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WikiIslam:Required Reading for Editors

2025-02-22T12:28:01Z

Vixen: /* Initial reading */

This page lists [[WikiIslam]] pages which users must read and comprehend before taking part in major discussions or editing, as well as some optional reading which will help users in editing and taking part in conversations here. Doing so will help editors and writers better understand the site's general approach, what is expected from them as contributors, and will also ensure that discussions do not retread issues that have already been covered. It will also, most importantly, set out the constraints and expectations for the content we hope to create and host here. Supplementary reading material of interest to contributors can be found under the "Miscellaneous" section.

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*[[WikiIslam:Policies and Guidelines]]
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These pages should be read by anyone who might be considering writing or editing articles.

==== ''Content related'' ====

*[[WikiIslam:Reliable Sources]]
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*[[WikiIslam:How to Edit]]
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==== ''Article content'' ====
These are some miscelaneous articles dealing with topics related to the type of content we want on the site.

*[[Help:Contents]]
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==Miscellaneous==

===Supplementary reading===

*[[WikiIslam:Meet the Editors]]

==See also==

*[[WikiIslam:Join the Team]]
*[[WikiIslam:Message to New Users]]

[[Category:Policies and Guidelines]]

Sources of Islamic Theories of Reproduction

2025-01-09T20:24:47Z

Vixen: /* “Not from all the sperm a fetus is created…” */

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}
[[File:Galen.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The writers of the Qur’an and hadith were influenced by Galen, the hugely influential 2nd Century Greek physician.]]
The [[hadith]] contain many statements about fluids from both the man and woman that were believed to form the human embryo. The [[Qur'an|Qur’an]] too says that the embryo is formed from emitted fluid, and in one verse perhaps indicates a mingling of male and female fluids. This article will trace the origins of each of these ideas at least as far back as the Jewish Talmud and the ancient Greek physicians.

The Prophet [[Muhammad]], who had been a well-traveled merchant, had extensive interactions with Jews in Arabia, and almost certainly with Nestorian Christians, who had large communities in Najran in the south and Hira to the north of the Arabian Peninsula.<ref>J. Stewart, "Nestorian Missionary Enterprise", p.70-74, Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1928</ref><ref>Cyril Glasse, “The New Encyclopedia of Islam”, p.342-343, CA, USA: Altamira, 2001.</ref> Guillaume says of the Nestorians, “Such men were a familiar sight on all the caravan routes of Arabia”.<ref>Alfred Guillaume, “Islam”, p.15, Middlesex: Penguin Books, 1990 (Reprinted)</ref> The Nestorians were based in Syria, where they already possessed and studied the works of Galen, the hugely influential 2nd century Greek physician.<ref>Allen O. Whipple, “[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1965836/pdf/bullnyacadmed00860-0027.pdf Role of the Nestorians as the connecting link between Greek and Arab medicine]”, Annals of Medical History 8 (1936) 313-323</ref> While this does not necessitate that the creators of the Qur’an and hadith directly copied from these works, it seems likely that they were, at the very least, indirectly influenced by these widespread ideas.

==History of Embryology==

Before commencing the specific topic of this article, the following timeline summarises existing theories of embryology, which may be compared with the wider content of [[Embryology in Islamic Scripture|Islamic embryology]]. Some argue that the vague statements of [[Embryology in the Quran|Qur'anic embryology]] have similarities with these theories, most conspicuously the incorrect ideas of Galen.
{| class="wikitable" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" width="100%"
! width="70px" |Date
! width="100px" |Source
!Text
|-
|1416 BC
|Garbha Upinandas (Hindu text)
|"From the conjugation of blood and semen the embryo comes into existence. During the period favorable to conception, after the sexual intercourse, (it) becomes a Kalada (one-day-old embryo). After remaining seven nights it becomes a vesicle. After a fortnight it becomes a sperical mass. After a month it becomes a firm mass".<ref>Journal of Mammalian Ova Research - [http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.1274/jmor.26.2?journalCode=jmor History of the Egg in Embryology] - 26(1):2-9. 2009
doi: 10.1274/jmor.26.2</ref>
|-
|1000 BC
|Book of Job (Judeo-Christian text)
|"Your hands formed me and made me - will you now absorb me? Remember that you formed me as if with clay - will you return me to dust? You poured me out like milk, and pulled me together like cheese. You clothed me with skin and flesh, and [inside me] did you interweave bones and sinews."<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job+10%3A8-11%2CJob+31%3A15&version=NIV Job 10:8-11] - BibleGateway</ref>
|-
|500 BC
|Psalms (Judeo-Christian text)
|"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+139%3A13-16&version=NIV Psalms 139:13-16] - BibleGateway</ref>
|-
|460-370 BC
|Hippocrates
|1st stage: "Sperm is a product which comes from the whole body of each parent, weak sperm coming from the weak parts, and strong sperm from the strong parts."<ref>Section 8, p 321</ref>
2nd stage: "The seed (embryo), then, is contained in a membrane ... Moreover, it grows because of its mother's blood, which descends to the womb. For once a woman conceives, she ceases to menstruate..."<ref>Section 14, p. 326</ref>
3rd stage: "At this stage, with the descent and coagulation of the mother's blood, flesh begins to be formed, with the umbilicus."<ref>Section 14, p. 326</ref> 4th stage: "As the flesh grows it is formed into distinct members by breath ... The bones grow hard ... moreover they send out branches like a tree ..."<ref>Section 17, p. 328</ref>
|-
|384-322 BC
|Aristotle
|"When the material secreted by the female in the uterus has been fixed by the semen of the male...the more solid part comes together, the liquid is separated off from it, and as the earthy parts solidify membranes form all around it...Some of these are called membranes and others choria..."<ref>Aristotle, De Generatione Animalium, Book II, 739b20-739b30, as per Jonathan Barnes (ed.), The Complete Works of Aristotle, (Princeton, 1985), Vol 1, p. 1148.</ref> "So nature has first designed the two blood vessels from the heart, and from these smaller vessels branch off to the uterus, forming what is called the umbilicus...Round these is a skin-like integument, because the weakness of the vessels needs protection and shelter. The vessels join to the uterus like the roots of plants, and through them the embryo receives its nourishment".<ref>Aristotle, De Generatione Animalium, Book II, 740a28-740a35, as per Barnes, opere citato, p. 1149</ref>
|-
|240-180 BC
|Diocles of Carystus
|"on the ninth day a few points of blood, on the eighteenth beating of the heart, on the twenty-seventh traces of the spinal cord and head"<ref>Joseph Needham M. A., Ph.D. - [http://www.archive.org/stream/chemicalembryolo01need/chemicalembryolo01need_djvu.txt Chemical embryology] - New York: The Macmillan Company, Cambridge England, at the University Press, 1931 </ref>
|-
|129-210 AD
|Claudius Galenus
|"let us divide the creation of the foetus overall into four periods of time. ''The first'' is that in which. as is seen both in abortions and in dissection, the form of the semen prevails [compare with the Islamic nutfah/semen stage]. At this time, Hippocrates too, the all-marvelous, does not yet call the conformation of the animal a foetus; as we heard just now in the case of semen voided in the sixth day, he still calls it semen. But when it has been filled with blood [compare with the alaqa/bloodclot stage], and heart, brain and liver are still unarticulated and unshaped yet have by now a certain solidarity and considerable size, this is ''the second period''; the substance of the foetus has the form of flesh and no longer the form of semen. Accordingly you would find that Hippocrates too no longer calls such a form semen but, as was said, foetus. ''The third period'' follows on this, when, as was said, it is possible to see the three ruling parts clearly and a kind of outline, a silhouette, as it were, of all the other parts [compare with the mudghah/morsel, formed and unformed stage]. You will see the conformation of the three ruling parts more clearly, that of the parts of the stomach more dimly, and much more still, that of the limbs. Later on they form "twigs", as Hippocrates expressed it, indicating by the term their similarity to branches. ''The fourth and final period'' is at the stage when all the parts in the limbs have been differentiated; and at this part Hippocrates the marvelous no longer calls the foetus an embryo only, but already a child, too when he says that it jerks and moves as an animal now fully formed."<ref>Corpus Medicorum Graecorum: Galeni de Semine (Galen: On Semen) (Greek text with English trans. Phillip de Lacy, Akademic Verlag, 1992) section I:9:1-10 pp. 92-95, 101 Available on [https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences website] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230909084119/https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php archive])</ref>
"... The time has come for nature to articulate the organs precisely and to bring all the parts to completion. Thus it caused flesh to grow on and around all the bones [compare with the kasawna al-'ithama lahman/clothed the bones with flesh stage], and at the same time ... it made at the ends of the bones ligaments that bind them to each other, and along their entire length it placed around them on all sides thin membranes, called periosteal, on which it caused flesh to grow."<ref>Corpus Medicorum Graecorum: Galeni de Semine (Galen: On Semen) (Greek text with English trans. Phillip de Lacy, Akademic Verlag, 1992) section I:9:1-10 pp. 92-95, 101 Available on [https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences website] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230909084119/https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php archive])</ref>
|-
|ca. 200 AD
|Talmud (Jewish text)
|The embryo was called peri habbetten (fruit of the body) and develops as:

1. golem (formless, rolled-up thing); 
2. shefir meruqqam (embroidered foetus - shefir means amniotic sac); 
3. 'ubbar (something carried); v'alad (child); v'alad shel qayama (noble or viable child) and 
4. ben she-kallu chadashav (child whose months have been completed).<ref>Samuel ha-Yehudi</ref>
|-
|571-632 AD
|Muhammad ibn ‘Abdullāh
|“Allah's Apostle, the true and truly inspired said, "(The matter of the Creation of) a human being is put together in the womb of the mother in forty days, and then he becomes a clot of thick blood for a similar period, and then a piece of flesh for a similar period.”<ref>{{Bukhari|4|54|430}}</ref>
“The Prophet said, "Allah puts an angel in charge of the uterus and the angel says, 'O Lord, (it is) semen! O Lord, (it is now) a clot! O Lord, (it is now) a piece of flesh.' And then, if Allah wishes to complete its creation, the angel asks, 'O Lord, (will it be) a male or a female?”<ref>{{Bukhari|8|77|594}}</ref> "Verily We created man from a product of wet earth; Then placed him as a drop (of seed) in a safe lodging; Then fashioned We the drop a clot, then fashioned We the clot a little lump, then fashioned We the little lump bones, then clothed the bones with flesh, and then produced it as another creation. So blessed be Allah, the Best of creators!"<ref>{{cite Quran|23|12|end=14|style=ref}}</ref>
|}

==A few definitions==

The following 3 words are used in the Qur’an and hadith in connection with semen:

===Nutfah نطفة===

The word nutfah is used 12 times in the Qur’an in the following verses, in each case saying much the same thing, that man is created from a nutfah: {{Quran|16|4}}, {{Quran|18|37}}, {{Quran|22|5}}, {{Quran|23|13}}, {{Quran|23|14}}, {{Quran|35|11}}, {{Quran|36|77}}, {{Quran|40|67}}, {{Quran|53|46}}, {{Quran|75|37}}, {{Quran|76|2}}, {{Quran|80|19}}.

A nutfah is a small quantity of liquid. It was also used in reference to semen that was believed to form the embryo. Lane’s Lexicon of classical [[Arabic]] defines nutfah as:

{{Quote||Sperma of a man (S, Msb, K) and of a woman. (Msb)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000288.pdf Lane’s Lexicon Vol. 8 p.3034]</ref>}}

(Sperma is a Late Latin word meaning seed, semen).

The Lisan al Arab dictionary of classical Arabic gives these definitions (translated from the Arabic):

{{Quote||A little water; a little water remaining in a waterskin; a little water remaining in a bucket; pure water, a little or a lot; the water of the man; semen is called nutfah for its small amount<ref>http://www.baheth.info/all.jsp?term=%D9%86%D8%B7%D9%81</ref>}}

A nice example of nutfah usage can be found in a pre-Islamic poem where it is used to mean “the small quantity of wine that remained in a wineskin”.<ref>Irfan Shahid, “Byzantium and the Arabs in the sixth century. Volume 2, Part 2”, p.145, Washington, D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks, 2009</ref>

===Maa ماء===

Water. Sometimes used for semen. Used in this way in verses {{Quran|32|8}} and {{Quran|77|20}}, and {{Quran|86|6}}.

===Maniyy مني===

Semen. It is frequently used in hadith about ritual purity, especially narrations saying that [[Aisha]] used to clean semen off Muhammad’s clothes. It is used once in the Qur’an, verse {{Quran|75|37}}.

==Evidence of influence==

This section documents the influence of ideas from other cultures on the Qur’an and hadith regarding reproduction. It will go without saying that these ideas are inaccurate compared with current [[Islam and Science|scientific]] knowledge of [[reproduction]] and [[embryology]]. All Qur’an quotes are from Yusuf Ali’s translation.

===A mingled drop===

{{Quote|{{Quran|76|2}}|Verily We created Man from a drop of mingled sperm [nutfatin amshajin], in order to try him: So We gave him (the gifts), of Hearing and Sight.}}

Ibn Kathir’s [[Tafsir|commentary]] on this verse gives a very useful definition of nutfah from Muhammad’s companions.

{{Quote|Tafsir Ibn Kathir on 76:2|(Verily, We have created man from Nutfah Amshaj,) meaning, mixed. The words Mashaj and Mashij mean something that is mixed together. Ibn `Abbas said concerning Allah’s statement,

﴿مِن نُّطْفَةٍ أَمْشَاجٍ﴾

(from Nutfah Amshaj,) "This means the fluid of the man and the fluid of the woman when they meet and mix.” Then man changes after this from stage to stage, condition to condition and color to color. `Ikrimah, Mujahid, Al-Hasan and Ar-Rabi` bin Anas all made statements similar to this. They said, "Amshaj is the mixing of the man’s fluid with the woman’s fluid.”<ref>[http://qtafsir.com/Surah-Al-Insan/Allah-created-Man-after-He-did--- Tafsir of Ibn Kathir for 76:2]</ref>}}

In each case, the word translated “fluid” is maa<ref>For the Arabic: http://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=76&tAyahNo=2&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1</ref> (see above for definition), so there is no case for retro-fitting the sperm or ovum into it. Similar comments from Muhammad’s [[Sahabah|companions]] appear in [[al-Tabari]]’s Tafsir on 76:2. His companions apparently believed that the mingled nutfah was a mixture of male and female semen.

This same idea was taught by Galen, the hugely influential 2nd Century Greek physician. Galen’s main treatise about embryology was called “On Semen”, and his works were studied by Muhammad’s nearby contemporaries in Alexandria, Egypt and in Gundeshapur, southwestern Syria.<ref>Marshall Clagett, “Greek Science in Antiquity”, pp.180-181, New York: Abelard-Schuman, 1955; Dover, 2001</ref>

Galen said that the embryo is initially formed out of the male semen mixed (μίγνυται) with what he called the female semen, which also forms an additional membrane entwined (ἐπιπλεκονταί) with that of the male semen. He believed that blood from the woman is subsequently drawn in via the uterus and membrane, and this combined material literally goes on to form the fetus.<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, pp.85-89, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992</ref> This will be explained a little more later. Unlike Galen (and before him, Hippocrates) with the two-semens theory, Aristotle believed that there was only a male semen, which does not itself provide material for the embryo, but triggers its formation from menstral blood.<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, p.65, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992 Available on [https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences website] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230909084119/https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php archive])</ref> The quoted comments from Muhammad’s companions are good evidence for Galenic influence in 7th century Arabia.

The Qur’anic verses that are most explicit in stating that the embryo is initially formed out of semen, as per Galen and Hippocrates, are verses 80:18-19.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|80|18|19}}|From what stuff [shay-in, which means “thing”] hath He created him? From a sperm-drop [nutfatin]: He hath created him, and then mouldeth him in due proportions; }}

Just as Galen taught about the mixed semens, this nutfah is stored in the womb where it subsequently undergoes various stages of development.

{{Quote|{{quran|23|13}}|Then We placed him as (a drop of) sperm [nutfatan] in a place of rest, firmly fixed;}}

The Qur’an itself confirms that it is semen that is developed in the womb in an almost identical verse. Here maa (water), the euphemism for semen, is used instead of nutfah. In this instance it probably just means male semen (see the “Extract of despised fluid” section later).

{{Quote|{{quran-range|77|20|22}}|Have We not created you from a fluid (held) despicable [ma-in maheenin]? The which We placed in a place of rest, firmly fixed, For a period (of gestation), determined (according to need)?}}

In both cases, the “place of rest, firmly fixed” (qararin makeenin) obviously refers to the womb, with 77:22 adding that it is for a “period determined” (and certainly does not mean the female ovum, which is only penetrated by a single sperm cell and not the “fluid (held) despicable”).

=== From dust, then seminal fluid ===
We are told humans are created from dust, then from a drop of seminal fluid (who's origins are discussed above).
{{Quote|{{Quran|22|5}}|O people! If you are in doubt about the resurrection, [consider that] We created you from dust, then from a drop of [seminal] fluid (nuṭfah), then from a clinging mass, then from a fleshy tissue, partly formed and partly unformed, so that We may manifest [Our power] to you. We lodge in the wombs whatever [fetus] We wish for a specified term, then We bring you forth as infants, then [We rear you] so that you may come of age. [Then] there are some of you who are taken away, and there are some of you who are relegated to the nethermost age, such that he knows nothing after [having possessed] some knowledge. And you see the earth torpid, yet when We send down water upon it, it stirs and swells, and grows every delightful kind [of plant].}}{{Quote|{{Quran|18|37}}|His companion said to him, as he conversed with him: ‘Do you disbelieve in Him who created you from dust, then from a drop of [seminal] fluid (nuṭfah), then fashioned you as a man?}}
In both cases, the word 'nuṭfah' is used, meaning; little water; a little water remaining in a waterskin; a little water remaining in a bucket; pure water, a little or a lot; the water of the man etc;<ref>[http://arabiclexicon.hawramani.com/search/%D9%86%D8%B7%D9%81%D8%A9 نطفة] - The Arabic Lexicon</ref> semen is called nuṭfah<ref>[https://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000288.pdf نطفة] - Lane’s Lexicon Vol. 8 p.3034</ref> for its small amount seminal fluid.

This motif is found in pre-Islamic writings, and in more contemporary works,<ref>Eich & Doroftei, 2023. [https://www.nomos-elibrary.de/10.5771/9783987400650-19/teil-i-zur-entwicklung-der-adamsgeschichte-bis-zum-7-jahrhundert?page=1 ''Adam and Embryo. A contribution to the study of the story of Adam in Jewish, Christian and Islamic texts up to the end of the first millennium.''] pp. 94 - 97.</ref> with parallels recorded using a similar Syriac word (nuṭptā). For example, this image is documented in Ephraim the Syrian (d. 373):
{{Quote|Eich & Doroftei, 2023. Adam and Embryo. pp. 95. A contribution to the study of the story of Adam in Jewish, Christian and Islamic texts up to the end of the first millennium.|"He is very foolish and blind; for he is also enclosed together with all - in the hollow hand of the Creator. A single grain of dust, - a single drop of water (nuṭptā), which formed together - became the human form through the mercy of the Creator."}}
And Babai the Great (c.551–628CE), an early church father of the Syriac Church of the East, also known as the Assyrian Church.<ref>Amar, J. P. ''Babai the Great (c.551–628).'' 2011. Wiley. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470670606.wbecc0106</nowiki></ref>
{{Quote|Eich & Doroftei, 2023. Adam and Embryo. pp. 97. A contribution to the study of the story of Adam in Jewish, Christian and Islamic texts up to the end of the first millennium.|"And they do not understand the works of their Maker, which are formed like a drop of water (nuṭptā) and a grain of dust in the hollow of His incorporeal hand."}}

=== The four stages of embryo development ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|22|5}}|O mankind! if ye have a doubt about the Resurrection, (consider) that We created you out of dust, then out of sperm, then out of a leech-like clot, then out of a morsel of flesh, partly formed and partly unformed, in order that We may manifest (our power) to you; and We cause whom We will to rest in the wombs for an appointed term, then do We bring you out as babes, then (foster you) that ye may reach your age of full strength; and some of you are called to die, and some are sent back to the feeblest old age, so that they know nothing after having known (much), and (further), thou seest the earth barren and lifeless, but when We pour down rain on it, it is stirred (to life), it swells, and it puts forth every kind of beautiful growth (in pairs).}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|12-14}}|Man We did create from a quintessence (of clay); Then We placed him as (a drop of) sperm in a place of rest, firmly fixed; Then We made the sperm into a clot of congealed blood; then of that clot We made a (foetus) lump; then we made out of that lump bones and clothed the bones with flesh; then we developed out of it another creature. So blessed be Allah, the best to create!}}
As mentioned in the [https://corpuscoranicum.de/en Corpus Coranicum Project,] the stages of embryo development described in the Qur'an reflect the medical knowledge of the late antique world, compatible with seventh-century AD understanding.<ref>Corpus Coranicum Project - [https://corpuscoranicum.de/en/verse-navigator/sura/22/verse/5/intertexts/986 Galen De Semine I, 8]

Michael Marx, Galen De Semine I, 8 - TUK_986. In: Texts from the Environment of the Koran, edited by the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities by Michael Marx, with contributions by Sebastian Bitsch, Vasiliki Chamourgiotaki, Emmanouela Grypeou, Dirk Hartwig, Nestor Kavvadas, David Kiltz, Yousef Kouriyhe, Mohammed Maraqten, Adrian Pirtea, Veronika Roth, Johanna Schubert and Nicolai Sinai. Beta version: as of July 28, 2024.</ref> The development of humans in the womb outlined in the Qur'an seems to correspond in its four stages to the communis opinion summarized by Galen for (late) ancient medicine;<ref>Corpus Coranicum Project - [https://corpuscoranicum.de/en/verse-navigator/sura/23/verse/14/intertexts/955 Letter to Archdeacon Mar Julian]

David Kiltz (with the collaboration of Yousef Kouriyhe) (revised by Vasiliki Chamourgiotaki), Letter to Archdeacon Mar Julian - TUK_955. In: Texts from the Environment of the Koran, edited by the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities by Michael Marx, with contributions by Sebastian Bitsch, Vasiliki Chamourgiotaki, Emmanouela Grypeou, Dirk Hartwig, Nestor Kavvadas, David Kiltz, Yousef Kouriyhe, Mohammed Maraqten, Adrian Pirtea, Veronika Roth, Johanna Schubert and Nicolai Sinai. Beta version: as of July 28, 2024.</ref>

Both passages speak of a development of the embryo that begins with the '''1) drop of semen''' (Arabic: nuṭfa), which is then followed by the stage of the '''2) blood structure''' (Arabic: ʿalaqa), which then develops into a '''3) flesh structure''' (Arabic: mudġa), from which the "physically formed and not yet fully formed" (Q 22:5 min muḍġatin muḫallaqatin wa-ġairi muḫallaqatin ) embryo then develops. And in Sura 23, the flesh structure becomes bones that are covered with flesh (Arabic: fa-ḫalaqnā l-muḍġata ʿiẓāman fa-kasaunā l-ʿiẓāma laḥman). This form of life then finally takes on a new quality: '''4) The fully formed infant''' In Q 23:14 it says: "Then We created him as a new (i.e. different) creature. Thus God is full of blessings. He is the best creator." In Q 22:5 the formed and at the same time not yet complete creature becomes a sign of divine power, since God "makes his power clear" to man.<ref>Corpus Coranicum Project - [https://corpuscoranicum.de/en/verse-navigator/sura/22/verse/5/intertexts/986 ''Galen De Semine I, 8'']

Michael Marx, Galen De Semine I, 8 - TUK_986. In: Texts from the Environment of the Koran, edited by the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities by Michael Marx, with contributions by Sebastian Bitsch, Vasiliki Chamourgiotaki, Emmanouela Grypeou, Dirk Hartwig, Nestor Kavvadas, David Kiltz, Yousef Kouriyhe, Mohammed Maraqten, Adrian Pirtea, Veronika Roth, Johanna Schubert and Nicolai Sinai. Beta version: as of July 28, 2024.</ref>

Basim Musallam notes that the stages were sufficiently similar for medieval Islamic authors to use Qur'anic terminology when describing Galen's (incorrect, ''see: [[Embryology in the Quran]]'') four stages of development.
{{Quote|[https://www.academia.edu/12237577/Sex_and_Society_in_Islam Basim Musallam Sex and Society in Islam, Cambridge University Press, 1983, pg. 54]|The stages of development which the Quran and hadith established for believers agreed perfectly with Galen's scientific account. In De Semine, for example, Galen spoke of four periods in the formation of the embryo: (1) as seminal matter;
(2) as a bloody form (still without flesh, in which the primitive heart, liver, and brain are ill-defined);
(3) the foetus acquires flesh and solidity (the heart, liver, and brain are well-defined, and the limbs begin formation); and finally
(4) all the organs attain their full perfection and the foetus is quickened. There is no doubt that medieval thought appreciated this agreement between the Quran and Galen, for Arabic science employed the same Quranic terms to describe the Galenic stages (as in Ibn Sina's account of Galen): nutfa for the first, 'alaqa for the second, "unformed" mudgha for the third, and "formed" mudgha for the fourth.}}

=== Three layers of Darkness ===
We see the idea of three layers of darkness.
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|6}}|He created you (all) from a single person: then created, of like nature, his mate; and he sent down for you eight head of cattle in pairs: He makes you, in the wombs of your mothers, in stages, one after another, in three veils of darkness. such is Allah, your Lord and Cherisher: to Him belongs (all) dominion. There is no god but He: then how are ye turned away (from your true Centre)?}}
Ibn Qayyim (d. 1350), a prominent Hanbali jurist, links these to different membranes being mentioned by Hippocrates, quoting previous scholars opinions on the matter.
{{Quote|[https://www.academia.edu/12237577/Sex_and_Society_in_Islam Musallam, Sex and Society in Islam, Cambridge University Press, 1983, pg. 56]|(A) Hippocrates said in the third chapter of Kitab al-ajinna: . The semen is contained in a membrane, and it grows because of the blood of its mother which descends to the womb, and the semen in these membranes draws in the air and breathes it for the reasons we have mentioned... As the semen becomes a foetus several other membranes are formed, and grow within the original membrane, all being formed the same way as the first. Some membranes are formed at the beginning, others after the second month, and others in the third month. (B) This is why God says, "He creates you in the wombs of your mothers, by one formation after another in three darknesses (Quran 39:6)." (C) Since each of these membranes has its own darkness, when God mentioned the stages of creation and transformation from one state to another, He also mentioned the darknesses of the membranes. (D) Most commentators explain: it is the darkness of the belly, and the darkness of the womb, and the darkness of the placenta...}}

=== Seminal fluid and the backbone ===
{{Main|Semen Production in the Quran}}The relationship between seminal fluid and the backbone has many ancient pre-modern scientific roots.{{Quote|{{Quran|86|6-7}}|He was created of a gushing fluid, emerging from between the backbone and the ribs.}}As Noble et al (2014) note.{{Quote|Noble Denis, DiFrancesco Dario and Zancani Diego. 2014. Leonardo da Vinci and the origin of semen. Notes Rec.68391–402 DOI https://doi.org/10.1098/rsnr.2014.0021|The view that semen was derived from the spinal cord was old enough to be denied by Alcmaeon in the sixth century bc, but Plato and Hippocrates subscribed to it. Plato in his Timaeus considers the brain and spinal ‘marrow’ as but a special form of bone marrow (Timaeus, 73) in which ‘God implanted his divine seed’.

This spinal marrow passes down the back and communicates its ‘universal seed stuff’ to the genitalia for the purpose of procreation. Plato in the Timaeus, and Leonardo on this page, traces the spinal marrow (RL 19097v):}}This was an ancient Egyptian belief too, as Schwabe, Calvin W., et al. (1982) notes, '<nowiki/>''Egyptians believed that sperm was produced in the thoracic spine , a conviction apparently based on their understanding of the bull.''<nowiki/>'<ref>Schwabe, Calvin W., et al. “''[http://www.jstor.org/stable/30027646. Egyptian Beliefs about the Bull’s Spine: An Anatomical Origin for Ankh.]''” Anthropological Linguistics, vol. 24, no. 4, 1982, pp. 445–79. JSTOR, <nowiki>http://www.jstor.org/stable/30027646</nowiki>. Accessed 18 Oct. 2024.</ref>

===Semen stage lasts 40 days===

{{Quote|{{Muslim|33|6395}}|Abu Tufail reported: I visited Abu Sariha Hudhaifa b. Usaid al-Ghifari who said: I listened with these two ears of mine Allahs Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: The semen [nutfata] stays in the womb for forty nights, then the angel, gives it a shape. Zubair said: I think that he said: One who fashions that and decides whether he would be male or female…}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|93|546}}|Narrated ‘Abdullah bin Mas’ud: Allah’s Apostle the true and truly inspired, narrated to us, "The creation of everyone of you starts with the process of collecting the material for his body within forty days and forty nights in the womb of his mother. Then he becomes a clot of thick blood for a similar period (40 days) and then he becomes like a piece of flesh for a similar period…}}

See also {{quran-range|23|12|14}} to see how the nutfah and subsequent stages fit together. Now let us compare with the Talmud:

{{Quote|Babylonian Talmud, Yebamoth 69b|For if she is not found pregnant she never was pregnant; and if she is found pregnant, the semen, until the fortieth day, is only a mere fluid.<ref>[http://halakhah.com/yebamoth/yebamoth_69.html#PARTb Babylonian Talmud: Tractate Yebamoth (Yebamoth 69b)] - Halakhah.com, accessed July 23, 2012</ref>}}

(Part b comes after each mishnah and is the Rabbinic commentary, called Gemara, on the mishnah in part a). Notice also that like in the Qur’an, the embryo is formed from semen.

===Gender determined after 40 days===

{{Quote|{{Muslim|33|6392}}|Hudhaifa b. Usaid reported directly from Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) that he said: When the drop of [nutfati] (semen) remains in the womb for forty or fifty (days) or forty nights, the angel comes and says: My Lord, will he be good or evil? And both these things would be written. Then the angel says: My Lord, would he be male or female? And both these things are written…}}

See also {{Muslim|33|6395}} quoted above, for example. Once again, we see that this is an idea from the Talmud:

{{Quote|Babylonian Talmud, Berakoth 60a|Within the first three days a man should pray that the seed should not putrefy; from the third to the fortieth day he should pray that the child should be a male;<ref name="Berakoth 60a">[http://halakhah.com/berakoth/berakoth_60.html Babylonian Talmud: Tractate Berakoth (Berakoth 60a)] - Halakhah.com, accessed July 23, 2012</ref>}}

It should, however, be noted that in the next hadith, number 6393, the angel who comes after 40 days creates the child’s flesh and bones and then gender is determined. In number 6397 (also appears in Sahih Bukhari), gender is determined once the fetus has become a “lump of flesh”.

===Resemblance of the child to its parents===

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|55|546}}|…As for the resemblance of the child to its parents: If a man has sexual intercourse with his wife and gets discharge first, the child will resemble the father, and if the woman gets discharge first, the child will resemble her…}}

A similar idea is found in the Talmud:

{{Quote|Babylonian Talmud, Nidda 31a|R. Isaac citing R. Ammi stated: If the woman emits her semen first she bears a male child; if the man emits his semen first she bears a female child;<ref name="Nidda 31a">[http://halakhah.com/niddah/niddah_31.html Babylonian Talmud: Tractate Niddah (Nidda 31a)] - Halakhah.com, accessed July 23, 2012</ref>}}

The same thing is reported in Berakoth 60a.<ref name="Berakoth 60a"></ref> Notice also a two-semens theory again. In most versions of this hadith the determining factor in resemblance is whose water (maa i.e. semen) preceded (sabaqa) the other person’s water. In other versions it is whose water is on or upon (‘ala) the other’s, which is closer to various Greek theories in which resemblance or gender is caused by semens prevailing upon each other.<ref>Iain M. Lonie, “The Hippocratic Treatises ‘On generation’, ‘On the nature of the child’, ‘Diseases IV’”, pp.125-126, Berlin; New York: de Gruyter, 1981</ref><ref>See Galen’s description of Strato’s theory of sex determination in “On Semen”, p.183, and De Lacy’s notes on p.242. Galen postulates a semen prevailance theory of resemblance on p.179-181. Available on [https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences website] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230909084119/https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php archive])</ref> In one case (Sahih Muslim, Book 3, number 614), it is gender rather than resemblance that is determined in this way and maniyy is used rather than maa.{{Quote|1=Aristotle (d. 322 BC) in ''[https://www.google.com/books/edition/De_Generatione_Animalium/WhRDAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 De Generatione Animalium]'', 764a 6 as quoted in {{citation|page=191|editor=Philip Wheelwright|publisher=Macmillan|year=1966|title=The Presocratics|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Presocratics/B9QDAQAAIAAJ?hl=en}}|2=T 22. Democritus of Abdera says that it [gender] is determined in the womb whether the offspring is to be male or female. He denies, however, the theory [of Empedocles] that heat and cold are what make the difference; it depends, he thinks, upon which of the two parents' generative fluids prevails--i.e., that part of the fluid which has come from the distinctively male or female parts [rather than the part which has come from the body as a whole]. Of the two theories that of Democritus is the better; for he is trying to discover and specify the exact way in which the sexes become differentiated; but whether he is right or not is another matter. (''De Generatione Animalium'' 764a 6)}}

=== “Not from all the sperm a fetus is created…” ===
Searching for some kind of reference to sperm (rather than merely semen), which was not discovered until the 17th century, some Islamic apologists point to the following hadith:

{{Quote|Sahih Muslim, Book of Marriage, Chapter on al-‘Azl, No. 1438|Not from all the sperm a fetus is created and if God wills to create anything, nothing can debar him.}}

The first thing to point out is that the word translated “sperm” in the apologists’ translation is actually maa in the Arabic, which as mentioned above, means water/fluid and is a euphemism for semen. This is also apparent in another translation of the exact same hadith:

{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3381}}|Abu Sa’id al-Khudri (Allah be pleased with him) reported that Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) was asked about ‘azl, whereupon he said: The child does not come from all the liquid (semen) and when Allah intends to create anything nothing can prevent it (from coming into existence).}}

A somewhat similar idea is found in the Talmud:

{{Quote|Babylonian Talmud, Nidda 31a|It teaches that man is not fashioned from all the drop but only from its purest part.<ref name="Nidda 31a"></ref>}}

The possible Talmudic influence is much less clear in this example as the hadith concerns the practice of [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Al-'Azl|al-‘azl]], or coitus interruptus. In any case, it would have been well known that not all of a semen emission was needed to initiate pregnancy, so that this method of birth control was unreliable.

===Al ‘azl and al ghila===

While on the subject of ‘azl, and another practice, ghila, which is a man having intercourse with his wife while she is suckling, we see that Muhammad openly admits to his knowledge of and interest in the reproductive practices of the Byzantines (“Romans”) and Sassanids (“Persians”):

{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3394}}|Sa’d b. Abu Waqqas (Allah be pleased with him) reported that a person came to Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) and said: I do ‘azi [‘azil] with my wife. Thereupon Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Why do you do that? The person said: I fear harm to her child or her children. Thereupon Allah’s Messenger (way peace be upon him) said: If that were harmful it would harm the '''Persians and Romans'''.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3392}}|Judama daughter of Wahb, sister of Ukkasha (Allah be pleased with her). reported: I went to Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) along with some persons and he was saying: I intended to prohibit cohabitation with the suckling women, but I considered the '''Greeks ["Romans" in the Arabic] and Persians''', and saw that they suckle their children and this thing (cohabitation) does not do any harm to them (to the suckling women). Then they asked him about ‘azl, whereupon he said. That is the secret (way of) burying alive, and Ubaidullah has made this addition in the hadith transmitted by al-Muqri and that is:" When the one buried alive is asked."}}

Of the two centers of Galenic study mentioned above, Syria was under the Sassinid empire and Egypt was under both the Sassinids and Byzantines at different times during Muhammad’s career. Muhammad did not live in a bubble. These hadith suggest that Muhammad would have had access to and had interest in the practices and ideas regarding sexual matters and reproduction transmitted by these other cultures.

===“From the man’s nutfah and from the woman’s nutfah”===

Asked by a Jewish man how man is created, Muhammad reportedly answered:

{{Quote|Musnad Ahmad, volume 1, page 465|O, Jew, it is created from both; from a man nutfah and from a woman nutfah}}

Some Islamic apologists suggest that this hadith in the Musnad Ahmad hadith collection is a reference to the sperm and ovum. However, as shown by the ibn Kathir quote above, not only were these understood to be male and female fluids, but this is once again the Galenic two-semens theory. Indeed, the remainder of the very same hadith (which is almost never included upon reference) explicitly affirms the two-semens theory, and proceeds to describe the different purposes of each of the two semens in a manner that is, needless to say, plainly unscientific and inaccurate.

{{Quote||He is created of both, the semen [nutfati] of the man and the semen [nutfati] of the woman. The man’s semen [nutfatu] is thick and forms the bones and the tendons. The woman’s semen [nutfatu] is fine and forms the flesh and blood<ref>Translation by Basim Musallam, “Sex and Society in Islam”, p.52, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983, cited in Timothy Winter, "[http://www.thefreelibrary.com/PULCHRA+UT+LUNA%3A+SOME+REFLECTIONS+ON+THE+MARIAN+THEME+IN...-a066241177 ’Pulchra ut luna: some Reflections on the Marian Theme in Muslim-Catholic Dialogue.]" Journal of Ecumenical Studies 36/3 (1999): 439-469</ref>}}

See the references section for a link to the Arabic<ref>For the Arabic see #4424: http://hadith.al-islam.com/Page.aspx?pageid=192&TOCID=35&BookID=30&PID=4206</ref>. Not only is it apparent that the male nutfah is none other than semen (“thick”), but the process described is completely wrong from a scientific perspective. The origins of these ideas can be traced as far back as the Talmud:

{{Quote|Babylonian Talmud, Nidda 31a|Our Rabbis taught: There are three partners in man, the Holy One, blessed be He, his father and his mother. His father supplies the semen of the white substance out of which are formed the child’s '''bones, sinews''', nails, the brain in his head and the white in his eye; his mother supplies the semen of the red substance out of which is formed his skin, '''flesh''', hair, '''blood''' and the black of his eye;<ref name="Nidda 31a"></ref>}}

Also notable is that this hadith and the Talmud have striking similarities with what Galen taught in his work, “On Semen”, Galen says:

{{Quote|On Semen, p.99|But (the fetus) has first of all the vegetative power, which creates not from blood but from the semen itself artery and vein and nerve, bone and membrane<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, p.99, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992 Available on [https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences website] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230909084119/https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php archive])</ref>}}

Based on pp.91-93 and p.101, he seems to mean here the thicker male semen, which he says provides some of the material for the fetus as well as “power” or “motion” to the material. He says that the female’s semen provides nutriment to the male semen, and also has a weaker “power”, supplemented by that of her blood, to cause any resemblance of the child to the mother.<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, pp.165-167, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992 Available on [https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences website] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230909084119/https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php archive])</ref> On p.87 Galen says about the female semen "for it is thinner than the male semen",<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, p.87, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992</ref> matching the hadith.

Galen says a few pages later:

{{Quote|On Semen, p.103|For all the parts that are fleshy [σαρκώδη] in form were generated from blood [αίματος]; but all that were membranous were drawn out from semen.<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, p.103, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992</ref>}}

Here, blood refers to the mother’s blood, some fine and some thick, which Galen believed is drawn via the uterus and membrane into the combined male and female semens after they have mixed in her womb.<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, pp.87-91, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992</ref> That Galen and the Talmud say the fleshy parts are formed from the woman’s blood rather than her semen barely detracts from the other striking similarities with the hadith.

In any case, this hadith is graded as having weak authenticity. {{Muslim|3|614}} is a similar hadith, which instead of mentioning nutfah and saying what is formed from each semen, gives the resemblance theory mentioned above after saying that the man’s water (maa) is white and the woman’s water (maa) is yellow. {{Muslim|3|608}} is a version of the hadith we look at next, but adds that the man’s water is thick and white and the woman’s water is thin and yellow.

==="Then why does a child resemble (its mother)?"===

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|55|545}}|Narrated Abu Salama: Um Salama said, "Um Salaim said, ‘O Allah’s Apostle! Allah does not refrain from saying the truth! Is it obligatory for a woman to take a bath after she gets nocturnal discharge [ahtalam - have wet-dream]?’ He said, ‘Yes, if she notices the water [maa](i.e. discharge).’ Um Salama smiled and said, ‘Does a woman get discharge? [ahtalam]‘ Allah’s Apostle said. ‘Then why does a child resemble (its mother)?}}

This, again, is Galen’s idea about “female semen”. Even Muhammad’s reasoning in the hadith is clearly the same as Galen’s, whose main thesis in the 2nd part of 'On Semen' is that a generative female semen exists and causes resemblance to the mother. Like Muhammad in this hadith, Galen explicitly uses fluid emitted during nocturnal orgasm as evidence for the existence of a female semen that causes resemblance:

{{Quote|On Semen, p.153|Indeed it would have been much better to trust the visible evidence that the semen of females exists and to inquire by reasoning what its power is. The visible evidence was given before and will be given again. Spermatic ducts, full of semen, secrete this semen apart from the union of female with male, females experiencing effusions in sleep as males do<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, p.153, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992</ref>}}

On the same page, Galen goes on to criticize other physicians who say that the female spermatic ducts just “discharge the semen on the outside down below the uterus” (a possible reference to “female ejaculation” from the paraurethral glands), and argues that the female semen is also discharged into the uterus. It is clear also from other pages that he believes this occurs at a particular moment, namely orgasm, and when it occurs during sleep the semen is subsequently voided externally.<ref>On p.151 he says that the female semen “in effusions in sleep first descends into the uterus, and after that is voided to the outside” and describes the case of a widow who “convulsed, and at these tensions the semen was discharged, and she said the pleasure it gave her was like that of sexual intercourse”. On p.87 he says, “When, therefore, the female produces semen at the same time as the male, the semen dicharged through each of the two horns and carried to the middle of the hollow of the uterus coats the passages and at the same time reaches the male semen.”</ref>

As the hadith is talking about a fluid that a woman can see, it has nothing to do with oviductal secretions or the jelly-like coating of the ovum produced by the ovarian folicle during her monthly ovulation (in any case it is the ovum that is the source of the female genetic contribution, not this coating). Furthermore, the hadith is saying that resemblance is caused by a semen released during the female orgasm. Orgasm has nothing to do with the genetic contribution of the woman to the embryo. There are many narrations of this hadith in which the imagined female semen is released during orgasm, as Hippocrates and Galen believed.<ref>Jean Claude Guillebaud, “The Tyranny of Pleasure”, p.171, New York: Algora Publishing, 1999</ref>

==Other apologetic claims==

Some Islamic apologists have hence turned to other arguments to find a reference to sperm (not just semen) or the female ovum in the Qur’an. They are considered below. Qur’an translations are Pickthall’s.

===Single entity that is part of a bigger group of its kind===

An Islamic apologist has made the following claim about the word nutfah in an attempt to make it sound like a single sperm:

{{Quote||نطفة (nutfah) is a single entity that is part of a bigger group of its kind:

النطف (al-nutaf): هي القرطة والواحدة من كل ذلك نطفة Nutaf are the karats, and a single one is a nutfah.<ref>Osama Abdallah - [{{Reference archive|1=http://www.answering-christianity.com/detailed_meanings_of_scientific_words_in_verses.htm|2=2012-07-23}} Detailed meanings of the Scientific Words in the Scientific Verses in the Holy Quran using Lisan Al-Arab (The Arabs' (of old) Tongue) Dictionary and other similar dictionaries:] - Answering Christianity, accessed July 23, 2012 </ref>}}

The first line is the apologist's generalization based on the second line, which is his attempted translation of a definition in the Lisan al-Arab dictionary of classical Arabic.<ref>[http://www.baheth.info/all.jsp?term=%D9%86%D8%B7%D9%81 Lisan Al-Arab dictionary, Book 5, Pages 725]</ref>

However the quotation has been truncated, mistranslated, and is of the definition for the wrong word (nataf – pearls or earrings), which has the same n-t-f root as nutfah.

