Most of these narratives are reported only by Hisham ibn `urwah
reporting on the authority of his father. An event as well known as the one
being reported, should logically have been reported by more people than just
one, two or three.
* It is quite strange that no one from Medinah, where Hisham ibn
`urwah lived the first seventy-one years of his life has narrated the event,
even though in Medinah his pupils included people as well known as Malik ibn
Anas. All the narratives of this event have been reported by narrators from
Iraq, where Hisham is reported to have shifted after living in Medinah for
seventy-one years.
* Tehzeeb al-Tehzeeb, one of the most well known books on the life and
reliability of the narrators of the traditions ascribed to the Prophet
(pbuh) reports that according to Yaqub ibn Shaibah: "narratives reported by
Hisham are reliable except those that are reported through the people of
Iraq". It further states that Malik ibn Anas objected on those narratives of
Hisham, which were reported through people of Iraq (Vol. 11, pg. 48 - 51).
* Meezaan al-Ai`tidaal, another book on the narrators of the
traditions of the Prophet (pbuh) reports that when he was old, Hisham's
memory suffered quite badly (Vol. 4, pg. 301 - 302).
* According to the generally accepted tradition, Ayesha (ra) was born
about eight years before Hijrah. However, according to another narrative in
Bukhari (Kitaab al-Tafseer) Ayesha (ra) is reported to have said that at the
time Surah Al-Qamar, the 54th chapter of the Qur'an , was revealed, "I was a
young girl". The 54th Surah of the Qur'an was revealed nine years before
Hijrah. According to this tradition, Ayesha (ra) had not only been born
before the revelation of the referred Surah, but was actually a young girl
(jariyah), not even only an infant (sibyah) at that time. Obviously, if this
narrative is held to be true, it is in clear contradiction with the
narratives reported by Hisham ibn `urwah. I see absolutely no reason that
after the comments of the experts on the narratives of Hisham ibn `urwah,
why should we not accept this narrative to be more accurate.
* According to a number of narratives, Ayesha (ra) accompanied the
Muslims in the battle of Badr and Uhud. Furthermore, it is also reported in
books of hadith and history that no one under the age of 15 years was
allowed to take part in the battle of Uhud. All the boys below 15 years of
age were sent back. Ayesha's (ra) participation in the battle of Badr and
Uhud clearly indicates that she was not nine or ten years old at that time.
After all, women used to accompany men to the battlefields to help them, not
to be a burden upon them.
* According to almost all the historians Asma (ra), the elder sister
of Ayesha (ra) was ten years older than Ayesha (ra). It is reported in
Taqreeb al-Tehzeeb as well as Al-Bidayah wa al-Nihayah that Asma (ra) died
in the 73rd year after hijrah [2] when she was 100 years old. Now, obviously
if Asma (ra) was 100 years old in the 73rd year after hijrah, she should
have been 27 or 28 years old at the time of hijrah. If Asma (ra) was 27 or
28 years old at the time of hijrah, Ayesha (ra) should have been 17 or 18
years old at that time. Thus, Ayesha (ra) - if she got married in 1 AH
(after hijrah) or 2 AH - was between 18 to 20 years old at the time of her
marriage.
* Tabari in his treatise on Islamic history, while mentioning Abu Bakr
(ra) reports that Abu Bakr had four children and all four were born during
the Jahiliyyah - the pre Islamic period. Obviously, if Ayesha (ra) was born
in the period of jahiliyyah, she could not have been less than 14 years in 1
AH - the time she most likely got married.
* According to Ibn Hisham, the historian, Ayesha (ra) accepted Islam
quite some time before Umar ibn Khattab (ra). This shows that Ayesha (ra)
accepted Islam during the first year of Islam. While, if the narrative of
Ayesha's (ra) marriage at seven years of age is held to be true, Ayesha (ra)
should not even have been born during the first year of Islam.
* Tabari has also reported that at the time Abu Bakr (ra) planned on
migrating to Habshah (8 years before Hijrah), he went to Mut`am - with whose
son Ayesha (ra) was engaged at that time - and asked him to take Ayesha (ra)
in his house as his son's wife. Mut`am refused, because Abu Bakr had
embraced Islam. Subsequently, his son divorced Ayesha (ra). Now, if Ayesha
(ra) was only seven years old at the time of her marriage, she could not
have been born at the time Abu Bakr decided on migrating to Habshah. On the
basis of this report it seems only reasonable to assume that Ayesha (ra) had
not only been born 8 years before hijrah, but was also a young lady, quite
prepared for marriage.
* According to a narrative reported by Ahmad ibn Hanbal, after the
death of Khadijah (ra), when Khaulah (ra) came to the Prophet (pbuh)
advising him to marry again, the Prophet (pbuh) asked her regarding the
choices she had in her mind. Khaulah said: "You can marry a virgin (bikr) or
a woman who has already been married (thayyib)". When the Prophet (pbuh)
asked about who the virgin was, Khaulah proposed Ayesha's (ra) name. All
those who know the Arabic language, are aware that the word "bikr" in the
Arabic language is not used for an immature nine-year old girl. The correct
word for a young playful girl, as stated earlier is "Jariyah". "Bikr" on the
other hand, is used for an unmarried lady, and obviously a nine year old is
not a "lady".
* According to Ibn Hajar, Fatimah (ra) was five years older than
Ayesha (ra). Fatimah (ra) is reported to have been born when the Prophet
(pbuh) was 35 years old. Thus, even if this information is taken to be
correct, Ayesha (ra) could by no means be less than 14 years old at the time
of hijrah, and 15 or 16 years old at the time of her marriage.
These are some of the major points that go against accepting the commonly
known narrative regarding Ayesha's (ra) age at the time of her marriage.
In my opinion, neither was it an Arab tradition to give away girls in
marriage at an age as young as nine or ten years, nor did the Prophet
(pbuh) marry Ayesha (ra) at such a young age. The people of Arabia did not
object to this marriage, because it never happened in the manner it has been
narrated.
1st May 1998
_____
[1] The answer to this question is primarily based on the research by Habib
ur Rahman Kandhalwi (urdu) as presented in his booklet, "Tehqiq e umar e
Siddiqah e Ka'inat", Anjuman Uswa e hasanah, Karachi, Pakistan
[2] That is, the migration of the Prophet (pbuh)
Discussion(s) regarding this Question
1 A Further Exchange on Ayesha's Age...
2 Further Exchange on 'What was Ayesha's Age?'
3 Mr. Silas' Response to 'Ayesha's (ra) Age'...
4 A 'Refutation' of Your Analysis of Ayesha's (ra) Age...
5 Regarding the Discussion Posted on 8th Januray 2002
6 Your Opinion regarding Ayesha's age at the Time of Marriage
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