Hazrat Ayesha(R.A)'s Age.
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It is true that the age of Hazrat Ayesha(R.A) is uncertain and it is also true that she was married to Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) at a young age. And this the topic which is immensly used by the critics of Islam to critisize Prophet Muhammad(PBUH). Hadiths say that Hazrat Ayesha(R.A) was 9 years at the time of marriage. But they don't analyse the hadiths to know the truth.. lets analyse the hadiths..
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CHRONOLOGY : It is vital to keep in mind some of the pertinent dates in the history of Islam:
pre-610 CE: Jahiliya (pre-Islamic age) before revelation
610 CE: First revelation
610 CE: AbuBakr accepts Islam
613 CE: Prophet Muhammad begins preaching publicly.
615 CE: Emigration to Abyssinia
616 CE: Umar bin al Khattab accepts Islam
620 CE: Generally accepted betrothal of Ayesha to the Prophet
622 CE: Hijrah (emigation to Yathrib, later renamed Medina)
623/624 CE: Generally accepted year of Ayesha(R.A) living with the Prophet.
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EVIDENCE 1 : Reliability of Source..
Most of the narratives printed in the books of hadith are reported only by Hisham ibn `Urwah, who was reporting on the authority of his father. First of all, more people than just one, two or three should logically have reported. It is strange that no one from Medina, where Hisham ibn `Urwah lived the first 71 years of his life narrated the event, despite the fact that his Medinan pupils included the well-respected Malik ibn Anas. The origins of the report of the narratives of this event are people from Iraq, where Hisham is reported to have shifted after living in Medina for most of his life.
Tehzibu’l-Tehzib, one of the most well known books on the life and reliability of the narrators of the traditions of the Prophet, reports that according to Yaqub ibn Shaibah:
“He [Hisham] is highly reliable, his narratives are acceptable, except what he narrated after moving over to Iraq”
(Tehzi’bu’l-tehzi’b, Ibn Hajar Al-`asqala’ni, Dar Ihya al-turath al-Islami, 15th century. Vol 11, p. 50).
It further states that Malik ibn Anas objected on those narratives of Hisham which were reported through people in Iraq:
“I have been told that Malik objected on those narratives of Hisham which were reported through people of Iraq”
(Tehzi’b u’l-tehzi’b, Ibn Hajar Al-`asqala’ni, Dar Ihya al-turath al-Islami, Vol.11, p. 50).
Mizanu’l-ai`tidal, another book on the life sketches of the narrators of the traditions of the Prophet reports:
“When he was old, Hisham’s memory suffered quite badly”
(Mizanu’l-ai`tidal, Al-Zahbi, Al-Maktabatu’l-athriyyah, Sheikhupura, Pakistan, Vol. 4, p. 301).
CONCLUSION : Based on these references, Hisham’s memory was failing and his narratives while in Iraq were unreliable. So, his narrative of Ayesha(R.A)’s marriage and age are unreliable.
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EVIDENCE 2 : The Betrothal..
According to Tabari (also according to Hisham ibn ‘Urwah, Ibn Hunbal and Ibn Sad), Ayesha(R.A) was betrothed at seven years of age and began to cohabit with the Prophet at the age of nine years.
However, in another work,
Al-Tabari says :
“All four of his [Abu Bakr’s] children were born of his two wives during the pre-Islamic period”
(Tarikhu’l-umam wa’l-mamlu’k, Al-Tabari (died 922), Vol. 4, p. 50, Arabic, Dara’l-fikr, Beirut, 1979).
If Ayesha(R.A) was betrothed in 620 CE (at the age of seven) and started to live with the Prophet in 624 CE (at the age of nine), that would indicate that she was born in 613 CE and was nine when she began living with the Prophet. Therefore, based on one account of Al-Tabari, the numbers show that Ayesha(R.A) must have born in 613 CE, three years after the beginning of revelation (610 CE). Tabari also states that Ayesha(R.A) was born in the pre-Islamic era (in Jahiliya). If she was born before 610 CE, she would have been at least 14 years old when she began living with the Prophet. Essentially, Tabari contradicts himself.