His claim has been copied on other Islamic websites, one even attempting to evolve the claim further by suggesting that this 'mistaken' generalization actually appears in the Lisan al-Arab definition. Lisan al-Arab’s actual definition of nutfah is a little amount (qalil, قليل) of water (see beginning of this article). Note that even if we supposed that nutfah had meant a single drop, a sperm is a discrete object from among many of the same discrete objects, unlike a drop of water, which is an amount of something from a larger amount.

===Sperm from semen emitted===

{{Quote|{{Quran|75|37}}|Was he not a drop of fluid which gushed forth? [nutfatan min manayyin yumna]?}}

Some apologists claim that this verse shows that nutfah does not refer to the same substance as maniyy, translating the above words not in the usual way as “drop [nutfatan] of [min] semen [maniyyin]”, but instead as “sperm-drop from semen”. They also claim that if nutfah referred to semen, that word would have been used instead of maniyy in the many hadith about cleaning semen for ritual purity.

However, as demonstrated above, nutfah meant a small quantity of liquid, in this context in reference to semen that forms the embryo, whereas maniyy is simply semen. Whenever the Qur’an mentions nutfah, which indicates the small quantity of liquid, it is emphasizing the humble beginnings of man. In the hadiths that use maniyy, it is a different context where the quantity is irrelevant. We also saw in the Lisan al-Arab dictionary above that maniyy is called nutfah because it is a small amount of liquid.

In addition, verse 53:46 has virtually the same phrase with the same verb as 75:37, but this time just mentions nutfah, without maniyy.

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|46}}|From a drop (of seed) [nutfatin] when it is poured forth [tumna];}}

Tumna in 53:46 and yumna in 75:37 is the same verb meaning "to emit", and from the same root as maniyy. The same verb is understandably used if it is talking about the emission of the same thing, semen, but without explicitly stating the type of liquid in 53:46. In any case, the evidence is unanimous that nutfah is always used for a liquid.

===Extract of despised fluid===

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|32|7|8}}|Who made all things good which He created, and He began the creation of man from clay; Then He made his seed from a draught of despised fluid;}}

The word translated “seed” in Pickthall’s translation is nasl, which means progeny (i.e. descendants).<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000286.pdf Lane’s Lexicon Vol. 8 p.3032]</ref> It is a reasonable assumption that ma-in maheen'''in''' (fluid despised) means male semen here (see 86:6-7, which too uses maa). Some apologists like to read sulalatin<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000121.pdf Lane’s Lexicon Vol. 4 p.1397]</ref> (“extract”) as a reference to sperm. There are a couple of problems with this. First, it ignores the role of the female ovum (this is a problem with pretty much any interpretation of the verse). Secondly, we can compare 32:8 with 77:20, which has the exact same last 3 words, and without the word extract.

{{Quote|{{Quran|77|20}}|Did We not create you from a base fluid [min ma-in maheen'''in''']}}

This suggests that the extract is or is of the same substance as the disdained water. As we saw above, the next two verses, 77:21-22, indicate that this fluid is gestated in the womb. There are various possible meanings for this verse, but even if it is interpreted as saying that only a special part of semen forms the embryo, that belief would have been common among the Jews with whom Muhammad was acquainted, as we saw from the Talmud quoted earlier:

{{Quote|Babylonian Talmud, Nidda 31a|It teaches that man is not fashioned from all the drop but only from its purest part.<ref name="Nidda 31a"></ref>}}

==See Also==
*[[Embryology in the Quran]]
*[[Semen Production in the Quran]]

==External Links==
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNMRiFsdwFw Early Arabs and Greek Knowledge] - islamwhattheydonttellyou164 - ''Youtube.com (video)''
*[https://quranspotlight.wordpress.com/articles/quran-hadith-talmud-galen/ Greek and Jewish ideas about reproduction in the Qur’an and hadith] by Martin Taverille - Quranspotlight blog (the original source for most of this article)

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Apologetics]]
[[Category:Reproductive sciences]]
[[Category:Sex]]

Sources of Islamic Theories of Reproduction

2024-12-16T20:55:14Z

Vixen: /* The four stages of embryo development */

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[[File:Galen.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The writers of the Qur’an and hadith were influenced by Galen, the hugely influential 2nd Century Greek physician.]]
The [[hadith]] contain many statements about fluids from both the man and woman that were believed to form the human embryo. The [[Qur'an|Qur’an]] too says that the embryo is formed from emitted fluid, and in one verse perhaps indicates a mingling of male and female fluids. This article will trace the origins of each of these ideas at least as far back as the Jewish Talmud and the ancient Greek physicians.

The Prophet [[Muhammad]], who had been a well-traveled merchant, had extensive interactions with Jews in Arabia, and almost certainly with Nestorian Christians, who had large communities in Najran in the south and Hira to the north of the Arabian Peninsula.<ref>J. Stewart, "Nestorian Missionary Enterprise", p.70-74, Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1928</ref><ref>Cyril Glasse, “The New Encyclopedia of Islam”, p.342-343, CA, USA: Altamira, 2001.</ref> Guillaume says of the Nestorians, “Such men were a familiar sight on all the caravan routes of Arabia”.<ref>Alfred Guillaume, “Islam”, p.15, Middlesex: Penguin Books, 1990 (Reprinted)</ref> The Nestorians were based in Syria, where they already possessed and studied the works of Galen, the hugely influential 2nd century Greek physician.<ref>Allen O. Whipple, “[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1965836/pdf/bullnyacadmed00860-0027.pdf Role of the Nestorians as the connecting link between Greek and Arab medicine]”, Annals of Medical History 8 (1936) 313-323</ref> While this does not necessitate that the creators of the Qur’an and hadith directly copied from these works, it seems likely that they were, at the very least, indirectly influenced by these widespread ideas.

==History of Embryology==

Before commencing the specific topic of this article, the following timeline summarises existing theories of embryology, which may be compared with the wider content of [[Embryology in Islamic Scripture|Islamic embryology]]. Some argue that the vague statements of [[Embryology in the Quran|Qur'anic embryology]] have similarities with these theories, most conspicuously the incorrect ideas of Galen.
{| class="wikitable" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" width="100%"
! width="70px" |Date
! width="100px" |Source
!Text
|-
|1416 BC
|Garbha Upinandas (Hindu text)
|"From the conjugation of blood and semen the embryo comes into existence. During the period favorable to conception, after the sexual intercourse, (it) becomes a Kalada (one-day-old embryo). After remaining seven nights it becomes a vesicle. After a fortnight it becomes a sperical mass. After a month it becomes a firm mass".<ref>Journal of Mammalian Ova Research - [http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.1274/jmor.26.2?journalCode=jmor History of the Egg in Embryology] - 26(1):2-9. 2009
doi: 10.1274/jmor.26.2</ref>
|-
|1000 BC
|Book of Job (Judeo-Christian text)
|"Your hands formed me and made me - will you now absorb me? Remember that you formed me as if with clay - will you return me to dust? You poured me out like milk, and pulled me together like cheese. You clothed me with skin and flesh, and [inside me] did you interweave bones and sinews."<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job+10%3A8-11%2CJob+31%3A15&version=NIV Job 10:8-11] - BibleGateway</ref>
|-
|500 BC
|Psalms (Judeo-Christian text)
|"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+139%3A13-16&version=NIV Psalms 139:13-16] - BibleGateway</ref>
|-
|460-370 BC
|Hippocrates
|1st stage: "Sperm is a product which comes from the whole body of each parent, weak sperm coming from the weak parts, and strong sperm from the strong parts."<ref>Section 8, p 321</ref>
2nd stage: "The seed (embryo), then, is contained in a membrane ... Moreover, it grows because of its mother's blood, which descends to the womb. For once a woman conceives, she ceases to menstruate..."<ref>Section 14, p. 326</ref>
3rd stage: "At this stage, with the descent and coagulation of the mother's blood, flesh begins to be formed, with the umbilicus."<ref>Section 14, p. 326</ref> 4th stage: "As the flesh grows it is formed into distinct members by breath ... The bones grow hard ... moreover they send out branches like a tree ..."<ref>Section 17, p. 328</ref>
|-
|384-322 BC
|Aristotle
|"When the material secreted by the female in the uterus has been fixed by the semen of the male...the more solid part comes together, the liquid is separated off from it, and as the earthy parts solidify membranes form all around it...Some of these are called membranes and others choria..."<ref>Aristotle, De Generatione Animalium, Book II, 739b20-739b30, as per Jonathan Barnes (ed.), The Complete Works of Aristotle, (Princeton, 1985), Vol 1, p. 1148.</ref> "So nature has first designed the two blood vessels from the heart, and from these smaller vessels branch off to the uterus, forming what is called the umbilicus...Round these is a skin-like integument, because the weakness of the vessels needs protection and shelter. The vessels join to the uterus like the roots of plants, and through them the embryo receives its nourishment".<ref>Aristotle, De Generatione Animalium, Book II, 740a28-740a35, as per Barnes, opere citato, p. 1149</ref>
|-
|240-180 BC
|Diocles of Carystus
|"on the ninth day a few points of blood, on the eighteenth beating of the heart, on the twenty-seventh traces of the spinal cord and head"<ref>Joseph Needham M. A., Ph.D. - [http://www.archive.org/stream/chemicalembryolo01need/chemicalembryolo01need_djvu.txt Chemical embryology] - New York: The Macmillan Company, Cambridge England, at the University Press, 1931 </ref>
|-
|129-210 AD
|Claudius Galenus
|"let us divide the creation of the foetus overall into four periods of time. ''The first'' is that in which. as is seen both in abortions and in dissection, the form of the semen prevails [compare with the Islamic nutfah/semen stage]. At this time, Hippocrates too, the all-marvelous, does not yet call the conformation of the animal a foetus; as we heard just now in the case of semen voided in the sixth day, he still calls it semen. But when it has been filled with blood [compare with the alaqa/bloodclot stage], and heart, brain and liver are still unarticulated and unshaped yet have by now a certain solidarity and considerable size, this is ''the second period''; the substance of the foetus has the form of flesh and no longer the form of semen. Accordingly you would find that Hippocrates too no longer calls such a form semen but, as was said, foetus. ''The third period'' follows on this, when, as was said, it is possible to see the three ruling parts clearly and a kind of outline, a silhouette, as it were, of all the other parts [compare with the mudghah/morsel, formed and unformed stage]. You will see the conformation of the three ruling parts more clearly, that of the parts of the stomach more dimly, and much more still, that of the limbs. Later on they form "twigs", as Hippocrates expressed it, indicating by the term their similarity to branches. ''The fourth and final period'' is at the stage when all the parts in the limbs have been differentiated; and at this part Hippocrates the marvelous no longer calls the foetus an embryo only, but already a child, too when he says that it jerks and moves as an animal now fully formed."<ref>Corpus Medicorum Graecorum: Galeni de Semine (Galen: On Semen) (Greek text with English trans. Phillip de Lacy, Akademic Verlag, 1992) section I:9:1-10 pp. 92-95, 101 Available on [https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences website] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230909084119/https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php archive])</ref>
"... The time has come for nature to articulate the organs precisely and to bring all the parts to completion. Thus it caused flesh to grow on and around all the bones [compare with the kasawna al-'ithama lahman/clothed the bones with flesh stage], and at the same time ... it made at the ends of the bones ligaments that bind them to each other, and along their entire length it placed around them on all sides thin membranes, called periosteal, on which it caused flesh to grow."<ref>Corpus Medicorum Graecorum: Galeni de Semine (Galen: On Semen) (Greek text with English trans. Phillip de Lacy, Akademic Verlag, 1992) section I:9:1-10 pp. 92-95, 101 Available on [https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences website] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230909084119/https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php archive])</ref>
|-
|ca. 200 AD
|Talmud (Jewish text)
|The embryo was called peri habbetten (fruit of the body) and develops as:

1. golem (formless, rolled-up thing); 
2. shefir meruqqam (embroidered foetus - shefir means amniotic sac); 
3. 'ubbar (something carried); v'alad (child); v'alad shel qayama (noble or viable child) and 
4. ben she-kallu chadashav (child whose months have been completed).<ref>Samuel ha-Yehudi</ref>
|-
|571-632 AD
|Muhammad ibn ‘Abdullāh
|“Allah's Apostle, the true and truly inspired said, "(The matter of the Creation of) a human being is put together in the womb of the mother in forty days, and then he becomes a clot of thick blood for a similar period, and then a piece of flesh for a similar period.”<ref>{{Bukhari|4|54|430}}</ref>
“The Prophet said, "Allah puts an angel in charge of the uterus and the angel says, 'O Lord, (it is) semen! O Lord, (it is now) a clot! O Lord, (it is now) a piece of flesh.' And then, if Allah wishes to complete its creation, the angel asks, 'O Lord, (will it be) a male or a female?”<ref>{{Bukhari|8|77|594}}</ref> "Verily We created man from a product of wet earth; Then placed him as a drop (of seed) in a safe lodging; Then fashioned We the drop a clot, then fashioned We the clot a little lump, then fashioned We the little lump bones, then clothed the bones with flesh, and then produced it as another creation. So blessed be Allah, the Best of creators!"<ref>{{cite Quran|23|12|end=14|style=ref}}</ref>
|}

==A few definitions==

The following 3 words are used in the Qur’an and hadith in connection with semen:

===Nutfah نطفة===

The word nutfah is used 12 times in the Qur’an in the following verses, in each case saying much the same thing, that man is created from a nutfah: {{Quran|16|4}}, {{Quran|18|37}}, {{Quran|22|5}}, {{Quran|23|13}}, {{Quran|23|14}}, {{Quran|35|11}}, {{Quran|36|77}}, {{Quran|40|67}}, {{Quran|53|46}}, {{Quran|75|37}}, {{Quran|76|2}}, {{Quran|80|19}}.

A nutfah is a small quantity of liquid. It was also used in reference to semen that was believed to form the embryo. Lane’s Lexicon of classical [[Arabic]] defines nutfah as:

{{Quote||Sperma of a man (S, Msb, K) and of a woman. (Msb)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000288.pdf Lane’s Lexicon Vol. 8 p.3034]</ref>}}

(Sperma is a Late Latin word meaning seed, semen).

The Lisan al Arab dictionary of classical Arabic gives these definitions (translated from the Arabic):

{{Quote||A little water; a little water remaining in a waterskin; a little water remaining in a bucket; pure water, a little or a lot; the water of the man; semen is called nutfah for its small amount<ref>http://www.baheth.info/all.jsp?term=%D9%86%D8%B7%D9%81</ref>}}

A nice example of nutfah usage can be found in a pre-Islamic poem where it is used to mean “the small quantity of wine that remained in a wineskin”.<ref>Irfan Shahid, “Byzantium and the Arabs in the sixth century. Volume 2, Part 2”, p.145, Washington, D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks, 2009</ref>

===Maa ماء===

Water. Sometimes used for semen. Used in this way in verses {{Quran|32|8}} and {{Quran|77|20}}, and {{Quran|86|6}}.

===Maniyy مني===

Semen. It is frequently used in hadith about ritual purity, especially narrations saying that [[Aisha]] used to clean semen off Muhammad’s clothes. It is used once in the Qur’an, verse {{Quran|75|37}}.

==Evidence of influence==

This section documents the influence of ideas from other cultures on the Qur’an and hadith regarding reproduction. It will go without saying that these ideas are inaccurate compared with current [[Islam and Science|scientific]] knowledge of [[reproduction]] and [[embryology]]. All Qur’an quotes are from Yusuf Ali’s translation.

===A mingled drop===

{{Quote|{{Quran|76|2}}|Verily We created Man from a drop of mingled sperm [nutfatin amshajin], in order to try him: So We gave him (the gifts), of Hearing and Sight.}}

Ibn Kathir’s [[Tafsir|commentary]] on this verse gives a very useful definition of nutfah from Muhammad’s companions.

{{Quote|Tafsir Ibn Kathir on 76:2|(Verily, We have created man from Nutfah Amshaj,) meaning, mixed. The words Mashaj and Mashij mean something that is mixed together. Ibn `Abbas said concerning Allah’s statement,

﴿مِن نُّطْفَةٍ أَمْشَاجٍ﴾

(from Nutfah Amshaj,) "This means the fluid of the man and the fluid of the woman when they meet and mix.” Then man changes after this from stage to stage, condition to condition and color to color. `Ikrimah, Mujahid, Al-Hasan and Ar-Rabi` bin Anas all made statements similar to this. They said, "Amshaj is the mixing of the man’s fluid with the woman’s fluid.”<ref>[http://qtafsir.com/Surah-Al-Insan/Allah-created-Man-after-He-did--- Tafsir of Ibn Kathir for 76:2]</ref>}}

In each case, the word translated “fluid” is maa<ref>For the Arabic: http://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=76&tAyahNo=2&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1</ref> (see above for definition), so there is no case for retro-fitting the sperm or ovum into it. Similar comments from Muhammad’s [[Sahabah|companions]] appear in [[al-Tabari]]’s Tafsir on 76:2. His companions apparently believed that the mingled nutfah was a mixture of male and female semen.

This same idea was taught by Galen, the hugely influential 2nd Century Greek physician. Galen’s main treatise about embryology was called “On Semen”, and his works were studied by Muhammad’s nearby contemporaries in Alexandria, Egypt and in Gundeshapur, southwestern Syria.<ref>Marshall Clagett, “Greek Science in Antiquity”, pp.180-181, New York: Abelard-Schuman, 1955; Dover, 2001</ref>

Galen said that the embryo is initially formed out of the male semen mixed (μίγνυται) with what he called the female semen, which also forms an additional membrane entwined (ἐπιπλεκονταί) with that of the male semen. He believed that blood from the woman is subsequently drawn in via the uterus and membrane, and this combined material literally goes on to form the fetus.<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, pp.85-89, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992</ref> This will be explained a little more later. Unlike Galen (and before him, Hippocrates) with the two-semens theory, Aristotle believed that there was only a male semen, which does not itself provide material for the embryo, but triggers its formation from menstral blood.<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, p.65, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992 Available on [https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences website] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230909084119/https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php archive])</ref> The quoted comments from Muhammad’s companions are good evidence for Galenic influence in 7th century Arabia.

The Qur’anic verses that are most explicit in stating that the embryo is initially formed out of semen, as per Galen and Hippocrates, are verses 80:18-19.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|80|18|19}}|From what stuff [shay-in, which means “thing”] hath He created him? From a sperm-drop [nutfatin]: He hath created him, and then mouldeth him in due proportions; }}

Just as Galen taught about the mixed semens, this nutfah is stored in the womb where it subsequently undergoes various stages of development.

{{Quote|{{quran|23|13}}|Then We placed him as (a drop of) sperm [nutfatan] in a place of rest, firmly fixed;}}

The Qur’an itself confirms that it is semen that is developed in the womb in an almost identical verse. Here maa (water), the euphemism for semen, is used instead of nutfah. In this instance it probably just means male semen (see the “Extract of despised fluid” section later).

{{Quote|{{quran-range|77|20|22}}|Have We not created you from a fluid (held) despicable [ma-in maheenin]? The which We placed in a place of rest, firmly fixed, For a period (of gestation), determined (according to need)?}}

In both cases, the “place of rest, firmly fixed” (qararin makeenin) obviously refers to the womb, with 77:22 adding that it is for a “period determined” (and certainly does not mean the female ovum, which is only penetrated by a single sperm cell and not the “fluid (held) despicable”).

=== From dust, then seminal fluid ===
We are told humans are created from dust, then from a drop of seminal fluid (who's origins are discussed above).
{{Quote|{{Quran|22|5}}|O people! If you are in doubt about the resurrection, [consider that] We created you from dust, then from a drop of [seminal] fluid (nuṭfah), then from a clinging mass, then from a fleshy tissue, partly formed and partly unformed, so that We may manifest [Our power] to you. We lodge in the wombs whatever [fetus] We wish for a specified term, then We bring you forth as infants, then [We rear you] so that you may come of age. [Then] there are some of you who are taken away, and there are some of you who are relegated to the nethermost age, such that he knows nothing after [having possessed] some knowledge. And you see the earth torpid, yet when We send down water upon it, it stirs and swells, and grows every delightful kind [of plant].}}{{Quote|{{Quran|18|37}}|His companion said to him, as he conversed with him: ‘Do you disbelieve in Him who created you from dust, then from a drop of [seminal] fluid (nuṭfah), then fashioned you as a man?}}
In both cases, the word 'nuṭfah' is used, meaning; little water; a little water remaining in a waterskin; a little water remaining in a bucket; pure water, a little or a lot; the water of the man etc;<ref>[http://arabiclexicon.hawramani.com/search/%D9%86%D8%B7%D9%81%D8%A9 نطفة] - The Arabic Lexicon</ref> semen is called nuṭfah<ref>[https://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000288.pdf نطفة] - Lane’s Lexicon Vol. 8 p.3034</ref> for its small amount seminal fluid.

This motif is found in pre-Islamic writings, and in more contemporary works,<ref>Eich & Doroftei, 2023. [https://www.nomos-elibrary.de/10.5771/9783987400650-19/teil-i-zur-entwicklung-der-adamsgeschichte-bis-zum-7-jahrhundert?page=1 ''Adam and Embryo. A contribution to the study of the story of Adam in Jewish, Christian and Islamic texts up to the end of the first millennium.''] pp. 94 - 97.</ref> with parallels recorded using a similar Syriac word (nuṭptā). For example, this image is documented in Ephraim the Syrian (d. 373):
{{Quote|Eich & Doroftei, 2023. Adam and Embryo. pp. 95. A contribution to the study of the story of Adam in Jewish, Christian and Islamic texts up to the end of the first millennium.|"He is very foolish and blind; for he is also enclosed together with all - in the hollow hand of the Creator. A single grain of dust, - a single drop of water (nuṭptā), which formed together - became the human form through the mercy of the Creator."}}
And Babai the Great (c.551–628CE), an early church father of the Syriac Church of the East, also known as the Assyrian Church.<ref>Amar, J. P. ''Babai the Great (c.551–628).'' 2011. Wiley. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470670606.wbecc0106</nowiki></ref>
{{Quote|Eich & Doroftei, 2023. Adam and Embryo. pp. 97. A contribution to the study of the story of Adam in Jewish, Christian and Islamic texts up to the end of the first millennium.|"And they do not understand the works of their Maker, which are formed like a drop of water (nuṭptā) and a grain of dust in the hollow of His incorporeal hand."}}

=== The four stages of embryo development ===
{{Quote|{{Quran|22|5}}|O mankind! if ye have a doubt about the Resurrection, (consider) that We created you out of dust, then out of sperm, then out of a leech-like clot, then out of a morsel of flesh, partly formed and partly unformed, in order that We may manifest (our power) to you; and We cause whom We will to rest in the wombs for an appointed term, then do We bring you out as babes, then (foster you) that ye may reach your age of full strength; and some of you are called to die, and some are sent back to the feeblest old age, so that they know nothing after having known (much), and (further), thou seest the earth barren and lifeless, but when We pour down rain on it, it is stirred (to life), it swells, and it puts forth every kind of beautiful growth (in pairs).}}{{Quote|{{Quran|23|12-14}}|Man We did create from a quintessence (of clay); Then We placed him as (a drop of) sperm in a place of rest, firmly fixed; Then We made the sperm into a clot of congealed blood; then of that clot We made a (foetus) lump; then we made out of that lump bones and clothed the bones with flesh; then we developed out of it another creature. So blessed be Allah, the best to create!}}
As mentioned in the [https://corpuscoranicum.de/en Corpus Coranicum Project,] the stages of embryo development described in the Qur'an reflect the medical knowledge of the late antique world, compatible with seventh-century AD understanding.<ref>Corpus Coranicum Project - [https://corpuscoranicum.de/en/verse-navigator/sura/22/verse/5/intertexts/986 Galen De Semine I, 8]

Michael Marx, Galen De Semine I, 8 - TUK_986. In: Texts from the Environment of the Koran, edited by the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities by Michael Marx, with contributions by Sebastian Bitsch, Vasiliki Chamourgiotaki, Emmanouela Grypeou, Dirk Hartwig, Nestor Kavvadas, David Kiltz, Yousef Kouriyhe, Mohammed Maraqten, Adrian Pirtea, Veronika Roth, Johanna Schubert and Nicolai Sinai. Beta version: as of July 28, 2024.</ref> The development of humans in the womb outlined in the Qur'an seems to correspond in its four stages to the communis opinion summarized by Galen for (late) ancient medicine;<ref>Corpus Coranicum Project - [https://corpuscoranicum.de/en/verse-navigator/sura/23/verse/14/intertexts/955 Letter to Archdeacon Mar Julian]

David Kiltz (with the collaboration of Yousef Kouriyhe) (revised by Vasiliki Chamourgiotaki), Letter to Archdeacon Mar Julian - TUK_955. In: Texts from the Environment of the Koran, edited by the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities by Michael Marx, with contributions by Sebastian Bitsch, Vasiliki Chamourgiotaki, Emmanouela Grypeou, Dirk Hartwig, Nestor Kavvadas, David Kiltz, Yousef Kouriyhe, Mohammed Maraqten, Adrian Pirtea, Veronika Roth, Johanna Schubert and Nicolai Sinai. Beta version: as of July 28, 2024.</ref>

Both passages speak of a development of the embryo that begins with the '''1) drop of semen''' (Arabic: nuṭfa), which is then followed by the stage of the '''2) blood structure''' (Arabic: ʿalaqa), which then develops into a '''3) flesh structure''' (Arabic: mudġa), from which the "physically formed and not yet fully formed" (Q 22:5 min muḍġatin muḫallaqatin wa-ġairi muḫallaqatin ) embryo then develops. And in Sura 23, the flesh structure becomes bones that are covered with flesh (Arabic: fa-ḫalaqnā l-muḍġata ʿiẓāman fa-kasaunā l-ʿiẓāma laḥman). This form of life then finally takes on a new quality: '''4) The fully formed infant''' In Q 23:14 it says: "Then We created him as a new (i.e. different) creature. Thus God is full of blessings. He is the best creator." In Q 22:5 the formed and at the same time not yet complete creature becomes a sign of divine power, since God "makes his power clear" to man.<ref>Corpus Coranicum Project - [https://corpuscoranicum.de/en/verse-navigator/sura/22/verse/5/intertexts/986 ''Galen De Semine I, 8'']

Michael Marx, Galen De Semine I, 8 - TUK_986. In: Texts from the Environment of the Koran, edited by the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities by Michael Marx, with contributions by Sebastian Bitsch, Vasiliki Chamourgiotaki, Emmanouela Grypeou, Dirk Hartwig, Nestor Kavvadas, David Kiltz, Yousef Kouriyhe, Mohammed Maraqten, Adrian Pirtea, Veronika Roth, Johanna Schubert and Nicolai Sinai. Beta version: as of July 28, 2024.</ref>

Basim Musallam notes that the stages were sufficiently similar for medieval Islamic authors to use Qur'anic terminology when describing Galen's (incorrect, ''see: [[Embryology in the Quran]]'') four stages of development.
{{Quote|[https://www.academia.edu/12237577/Sex_and_Society_in_Islam Basim Musallam Sex and Society in Islam, Cambridge University Press, 1983, pg. 54]|The stages of development which the Quran and hadith established for believers agreed perfectly with Galen's scientific account. In De Semine, for example, Galen spoke of four periods in the formation of the embryo: (1) as seminal matter;
(2) as a bloody form (still without flesh, in which the primitive heart, liver, and brain are ill-defined);
(3) the foetus acquires flesh and solidity (the heart, liver, and brain are well-defined, and the limbs begin formation); and finally
(4) all the organs attain their full perfection and the foetus is quickened. There is no doubt that medieval thought appreciated this agreement between the Quran and Galen, for Arabic science employed the same Quranic terms to describe the Galenic stages (as in Ibn Sina's account of Galen): nutfa for the first, 'alaqa for the second, "unformed" mudgha for the third, and "formed" mudgha for the fourth.}}

=== Three layers of Darkness ===
We see the idea of three layers of darkness.
{{Quote|{{Quran|39|6}}|He created you (all) from a single person: then created, of like nature, his mate; and he sent down for you eight head of cattle in pairs: He makes you, in the wombs of your mothers, in stages, one after another, in three veils of darkness. such is Allah, your Lord and Cherisher: to Him belongs (all) dominion. There is no god but He: then how are ye turned away (from your true Centre)?}}
Ibn Qayyim (d. 1350), a prominent Hanbali jurist, links these to different membranes being mentioned by Hippocrates, quoting previous scholars opinions on the matter.
{{Quote|[https://www.academia.edu/12237577/Sex_and_Society_in_Islam Musallam, Sex and Society in Islam, Cambridge University Press, 1983, pg. 56]|(A) Hippocrates said in the third chapter of Kitab al-ajinna: . The semen is contained in a membrane, and it grows because of the blood of its mother which descends to the womb, and the semen in these membranes draws in the air and breathes it for the reasons we have mentioned... As the semen becomes a foetus several other membranes are formed, and grow within the original membrane, all being formed the same way as the first. Some membranes are formed at the beginning, others after the second month, and others in the third month. (B) This is why God says, "He creates you in the wombs of your mothers, by one formation after another in three darknesses (Quran 39:6)." (C) Since each of these membranes has its own darkness, when God mentioned the stages of creation and transformation from one state to another, He also mentioned the darknesses of the membranes. (D) Most commentators explain: it is the darkness of the belly, and the darkness of the womb, and the darkness of the placenta...}}

=== Seminal fluid and the backbone ===
{{Main|Semen Production in the Quran}}The relationship between seminal fluid and the backbone has many ancient pre-modern scientific roots.{{Quote|{{Quran|86|6-7}}|He was created of a gushing fluid, emerging from between the backbone and the ribs.}}As Noble et al (2014) note.{{Quote|Noble Denis, DiFrancesco Dario and Zancani Diego. 2014. Leonardo da Vinci and the origin of semen. Notes Rec.68391–402 DOI https://doi.org/10.1098/rsnr.2014.0021|The view that semen was derived from the spinal cord was old enough to be denied by Alcmaeon in the sixth century bc, but Plato and Hippocrates subscribed to it. Plato in his Timaeus considers the brain and spinal ‘marrow’ as but a special form of bone marrow (Timaeus, 73) in which ‘God implanted his divine seed’.

This spinal marrow passes down the back and communicates its ‘universal seed stuff’ to the genitalia for the purpose of procreation. Plato in the Timaeus, and Leonardo on this page, traces the spinal marrow (RL 19097v):}}This was an ancient Egyptian belief too, as Schwabe, Calvin W., et al. (1982) notes, '<nowiki/>''Egyptians believed that sperm was produced in the thoracic spine , a conviction apparently based on their understanding of the bull.''<nowiki/>'<ref>Schwabe, Calvin W., et al. “''[http://www.jstor.org/stable/30027646. Egyptian Beliefs about the Bull’s Spine: An Anatomical Origin for Ankh.]''” Anthropological Linguistics, vol. 24, no. 4, 1982, pp. 445–79. JSTOR, <nowiki>http://www.jstor.org/stable/30027646</nowiki>. Accessed 18 Oct. 2024.</ref>

===Semen stage lasts 40 days===

{{Quote|{{Muslim|33|6395}}|Abu Tufail reported: I visited Abu Sariha Hudhaifa b. Usaid al-Ghifari who said: I listened with these two ears of mine Allahs Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: The semen [nutfata] stays in the womb for forty nights, then the angel, gives it a shape. Zubair said: I think that he said: One who fashions that and decides whether he would be male or female…}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|93|546}}|Narrated ‘Abdullah bin Mas’ud: Allah’s Apostle the true and truly inspired, narrated to us, "The creation of everyone of you starts with the process of collecting the material for his body within forty days and forty nights in the womb of his mother. Then he becomes a clot of thick blood for a similar period (40 days) and then he becomes like a piece of flesh for a similar period…}}

See also {{quran-range|23|12|14}} to see how the nutfah and subsequent stages fit together. Now let us compare with the Talmud:

{{Quote|Babylonian Talmud, Yebamoth 69b|For if she is not found pregnant she never was pregnant; and if she is found pregnant, the semen, until the fortieth day, is only a mere fluid.<ref>[http://halakhah.com/yebamoth/yebamoth_69.html#PARTb Babylonian Talmud: Tractate Yebamoth (Yebamoth 69b)] - Halakhah.com, accessed July 23, 2012</ref>}}

(Part b comes after each mishnah and is the Rabbinic commentary, called Gemara, on the mishnah in part a). Notice also that like in the Qur’an, the embryo is formed from semen.

===Gender determined after 40 days===

{{Quote|{{Muslim|33|6392}}|Hudhaifa b. Usaid reported directly from Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) that he said: When the drop of [nutfati] (semen) remains in the womb for forty or fifty (days) or forty nights, the angel comes and says: My Lord, will he be good or evil? And both these things would be written. Then the angel says: My Lord, would he be male or female? And both these things are written…}}

See also {{Muslim|33|6395}} quoted above, for example. Once again, we see that this is an idea from the Talmud:

{{Quote|Babylonian Talmud, Berakoth 60a|Within the first three days a man should pray that the seed should not putrefy; from the third to the fortieth day he should pray that the child should be a male;<ref name="Berakoth 60a">[http://halakhah.com/berakoth/berakoth_60.html Babylonian Talmud: Tractate Berakoth (Berakoth 60a)] - Halakhah.com, accessed July 23, 2012</ref>}}

It should, however, be noted that in the next hadith, number 6393, the angel who comes after 40 days creates the child’s flesh and bones and then gender is determined. In number 6397 (also appears in Sahih Bukhari), gender is determined once the fetus has become a “lump of flesh”.

===Resemblance of the child to its parents===

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|55|546}}|…As for the resemblance of the child to its parents: If a man has sexual intercourse with his wife and gets discharge first, the child will resemble the father, and if the woman gets discharge first, the child will resemble her…}}

A similar idea is found in the Talmud:

{{Quote|Babylonian Talmud, Nidda 31a|R. Isaac citing R. Ammi stated: If the woman emits her semen first she bears a male child; if the man emits his semen first she bears a female child;<ref name="Nidda 31a">[http://halakhah.com/niddah/niddah_31.html Babylonian Talmud: Tractate Niddah (Nidda 31a)] - Halakhah.com, accessed July 23, 2012</ref>}}

The same thing is reported in Berakoth 60a.<ref name="Berakoth 60a"></ref> Notice also a two-semens theory again. In most versions of this hadith the determining factor in resemblance is whose water (maa i.e. semen) preceded (sabaqa) the other person’s water. In other versions it is whose water is on or upon (‘ala) the other’s, which is closer to various Greek theories in which resemblance or gender is caused by semens prevailing upon each other.<ref>Iain M. Lonie, “The Hippocratic Treatises ‘On generation’, ‘On the nature of the child’, ‘Diseases IV’”, pp.125-126, Berlin; New York: de Gruyter, 1981</ref><ref>See Galen’s description of Strato’s theory of sex determination in “On Semen”, p.183, and De Lacy’s notes on p.242. Galen postulates a semen prevailance theory of resemblance on p.179-181. Available on [https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences website] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230909084119/https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php archive])</ref> In one case (Sahih Muslim, Book 3, number 614), it is gender rather than resemblance that is determined in this way and maniyy is used rather than maa.{{Quote|1=Aristotle (d. 322 BC) in ''[https://www.google.com/books/edition/De_Generatione_Animalium/WhRDAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 De Generatione Animalium]'', 764a 6 as quoted in {{citation|page=191|editor=Philip Wheelwright|publisher=Macmillan|year=1966|title=The Presocratics|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Presocratics/B9QDAQAAIAAJ?hl=en}}|2=T 22. Democritus of Abdera says that it [gender] is determined in the womb whether the offspring is to be male or female. He denies, however, the theory [of Empedocles] that heat and cold are what make the difference; it depends, he thinks, upon which of the two parents' generative fluids prevails--i.e., that part of the fluid which has come from the distinctively male or female parts [rather than the part which has come from the body as a whole]. Of the two theories that of Democritus is the better; for he is trying to discover and specify the exact way in which the sexes become differentiated; but whether he is right or not is another matter. (''De Generatione Animalium'' 764a 6)}}

=== “Not from all the sperm a fetus is created…” ===
Searching for some kind of reference to sperm (rather than merely semen), which was not discovered until the 17th century, some Islamic apologists point to the following hadith:

{{Quote|Sahih Muslim, Book of Marriage, Chapter on al-‘Azl, No. 1483|Not from all the sperm a fetus is created and if God wills to create anything, nothing can debar him.}}

The first thing to point out is that the word translated “sperm” in the apologists’ translation is actually maa in the Arabic, which as mentioned above, means water/fluid and is a euphemism for semen. This is also apparent in another translation of the exact same hadith:

{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3381}}|Abu Sa’id al-Khudri (Allah be pleased with him) reported that Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) was asked about ‘azl, whereupon he said: The child does not come from all the liquid (semen) and when Allah intends to create anything nothing can prevent it (from coming into existence).}}

A somewhat similar idea is found in the Talmud:

{{Quote|Babylonian Talmud, Nidda 31a|It teaches that man is not fashioned from all the drop but only from its purest part.<ref name="Nidda 31a"></ref>}}

The possible Talmudic influence is much less clear in this example as the hadith concerns the practice of [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Al-'Azl|al-‘azl]], or coitus interruptus. In any case, it would have been well known that not all of a semen emission was needed to initiate pregnancy, so that this method of birth control was unreliable.

===Al ‘azl and al ghila===

While on the subject of ‘azl, and another practice, ghila, which is a man having intercourse with his wife while she is suckling, we see that Muhammad openly admits to his knowledge of and interest in the reproductive practices of the Byzantines (“Romans”) and Sassanids (“Persians”):

{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3394}}|Sa’d b. Abu Waqqas (Allah be pleased with him) reported that a person came to Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) and said: I do ‘azi [‘azil] with my wife. Thereupon Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Why do you do that? The person said: I fear harm to her child or her children. Thereupon Allah’s Messenger (way peace be upon him) said: If that were harmful it would harm the '''Persians and Romans'''.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3392}}|Judama daughter of Wahb, sister of Ukkasha (Allah be pleased with her). reported: I went to Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) along with some persons and he was saying: I intended to prohibit cohabitation with the suckling women, but I considered the '''Greeks ["Romans" in the Arabic] and Persians''', and saw that they suckle their children and this thing (cohabitation) does not do any harm to them (to the suckling women). Then they asked him about ‘azl, whereupon he said. That is the secret (way of) burying alive, and Ubaidullah has made this addition in the hadith transmitted by al-Muqri and that is:" When the one buried alive is asked."}}

Of the two centers of Galenic study mentioned above, Syria was under the Sassinid empire and Egypt was under both the Sassinids and Byzantines at different times during Muhammad’s career. Muhammad did not live in a bubble. These hadith suggest that Muhammad would have had access to and had interest in the practices and ideas regarding sexual matters and reproduction transmitted by these other cultures.

===“From the man’s nutfah and from the woman’s nutfah”===

Asked by a Jewish man how man is created, Muhammad reportedly answered:

{{Quote|Musnad Ahmad, volume 1, page 465|O, Jew, it is created from both; from a man nutfah and from a woman nutfah}}

Some Islamic apologists suggest that this hadith in the Musnad Ahmad hadith collection is a reference to the sperm and ovum. However, as shown by the ibn Kathir quote above, not only were these understood to be male and female fluids, but this is once again the Galenic two-semens theory. Indeed, the remainder of the very same hadith (which is almost never included upon reference) explicitly affirms the two-semens theory, and proceeds to describe the different purposes of each of the two semens in a manner that is, needless to say, plainly unscientific and inaccurate.

{{Quote||He is created of both, the semen [nutfati] of the man and the semen [nutfati] of the woman. The man’s semen [nutfatu] is thick and forms the bones and the tendons. The woman’s semen [nutfatu] is fine and forms the flesh and blood<ref>Translation by Basim Musallam, “Sex and Society in Islam”, p.52, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983, cited in Timothy Winter, "[http://www.thefreelibrary.com/PULCHRA+UT+LUNA%3A+SOME+REFLECTIONS+ON+THE+MARIAN+THEME+IN...-a066241177 ’Pulchra ut luna: some Reflections on the Marian Theme in Muslim-Catholic Dialogue.]" Journal of Ecumenical Studies 36/3 (1999): 439-469</ref>}}

See the references section for a link to the Arabic<ref>For the Arabic see #4424: http://hadith.al-islam.com/Page.aspx?pageid=192&TOCID=35&BookID=30&PID=4206</ref>. Not only is it apparent that the male nutfah is none other than semen (“thick”), but the process described is completely wrong from a scientific perspective. The origins of these ideas can be traced as far back as the Talmud:

{{Quote|Babylonian Talmud, Nidda 31a|Our Rabbis taught: There are three partners in man, the Holy One, blessed be He, his father and his mother. His father supplies the semen of the white substance out of which are formed the child’s '''bones, sinews''', nails, the brain in his head and the white in his eye; his mother supplies the semen of the red substance out of which is formed his skin, '''flesh''', hair, '''blood''' and the black of his eye;<ref name="Nidda 31a"></ref>}}

Also notable is that this hadith and the Talmud have striking similarities with what Galen taught in his work, “On Semen”, Galen says:

{{Quote|On Semen, p.99|But (the fetus) has first of all the vegetative power, which creates not from blood but from the semen itself artery and vein and nerve, bone and membrane<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, p.99, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992 Available on [https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences website] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230909084119/https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php archive])</ref>}}

Based on pp.91-93 and p.101, he seems to mean here the thicker male semen, which he says provides some of the material for the fetus as well as “power” or “motion” to the material. He says that the female’s semen provides nutriment to the male semen, and also has a weaker “power”, supplemented by that of her blood, to cause any resemblance of the child to the mother.<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, pp.165-167, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992 Available on [https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences website] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230909084119/https://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/cmg_05_03_01.php archive])</ref> On p.87 Galen says about the female semen "for it is thinner than the male semen",<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, p.87, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992</ref> matching the hadith.

Galen says a few pages later:

{{Quote|On Semen, p.103|For all the parts that are fleshy [σαρκώδη] in form were generated from blood [αίματος]; but all that were membranous were drawn out from semen.<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, p.103, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992</ref>}}

Here, blood refers to the mother’s blood, some fine and some thick, which Galen believed is drawn via the uterus and membrane into the combined male and female semens after they have mixed in her womb.<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, pp.87-91, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992</ref> That Galen and the Talmud say the fleshy parts are formed from the woman’s blood rather than her semen barely detracts from the other striking similarities with the hadith.

In any case, this hadith is graded as having weak authenticity. {{Muslim|3|614}} is a similar hadith, which instead of mentioning nutfah and saying what is formed from each semen, gives the resemblance theory mentioned above after saying that the man’s water (maa) is white and the woman’s water (maa) is yellow. {{Muslim|3|608}} is a version of the hadith we look at next, but adds that the man’s water is thick and white and the woman’s water is thin and yellow.