CONCLUSION : Al-Tabari is unreliable in the matter of determining Ayesha(R.A)’s age.
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EVIDENCE 3 : The Age of Ayesha(R.A) in Relation to the Age of Fatima(R.A)..
According to Ibn Hajar,
“Fatima was born at the time the Ka`bah was rebuilt, when the Prophet was 35 years old... she was five years older that Ayesha”
(Al-isabah fi tamyizi’l-sahabah, Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, Vol. 4, p. 377, Maktabatu’l-Riyadh al-haditha, al-Riyadh, 1978).
If Ibn Hajar’s statement is factual, Ayesha(R.A) was born when the Prophet was 40 years old. If Ayesha(R.A) was married to the Prophet when he was 52 years old, Ayesha(R.A)’s age at marriage would be 12 years.
CONCLUSION : Ibn Hajar, Tabari an Ibn Hisham and Ibn Humbal contradict each other. So, the marriage of Ayesha(R.A) at seven years of age is a myth.
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EVIDENCE 4 : Ayesha(R.A)’s Age in relation to Asma(R.A)’s Age..
According to Abda’l-Rahman ibn abi zanna’d:
“Asma was 10 years older than Ayesha.."
(Siyar A`la’ma’l-nubala’, Al-Zahabi, Vol. 2, p. 289, Arabic, Mu’assasatu’l-risalah, Beirut, 1992).
According to Ibn Kathir:
“She [Asma] was elder to her sister [Ayesha] by 10 years”
(Al-Bidayah wa’l-nihayah, Ibn Kathir, Vol. 8, p. 371, Dar al-fikr al-`arabi, Al-jizah, 1933).
According to Ibn Kathir:
“She [Asma] saw the killing of her son during that year [73 AH], as we have already mentioned, and five days later she herself died. According to other narratives, she died not after five days but 10 or 20, or a few days over 20, or 100 days later. The most well known narrative is that of 100 days later. At the time of her death, she was 100 years old.”
(Al-Bidayah wa’l-nihayah, Ibn Kathir, Vol. 8, p. 372, Dar al-fikr al-`arabi, Al-jizah, 1933).
According to Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani:
“She [Asma] lived a hundred years and died in 73 or 74 AH.”
(Taqribu’l-tehzib, Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani, p. 654, Arabic, Bab fi’l-nisa’, al-harfu’l-alif, Lucknow).
According to almost all the historians, Asma(R.A), the elder sister of Ayesha(R.A) was 10 years older than Ayesha(R.A). If Asma(R.A) was 100 years old in 73 AH, she should have been 27 or 28 years old at the time of the hijrah.
If Asma(R.A) was 27 or 28 years old at the time of hijrah, Ayesha(R.A) should have been 17 or 18 years old. Thus, Ayesha(R.A), being 17 or 18 years of at the time of Hijra, she started to cohabit with the Prophet between at either 19 to 20 years of age.
Based on Hajar, Ibn Katir, and Abda’l-Rahman ibn abi zanna’d, Ayesha(R.A)’s age at the time she began living with the Prophet would be 19 or 20. In Evidence 3, Ibn Hajar suggests that Ayesha(R.A) was 12 years old and in Evidence 4 he contradicts himself with a 17 or 18-year-old Ayesha(R.A). What is the correct age, twelve or eighteen?
CONCLUSION : Ibn Hajar is an unreliable source for Ayesha(R.A)’s age.
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EVIDENCE 5 : The Battles of Badr and Uhud..