==="Then why does a child resemble (its mother)?"===

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|55|545}}|Narrated Abu Salama: Um Salama said, "Um Salaim said, ‘O Allah’s Apostle! Allah does not refrain from saying the truth! Is it obligatory for a woman to take a bath after she gets nocturnal discharge [ahtalam - have wet-dream]?’ He said, ‘Yes, if she notices the water [maa](i.e. discharge).’ Um Salama smiled and said, ‘Does a woman get discharge? [ahtalam]‘ Allah’s Apostle said. ‘Then why does a child resemble (its mother)?}}

This, again, is Galen’s idea about “female semen”. Even Muhammad’s reasoning in the hadith is clearly the same as Galen’s, whose main thesis in the 2nd part of 'On Semen' is that a generative female semen exists and causes resemblance to the mother. Like Muhammad in this hadith, Galen explicitly uses fluid emitted during nocturnal orgasm as evidence for the existence of a female semen that causes resemblance:

{{Quote|On Semen, p.153|Indeed it would have been much better to trust the visible evidence that the semen of females exists and to inquire by reasoning what its power is. The visible evidence was given before and will be given again. Spermatic ducts, full of semen, secrete this semen apart from the union of female with male, females experiencing effusions in sleep as males do<ref>Philip De Lacy (editor and translator). “Galen: On Semen (Corpus Medicorum Graecorum 5.3.1.)”, p.153, Berlin: Akademie. Verlag, 1992</ref>}}

On the same page, Galen goes on to criticize other physicians who say that the female spermatic ducts just “discharge the semen on the outside down below the uterus” (a possible reference to “female ejaculation” from the paraurethral glands), and argues that the female semen is also discharged into the uterus. It is clear also from other pages that he believes this occurs at a particular moment, namely orgasm, and when it occurs during sleep the semen is subsequently voided externally.<ref>On p.151 he says that the female semen “in effusions in sleep first descends into the uterus, and after that is voided to the outside” and describes the case of a widow who “convulsed, and at these tensions the semen was discharged, and she said the pleasure it gave her was like that of sexual intercourse”. On p.87 he says, “When, therefore, the female produces semen at the same time as the male, the semen dicharged through each of the two horns and carried to the middle of the hollow of the uterus coats the passages and at the same time reaches the male semen.”</ref>

As the hadith is talking about a fluid that a woman can see, it has nothing to do with oviductal secretions or the jelly-like coating of the ovum produced by the ovarian folicle during her monthly ovulation (in any case it is the ovum that is the source of the female genetic contribution, not this coating). Furthermore, the hadith is saying that resemblance is caused by a semen released during the female orgasm. Orgasm has nothing to do with the genetic contribution of the woman to the embryo. There are many narrations of this hadith in which the imagined female semen is released during orgasm, as Hippocrates and Galen believed.<ref>Jean Claude Guillebaud, “The Tyranny of Pleasure”, p.171, New York: Algora Publishing, 1999</ref>

==Other apologetic claims==

Some Islamic apologists have hence turned to other arguments to find a reference to sperm (not just semen) or the female ovum in the Qur’an. They are considered below. Qur’an translations are Pickthall’s.

===Single entity that is part of a bigger group of its kind===

An Islamic apologist has made the following claim about the word nutfah in an attempt to make it sound like a single sperm:

{{Quote||نطفة (nutfah) is a single entity that is part of a bigger group of its kind:

النطف (al-nutaf): هي القرطة والواحدة من كل ذلك نطفة Nutaf are the karats, and a single one is a nutfah.<ref>Osama Abdallah - [{{Reference archive|1=http://www.answering-christianity.com/detailed_meanings_of_scientific_words_in_verses.htm|2=2012-07-23}} Detailed meanings of the Scientific Words in the Scientific Verses in the Holy Quran using Lisan Al-Arab (The Arabs' (of old) Tongue) Dictionary and other similar dictionaries:] - Answering Christianity, accessed July 23, 2012 </ref>}}

The first line is the apologist's generalization based on the second line, which is his attempted translation of a definition in the Lisan al-Arab dictionary of classical Arabic.<ref>[http://www.baheth.info/all.jsp?term=%D9%86%D8%B7%D9%81 Lisan Al-Arab dictionary, Book 5, Pages 725]</ref>

However the quotation has been truncated, mistranslated, and is of the definition for the wrong word (nataf – pearls or earrings), which has the same n-t-f root as nutfah.

His claim has been copied on other Islamic websites, one even attempting to evolve the claim further by suggesting that this 'mistaken' generalization actually appears in the Lisan al-Arab definition. Lisan al-Arab’s actual definition of nutfah is a little amount (qalil, قليل) of water (see beginning of this article). Note that even if we supposed that nutfah had meant a single drop, a sperm is a discrete object from among many of the same discrete objects, unlike a drop of water, which is an amount of something from a larger amount.

===Sperm from semen emitted===

{{Quote|{{Quran|75|37}}|Was he not a drop of fluid which gushed forth? [nutfatan min manayyin yumna]?}}

Some apologists claim that this verse shows that nutfah does not refer to the same substance as maniyy, translating the above words not in the usual way as “drop [nutfatan] of [min] semen [maniyyin]”, but instead as “sperm-drop from semen”. They also claim that if nutfah referred to semen, that word would have been used instead of maniyy in the many hadith about cleaning semen for ritual purity.

However, as demonstrated above, nutfah meant a small quantity of liquid, in this context in reference to semen that forms the embryo, whereas maniyy is simply semen. Whenever the Qur’an mentions nutfah, which indicates the small quantity of liquid, it is emphasizing the humble beginnings of man. In the hadiths that use maniyy, it is a different context where the quantity is irrelevant. We also saw in the Lisan al-Arab dictionary above that maniyy is called nutfah because it is a small amount of liquid.

In addition, verse 53:46 has virtually the same phrase with the same verb as 75:37, but this time just mentions nutfah, without maniyy.

{{Quote|{{Quran|53|46}}|From a drop (of seed) [nutfatin] when it is poured forth [tumna];}}

Tumna in 53:46 and yumna in 75:37 is the same verb meaning "to emit", and from the same root as maniyy. The same verb is understandably used if it is talking about the emission of the same thing, semen, but without explicitly stating the type of liquid in 53:46. In any case, the evidence is unanimous that nutfah is always used for a liquid.

===Extract of despised fluid===

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|32|7|8}}|Who made all things good which He created, and He began the creation of man from clay; Then He made his seed from a draught of despised fluid;}}

The word translated “seed” in Pickthall’s translation is nasl, which means progeny (i.e. descendants).<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000286.pdf Lane’s Lexicon Vol. 8 p.3032]</ref> It is a reasonable assumption that ma-in maheen'''in''' (fluid despised) means male semen here (see 86:6-7, which too uses maa). Some apologists like to read sulalatin<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000121.pdf Lane’s Lexicon Vol. 4 p.1397]</ref> (“extract”) as a reference to sperm. There are a couple of problems with this. First, it ignores the role of the female ovum (this is a problem with pretty much any interpretation of the verse). Secondly, we can compare 32:8 with 77:20, which has the exact same last 3 words, and without the word extract.

{{Quote|{{Quran|77|20}}|Did We not create you from a base fluid [min ma-in maheen'''in''']}}

This suggests that the extract is or is of the same substance as the disdained water. As we saw above, the next two verses, 77:21-22, indicate that this fluid is gestated in the womb. There are various possible meanings for this verse, but even if it is interpreted as saying that only a special part of semen forms the embryo, that belief would have been common among the Jews with whom Muhammad was acquainted, as we saw from the Talmud quoted earlier:

{{Quote|Babylonian Talmud, Nidda 31a|It teaches that man is not fashioned from all the drop but only from its purest part.<ref name="Nidda 31a"></ref>}}

==See Also==
*[[Embryology in the Quran]]
*[[Semen Production in the Quran]]

==External Links==
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNMRiFsdwFw Early Arabs and Greek Knowledge] - islamwhattheydonttellyou164 - ''Youtube.com (video)''
*[https://quranspotlight.wordpress.com/articles/quran-hadith-talmud-galen/ Greek and Jewish ideas about reproduction in the Qur’an and hadith] by Martin Taverille - Quranspotlight blog (the original source for most of this article)

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Apologetics]]
[[Category:Reproductive sciences]]
[[Category:Sex]]

Islam and Women

2024-05-07T17:10:14Z

Vixen:

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=3|Language=4|References=3}}Islamic scriptures generally employ the masculine pronoun in Arabic, which is used to refer to both men and women. On occasion, the scriptures diverge from this standard, inclusive usage, and comment specifically on men or women. The perspective taken by Islamic scriptures on women is of special interest in recent times due to frequent collision with modern values.

Women are legally disadvantaged by Islamic law in several domains of life. Particularly, women are disadvantaged in matters of sexual, domestic, legal, financial, sartorial, and physical autonomy. According to Islamic legal theory, while not all of Islamic law necessarily has a perceptibly rational basis, legal restrictions on women may be due to their supposed intellectual deficiency, which was pronounced by Muhammad according to a hadith collected in Sahih Bukhari.

It should also be noted that whereas the patriarchal arrangements of early Islamic society hardly deserve indictment, given their historical situation and the fact that they were in a limited sense an improvement upon pre-Islamic gender norms, the same can, perhaps, not be said about the perpetual enshrinement of those patriarchal norms - however much an improvement in 7th century Arabia - as took place in the ideas of Islamic law that finally emerged.

The writings of Professor [[w:Kecia Ali|Kecia Ali]] are renowned regarding the historical and modern Islamic approaches to women. Before her, ''Women and Gender in Islam'' by Leila Ahmed was also regarded as a seminal book on the subject. Ali's book ''Sexual Ethics and Islam'' is particularly wide-ranging.<ref>Kecia Ali,''Sexual Ethics and Islam'', England: Oneworld Publications, 2006</ref> She argues that the Quran is androcentric in terms of almost always addressing men and privileging male sexual agency.<ref>Ibid. pp. 131-132</ref> Ali also notes in her book the "very real dissonance between the cultural assumptions undergirding the classical edifices of jurisprudence and exegesis and the modern notions influencing Muslim intellectuals and ordinary people everwhere".<ref>Ibid. Introduction p. xxvii</ref> Throughout the book she critiques feminist and modernist interpretations while noting where they may have merit, as well as apologetics that misquote, mistranslate, or side step difficult issues. She also criticises some aggressively patriarchal and indeed misogynist interpretations. While warning against blind optimism on the prospects for transformation, she suggests the importance of rejecting medieval interpretations and not taking the Quran and hadiths as a repository of regulations to be applied at all times and places.<ref>Ibid. pp. 153-157</ref>

==Verses addressed to women==
Hadiths record a tradition that Umm Salamah prompted a couple of Quran verses directly addressing or about women.

{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi||5|44|3211}}|Narrated Umm 'Umarah Al-Ansariyyah:

that she came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said: "I do not see but that everything is for the men, and I do not see anything being mentioned for the women." So this Ayah was revealed: 'Indeed the Muslim men and the Muslim women, the believing men and the believing women... (33:35)'}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|33|35}}|For Muslim men and women,- for believing men and women, for devout men and women, for true men and women, for men and women who are patient and constant, for men and women who humble themselves, for men and women who give in Charity, for men and women who fast (and deny themselves), for men and women who guard their chastity, and for men and women who engage much in Allah's praise,- for them has Allah prepared forgiveness and great reward.}}

{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi||5|44|3023}}|Narrated 'Amr bin Dinar:

from a man among the children of Umm Salamah, from Umm Salamah that she said: "O Messenger of Allah! I have not heard Allah mentioning anything about women and emigration." So Allah, Blessed and Most High, revealed: "Never will I allow to be lost the work of any of you, be he male or female. You are members one of another (3:195)."}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|3|195}}|And their Lord hath accepted of them, and answered them: "Never will I suffer to be lost the work of any of you, be he male or female: Ye are members, one of another: Those who have left their homes, or been driven out therefrom, or suffered harm in My Cause, or fought or been slain,- verily, I will blot out from them their iniquities, and admit them into Gardens with rivers flowing beneath;- A reward from the presence of Allah, and from His presence is the best of rewards."}}

There are a couple of similar verses:

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|97}}|Whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer - We will surely cause him to live a good life, and We will surely give them their reward [in the Hereafter] according to the best of what they used to do.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|40|40}}|Whoever does an evil deed will not be recompensed except by the like thereof; but whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer - those will enter Paradise, being given provision therein without account.}}

==Kindness and tranquility between Husbands and Wives==
{{Quote|{{Quran|30|21}}|And of His signs is that He created for you from yourselves mates that you may find tranquillity in them; and He placed between you affection and mercy. Indeed in that are signs for a people who give thought.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|19}}|O you who have believed, it is not lawful for you to inherit women by compulsion. And do not make difficulties for them in order to take [back] part of what you gave them unless they commit a clear immorality. And live with them in kindness. For if you dislike them - perhaps you dislike a thing and Allah makes therein much good.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|187}}|Permitted to you, on the night of the fasts, is the approach to your wives. They are your garments and ye are their garments. Allah knoweth what ye used to do secretly among yourselves; but He turned to you and forgave you; so now associate with them, and seek what Allah Hath ordained for you, and eat and drink, until the white thread of dawn appear to you distinct from its black thread; then complete your fast Till the night appears; but do not associate with your wives while ye are in retreat in the mosques. Those are Limits (set by) Allah: Approach not nigh thereto. Thus doth Allah make clear His Signs to men: that they may learn self-restraint.}}

{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi||6|46|3895}}|Narrated 'Aishah:

that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "The best of you is the best to his wives, and I am the best of you to my wives, and when your companion dies, leave him alone."}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3469}}|Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

A believing man should not hate a believing woman; if he dislikes one of her characteristics, he will be pleased with another.}}

==Being good to your Mother==
{{Quote|{{Quran|4|1}}|O mankind, fear your Lord, who created you from one soul and created from it its mate and dispersed from both of them many men and women. And fear Allah, through whom you ask one another, and the wombs. Indeed Allah is ever, over you, an Observer.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|31|14}}|And We have enjoined upon man [care] for his parents. His mother carried him, [increasing her] in weakness upon weakness, and his weaning is in two years. Be grateful to Me and to your parents; to Me is the [final] destination.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|46|15}}|We have enjoined on man kindness to his parents: In pain did his mother bear him, and in pain did she give him birth. The carrying of the (child) to his weaning is (a period of) thirty months. At length, when he reaches the age of full strength and attains forty years, he says, "O my Lord! Grant me that I may be grateful for Thy favour which Thou has bestowed upon me, and upon both my parents, and that I may work righteousness such as Thou mayest approve; and be gracious to me in my issue. Truly have I turned to Thee and truly do I bow (to Thee) in Islam."}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|3|41|591}}|Narrated Al-Mughira bin Shu`ba:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Allah has forbidden for you, (1) to be undutiful to your mothers, (2) to bury your daughters alive, (3) to not to pay the rights of the others (e.g. charity, etc.) and (4) to beg of men (begging). And Allah has hated for you (1) vain, useless talk, or that you talk too much about others, (2) to ask too many questions, (in disputed religious matters) and (3) to waste the wealth (by extravagance).}}

{{Quote|{{Ibn Majah||3|22|2706}}|It was narrated that Abu Hurairah said:

“A man came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said: “O Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), tell me, which of the people has most right to my good companionship?' He said: 'Yes, by your father, you will certainly be told.' He said: 'Your mother,' He said: 'Then who?' He said: Then your mother.' He said: 'Then who?' He said: Then your mother.' He said: 'Then who?' He said: Then your father.' He said: 'Tell me, O Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) about my wealth- how should I give in charity?' He said: 'Yes, by Allah (SWT) you will certainly be told. You should give in charity when you are still healthy and greedy for wealth, hoping for a long life and fearing poverty. Do not tarry until your soul reaches here and you say: “My wealth of for so-and-so,” and “My wealth of for so-and-so,” and it will be for them even though you dislike that.'”}}

==The Value of Daughters==
The Quran famously condemns the mushrikeen for feeling shame or even burying their female newborn children.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|16|57|58}}|And they attribute to Allah daughters - exalted is He - and for them is what they desire. And when one of them is informed of [the birth of] a female, his face becomes dark, and he suppresses grief. He hides himself from the people because of the ill of which he has been informed. Should he keep it in humiliation or bury it in the ground? Unquestionably, evil is what they decide.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|42|49|50}}|To Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth; He creates what he wills. He gives to whom He wills female [children], and He gives to whom He wills males. Or He makes them [both] males and females, and He renders whom He wills barren. Indeed, He is Knowing and Competent.}}

==Statements about women==
===Women as a fitnah to men===
{{Main|Women (Primary Sources)}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|33}}|Narrated Usama bin Zaid: '''The Prophet said, "After me I have not left any trial [fitnah] more harmful to men than women."'''}}
===Women as intellectually deficient===
{{Main|Women are Deficient in Intelligence}}

Muhammad's declared that the ''majority of the inhabitants of Hell are women''.<ref>{{Bukhari|1|6|301}}</ref> When asked why, he said it was because they are deficient in intelligence and religion and because they are ungrateful to their husbands. He also advanced in the same narration that their deficiency in intelligence was responsible for some of their legal disabilities.

{{quote | {{Bukhari|1|6|301}}|

Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri:

Once Allah's Apostle went out to the Musalla (to offer the prayer) o 'Id-al-Adha or Al-Fitr prayer. Then he passed by the women and said, "O women! Give alms, as I have seen that the majority of the dwellers of Hell-fire were you (women)." They asked, "Why is it so, O Allah's Apostle ?" He replied, "You curse frequently and are ungrateful to your husbands. '''I have not seen anyone more deficient in intelligence and religion than you.''' A cautious sensible man could be led astray by some of you." The women asked, "O Allah's Apostle! What is deficient in our intelligence and religion?" He said, '''"Is not the evidence of two women equal to the witness of one man?"''' They replied in the affirmative. '''He said, "This is the deficiency in her intelligence.''' Isn't it true that a woman can neither pray nor fast during her menses?" The women replied in the affirmative. He said, "This is the deficiency in her religion." }}{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|541}}|Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri:
On 'Id ul Fitr or 'Id ul Adha Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) went out to the Musalla. After finishing the prayer, he delivered the sermon and ordered the people to give alms. He said, "O people! Give alms." Then he went towards the women and said. "O women! Give alms, for I have seen that the majority of the dwellers of Hell-Fire were you (women)." The women asked, "O Allah's Apostle! What is the reason for it?" He replied, "'''O women! You curse frequently, and are ungrateful to your husbands. I have not seen anyone more deficient in intelligence and religion than you'''. O women, some of you can lead a cautious wise man astray." Then he left.}}
Muhammad also disapproved of female heads of state in severe terms.

{{quote | {{Bukhari|9|88|219}}|

Narrated Abu Bakra:

During the battle of Al-Jamal, Allah benefited me with a Word (I heard from the Prophet). When the Prophet heard the news that the people of the Persia had made the daughter of Khosrau their Queen (ruler), he said, "Never will succeed such a nation as makes a woman their ruler."}}

===Most of Hell's inhabitants are women===
{{Quran-range|37|22|23}}, in speaking of Hell-bound wrongdoers, states that the inhabitants of Hell will have their wives enter alongside them, apparently irrespective of their guilt. While the Arabic text of the Quran uses the word ''zawj'', which can also mean 'spouses', it is clear in context that the term is referring to wives. The early pseudo-Ibn Abbas tafsir from the 8th or 9th century, along with many other classical authorities, specifically points out that this verse uses the word ''zawj'' to mean "wives".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=73&tSoraNo=37&tAyahNo=22&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=2 |title=Tanwir al-Miqbas min Tafsir Ibn Abbas 37:22 |publisher= |author= |date= |archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref>

Narrations in Sahih Bukhari state the majority of Hell's inhabitants will be women. The reasons given for this outcome is that women are ungrateful to their husbands.
{{Quote|{{cite web|url=http://islamawakened.com/quran/37/st22.htm#22 |title=Qur'an 37:22-23 |publisher= |author= |date= |archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}|(And it is said unto the angels): Assemble those who did wrong, together with their wives and what they used to worship instead of Allah, and lead them to the path to hell;}}
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|2|28}}; see also {{Bukhari|1|6|301}}, {{Bukhari|2|24|541}}, {{Bukhari|7|62|124}}, & {{Bukhari|7|62|126}}|Narrated Ibn 'Abbas:
The Prophet said: '''"I was shown the Hell-fire and that the majority of its dwellers were women who were ungrateful."''' It was asked, "Do they disbelieve in Allah?" (or are they ungrateful to Allah?) He replied, "They are ungrateful to their husbands and are ungrateful for the favors and the good (charitable deeds) done to them.}}{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|18|161}}|Narrated 'Abdullah bin Abbas:
The people say, "O Allah's Apostle! We saw you taking something from your place and then we saw you retreating." The Prophet replied, "I saw Paradise and stretched my hands towards a bunch (of its fruits) and had I taken it, you would have eaten from it as long as the world remains. '''I also saw the Hell-fire and I had never seen such a horrible sight. I saw that most of the inhabitants were women'''." The people asked, "O Allah's Apostle! Why is it so?" The Prophet replied, "Because of their ungratefulness."}}
===Women compared to prisoners===
One of the earliest and most important biographies of Muhammad, that of Ibn Ishaq, reports Muhammad to have described women as 'prisoners' during his [[Farewell Sermon]] in the valley of Arafat.{{Quote||"Lay injunctions on women kindly, '''for they are prisoners with you having no control of their persons.''' You have taken them only as a trust from God, and you have the enjoyment of their persons by the words of God, so understand (T. and listen to) my words, O men, for I have told you.<ref> ibn Ishaq, p. 651</ref>}}

This statement is found in the most widely transmitted version of the farewell sermon, as recorded also by al-Tabari, and the hadith collectors Ibn Majah and al-Tirmidhi (see [[Farewell Sermon]] for details). According to traditional exegesis of the sermon, ʿawān means prisoners, though the English translator of the sermon in al-Tabari renders it as "domestic animals" in line with classical Arabic dictionaries.

In a hadith in Sahih Bukhari, Sad bin Ar-Rabi hands over his wives in a purely transactional manner, the spirit of which was reinforced by the institution of ''mahr''.{{Quote|{{Bukhari|3|34|264}}|Narrated Ibrahim bin Sad from his father from his grand-father: Abdur Rahman bin Auf said, "When we came to Medina as emigrants, Allah's Apostle established a bond of brotherhood between me and Sad bin Ar-Rabi'. Sad bin Ar-Rabi' said (to me), 'I am the richest among the Ansar, so '''I will give you half of my wealth and you may look at my two wives and whichever of the two you may choose I will divorce her''', and when she has completed the prescribed period (before marriage) '''you may marry her'''.'}}

===Women compared to dogs and donkeys===
Most orthodox Islamic scholars considers dogs to be haram - forbidden and najis - unclean. Thus the comparison of women to dogs in these Sahih (authentic) ahadith are noteworthy:{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|9|490}}; see also {{Muslim|4|1032}} & {{Muslim|4|1034}}|Narrated 'Aisha:
The things which annul the prayers were mentioned before me. They said, "Prayer is annulled by a dog, a donkey and a woman (if they pass in front of the praying people)." I said, "You have made us (i.e. women) dogs."}}{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|9|498}}; see also {{Muslim|4|1038}}|Narrated 'Aisha: It is not good that you people have made us (women) equal to dogs and donkeys.}}
===Women compared to devils===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|1038}}|
Jabir reported that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) saw a woman, and so he came to his wife, zainab, as she was tanning a leather and had sexual intercourse with her. He then went to his Companions and told them: '''The woman advances and retires in the shape of a devil,''' so when one of you sees a woman, he should come to his wife, for that will repel what he feels in his heart.}}

===Women compared to a tilth===
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|223}}| Your women are a tilth for you (to cultivate) so go to your tilth as ye will, and send (good deeds) before you for your souls, and fear Allah, and know that ye will (one day) meet Him. Give glad tidings to believers, (O Muhammad).}}

{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi||2|10|1160}}|Talq bin Ali narrated that The Messenger of Allah said:

“When a man calls his wife to fulfill his need, then let her come, even if she is at the oven.” (Darussalam: Sahih)}}

===Menstruation as an illness===
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|222}}| They question thee (O Muhammad) concerning menstruation. Say: It is an illness, so let women alone at such times and go not in unto them till they are cleansed. And when they have purified themselves, then go in unto them as Allah hath enjoined upon you. Truly Allah loveth those who turn unto Him, and loveth those who have a care for cleanness.}}

===Barren Women===
{{Quote|{{Abu Dawud||2045|Hasan}}|Narrated Ma'qil ibn Yasar:

A man came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said: I have found a woman of rank and beauty, but she does not give birth to children. Should I marry her? He said: No. He came again to him, but he prohibited him. He came to him third time, and he (the Prophet) said: Marry women who are loving and very prolific, for I shall outnumber the peoples by you.}}

{{Quote|{{Al Nasai||4|26|3229}}|Narrated Ma'qil bin Yasar:

It was narrated that Ma'qil bin Yasar said: "A man came to the Messenger of Allah and said: 'I have found a woman who is from a good family and of good status, but she does not bear children, should I marry her?' He told him not to. Then he came to him a second time and he told him not to (marry her). Then he came to him a third time and he told him not to (marry her), then he said: 'Marry the one who is fertile and loving, for I will boast of your great numbers.'"}}

{{Quote|{{Abu Dawud||3911|Hasan}}|It was narrated from 'Abdullah bin 'Umar that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:

"An omen is in a dwelling, a woman or a horse." Abu Dawud said: This tradition was read out to al-Harith b. Miskin and I was witness. It was said to him that Ibn Qasim told him that Malik was asked about evil omen in a horse and in a house. He replied: There are many houses in which people lived and perished and again others lived therein and they also perished. This is its explanation so far as we know. Allah knows best. '''Abu Dawud said: 'Umar (ra) said: A mat in a house better than a woman who does not give birth to a child.'''}}

=== The guile of women is great ===
Quran 12:23-12:34 relates a story following prophet Yusuf, where the wife of al-'Aziz tries to seduce him. Her husband catches her and she accuses Yusuf of being the one to try and to seduce her. However, the husband does not believe his wife due to Yusuf's shirt being ripped on the back (and not the front). When referring to the adulterous woman's behaviour, her husband states that the guile (kayd) of women is great using the female plural.
{{Quote|{{Quran|12|28}}|So when he saw his shirt torn from behind, he said: Lo! this is of the guile of you women. Lo! the guile of you is very great.}}
Yusuf himself uses the female plural a few verses later about the guile of the specific women who try to tempt him ({{Quran-range|12|33|34}}). The point of the story seems to be the victory of the prophet over temptation.

While some modern commentators emphasise this and other aspects of the story, the vast majority of classical commentators took the second part of verse 28 spoken by al-'Aziz to indicate a defining feature of women in general. Some, such as al-Zamakhshari, even contrast it with another verse about the weakness of Satan's guile. Al-Qurtubi presents this idea in the form of a hadith (with a weak chain):<ref name="Amin2023">Taira Amin (2023), [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/371278020_The_Discursive_Construction_of_Women%27s_Guile_in_the_Muslim_Exegetical_Tradition The Discursive Construction of Women’s Guile in the Muslim Exegetical Tradition] in (Eds.) A. Aghdassi and A.W. Hughes, ''New Methodological Perspectives in Islamic Studies'' pp.46-72, Leiden:Brill DOI:10.1163/9789004536630_005.</ref>

{{Quote|1=Tafseer al-Qurtubi for Q 12:28 translated by Taira Amin<ref name="Amin2023" /> ([https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=1&tTafsirNo=5&tSoraNo=12&tAyahNo=27&tDisplay=yes&Page=3&Size=1&LanguageId=1 arabic])|2=It has been reported by Yahya bin Abī Kathīr from Abu Hurayrā that the messenger of God said in the Qurʾān: Indeed the deception of Satan is weak (Q 4:76) and he said: Indeed, your deception [Oh you women] is great (Q 12:28).}}
<nowiki>:</nowiki>

==Virgins in Paradise==
{{Main|Houri (Heavenly Virgin)}}

The Qur'anic Paradise is sensual in nature, promising Muslim men voluptuous, gigantic, and transparent-skinned virgins, but does not specify their exact number. The hadith literature compliment the Qur'anic text by specifying the exact number of virgins as 72 and providing detailed descriptions of their characteristics. These narrations vary in strength from good (''hasan'') to authentic (''sahih'') and have been accepted by the Islamic tradition. There are also given details on the physical attributes given to men to sustain 72 virgins, namely, ever-erect penises that never soften and the sexual strength to satisfy 100 women. Although it is said they will receive a "great reward" and there are also hadith which refer to 72 virgins as one of the "seven blessings from Allah" to the martyr, the Qur'an does not specify these virgins are a reward exclusively for jihadists/martyrs, but rather for any Muslim male who gains admittance to Paradise.
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|6|60|402}}| Narrated Abdullah bin Qais:
Allah's Apostle said, "In Paradise there is a pavilion made of a single hollow pearl sixty miles wide, in each corner of which there are wives who will not see those in the other corners; and the believers will visit and enjoy them.}}

==In Islamic law==
{{Main|Women in Islamic Law}}Women are legally disadvantaged by Islamic law in several in several domains of life. Particularly, women are disadvantaged in matters of sexual, domestic, legal, financial, sartorial, and physical autonomy. According to Islamic legal theory, while not all of Islamic law necessarily has a perceptibly rational basis, legal restrictions on women may be due to their supposed intellectual deficiency, which was pronounced by Muhammad according to Sahih Bukhari.
===Genital Mutilation (FGM)===
Female genital mutilation (FGM) is obligatory in the Shafi'i madhab<ref>[https://www.answering-islam.org/Sharia/fem_circumcision.html Section on FGM in the standard manual of Shafi'i law]</ref> and encouraged by the remaining three madhabs, namely the Hanafi, Hanbali, and Maliki. Salafi scholars also encourage the practice. In universally conceiving of FGM as being either an obligatory or favorable practice, the schools of Islamic law agree that ''prohibiting'' FGM altogether would not be acceptable, as this would be tantamount to contravening God's laws and preferences. Views on the specific type of FGM required or permitted vary within and between the madhhabs. Some prominent modern Islamic scholars have dissented from the favorable consensus of the Islamic tradition and ruled it to be unlawful.{{Quote|''Reliance of the Traveler'' [''Umdat al-Salik''], Section e4.3 on Circumcision|'''Obligatory (on every male and female) is circumcision.''' (And it is the cutting-off of the skin [''qat' al-jaldah''] on the glans of the male member and, '''as for the circumcision of the female, that is the cutting-off of the ''badhar'' [''qat' al-badhar'', ''badhar'' or بَظْرٌ either means the clitoris or the prepuce of the clitoris; Lane says that the precise usage was confused at some point in history<ref>[http://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/02_b/137_bZr.html Lane's Lexicon بَظْرٌ]</ref>]''' (and this is called ''khufad''))}}The Islamic legal tradition, while differing on its implementation, embraced FGM wholeheartedly, and, In the hadith literature, Muhammad is recorded as tacitly approving of the practice ({{Muslim|3|684|}}) , prescribing circumcision in general without specifying the requirements thereof per gender ({{Bukhari|7|72|777|}}), and commenting generically on its implementation ({{Abu Dawud|41|5251|}}). No where is Muhammad recorded prohibiting the practice.

In 2012, the Muslim Brotherhood worked to decriminalize FGM. According to Mariz Tadros (a reporter),"the Muslim Brotherhood have offered to circumcise women for a nominal fee as part of their community services, a move that threatens to reverse decades of local struggle against the harmful practice [...] Many of the Brothers (and Salafis) argue that while it is not mandatory, it is nevertheless ''mukarama'' (preferable, pleasing in the eyes of God)."<ref>Tadros, Mariz (24 May 2012). "[https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/5050/mutilating-bodies-muslim-brotherhoods-gift-to-egyptian-women/ Mutilating bodies: the Muslim Brotherhood's gift to Egyptian women]". ''openDemocracy''</ref>

===Marriage===
{{Main|Polygamy in Islam|Purpose of the Mahr|The Meaning of Nikah|Dealing Justly with Wives and Orphans (Qur'an 4:3)}}
Islamic law prohibits Muslim women from marrying non-Muslim men based on {{Quran|2|221}} and {{Quran|60|10}} (while Muslim men may marry Christian and Jewish women according to {{Quran|5|5}}). Islamic law permits men to marry up to four wives (alongside an unlimited number of concubines), while women are restricted to a single husband and are prohibited from any other form of sexual activity. Modern Islamic scholars differ on whether or not a bride may stipulate as a condition of her marriage that her husband remain monogamous.

Islamic scriptures describe the ''mahr,'' or primarily financial gift made by a groom to his bride upon the marital ''nikah'' (sexual intercourse) contract, as 'the recompense for your having had the right to intercourse with her'. The Arabic word for "marriage" is "zawaj". In Islamic law, marriage is considered under the concept of ''nikah'', a legal and financial contract between a male and a female Muslim. Nikah literally means "sexual intercourse".

For some time as a prophet, Muhammad permitted temporary ''mut'ah'' marriages whereby men would be permitted to engage in sexual activity with a woman for a predetermined period of time in exchange for compensation. While prohibited by Sunni scholars today, the practice is still considered legitimate by many Shi'ite scholars.

===Control over movement and taking additional wives===
Under Islam, a husband has a right to take up to four wives and has significant control over his wives. Under the Hanbali (but not Hanafi) school, women may stipulate conditions in the marriage contract to grant greater freedom of movement or to object to her husband taking additional wives, with a right to divorce if these are broken. In many cases such stipulations will not have been agreed ahead of the marriage, though some modern reforms of family law have sought to improve the situation. Otherwise the husband's rights are automatic.

{{Quote|John L. Eposito, "Women in Muslim Family Law", 2001, p. 22|One important right granted by the Hanbali (but not Hanafi) law school that gives women a certain amount of independence and status in marriage is her right to insert conditions that are favourable to her directly into the marriage contract. The wife's ability to make conditions, provided that they are not contrary to the object of marriage, can resolve many inequities in areas such as polygamy and divorce. For example, clauses may be added that eliminate the husband's right to take a second wife or that grant the wife greater freedom of movement. These conditions limit the husband's somewhat automatic and extensive legal control over his wife. Because these conditions can be enforced by granting the wife her husband's power of divorce if they are violated, they bestow more equal rights of divorce on the wife.}}

===Child marriage===
{{Main|Child Marriage in Islamic Law|Forced Marriage}}
The major schools of Islamic jurisprudence were in agreement that a pre-pubescent child could be contracted in marriage by his or her father [[Forced Marriage|and without consent]]. They based this view variously on [[Muhammad]]'s marriage to [[Aisha]], the example of his [[Sahabah|companions]], and the Quran (particularly {{Quran|65|4}}). The Maliki and Shafi'i schools even allowed a father to forcibly contract his daughter in marriage who had already reached puberty if she was still a virgin, despite hadith evidence indicating otherwise. The family were to hand over the betrothed wife for consummation of the marriage when they determined that the girl was now able to endure intercourse without physical harm rather than this being tied to any particular age (though Ibn Hanbal specified the age of nine due to the example of Aisha's marital consummation with Muhammad). Some Quranic commentators interpreted the Quran such that only females who had reached puberty can be contracted in marriage, though most thought that marriage of minors was permitted. The Byzantines around this time allowed girls to be married from the age of thirteen and the Persian Sassinids allowed marital consummation from the age of twelve.

Today, [[w:Marriageable_age|many modern Muslim countries]] have legislated to raise the minimum age of marriage, in many cases to the age of 16 or 18 for girls (though often with loopholes or with ineffective enforcement) and to prevent forced marriage, often in the face of opposition from Islamic scholars. Many Muslim campaign groups and charities have been involved in this process and continue to offer help to those at risk (see the article [[Forced Marriage]] which includes sources of help).<ref>For example [https://www.mwnuk.co.uk/Forced_Marriage_7_factsheets.php Muslim Women's Network UK] and [https://preventforcedmarriage.org/forced-marriage-overseas-pakistan/ Tahirih Justice Center Forced Marriage Initiative]</ref> In collaboration with activists, in 2019 the deputy Grand Imam of al-Azhar University in Cairo issued a fatwa calling for marriage based on mutual consent with a minimum age set as 18.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/jun/21/senior-islamic-cleric-issues-fatwa-against-child-marriage Senior Islamic cleric issues fatwa against child marriage] - Guardian.com</ref> Unicef say that the prevalence of child marriages are decreasing globally but are nevetheless common (including among non-Muslim populations in some regions of the world).

====Muhammad's encouragement to marry and fondle young virgins====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|5|59|382}}|Narrated Jabir: "Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said to me, "Have you got married O Jabir?" I replied, "Yes." He asked "What, a virgin [bikr] or a matron [thayyib]?" I replied, "Not a virgin but a matron." He said, "Why did you not marry a young girl [jariyah] who would have fondled with you?}}
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|3|38|504}}| Narrated Jabir bin 'Abdullah:
I was accompanying the Prophet on a journey and was riding a slow camel that was lagging behind the others. ... When we approached Medina, I started going (towards my house). The Prophet said, "Where are you going?" I said, "I have married a widow." '''He said, "Why have you not married a virgin to fondle with each other?'''"}}{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|6|298}}| Narrated 'Aisha:
The Prophet and I used to take a bath from a single pot while we were Junub. During the menses, '''he used to order me to put on an Izar (dress worn below the waist) and used to fondle me.'''}}

====Silence of a virgin implies her consent to marriage====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3307}}|Ibn Abbas (Allah be pleased with them) reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

A woman who has been previously married (Thayyib) has more right to her person than her guardian. And a virgin should also be consulted, and her silence implies her consent.}}

===Domestic rights and beating wives===
{{Main|Wife Beating in Islamic Law|Wife Beating in the Qur'an|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Wife Beating}}Under Islamic law, women are obligated to obey their husbands in their domestic, social, professional, sexual and, to a limited extent, religious lives. Marital rape is not considered a crime. {{Quran|4|34}} instructs Muslims men to, among other things, beat their wives if they fear nushuz (a word of unclear meaning but to be compared with similar usage in {{Quran|4|128}}). Muslim scholars agree on the permissibility of the practice but disagree on the conditions for and nature of the beating permitted. Women are also accorded a number of rights under the ''nikah'' contract. Men are obligated to provide for their wives financially and not to be too harsh to them, although the meaning of this latter requirement is set by the marital and gender norms of 7th century Arabia, where wife-beating was commonplace and acceptable. Women whose husbands fail to fulfill these rights are eligible for requesting divorce.

===Divorce===
A wife can ask her husband to divorce her, and if he releases her from the marriage, she makes a payment to him of the ''mahr'' (item or sum of financial worth) she had received or some other agreed payment. This is known as ''khula'''. If he refuses, she can try to get a divorce by judicial decree when there are grounds for which his consent is not required (such as inability or failure to fulfil his marital obligations, desertion, insanity, or cruelty).

There is a consensus among classical Islamic scholars that if a woman converts to Islam and her husband fails to, their marriage is nullified.<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/3408/stories-of-women-who-became-muslim-and-left-their-non-muslim-husbands Stories of Women who Became Muslim and Left their Non-Muslim Husbands - IslamQA.info]</ref><ref name="IndianaLawJournal">Leeman, Alex B. (2009) "Interfaith Marriage in Islam: An Examination of the Legal Theory Behind the Traditional and Reformist Positions," Indiana Law Journal: Vol. 84 : Iss. 2 , Article 9. pp.754-759 Available at: http://ilj.law.indiana.edu/articles/84/84_2_Leeman.pdf and https://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/ilj/vol84/iss2/9</ref> This ruling is derived, in part, from {{Quran|60|10}}. The classical scholars also ruled that if on the other hand a husband converts to Islam, the marriage remains intact so long as his wife is a Christian or Jew. If a Muslim husband or wife leaves Islam, the marriage to his or her Muslim spouse is immediately annulled, though some held that the marriage is unaffected if only the wife leaves the religion, while others said that she becomes the husband's slave.<ref name="IndianaLawJournal2">Leeman, Alex B. (2009) "Interfaith Marriage in Islam: An Examination of the Legal Theory Behind the Traditional and Reformist Positions," Indiana Law Journal: Vol. 84 : Iss. 2 , Article 9. pp.754-759 Available at: http://ilj.law.indiana.edu/articles/84/84_2_Leeman.pdf and https://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/ilj/vol84/iss2/9</ref>

One verse grants similar rights to men and women during the divorce period, in some sense granting the husband a degree above his wife.
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|228}}|Divorced women remain in waiting for three periods, and it is not lawful for them to conceal what Allah has created in their wombs if they believe in Allah and the Last Day. And their husbands have more right to take them back in this [period] if they want reconciliation. And due to the wives is similar to what is expected of them, according to what is reasonable. But the men have a degree over them [in responsibility and authority]. And Allah is Exalted in Might and Wise.}}

===Concubinage===
{{Main|Slavery in Islamic Law|Rape in Islamic Law|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Rape of Slaves, Prisoners, and Wives|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Slavery}}In nearly every instance where the Quran commands (men) to be chaste, it repeats that they need not be chaste with their wives and 'those whom their right hand possesses', which is universally acknowledged by historians and Islamic scholars as an Arabic euphemism which refers to one's slaves. An entire chapter in Sahih Muslim (chapter 29) is dedicated to the topic and is entitled: 'It is permissible to have sexual intercourse with a captive [i.e. slave] woman after she is purified (of menses or delivery). In case she has a husband, her marriage is abrogated after she becomes captive.'{{Quote|{{Quran|23|6}}; see also {{Quran|4|3}} & {{Quran|4|24}}| Those who humble themselves in their prayers; Who avoid vain talk; Who are active in deeds of charity; Who abstain from sex, Except with those joined to them in the marriage bond, '''or (the captives) whom their right hands possess,'''- for (in their case) they are free from blame.}}

===Iddah (Female Menstrual Waiting Period)===
{{Main|'Iddah (Female_Menstrual_Waiting_Period)}}
The 'iddah is the period of time a woman must observe after the death of her husband or after a divorce, during which she has to face numerous restrictions. These restrictions include being largely confined at home and the clothes she is allowed to wear. For a widowed woman the waiting period is 4 months and 10 days; for a pregnant woman the waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby); and for a divorced woman the waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles.

===Inheritance===
{{Main|Inheritance Laws|Contradictions in the Quran}}
Generally, Islam grants women half the share of inheritance available to men if they inherit from the same father. This forms part of a wider Quranic and cultural context in which men are expected to provide for women and to pay a dower for marriage. However, it is easy to imagine scenarios even in the 7th century where the beneficiaries are at different stages of their lives or marital circumstances such that no rationale would justify the allocation fixed in the Quran.

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|11}}|Allah instructs you concerning your children: for the male, what is equal to the share of two females. But if there are [only] daughters, two or more, for them is two thirds of one's estate. And if there is only one, for her is half. And for one's parents, to each one of them is a sixth of his estate if he left children. But if he had no children and the parents [alone] inherit from him, then for his mother is one third. And if he had brothers [or sisters], for his mother is a sixth, after any bequest he [may have] made or debt. Your parents or your children - you know not which of them are nearest to you in benefit. [These shares are] an obligation [imposed] by Allah. Indeed, Allah is ever Knowing and Wise.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|176}}|They request from you a [legal] ruling. Say, "Allah gives you a ruling concerning one having neither descendants nor ascendants [as heirs]." If a man dies, leaving no child but [only] a sister, she will have half of what he left. And he inherits from her if she [dies and] has no child. But if there are two sisters [or more], they will have two-thirds of what he left. If there are both brothers and sisters, the male will have the share of two females. Allah makes clear to you [His law], lest you go astray. And Allah is Knowing of all things.}}

===Attire===
{{Main|Hijab|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Hijab}}Islamic scholars differ in their interpretation of the verses prescribing female attire. All four madhabs agree by consensus that women must cover their entire body, excluding their hands and face, except for Hanafis, who also permit women to reveal their feet. These clothing requirements only apply in the presence of unrelated men (in addition to some male relations) and during prayers. Hanafis and some other scholars also require women to observe these requirements in the presence non-Muslim women, fearing that these non-Muslim women may describe a Muslim woman's physical features to other men. Some modern interpretations disagree with the traditional views (see main article).

===Testimony===
Islamic scriptures dictate that, in a court setting, a woman's testimony is worth half a man's. The reasoning given in {{Bukhari|1|6|301}} is the deficiency of the female intellect. Islamic jurists have variously endorsed some exceptions to this rule-of-thumb, however. In legal cases relating to matters of female anatomy or specialty, a woman's testimony may be equal to a man's. On the other hand, Islamic jurists have also dictated that there are certain domains of law where a woman's testimony cannot be counted for anything at all.

The Quran itself mentions the principle in the context of loan contracts.