A narrative regarding Ayesha(R.A)’s participation in Badr is given in the hadith of Muslim, (Kitabu’l-jihad wa’l-siyar, Bab karahiyati’l-isti`anah fi’l-ghazwi bikafir). Ayesha(R.A), while narrating the journey to Badr and one of the important events that took place in that journey, says: “when we reached Shajarah”. Obviously, Ayesha(R.A) was with the group travelling towards Badr. A narrative regarding Ayesha(R.A)’s participation in the Battle of Uhud is given in Bukhari (Kitabu’l-jihad wa’l-siyar, Bab Ghazwi’l-nisa’ wa qitalihinna ma`a’lrijal): “Anas reports that on the day of Uhud, people could not stand their ground around the Prophet. [On that day,] I saw Ayesha and Umm-i-Sulaim, they had pulled their dress up from their feet [to avoid any hindrance in their movement].” Again, this indicates that Ayesha(R.A) was present in the Battles of Uhud and Badr.
It is narrated in Bukhari (Kitabu’l-maghazi, Bab Ghazwati’l-khandaq wa hiya’l-ahza’b):
“Ibn `Umar states that the Prophet did not permit me to participate in Uhud, as at that time, I was 14 years old. But on the day of Khandaq, when I was 15 years old, the Prophet permitted my participation.”
Based on the above narratives, (a) the children below 15 years were sent back and were not allowed to participate in the Battle of Uhud, and (b) Ayesha(R.A) participated in the Battles of Badr and Uhud
CONCLUSION : Ayesha(R.A)’s participation in the Battles of Badr and Uhud clearly indicates that she was not nine years old but at least 15 years old. After all, women used to accompany men to the battlefields to help them, not to be a burden on them. This account is another contradiction regarding Ayesha(R.A)’s age.
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EVIDENCE 6 : Surat al-Qamar (The Moon)..
According to the generally accepted tradition, Ayesha(R.A) was born about eight years before hijrah. But according to another narrative in Bukhari, Ayesha(R.A) is reported to have said:
“I was a young girl (jariyah in Arabic)” when Surah Al-Qamar was revealed
(Sahih Bukhari, kitabu’l-tafsir, Bab Qaulihi Bal al-sa`atu Maw`iduhum wa’l-sa`atu adha’ wa amarr).
Chapter 54 of the Quran was revealed eight years before hijrah (The Bounteous Koran, M.M. Khatib, 1985), indicating that it was revealed in 614 CE. If Ayesha(R.A) started living with the Prophet at the age of nine in 623 CE or 624 CE, she was a newborn infant (sibyah in Arabic) at the time that Surah Al-Qamar (The Moon) was revealed. According to the above tradition, Ayesha(R.A) was actually a young girl, not an infant in the year of revelation of Al-Qamar. Jariyah means young playful girl (Lane’s Arabic English Lexicon). So, Ayesha(R.A), being a jariyah not a sibyah (infant), must be somewhere between 6-13 years old at the time of revelation of Al-Qamar, and therefore must have been 14-21 years at the time she married the Prophet.
CONCLUSION : This tradition also contradicts the marriage of Ayesha at the age of nine.
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EVIDENCE 7 : Arabic Terminology..
According to a narrative reported by Ahmad ibn Hanbal, after the death of the Prophet’s first wife Khadijah, when Khaulah came to the Prophet advising him to marry again, the Prophet asked her regarding the choices she had in mind.
Khaulah said: “You can marry a virgin (bikr) or a woman who has already been married (thayyib)”. When the Prophet asked the identity of the bikr (virgin), Khaulah mentioned Ayesha(R.A)’s 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 without conjugal experience prior to marriage, as we understand the word “virgin” in English. Therefore, obviously a nine-year-old girl is not a “lady” (bikr)
(Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Vol. 6, p. .210, Arabic, Dar Ihya al-turath al-`arabi, Beirut).
CONCLUSION : The literal meaning of the word, bikr (virgin), in the above hadith is “adult woman with no sexual experience prior to marriage.” Therefore, Ayesha(R.A) was an adult woman at the time of her marriage.
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EVIDENCE 8 : The Qur’anic Text..
All Muslims agree that the Quran is the book of guidance. So, we need to seek the guidance from the Quran to clear the smoke and confusion created by the eminent men of the classical period of Islam in the matter of Ayesha’s age at her marriage. Does the Quran allow or disallow marriage of an immature child of seven years of age?