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|282}}|O you who have believed, when you contract a debt for a specified term [...] And bring to witness two witnesses from among your men. And if there are not two men [available], then a man and two women from those whom you accept as witnesses - so that if one of the women errs, then the other can remind her. [...]}}

===Punishment for lewdness===
The Qur'an states that women found guilty of lewdness (l-fāḥishata) should be confined to house arrest until death or mysteriously 'God ordains another way'. The next verse ({{Quran|4|16}}) on the other hand ordains (unspecified) punishment if two men are found guilty of lewdness, but who are to be left alone if they repent and amend their ways:
{{Quote|{{Quran|4|15}}|If any of your women are guilty of lewdness, Take the evidence of four (Reliable) witnesses from amongst you against them; and if they testify, confine them to houses until death do claim them, or Allah ordain for them some (other) way}}

Most scholars believe the above verse (Quran 4:15) was [[Naskh (Abrogation)|abrogated]] by the punishment of 100 lashes for both men and women who commit fornication (zina) in Quran 24:2, or stoning if either is married to someone else as set out in the hadith (such as {{Bukhari|9|92|432}}and {{Muslim|17|4194}}):
{{Quote|{{Quran|24|2}}|The [unmarried] woman or [unmarried] man found guilty of sexual intercourse - lash each one of them with a hundred lashes, and do not be taken by pity for them in the religion of Allah, if you should believe in Allah and the Last Day.}}

===Gender Segregation===
{{Main|Sex Segregation in Islam}}In Islamic law, unrelated women and men are not allowed to be alone together, have any sort of physical contact, engage in frivolous conversation, look at one another for any reason other than momentarily for the purpose of identification, or pray such that a woman is located in front of or adjacent to any man (women must stand behind men in prayer). Muhammad's wives are instructed in the Quran to remain at home as much as possible and according to hadiths Muhammad did not permit women to travel on significant journeys except under the supervision of a male guardian or relative. Some medieval scholars forbade women to leave their homes at all without permission. Modernist scholars generally contest these interpretations using other hadiths and arguments.

==Muhammad and Women==

===Wives and Concubines of Muhammad===

:''Main Articles: [[List of Muhammads Wives and Concubines|List of Muhammad's Wives and Concubines]] and [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Muhammads Wives and Concubines|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Muhammad's Wives and Concubines]] and [[Ages of Muhammads Wives at Marriage|Ages of Muhammad's Wives at Marriage]]''

According to multiple sources, Muhammad had many wives and concubines, and was known to others as a "womanizer".<ref>"....''Layla’s people said, "’What a bad thing you have done! You are a self-respecting woman, but the Prophet is a womanizer. Seek an annulment from him.’ She went back to the Prophet and asked him to revoke the marriage and he complied with [her request]''...." - al Tabari vol.9 p.139</ref> Muhammad consummated his marriages with thirteen women, divorced another six, and had concubines. It is reported that he used to visit eleven wives in one night:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|5|268|}}|Narrated Qatada: Anas bin Malik said, "The Prophet used to visit all his wives in a round, during the day and night '''and they were eleven in number.'''" I asked Anas, "Had the Prophet the strength for it?" Anas replied, "We used to say that the Prophet was given the strength of thirty (men)." And Sa'id said on the authority of Qatada that Anas had told him about nine wives only (not eleven).}}

====Aisha====
{{Main|Aisha}}

''Aisha'', sometimes spelt as 'Ayesha' or 'Aysha', was the nine year old child-bride of Muhammad. She was engaged to him at the age of six, when he was in his fifties. She was also the daughter of Abu Bakr, a close friend of Muhammad. Historically, she is known as Muhammad's "favorite wife." It has also been recorded in authentic Islamic sources that Muhammad struck Aisha<ref>"''...He said: Was it the darkness (of your shadow) that I saw in front of me? I said: Yes. He struck me on the chest which caused me pain, and then said: Did you think that Allah and His Apostle would deal unjustly with you?...''" - {{Muslim|4|2127}}</ref> and also allowed Abu Bakr to do the same.<ref>"''....Abu Bakr (Allah be pleased with him) then got up went to 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) and slapped her on the neck, and 'Umar stood up before Hafsa and slapped her saying: You ask Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) which he does not possess....''" - {{Bukhari|1|7|330}}</ref> Aisha was not 'offered' to Muhammad by her father (as would have normally been the case for the marriage of so young a girl), rather it was Muhammad who approached Abu Bakr, and Abu Bakr originally protested.<ref>"''....The Prophet asked Abu Bakr for 'Aisha's hand in marriage. Abu Bakr said "But I am your brother."....''" - {{Bukhari|7|62|18}}</ref> However, Muhammad justified his desire for Aisha with a divine vision from Allah.<ref>"''....You were shown to me twice (in my dream) before I married you. I saw an angel carrying you in a silken piece of cloth, and I said to him, 'Uncover (her),' and behold, it was you. I said (to myself), 'If this is from Allah, then it must happen.....''" - {{Bukhari|9|87|140}}</ref>

{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3310}}|'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) married me when I was six years old, and I was admitted to his house when I was nine years old.}}
The age of Muhammad's child-bride Aisha has in recent times become an actively contested issue, with a few modern Islamic scholars arguing that she was in fact older than nine when married or when the marriage was consummated. The overwhelming majority of modern Islamic scholars have, however, rejected this view as contravening authentic scripture.

====Khadijah====
{{Main|Khadijah bint Khuwaylid}}

''Khadijah bint Khuwailid/Khuwaylid'' (555 – 619 AD) was the first wife of Muhammad and also a distant cousin. Belonging to the Bani Asad tribe, Khadijah was the daughter of Khuwaylid bin Asad bin. ‘Abd al-‘Uzza bin Qusayy, the Grand son Qusayy. She was a wealthy woman aged forty who ran her own business, and her marriage with Muhammad was a controversial one which almost sparked in bloodshed. Khadija's high social standing is often cited as evidence by some modern Islamic scholars that women were empowered by Islam.<ref>For example, take a look at [http://www.wikiislam.net/w/index.php?title=Women_are_Deficient_in_Intelligence&diff=prev&oldid=67738 this] bit of vandalism.</ref> It is important to note, however, that she was a "great independent businesswoman" ''before'' Islam, during the so-called "Period of Ignorance" (''Jahiliyah''). Indeed, after Islam, Muhammad prohibited women from taking leadership positions, along with dictating other legal disabilities for women.<ref>"''Narrated Abu Bakra: During the battle of Al-Jamal, Allah benefited me with a Word (I heard from the Prophet). When the Prophet heard the news that the people of the Persia had made the daughter of Khosrau their Queen (ruler), he said, "Never will succeed such a nation as makes a woman their ruler.''" - {{Bukhari|9|88|219}}</ref>

====Safiyah====
{{Main|Safiyah}}

''Safiyah bint Huyayy'' (610 - 670 AD) was the bride of Kinana and the chief mistress of the Jewish tribes of Quraiza and An-Nadir. When the Muhammad's followers invaded and conquered Khaibar, the opposition's fighting men were killed and Safiya was taken captive (along with the rest of the women and children) and allotted as booty to Dihya Al-Kalbi, a Muslim.<ref>{{Bukhari|2|14|68}}</ref> Kinana, Safiyah's suitor or husband, was tortured and executed by Muhammad's followers in order to discover the hiding places of treasure,<ref>Ishaq. I (Author), Guillaume. A (Translator). (2002). [http://www.amazon.com/Life-Muhammad-I-Ishaq/dp/0196360331/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1252901691&sr=8-1#reader ''The Life of Muhammad'']. (p. 515). Oxford University Press - Tabari vol. 8, p.123 - Muir, Sir William. (1878). [http://books.google.com/books?id=5QMMAAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_navlinks_s#v=onepage&q=&f=false ''The Life of Mahomet, New Edition'']. (pp. 390-391) London:Smith, Elder and Co.</ref> and one source relates that he and Safiya had been married only one day.<ref>Muir, Sir William. (1878). [http://books.google.com/books?id=5QMMAAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_navlinks_s#v=onepage&q=&f=false ''The Life of Mahomet, New Edition'']. (pp. 392) London:Smith, Elder and Co.</ref> She was so beautiful that the Muslims began praising her in the presence of [[Muhammad]]<ref>{{Muslim|8|3329}}</ref>, and so the prophet commanded that Dihya be brought before him along with Safiya. Upon seeing her, Muhammad said, "Take any slave girl other than her from the captives"<ref>{{Bukhari|1|8|367}}</ref> and he selected her to be his slave rather than the slave of any of his companions.

She was held captive until their marriage, and when Muhammad decided that she would be his wife rather than his concubine, he made known to her that her manumission was her ''mahr''.

====Mariyah====
{{Main|Maria the Copt (Mariyah Al-Qibtiyyah)|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Slavery}}
''Mariyah the Copt'' was one of the prophet’s wives’ maids and bore him a son who later died, called Ibrahim. Muhammad slept with her without any ceremony, which caused uproar among his wives. It is said that the controversy was finally settled by verses {{Quran-range|66|1|6}}, allowing Muhammad to continue sleeping with her after he had placated his wives by recinding this right.

{{Quote||Waqidi has informed us that Abu Bakr has narrated that the messenger of Allah (PBUH) had sexual intercourse with Mariyyah in the house of Hafsah. When the messenger came out of the house, Hafsa was sitting at the gate (behind the locked door). She told the prophet, O Messenger of Allah, do you do this in my house and during my turn? The messenger said, control yourself and let me go because I make her haram to me. Hafsa said, I do not accept, unless you swear for me. That Hazrat (his holiness) said, by Allah I will not contact her again. Qasim ibn Muhammad has said that this promise of the Prophet that had forbidden Mariyyah to himself is invalid – it does not become a violation (hormat).<ref>Tabaqat v. 8 p. 223 Publisher Entesharat-e Farhang va Andisheh Tehran 1382 solar h ( 2003) Translator Dr. Mohammad Mahdavi Damghani</ref>}}

===Muhammad's exemptions from sexual laws===
{{Main|Convenient Revelations}}Muhammad often received revelations from God which would absolve him from or resolve for him various personal restrictions and controversies. These revelations would form part of the Quran and hadith. Critics have suggested that such verses would scarcely merit inclusion in a eternal document of divine importance that conceives of itself as "guidance for all of mankind". According o Sahih Bukhari, Aisha, Muhammad's wife, once said to him after one such revelation, "I feel that your Lord hastens in fulfilling your wishes and desires."<ref>{{Bukhari|6|60|311|}}</ref>
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|6|60|311}}|Narrated Aisha:

I used to look down upon those ladies who had given themselves to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and I used to say, "Can a lady give herself (to a man)?" But when Allah revealed: "You (O Muhammad) can postpone (the turn of) whom you will of them (your wives), and you may receive any of them whom you will; and there is no blame on you if you invite one whose turn you have set aside (temporarily).' (33.51) I said (to the Prophet), "I feel that your Lord hastens in fulfilling your wishes and desires."}}

===Women and the Farewell Sermon===
{{Main|Farewell Sermon}}

''The Farewell Sermon'' (خطبة الوداع‎, Khuṭbatu l-Wadā') is Muhammad's last sermon before his death in 632 CE. One widely distributed modern redacted and edited version of the sermon differs significantly from the original versions found in {{Abu Dawud||1900|Hasan}}, {{Muslim|7|2803}}, al-Tabari's History, and ibn Ishaq's ''Sirat''. Muhammad's order in the sermon to men to control their women by beating them confirms and slightly moderates the Qur'anic order of wife-beating in {{Quran|4|34}}. In al-Tabari's version, Muhammad also compares women to domestic animals (ʿawān). In ibn Ishaq's version, quoted below, the translator renders the same Arabic word as prisoners, in line with traditional exegesis of the sermon.

{{Quote||"You have rights over your wives and they have rights over you. You have the right that they should not defile your bed and that they should not behave with open unseemliness. '''If they do, God allows you to put them in separate rooms and beat them but not with severity'''. If they refrain from these things they have the right to their food and clothing with kindness. Lay injunctions on women kindly, '''for they are prisoners with you having no control of their persons.''' You have taken them as a trust from God, and you have the enjoyment of their persons by the words of God, so understand…"<ref>Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah, p. 651</ref>}}
==Women in the modern Muslim world==

===Honor Violence and Islam===
{{Main|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Honor Killing}}
Honor killing has occured in many cultures, and is the murder by family members, usually of females, who are perceived to have brought shame on the family. The attitude is that the honor of the family in the community can be protected or restored in this way. Common triggers for honour killing occur when young couples have unmarried relations with each other, or when a woman marries someone against the wishes of her parents.

In Islamic law, there is no punishment merely for the shame caused upon a family by their female relations, nor to restore family honor by killing them. There are, however, punishments for various types of [[w:Zina|Zina]] (unlawful sexual relations) in Islam. Zina includes both fornication (when an unmarried person has intercourse), for which the punishment is flogging, and adultery (when a married person has intercourse with someone other than their spouse), for which the punishment is death by stoning. These punishments are only to be applied by the authorities. A punishment in a private setting is mandated in {{Quran|4|34}} which tells men to beat their wives as a last resort in certain circumstances {{Quran|4|34}}.

Honour killing has been condemned in a recent fatwa<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/101972 Fatwa 101972 Ruling on honour killing]</ref>, which says that the punishment for fornication by the unmarried is flogging, and must be carried out by the proper authorities.

However, some statements about women and the rules to control them as outlined above in this article may contribute to the perceived social consequences of failing to exert such control and the underlying attitudes towards women and girls held by those who commit honor killing and honor violence. This includes such rules as those concerning gender segregation and zina (especially the prohibition of sexual intercourse between an unmarried couple, even the suspicion of which is a common trigger for honor violence against girls), and a woman marrying without the approval of her wali. Underlining the seriousness in which some of these are regarded, certain punishments such as stoning, flogging, and even death by being thrown off a tall building are prescribed for sexual crimes in Islamic law, though these are to be carried out by the authorities. In the modern age, there have been many reported incidents of honor violence when young women are perceived to have violated Islamic requirements about dress and adornmonts when using photo and video based social media. A connection between Islam and honor violence is disputed by some on the basis that honor killing in the Muslim world is largely associated with certain countries like Pakistan and in parts of the Middle East and North Africa rather than universal. The problem has also been documented in a Hindu religious context in countries such as India and Nepal, particularly involving couples of differing castes.

While Islamic law does not order honor violence, parents who murder their children are not punishable with the ''Qisas'' (retaliation) under the Sharia. The standard manual of law for the Shafi'i school sets out this exemption in plain terms.{{Quote|'Umdat al-Salik (Reliance of the Traveller), section o1.1-2|Retaliation is obligatory [...] against anyone who kills a human being purely intentionally and without right [...] The following are not subject to retaliation [...] (4) a father or mother (or their fathers or mothers) for killing their offspring.}}

Efforts in modern Muslim countries have been made to deter such killings by changing the law to enable prosecution of the perpetrators, for example Pakistan in 2016 (after a change that had left a large loophole in 2004)<ref>https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-37578111</ref>, though as of 2022 the effect there has been limited.<ref>[https://thediplomat.com/2022/07/honor-killings-continue-unabated-in-pakistan/ ‘Honor Killings’ Continue Unabated in Pakistan] - The Diplomat, 2022</ref>

The United Nations Population Fund estimated in September 2000 that as many as 5,000 women and girls fall victim to such killings each year. Cases of non-fatal honor violence would likely be far higher.
===Strict enforcement of hijab===
In a few countries today (notably Iran and Afghanistan), the wearing of hijab is legally enforced, though in most Muslim-majority countries this is not the case though there may be social pressure. In the holy city of Mecca in March 2002, fifteen teenage girls perished in a fire at their school when the Saudi religious police, the muttawa'in, refused to let them out of the building, because in the female-only school environment, they had shed the outer garments that women are required to wear in the presence of men. They had not put these garments back on before trying to flee from the fire. The muttawa'in, favoring the victims' death to the transgression of Islamic law, battled police and firemen who tried to open the school's doors to save the girls.<ref>Christopher Dickey and Rod Nordland - [http://www.islamawareness.net/MiddleEast/Saudi/fire.html The Fire That Won't Die Out] - Islamawareness, 2002</ref> In 2018 Saudi Arabia rescinded its laws relating to head coverings.

===Domestic abuse===
According to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, over 90% of married women report being kicked, slapped, beaten or sexually abused when husbands were dissatisfied by their cooking or cleaning, or when the women had 'failed' to bear a child or had given birth to a girl instead of a boy.<ref>[http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA33/010/2002/en-http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA33/010/2002/en Pakistan: Violence against women: Media briefing] - Amnesty International</ref>

===Prosecution of rape cases===
{{Main|Rape in Islamic Law}}
Islamic law traditionally has required four reliable muslim male witnesses or a confession in order to convict a man for rape (as an extension of the legal treatment of [[Zina|zina]]), though some modern legal approaches have sought to reduce this evidentiary burden. In some modern juristictions there is even a risk that a woman alleging rape can herself by prosecuted for slander or fornication if she lacks sufficient evidence, though this is not the position of most schools of traditional jurisprudence (see main article).

In March 2007, a 19-year-old Saudi woman received a sentence of 90 lashes. A man had threatened to tell her father that they were having an affair unless she met him alone. When she did, she was kidnapped and repeatedly raped, after which her brother beat her because the rapes brought shame to the family. After this, a Saudi court sentenced her to be lashed ninety times because she had met a man alone who was not related to her. Fuziyah Al Ouni, a feminist activist, said she was outraged by the case. 'By sentencing her to 90 lashes they are sending a message that she is guilty.'<ref>[http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticleNew.asp?section=middleeast&xfile=data/middleeast/2007/march/middleeast_march71.xml Saudi gang-rape victim faces 90 lashes] - Khaleej Times Online, March 5, 2007</ref>

In 2004, a sixteen-year old girl, Atefeh Rajabi, was hanged in a public square in Iran. Rajabi was charged with adultery, although it had likely been a case of rape. Her rapist was not executed. Rajabi told the mullah-judge, Haji Rezaii, the he ought to punish men who rape, not their victims. The judge both sentenced and personally hanged Rajabi because, in addition to her crime, he said that she had 'a sharp tongue.'<ref>Alasdair Palmer - [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2004/08/29/do2903.xml&sSheet=/portal/2004/08/29/ixportal.html Death and the maiden in Iran] - The Telegraph, August 29, 2004</ref>

On November 1, 2008 a 13-year-old girl in Somalia was stoned to death after being raped by three men. She was unable to produce the required four witnesses to the rape and was therefore accused of adultery as required by Shari'a law. It was reported that the girl begged for mercy before being buried waist high in the ground and pummeled to death with stones by a crowd of some 1,000 Muslims.<ref>[http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/News/0,,2-11-1447_2419716,00.html Raped girl, 13, stoned to death] news24.com,2008-11-01</ref><ref>David Williams - [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1081214/Somali-girl-pleaded-mercy-Islamists-stoned-death-raped.html?ITO=1490 Somali girl 'pleaded for mercy' before Islamists stoned her to death for being raped] - Daily Mail, November 5, 2008</ref>

===Strict segregation of genders===
In February 2008, an American businesswoman of Jordanian descent was arrested in Saudi Arabia after being found by the religious police sitting in the family area of a Starbucks with a male business associate. They had been working together at their nearby office when power was lost, and they decided to go to Starbucks to use the wireless internet. She was released from jail a day later, bruised and crying after being detained and beaten for being in the presence of another man who was not her relative.<ref>Sonia Verma - [http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,329605,00.html American Woman Boasted of Saudi Freedoms To Bush Brother Before Arrest at Starbucks] - Fox News, February 7, 2008</ref>

==See Also==

*[[Women in Islamic Law]]
*[[Umm Qirfa]]
*[[Cousin Marriage in Islamic Law]]

==External Links==

*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Shamoun/women_in_islam1.htm Women in Islam]
*[http://www.faithfreedom.org/Articles/abulkazem/Women_in_Islam.htm Women in Islam: An exegesis]
*[http://www.faithfreedom.org/Articles/abulkazem/SexualityinIslam.htm Sex and sexuality in Islam]
*[https://fgmtruth.wordpress.com/2018/10/22/23-s-b-zakis-arab-women-before-and-after-islam-opening-the-door-of-pre-islamic-arabian-history/ Arab Women Before and After Islam - by S. B. Zaki]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Women]]
[[Category:Human rights]]
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[[Category:Shariah (Islamic Law)]]
[[Category:Criticism of Islam]]

Islam and Science

2024-04-12T10:52:28Z

Vixen:

[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Apologetics]]
[[Category:Islamic Golden Age]]
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{{QualityScore|Lead=2|Structure=3|Content=3|Language=3|References=3}}Among the many and diverse matters discussed in or touched upon by [[Islam and Scripture|Islamic scriptures]] are topics of direct or indirect scientific interest. These topics include reproductive science, embryology, cosmology, medicine, and a slew of other topics. While mainstream academic scholars and scientists have found the discussion of these topics contained in Islamic scripture to be unremarkable in its seventh-century context, in recent times, many traditional Muslim scholars and figures have argued that Islamic scriptures contains statements which not only adhere to but also predict modern science. Criticism of these ideas has been widespread and has even come from Muslim scholars themselves.
==Philosophical concerns regarding the idea of a scientific miracle==
Many take seriously the idea that the Quran contains [[Miracle|miraculous]] foreknowledge of modern science. Certain philosophical considerations have often been proposed as being of interest for those who either take these ideas seriously or who are considering whether they should.

*The proposition that Humans have access to a miracle from God/gods would be incredibly consequential or at least extremely interesting if true, and thus deserves to be thought about with great seriousness and scrutiny. Otherwise, any number of contradictory parties would be able to claim that their respective scriptures contained scientific miracles.

*A god/gods desiring to present humankind with a miracle of scientific foreknowledge would need meet this justifiable scrutiny with a miracle so uniquely clear and sound as to distinguish itself from false miracle claims, else the god/gods would have failed in their purpose, which is a supposed impossibility. It would indeed have to be ''impossible to have reason to deny'' such a miracle - this is the meaning of certainty.

*A scriptural statement containing a scientific statement would be evident as a miracle if and only if it is at once: (1) unambiguous and intentional, (2) ascertainably unknowable at the time of revelation, and (3) scientifically sound, because:
**(1) An ambiguous or unintentional scientific statement could be correct only by accident
**(2) A scientific statement knowable at the time and place of revelation would not be a miracle

*Additionally, it may be that none of the above criteria can be established regarding any scientific statement because: (1) language is inherently ambiguous, (2) it is impossible to prove something is not an accident, and (3) history is fundamentally inaccessible. Nonetheless, one can and probably will disregard the skepticism necessitated by this last bullet point in their analysis.

==Islamic practices and health==
===Islamic medicinal practices===
{{Main|Islamic Medicinal Practices}}Islamic scriptures record and encourage various folk medicinal practices common in Arabia at the time of [[Muhammad]] and his [[Sahabah|companions]] in the seventh century and perhaps introduced some new practices, including the use, in diverse ways, of: camel urine, a mixture of saliva and dust, Muhammad's bodily fluids and hairs, Indian incense, averting one's gaze from women, prayer, the wings of houseflies, cupping, and black cumin.
===Camel urine as a curative===
{{Main|Camel Urine and Islam}}Muhammad prescribed camel urine as medicine.{{Quote|{{Bukhari|8|82|794}}|Narrated Anas:Some people from the tribe of 'Ukl came to the Prophet and embraced Islam. The climate of Medina did not suit them, so the Prophet ordered them to go to the (herd of milch) camels of charity and to '''drink''', their milk and '''urine''' (as a medicine).}}
===Dipping flies into drinks===
{{Main|Diseases and Cures in the Wings of Houseflies}}Muhammad advised that if a fly lands in one's drink, one ought to dip it in further and then consume the drink.{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|537}}|The Prophet said "If a house fly falls in the drink of anyone of you, he should dip it (in the drink), for one of its wings has a disease and the other has the cure for the disease."}}Beyond the unsanitary nature of the practice, Muslim scholars arguing for efficacy of the practice on the grounds that there are bacteriophages present on flies' wings encounter the following scientific challenges: (1) bacteriophages are not limited to any specific wing of the fly (2) bacteriophages in their natural state and concentration are not antidotal to bacterial diseases, particularly for temperate or lysogenic phages, (3) bacteriophages are ineffective against non-bacterial diseases, and (4) phage therapy is not a generally-accepted medical therapy at present because it is largely ineffective and requires large quantities of purified, possibly genetically-engineered, phages not present in the natural condition.
===Islamic fasting and health===
{{Main|Islamic Fasting and Health}}Medical fasting is different from [[Sawm (Fasting)|Islamic fasting (Sawm)]]. Islamic fasting, unlike Medical fasting, has numerous adverse effects that have been in scientific studies. Islamic fasting is intermittent, prolonged, water-deprived, and often combined with unhealthy night-time indulgence. Each of these factors are known to contribute to an unhealthy metabolism, mood swings, and generally poor performance.
===Zamzam water and health===
{{Main|Zamzam Well#Zamzam Water and Health}}Millions of Muslims visit the Zamzam well in Mecca each year while performing the Hajj or Umrah pilgrimages in order to drink from its water and, in many cases, to take home some of its water for distribution among friends and relations due to what are believed to be the water's miraculous properties. In May 2011, a BBC investigation found that genuine Zamzam water taken from the well contained arsenic levels three times the legal limit, something which could contribute to increasing people's risk of cancer. In addition to the dangerous arsenic levels, the holy water contained high levels of nitrate and potentially harmful bacteria.
==Islamic biology==
===Islamic embryology===
{{Main|Embryology in the Quran|3=Embryology in Islamic Scripture}}Islamic embryology is derived from both the Qur’an and the hadith, and is described rather consistently across the scriptures from which it is derived. Verse 5 of Surah 22 summarizes the theory. While there are a few other verses in the Qur'an on the subject, none of them diverge dramatically from the basic outline given in 22:5. [[Hadith|Hadiths]] recorded in [[Sahih Bukhari|Bukhari]] and [[Sahih Muslim|Muslim]] provide many further details but, likewise, remain consistent with the outline presented in 22:5.{{Quote|{{quran|22|5}}|O mankind! if ye have a doubt about the Resurrection, (consider) that We created you out of dust, then out of sperm, then out of a leech-like clot, then out of a morsel of flesh, partly formed and partly unformed, in order that We may manifest (our power) to you; and We cause whom We will to rest in the wombs for an appointed term, then do We bring you out as babes, then (foster you) that ye may reach your age of full strength; and some of you are called to die, and some are sent back to the feeblest old age, so that they know nothing after having known (much), and (further), thou seest the earth barren and lifeless, but when We pour down rain on it, it is stirred (to life), it swells, and it puts forth every kind of beautiful growth (in pairs).}}The details of embryology as reflected in the Qur’an and the hadith can be summarized as follows; the embryo spends 40 days as a drop of sperm or seed, the embryo then spends another 40 days as a “clot” or a “leech-like clot” of blood, the embryo then spends another 40 days as a “lump of flesh” during which the gender of the child is assigned by an angel at Allah’s direction.
===Quranic theory of semen production===
{{Main|Quran and Semen Production}}Qur'an 86:7 says that sperm originates from the backbones and the ribs, a theory similar to another erroneous theory proposed by Hippocrates in 5th century BCE.{{Quote|{{quran-range|86|6|7}}|He [man] is created from a gushing fluid 

That issued from between the loins and ribs.}}Many Muslims scholars have in recent times declared the Quranic theory of semen production to be an instance of miraculous scientific foreknowledge; much criticism has been forthcoming.
===Sources of Islamic theories of reproduction===
{{Main|Sources of Islamic Theories of Reproduction}}The hadith contain many statements about fluids from both the man and woman that were believed to form the human embryo. The Qur’an likewise says that the embryo is formed from emitted fluid, and in one verse perhaps indicates a mingling of male and female fluids. The origins of each of these ideas go at least as far back as the Jewish Talmud and the ancient Greek physicians. While none of the historical theories in this respect can be considered valid in light of modern science, the influence of ideas from ancient cultures and scientists upon the theories presented in the Quran and hadith is clear.
===Cousin marriage in Islam===
{{Main|Cousin Marriage in Islamic Law#Science and Statistics}}Cousin marriage is explicitly permitted in verse 23 of the 4th chapter of the Quran ({{Quran|4|23}}). Muhammad himself married his cousins. Zaynab bint Jahsh, one of Muhammad's wives, was the daughter of his father's sister as well as the former wife of Muhammad's adopted son Zayd ibn Haritha. Muhammad also allowed the marriage of his daughter, Fatimah, to his cousin, [[Ali ibn Abi Talib]], who would later go on to become the fourth [[Rashidun Caliphs|Rightly-guided]] [[Caliph]] of Islam. The second Caliph, [[Umar ibn Al-Khattab|Umar ibn al-Khattab]], also married his cousin, Atikah bint Zayd ibn Amr ibn Nufayl.

Modern cultures strongly discourage cousin marriage due to the higher than normal consanguinity rate among close relatives which results in an increased chance of sharing genes for recessive traits and birth defects. The British geneticist and professor Steve Jones, giving The John Maddox Lecture at the 2011 Hay Festival, stated in relation to Muslim inbreeding, "It is common in the Islamic world to marry your brother’s daughter, which is actually [genetically] closer than marrying your cousin." Tragically, statistical estimates show that close to half of all living Muslims are the offspring of cousin marriages and are, according to scientific standards, inbred.
==Islamic cosmology==
===Adam, Eve, and the beginning of creation===
{{Main|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Creation}}The Qur'an generally follows the biblical account of creation in 6 days (Genesis 1:31), although surah 41:9-12 seems to imply that the earth (and the universe) were created in 8 days instead of 6, although the figure of 8 days is never written. The tradition mostly agrees with other elements of the biblical account, such as the creation of Eve, the first woman, from the rib of Adam, the first man; Qur'an, though, broadens the claim of the bible that Adam was created from dust (Genesis 2:1) by stating in one occasion that man was created was created from dust and, in another, from clay. Tabari in his history of the world attributes to the universe an age between 6 and 7 thousand years, a figure more or less in keeping with the biblical timeline (although of course far from the now-known history of the universe as at least over 13 billion years old).

Other notable details in this narrative include (quoted from Bukhari) the description of women as being created from a "crooked" rib which will break if one tries to straighten it, the idea that "were it not for Eve, no woman would ever betray her husband", and that Adam was "60 cubit tall" (~90 feet) and that since his time, "people have been decreasing in stature".
===Cosmology of the Quran===
{{Main|Cosmology of the Quran|l1=Cosmology of the Qur'an}}The cosmology of the Quran is essentially the same as cosmology as that which was accepted by seventh century Arabia and much of the contemporary world. The Earth: is the center of universe, is disk-shaped, is orbited by the sun (which sets and rises through holes in the Earth's surface), sits atop seven similar disk-shaped earths, and lies beneath the seven concentric domes of heaven which, if God so willed, could 'fall out of the sky'. The entire universe as such rests beneath the throne of Allah, floats in the midst of an unending sea, and all of this exists on the back of a giant, cosmic whale, known as the [[The Islamic Whale|Islamic Whale (al-Hut al-Islami)]].
===Geocentrism and the Qur'an===
{{Main|Geocentrism and the Quran|l1=Geocentrism and the Qur'an}}The Qur'an states that both the sun and the moon swim or float in a rounded course, or perhaps in a celestial sphere or hemisphere (a 'falak' in the Arabic<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak2">Falak [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000227.pdf Lane's Lexicon Volume 1 page 2443] and [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000228.pdf page 2444] Lane also says that the Arab astronomers said there were seven of these spheres for the sun, moon, and the five visible planets, rotating about the celestial pole. This must reflect the post-Qur'anic influence of Ptolemy, whose astronomical work was translated for the Arabs from the 8th century onwards.</ref>). The sun rises from the east, goes high above the Earth, sets in a pool of muddy water somewhere on the surface of the earth, and finally proceeds to a resting place under Allah throne and prostrates. All this takes place around an Earth that was spread out and had a firmament of seven heavens built above it without pillars. This reflects a common belief in the region at that time and is also found earlier with the Babylonians, ancient Hebrews, the Assyrians and several other cultures in the region.
===Islamic views on the shape of the earth===
{{Main|Islamic Views on the Shape of the Earth}}{{Quran|15|19}}, {{Quran|20|53}}, {{Quran|43|10}}, {{Quran|50|7}}, {{Quran|51|48}}, {{Quran|71|19}}, {{Quran|78|6}}, {{Quran|79|30}}, {{Quran|88|20}}, and {{Quran|91|6}} all describe the Earth as flat.

As recently as 1993 the supreme religious authority of Saudi Arabia ''Sheik Abdul-Aziz Ibn Baaz'' declared "The earth is flat. Whoever claims it is round is an atheist deserving of punishment." and in a televised debate aired on Iraqi Al-Fayhaa TV (October 31, 2007), Muslim Researcher on Astronomy Fadhel Al-Sa'd also declared that the Earth is flat as evidenced by Qur'anic verses and that the sun is much smaller than the Earth and revolves around it.
===The sun's setting in a muddy spring===
{{Main|Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring - Part One}}The precise meaning of the opening phrases in verses 86 and 90 in the 18th chapter of the Qur’an ({{Quran-range|18|86|90}}) is a matter of considerable controversy. These verses occur within an account concerning a powerful figure called Dhu’l Qarnayn, “the two-horned one” ([[Dhul-Qarnayn and the Alexander Romance|Alexander, in all likelihood]]), who Allah guides on a series of three fantastic journeys in Qur’an 18:83-101. The controversy surrounding the verses emerges from the fact that the verses appear to suggest, in plain language, that the sun sets into a spring of muddy water somewhere on earth in a location inhabited, no less, by people.
===The Islamic Whale===
{{Main|The Islamic Whale}}The Islamic whale (in Arabic الحوت الإسلامي, al-hoot al-islami), is a mythological creature described in Islamic texts that carries the Earth on its back. It is also called Nun (نون), which is also the name of the Arabic letter "n" ن. Two alternative names of the whale are Liwash and Lutiaya. The details behind the mentioning of this creature is a unclear topic. There is little mention of Nun in the Quran, however there is further mention of it in other Islamic scriptures such has Hadith and Tafsir along with context verses.

From all of the earliest Sunni and Shi'a sources today available, it appears that the earliest Muslims believed the letter "nun" in the Qur'an surah 68:1 refers to a giant whale upon whose back the entire earth rests. This belief is attributed by all of the trusted sources of Islamic jurisprudence to "tarjumaan al-qur'an" ibn Abbas and was reaffirmed thereafter by many trusted Islamic scholars all the way up until the 19th century. According to this cosmogony, the earth (actually the 7 earths are) is attached to the back of the whale by means of the mountains, which are pegs to balance the earth upon the Nun's back. This cosmogony fits in with a widespread ancient belief that the world was balanced upon the back of giant animals, and the even more primordial belief that the world is surrounded by a giant, unending body of water.
===Ramadan and the North and South Poles===
{{Main|The Ramadan Pole Paradox}}According to Islamic rituals set out in the Qur'an and hadith, the keeping and breaking of a fast and the times of prayer, among other things, are related to times of sunrise and sunset. As one gets closer to the North or South Pole, the day or night can extend to up to several months each. At the North Pole itself, daylight and darkness lasts for more than 6 months at a time. Extending the five daily prayers of a period of several months appears to undermine the Islamic ritual, however, and fasting for such a period is evidently impossible. These considerations appear to confirm the pre-modern cosmology described elsewhere in the Quran and hadith.
===Islamic scriptures and scholars on the universe===
{{Main|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Cosmology}}Islamic scriptures and scholars have much to say in regards to the cosmology of the universe.{{Quote|{{Muslim|1|297}}|It is narrated on the authority of Abu Dharr that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) one day said: Do you know where the sun goes? They replied: Allah and His Apostle know best. He (the Holy Prophet) observed: Verily it (the sun) glides till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it falls prostrate and remains there until it is asked: Rise up and go to the place whence you came, and it goes back and continues emerging out from its rising place and then glides till it reaches its place of rest under the Throne and falls prostrate and remains in that state until it is asked: Rise up and return to the place whence you came, and it returns and emerges out from it rising place and the it glides (in such a normal way) that the people do not discern anything ( unusual in it) till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it would be said to it: Rise up and emerge out from the place of your setting, and it will rise from the place of its setting. The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said. Do you know when it would happen? It would happen at the time when faith will not benefit one who has not previously believed or has derived no good from the faith.}}
==Islamic science and the Golden Age==
===Islamic Inventions that Changed the World===
These past few years have seen many inventions claimed and attributed to Islamic inventors, which in fact either existed in pre-Islamic eras, were invented by other cultures, or both. However, this detail has not stopped apologists from perpetuating these false claims. Such claims have even been propagated through a nationwide tour which opened with an exhibition at the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester and the University of Manchester, England.

To celebrate this series of events, an article titled “How Islamic inventors changed the world” was written by Paul Vallely and published in The Independent. This inaccurate piece of writing has received much praise and is still being widely circulated on Islamic websites, forums and blogs. This article lists and examines all twenty of these “Islamic inventions that changed the world”, and in doing so, it reveals their actual inventors and the true role of Islam/Muslims, if any, behind the inventions.

In short, we find that Paul Vallely's article is fundamentally misleading. It omits, distorts, and makes blunders concerning the most basic of historical facts to give the reader a false impression. It leaves you wondering what could have possibly motivated him into writing such a deceptive piece of journalism?
===Islamic Science in Wikipedia Articles===
At Wikipedia, Islam-related articles are often compromised by pro-Islamic editors. An example of this is a 2010 incident where an editor with over 67,000 edits was caught intentionally inserting false information into articles.

Jagged 85 is the main contributor to the many inaccurate Islam/Science/Golden Age articles which are still being copied and pasted all over the internet by Muslims, and more than 20% of Wikipedia's "Timeline of historic inventions" was provided by him.

With contributions to over 8,100 separate articles, it is unlikely that all of Jagged 85's edits will ever be fixed. And even if they were, these Wikipedia articles have already been reproduced all over the net by other sites which use Wikipedia as a source.
==Science in the Qur'an==
===Scientific Errors in the Qur'an and Hadith===
{{Main|Scientific Errors in the Quran|Scientific Errors in the Hadith}}A common criticism of the Quran is that it contains numerous scientific and historical errors, with no obvious attempts to differentiate its understanding of the natural world and historical events from the common folklore and misconceptions of the people living in 7th century Arabia. Modern responses typically appeal to metaphor, alternative meanings, or phenomenological interpretations of such verses. They also argue that the wording needed to be acceptable to people of its time. Critics typically argue that an all-knowing, perfect communicator would nevertheless have been able to avoid statements in the Quran that reinforced misconceptions of the time, caused future generations to have doubts about its perfection, and on a scale that critics contend is an overwhelming weakness. A similar dialogue surrounds the mention of scientific topics in the hadith.
===Bucailleism, Dr. Keith Moore, and the "Islamic Additions"===
{{Main|Dr. Keith Moore|l1=Dr. Keith Moore and the "Islamic Additions"|Bucailleism}}Bucailleism is the belief that "the Qur'an prophesied the Big Bang theory, space travel and other contemporary scientific breakthroughs," and that "there are more than 1200 verses (Ayat) which can be interpreted in the light of modern science." It has been called "a fast-growing branch of Islamic fundamentalism." Named after the French surgeon Maurice Bucaille, its proponents believe that "one of the main convincing evidences" that lead many to convert to Islam "is the large number of scientific facts in the Quran."

The doctrine is "widely taught" in Islamic secondary schools, promoted on popular television in Arab world and is advanced by "a well-funded campaign" led by the Commission on Scientific Signs in the Quran and Sunnah, based in Saudi Arabia and founded by Sheikh Abdul Majeed Zindani, a leading militant Islamist and "Specially Designated Global Terrorist". The ideas financed by the commission proved a popular tool of [[w:Dawah|da'wah]] in the 1980s, when videos where taken of various Western scientists apparently vouching for the scientific accuracy of the Qur'an. In later interviews however, many of the scientists quoted revealed that they were tricked, misquoted, and misrepresented by Sheikh Abdul Majeed Zindani, who organized the conferences.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/user/ThisIsTheTruthUncut</ref>
===Scientific Miracles in the Quran===
{{Main|Scientific Miracles in the Quran|l1=Scientific Miracles in the Quran}}This article provides an overview of the so-called scientific miracles contained in the Quran.
==See Also==
'''Articles'''

*[[Zakir Naik]]

*[[Harun Yahya]]

*[[Scientific Errors in the Quran]]

*[[Scientific Errors in the Hadith]]

==External Links==

*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Science/index.htm Qur'an and Science] ''- Answering Islam''

*[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.adherents.com/people/100_scientists.html|2=2012-12-16}} The Scientific 100] ''- 3 different rankings from Adherents.com showing how little Muslims contributed to science''
<references />
[[Category:Prophecies]]
[[Category:Miracles]]
[[Category:Revelation]]
[[Category:Dawah]]
[[Category:Criticism of Islam]]

Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars: Abu Hurayrah

2024-03-10T13:40:03Z

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'''<nowiki/>'Abd al-Rahman ibn Sakhr ad-Dawsi''' (Arabic : عبدالرحمن بن صخر الدوسي), or '''Abu Hurayra''', born between 601 and 604 and died between 676 and 679, is a celebrated sahabi, or companion of the prophet Mohammed. It is estimated that he transmited 5,374 hadiths, more or less the equivalent of an entire Qu'ran by himself. He is cited in more than half of the classic isnâds (chains of transmission) of the hadiths, making him the greatest know traditionalist (muhaddith). He is therefore responsible for transmitting more hadiths than any other companion of the prophet according to the tradition, even though according to this same tradition he spent less time around Muhammad and was less intimitely familiar with him than the other companions. In affect, according the majority of authors, he only knew Muhammad during the latter part of his life: at most he knew the prophet for 4 years before the latter's death.

He was very poor during the life of the prophet, but he became the governor of Bahrain during the reign of ‘Umar Ibn al-Khattâb, and he subsequently abandoned the post then became emir of Madinah under the caliphate of Mu’âwiya.

==Place of Abu Hurayrah amongst the Companions of the Prophet During his Lifetime==

===Bukhari 5432 (and 3708) :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|65|343}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:
'''I used to accompany Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) to fill my stomach'''; and that was when I did not eat baked bread, nor wear silk. Neither a male nor a female slave used to serve me, and '''I used to bind stones over my belly and ask somebody to recite a Qur'anic Verse for me though I knew it, so that he might take me to his house and feed me. Ja`far bin Abi Talib was very kind to the poor''', and he used to take us and feed us with what ever was available in his house, (and if nothing was available), '''he used to give us the empty (honey or butter) skin which we would tear and lick whatever was in it.'''»}}

===Thirmidhi 3764 :===
{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi|46|6|46|3764}}|Narrated Abu Hurairah:

"None has put on sandals - nor worn them, nor ridden a mount, nor a Kur, after the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) - better than Ja'far [bin Abi Talib]."}}

===Bukhari 5375 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|65|287}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

'''Once while I was in a state of fatigue (because of severe hunger), I met 'Umar bin Al-Khattab, so I asked him to recite a verse from Allah's Book to me. He entered his house and interpreted it to me. (Then I went out and) after walking for a short distance, I fell on my face because of fatigue and severe hunger.''' Suddenly I saw Allah's Apostle standing by my head. He said, "O Abu Huraira!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ), and Sadaik!" Then he held me by the hand, and made me get up. Then he came to know what I was suffering from. He took me to his house, and ordered a big bowl of milk for me. I drank thereof and he said, "Drink more, O Abu Hirr!" So I drank again, whereupon he again said, "Drink more." So I drank more till my belly became full and looked like a bowl. '''Afterwards I met 'Umar and mentioned to him what had happened to me, and said to him, "Somebody, who had more right than you, O 'Umar, took over the case. By Allah, I asked you to recite a Verse to me while I knew it better than you."''' On that Umar said to me, "By Allah, if I admitted and entertained you, it would have been dearer to me than having nice red camels.''' }}

===Bukhari 6452 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|8|76|459}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

'''By Allah except Whom none has the right to- be worshipped, (sometimes) I used to lay (sleep) on the ground on my liver (abdomen) because of hunger, and (sometimes) I used to bind a stone over my belly because of hunger. One day I sat by the way from where they (the Prophet (ﷺ) and his companions) used to come out. When Abu Bakr passed by, I asked him about a Verse from Allah's Book and I asked him only that he might satisfy my hunger, but he passed by and did not do so.''' Then `Umar passed by me and I asked him about a Verse from Allah's Book, and I asked him only that he might satisfy my hunger, but he passed by without doing so. Finally Abu-l-Qasim (the Prophet (ﷺ) ) passed by me and he smiled when he saw me, for he knew what was in my heart and on my face. He said, "O Aba Hirr (Abu Huraira)!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said to me, "Follow me." He left and I followed him. Then he entered the house and I asked permission to enter and was admitted. He found milk in a bowl and said, "From where is this milk?" They said, "It has been presented to you by such-and-such man (or by such and such woman)." He said, "O Aba Hirr!" I said, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "Go and call the people of Suffa to me." '''These people of Suffa were the guests of Islam who had no families, nor money, nor anybody to depend upon, and whenever an object of charity was brought to the Prophet, he would send it to them and would not take anything from it, and whenever any present was given to him, he used to send some for them and take some of it for himself.''' The order of the Prophet upset me, and I said to myself, "How will this little milk be enough for the people of As- Suffa? though I was more entitled to drink from that milk in order to strengthen myself", but behold! The Prophet (ﷺ) came to order me to give that milk to them. I wondered what will remain of that milk for me, but anyway, I could not but obey Allah and His Apostle so I went to the people of As-Suffa and called them, and they came and asked the Prophet's permission to enter. They were admitted and took their seats in the house. The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "O Aba-Hirr!" I said, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "Take it and give it to them." So I took the bowl (of milk) and started giving it to one man who would drink his fill and return it to me, whereupon I would give it to another man who, in his turn, would drink his fill and return it to me, and I would then offer it to another man who would drink his fill and return it to me. Finally, after the whole group had drunk their fill, I reached the Prophet (ﷺ) who took the bowl and put it on his hand, looked at me and smiled and said. "O Aba Hirr!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "There remain you and I." I said, "You have said the truth, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "Sit down and drink." I sat down and drank. He said, "Drink," and I drank. He kept on telling me repeatedly to drink, till I said, "No. by Allah Who sent you with the Truth, I have no space for it (in my stomach)." He said, "Hand it over to me." When I gave him the bowl, he praised Allah and pronounced Allah's Name on it and drank the remaining milk.}}

====Commentary :====
'''Ahl as-Suffah (أهل الصفة)''' : literally, the people of the banquet. They sojourned permanently about the prophet's mosque and sheltered under a canopy.

Verse 273 of surah number two al-Baqarah may make an allusion to them:
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|273}}|[Charity is] for the poor who have been restricted for the cause of Allah, unable to move about in the land. An ignorant [person] would think them self-sufficient because of their restraint, but you will know them by their [characteristic] sign. They do not ask people persistently [or at all]. And whatever you spend of good - indeed, Allah is Knowing of it.
}}

===Bukhari 7324 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|92|425}}|Narrated Muhammad:

We were with Abu Huraira while he was wearing two linen garments dyed with red clay. He cleaned his nose with his garment, saying, "Bravo! Bravo! Abu Huraira is cleaning his nose with linen! '''There came a time when I would fall senseless between the pulpit of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and `Aisha's dwelling whereupon a passerby would come and put his foot on my neck, considering me a mad man, but in fact, I had no madness, I suffered nothing but hunger."'''}}
During the course of the last four years of the life of the prophet when according to the tradition he had total, uncontested power in Medinah, it is difficult to imagine someone daring to step upon the neck of a true companion of the prophet in broad daylight. It seems possible that Abu Hourayra didn't habitually accompany the prophet but rather stayed in or around the mosque of Madinah in the day, and homeless under the stars at night, amongst the "Suffah." In such a position he might well have seen the power that religion had in those times in that place. The opportunities afforded by religion would have been apparent.

==Judged as too Gossipy during the Lifetime of the Prophet, Saved by the Magic Cloth==
If one takes into account that he supposedly transmitted more than 5000 hadiths in the space of four years, that works out to collectively about 4 hadith per day, a startling piece of statistical evidence. Even more confusing : according to numerous sources, during these 4 years, in total he could only have known the prophet for a year and nine months since the prophet sent him under the command of ibn Al Hadhrami to Bahrain. The messenger of Allah died while Abu Hurayrah was still there in Bahrain (Abou Houreyra : Mahmoud Abou Ar Riya Al Misri, Commentaires des Hadiths, de Ibn Koteyba, page 39 et 41). But also because the prophet has spent a great amounts of his time in military expeditions during the last 4 years of his life it is unlikely that Abu Hurayrah spent even 1 year and 9 months around him. Numerous contemporaries of Abu Hurayrah expressed their astonishment if not their doubts concerning this profusion of hadith traditions which seemed to pour out of Abu Hurayrah like bullets from a machine gun .

===Muslim 6399 (2493) :===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|31|6085}}|'A'isha reported:

'''Don't you feel surprised at Abu Huraira?''' He came (one day) and sat beside the nook of my apartment and began to narrate (the hadith of Allah's Apostle). I was hearing while I was engaged in extolling Allah (reciting Subhan Allah) constantly. He stood up before I finished my repetition of Subhan Allah. '''If I were to meet him I would have warned him in stern words that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) did not speak so quickly as you talk.'''

}}(See also Muslim 7509 (2493) and 7510 (3004) and Bukhari 3568)

===Ahmad in al-Mousnad (16/563) :===
{{Quote|Ahmad in al-Musnad (16/563)|- « You recount too many hadith traditions! »
- « If I recounted to you all that I have understood from the prophet (peace and prayers of Allah be upon him) you would qualify me as a "collector of anything that comes my way" and you would discuss nothing more with me. »

}}

===Muslim 6397 (2492)===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|31|6083}}|Al-A'raj reported that he heard Abu Huraira as saying:

''' You are under the impression that Abu Huraira transmits so many ahadith from Allah's Messenger (may peace up upon him)'''; (bear in mind) Allah is the great Reckoner. I was a poor man and I served Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) being satisfied with bare subsistence, whereas the immigrants remained busy with transactions in the bazar; while the Ansar had been engaged in looking after their properties. (He further reported) that '''Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: He who spreads the cloth would not forget anything that he would hear from me. I spread my cloth until he narrated something. I then pressed it against my (chest), so I never forgot anything that I heard from him.'''}}
(see also Bukhari 118,119, 3648, 7354, 2047 and 2350)

==Suspicion that he Invented Hadiths==

===Bukhari 5355 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|64|268}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

"The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The best alms is that which is given when one is rich, and a giving hand is better than a taking one, and you should start first to support your dependents.' A wife says, 'You should either provide me with food or divorce me.' A slave says, 'Give me food and enjoy my service." A son says, "Give me food; to whom do you leave me?" '''The people said, "O Abu Huraira! Did you hear that from Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) ?" He said, "No, it is from my own self."'''}}

===Muslim 2589 (1109)===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|6|2451}}|Abu Bakr (he is Abu Bakr b. Abd al-Rahman b. Harith) reported:

I heard Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) narrating that he who is overtaken by dawn in a state of seminal emission should not observe fast. I made a mention of it to 'Abd al-Rahman b. Harith (i. e. to his father) but he denied it. 'Abd al-Rahman went and I also went along with him till we came to'A'isha and Umm Salama (Allah be pleased with both of them) and Abd al-Rahman asked them about it. Both of them said: (At times it so happened) that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) woke up in the morning in a state of junub (but without seminal emission in a dream) and observed fast He (the narrator) said: We then proceeded till we went to Marwan and Abd al-Rahman made a mention of it to him. Upon this Marwan said: I stress upon you (with an oath) that you better go to Abu Huraira and refer to him what is said about it. So we came to Abu Huraira and Abu Bakr had been with us throughout and 'Abd al-Rahman made a mention of it to him, whereupon Abu Huraira said: Did they (the two wives of the Holy Prophet) tell you this? He replied: Yes Upon this (Abu Huraira) said: They have better knowledge. '''Abu Huraira then attributed that what was said about it to Fadl b. 'Abbas and said: I heard it from Fadl and not from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). Abu Huraira then retracted from what he used to say about it.''' Ibn Juraij (one of the narrators) reported: I asked 'Abd al-Malik, if they (the two wives) said (made the statement) in regard to Ramadan, whereupon he said: It was so, and he (the Holy Prophet) (woke up in the) morning in a state of junub which was not due to the wet dream and then observed fast.}}

==His Use and Occasional Inconvienence to the Caliphates==
While he was impoverished during the life of the prophet, Abu Hurayrah managed to considerably enrich himself during the reigns of the first caliphs. He was designated the emir of Madinah more than once. He continued to narrate hadiths throughout his life, but not everyone seemed pleased by his narrations: 'Umar threatened him to shut him up while Mu’âwiya found it easier to purchase his silence.

===Tarik Madinat Dimachk by Ibn Asākir Vol 67 p 343===
{{Quote||From al Saib bin Yazid who said :I understood Omar ibn al-Khattab to say to Abu Hourayrah : « Either you stop putting out hadith 'from the messenger of Allah' or I will send you to the land of Daws. »}}

===Ibn Asâkir (Ta’rikh Dimashq), Ibn Kathir (Al-Bidaya wa l-Nihâya), Al Dhahabî (Siyar A’lâmi al Nubalâ)===
{{Quote||from Sheikh Ahmad : « Abû Hurayrah shut up when Mu’âwiya paid him, and when he didn't pay, Abu Hurayrah talked. »}}

===Bukhari 120 + Ibn Hajar al-’Asqalanî (Fath al-Bari)===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|3|121}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

I have memorized two kinds of knowledge from Allah's Messenger (ﷺ). I have propagated one of them to you and if I propagated the second, then my pharynx (throat) would be cut (i.e. killed).

}}
'''Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalanî (Fath al-Bari)''' explains the previous hadith in these terms : « The scholars have deduced that the jar that he did not divulge contains some hadiths with the names of the governors of the treasury, their state and their time period. Abû Hurayra made the same indirect reference to certain ones amongst them, because because he was afraid for himself. »

===Ibn Sa’d al-Baghdadi Kitab al-Tabaqât al Kabîr :===
{{Quote||« I was a servant of Ibn ‘Affan and Bint Ghazwane just to keep food in my belly. I drove them when they were on their mounts and served them when they descended. She [Bousra Bint Ghazwane] told me one day : « you will only mount a mount when they are upright [it is very difficult to mount a dromedary upright] and you will only come down barefoot. » Then god allowed me to marry her[when he was promoted to amir under Mu’âwiya] and I told him : «You will only get down barefoot and you will only get on when it is upright. »}}
Abu Hurayrah finished his life immensely wealthy, the governor of Medinah living in a palace. In the service of the first caliphs and in particular the Umayyads, he very effectively collaborated and ingratiated himself with the founders of today's current Sunni islam, a venture which served to make him immensely rich and powerful.

==Examples of Hadiths in the Pure Style of Abu Hurayrah==

===Some Hadiths Which Were Favored by the Caliphate:===

====Bukhari 6924 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|84|59}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

When the Prophet (ﷺ) died and Abu Bakr became his successor and some of the Arabs reverted to disbelief, `Umar said, "O Abu Bakr! How can you fight these people although Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, 'I have been ordered to fight the people till they say: 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah, 'and whoever said, 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah', Allah will save his property and his life from me, unless (he does something for which he receives legal punishment) justly, and his account will be with Allah?' "Abu Bakr said, "By Allah! I will fight whoever differentiates between prayers and Zakat as Zakat is the right to be taken from property (according to Allah's Orders). By Allah! If they refused to pay me even a kid they used to pay to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ), I would fight with them for withholding it." `Umar said, "By Allah: It was nothing, but I noticed that Allah opened Abu Bakr's chest towards the decision to fight, therefore I realized that his decision was right."}}

====Bukhari 1442 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|522}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Every day two angels come down from Heaven and one of them says, '''«'O Allah! Compensate every person who spends in Your Cause,' and the other (angel) says, 'O Allah! Destroy every miser.'»'''}}

====Bukhari 2548 and 2549 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|3|46|724}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "A pious slave gets a double reward." Abu Huraira added: By Him in Whose Hands my soul is but for Jihad (i.e. holy battles), Hajj, and my duty to serve my mother, I would have loved to die as a slave.}}

====Abu Dawud 2175 :====
{{Quote|{{Abudawud|12|2170}}|Narrated AbuHurayrah:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Anyone who incites a woman against her husband or a slave against his master is not one of us.}}

===Others concerning good morals:===

====Bukhari 5185 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|114}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should not hurt (trouble) his neighbor. And I advise you to take care of the women, for they are created from a rib and the most crooked portion of the rib is its upper part; if you try to straighten it, it will break, and if you leave it, it will remain crooked, so I urge you to take care of the women." ».}}

====Bukhari 5136 and Muslim 1419 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|67}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "A widow should not be given in marriage except after consulting her; and a virgin should not be given in marriage except after her permission." The people asked, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! How can we know her permission?" He said, "Her silence (indicates her permission).}}

====Bukhari 1088 and Muslim 1339 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|20|193}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (p.b.u.h) said, "It is not permissible for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to travel for one day and night except with a Mahram."}}

====Bukhari 5194 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|122}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If a woman spends the night deserting her husband's bed (does not sleep with him), then the angels send their curses on her till she comes back (to her husband).}}
(see also Muslim 1436)

====Tirmidhi 1159 :====
{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi|10|2|10|1159}}|Abu Hurairah narrated that The Prophet said:

“If I were to order anyone to prostrate to anyone, then I would order the wife to prostrate to her husband.”}}

====Muslim 5661 :====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|26|5389}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

Do not greet the Jews and the Christians before they greet you and when you meet any one of them on the roads force him to go to the narrowest part of it.}}

===Other hadiths:===

====Muslim 6580 :====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|32|6252}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

The claimants would get their claims on the Day of Resurrection so much so that the hornless sheep would get its claim from the horned sheep.}}

====Bukhari 3295 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|516}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If anyone of you rouses from sleep and performs the ablution, he should wash his nose by putting water in it and then blowing it out thrice, because Satan has stayed in the upper part of his nose all the night."}}

====Bukhari 608 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|11|582}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "When the Adhan is pronounced Satan takes to his heels and passes wind with noise during his flight in order not to hear the Adhan. When the Adhan is completed he comes back and again takes to his heels when the Iqama is pronounced and after its completion he returns again till he whispers into the heart of the person (to divert his attention from his prayer) and makes him remember things which he does not recall to his mind before the prayer and that causes him to forget how much he has prayed."}}

====Bukhari 3320 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|537}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said "If a house fly falls in the drink of anyone of you, he should dip it (in the drink) and take it out, for one of its wings has a disease and the other has the cure for the disease."}}

====Bukhari 278 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|5|277}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The (people of) Bani Israel used to take bath naked (all together) looking at each other. The Prophet (ﷺ) Moses used to take a bath alone. They said, 'By Allah! Nothing prevents Moses from taking a bath with us except that he has a scrotal hernia.' So once Moses went out to take a bath and put his clothes over a stone and then that stone ran away with his clothes. Moses followed that stone saying, "My clothes, O stone! My clothes, O stone! till the people of Bani Israel saw him and said, 'By Allah, Moses has got no defect in his body. Moses took his clothes and began to beat the stone." Abu Huraira added, "By Allah! There are still six or seven marks present on the stone from that excessive beating."}}

====Bukhari 279 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|5|277}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The (people of) Bani Israel used to take bath naked (all together) looking at each other. The Prophet (ﷺ) Moses used to take a bath alone. They said, 'By Allah! Nothing prevents Moses from taking a bath with us except that he has a scrotal hernia.' So once Moses went out to take a bath and put his clothes over a stone and then that stone ran away with his clothes. Moses followed that stone saying, "My clothes, O stone! My clothes, O stone! till the people of Bani Israel saw him and said, 'By Allah, Moses has got no defect in his body. Moses took his clothes and began to beat the stone." Abu Huraira added, "By Allah! There are still six or seven marks present on the stone from that excessive beating."}}

====Bukhari 3292 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|512}}|« Narrated Abu Qatada:

as below. Narrated Abu Qatada: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "A good dream is from Allah, and a bad or evil dream is from Satan; so if anyone of you has a bad dream of which he gets afraid, he should spit on his left side and should seek Refuge with Allah from its evil, for then it will not harm him." »}}

====Bukhari 3860 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|5|58|200}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:

That once he was in the company of the Prophet (ﷺ) carrying a water pot for his ablution and for cleaning his private parts. While he was following him carrying it (i.e. the pot), the Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Who is this?" He said, "I am Abu Huraira." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Bring me stones in order to clean my private parts, and do not bring any bones or animal dung." Abu Huraira went on narrating: So I brought some stones, carrying them in the corner of my robe till I put them by his side and went away. When he finished, I walked with him and asked, "What about the bone and the animal dung?" He said, "They are of the food of Jinns. The delegate of Jinns of (the city of) Nasibin came to me--and how nice those Jinns were--and asked me for the remains of the human food. I invoked Allah for them that they would never pass by a bone or animal dung but find food on them." »}}

====Muslim 6924 :====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|41|6924}}|« Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

The Last Hour would not come until the Romans would land at al-A'maq or in Dabiq. An army consisting of the best (soldiers) of the people of the earth at that time will come from Medina (to counteract them). When they will arrange themselves in ranks, the Romans would say: Do not stand between us and those (Muslims) who took prisoners from amongst us. Let us fight with them; and the Muslims would say: Nay, by Allah, we would never get aside from you and from our brethren that you may fight them. They will then fight and a third (part) of the army would run away, whom Allah will never forgive. A third (part of the army) which would be constituted of excellent martyrs in Allah's eye, would be killed and the third who would never be put to trial would win and they would be conquerors of Constantinople. And as they would be busy in distributing the spoils of war (amongst themselves) after hanging their swords by the olive trees, the Satan would cry: The Dajjal has taken your place among your family. They would then come out, but it would be of no avail. And when they would come to Syria, he would come out while they would be still preparing themselves for battle drawing up the ranks. Certainly, the time of prayer shall come and then Jesus (peace be upon him) son of Mary would descend and would lead them. When the enemy of Allah would see him, it would (disappear) just as the salt dissolves itself in water and if he (Jesus) were not to confront them at all, even then it would dissolve completely, but Allah would kill them by his hand and he would show them their blood on his lance (the lance of Jesus Christ). »}}

====Bukhari 3056 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|52|290}}|« Narrated Ibn 'Umar:

Umar and a group of the companions of the Prophet (ﷺ) set out with the Prophet to Ibn Saiyad. He found him playing with some boys near the hillocks of Bani Maghala. Ibn Saiyad at that time was nearing his puberty. He did not notice (the Prophet's presence) till the Prophet (ﷺ) stroked him on the back with his hand and said, "Ibn Saiyad! Do you testify that I am Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)?" Ibn Saiyad looked at him and said, "I testify that you are the Apostle of the illiterates." Then Ibn Saiyad asked the Prophet. "Do you testify that I am the apostle of Allah?" The Prophet (ﷺ) said to him, "I believe in Allah and His Apostles." Then the Prophet (ﷺ) said (to Ibn Saiyad). "What do you see?" Ibn Saiyad replied, "True people and false ones visit me." The Prophet said, "Your mind is confused as to this matter." The Prophet (ﷺ) added, " I have kept something (in my mind) for you." Ibn Saiyad said, "It is Ad-Dukh." The Prophet (ﷺ) said (to him), "Shame be on you! You cannot cross your limits." On that 'Umar said, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! Allow me to chop his head off." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If he should be him (i.e. Ad-Dajjal) then you cannot overpower him, and should he not be him, then you are not going to benefit by murdering him." »}}

====Bukhari 1145 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|21|246}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) (p.b.u.h) said, "Our Lord, the Blessed, the Superior, comes every night down on the nearest Heaven to us when the last third of the night remains, saying: "Is there anyone to invoke Me, so that I may respond to invocation? Is there anyone to ask Me, so that I may grant him his request? Is there anyone seeking My forgiveness, so that I may forgive him?" »}}
This last hadith, like much else in the tradition, seems to imply a flat earth that does not turn.

Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars: Abu Hurayrah

2024-03-09T20:22:27Z

Vixen: /* Bukhari 1088 et muslim 1339 : */

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'''<nowiki/>'Abd al-Rahman ibn Sakhr ad-Dawsi''' (Arabic : عبدالرحمن بن صخر الدوسي), or '''Abu Hurayra''', born between 601 and 604 and died between 676 and 679, is a celebrated sahabi, or companion of the prophet Mohammed. It is estimated that he transmited 5,374 hadiths, more or less the equivalent of an entire Qu'ran by himself. He is cited in more than half of the classic isnâds (chains of transmission) of the hadiths, making him the greatest know traditionalist (muhaddith). He is therefore responsible for transmitting more hadiths than any other companion of the prophet according to the tradition, even though according to this same tradition he spent less time around Muhammad and was less intimitely familiar with him than the other companions. In affect, according the majority of authors, he only knew Muhammad during the latter part of his life: at most he knew the prophet for 4 years before the latter's death.

He was very poor during the life of the prophet, but he became the governor of Bahrain during the reign of ‘Umar Ibn al-Khattâb, and he subsequently abandoned the post then became emir of Madinah under the caliphate of Mu’âwiya.

==Place of Abu Hurayrah amongst the Companions of the Prophet During his Lifetime==

===Bukhari 5432 (et 3708) :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|65|343}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:
'''I used to accompany Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) to fill my stomach'''; and that was when I did not eat baked bread, nor wear silk. Neither a male nor a female slave used to serve me, and '''I used to bind stones over my belly and ask somebody to recite a Qur'anic Verse for me though I knew it, so that he might take me to his house and feed me. Ja`far bin Abi Talib was very kind to the poor''', and he used to take us and feed us with what ever was available in his house, (and if nothing was available), '''he used to give us the empty (honey or butter) skin which we would tear and lick whatever was in it.'''»}}

===Thirmidhi 3764 :===
{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi|46|6|46|3764}}|Narrated Abu Hurairah:

"None has put on sandals - nor worn them, nor ridden a mount, nor a Kur, after the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) - better than Ja'far [bin Abi Talib]."}}

===Bukhari 5375 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|65|287}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

'''Once while I was in a state of fatigue (because of severe hunger), I met 'Umar bin Al-Khattab, so I asked him to recite a verse from Allah's Book to me. He entered his house and interpreted it to me. (Then I went out and) after walking for a short distance, I fell on my face because of fatigue and severe hunger.''' Suddenly I saw Allah's Apostle standing by my head. He said, "O Abu Huraira!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ), and Sadaik!" Then he held me by the hand, and made me get up. Then he came to know what I was suffering from. He took me to his house, and ordered a big bowl of milk for me. I drank thereof and he said, "Drink more, O Abu Hirr!" So I drank again, whereupon he again said, "Drink more." So I drank more till my belly became full and looked like a bowl. '''Afterwards I met 'Umar and mentioned to him what had happened to me, and said to him, "Somebody, who had more right than you, O 'Umar, took over the case. By Allah, I asked you to recite a Verse to me while I knew it better than you."''' On that Umar said to me, "By Allah, if I admitted and entertained you, it would have been dearer to me than having nice red camels.''' }}

===Bukhari 6452 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|8|76|459}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

'''By Allah except Whom none has the right to- be worshipped, (sometimes) I used to lay (sleep) on the ground on my liver (abdomen) because of hunger, and (sometimes) I used to bind a stone over my belly because of hunger. One day I sat by the way from where they (the Prophet (ﷺ) and his companions) used to come out. When Abu Bakr passed by, I asked him about a Verse from Allah's Book and I asked him only that he might satisfy my hunger, but he passed by and did not do so.''' Then `Umar passed by me and I asked him about a Verse from Allah's Book, and I asked him only that he might satisfy my hunger, but he passed by without doing so. Finally Abu-l-Qasim (the Prophet (ﷺ) ) passed by me and he smiled when he saw me, for he knew what was in my heart and on my face. He said, "O Aba Hirr (Abu Huraira)!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said to me, "Follow me." He left and I followed him. Then he entered the house and I asked permission to enter and was admitted. He found milk in a bowl and said, "From where is this milk?" They said, "It has been presented to you by such-and-such man (or by such and such woman)." He said, "O Aba Hirr!" I said, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "Go and call the people of Suffa to me." '''These people of Suffa were the guests of Islam who had no families, nor money, nor anybody to depend upon, and whenever an object of charity was brought to the Prophet, he would send it to them and would not take anything from it, and whenever any present was given to him, he used to send some for them and take some of it for himself.''' The order of the Prophet upset me, and I said to myself, "How will this little milk be enough for the people of As- Suffa? though I was more entitled to drink from that milk in order to strengthen myself", but behold! The Prophet (ﷺ) came to order me to give that milk to them. I wondered what will remain of that milk for me, but anyway, I could not but obey Allah and His Apostle so I went to the people of As-Suffa and called them, and they came and asked the Prophet's permission to enter. They were admitted and took their seats in the house. The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "O Aba-Hirr!" I said, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "Take it and give it to them." So I took the bowl (of milk) and started giving it to one man who would drink his fill and return it to me, whereupon I would give it to another man who, in his turn, would drink his fill and return it to me, and I would then offer it to another man who would drink his fill and return it to me. Finally, after the whole group had drunk their fill, I reached the Prophet (ﷺ) who took the bowl and put it on his hand, looked at me and smiled and said. "O Aba Hirr!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "There remain you and I." I said, "You have said the truth, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "Sit down and drink." I sat down and drank. He said, "Drink," and I drank. He kept on telling me repeatedly to drink, till I said, "No. by Allah Who sent you with the Truth, I have no space for it (in my stomach)." He said, "Hand it over to me." When I gave him the bowl, he praised Allah and pronounced Allah's Name on it and drank the remaining milk.}}

====Commentary :====
'''Ahl as-Suffah (أهل الصفة)''' : literally, the people of the banquet. They sojourned permanently about the prophet's mosque and sheltered under a canopy.

Verse 273 of surah number two al-Baqarah may make an allusion to them:
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|273}}|[Charity is] for the poor who have been restricted for the cause of Allah, unable to move about in the land. An ignorant [person] would think them self-sufficient because of their restraint, but you will know them by their [characteristic] sign. They do not ask people persistently [or at all]. And whatever you spend of good - indeed, Allah is Knowing of it.
}}

===Bukhari 7324 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|92|425}}|Narrated Muhammad:

We were with Abu Huraira while he was wearing two linen garments dyed with red clay. He cleaned his nose with his garment, saying, "Bravo! Bravo! Abu Huraira is cleaning his nose with linen! '''There came a time when I would fall senseless between the pulpit of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and `Aisha's dwelling whereupon a passerby would come and put his foot on my neck, considering me a mad man, but in fact, I had no madness, I suffered nothing but hunger."'''}}
During the course of the last four years of the life of the prophet when according to the tradition he had total, uncontested power in Medinah, it is difficult to imagine someone daring to step upon the neck of a true companion of the prophet in broad daylight. It seems possible that Abu Hourayra didn't habitually accompany the prophet but rather stayed in or around the mosque of Madinah in the day, and homeless under the stars at night, amongst the "Suffah." In such a position he might well have seen the power that religion had in those times in that place. The opportunities afforded by religion would have been apparent.

==Judged as too Gossipy during the Lifetime of the Prophet, Saved by the Magic Cloth==
If one takes into account that he supposedly transmitted more than 5000 hadiths in the space of four years, that works out to collectively about 4 hadith per day, a startling piece of statistical evidence. Even more confusing : according to numerous sources, during these 4 years, in total he could only have known the prophet for a year and nine months since the prophet sent him under the command of ibn Al Hadhrami to Bahrain. The messenger of Allah died while Abu Hurayrah was still there in Bahrain (Abou Houreyra : Mahmoud Abou Ar Riya Al Misri, Commentaries des Hadiths, de Ibn Koteyba, page 39 et 41). But also because the prophet has spent a great amounts of his time in military expeditions during the last 4 years of his life it is unlikely that Abu Hurayrah spent even 1 year and 9 months around him. Numerous contemporaries of Abu Hurayrah expressed their astonishment if not their doubts concerning this profusion of hadith traditions which seemed to pour out of Abu Hurayrah like bullets from a machine gun .

===Muslim 6399 (2493) :===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|31|6085}}|'A'isha reported:

'''Don't you feel surprised at Abu Huraira?''' He came (one day) and sat beside the nook of my apartment and began to narrate (the hadith of Allah's Apostle). I was hearing while I was engaged in extolling Allah (reciting Subhan Allah) constantly. He stood up before I finished my repetition of Subhan Allah. '''If I were to meet him I would have warned him in stern words that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) did not speak so quickly as you talk.'''

}}(See also Muslim 7509 (2493) et 7510 (3004) and Bukhari 3568)

===Ahmad in al-Mousnad (16/563) :===
{{Quote|Ahmad in al-Musnad (16/563)|- « You recount too many hadith traditions! »
- « If I recounted to you all that I have understood from the prophet (peace and prayers of Allah be upon him) you would qualify me as a "collector of anything that comes my way" and you would discuss nothing more with me. »

}}

===Muslim 6397 (2492)===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|31|6083}}|Al-A'raj reported that he heard Abu Huraira as saying:

''' You are under the impression that Abu Huraira transmits so many ahadith from Allah's Messenger (may peace up upon him)'''; (bear in mind) Allah is the great Reckoner. I was a poor man and I served Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) being satisfied with bare subsistence, whereas the immigrants remained busy with transactions in the bazar; while the Ansar had been engaged in looking after their properties. (He further reported) that '''Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: He who spreads the cloth would not forget anything that he would hear from me. I spread my cloth until he narrated something. I then pressed it against my (chest), so I never forgot anything that I heard from him.'''}}
(see also Bukhari 118,119, 3648, 7354, 2047 and 2350)

==Suspicion that he Invented Hadiths==

===Bukhari 5355 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|64|268}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

"The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The best alms is that which is given when one is rich, and a giving hand is better than a taking one, and you should start first to support your dependents.' A wife says, 'You should either provide me with food or divorce me.' A slave says, 'Give me food and enjoy my service." A son says, "Give me food; to whom do you leave me?" '''The people said, "O Abu Huraira! Did you hear that from Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) ?" He said, "No, it is from my own self."'''}}

===Muslim 2589 (1109)===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|6|2451}}|Abu Bakr (he is Abu Bakr b. Abd al-Rahman b. Harith) reported:

I heard Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) narrating that he who is overtaken by dawn in a state of seminal emission should not observe fast. I made a mention of it to 'Abd al-Rahman b. Harith (i. e. to his father) but he denied it. 'Abd al-Rahman went and I also went along with him till we came to'A'isha and Umm Salama (Allah be pleased with both of them) and Abd al-Rahman asked them about it. Both of them said: (At times it so happened) that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) woke up in the morning in a state of junub (but without seminal emission in a dream) and observed fast He (the narrator) said: We then proceeded till we went to Marwan and Abd al-Rahman made a mention of it to him. Upon this Marwan said: I stress upon you (with an oath) that you better go to Abu Huraira and refer to him what is said about it. So we came to Abu Huraira and Abu Bakr had been with us throughout and 'Abd al-Rahman made a mention of it to him, whereupon Abu Huraira said: Did they (the two wives of the Holy Prophet) tell you this? He replied: Yes Upon this (Abu Huraira) said: They have better knowledge. '''Abu Huraira then attributed that what was said about it to Fadl b. 'Abbas and said: I heard it from Fadl and not from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). Abu Huraira then retracted from what he used to say about it.''' Ibn Juraij (one of the narrators) reported: I asked 'Abd al-Malik, if they (the two wives) said (made the statement) in regard to Ramadan, whereupon he said: It was so, and he (the Holy Prophet) (woke up in the) morning in a state of junub which was not due to the wet dream and then observed fast.}}

==His Use and Occasional Inconvienence to the Caliphates==
While he was impoverished during the life of the prophet, Abu Hurayrah managed to considerably enrich himself during the reigns of the first caliphs. He was designated the emir of Madinah more than once. He continued to narrate hadiths throughout his life, but not everyone seemed pleased by his narrations: 'Umar threatened him to shut him up while Mu’âwiya found it easier to purchase his silence.

===Tarik Madinat Dimachk d’Ibn Asākir Vol 67 p 343===
{{Quote||From al Saib bin Yazid who said :I understood Omar ibn al-Khattab to say to Abu Hourayrah : « Either you stop putting out hadith 'from the messenger of Allah' or I will send you to the land of Daws. »}}

===Ibn Asâkir (Ta’rikh Dimashq), Ibn Kathir (Al-Bidaya wa l-Nihâya), Al Dhahabî (Siyar A’lâmi al Nubalâ)===
{{Quote||from Sheikh Ahmad : « Abû Hurayrah shut up when Mu’âwiya paid him, and when he didn't pay, Abu Hurayrah talked. »}}

===Bukhari 120 + Ibn Hajar al-’Asqalanî (Fath al-Bari)===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|3|121}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

I have memorized two kinds of knowledge from Allah's Messenger (ﷺ). I have propagated one of them to you and if I propagated the second, then my pharynx (throat) would be cut (i.e. killed).

}}
'''Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalanî (Fath al-Bari)''' explains the previous hadith in these terms : « The scholars have deduced that the jar that he did not divulge contains some hadiths with the names of the governors of the treasury, their state and their time period. Abû Hurayra made the same indirect reference to certain ones amongst them, because because he was afraid for himself. »

===Ibn Sa’d al-Baghdadi Kitab al-Tabaqât al Kabîr :===
{{Quote||« I was a servant of Ibn ‘Affan and Bint Ghazwane just to keep food in my belly. I drove them when they were on their mounts and served them when they descended. She [Bousra Bint Ghazwane] told me one day : « you will only mount a mount when they are upright [it is very difficult to mount a dromedary upright] and you will only come down barefoot. » Then god allowed me to marry her[when he was promoted to amir under Mu’âwiya] and I told him : «You will only get down barefoot and you will only get on when it is upright. »}}
Abu Hurayrah finished his life immensely wealthy, the governor of Medinah living in a palace. In the service of the first caliphs and in particular the Umayyads, he very effectively collaborated and ingratiated himself with the founders of today's current Sunni islam, a venture which served to make him immensely rich and powerful.

==Examples of Hadiths in the Pure Style of Abu Hurayrah==

===Some Hadiths Which Were Favored by the Caliphate:===

====Bukhari 6924 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|84|59}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

When the Prophet (ﷺ) died and Abu Bakr became his successor and some of the Arabs reverted to disbelief, `Umar said, "O Abu Bakr! How can you fight these people although Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, 'I have been ordered to fight the people till they say: 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah, 'and whoever said, 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah', Allah will save his property and his life from me, unless (he does something for which he receives legal punishment) justly, and his account will be with Allah?' "Abu Bakr said, "By Allah! I will fight whoever differentiates between prayers and Zakat as Zakat is the right to be taken from property (according to Allah's Orders). By Allah! If they refused to pay me even a kid they used to pay to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ), I would fight with them for withholding it." `Umar said, "By Allah: It was nothing, but I noticed that Allah opened Abu Bakr's chest towards the decision to fight, therefore I realized that his decision was right."}}

====Bukhari 1442 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|522}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Every day two angels come down from Heaven and one of them says, '''«'O Allah! Compensate every person who spends in Your Cause,' and the other (angel) says, 'O Allah! Destroy every miser.'»'''}}

====Bukhari 2548 and 2549 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|3|46|724}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "A pious slave gets a double reward." Abu Huraira added: By Him in Whose Hands my soul is but for Jihad (i.e. holy battles), Hajj, and my duty to serve my mother, I would have loved to die as a slave.}}

====Abu Dawud 2175 :====
{{Quote|{{Abudawud|12|2170}}|Narrated AbuHurayrah:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Anyone who incites a woman against her husband or a slave against his master is not one of us.}}

===Others concerning good morals:===

====Bukhari 5185 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|114}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should not hurt (trouble) his neighbor. And I advise you to take care of the women, for they are created from a rib and the most crooked portion of the rib is its upper part; if you try to straighten it, it will break, and if you leave it, it will remain crooked, so I urge you to take care of the women." ».}}

====Bukhari 5136 et Muslim 1419 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|67}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "A widow should not be given in marriage except after consulting her; and a virgin should not be given in marriage except after her permission." The people asked, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! How can we know her permission?" He said, "Her silence (indicates her permission).}}

====Bukhari 1088 et muslim 1339 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|20|193}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (p.b.u.h) said, "It is not permissible for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to travel for one day and night except with a Mahram."}}

====Bukhari 5194 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|122}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If a woman spends the night deserting her husband's bed (does not sleep with him), then the angels send their curses on her till she comes back (to her husband).}}
(see also Muslim 1436)

====Tirmidhi 1159 :====
{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi|10|2|10|1159}}|Abu Hurairah narrated that The Prophet said:

“If I were to order anyone to prostrate to anyone, then I would order the wife to prostrate to her husband.”}}

====Muslim 5661 :====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|26|5389}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

Do not greet the Jews and the Christians before they greet you and when you meet any one of them on the roads force him to go to the narrowest part of it.}}

===Other hadiths:===

====Muslim 6580 :====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|32|6252}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

The claimants would get their claims on the Day of Resurrection so much so that the hornless sheep would get its claim from the horned sheep.}}

====Bukhari 3295 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|516}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If anyone of you rouses from sleep and performs the ablution, he should wash his nose by putting water in it and then blowing it out thrice, because Satan has stayed in the upper part of his nose all the night."}}

====Bukhari 608 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|11|582}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "When the Adhan is pronounced Satan takes to his heels and passes wind with noise during his flight in order not to hear the Adhan. When the Adhan is completed he comes back and again takes to his heels when the Iqama is pronounced and after its completion he returns again till he whispers into the heart of the person (to divert his attention from his prayer) and makes him remember things which he does not recall to his mind before the prayer and that causes him to forget how much he has prayed."}}

====Bukhari 3320 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|537}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said "If a house fly falls in the drink of anyone of you, he should dip it (in the drink) and take it out, for one of its wings has a disease and the other has the cure for the disease."}}

====Bukhari 278 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|5|277}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The (people of) Bani Israel used to take bath naked (all together) looking at each other. The Prophet (ﷺ) Moses used to take a bath alone. They said, 'By Allah! Nothing prevents Moses from taking a bath with us except that he has a scrotal hernia.' So once Moses went out to take a bath and put his clothes over a stone and then that stone ran away with his clothes. Moses followed that stone saying, "My clothes, O stone! My clothes, O stone! till the people of Bani Israel saw him and said, 'By Allah, Moses has got no defect in his body. Moses took his clothes and began to beat the stone." Abu Huraira added, "By Allah! There are still six or seven marks present on the stone from that excessive beating."}}

====Bukhari 279 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|5|277}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The (people of) Bani Israel used to take bath naked (all together) looking at each other. The Prophet (ﷺ) Moses used to take a bath alone. They said, 'By Allah! Nothing prevents Moses from taking a bath with us except that he has a scrotal hernia.' So once Moses went out to take a bath and put his clothes over a stone and then that stone ran away with his clothes. Moses followed that stone saying, "My clothes, O stone! My clothes, O stone! till the people of Bani Israel saw him and said, 'By Allah, Moses has got no defect in his body. Moses took his clothes and began to beat the stone." Abu Huraira added, "By Allah! There are still six or seven marks present on the stone from that excessive beating."}}

====Bukhari 3292 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|512}}|« Narrated Abu Qatada:

as below. Narrated Abu Qatada: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "A good dream is from Allah, and a bad or evil dream is from Satan; so if anyone of you has a bad dream of which he gets afraid, he should spit on his left side and should seek Refuge with Allah from its evil, for then it will not harm him." »}}

====Bukhari 3860 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|5|58|200}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:

That once he was in the company of the Prophet (ﷺ) carrying a water pot for his ablution and for cleaning his private parts. While he was following him carrying it (i.e. the pot), the Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Who is this?" He said, "I am Abu Huraira." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Bring me stones in order to clean my private parts, and do not bring any bones or animal dung." Abu Huraira went on narrating: So I brought some stones, carrying them in the corner of my robe till I put them by his side and went away. When he finished, I walked with him and asked, "What about the bone and the animal dung?" He said, "They are of the food of Jinns. The delegate of Jinns of (the city of) Nasibin came to me--and how nice those Jinns were--and asked me for the remains of the human food. I invoked Allah for them that they would never pass by a bone or animal dung but find food on them." »}}

====Muslim 6924 :====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|41|6924}}|« Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

The Last Hour would not come until the Romans would land at al-A'maq or in Dabiq. An army consisting of the best (soldiers) of the people of the earth at that time will come from Medina (to counteract them). When they will arrange themselves in ranks, the Romans would say: Do not stand between us and those (Muslims) who took prisoners from amongst us. Let us fight with them; and the Muslims would say: Nay, by Allah, we would never get aside from you and from our brethren that you may fight them. They will then fight and a third (part) of the army would run away, whom Allah will never forgive. A third (part of the army) which would be constituted of excellent martyrs in Allah's eye, would be killed and the third who would never be put to trial would win and they would be conquerors of Constantinople. And as they would be busy in distributing the spoils of war (amongst themselves) after hanging their swords by the olive trees, the Satan would cry: The Dajjal has taken your place among your family. They would then come out, but it would be of no avail. And when they would come to Syria, he would come out while they would be still preparing themselves for battle drawing up the ranks. Certainly, the time of prayer shall come and then Jesus (peace be upon him) son of Mary would descend and would lead them. When the enemy of Allah would see him, it would (disappear) just as the salt dissolves itself in water and if he (Jesus) were not to confront them at all, even then it would dissolve completely, but Allah would kill them by his hand and he would show them their blood on his lance (the lance of Jesus Christ). »}}

====Bukhari 3056 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|52|290}}|« Narrated Ibn 'Umar:

Umar and a group of the companions of the Prophet (ﷺ) set out with the Prophet to Ibn Saiyad. He found him playing with some boys near the hillocks of Bani Maghala. Ibn Saiyad at that time was nearing his puberty. He did not notice (the Prophet's presence) till the Prophet (ﷺ) stroked him on the back with his hand and said, "Ibn Saiyad! Do you testify that I am Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)?" Ibn Saiyad looked at him and said, "I testify that you are the Apostle of the illiterates." Then Ibn Saiyad asked the Prophet. "Do you testify that I am the apostle of Allah?" The Prophet (ﷺ) said to him, "I believe in Allah and His Apostles." Then the Prophet (ﷺ) said (to Ibn Saiyad). "What do you see?" Ibn Saiyad replied, "True people and false ones visit me." The Prophet said, "Your mind is confused as to this matter." The Prophet (ﷺ) added, " I have kept something (in my mind) for you." Ibn Saiyad said, "It is Ad-Dukh." The Prophet (ﷺ) said (to him), "Shame be on you! You cannot cross your limits." On that 'Umar said, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! Allow me to chop his head off." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If he should be him (i.e. Ad-Dajjal) then you cannot overpower him, and should he not be him, then you are not going to benefit by murdering him." »}}

====Bukhari 1145 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|21|246}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) (p.b.u.h) said, "Our Lord, the Blessed, the Superior, comes every night down on the nearest Heaven to us when the last third of the night remains, saying: "Is there anyone to invoke Me, so that I may respond to invocation? Is there anyone to ask Me, so that I may grant him his request? Is there anyone seeking My forgiveness, so that I may forgive him?" »}}
This last hadith, like much else in the tradition, seems to imply a flat earth that does not turn.

Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars: Abu Hurayrah

2024-03-09T13:53:11Z

Vixen: /* Tarik Madinat Dimachk d’Ibn Assadir Vol 67 p 343 */

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{{QuranHadithScholarsIndex}}

'''<nowiki/>'Abd al-Rahman ibn Sakhr ad-Dawsi''' (Arabic : عبدالرحمن بن صخر الدوسي), or '''Abu Hurayra''', born between 601 and 604 and died between 676 and 679, is a celebrated sahabi, or companion of the prophet Mohammed. It is estimated that he transmited 5,374 hadiths, more or less the equivalent of an entire Qu'ran by himself. He is cited in more than half of the classic isnâds (chains of transmission) of the hadiths, making him the greatest know traditionalist (muhaddith). He is therefore responsible for transmitting more hadiths than any other companion of the prophet according to the tradition, even though according to this same tradition he spent less time around Muhammad and was less intimitely familiar with him than the other companions. In affect, according the majority of authors, he only knew Muhammad during the latter part of his life: at most he knew the prophet for 4 years before the latter's death.

He was very poor during the life of the prophet, but he became the governor of Bahrain during the reign of ‘Umar Ibn al-Khattâb, and he subsequently abandoned the post then became emir of Madinah under the caliphate of Mu’âwiya.