There are no verses that explicitly allow such marriage. There is a verse, however, that guides Muslims in their duty to raise an orphaned child. The Quran’s guidance on the topic of raising orphans is also valid in the case of our own children. The verse states:
To those weak of understanding Make not over your property, which Allah hath made a means of support for you, but feed and clothe them therewith, and speak to them words of kindness and justice.
Glorious Quran : Surah An-Nisa; Verse 5; Yusuf Ali's Quran Translation..
Make trial of orphans until they reach the age of marriage; if then ye 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 Allah in taking account.
Glorious Quran : Surah An-Nisa; Verse 6; Yusuf Ali's Quran Translation..
In the matter of children who have lost a parent, a Muslim is ordered to..
(a) Feed them,
(b) Clothe them,
(c) Educate them, and
(d) Test them for maturity “until the age of marriage” before entrusting them with management of finances.
Here the Quranic verse demands meticulous proof of their intellectual and physical maturity by objective test results before the age of marriage in order to entrust their property to them.
In light of the above verses, no responsible Muslim would hand over financial management to a seven- or nine-year-old immature girl. If we cannot trust a seven-year-old to manage financial matters, she cannot be intellectually or physically fit for marriage. Ibn Hambal (Musnad Ahmad ibn Hambal, vol.6, p. 33 and 99) claims that nine-year-old Ayesha(R.A) was rather more interested in playing with toy-horses than taking up the responsible task of a wife. It is difficult to believe, therefore, that AbuBakr, a great believer among Muslims, would betroth his immature seven-year-old daughter to the 50-year-old Prophet. Equally difficult to imagine is that the Prophet would marry an immature seven-year-old girl.
Another important duty demanded from the guardian of a child is to educate them. Let us ask the question, “How many of us believe that we can educate our children satisfactorily before they reach the age of seven or nine years?” The answer is none. Logically, it is an impossible task to educate a child satisfactorily before the child attains the age of seven. Then, how can we believe that Ayesha(R.A) was educated satisfactorily at the claimed age of seven at the time of her marriage?
AbuBakr was a more judicious man than all of us. So, he definitely would have judged that Ayesha(R.A) was a child at heart and was not satisfactorily educated as demanded by the Quran. He would not have married her to anyone. If a proposal of marrying the immature and yet to be educated seven-year-old Ayesha(R.A) came to the Prophet, he would have rejected it outright because neither the Prophet nor AbuBakr would violate any clause in the Quran.
CONCLUSION : The marriage of Ayesha(R.A) at the age of seven years would violate the maturity clause or requirement of the Quran. Therefore, the story of the marriage of the seven-year-old immature Ayesha(R.A) is a myth.
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EVIDENCE 9 : Consent in Marriage..
A women must be consulted and must agree in order to make a marriage valid (Mishakat al Masabiah, translation by James Robson, Vol. I, p. 665). Islamically, credible permission from women is a prerequisite for a marriage to be valid.
By any stretch of the imagination, the permission given by an immature seven-year-old girl cannot be valid authorization for marriage.
It is inconceivable that AbuBakr, an intelligent man, would take seriously the permission of a seven-year-old girl to marry a 50-year-old man.
Similarly, the Prophet would not have accepted the permission given by a girl who, according to the hadith of Muslim, took her toys with her when she went live with Prophet.
CONCLUSION : The Prophet did not marry a seven-year-old Ayesha(R.A) because it would have violated the requirement of the valid permission clause of the Islamic Marriage Decree. Therefore, the Prophet married an intellectually and physically mature lady Ayesha(R.A).
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SUMMARY:
It was neither an Arab tradition to give away girls in marriage at an age as young as seven or nine years, nor did the Prophet marry Ayesha(R.A) 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.
Obviously, the narrative of the marriage of nine-year-old Ayesha(R.A) by Hisham ibn `Urwah cannot be held true when it is contradicted by many other reported narratives. Moreover, there is absolutely no reason to accept the narrative of Hisham ibn `Urwah as true when other scholars, including Malik ibn Anas, view his narrative while in Iraq, as unreliable. The quotations from Tabari, Bukhari and Muslim show they contradict each other regarding Ayesha(R.A)’s age. Furthermore, many of these scholars contradict themselves in their own records. Thus, the narrative of Ayesha(R.A)’s age at the time of the marriage is not reliable due to the clear contradictions seen in the works of classical scholars of Islam.