==Place of Abu Hurayrah amongst the Companions of the Prophet During his Lifetime==

===Bukhari 5432 (et 3708) :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|65|343}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:
'''I used to accompany Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) to fill my stomach'''; and that was when I did not eat baked bread, nor wear silk. Neither a male nor a female slave used to serve me, and '''I used to bind stones over my belly and ask somebody to recite a Qur'anic Verse for me though I knew it, so that he might take me to his house and feed me. Ja`far bin Abi Talib was very kind to the poor''', and he used to take us and feed us with what ever was available in his house, (and if nothing was available), '''he used to give us the empty (honey or butter) skin which we would tear and lick whatever was in it.'''»}}

===Thirmidhi 3764 :===
{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi|46|6|46|3764}}|Narrated Abu Hurairah:

"None has put on sandals - nor worn them, nor ridden a mount, nor a Kur, after the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) - better than Ja'far [bin Abi Talib]."}}

===Bukhari 5375 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|65|287}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

'''Once while I was in a state of fatigue (because of severe hunger), I met 'Umar bin Al-Khattab, so I asked him to recite a verse from Allah's Book to me. He entered his house and interpreted it to me. (Then I went out and) after walking for a short distance, I fell on my face because of fatigue and severe hunger.''' Suddenly I saw Allah's Apostle standing by my head. He said, "O Abu Huraira!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ), and Sadaik!" Then he held me by the hand, and made me get up. Then he came to know what I was suffering from. He took me to his house, and ordered a big bowl of milk for me. I drank thereof and he said, "Drink more, O Abu Hirr!" So I drank again, whereupon he again said, "Drink more." So I drank more till my belly became full and looked like a bowl. '''Afterwards I met 'Umar and mentioned to him what had happened to me, and said to him, "Somebody, who had more right than you, O 'Umar, took over the case. By Allah, I asked you to recite a Verse to me while I knew it better than you."''' On that Umar said to me, "By Allah, if I admitted and entertained you, it would have been dearer to me than having nice red camels.''' }}

===Bukhari 6452 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|8|76|459}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

'''By Allah except Whom none has the right to- be worshipped, (sometimes) I used to lay (sleep) on the ground on my liver (abdomen) because of hunger, and (sometimes) I used to bind a stone over my belly because of hunger. One day I sat by the way from where they (the Prophet (ﷺ) and his companions) used to come out. When Abu Bakr passed by, I asked him about a Verse from Allah's Book and I asked him only that he might satisfy my hunger, but he passed by and did not do so.''' Then `Umar passed by me and I asked him about a Verse from Allah's Book, and I asked him only that he might satisfy my hunger, but he passed by without doing so. Finally Abu-l-Qasim (the Prophet (ﷺ) ) passed by me and he smiled when he saw me, for he knew what was in my heart and on my face. He said, "O Aba Hirr (Abu Huraira)!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said to me, "Follow me." He left and I followed him. Then he entered the house and I asked permission to enter and was admitted. He found milk in a bowl and said, "From where is this milk?" They said, "It has been presented to you by such-and-such man (or by such and such woman)." He said, "O Aba Hirr!" I said, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "Go and call the people of Suffa to me." '''These people of Suffa were the guests of Islam who had no families, nor money, nor anybody to depend upon, and whenever an object of charity was brought to the Prophet, he would send it to them and would not take anything from it, and whenever any present was given to him, he used to send some for them and take some of it for himself.''' The order of the Prophet upset me, and I said to myself, "How will this little milk be enough for the people of As- Suffa? though I was more entitled to drink from that milk in order to strengthen myself", but behold! The Prophet (ﷺ) came to order me to give that milk to them. I wondered what will remain of that milk for me, but anyway, I could not but obey Allah and His Apostle so I went to the people of As-Suffa and called them, and they came and asked the Prophet's permission to enter. They were admitted and took their seats in the house. The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "O Aba-Hirr!" I said, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "Take it and give it to them." So I took the bowl (of milk) and started giving it to one man who would drink his fill and return it to me, whereupon I would give it to another man who, in his turn, would drink his fill and return it to me, and I would then offer it to another man who would drink his fill and return it to me. Finally, after the whole group had drunk their fill, I reached the Prophet (ﷺ) who took the bowl and put it on his hand, looked at me and smiled and said. "O Aba Hirr!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "There remain you and I." I said, "You have said the truth, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "Sit down and drink." I sat down and drank. He said, "Drink," and I drank. He kept on telling me repeatedly to drink, till I said, "No. by Allah Who sent you with the Truth, I have no space for it (in my stomach)." He said, "Hand it over to me." When I gave him the bowl, he praised Allah and pronounced Allah's Name on it and drank the remaining milk.}}

====Commentary :====
'''Ahl as-Suffah (أهل الصفة)''' : literally, the people of the banquet. They sojourned permanently about the prophet's mosque and sheltered under a canopy.

Verse 273 of surah number two al-Baqarah may make an allusion to them:
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|273}}|[Charity is] for the poor who have been restricted for the cause of Allah, unable to move about in the land. An ignorant [person] would think them self-sufficient because of their restraint, but you will know them by their [characteristic] sign. They do not ask people persistently [or at all]. And whatever you spend of good - indeed, Allah is Knowing of it.
}}

===Bukhari 7324 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|92|425}}|Narrated Muhammad:

We were with Abu Huraira while he was wearing two linen garments dyed with red clay. He cleaned his nose with his garment, saying, "Bravo! Bravo! Abu Huraira is cleaning his nose with linen! '''There came a time when I would fall senseless between the pulpit of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and `Aisha's dwelling whereupon a passerby would come and put his foot on my neck, considering me a mad man, but in fact, I had no madness, I suffered nothing but hunger."'''}}
During the course of the last four years of the life of the prophet when according to the tradition he had total, uncontested power in Medinah, it is difficult to imagine someone daring to step upon the neck of a true companion of the prophet in broad daylight. It seems possible that Abu Hourayra didn't habitually accompany the prophet but rather stayed in or around the mosque of Madinah in the day, and homeless under the stars at night, amongst the "Suffah." In such a position he might well have seen the power that religion had in those times in that place. The opportunities afforded by religion would have been apparent.

==Judged as too Gossipy during the Lifetime of the Prophet, Saved by the Magic Cloth==
If one takes into account that he supposedly transmitted more than 5000 hadiths in the space of four years, that works out to collectively about 4 hadith per day, a startling piece of statistical evidence. Even more confusing : according to numerous sources, during these 4 years, in total he could only have known the prophet for a year and nine months since the prophet sent him under the command of ibn Al Hadhrami to Bahrain. The messenger of Allah died while Abu Hurayrah was still there in Bahrain (Abou Houreyra : Mahmoud Abou Ar Riya Al Misri, Commentaries des Hadiths, de Ibn Koteyba, page 39 et 41). But also because the prophet has spent a great amounts of his time in military expeditions during the last 4 years of his life it is unlikely that Abu Hurayrah spent even 1 year and 9 months around him. Numerous contemporaries of Abu Hurayrah expressed their astonishment if not their doubts concerning this profusion of hadith traditions which seemed to pour out of Abu Hurayrah like bullets from a machine gun .

===Muslim 6399 (2493) :===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|31|6085}}|'A'isha reported:

'''Don't you feel surprised at Abu Huraira?''' He came (one day) and sat beside the nook of my apartment and began to narrate (the hadith of Allah's Apostle). I was hearing while I was engaged in extolling Allah (reciting Subhan Allah) constantly. He stood up before I finished my repetition of Subhan Allah. '''If I were to meet him I would have warned him in stern words that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) did not speak so quickly as you talk.'''

}}(See also Muslim 7509 (2493) et 7510 (3004) and Bukhari 3568)

===Ahmad in al-Mousnad (16/563) :===
{{Quote|Ahmad in al-Musnad (16/563)|- « You recount too many hadith traditions! »
- « If I recounted to you all that I have understood from the prophet (peace and prayers of Allah be upon him) you would qualify me as a "collector of anything that comes my way" and you would discuss nothing more with me. »

}}

===Muslim 6397 (2492)===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|31|6083}}|Al-A'raj reported that he heard Abu Huraira as saying:

''' You are under the impression that Abu Huraira transmits so many ahadith from Allah's Messenger (may peace up upon him)'''; (bear in mind) Allah is the great Reckoner. I was a poor man and I served Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) being satisfied with bare subsistence, whereas the immigrants remained busy with transactions in the bazar; while the Ansar had been engaged in looking after their properties. (He further reported) that '''Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: He who spreads the cloth would not forget anything that he would hear from me. I spread my cloth until he narrated something. I then pressed it against my (chest), so I never forgot anything that I heard from him.'''}}
(see also Bukhari 118,119, 3648, 7354, 2047 and 2350)

==Suspicion that he Invented Hadiths==

===Bukhari 5355 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|64|268}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

"The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The best alms is that which is given when one is rich, and a giving hand is better than a taking one, and you should start first to support your dependents.' A wife says, 'You should either provide me with food or divorce me.' A slave says, 'Give me food and enjoy my service." A son says, "Give me food; to whom do you leave me?" '''The people said, "O Abu Huraira! Did you hear that from Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) ?" He said, "No, it is from my own self."'''}}

===Muslim 2589 (1109)===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|6|2451}}|Abu Bakr (he is Abu Bakr b. Abd al-Rahman b. Harith) reported:

I heard Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) narrating that he who is overtaken by dawn in a state of seminal emission should not observe fast. I made a mention of it to 'Abd al-Rahman b. Harith (i. e. to his father) but he denied it. 'Abd al-Rahman went and I also went along with him till we came to'A'isha and Umm Salama (Allah be pleased with both of them) and Abd al-Rahman asked them about it. Both of them said: (At times it so happened) that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) woke up in the morning in a state of junub (but without seminal emission in a dream) and observed fast He (the narrator) said: We then proceeded till we went to Marwan and Abd al-Rahman made a mention of it to him. Upon this Marwan said: I stress upon you (with an oath) that you better go to Abu Huraira and refer to him what is said about it. So we came to Abu Huraira and Abu Bakr had been with us throughout and 'Abd al-Rahman made a mention of it to him, whereupon Abu Huraira said: Did they (the two wives of the Holy Prophet) tell you this? He replied: Yes Upon this (Abu Huraira) said: They have better knowledge. '''Abu Huraira then attributed that what was said about it to Fadl b. 'Abbas and said: I heard it from Fadl and not from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). Abu Huraira then retracted from what he used to say about it.''' Ibn Juraij (one of the narrators) reported: I asked 'Abd al-Malik, if they (the two wives) said (made the statement) in regard to Ramadan, whereupon he said: It was so, and he (the Holy Prophet) (woke up in the) morning in a state of junub which was not due to the wet dream and then observed fast.}}

==His Use and Occasional Inconvienence to the Caliphates==
While he was impoverished during the life of the prophet, Abu Hurayrah managed to considerably enrich himself during the reigns of the first caliphs. He was designated the emir of Madinah more than once. He continued to narrate hadiths throughout his life, but not everyone seemed pleased by his narrations: 'Umar threatened him to shut him up while Mu’âwiya found it easier to purchase his silence.

===Tarik Madinat Dimachk d’Ibn Asākir Vol 67 p 343===
{{Quote||From al Saib bin Yazid who said :I understood Omar ibn al-Khattab to say to Abu Hourayrah : « Either you stop putting out hadith 'from the messenger of Allah' or I will send you to the land of Daws. »}}

===Ibn Asâkir (Ta’rikh Dimashq), Ibn Kathir (Al-Bidaya wa l-Nihâya), Al Dhahabî (Siyar A’lâmi al Nubalâ)===
{{Quote||from Sheikh Ahmad : « Abû Hurayrah shut up when Mu’âwiya paid him, and when he didn't pay, Abu Hurayrah talked. »}}

===Bukhari 120 + Ibn Hajar al-’Asqalanî (Fath al-Bari)===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|3|121}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

I have memorized two kinds of knowledge from Allah's Messenger (ﷺ). I have propagated one of them to you and if I propagated the second, then my pharynx (throat) would be cut (i.e. killed).

}}
'''Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalanî (Fath al-Bari)''' explains the previous hadith in these terms : « The scholars have deduced that the jar that he did not divulge contains some hadiths with the names of the governors of the treasury, their state and their time period. Abû Hurayra made the same indirect reference to certain ones amongst them, because because he was afraid for himself. »

===Ibn Sa’d al-Baghdadi Kitab al-Tabaqât al Kabîr :===
{{Quote||« I was a servant of Ibn ‘Affan and Bint Ghazwane just to keep food in my belly. I drove them when they were on their mounts and served them when they descended. She [Bousra Bint Ghazwane] told me one day : « you will only mount a mount when they are upright [it is very difficult to mount a dromedary upright] and you will only come down barefoot. » Then god allowed me to marry her[when he was promoted to amir under Mu’âwiya] and I told him : «You will only get down barefoot and you will only get on when it is upright. »}}
Abu Hurayrah finished his life immensely wealthy, the governor of Medinah living in a palace. In the service of the first caliphs and in particular the Umayyads, he very effectively collaborated and ingratiated himself with the founders of today's current Sunni islam, a venture which served to make him immensely rich and powerful.

==Examples of Hadiths in the Pure Style of Abu Hurayrah==

===Some Hadiths Which Were Favored by the Caliphate:===

====Bukhari 6924 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|84|59}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

When the Prophet (ﷺ) died and Abu Bakr became his successor and some of the Arabs reverted to disbelief, `Umar said, "O Abu Bakr! How can you fight these people although Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, 'I have been ordered to fight the people till they say: 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah, 'and whoever said, 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah', Allah will save his property and his life from me, unless (he does something for which he receives legal punishment) justly, and his account will be with Allah?' "Abu Bakr said, "By Allah! I will fight whoever differentiates between prayers and Zakat as Zakat is the right to be taken from property (according to Allah's Orders). By Allah! If they refused to pay me even a kid they used to pay to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ), I would fight with them for withholding it." `Umar said, "By Allah: It was nothing, but I noticed that Allah opened Abu Bakr's chest towards the decision to fight, therefore I realized that his decision was right."}}

====Bukhari 1442 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|522}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Every day two angels come down from Heaven and one of them says, '''«'O Allah! Compensate every person who spends in Your Cause,' and the other (angel) says, 'O Allah! Destroy every miser.'»'''}}

====Bukhari 2548 and 2549 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|3|46|724}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "A pious slave gets a double reward." Abu Huraira added: By Him in Whose Hands my soul is but for Jihad (i.e. holy battles), Hajj, and my duty to serve my mother, I would have loved to die as a slave.}}

====Abu Dawud 2175 :====
{{Quote|{{Abudawud|12|2170}}|Narrated AbuHurayrah:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Anyone who incites a woman against her husband or a slave against his master is not one of us.}}

===Others concerning good morals:===

====Bukhari 5185 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|114}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should not hurt (trouble) his neighbor. And I advise you to take care of the women, for they are created from a rib and the most crooked portion of the rib is its upper part; if you try to straighten it, it will break, and if you leave it, it will remain crooked, so I urge you to take care of the women." ».}}

====Bukhari 5136 et Muslim 1419 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|67}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "A widow should not be given in marriage except after consulting her; and a virgin should not be given in marriage except after her permission." The people asked, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! How can we know her permission?" He said, "Her silence (indicates her permission).}}

====Bukhari 1088 et muslim 1339 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|20|194}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (p.b.u.h) said, "It is not permissible for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to travel for one day and night except with a Mahram."}}

====Bukhari 5194 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|122}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If a woman spends the night deserting her husband's bed (does not sleep with him), then the angels send their curses on her till she comes back (to her husband).}}
(see also Muslim 1436)

====Tirmidhi 1159 :====
{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi|10|2|10|1159}}|Abu Hurairah narrated that The Prophet said:

“If I were to order anyone to prostrate to anyone, then I would order the wife to prostrate to her husband.”}}

====Muslim 5661 :====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|26|5389}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

Do not greet the Jews and the Christians before they greet you and when you meet any one of them on the roads force him to go to the narrowest part of it.}}

===Other hadiths:===

====Muslim 6580 :====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|32|6252}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

The claimants would get their claims on the Day of Resurrection so much so that the hornless sheep would get its claim from the horned sheep.}}

====Bukhari 3295 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|516}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If anyone of you rouses from sleep and performs the ablution, he should wash his nose by putting water in it and then blowing it out thrice, because Satan has stayed in the upper part of his nose all the night."}}

====Bukhari 608 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|11|582}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "When the Adhan is pronounced Satan takes to his heels and passes wind with noise during his flight in order not to hear the Adhan. When the Adhan is completed he comes back and again takes to his heels when the Iqama is pronounced and after its completion he returns again till he whispers into the heart of the person (to divert his attention from his prayer) and makes him remember things which he does not recall to his mind before the prayer and that causes him to forget how much he has prayed."}}

====Bukhari 3320 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|537}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said "If a house fly falls in the drink of anyone of you, he should dip it (in the drink) and take it out, for one of its wings has a disease and the other has the cure for the disease."}}

====Bukhari 278 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|5|277}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The (people of) Bani Israel used to take bath naked (all together) looking at each other. The Prophet (ﷺ) Moses used to take a bath alone. They said, 'By Allah! Nothing prevents Moses from taking a bath with us except that he has a scrotal hernia.' So once Moses went out to take a bath and put his clothes over a stone and then that stone ran away with his clothes. Moses followed that stone saying, "My clothes, O stone! My clothes, O stone! till the people of Bani Israel saw him and said, 'By Allah, Moses has got no defect in his body. Moses took his clothes and began to beat the stone." Abu Huraira added, "By Allah! There are still six or seven marks present on the stone from that excessive beating."}}

====Bukhari 279 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|5|277}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The (people of) Bani Israel used to take bath naked (all together) looking at each other. The Prophet (ﷺ) Moses used to take a bath alone. They said, 'By Allah! Nothing prevents Moses from taking a bath with us except that he has a scrotal hernia.' So once Moses went out to take a bath and put his clothes over a stone and then that stone ran away with his clothes. Moses followed that stone saying, "My clothes, O stone! My clothes, O stone! till the people of Bani Israel saw him and said, 'By Allah, Moses has got no defect in his body. Moses took his clothes and began to beat the stone." Abu Huraira added, "By Allah! There are still six or seven marks present on the stone from that excessive beating."}}

====Bukhari 3292 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|512}}|« Narrated Abu Qatada:

as below. Narrated Abu Qatada: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "A good dream is from Allah, and a bad or evil dream is from Satan; so if anyone of you has a bad dream of which he gets afraid, he should spit on his left side and should seek Refuge with Allah from its evil, for then it will not harm him." »}}

====Bukhari 3860 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|5|58|200}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:

That once he was in the company of the Prophet (ﷺ) carrying a water pot for his ablution and for cleaning his private parts. While he was following him carrying it (i.e. the pot), the Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Who is this?" He said, "I am Abu Huraira." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Bring me stones in order to clean my private parts, and do not bring any bones or animal dung." Abu Huraira went on narrating: So I brought some stones, carrying them in the corner of my robe till I put them by his side and went away. When he finished, I walked with him and asked, "What about the bone and the animal dung?" He said, "They are of the food of Jinns. The delegate of Jinns of (the city of) Nasibin came to me--and how nice those Jinns were--and asked me for the remains of the human food. I invoked Allah for them that they would never pass by a bone or animal dung but find food on them." »}}

====Muslim 6924 :====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|41|6924}}|« Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

The Last Hour would not come until the Romans would land at al-A'maq or in Dabiq. An army consisting of the best (soldiers) of the people of the earth at that time will come from Medina (to counteract them). When they will arrange themselves in ranks, the Romans would say: Do not stand between us and those (Muslims) who took prisoners from amongst us. Let us fight with them; and the Muslims would say: Nay, by Allah, we would never get aside from you and from our brethren that you may fight them. They will then fight and a third (part) of the army would run away, whom Allah will never forgive. A third (part of the army) which would be constituted of excellent martyrs in Allah's eye, would be killed and the third who would never be put to trial would win and they would be conquerors of Constantinople. And as they would be busy in distributing the spoils of war (amongst themselves) after hanging their swords by the olive trees, the Satan would cry: The Dajjal has taken your place among your family. They would then come out, but it would be of no avail. And when they would come to Syria, he would come out while they would be still preparing themselves for battle drawing up the ranks. Certainly, the time of prayer shall come and then Jesus (peace be upon him) son of Mary would descend and would lead them. When the enemy of Allah would see him, it would (disappear) just as the salt dissolves itself in water and if he (Jesus) were not to confront them at all, even then it would dissolve completely, but Allah would kill them by his hand and he would show them their blood on his lance (the lance of Jesus Christ). »}}

====Bukhari 3056 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|52|290}}|« Narrated Ibn 'Umar:

Umar and a group of the companions of the Prophet (ﷺ) set out with the Prophet to Ibn Saiyad. He found him playing with some boys near the hillocks of Bani Maghala. Ibn Saiyad at that time was nearing his puberty. He did not notice (the Prophet's presence) till the Prophet (ﷺ) stroked him on the back with his hand and said, "Ibn Saiyad! Do you testify that I am Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)?" Ibn Saiyad looked at him and said, "I testify that you are the Apostle of the illiterates." Then Ibn Saiyad asked the Prophet. "Do you testify that I am the apostle of Allah?" The Prophet (ﷺ) said to him, "I believe in Allah and His Apostles." Then the Prophet (ﷺ) said (to Ibn Saiyad). "What do you see?" Ibn Saiyad replied, "True people and false ones visit me." The Prophet said, "Your mind is confused as to this matter." The Prophet (ﷺ) added, " I have kept something (in my mind) for you." Ibn Saiyad said, "It is Ad-Dukh." The Prophet (ﷺ) said (to him), "Shame be on you! You cannot cross your limits." On that 'Umar said, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! Allow me to chop his head off." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If he should be him (i.e. Ad-Dajjal) then you cannot overpower him, and should he not be him, then you are not going to benefit by murdering him." »}}

====Bukhari 1145 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|21|246}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) (p.b.u.h) said, "Our Lord, the Blessed, the Superior, comes every night down on the nearest Heaven to us when the last third of the night remains, saying: "Is there anyone to invoke Me, so that I may respond to invocation? Is there anyone to ask Me, so that I may grant him his request? Is there anyone seeking My forgiveness, so that I may forgive him?" »}}
This last hadith, like much else in the tradition, seems to imply a flat earth that does not turn.

Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars: Abu Hurayrah

2024-03-09T13:41:23Z

Vixen: /* His Use and Occasional Inconvienence to the Caliphates */

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'''<nowiki/>'Abd al-Rahman ibn Sakhr ad-Dawsi''' (Arabic : عبدالرحمن بن صخر الدوسي), or '''Abu Hurayra''', born between 601 and 604 and died between 676 and 679, is a celebrated sahabi, or companion of the prophet Mohammed. It is estimated that he transmited 5,374 hadiths, more or less the equivalent of an entire Qu'ran by himself. He is cited in more than half of the classic isnâds (chains of transmission) of the hadiths, making him the greatest know traditionalist (muhaddith). He is therefore responsible for transmitting more hadiths than any other companion of the prophet according to the tradition, even though according to this same tradition he spent less time around Muhammad and was less intimitely familiar with him than the other companions. In affect, according the majority of authors, he only knew Muhammad during the latter part of his life: at most he knew the prophet for 4 years before the latter's death.

He was very poor during the life of the prophet, but he became the governor of Bahrain during the reign of ‘Umar Ibn al-Khattâb, and he subsequently abandoned the post then became emir of Madinah under the caliphate of Mu’âwiya.

==Place of Abu Hurayrah amongst the Companions of the Prophet During his Lifetime==

===Bukhari 5432 (et 3708) :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|65|343}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:
'''I used to accompany Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) to fill my stomach'''; and that was when I did not eat baked bread, nor wear silk. Neither a male nor a female slave used to serve me, and '''I used to bind stones over my belly and ask somebody to recite a Qur'anic Verse for me though I knew it, so that he might take me to his house and feed me. Ja`far bin Abi Talib was very kind to the poor''', and he used to take us and feed us with what ever was available in his house, (and if nothing was available), '''he used to give us the empty (honey or butter) skin which we would tear and lick whatever was in it.'''»}}

===Thirmidhi 3764 :===
{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi|46|6|46|3764}}|Narrated Abu Hurairah:

"None has put on sandals - nor worn them, nor ridden a mount, nor a Kur, after the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) - better than Ja'far [bin Abi Talib]."}}

===Bukhari 5375 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|65|287}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

'''Once while I was in a state of fatigue (because of severe hunger), I met 'Umar bin Al-Khattab, so I asked him to recite a verse from Allah's Book to me. He entered his house and interpreted it to me. (Then I went out and) after walking for a short distance, I fell on my face because of fatigue and severe hunger.''' Suddenly I saw Allah's Apostle standing by my head. He said, "O Abu Huraira!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ), and Sadaik!" Then he held me by the hand, and made me get up. Then he came to know what I was suffering from. He took me to his house, and ordered a big bowl of milk for me. I drank thereof and he said, "Drink more, O Abu Hirr!" So I drank again, whereupon he again said, "Drink more." So I drank more till my belly became full and looked like a bowl. '''Afterwards I met 'Umar and mentioned to him what had happened to me, and said to him, "Somebody, who had more right than you, O 'Umar, took over the case. By Allah, I asked you to recite a Verse to me while I knew it better than you."''' On that Umar said to me, "By Allah, if I admitted and entertained you, it would have been dearer to me than having nice red camels.''' }}

===Bukhari 6452 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|8|76|459}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

'''By Allah except Whom none has the right to- be worshipped, (sometimes) I used to lay (sleep) on the ground on my liver (abdomen) because of hunger, and (sometimes) I used to bind a stone over my belly because of hunger. One day I sat by the way from where they (the Prophet (ﷺ) and his companions) used to come out. When Abu Bakr passed by, I asked him about a Verse from Allah's Book and I asked him only that he might satisfy my hunger, but he passed by and did not do so.''' Then `Umar passed by me and I asked him about a Verse from Allah's Book, and I asked him only that he might satisfy my hunger, but he passed by without doing so. Finally Abu-l-Qasim (the Prophet (ﷺ) ) passed by me and he smiled when he saw me, for he knew what was in my heart and on my face. He said, "O Aba Hirr (Abu Huraira)!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said to me, "Follow me." He left and I followed him. Then he entered the house and I asked permission to enter and was admitted. He found milk in a bowl and said, "From where is this milk?" They said, "It has been presented to you by such-and-such man (or by such and such woman)." He said, "O Aba Hirr!" I said, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "Go and call the people of Suffa to me." '''These people of Suffa were the guests of Islam who had no families, nor money, nor anybody to depend upon, and whenever an object of charity was brought to the Prophet, he would send it to them and would not take anything from it, and whenever any present was given to him, he used to send some for them and take some of it for himself.''' The order of the Prophet upset me, and I said to myself, "How will this little milk be enough for the people of As- Suffa? though I was more entitled to drink from that milk in order to strengthen myself", but behold! The Prophet (ﷺ) came to order me to give that milk to them. I wondered what will remain of that milk for me, but anyway, I could not but obey Allah and His Apostle so I went to the people of As-Suffa and called them, and they came and asked the Prophet's permission to enter. They were admitted and took their seats in the house. The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "O Aba-Hirr!" I said, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "Take it and give it to them." So I took the bowl (of milk) and started giving it to one man who would drink his fill and return it to me, whereupon I would give it to another man who, in his turn, would drink his fill and return it to me, and I would then offer it to another man who would drink his fill and return it to me. Finally, after the whole group had drunk their fill, I reached the Prophet (ﷺ) who took the bowl and put it on his hand, looked at me and smiled and said. "O Aba Hirr!" I replied, "Labbaik, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "There remain you and I." I said, "You have said the truth, O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)!" He said, "Sit down and drink." I sat down and drank. He said, "Drink," and I drank. He kept on telling me repeatedly to drink, till I said, "No. by Allah Who sent you with the Truth, I have no space for it (in my stomach)." He said, "Hand it over to me." When I gave him the bowl, he praised Allah and pronounced Allah's Name on it and drank the remaining milk.}}

====Commentary :====
'''Ahl as-Suffah (أهل الصفة)''' : literally, the people of the banquet. They sojourned permanently about the prophet's mosque and sheltered under a canopy.

Verse 273 of surah number two al-Baqarah may make an allusion to them:
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|273}}|[Charity is] for the poor who have been restricted for the cause of Allah, unable to move about in the land. An ignorant [person] would think them self-sufficient because of their restraint, but you will know them by their [characteristic] sign. They do not ask people persistently [or at all]. And whatever you spend of good - indeed, Allah is Knowing of it.
}}

===Bukhari 7324 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|92|425}}|Narrated Muhammad:

We were with Abu Huraira while he was wearing two linen garments dyed with red clay. He cleaned his nose with his garment, saying, "Bravo! Bravo! Abu Huraira is cleaning his nose with linen! '''There came a time when I would fall senseless between the pulpit of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and `Aisha's dwelling whereupon a passerby would come and put his foot on my neck, considering me a mad man, but in fact, I had no madness, I suffered nothing but hunger."'''}}
During the course of the last four years of the life of the prophet when according to the tradition he had total, uncontested power in Medinah, it is difficult to imagine someone daring to step upon the neck of a true companion of the prophet in broad daylight. It seems possible that Abu Hourayra didn't habitually accompany the prophet but rather stayed in or around the mosque of Madinah in the day, and homeless under the stars at night, amongst the "Suffah." In such a position he might well have seen the power that religion had in those times in that place. The opportunities afforded by religion would have been apparent.

==Judged as too Gossipy during the Lifetime of the Prophet, Saved by the Magic Cloth==
If one takes into account that he supposedly transmitted more than 5000 hadiths in the space of four years, that works out to collectively about 4 hadith per day, a startling piece of statistical evidence. Even more confusing : according to numerous sources, during these 4 years, in total he could only have known the prophet for a year and nine months since the prophet sent him under the command of ibn Al Hadhrami to Bahrain. The messenger of Allah died while Abu Hurayrah was still there in Bahrain (Abou Houreyra : Mahmoud Abou Ar Riya Al Misri, Commentaries des Hadiths, de Ibn Koteyba, page 39 et 41). But also because the prophet has spent a great amounts of his time in military expeditions during the last 4 years of his life it is unlikely that Abu Hurayrah spent even 1 year and 9 months around him. Numerous contemporaries of Abu Hurayrah expressed their astonishment if not their doubts concerning this profusion of hadith traditions which seemed to pour out of Abu Hurayrah like bullets from a machine gun .

===Muslim 6399 (2493) :===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|31|6085}}|'A'isha reported:

'''Don't you feel surprised at Abu Huraira?''' He came (one day) and sat beside the nook of my apartment and began to narrate (the hadith of Allah's Apostle). I was hearing while I was engaged in extolling Allah (reciting Subhan Allah) constantly. He stood up before I finished my repetition of Subhan Allah. '''If I were to meet him I would have warned him in stern words that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) did not speak so quickly as you talk.'''

}}(See also Muslim 7509 (2493) et 7510 (3004) and Bukhari 3568)

===Ahmad in al-Mousnad (16/563) :===
{{Quote|Ahmad in al-Musnad (16/563)|- « You recount too many hadith traditions! »
- « If I recounted to you all that I have understood from the prophet (peace and prayers of Allah be upon him) you would qualify me as a "collector of anything that comes my way" and you would discuss nothing more with me. »

}}

===Muslim 6397 (2492)===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|31|6083}}|Al-A'raj reported that he heard Abu Huraira as saying:

''' You are under the impression that Abu Huraira transmits so many ahadith from Allah's Messenger (may peace up upon him)'''; (bear in mind) Allah is the great Reckoner. I was a poor man and I served Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) being satisfied with bare subsistence, whereas the immigrants remained busy with transactions in the bazar; while the Ansar had been engaged in looking after their properties. (He further reported) that '''Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: He who spreads the cloth would not forget anything that he would hear from me. I spread my cloth until he narrated something. I then pressed it against my (chest), so I never forgot anything that I heard from him.'''}}
(see also Bukhari 118,119, 3648, 7354, 2047 and 2350)

==Suspicion that he Invented Hadiths==

===Bukhari 5355 :===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|64|268}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

"The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The best alms is that which is given when one is rich, and a giving hand is better than a taking one, and you should start first to support your dependents.' A wife says, 'You should either provide me with food or divorce me.' A slave says, 'Give me food and enjoy my service." A son says, "Give me food; to whom do you leave me?" '''The people said, "O Abu Huraira! Did you hear that from Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) ?" He said, "No, it is from my own self."'''}}

===Muslim 2589 (1109)===
{{Quote|{{Muslim|6|2451}}|Abu Bakr (he is Abu Bakr b. Abd al-Rahman b. Harith) reported:

I heard Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) narrating that he who is overtaken by dawn in a state of seminal emission should not observe fast. I made a mention of it to 'Abd al-Rahman b. Harith (i. e. to his father) but he denied it. 'Abd al-Rahman went and I also went along with him till we came to'A'isha and Umm Salama (Allah be pleased with both of them) and Abd al-Rahman asked them about it. Both of them said: (At times it so happened) that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) woke up in the morning in a state of junub (but without seminal emission in a dream) and observed fast He (the narrator) said: We then proceeded till we went to Marwan and Abd al-Rahman made a mention of it to him. Upon this Marwan said: I stress upon you (with an oath) that you better go to Abu Huraira and refer to him what is said about it. So we came to Abu Huraira and Abu Bakr had been with us throughout and 'Abd al-Rahman made a mention of it to him, whereupon Abu Huraira said: Did they (the two wives of the Holy Prophet) tell you this? He replied: Yes Upon this (Abu Huraira) said: They have better knowledge. '''Abu Huraira then attributed that what was said about it to Fadl b. 'Abbas and said: I heard it from Fadl and not from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). Abu Huraira then retracted from what he used to say about it.''' Ibn Juraij (one of the narrators) reported: I asked 'Abd al-Malik, if they (the two wives) said (made the statement) in regard to Ramadan, whereupon he said: It was so, and he (the Holy Prophet) (woke up in the) morning in a state of junub which was not due to the wet dream and then observed fast.}}

==His Use and Occasional Inconvienence to the Caliphates==
While he was impoverished during the life of the prophet, Abu Hurayrah managed to considerably enrich himself during the reigns of the first caliphs. He was designated the emir of Madinah more than once. He continued to narrate hadiths throughout his life, but not everyone seemed pleased by his narrations: 'Umar threatened him to shut him up while Mu’âwiya found it easier to purchase his silence.

===Tarik Madinat Dimachk d’Ibn Assadir Vol 67 p 343===
{{Quote||From al Saib bin Yazid who said :I understood Omar ibn al-Khattab to say to Abu Hourayrah : « Either you stop putting out hadith 'from the messenger of Allah' or I will send you to the land of Daws. »}}

===Ibn Asâkir (Ta’rikh Dimashq), Ibn Kathir (Al-Bidaya wa l-Nihâya), Al Dhahabî (Siyar A’lâmi al Nubalâ)===
{{Quote||from Sheikh Ahmad : « Abû Hurayrah shut up when Mu’âwiya paid him, and when he didn't pay, Abu Hurayrah talked. »}}

===Bukhari 120 + Ibn Hajar al-’Asqalanî (Fath al-Bari)===
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|3|121}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

I have memorized two kinds of knowledge from Allah's Messenger (ﷺ). I have propagated one of them to you and if I propagated the second, then my pharynx (throat) would be cut (i.e. killed).

}}
'''Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalanî (Fath al-Bari)''' explains the previous hadith in these terms : « The scholars have deduced that the jar that he did not divulge contains some hadiths with the names of the governors of the treasury, their state and their time period. Abû Hurayra made the same indirect reference to certain ones amongst them, because because he was afraid for himself. »

===Ibn Sa’d al-Baghdadi Kitab al-Tabaqât al Kabîr :===
{{Quote||« I was a servant of Ibn ‘Affan and Bint Ghazwane just to keep food in my belly. I drove them when they were on their mounts and served them when they descended. She [Bousra Bint Ghazwane] told me one day : « you will only mount a mount when they are upright [it is very difficult to mount a dromedary upright] and you will only come down barefoot. » Then god allowed me to marry her[when he was promoted to amir under Mu’âwiya] and I told him : «You will only get down barefoot and you will only get on when it is upright. »}}
Abu Hurayrah finished his life immensely wealthy, the governor of Medinah living in a palace. In the service of the first caliphs and in particular the Umayyads, he very effectively collaborated and ingratiated himself with the founders of today's current Sunni islam, a venture which served to make him immensely rich and powerful.

==Examples of Hadiths in the Pure Style of Abu Hurayrah==

===Some Hadiths Which Were Favored by the Caliphate:===

====Bukhari 6924 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|84|59}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

When the Prophet (ﷺ) died and Abu Bakr became his successor and some of the Arabs reverted to disbelief, `Umar said, "O Abu Bakr! How can you fight these people although Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, 'I have been ordered to fight the people till they say: 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah, 'and whoever said, 'None has the right to be worshipped but Allah', Allah will save his property and his life from me, unless (he does something for which he receives legal punishment) justly, and his account will be with Allah?' "Abu Bakr said, "By Allah! I will fight whoever differentiates between prayers and Zakat as Zakat is the right to be taken from property (according to Allah's Orders). By Allah! If they refused to pay me even a kid they used to pay to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ), I would fight with them for withholding it." `Umar said, "By Allah: It was nothing, but I noticed that Allah opened Abu Bakr's chest towards the decision to fight, therefore I realized that his decision was right."}}

====Bukhari 1442 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|522}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Every day two angels come down from Heaven and one of them says, '''«'O Allah! Compensate every person who spends in Your Cause,' and the other (angel) says, 'O Allah! Destroy every miser.'»'''}}

====Bukhari 2548 and 2549 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|3|46|724}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "A pious slave gets a double reward." Abu Huraira added: By Him in Whose Hands my soul is but for Jihad (i.e. holy battles), Hajj, and my duty to serve my mother, I would have loved to die as a slave.}}

====Abu Dawud 2175 :====
{{Quote|{{Abudawud|12|2170}}|Narrated AbuHurayrah:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Anyone who incites a woman against her husband or a slave against his master is not one of us.}}

===Others concerning good morals:===

====Bukhari 5185 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|114}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should not hurt (trouble) his neighbor. And I advise you to take care of the women, for they are created from a rib and the most crooked portion of the rib is its upper part; if you try to straighten it, it will break, and if you leave it, it will remain crooked, so I urge you to take care of the women." ».}}

====Bukhari 5136 et Muslim 1419 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|67}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "A widow should not be given in marriage except after consulting her; and a virgin should not be given in marriage except after her permission." The people asked, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! How can we know her permission?" He said, "Her silence (indicates her permission).}}

====Bukhari 1088 et muslim 1339 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|20|194}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (p.b.u.h) said, "It is not permissible for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to travel for one day and night except with a Mahram."}}

====Bukhari 5194 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|122}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If a woman spends the night deserting her husband's bed (does not sleep with him), then the angels send their curses on her till she comes back (to her husband).}}
(see also Muslim 1436)

====Tirmidhi 1159 :====
{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi|10|2|10|1159}}|Abu Hurairah narrated that The Prophet said:

“If I were to order anyone to prostrate to anyone, then I would order the wife to prostrate to her husband.”}}

====Muslim 5661 :====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|26|5389}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

Do not greet the Jews and the Christians before they greet you and when you meet any one of them on the roads force him to go to the narrowest part of it.}}

===Other hadiths:===

====Muslim 6580 :====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|32|6252}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

The claimants would get their claims on the Day of Resurrection so much so that the hornless sheep would get its claim from the horned sheep.}}

====Bukhari 3295 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|516}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If anyone of you rouses from sleep and performs the ablution, he should wash his nose by putting water in it and then blowing it out thrice, because Satan has stayed in the upper part of his nose all the night."}}

====Bukhari 608 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|11|582}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "When the Adhan is pronounced Satan takes to his heels and passes wind with noise during his flight in order not to hear the Adhan. When the Adhan is completed he comes back and again takes to his heels when the Iqama is pronounced and after its completion he returns again till he whispers into the heart of the person (to divert his attention from his prayer) and makes him remember things which he does not recall to his mind before the prayer and that causes him to forget how much he has prayed."}}

====Bukhari 3320 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|537}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said "If a house fly falls in the drink of anyone of you, he should dip it (in the drink) and take it out, for one of its wings has a disease and the other has the cure for the disease."}}

====Bukhari 278 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|5|277}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The (people of) Bani Israel used to take bath naked (all together) looking at each other. The Prophet (ﷺ) Moses used to take a bath alone. They said, 'By Allah! Nothing prevents Moses from taking a bath with us except that he has a scrotal hernia.' So once Moses went out to take a bath and put his clothes over a stone and then that stone ran away with his clothes. Moses followed that stone saying, "My clothes, O stone! My clothes, O stone! till the people of Bani Israel saw him and said, 'By Allah, Moses has got no defect in his body. Moses took his clothes and began to beat the stone." Abu Huraira added, "By Allah! There are still six or seven marks present on the stone from that excessive beating."}}

====Bukhari 279 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|5|277}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The (people of) Bani Israel used to take bath naked (all together) looking at each other. The Prophet (ﷺ) Moses used to take a bath alone. They said, 'By Allah! Nothing prevents Moses from taking a bath with us except that he has a scrotal hernia.' So once Moses went out to take a bath and put his clothes over a stone and then that stone ran away with his clothes. Moses followed that stone saying, "My clothes, O stone! My clothes, O stone! till the people of Bani Israel saw him and said, 'By Allah, Moses has got no defect in his body. Moses took his clothes and began to beat the stone." Abu Huraira added, "By Allah! There are still six or seven marks present on the stone from that excessive beating."}}

====Bukhari 3292 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|512}}|« Narrated Abu Qatada:

as below. Narrated Abu Qatada: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "A good dream is from Allah, and a bad or evil dream is from Satan; so if anyone of you has a bad dream of which he gets afraid, he should spit on his left side and should seek Refuge with Allah from its evil, for then it will not harm him." »}}

====Bukhari 3860 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|5|58|200}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:

That once he was in the company of the Prophet (ﷺ) carrying a water pot for his ablution and for cleaning his private parts. While he was following him carrying it (i.e. the pot), the Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Who is this?" He said, "I am Abu Huraira." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Bring me stones in order to clean my private parts, and do not bring any bones or animal dung." Abu Huraira went on narrating: So I brought some stones, carrying them in the corner of my robe till I put them by his side and went away. When he finished, I walked with him and asked, "What about the bone and the animal dung?" He said, "They are of the food of Jinns. The delegate of Jinns of (the city of) Nasibin came to me--and how nice those Jinns were--and asked me for the remains of the human food. I invoked Allah for them that they would never pass by a bone or animal dung but find food on them." »}}

====Muslim 6924 :====
{{Quote|{{Muslim|41|6924}}|« Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

The Last Hour would not come until the Romans would land at al-A'maq or in Dabiq. An army consisting of the best (soldiers) of the people of the earth at that time will come from Medina (to counteract them). When they will arrange themselves in ranks, the Romans would say: Do not stand between us and those (Muslims) who took prisoners from amongst us. Let us fight with them; and the Muslims would say: Nay, by Allah, we would never get aside from you and from our brethren that you may fight them. They will then fight and a third (part) of the army would run away, whom Allah will never forgive. A third (part of the army) which would be constituted of excellent martyrs in Allah's eye, would be killed and the third who would never be put to trial would win and they would be conquerors of Constantinople. And as they would be busy in distributing the spoils of war (amongst themselves) after hanging their swords by the olive trees, the Satan would cry: The Dajjal has taken your place among your family. They would then come out, but it would be of no avail. And when they would come to Syria, he would come out while they would be still preparing themselves for battle drawing up the ranks. Certainly, the time of prayer shall come and then Jesus (peace be upon him) son of Mary would descend and would lead them. When the enemy of Allah would see him, it would (disappear) just as the salt dissolves itself in water and if he (Jesus) were not to confront them at all, even then it would dissolve completely, but Allah would kill them by his hand and he would show them their blood on his lance (the lance of Jesus Christ). »}}

====Bukhari 3056 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|52|290}}|« Narrated Ibn 'Umar:

Umar and a group of the companions of the Prophet (ﷺ) set out with the Prophet to Ibn Saiyad. He found him playing with some boys near the hillocks of Bani Maghala. Ibn Saiyad at that time was nearing his puberty. He did not notice (the Prophet's presence) till the Prophet (ﷺ) stroked him on the back with his hand and said, "Ibn Saiyad! Do you testify that I am Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)?" Ibn Saiyad looked at him and said, "I testify that you are the Apostle of the illiterates." Then Ibn Saiyad asked the Prophet. "Do you testify that I am the apostle of Allah?" The Prophet (ﷺ) said to him, "I believe in Allah and His Apostles." Then the Prophet (ﷺ) said (to Ibn Saiyad). "What do you see?" Ibn Saiyad replied, "True people and false ones visit me." The Prophet said, "Your mind is confused as to this matter." The Prophet (ﷺ) added, " I have kept something (in my mind) for you." Ibn Saiyad said, "It is Ad-Dukh." The Prophet (ﷺ) said (to him), "Shame be on you! You cannot cross your limits." On that 'Umar said, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! Allow me to chop his head off." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If he should be him (i.e. Ad-Dajjal) then you cannot overpower him, and should he not be him, then you are not going to benefit by murdering him." »}}

====Bukhari 1145 :====
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|21|246}}|« Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) (p.b.u.h) said, "Our Lord, the Blessed, the Superior, comes every night down on the nearest Heaven to us when the last third of the night remains, saying: "Is there anyone to invoke Me, so that I may respond to invocation? Is there anyone to ask Me, so that I may grant him his request? Is there anyone seeking My forgiveness, so that I may forgive him?" »}}
This last hadith, like much else in the tradition, seems to imply a flat earth that does not turn.