Therefore, there is absolutely no reason to believe that the information on Ayesha(R.A)’s age is accepted as true when there are adequate grounds to reject it as myth. Moreover, the Quran rejects the marriage of immature girls and boys as well as entrusting them with responsibilities.
This explanation is based on the Book Age of Aisha(R.A) written by Allama Habib-ur-Rahman Siddiqui Kandhalvi.
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One more strong argument which can be provided here is.. by analysing the dates..
Fatimah Zahra or Fatimah bint Muhammad(PBUH) was born Friday on 20th of Jumada al-akhir 2 AH (614 CE) in Mecca or 14th Jumada al-awwal 606 CE - died 3th Jumada al-thani 11 AH (632 CE) at Medina..
She was born in Mecca around 614 (Shia tradition) or 606 CE (Sunni tradition).
Ibn Hajar mentions two versions:
(1) al-Waqidi's narration that Fatima was born when the Prophet was 35; and
(2) Ibn `Abd al-Barr's narration that she was born when he was 41, approximately one year more or less before Prophethood, and about five years before `A'isha was born.
Let us consider Shia tradition first.. that is Fatimah(R.A) was born in 614 C.E ..
The condition here is that, Fatimah(R.A) was born in 614 C.E. and Prophet was 41 years of age.. also she was five years older to Hazrat Ayesha(R.A)..
So according to this.. Hazrat Ayesha(R.A) was born in 619 C.E and married to Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) in 623 C.E. but no where does any scripture or narration tell us that Hazrat Ayesha was four years old at the time of marriage.. since 623 - 619 = 4..
Also if we say that Fatimah(R.A) was born in 614 C.E and Prophet married Hazrat Ayesha(R.A) in 623 C.E.. so it means to say is that Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) was 50 yrs old when he married Hazrat Ayesha(R.A).. since 41 + (623-614) = 50.. but it is an accepted fact that Prophet Married Hazrat Ayesha(R.A) when he was 53(or 52) yrs old..
And also Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) was born in 570 C.E. so in the year 614 C.E. he was.. 614 - 570 = 44 yrs.. not 41 yrs.. hence Fatimah(R.A) born in 614 C.E is a myth..
Now let us consider the Sunni tradition..
Here the condition is that Fatimah(R.A.) was born in 606 C.E.. and Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) was 35 years of age and also Fatimah(R.A) was five years older than Hazrat Ayesha (R.A)..
She was born in 606 C.E. and Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) was born in 570 C.E..
So subtracting 570 from 606 we get..
606 - 570 = 36 (... near to 35)
Remember that we are discarding the months factor here.. hence we may get a difference of one year more or less..
Also she is older than Hazrat Ayesha(R.A) by 5 yrs..
606 + 5 = 611
If Hazrat Ayesha(R.A) was born in 611 C.E.. then at the time of marriage she must be 12 or 13 yrs old.. not 9 yrs..
Also if Fatimah(R.A) was born in 606 C.E. and Prophet Married Hazrat Ayesha(R.A) in 623 C.E so the age of Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) at the time of marriage is exactly calculated as 53 yrs..
Many scholars say that the age difference between Hazrat Ayesha(R.A) and Hazrat Asma(R.A) is probably 19 yrs then it may be true.. becoz Hazrat Asma(R.A) was born in 592 C.E. and ..
592 + 19 = 611
Which again shows that Hazrat Ayesha(R.A) would have been 12 or 13 yrs of age at the time of marriage.. not 9 yrs.. hence i had earlier mentioned that Hazrat Ayesha being 21 yrs of age at the time of marriage may not be correct because one of the hadiths also say that the age difference between Hazrat Ayesha(R.A) and Harat Asma(R.A) was 10 years.
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