The Islamic Whale

2024-02-10T11:12:47Z

Vixen: /* Ibn Abbas Receiving the Story from the Jews */

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=3|Content=3|Language=4|References=3}}
[[Image:Al-Qalam.png|400px|ٍSurat Al-Qalam|thumb|right]]
'''The Islamic whale''' (in Arabic الحوت الإسلامي, ''al-hoot al-islami''), is a mythological creature described in Islamic texts that carries the Earth on its back. It is also called Nun (نون), which is also the name of the Arabic letter "n" ن. Two alternative names of the whale are Liwash and Lutiaya.<ref>
Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs: "And from his narration on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas that he said regarding the interpretation of Allah's saying (Nun): '(Nun) He says: Allah swears by the Nun, which is the whale that carries the earths on its back while in Water, and beneath which is the Bull and under the Bull is the Rock and under the Rock is the Dust and none knows what is under the Dust save Allah. '''The name of the whale is Liwash, and it is said its name is Lutiaya''''; the name of the bull is Bahamut, and some say its name is Talhut or Liyona. The whale is in a sea called 'Adwad, and it is like a small bull in a huge sea. The sea is in a hollowed rock whereby there is 4,000 cracks, and from each crack water springs out to the earth. It is also said that Nun is one of the names of the Lord; it stands for the letter Nun in Allah's name al-Rahman (the Beneficent); and it is also said that a Nun is an inkwell. (By the pen) Allah swore by the pen. This pen is made of light and its height is equal to the distance between Heaven and earth. It is with this pen that the Wise Remembrance, i.e. the Guarded Tablet, was written. It is also said that the pen is one of the angels by whom Allah has sworn, (and that which they write (therewith)) and Allah also swore by what the angels write down of the works of the children of Adam"
http://altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=73&tSoraNo=68&tAyahNo=1&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=2</ref> The details behind the mentioning of this creature are unclear. The name Nun is derived from one of the [[Huruf Muqatta'at (Disjointed Letters in the Qur'an)‎|mysterious letters]] which appear before the start of certain surahs in the Quran. However, the whale does feature in [[Hadith]] and [[Tafseer|Tafsir]] explanations of verses. The concept appears to be of Jewish origin.<ref>See the section "The possible origins of the Whale" towards the end of the article [https://theislamissue.wordpress.com/2023/01/18/the-nun-whale-and-its-origins-in-early-islam/ The Nun whale and it’s origins in early Islam]</ref>

From all of the earliest Sunni and Shi'a sources today available to us, it does appear that the earliest Muslims believed the letter "nun" in the Qur'an surah 68:1 refers to a giant whale upon whose back the entire earth rests. This belief is attributed by numerous Islamic scholars of high repute to "tarjumaan al-qur'an", Ibn Abbas, and was mentioned thereafter by many trusted Islamic scholars all the way up until the 19th century - though they mention it alongside other different interpretations. According to this cosmography, the earth is (actually the 7 earths are) attached to the back of the whale by means of the mountains, which are pegs to balance the earth upon the Nun's back. This cosmography fits in with a widespread ancient belief that the world was balanced upon the back of giant animals, and the even more primordial belief that the world is surrounded by a giant, unending body of water.

==Nun in the Qur'an==
The letter nun appears in the verse 68:1<ref>نٓ وَٱلْقَلَمِ وَمَا يَسْطُرُونَ Nun. By the pen and what they inscribe {{Quran|68|1}}</ref> as one of the [[Huruf Muqatta'at (Disjointed Letters in the Qur'an)‎|mysterious letters (muqattaʿat)]] which appear before the start of 29 surahs in the Quran (for example alif lam mim before Surah al-Baqarah). One popular theory to explain these letters was proposed by Theodor Nöldeke, that they were simply an indication of the scribes or owners of the sheets for those surahs when the Quran was first compiled.

Most respected scholars of Islam (Ibn Kathir, At-Tabari, Al-Qurtubi and others including Al-Jalalayn) reported the belief that Nun refers to a whale that carries the Earth on its back:<ref>Al-Jalalayn on 21:87

*ذَا ٱلنُّونِ } صاحب الحوت}
*{Man of the fish} companion of the whale (الحوت, ''al-hoot'')
http://altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=8&tSoraNo=21&tAyahNo=87&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1
</ref>

Word-by-word translation of the Qur'anic verse:

*نٓ - ''noon'' - the name of the whale
*وَٱلْقَلَمِ - ''wal-qalam'' - by the pen (''wa-'' prefix means "and" or "by")
*وَمَا - ''wa-ma'' - and what
*يَسْطُرُونَ - ''yasturoona'' - they write

There is not much information in the Qur'an ipso facto, but it is necessary to have an understanding of this idea in order to understand much of the traditional interpretation of the Qur'an and early Islamic cosmography. For example, in verse 21:87 Jonah is called "man of the Nun", which has been interpreted as meaning that he was eaten by a whale<ref>And [mention] the man of <nowiki>'''</nowiki>the fish<nowiki>'''</nowiki> (ٱلنُّونِ, <nowiki>''</nowiki>al-noon<nowiki>''</nowiki>), when he went off in anger and thought that We would not decree [anything] upon him. And he called out within the darknesses, "There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers."

{{Quran|21|87}}</ref><ref>http://biblehub.com/library/marshall/the_wonder_book_of_bible_stories/the_story_of_jonah_and.htm</ref>:

==Relevant Quotations==
Surah 68 famously begins with the letter nun (نٓ), one of 29 surahs that begin with mysterious letters (muqattaʿat).
{{Quote|{{Quran|68|1}}|نٓ وَٱلْقَلَمِ وَمَا يَسْطُرُونَ Nun. By the pen and what they inscribe.
}}
A Fish/Whale (l-ḥūt الحوت) which swallowed Yunus (Jonah) is mentioned in the same chapter:
{{Quote|{{Quran|68|48}}|Then be patient for the decision of your Lord, [O Muhammad], and be not like the companion of '''the fish''' (الحوت) when he called out while he was distressed.
}}
Another surah mentions al-nun (ٱلنُّونِ), which is how the letter nun (نٓ) is spoken. The verse was understood to be a reference to the creature which swallowed Yunus (Jonah):
{{Quote|{{Quran|21|87}}|And [mention] the man of '''the fish''' (ٱلنُّونِ, ''al-nun''), when he went off in anger and thought that We would not decree [anything] upon him. And he called out within the darknesses, "There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers."}}
==Hadiths==

In a lengthy hadith, a Jew tests Muhammad's knowledge on a number of questions. One of these concerns the food of the people of paradise. The word translated "the fish" is actually al-nun. Muhammad answers that they will eat the caudate lobe of liver of "al-nun" (قَالَ ‏زِيَادَةُ كَبِدِ النُّونِ). In addition they will eat a bull which grazes around paradise.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|3|614}}|Thauban, the freed slave of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), said:

While I was standing beside the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) one of the rabbis of the Jews came and said: Peace be upon you, O Muhammad. [...]
The Jew said: What would constitute their breakfast when they would enter Paradise? He (the Holy Prophet) replied: '''A caul of the fish-liver'''. He (the Jew) said. What would be their food alter this? He (the Holy Prophet) said: '''A bullock which was fed in the different quarters of Paradise would be slaughtered for them.''' [...]
The Jew said: What you have said is true; verily you are an Apostle. He then returned and went away. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: He asked me about such and such things of which I have had no knowledge till Allah gave me that.}}

Ibn Hajar in his famous commentary on on Sahih al-Bukhari (Fath al Bari) mentions this hadith regarding al-nun, adding that "Al-Tabari mentioned through al-Dahhak on the authority of Ibn Abbas, he said, 'The bull butts the whale with its horn, so the people of Paradise eat from it, then it is resurrected and the bull is slaughtered with its tail, and they eat it, then it is resurrected and this process continues'".

A number of narrations reported from companions (particularly Ibn Abbas) mention the nun as a giant whale beneath the earth. A giant bull also features in some of these narrations. These concepts can be seen also in early Jewish texts, probably including the Apocalypse of Abraham (2nd century CE). For details of the above, see [https://theislamissue.wordpress.com/2023/01/18/the-nun-whale-and-its-origins-in-early-islam/ this article].

==Tafsir Ibn Kathir==
Ibn Kathir lists three different interpretations and spends a good bit of text on the first interpretation which can be summarized as: In the beginning, Allah created the pen before all else. The pen asked "what do I write" and Allah told it to write the letter ن "nun" or "N" which is actually a whale upon whose back he balanced the entire world:
{{Quote|Tafsir of Ibn Kathir on the verse 68:1|كَمَا قَالَ الْإِمَام أَبُو جَعْفَر بْن جَرِير حَدَّثَنَا اِبْن بَشَّار حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَان هُوَ الثَّوْرِيّ حَدَّثَنَا سُلَيْمَان هُوَ الْأَعْمَش عَنْ أَبِي ظَبْيَان عَنْ اِبْن عَبَّاس قَالَ : أَوَّل مَا خَلَقَ اللَّه الْقَلَم قَالَ اُكْتُبْ قَالَ وَمَاذَا أَكْتَب ؟ قَالَ اُكْتُبْ الْقَدَر فَجَرَى بِمَا يَكُون مِنْ ذَلِكَ الْيَوْم إِلَى قِيَام السَّاعَة ثُمَّ خَلَقَ النُّون وَرَفَعَ بُخَار الْمَاء فَفُتِقَتْ مِنْهُ السَّمَاء وَبُسِطَتْ الْأَرْض عَلَى ظَهْر النُّون فَاضْطَرَبَ النُّون فَمَادَتْ الْأَرْض فَأُثْبِتَتْ بِالْجِبَالِ فَإِنَّهَا لَتَفْخَر عَلَى الْأَرْض

"As The Imam Abu Ja'afar ibn Jareer told said (so) told user ibn Bashaar, so told us Yahya so told us Sufyaan ِAl-Thawri so told use Sulimaan who is the sticky-eyed(al-a'mash) from Abi Zabyaan from ibn 'Abbaas who said "The first thing that Allah created is the pen, it said "What do I write" Allah said "write the fate of existence all that will happen from this day until the day of judgement, then Allah created the "Nun" and raised the mist of the water and rent it from the sky and spread the earth on the back of the Nun. The Nun was disturbed and the earth was extended and earth was fixed in place with the mountains, verily they are the pride (of Allah) upon the earth." }}

===Hadith from Ibn Abbas, the turjuman ul-Qur'an===

Another variation of this hadith from At-Tabari:
{{Quote|تاريخ الطبري (Tarikh At-Tabari) <ref name="abbas">http://hdith.com/?s=%D8%AB%D9%85+%D8%AE%D9%84%D9%82+%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%86%D9%88%D9%86+%D9%81%D9%88%D9%82+%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%A1%D8%8C+%D8%AB%D9%85+%D9%83%D8%A8%D8%B3+%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D8%B1%D8%B6+%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%8A%D9%87</ref>|
عن ابنِ عباسٍ قال أولُ شيءٍ خلق اللهُ تعالى القلمُ فقال له اكتب فكتب ما هو كائنٌ إلى أن تقومَ الساعةُ ثم خلق النون فوق الماءِ ثم كبس الأرضَ عليه

From Ibn Abbas (ابنِ عباسٍ), who said: The first thing Allah (اللهُ) created was the pen (القلمُ), so he told it: "Write!" (اكتب) And it wrote what will happen until the Hour (Day of Judgement), then he created the Nun (النون) above (فوق) water (الماءِ), then He pressed (كبس) the Earth (الأرضَ) on it (عليه).
}}
The hadith (narration) by Ibn Abbas (collected by At-Tabari) is considered صحيح (sahih)<ref name="abbas"></ref>, which means it is considered to be an authentic narration in the traditional estimation of hadith. According to the tradition Ibn Abbas holds a special place in the scheme of hadith preservers, for Muhammad made du'a(prayer) for Ibn Abbas, so that Allah would teach him the true interpretation of the Qur'an. Ibn Abbas was also called ''turjuman ul-Qur'an'' (ترجمان القرآن) id est "translator of the Qur'an", because he had such a deep knowledge about the interpretation (''tarjama'', literally translation) of the revelations.
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|92|375}}|Narrated Ibn ‘Abbas (raa): The Prophet (saws) embraced me and said, “O Allah! Teach him (the knowledge of) the Book (Quran).”}}

His narration also explains why mountains are [[The Quran and Mountains|described as pegs]] in the Qur'an. It is because, according the traditional Islamic cosmology, the earth would fall off of the back of the whale without the pegs that hold it<ref>That is also supported by the tafsir Al-Jalalayn on the verse 78:7 "and the mountains pegs? with which the earth is tied down like tents are tied down with pegs the interrogative is meant as an affirmative."

http://altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=1&tTafsirNo=74&tSoraNo=78&tAyahNo=7&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=2</ref>:
{{Quote|{{Quran|78|6-7}}|
78:6 Have We not made the earth an even expanse? 
78:7 And the mountains as pegs?
}}

It also explains why Allah's throne is "on water" (because Allah created the heavens out of water):
{{Quote|{{Quran|11|7}}|And it is He who created the heavens and the earth in six days - and '''His Throne had been upon water'''}}

==Tafsir Al-Tabari==
At-Tabari mentions several interpretations. One of them is this:
{{Quote|At-Tabari tafsir on 68:1 <ref>http://altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=1&tTafsirNo=1&tSoraNo=68&tAyahNo=1&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1</ref>|هو الحوت الذي عليه الأرَضُون

It is a whale (الحوت), which on it the Earths.
}}

In Islamic cosmology there are seven [[Flat Earth and the Quran|flat]] Earth'''s''', just like there are seven heavens:
{{Quote|{{Quran|65|12}}|Allah is He Who created seven heavens, and of the earth the like of them}}
They are placed on the whale like flapjacks on a plate, stacked one atop the other.

==Tafsir Al-Qurtubi==
Al-Qurtubi mentions several interpretations. One of them is that the Nun is the whale which is under the 7th (lowest) Earth:
{{Quote|Tafsir Al-Qurtubi on 68:1 <ref>http://altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=1&tTafsirNo=5&tSoraNo=68&tAyahNo=1&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1</ref>|نۤ> الحوت الذي تحت الأرض السابعة> 

<Nun> - the whale (الحوت), which is under the Earth the seventh.
}}

From his use of the word "tahat" or "under" it can be surmised that in Al-Qurtubi's cosmology the earth is seen as flat.

==ِTafsir Al-Kabir (by Al-Razi)==
{{Quote|Tafsir Al-Kabir on 68:1<ref>http://altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=1&tTafsirNo=4&tSoraNo=68&tAyahNo=1&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1</ref>|
بالحوت الذي على ظهره الأرض وهو في بحر تحت الأرض السفلى

..with the whale (بالحوت) which over its back is the Earth and it is in the sea under the Earth (الأرض) the lowest.
}}

Al-Kabir here repeates the idea that there are multiple flat earths balanced on the back of the whale.

==ِTafsir Fath Al-Qadir (by Shawkani)==
This tafsir is from the 18th century and it mentions several interpretations. One of them is the idea that the world is carried on the back of a whale:
{{Quote|Fath Al-Qadir on 68:1<ref>http://altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=1&tTafsirNo=9&tSoraNo=68&tAyahNo=1&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1</ref>|
هو الحوت الذي يحمل الأرض

It is a whale which carries the Earth.
}}

==Hadith Al-Kafi (shia)==
Hadith Al-Kafi, one of the most prestigious Shi'ite hadith, also confirms that a whale carries the earth upon its back:
{{Quote|Al-Kafi, vol. 8, part 6, <ref>Page 45. [https://shiapdfresources.files.wordpress.com/2014/08/alkafi_vol8_part-6.pdf Kitab al-Kafi]. Archived at [http://web.archive.org/web/20161227191002/https://shiapdfresources.files.wordpress.com/2014/08/alkafi_vol8_part-6.pdf].</ref>|H 14813 – From him, from Salih, from one of his companions, from Abdul Samad Bin Basheer, who has reported the following: Abu Abdullah (asws) has said that: ‘'''The whale which is carrying the earth''' secretly said to itself that it is carrying the earth by its own strength. So Allah (azwj) the High Sent to it a fish smaller than a palm’s length, and larger than a finger. So it entered in its gills and shocked it. It remained like that for forty days. Then Allah (azwj) Raised it and was Merciful to it, and Took it out. So whenever Allah (azwj) Intends the earth to be in a quake, He (azwj) Sends that (small) fish to that (big) fish. So when it sees it, it becomes restless, so the earth gets engulfed by the earthquake’. }}

==Tafsir Al-Tusi (shia)==
The first comprehensive Shia tafsir<ref>http://en.wikishia.net/view/Al-Tibyan_fi_tafsir_al-Qur'an_(book)</ref> says this about the Nun:
{{Quote|Al-Tibbyan by Al-Tusi on 68:1 <ref>http://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=4&tTafsirNo=39&tSoraNo=68&tAyahNo=1&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1</ref>|
وقال ابن عباس - فى رواية عنه - إن النون الحوت الذى عليه الارضون

And said Ibn Abbas (ابن عباس) - in his narration - that Nun (النون) is a whale (الحوت) which on it are the Earths (الارضون).}}

There is thus attestation of Nun the whale in both the Sunni and Shi'ite tradition.

==The Qur'anic Cosmology vis-à-vis Modern Science==
The world view evinced in the tasfir is one fundamentally at odds with the modern, scientific understanding of cosmology, earth sciences and geology. The authors of the tafsir tradition and the Qur'an seem to have been operating on the assumption that the earth that the human race inhabits is flat, and moreover it is only one of many different earths. The belief that the world is balanced on the back of a giant cosmological animal is not peculiar to Islam--witness the Hindu tradition of Akupāra (Sanskrit: अकूपार), also know as Kurma and Chukwa, the giant tortoise who supports the 16 elephants who hold up the world, or the Chinese myth of the sea turtle Ao whose sawed off legs prop up the world. The idea of a giant animal holding up the world is a myth found in many pre-scientific cultures.

==Other interpretations of Nun==
Although many traditional tafsir explain that Nun is the whale which carries the Earth(s) on its back, there are also non-whale interpretations of Nun.

==="ن is a letter of the alphabet"===
ن ("n") is a letter of the Arabic alphabet called نون (Nun). Many surahs in the Qur'an actually start with mysterious letters that don't have any immediate meaning. This does beg the question of what these letters mean in the first place, and from the perspective of a believing Muslim why Allah would start his revelations out with random letters, but considering it does fall into an accepted Qur'anic pattern it does at least offer an explanation for its presense. Another point is the word following the Nun, "walqalami" "by the pen." The Arabic formation for oaths and swears is to add و "wa" a particle meaning generally "and" to a noun in the majruur (genetive) case, producing the swearing oath: "والله" "wallahi" "by God!" "والشمس" "washamsi" "by the sun!" etc. Since the word "qalam" or "pen" is in the genitive case, it should be understood to be a swear, and this seems likely. It should however be remembered that the original "rasm" or consonantal text for the Qur'an lacked the vowel markings which in this case marks the word as being in the genitive. The original text thus might not have had this word in the genitive case, in which case the meaning would simply be "and the pen." It is thus possible that in the original the "wa" functioned simply as an "and" and the original meaning was thus simply "(the letter) nun, and the pen, and what they write."

==="N" in "Ar-Rahmaa'''n'''"===
The word الرحمن, Ar-Rahman, "the gracious" is one of the titles of Allah. The 13th sura starts with three letters الر, and a few suras start with the letters حم (see the comment on random letters at the beginning of surahs above). Putting these together produces الر + حم + ن= الرحمن "Ar-rahmaan."

*The word Ar-Rahman is nowadays actually written as الرحمان, but in the old Uthmani script it was written without the ا (alif) before the ن. It was added later, to indicate the "aa" vowel.
*A lot of verses start on other [[Muqatta'at|letters]] however and no convincing argument can be made for producing relevant words from most of them.

===Nun means "ink"===
A proposed solution for this is that the nun here means "ink" in the nominative case, in which case 68:1 would mean "The ink and the pen and that which they write". This solution suffers from some issues:

*The Qur'an used the word مِدَادًا (''midaadan'') for "ink" in the verse 18:109, while it used the word نون (''nun'') to mean "whale" in the verse 21:87. So it is more probable, that the meaning of nun here is "whale".
*According to this interpretation, this refers to the ink with which the Qur'an was written. Which is not very fitting, since the primary form of the Qu'ran is recitation according to the traditional narrative. The word "Qur'an" itself means "recitation" in the traditional understanding. It should also be noted, however, that the word Qur'an may have a Syriac antecedent in the word "Qeryaanaa", meaning a lectionary, the book of scripture readings in traditional Christian masses. With this understanding the meaning of "ink" might make more sense.

==="Allah knows best"===
"[[Allah knows best]]", in other words "the author knows what he meant", is an explanation offered by some Muslim commentators, indicating that even with the traditional narrative understanding the mysterious letters at the start of this surah and others is difficult topic.

==Modern Muslim Scholarly and Apologetic Views==
Today, Muslim scholars<ref>https://islamqa.info/en/114861</ref>, realizing how at odds this cosmography of giant animals and oceans is with modern science, have attempted to refute the reliability of the traditional whale interpretation.

===It's not in the Qur'an===
The letter Nun appears at the start of surah 68 al-Qalam and it was used in spelled out form in another verse 21:87 to mean "whale". However, it is not clearly stated in the Qur'an that Nun is the whale which carries the Earth on its back. The Qur'an speaks about mountains being like pegs, which may support the "whale cosmology" and the two are linked in one version of the hadith. If there is nothing under the Earth, then there is no reason for mountains to function as pegs.

When something is not in the Qur'an, then it doesn't mean it was never a part of Islam. The "5 pillars of Islam" are also not described in the Qur'an and they are considered to be a part of Islam. Islam (or at least the mainstream Islam) is derived from the Qur'an, hadith and sira. At one time, the whale was part of Islamic cosmography until knowledge improved and this became unsustainable.

===The strength of the hadith ''mawqoof''===
A problem often mentioned in regards to this tradition is that it relies on Hadith rated as "mawqoof" or originating with a companion of the prophet. In traditional Sunni exegisis however this has not normally been seen as an issue:

Besides that, there is a fatwa which says that a ''mawqoof'' hadith can be used as evidence if nobody protested against it:
{{Quote|Fatwa 217021 <ref>http://www.islamweb.net/emainpage/index.php?page=showfatwa&Option=FatwaId&Id=217021</ref>|As for taking it as evidence, it means that we have to act according to it and consider it a source of evidence of the Islamic religion. Scholars have ten different opinions regarding that issue. The nearest of them to correctness is that '''if the opinion of the companion spread widely and no one went against it, then it is a source of evidence and a consensus by silence'''. However, if it did not spread or some other companions went against it, then it is not a source of evidence, but can be used as secondary evidence.

That is the case if reason and Ijtihaad (personal diligence) can be applied in the opinion of the companion; otherwise (i.e. if his opinion is something that has nothing to do with Ijtihaad like matters of the unseen or the stories of the previous Prophets), then it is regarded as Marfoo‘ (traceable) to the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, unless it is known that that companion used to take his information from the books of the People of the Book.

Allaah Knows best
}}

===Only the early scholars believed it===
It's sometimes claimed that only early scholars believed this, a strange claim considering that antiquity usually validates rather than invalidates views and doctrines in Islamic theology and jurisprudence. This view is, incidentally, not entirely accurate so far as it goes, as the idea of the earth-bearing whale was mentioned even by the prominent Yemeni Sunni Islamic scholar, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Shawkani Al-Shawkani] who died in the year 1834 CE who wrote about it in his commentary on this verse.

===Jewish Origins===
There are some modern claims that this story/doctrine comes from Judaism. Neither the Bible, Talmud, targums, Mishnah mentions the idea of the earth-bearing whale, although as mentioned above, the ''Apocalypse of Abraham'' may be an antecendant to the concept as well as the giant bull. There is also a myth of a big sea monster called "Leviathan" in the Bible:
{{Quote|Isiah 27:1|
In that day,
the Lord will punish with his sword—
his fierce, great and powerful sword—
Leviathan the gliding serpent,
Leviathan the coiling serpent;
he will slay the monster of the sea.
}}

It's not clear whether it is a whale or a dolphin or a crocodile (although the word is construed in modern Hebrew to mean "whale", but this has no necessary implication for the word in the time of Isaiah). It was also described as a dragon and serpent. There are many different interpretations. In Judaism Leviathan is sometimes understood metaphorically as a great enemy of Israel. In Christianity Leviathan is sometimes understood as Satan. Neither the Bible nor any extra-biblical Judaic text say that the Leviathan holds the earth on its back, but there is a rabbinic text saying that Leviathan is a flying serpent who has "middle bar of the earth" between its fins:
{{Quote|Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer (Ch. 9)|
On the fifth day He brought forth from the water the Leviathan, the flying serpent, and its dwelling is in the the lowest waters; and between its fins rests the middle bar of the earth.
}}

Insofar as the Leviathan is interpreted as being a whale, it is possible that this was the origin of the myth. The entirety of the myth itself though does not appear to be Jewish in origin, rather being an obvious Islam accretion.

===Ibn Abbas Receiving the Story from the Jews===

Some modern Islamic scholars attribute this story to Jewish sources, basing this idea on the fact that ibn Abbas often took and retold Jewish stories. Interestingly, there exist sahih hadiths which appear to permit exactly this sort of re-narration:
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|56|667}}|Narrated `Abdullah bin `Amr:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "'''Convey (my teachings)''' to the people even if it were a single sentence, and '''tell others the stories of Bani Israel (which have been taught to you)''', for it is not sinful to do so. And whoever tells a lie on me intentionally, will surely take his place in the (Hell) Fire."}}

This hadith appears to allow taking stories from Jewish sources. In the phrase "of Bani Israel" (عَنْ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ), the word عن can mean both "from" and "about". Some Islamic scholars contest that this, coupled with the fact that the beginning of the hadith reads, literally translated, "convey from me" (بلغوا عني), it is more likely that Muhammad's message is to narration stories ''about'' Jews ''from'' Islamic sources.

Fath ul-Bari says in his commentary:
{{Quote|Ibn Hajar Al Asqalani, Fathul Bari, Kitab: Ahaadeeth Al 'Anbiyaa', Bab: Ma Thakr 'an Bani Israel <ref>https://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?bk_no=52&ID=2078&idfrom=6279&idto=6300&bookid=52&startno=8</ref>|
وقيل المعنى حدثوا عنهم بمثل ما ورد في القرآن والحديث الصحيح

And it is said that it means relating traditions about them found in the Qur'an and authentic hadith.
}}

Still, at the same time, some competing Islamic scholars argue that there is not anything wrong with taking Jewish stories from and retelling them for Muslims with an Islamic spin - with modern historians note, In fact, that where a Jewish or Christian narrative on any given topic, the Quran usually reiterates this with some changes made suitable to Islamic theology.

Those scholars arguing against the validity of the biblical references often couple the foregoing hadith with another hadith from Sahih Al-Bukhari, from the chapter entitled “Do not ask the people of the Scripture about anything”:
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|92|460}}, book 96, chapter "Do not ask the people of the Scripture about anything"|
Narrated Abu Huraira:

The people of the Book used to read the Torah in Hebrew and then explain it in Arabic to the Muslims. Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said (to the Muslims). "Do not believe the people of the Book, nor disbelieve them, but say, 'We believe in Allah and whatever is revealed to us, and whatever is revealed to you.' "
}}
Islamic scholars are again divided on the interpretation of this hadith. Some argue that Muslims should ignore the Jews, because some of the Jewish stories are right, while others are wrong.. Other scholars emphasize the final part of the hadith with says Muslims ought to believe in whatever was revealed to the Jews, and thereby arrive at the conclusion that narrating from them is acceptable.

Imam Shafi'i, for instance, explicitly prohibits retelling the "lies" of the Jewish traditions:
{{Quote|Ibn Hajar Al Asqalani, Fathul Bari, Kitab: Ahaadeeth Al 'Anbiyaa', Bab: Ma Thakr 'an Bani Israel <ref>https://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?bk_no=52&ID=2078&idfrom=6279&idto=6300&bookid=52&startno=8</ref>|
من المعلوم أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم لا يجيز التحدث بالكذب ، فالمعنى حدثوا عن بني إسرائيل بما لا تعلمون كذبه ، وأما ما تجوزونه فلا حرج عليكم في التحدث به عنهم [ ص: 576 ] وهو نظير قوله : إذا حدثكم أهل الكتاب فلا تصدقوهم ولا تكذبوهم ولم يرد الإذن ولا المنع من التحدث بما يقطع بصدقه

It is known that '''the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not permit speaking lies when he said "relate traditions from the children of Israel", thus it is meant that you relate traditions that you know not to be lies and whatever you find to be compliant with your beliefs''' then there is no harm narrating those traditions from them. This is in obedience to the Prophet's statement "Do not believe the people of the Scripture or disbelieve them." He did not recommend nor prohibit relating those traditions that are known to not be lies.
}}

Another important quote from Ibn Abbas himself is also found in the chapter “Do not ask the people of the Scripture about anything”, however. This narration appears to cast doubt on the idea that ibn Abbas was in the habit of taking stories from the Jews:
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|92|461}}, book 96, chapter '''"Do not ask the people of the Scripture about anything"'''|
Narrated Ubaidullah:

'''Ibn `Abbas said, "Why do you ask the people of the scripture about anything''' while your Book (Qur'an) which has been revealed to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) is newer and the latest? You read it pure, undistorted and unchanged, and Allah has told you that the people of the scripture (Jews and Christians) changed their scripture and distorted it, and wrote the scripture with their own hands and said, 'It is from Allah,' to sell it for a little gain. '''Does not the knowledge which has come to you prevent you from asking them about anything?''' No, by Allah, we have never seen any man from them asking you regarding what has been revealed to you!"
}}

===It Was Ibn Abbas’s Personal Opinion===

Some modern Islamic scholars argue that Ibn Abbas was sharing his personal views on cosmology. In the hadiths themselves, by contrast, Ibn Abbas attributes the story directly to Allah. This would create two primary issues with the credibility of Ibn Abbas from an Islamic theological standpoint, if these Islamic scholars are correct, namely:

1) That lying about Allah is forbidden:

{{Quote|{{Quran|11|18}}|And who is more unjust than he who invents a lie about Allah? Those will be presented before their Lord, and the witnesses will say, "These are the ones who lied against their Lord." Unquestionably, the curse of Allah is upon the wrongdoers.}}

2) And that attributing stories to Allah without knowledge is forbidden and an act of Satan:

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|2|168|169}}| O mankind, eat from whatever is on earth [that is] lawful and good and do not follow the footsteps of Satan. Indeed, he is to you a clear enemy. He only orders you to evil and immorality and to say about Allah what you do not know.}}A position that entails Ibn Abbas did both of the above things would appear to collide with the Islamic doctrine regarding the unerring reliability of Muhammad's [[companions]] as narrators.

==See Also==
[[Cosmology of the Quran]]

==External Links==
*The Masked Arab - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVhsVjXJzKM Islam & the whale that carries the Earth on its back] (video)
*Islamwhattheydonttellyou164 - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qj0qIqrvmmU Part 34: Islamic Creation Myth: The Honest Truth] (video)
*Islam Critiqued - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXjhwpTRZfw A Whale of a Tale in Muslim Sources] (video)
*The Islam Issue - [https://theislamissue.wordpress.com/2023/01/18/the-nun-whale-and-its-origins-in-early-islam/ The Nun whale and it’s origins in early Islam] (blog)

{{Translation-links-english|[[Islámská velryba|Czech]]}}

[[Category:Islam and Science]]

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Cosmology]]
[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Supernatural beings]]
[[Category:Criticism of Islam]]
[[Category:Tafsir]]
[[Category:Pre-Islamic Arabia]]

Seven Sleepers of Ephesus in the Quran

2023-12-10T10:20:17Z

Vixen: /* Slept for Hundreds of Years */

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}
<metadesc>Syrian legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus in the Qur'an</metadesc>
[[File:Seven sleepers.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Folio from an illustrated Islamic manuscript depicting the Seven Sleepers and the evil emperor led by a [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Racism|dark-skinned Satan]]. Iran, Qazvin. 1550s.]]

The [[Qur'an|Qur'anic]] story of the "Companions of the Cave" has traditionally been explained by the Islamic narrative as proof of [[Allah]]'s divine power whereby he miraculously caused 7 youths to fall asleep and awaken after more than 300 years. Yet comparison with the literary milieu of the Qur'an, 7th century Chrisian culture in the Middle East, reveals parallels to the 7 Sleepers of Ephesus, a Christian legend dating from the 5th century which tells the story of Christian youths being persecuted by the pagan Roman Emperor Decius in the 3rd century. The youths seek shelter in a cave, fall asleep for over 200 years, and venture out only to find that the Empire is now Christian. Their faith confirmed, the youths then die and are embraced by the Lord. Rather than a mere exhibition of god's power, the original story was a parable meant to emphasis the ability of Christian faith to overcome persecution, a celebration of the Christianization of the Roman Empire and an answer to heretics at the time of the story's composition who doubted the literal nature of the physical Resurrection. As the Qur'an does not preserve the entire story, but appears to merely refer to it, the [[tafsir|mufassirun]] of later generations misinterpreted the story, leaving out key components and failing to relay the underlying message of the original parable. In 2023, academic scholar Thomas Eich published his finding that the specific version of the tale found in the Qur'an overlaps significantly with the version taught by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Theodore of Tarsus (d. 690 CE), and which can be situated in an early 7th century Palestinian context.<ref name="Eich2023">Eich, Thomas. [https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/islam-2023-0003/html Muḥammad und Cædmon und die Siebenschläferlegende. Zur Verbindung zwischen Palästina und Canterbury im 7. Jahrhundert] (abstract in English), Der Islam, vol. 100, no. 1, 2023, pp. 7-39. https://doi.org/10.1515/islam-2023-0003</ref>

==Introduction==

The story of the companions of the cave is found in the 18th [[surah]] of the Qur'an, [[The Holy Qur'an: Al-Kahf (The Cave)|al-Kahf]] (the Cave), for which the surah is named. It relates the tale of a young group of believers, who fall into a supernatural sleep in a cave, only to awaken hundreds of years later. This story mimics a story found in the Syriac homily by a Christian bishop named Jacob of Serugh (521 CE).<ref name="Reynolds">Reynolds, Gabriel Said. "Seven Sleepers" in [http://books.google.com/books?id=H-k9oc9xsuAC&pg=PA720 Medieval Islamic Civilization], ed Josef W. Meri, Routledge, 2004, p. 720, ISBN 9780415966900 </ref> His story tells of seven young Christians in Ephesus (an ancient Greek city now situated in modern-day Turkey), who hide from an evil emperor in a cave, fall into a supernatural sleep for hundreds of years, and awaken to find that their home town has been converted to Christianity.<ref name="Gold">Jacobus de Voragine, Archbishop of Genoa, 1275 First Edition Published 1470. "Seven Sleepers" in [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/goldenlegend/GoldenLegend-Volume4.asp The Golden Legend: Volume IV] ([http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fordham.edu%2Fhalsall%2Fbasis%2Fgoldenlegend%2FGoldenLegend-Volume4.asp&date=2013-12-04 archived]).</ref>

===Christian and Jewish Legends in the Qur'an===

It is well known that the Qur'an contains many stories that were first told in Jewish and Christian communities around the Middle East. This includes [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|apocryphal and legendary tales]] that originated in Syria between the 2nd and early 7th century CE. One of the most widespread of these stories was the legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus. Popular in both Europe and the Middle East during medieval times, this story was translated into Latin and found its way into many Christian works of that era. It also became very prominent in the Muslim world because of its inclusion in the Qur'an. After the Renaissance and Enlightenment of the 16th century, this story fell out of favor and was largely dismissed as mythical. Since the tale is not found in the Bible, it was also rejected by the majority of the world's Christian churches without any theological consequence. The feast day for the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus is no longer observed by the Roman Catholic Church (it is now referred to within the church as a "purely imaginative romance"), and the story today is virtually unknown among the Protestant churches.

===Oral Tradition===

While it is impossible to know the exact details of how the author(s) of the [[Qur'an]] came to know the story of the Seven Sleepers, we do know that according to the Islamic narrative itself [[Muhammad]] had ample opportunities to hear it during his 62 year life. According to the traditional sources, Muhammad traveled to Syria while he was a caravan trader and he may have heard the story there. Visitors to Mecca would have included Syrian Christians, who would have known this popular story as well. Muhammad's followers also could have related this story after contact with Christian communities near the Mediterranean and in Arabia. In short, there were numerous ways in which this story could have be told to Muhammad during his lifetime.

===Significant overlap with 7th century Greek-Palestinian version===
As mentioned above, in 2023 academic scholar Thomas Eich identified a written version of the tale which had circulated in an early 7th century Palestinian monastic community and which significantly overlaps with the Quranic tale. In the abstract of his article he writes:

{{Quote|Part of the abstract from journal article by Thomas Eich (2023)<ref name="Eich2023" />|[...] the archbishop of Canterbury, Theodore of Tarsus (d. 690) [...] biography puts into focus the transposition of Greek-Palestinian and Egyptian monk congregations including relics and texts to Italy and especially Rome during the seventh century. The relevance of the surviving texts from the school of Canterbury for the study of seventh-century Middle Eastern history is then further illustrated with a version of the so-called legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesos recorded in Theodore’s biblical exegesis. Theodore’s specific version of that legend overlaps significantly with the version contained in the Qurʾān in Sura 18 (al-Kahf, “The cave”). It has always been clear that Sūrat al-Kahf refers to the Christian Seven Sleepers legend. However, since all other hitherto known versions of the story differed significantly from the Qurʾān version, the connection between the versions was usually imagined within a model of “oral transmission.” The version recorded from Theodore’s seventh century teaching sessions now allow us to draw a more nuanced picture in which this specific version of the legend can be situated in seventh-century Palestine.}}

In his article (the rest of which is written in German), Eich explains that Theodore spent the period from the 640s until 668 CE in Rome in the Monastery of St. Anastasius, a Greek monastic community which had begun to move there from Palestine from the 630s, probably triggered by the Byzantine conquest of Palestine in 629-30, though possibly due to the Arab conquest several years later. In 669 the Pope sent Theodore to England to take the vacant seat as Archbishop of Canterbury, where his teachings would go on to reflect those of his former Greek-Palestinian monastic community and showed knowledge of the Syriac church fathers.

It is in a Biblical commentary by Theodore when he was in England (surviving in two 9th century and one 11th century Latin manuscripts) where we find a version of the seven sleepers story, quoted below, with exceptional correspondances to the Quranic version. Unlike all other Syriac-Christian references to the legend (which have all been assigned to communities in Palestine, and in one case to Najran in Southern Arabia), in Theodore's version:

*The cave is not walled up. {{Quran|18|18}} likewise suggests that the cave was open.
*It has the dog motif. This appears likewise in {{Quran|18|18}} and {{Quran|18|22}}, though is also very briefly mentioned in material for a pilgrim travel guide written by Theodosius between 518 and 530 CE.
*It mentions the emperor building a church over the site. Similarly, in {{Quran|18|21}} the authorities build a masjid there.

Theodore's version appears to have Syriac origins. Eich points out that Theodore credits his story and its use in the context of Lot's wife to "eastern Fathers". Additionally, the only other Latin source to mention the church built over the cave is that of Gregory of Tours who credits his version to a translator from Syria. Finally, the fact that the story is used to answer a question about the soul of Lot's wife (whether it stays in the body until the day of resurrection) would have been of special interest in the region of Palestine, where a particular pillar of salt associated with her fate after the destruction of Sodom was a well known sight on pilgrimage routes at that time.

Theodore's version occurs in a section of his Biblical commentary on the Gospel of Luke. It is quoted below (machine translated from Eich's German article, which also includes the original Latin text).
{{Quote|Theodore's Biblical commentary quoted by Thomas Eich (machine translated here from German into English)<ref>The Latin text from M. Bischoff and M. Lapidge (eds.) (1994) "Biblical Commentaries from the Canterbury School of Theodore and Hadrian. Cambridge: Cambridge Univesity Press, pp. 416-419 is also quoted in Eich's article as a footnote to his German translation.</ref>|Lot's wife. Her soul is thought by some of the eastern Fathers to remain in her until the Day of Judgement. They cite the example of the seven brothers who fled the persecution of the Emperor Decius and came to a certain cave which was forty miles' distance from the city of Ephesus and, being tired in the evening, they gave themselves over to sleep and their dog with them. And after two hundred years they woke up in the time of the Emperor Theodosius the Younger, sat up and discussed among themselves about going into town to buy food for themselves. They thought they had slept for one night. And two of them set out for the city, taking the dog with them, and they showed their coins; and the men of the city said, 'Look: these men have found a treasure and dug up these coins' - because a portait of Decius appeared on the coins. But they denied it, and told them everything in order. When the men of the city did not believe them, they took some of the city men back with them as witnesses. And when they arrived back at the cave and entered it, suddently all seven brothers fell down dead. The city men who witnessed these events went straight to the emperor Theodosius and reported to him what had happened in proper order. He came and saw that it happened thus, and immediately he covered them with his purple cloak, and henceforth he did not doubt the resurrection, and he devoutly built a church over them.}}

==Parallels with the Syriac version of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus==

Prior to the identification of the above quoted Palestinian version, a number of clear parallels between the Qur'anic story and the legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus had already been identified, though also differences.

The two narratives clearly share many features which would indicate that they are in fact one and the same. They are virtually identical in the events they describe and both contain striking similarities in key details. Both story mention youths, a cave, a long sleep, buying bread with coins, and the Day of Judgement. Since the Syrian legend pre-dates the Qur'anic story by almost two centuries, it should be clear that the author of the Qur'an is simply retelling the Syriac story. The Qur'an even suggests in verse 18:9 that the audience is familiar with the story as they should have already "reflected" upon it and {{Quran|18|22}} indicates that different views on the details of the story were in circulation.

===Trouble===

Both stories begin by stating that a group of youths are in trouble. While the Qur'an gives few details on the nature of their problem, the Syriac legend tells specifically of an emperor, named Decius, who was forcing Christians to make sacrifices to the pagan gods or else face death.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 1)|
The seven sleepers were born in the city of Ephesus. And when Decius the emperor came into Ephesus for the persecution of christian men, he commanded to edify the temples in the middle of the city, so that all should come with him to do sacrifice to the idols, and did do seek all the christian people, and bind them for to make them to do sacrifice, or else to put them to death; in such wise that every man was afeard of the pains that he promised, that the friend forsook his friend, and the son renied his father, and the father the son.<ref name="Gold"/>}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|10}}|
Behold, the youths betook themselves to the Cave: they said, "Our Lord! bestow on us Mercy from Thyself, and dispose of our affair for us in the right way!"}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|16}}|
"When ye turn away from them and the things they worship other than Allah, betake yourselves to the Cave: Your Lord will shower His mercies on you and disposes of your affair towards comfort and ease."}}

===Inscription at the Cave===

In the Qur'anic account, the author asks if the reader has reflected on the companions of the cave and their inscription. The inclusion of the word "inscription" is an important detail connecting the story of the Qur'an with the story of the Seven Sleepers. In the Syriac legend, we have a more detailed narrative that states that the story of the youth's martyrdom was written and laid near the entrance of the cave.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|9}}|
Or dost thou reflect that the Companions of the Cave and of the '''Inscription''' [ar-Raqim] were wonders among Our Sign?}}

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 2)|
Then Decius thought what he should do with them, and, as our Lord would, he enclosed the mouth of the cave wherein they were with stones, to the end that they should die therein for hunger and fault of meat. Then the ministers and two christian men, Theodorus and Rufinus, '''wrote their martyrdom and laid it subtlely among the stones'''.}}

While the Qur'an does not mention the inscription again, it plays an important role in the Syriac story. The people who discover the sleepers use the inscriptions to verify the truthfulness of the seven men's story. This helps make sense of why the author of the Qur'an would mention this detail as part of what the reader should "reflect" upon.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 3)|
And Malchus entered first into the cave to his fellows, and the bishop next after him. And there '''found they among the stones the letters sealed with two seals of silver'''. And then the bishop called them that were come thither, and read them tofore them all, so that they that heard it were all abashed and amarvelled.}}

Among early Qur'anic commentators, there seems to be quite a bit of disagreement on the exact nature of the word "ar-Raqim" which is translated as "inscription" by all the major English translators. Sa'id bin Jubayr, who is held in the highest esteem by scholars of the [[Shiite|Shi'ite]] and [[Sunni]] Islamic traditions, has his opinion recorded In Ibn Kathir's classic [[Tafsir]]. Ibn Kathir relates that Sa'id bin Jubayr said that the "ar-Raqim" was indeed an inscription placed at the entrance of the cave. This confirms the direct connection to the Syriac legend.

{{Quote|Ibn Kathir, "The Story of the People of Al-Kahf"|
With regard to the word '''Ar-Raqim''', Al-`Awfi reported from Ibn `Abbas that it is a valley near Aylah. This was also said in another narration by Atiyah Al-Awfi and Qatadah. Ad-Dahhak said: "As for Al-Kahf, it is a cave in the valley, and Ar-Raqim is the name of the valley." Mujahid said, "Ar-Raqim refers to their buildings." Others said it refers to the valley in which their cave was. Abdur-Razzaq recorded that Ibn Abbas said about Ar-Raqim: "Ka`b used to say that it was the town." Ibn Jurayj reported that Ibn Abbas said, "Ar-Raqim is the mountain in which the cave was." Sa'id bin Jubayr said, "'''Ar-Raqim is a tablet of stone on which they wrote the story of the people of the Cave''', then they placed it at the entrance to the Cave."<ref name="Kathir"> Ibn Kathir, "The Story of the People of Al-Kahf" in [http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2741&Itemid=73 Quran Tafsir Ibn Kathir], accessed December 3, 2013 ([http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.qtafsir.com%2Findex.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26task%3Dview%26id%3D2741%26Itemid%3D73&date=2013-12-04 archived]).</ref>}}

===Disagreement Over Time in Cave===

In retellings of the Syriac legend, there is some dispute about the time the sleepers were in the cave. Apparently, this disagreement among Christians was still an issue in the 7th century when this story was first told to the early proto-Islamic Believer community. The Qur'an relates that Allah has woken the sleepers as a way to test who could calculate the length of their stay the best.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|11}}|
Then We draw (a veil) over their ears, for a number of years, in the Cave, (so that they heard not); Then We roused them, in order '''to test which of the two parties was best at calculating the term of years''' they had tarried!}}

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 4)|
'''It is in doubt of that which is said that they slept''' three hundred and sixty-two years, for they were raised the year of our Lord four hundred and seventy-eight, and Decius reigned but one year and three months, and that was in the year of our Lord two hundred and seventy, and so they slept but two hundred and eight years.}}

===Youths===

Another important detail between the two stories is that the companions are called "youths". This was likely a literary device in the original story to show that young people were more devout and fervent in their faith than older believers. Likewise, the Qur'anic story emphasizes their age as a polemic against those stuck in the same belief as their ancestors.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 2)|
And when they had taken their refection and sat in weeping and wailings, suddenly, as God would, they slept, and when it came on the morn they were sought and could not be found. Wherefore Decius was sorrowful because he had lost such '''young men'''.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|13}}|
We relate to thee their story in truth: '''they were youths''' who believed in their Lord, and We advanced them in guidance: We gave strength to their hearts: Behold, they stood up and said: "Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and of the earth: never shall we call upon any god other than Him: if we did, we should indeed have uttered an enormity!}}

===Perception of Time===

Even though the young men sleep in the cave for hundreds of years, they think they have only slept just a day.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 3)|
And then these holy saints, that were within, awoke and were raised and intersalued each other, and had '''supposed verily that they had slept but one night only''', and remembered of the heaviness that they had the day tofore.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|19}}|
And in like manner We awakened them that they might question one another. A speaker from among them said: How long have ye tarried? They said: '''We have tarried a day or some part of a day''', (Others) said: Your Lord best knoweth what ye have tarried. ...}}

===Money for Bread===

Another similarity between the two stories is that both state that one of the companions goes to the city to buy bread with coins. The Syriac legend states that the name of the person who buys bread is Malchus.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 3)|
He commanded to Malchus to go and buy bread in the city, and bade him bring more than he did yesterday, and also to enquire and demand what the emperor had commanded to do. And then Malchus took '''five shillings''', and issued out of the cave, and when he saw the masons and the stones tofore the cave, he began to bless him, and was much amarvelled.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|19}}|
... Now send one of you with this '''your silver coin''' unto the city, and let him see what food is purest there and bring you a supply thereof. Let him be courteous and let no man know of you.}}

===Fear of Capture===

While attempting to buy bread in town, Malchus is detained by town folk who are amazed that he has an ancient coin in his possession. He is fearful that the emperor and the town folk are pagans who will punish him. In the Qur'anic story, a companion warns the other to avoid capture out of fear that he will be forced back into polytheism.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 3)|
And when Malchus saw them talk together, he doubted not that they would lead him to the emperor, and was sore afraid, and prayed them to let him go, and keep both money and bread, but they held him, and said to him: Of whence art thou? For thou hast found treasure of old emperors, show it to us, and we shall be fellows with thee and keep it secret.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|20}}|
"For if they should come upon you, they would stone you or force you to return to their cult, and in that case ye would never attain prosperity."}}

===Day of Judgement===

Both the Syriac legend and the Qur'anic story state that the youth were awoken as a way to strengthen the faith of believers in the final Day of Judgement.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 4)|
And as soon as the blessed saints of our Lord saw the emperor come, their visages shone like to the sun. And the emperor entered then, and glorified our Lord and embraced them, weeping upon each of them, and said: I see you now like as I should see our Lord raising Lazarus. And then Maximian said to him: Believe us, for forsooth our Lord hath raised us tofore the '''day of the great resurrection'''. And '''to the end that thou believe firmly the resurrection of the dead people''', verily we be raised as ye here see, and live.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|21}}|
Thus did We make their case known to the people, that they might '''know that the promise of Allah is true''', and that there can be no doubt about the '''Hour of Judgment'''. ..."}}

===Place of Worship at Cave===

The Qur'an states that a place of worship was built at the site of the cave after the events it describes. Interestingly, a church was built over the purported sight of the miracle in Ephesus. This cave was a destination for pilgrims for almost a thousand years. By the late 6th century, this church contained marble structures and a large, domed mausoleum.<ref name="hayes">{{cite web|url= http://www.sacred-destinations.com/turkey/ephesus-cave-of-the-seven-sleepers|title= Cave of the Seven Sleepers, Ephesus|publisher= Sacred-Destinations|author= Holly Hayes|date= accessed December 4, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sacred-destinations.com%2Fturkey%2Fephesus-cave-of-the-seven-sleepers&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> This information would have been known to Christians in Syria and likely passed along to the author of the Qur'anic verses as well.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers|
And then he commanded to make precious sepulchres of gold and silver, and to bury their bodies therein. And in the same night they appeared to the emperor, and said to him that he should suffer them to lie on the earth like as they bad lain tofore till that time that our Lord had raised them, unto the time that they should rise again. Then commanded the emperor that the place should be adorned nobly and richly with precious stones, and all the bishops that would confess the resurrection should be assoiled.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|21}}|
... Behold, they dispute among themselves as to their affair. (Some) said, "Construct a building over them": Their Lord knows best about them: those who prevailed over their affair said, "Let us surely build a place of worship over them."}}

===Number of Sleepers===

The author of these verses in the Qur'an does not provide a definitive answer for the number of sleepers, stating the possibility that there were three, five, or seven. The Syrian legend clearly and emphatically states in the first sentence that the story is about seven sleepers.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 1)|
The '''seven sleepers''' were born in the city of Ephesus.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|22}}|
(Some) say they were three, the dog being the fourth among them; (others) say they were five, the dog being the sixth,- doubtfully guessing at the unknown; '''(yet others) say they were seven''', the dog being the eighth. Say thou: "My Lord knoweth best their number; It is but few that know their (real case)." Enter not, therefore, into controversies concerning them, except on a matter that is clear, nor consult any of them about (the affair of) the Sleepers. }}

===Slept for Hundreds of Years===

Both accounts state that the youths slept for hundreds of years. The Qur'an stating that it was 300 years and the Syriac version stating the number was closer to 200. There is considerable variation in different versions of the Seven Sleeper legend as to the time frame that they slept. Though all of them are longer than 200 years.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|25}}|
So they stayed in their Cave three hundred years, and (some) add nine (more).}}

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 4)|
... so they slept but two hundred and eight years. }}

The Syriac account identifies the Emperor persecuting the seven young men as Trajan Decius, who reigned from 249 - 251 CE. Since the story first originated around the middle of the 5th century (circa 450 CE) a sleep of 200 years would be the more accurate number. Given this connection, some Islamic scholars and apologists in modern times have back-peddled on the number of 300 given in the Qur'an, re-interpreting it as a number given by the people at the time and not a definitive number given by Allah.

==Differences with the Syriac version==

While there are many similarities and they are clearly describing the same events, there are also a few key differences between the Quran and Syriac versions.

===Vagueness of the Qur'an===

The author of the Qur'anic account seems to be unclear on a few details. He refuses to give an exact number of sleepers, instead giving a vague range of numbers and says that only Allah knows the right number. He is not specific on the time frame, offering a number of years but nothing definitive. He does not mention any names, fails to mention where these events took place, and does not state when this story happened. This evidence suggests that the author was only vaguely familiar with the story and may not have had access to a complete, written copy; perhaps the story had been orally relayed to him.

===Story's Purpose and Polytheism===

The purpose behind the Syrian story appears to be the affirmation of a bodily resurrection on the Day of Judgement.<ref>For instance, one of the youths states, "Believe us, for forsooth our Lord hath raised us tofore the day of the great resurrection. And to the end that thou believe firmly the resurrection of the dead people, verily we be raised as ye here see, and live." (The Seven Sleepers: par 4)</ref> While the Qur'anic story makes references to the Day of Judgement, it does not mention a resurrection. In fact, the story's stated purpose is to "warn those (also) who say, 'Allah hath begotten a son'"<ref>"''Further, that He may warn those (also) who say, "Allah hath begotten a son":''" - {{Quran|18|4}}</ref> (i.e. Trinitarian Christians). The mainstream Islamic position concerning the Christian doctrine of the Trinity is that it constitutes an act of "shirk" (the sin of practicing idolatry or polytheism) and makes one a "mushrik" (polytheist).<ref>{{cite web|url= http://islamqa.com/en/ref/12713|title= Is the trinity that the Christians believe in mentioned in Islam?|publisher= Islam Q&A|author= |series=Fatwa No. 12713|date= |archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fislamqa.com%2Fen%2Fref%2F12713&date=2013-12-06|deadurl=no}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= http://islamqa.com/en/ref/67626|title= The difference between the mushrikeen and the kuffaar, and to which category do the Jews and Christians belong?|publisher= Islam Q&A|author= |series=Fatwa No. 67626|date= |archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fislamqa.com%2Fen%2Fref%2F67626&date=2013-12-06|deadurl=no}}</ref> So, the Qur'an has taken a story written by Christians and reworked it into a polemic against Christianity.

The Syrian narrative, in its content and structure, is successful in achieving its purpose. The youths awakening to find that their home town has been converted to Christianity is a compelling ending and the mere existence of the youths provides the affirmation of a bodily resurrection. This serves the double purpose of affirming the principle that god will save Christians through persecution, and also exulting in the Christianization of the Roman Empire that had once persecuted Christians. However, in the Qur'anic narrative the youths awaken to the same 'polytheists' and are only questioned by each other concerning the length of their sleep. There is no argument made for why Allah could not have begotten a son, nor an answer provided for what benefits the youths were meant to gain from their long sleep.

==Historicity==

Since it is found within the Qur'an, Islamic scholars and [[apologists]] have defended the historicity of the story.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://quransmessage.com/travelogues/seven%20sleepers%20FM3.htm|title= The Sleepers of the Cave - The Quran, Historical Sources and Observations|publisher= The Quran and its Message|author= Joseph A Islam|date= January 25, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fquransmessage.com%2Ftravelogues%2Fseven%2520sleepers%2520FM3.htm&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> However, there are significant reasons to doubt its historical authenticity. Not only is it scientifically impossible for the human body to live three hundred years but there is good evidence that this story may have been invented as a political and theological polemic within the Syrian Christian Church. These facts, along with connections to many pre-existing legends about sleeping heroes, strongly suggest that this story of the Seven Sleepers should be placed in the category of myth and legend.

===Science===

The longest-living person, whose dates of birth and death were verified to the modern standards of the Guinness Book of World Records and the Gerontology Research Group, was Jeanne Calment, a French woman who lived to the age of 122. The maximum recorded life span for humans has increased from just under 100 in the 18th century to 122 years in the 21st century; if we go back to the 7th century the maximum age was significantly less. Therefore, any account of humans living beyond a century should be viewed with immense skepticism. Dr. Mike Stroud, senior lecturer of Medicine and Nutrition at Southampton University in England, states that the "The average resting human body, doing absolutely nothing, produces about 100 watts of body heat, which could function a light bulb."<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-17095605|title= Who, What, Why: How long can someone survive without food?|publisher= BBC News Magazine|author= Lauren Everitt, Chi Chi Izundu|date= February 20, 2012|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.co.uk%2Fnews%2Fmagazine-17095605&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> Without this heat and energy, cells will begin to decay and organs will fail. In order to maintain this energy, humans require food and water; after two months with no food and water, the human body would cease to function.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=how-long-can-a-person-sur|title= How long can a person survive without food?|publisher= Scientific American|author= Dr. Alan D. Lieberson|date= November 8, 2004|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.scientificamerican.com%2Farticle.cfm%3Fid%3Dhow-long-can-a-person-sur&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> Even in a hibernation-like sleep, a three hundred year lifespan would be impossible.

===Sleeping Hero Legends===

There is a long tradition in ancient cultures of myths about the preservation of important heroes. One such example of this folklore comes from Persia. In their legends, immortals were ancient heroes who were kept in deep sleep until the doomsday, when they wake up to assist the appointed messiah to save the world of cruelty and injustice.<ref>{{cite web|url= |title= Mythological phenomena in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh|publisher= Toos Publications|author= Mahvash Vahed Doost|date= 1989|page= 389|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Often times these immortals were associated with the sacredness of the number seven; and many stories portrayed these saviors to be seven male figures.<ref> {{cite web|url= |title= Yashts. Ed. & Interpretation. 2nd vol.|publisher= Tehran: Asatir Publications|author= Ibrahim Pour Davood|date= 1998|page=77 |archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref>

This legendary motif can be found in many Middle Eastern cultures as well, including Jewish and Christian traditions. The book of Maccabees, an apocryphal scripture that details the deeds of Jewish rebels who opposed Roman rule from 164 BCE to 63 BCE, contains the story of a pious mother and seven brothers. This family is persecuted by an evil king who forces them to eat pork. They refuse and are tortured to death rather than abandon their faith and Jewish customs. <ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Maccabees+7&version=GNT 2 Maccabees Ch 7]</ref> These seven brothers were revered as saints for many generations, spawning cults dedicated to preserving their story. However, because Jews were persecuted and not popular by the 4th century, Christian variations of this legend began to circulate, including the story of St. Felicitas and her seven sons. Dr. Albrecht Berger, professor of Byzantine Studies at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat of Munich, affirms that there is a clear connection between these variations of the Maccabean story of seven brothers and the Christian legend of the Seven Sleepers, with the later being a clear adaptation of the Jewish story.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://books.google.com/books?id=ln5Db7iDHhMC&pg=PA117|title= Dying for the Faith, Killing for the Faith: Old-Testament Faith-Warriors (1 and 2 Maccabees) in Historical Perspective|publisher= BRILL, 2012|author= Albrecht Berger, Gabriela Signori (ed.)|date= 2012|pages=114-118|isbn=9789004211056|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref>

The tradition of sleeping heroes continued beyond the 7th century. Dozens of examples of these types of stories can be found throughout medieval literature.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/sleep.html|title= Sleeping Hero Legends|publisher= University of Pittsburgh|author= D. L. Ashliman|date= August 2, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pitt.edu%2F%7Edash%2Fsleep.html&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> In more modern times, the story of "Rip Van Winkle", by American author Washington Irving (1819) portrays a man who climbs up into a mountain, falls into a magical sleep for twenty years, thinks only a day has passed, returns to his town to realize he recognizes nobody, and discovers that society has dramatically changed.

===Origins of the Legend===

While the complete story of the Seven sleepers was not first written down until the 6th century, the story was known in Syria by the middle of the 5th century. It is first mentioned by Bishop Stephen of Ephesus (c. 448-451 CE) <ref>{{cite web|url= |title= Ephesus after Antiquity: A Late Antique, Byzantine and Turkish City|publisher= Cambridge University Press|author= Clive Foss|date= 1979|page= 43|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> and it is also referenced by Bishop Zachariah of Mitylene (c. 465-536 CE).<ref name="Mitylene"> {{cite web|url= http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/zachariah02.htm|title= Zachariah of Mitylene, Syriac Chronicle: Book II Chapter 1|publisher= M.A. Methuen & Co|author= F. J. Hamilton, D.D. and E. W. Books (trans.)|date= 1899|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.tertullian.org%2Ffathers%2Fzachariah02.htm&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> During this time period, a number of theological controversies were taking place in Syrian Christian communities.<ref>{{cite web|url= |title= The Church of the Ancient Councils|publisher= Crestwood, New York: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press|author= Peter L’Huillier|date= 1996|pages= 199-201|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= |title= The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon vol. 3|publisher= Liverpool University Press|author=Richard Price and Michael Gaddis|date= 2007|pages= 1-3|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Among these was a debate over the nature of the resurrected body. Called the Origenist controversy, after the heretical Christian writer and cleric Origen, this theological disagreement began in Egypt during the late 4th century and by the middle of the 5th century had spread into Asia Minor. Origenists claimed that the resurrected body of the believer was not the same physical body they had during life. Stephen records that the bishops of his time regarded the miracle of the Seven Sleepers as a divine answer to the controversy. In his work, Zachariah of Mitylene uses the case of the Seven Sleepers as evidence toward defending the orthodox position on the resurrection:

{{Quote|Zachariah of Mitylene, Syriac Chronicle: Book II, Ch. 1|I shall set down here the truth of the resurrection, which took place in the days of Theodosius the king, of the bodies of the seven youths who were in a cave in the district of Ephesus, and the Syriac records ; both to keep them in the memory of the saints and for the glory of God, Who is able to do all things.<ref name="Mitylene"/>}}

It seems all too convenient that this miracle of physical preservation would suddenly occur right at the height of a theological controversy about the resurrection of the physical body. This naturally leads to skepticism of the historical nature of these events, rather pointing to the story being invented solely as a polemic for one side in a theological debate.

===Grotto of the Seven Sleepers in Ephesus===

Located just outside of the ancient city of Ephesus in Turkey, the Grotto is a network of catacombs, tombs, and graves around a cave on the eastern slope of Panayirdag hill. Archaeological evidence collected in the 1920s has verified that some of the tombs at the site in Ephesus date back to the middle of the 5th century but it also showed that the cave was in use at least two centuries prior. Among the items collected were pottery shards with Christian symbols along with inscriptions on the walls dedicated to to the seven sleepers. Other pieces of pottery contained images of Greek and Roman gods.<ref name="Honigamann"> Ernest Honigmann, “Stephen of Ephesus and the Legend of the Seven Sleepers,” in Patristic studies (Studi e testi), Biblioteca apostolica vaticana, 1953</ref>

While this evidence confirms that people living near Ephesus associated those buried at this site with the legend of the Sleepers; it does not confirm the actual events of the story. What it does show, is that the legend began sometime in the middle of the 5th century and this site was associated with the story around that same time. Historian Ernest Honigmann points out:

{{Quote|Stephen of Ephesus and the Legend of the Seven Sleepers, p. 168|In the light of the archaeological evidence it now seems incontestable that about the middle of the fifth century seven young Ephesians really believed or tried to make others believe that they had been persecuted at the time of Decius, and that a high ecclesiastical dignitary, in a kind of enthusiastic self-deception, took their strange affirmation for granted, all the more providing him with the weapons which he needed for refuting certain heretics and making orthodoxy triumph.”<ref name="Honigamann"/>}}

Whether this story has an historical core or not is still a matter of debate. However, the evidence appears to point to a speedy acceptance of the legend based more on the desire for it to be true rather than a measured evaluation of the evidence.

===Abu Alanda in Amman Jordan===

Located near Amman Jordan, this site has alternatively been identified as the one mentioned in Surah Al Kahf. It was discovered by the Jordanian archaeologist Rafiq Wafa Ad-Dajani in 1963 CE.<ref name="amman">{{cite web|url= http://www.ammancity.gov.jo/en/services/histdetails.asp?id=3|title= Kahf Ahl Al-Kahf (Cave of the Cavemen)|publisher=Greater Amman Municipality|author= |date= accessed December 5, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ammancity.gov.jo%2Fen%2Fservices%2Fhistdetails.asp%3Fid%3D3&date=2013-12-05|deadurl=no}}</ref> The cave and tomb have become a tourist destination and the locals refer to it as Al-Raqim, or the (cave of) the inscription. However, beyond local tradition, there seems to be little that links this site to the story of the Seven Sleepers.

The location does appear to be an old Byzantine-Roman burial site, but there are thousands of these across the region with almost 750 in just the Irbid–North Jordan Valley region alone.<ref> Palumbo, G., 1994. Jordan Antiquities Database and Information System. Amman: American Center for Oriental Research. Cited in: {{cite web|url= http://www2.mcdonald.cam.ac.uk/projects/iarc/culturewithoutcontext/issue14/rose-burke.htm|title= Making Money from Buried Treasure|publisher= Culture Without Context|author= Jerome C. Rose & Dolores L. Burke|series= Issue 14, Spring 2004|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww2.mcdonald.cam.ac.uk%2Fprojects%2Fiarc%2Fculturewithoutcontext%2Fissue14%2Frose-burke.htm&date=2013-12-05|deadurl=no}}</ref> These tombs often held the remains of multiple people and were usually situated in or around hillsides and caves. In fact, there are a number of similar rock-cut tombs in the area near this cave in Abu Alanda.<ref name="Jordan">{{cite web|url= http://books.google.com/books?id=tI9L9gepYAUC&pg=PA106|title= Jordan|publisher= Rough Guides|author= Matthew Teller|date= 2002|page=106|isbn=9781858287409|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Without any kind of inscriptions or other identifying features, there is little reason to single out this particular site as the one mentioned in the Qur'an. Even the claims of a small ancient church, later converted into a mosque at the site, offer little supporting evidence as churches and chapels were commonly built near grave sites.

Other, spurious claims that the remains of seven individuals and a dog skeleton were found in the cave, along with the discovery of copper coins, cannot be verified as the archaeological work done in the 1960s did not definitely date the items at the site.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://idosi.org/wjihc/wjihc1(3)11/7.pdf|title= Qur’an and Archeological Discoveries: Evidence from the Near East|publisher= World Journal of Islamic History and Civilization|author= Ghassan Taha Yaseen|series=1 (3): 201-212, 2011. ISSN 2225-0883|date= |archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fidosi.org%2Fwjihc%2Fwjihc1%283%2911%2F7.pdf&date=2013-12-05|deadurl=no}}</ref> Human remains, coins, and jewelry are very common in all of the Byzantine tombs in the region.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www2.mcdonald.cam.ac.uk/projects/iarc/culturewithoutcontext/issue14/rose-burke.htm|title= Making Money from Buried Treasure|publisher= Culture Without Context|author= Jerome C. Rose & Dolores L. Burke|series= Issue 14, Spring 2004|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww2.mcdonald.cam.ac.uk%2Fprojects%2Fiarc%2Fculturewithoutcontext%2Fissue14%2Frose-burke.htm&date=2013-12-05|deadurl=no}}</ref> Without proper dating, we have no way to verify if the remains at this site pre-date the Qur'anic story or if they were placed there at some point in the preceding 1,400 years. The cave only has four alcoves and sarcophagi, which implies it was never intended to hold the remains of seven people.

Numerous other sites, in Muslim countries, have also been offered as possible locations of the cave in the Qur'anic story. In Turkey (Ammuriyag Hadj Hamza: subterranean cave of an ancient Greek convent, and Tarsus; grotto), Syria (Damascus: the Ahl al-Kahf Mosque, with seven qibla in the crypt), Egypt (Cairo: cave of the Maghwari in Moqattam), in North Africa there are numerous sites. This attests only to how easy it is to find a cave, cemetery, and religious building situated in the same location.<ref>Geneviève Massignonn, [http://www.dcbuck.com/Articles/Pilgrimage/Pilgrimage.html "The Veneration of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus"], 1963 ([http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcbuck.com%2FArticles%2FPilgrimage%2FPilgrimage.html&date=2013-12-05 archived]).</ref>

==See Also==
{{Hub4|Companions of the Cave|the Companions of the Cave}}

==External Links==

*{{external link| url = http://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Sources/s18.html| title = The Fellows of the Cave| publisher = Answering Islam| author = | date = | archiveurl = http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.answering-islam.org%2FQuran%2FSources%2Fs18.html&date=2013-12-05| deadurl = no}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Sacred history]]
[[Category:Miracles]]
[[Category:Christian tradition]]
[[Category:Revelation]]
[[Category:Allah]]
[[ar:سبعة_نائمون_لأفسس_في_القرآن]]

Seven Sleepers of Ephesus in the Quran

2023-12-10T09:58:37Z

Vixen: /* Day of Judgement */

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}
<metadesc>Syrian legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus in the Qur'an</metadesc>
[[File:Seven sleepers.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Folio from an illustrated Islamic manuscript depicting the Seven Sleepers and the evil emperor led by a [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Racism|dark-skinned Satan]]. Iran, Qazvin. 1550s.]]

The [[Qur'an|Qur'anic]] story of the "Companions of the Cave" has traditionally been explained by the Islamic narrative as proof of [[Allah]]'s divine power whereby he miraculously caused 7 youths to fall asleep and awaken after more than 300 years. Yet comparison with the literary milieu of the Qur'an, 7th century Chrisian culture in the Middle East, reveals parallels to the 7 Sleepers of Ephesus, a Christian legend dating from the 5th century which tells the story of Christian youths being persecuted by the pagan Roman Emperor Decius in the 3rd century. The youths seek shelter in a cave, fall asleep for over 200 years, and venture out only to find that the Empire is now Christian. Their faith confirmed, the youths then die and are embraced by the Lord. Rather than a mere exhibition of god's power, the original story was a parable meant to emphasis the ability of Christian faith to overcome persecution, a celebration of the Christianization of the Roman Empire and an answer to heretics at the time of the story's composition who doubted the literal nature of the physical Resurrection. As the Qur'an does not preserve the entire story, but appears to merely refer to it, the [[tafsir|mufassirun]] of later generations misinterpreted the story, leaving out key components and failing to relay the underlying message of the original parable. In 2023, academic scholar Thomas Eich published his finding that the specific version of the tale found in the Qur'an overlaps significantly with the version taught by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Theodore of Tarsus (d. 690 CE), and which can be situated in an early 7th century Palestinian context.<ref name="Eich2023">Eich, Thomas. [https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/islam-2023-0003/html Muḥammad und Cædmon und die Siebenschläferlegende. Zur Verbindung zwischen Palästina und Canterbury im 7. Jahrhundert] (abstract in English), Der Islam, vol. 100, no. 1, 2023, pp. 7-39. https://doi.org/10.1515/islam-2023-0003</ref>

==Introduction==

The story of the companions of the cave is found in the 18th [[surah]] of the Qur'an, [[The Holy Qur'an: Al-Kahf (The Cave)|al-Kahf]] (the Cave), for which the surah is named. It relates the tale of a young group of believers, who fall into a supernatural sleep in a cave, only to awaken hundreds of years later. This story mimics a story found in the Syriac homily by a Christian bishop named Jacob of Serugh (521 CE).<ref name="Reynolds">Reynolds, Gabriel Said. "Seven Sleepers" in [http://books.google.com/books?id=H-k9oc9xsuAC&pg=PA720 Medieval Islamic Civilization], ed Josef W. Meri, Routledge, 2004, p. 720, ISBN 9780415966900 </ref> His story tells of seven young Christians in Ephesus (an ancient Greek city now situated in modern-day Turkey), who hide from an evil emperor in a cave, fall into a supernatural sleep for hundreds of years, and awaken to find that their home town has been converted to Christianity.<ref name="Gold">Jacobus de Voragine, Archbishop of Genoa, 1275 First Edition Published 1470. "Seven Sleepers" in [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/goldenlegend/GoldenLegend-Volume4.asp The Golden Legend: Volume IV] ([http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fordham.edu%2Fhalsall%2Fbasis%2Fgoldenlegend%2FGoldenLegend-Volume4.asp&date=2013-12-04 archived]).</ref>

===Christian and Jewish Legends in the Qur'an===

It is well known that the Qur'an contains many stories that were first told in Jewish and Christian communities around the Middle East. This includes [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|apocryphal and legendary tales]] that originated in Syria between the 2nd and early 7th century CE. One of the most widespread of these stories was the legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus. Popular in both Europe and the Middle East during medieval times, this story was translated into Latin and found its way into many Christian works of that era. It also became very prominent in the Muslim world because of its inclusion in the Qur'an. After the Renaissance and Enlightenment of the 16th century, this story fell out of favor and was largely dismissed as mythical. Since the tale is not found in the Bible, it was also rejected by the majority of the world's Christian churches without any theological consequence. The feast day for the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus is no longer observed by the Roman Catholic Church (it is now referred to within the church as a "purely imaginative romance"), and the story today is virtually unknown among the Protestant churches.

===Oral Tradition===

While it is impossible to know the exact details of how the author(s) of the [[Qur'an]] came to know the story of the Seven Sleepers, we do know that according to the Islamic narrative itself [[Muhammad]] had ample opportunities to hear it during his 62 year life. According to the traditional sources, Muhammad traveled to Syria while he was a caravan trader and he may have heard the story there. Visitors to Mecca would have included Syrian Christians, who would have known this popular story as well. Muhammad's followers also could have related this story after contact with Christian communities near the Mediterranean and in Arabia. In short, there were numerous ways in which this story could have be told to Muhammad during his lifetime.

===Significant overlap with 7th century Greek-Palestinian version===
As mentioned above, in 2023 academic scholar Thomas Eich identified a written version of the tale which had circulated in an early 7th century Palestinian monastic community and which significantly overlaps with the Quranic tale. In the abstract of his article he writes:

{{Quote|Part of the abstract from journal article by Thomas Eich (2023)<ref name="Eich2023" />|[...] the archbishop of Canterbury, Theodore of Tarsus (d. 690) [...] biography puts into focus the transposition of Greek-Palestinian and Egyptian monk congregations including relics and texts to Italy and especially Rome during the seventh century. The relevance of the surviving texts from the school of Canterbury for the study of seventh-century Middle Eastern history is then further illustrated with a version of the so-called legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesos recorded in Theodore’s biblical exegesis. Theodore’s specific version of that legend overlaps significantly with the version contained in the Qurʾān in Sura 18 (al-Kahf, “The cave”). It has always been clear that Sūrat al-Kahf refers to the Christian Seven Sleepers legend. However, since all other hitherto known versions of the story differed significantly from the Qurʾān version, the connection between the versions was usually imagined within a model of “oral transmission.” The version recorded from Theodore’s seventh century teaching sessions now allow us to draw a more nuanced picture in which this specific version of the legend can be situated in seventh-century Palestine.}}

In his article (the rest of which is written in German), Eich explains that Theodore spent the period from the 640s until 668 CE in Rome in the Monastery of St. Anastasius, a Greek monastic community which had begun to move there from Palestine from the 630s, probably triggered by the Byzantine conquest of Palestine in 629-30, though possibly due to the Arab conquest several years later. In 669 the Pope sent Theodore to England to take the vacant seat as Archbishop of Canterbury, where his teachings would go on to reflect those of his former Greek-Palestinian monastic community and showed knowledge of the Syriac church fathers.

It is in a Biblical commentary by Theodore when he was in England (surviving in two 9th century and one 11th century Latin manuscripts) where we find a version of the seven sleepers story, quoted below, with exceptional correspondances to the Quranic version. Unlike all other Syriac-Christian references to the legend (which have all been assigned to communities in Palestine, and in one case to Najran in Southern Arabia), in Theodore's version:

*The cave is not walled up. {{Quran|18|18}} likewise suggests that the cave was open.
*It has the dog motif. This appears likewise in {{Quran|18|18}} and {{Quran|18|22}}, though is also very briefly mentioned in material for a pilgrim travel guide written by Theodosius between 518 and 530 CE.
*It mentions the emperor building a church over the site. Similarly, in {{Quran|18|21}} the authorities build a masjid there.

Theodore's version appears to have Syriac origins. Eich points out that Theodore credits his story and its use in the context of Lot's wife to "eastern Fathers". Additionally, the only other Latin source to mention the church built over the cave is that of Gregory of Tours who credits his version to a translator from Syria. Finally, the fact that the story is used to answer a question about the soul of Lot's wife (whether it stays in the body until the day of resurrection) would have been of special interest in the region of Palestine, where a particular pillar of salt associated with her fate after the destruction of Sodom was a well known sight on pilgrimage routes at that time.

Theodore's version occurs in a section of his Biblical commentary on the Gospel of Luke. It is quoted below (machine translated from Eich's German article, which also includes the original Latin text).
{{Quote|Theodore's Biblical commentary quoted by Thomas Eich (machine translated here from German into English)<ref>The Latin text from M. Bischoff and M. Lapidge (eds.) (1994) "Biblical Commentaries from the Canterbury School of Theodore and Hadrian. Cambridge: Cambridge Univesity Press, pp. 416-419 is also quoted in Eich's article as a footnote to his German translation.</ref>|Lot's wife. Her soul is thought by some of the eastern Fathers to remain in her until the Day of Judgement. They cite the example of the seven brothers who fled the persecution of the Emperor Decius and came to a certain cave which was forty miles' distance from the city of Ephesus and, being tired in the evening, they gave themselves over to sleep and their dog with them. And after two hundred years they woke up in the time of the Emperor Theodosius the Younger, sat up and discussed among themselves about going into town to buy food for themselves. They thought they had slept for one night. And two of them set out for the city, taking the dog with them, and they showed their coins; and the men of the city said, 'Look: these men have found a treasure and dug up these coins' - because a portait of Decius appeared on the coins. But they denied it, and told them everything in order. When the men of the city did not believe them, they took some of the city men back with them as witnesses. And when they arrived back at the cave and entered it, suddently all seven brothers fell down dead. The city men who witnessed these events went straight to the emperor Theodosius and reported to him what had happened in proper order. He came and saw that it happened thus, and immediately he covered them with his purple cloak, and henceforth he did not doubt the resurrection, and he devoutly built a church over them.}}

==Parallels with the Syriac version of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus==

Prior to the identification of the above quoted Palestinian version, a number of clear parallels between the Qur'anic story and the legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus had already been identified, though also differences.

The two narratives clearly share many features which would indicate that they are in fact one and the same. They are virtually identical in the events they describe and both contain striking similarities in key details. Both story mention youths, a cave, a long sleep, buying bread with coins, and the Day of Judgement. Since the Syrian legend pre-dates the Qur'anic story by almost two centuries, it should be clear that the author of the Qur'an is simply retelling the Syriac story. The Qur'an even suggests in verse 18:9 that the audience is familiar with the story as they should have already "reflected" upon it and {{Quran|18|22}} indicates that different views on the details of the story were in circulation.

===Trouble===

Both stories begin by stating that a group of youths are in trouble. While the Qur'an gives few details on the nature of their problem, the Syriac legend tells specifically of an emperor, named Decius, who was forcing Christians to make sacrifices to the pagan gods or else face death.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 1)|
The seven sleepers were born in the city of Ephesus. And when Decius the emperor came into Ephesus for the persecution of christian men, he commanded to edify the temples in the middle of the city, so that all should come with him to do sacrifice to the idols, and did do seek all the christian people, and bind them for to make them to do sacrifice, or else to put them to death; in such wise that every man was afeard of the pains that he promised, that the friend forsook his friend, and the son renied his father, and the father the son.<ref name="Gold"/>}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|10}}|
Behold, the youths betook themselves to the Cave: they said, "Our Lord! bestow on us Mercy from Thyself, and dispose of our affair for us in the right way!"}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|16}}|
"When ye turn away from them and the things they worship other than Allah, betake yourselves to the Cave: Your Lord will shower His mercies on you and disposes of your affair towards comfort and ease."}}

===Inscription at the Cave===

In the Qur'anic account, the author asks if the reader has reflected on the companions of the cave and their inscription. The inclusion of the word "inscription" is an important detail connecting the story of the Qur'an with the story of the Seven Sleepers. In the Syriac legend, we have a more detailed narrative that states that the story of the youth's martyrdom was written and laid near the entrance of the cave.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|9}}|
Or dost thou reflect that the Companions of the Cave and of the '''Inscription''' [ar-Raqim] were wonders among Our Sign?}}

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 2)|
Then Decius thought what he should do with them, and, as our Lord would, he enclosed the mouth of the cave wherein they were with stones, to the end that they should die therein for hunger and fault of meat. Then the ministers and two christian men, Theodorus and Rufinus, '''wrote their martyrdom and laid it subtlely among the stones'''.}}

While the Qur'an does not mention the inscription again, it plays an important role in the Syriac story. The people who discover the sleepers use the inscriptions to verify the truthfulness of the seven men's story. This helps make sense of why the author of the Qur'an would mention this detail as part of what the reader should "reflect" upon.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 3)|
And Malchus entered first into the cave to his fellows, and the bishop next after him. And there '''found they among the stones the letters sealed with two seals of silver'''. And then the bishop called them that were come thither, and read them tofore them all, so that they that heard it were all abashed and amarvelled.}}

Among early Qur'anic commentators, there seems to be quite a bit of disagreement on the exact nature of the word "ar-Raqim" which is translated as "inscription" by all the major English translators. Sa'id bin Jubayr, who is held in the highest esteem by scholars of the [[Shiite|Shi'ite]] and [[Sunni]] Islamic traditions, has his opinion recorded In Ibn Kathir's classic [[Tafsir]]. Ibn Kathir relates that Sa'id bin Jubayr said that the "ar-Raqim" was indeed an inscription placed at the entrance of the cave. This confirms the direct connection to the Syriac legend.

{{Quote|Ibn Kathir, "The Story of the People of Al-Kahf"|
With regard to the word '''Ar-Raqim''', Al-`Awfi reported from Ibn `Abbas that it is a valley near Aylah. This was also said in another narration by Atiyah Al-Awfi and Qatadah. Ad-Dahhak said: "As for Al-Kahf, it is a cave in the valley, and Ar-Raqim is the name of the valley." Mujahid said, "Ar-Raqim refers to their buildings." Others said it refers to the valley in which their cave was. Abdur-Razzaq recorded that Ibn Abbas said about Ar-Raqim: "Ka`b used to say that it was the town." Ibn Jurayj reported that Ibn Abbas said, "Ar-Raqim is the mountain in which the cave was." Sa'id bin Jubayr said, "'''Ar-Raqim is a tablet of stone on which they wrote the story of the people of the Cave''', then they placed it at the entrance to the Cave."<ref name="Kathir"> Ibn Kathir, "The Story of the People of Al-Kahf" in [http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2741&Itemid=73 Quran Tafsir Ibn Kathir], accessed December 3, 2013 ([http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.qtafsir.com%2Findex.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26task%3Dview%26id%3D2741%26Itemid%3D73&date=2013-12-04 archived]).</ref>}}

===Disagreement Over Time in Cave===

In retellings of the Syriac legend, there is some dispute about the time the sleepers were in the cave. Apparently, this disagreement among Christians was still an issue in the 7th century when this story was first told to the early proto-Islamic Believer community. The Qur'an relates that Allah has woken the sleepers as a way to test who could calculate the length of their stay the best.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|11}}|
Then We draw (a veil) over their ears, for a number of years, in the Cave, (so that they heard not); Then We roused them, in order '''to test which of the two parties was best at calculating the term of years''' they had tarried!}}

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 4)|
'''It is in doubt of that which is said that they slept''' three hundred and sixty-two years, for they were raised the year of our Lord four hundred and seventy-eight, and Decius reigned but one year and three months, and that was in the year of our Lord two hundred and seventy, and so they slept but two hundred and eight years.}}

===Youths===

Another important detail between the two stories is that the companions are called "youths". This was likely a literary device in the original story to show that young people were more devout and fervent in their faith than older believers. Likewise, the Qur'anic story emphasizes their age as a polemic against those stuck in the same belief as their ancestors.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 2)|
And when they had taken their refection and sat in weeping and wailings, suddenly, as God would, they slept, and when it came on the morn they were sought and could not be found. Wherefore Decius was sorrowful because he had lost such '''young men'''.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|13}}|
We relate to thee their story in truth: '''they were youths''' who believed in their Lord, and We advanced them in guidance: We gave strength to their hearts: Behold, they stood up and said: "Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and of the earth: never shall we call upon any god other than Him: if we did, we should indeed have uttered an enormity!}}

===Perception of Time===

Even though the young men sleep in the cave for hundreds of years, they think they have only slept just a day.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 3)|
And then these holy saints, that were within, awoke and were raised and intersalued each other, and had '''supposed verily that they had slept but one night only''', and remembered of the heaviness that they had the day tofore.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|19}}|
And in like manner We awakened them that they might question one another. A speaker from among them said: How long have ye tarried? They said: '''We have tarried a day or some part of a day''', (Others) said: Your Lord best knoweth what ye have tarried. ...}}

===Money for Bread===

Another similarity between the two stories is that both state that one of the companions goes to the city to buy bread with coins. The Syriac legend states that the name of the person who buys bread is Malchus.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 3)|
He commanded to Malchus to go and buy bread in the city, and bade him bring more than he did yesterday, and also to enquire and demand what the emperor had commanded to do. And then Malchus took '''five shillings''', and issued out of the cave, and when he saw the masons and the stones tofore the cave, he began to bless him, and was much amarvelled.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|19}}|
... Now send one of you with this '''your silver coin''' unto the city, and let him see what food is purest there and bring you a supply thereof. Let him be courteous and let no man know of you.}}

===Fear of Capture===

While attempting to buy bread in town, Malchus is detained by town folk who are amazed that he has an ancient coin in his possession. He is fearful that the emperor and the town folk are pagans who will punish him. In the Qur'anic story, a companion warns the other to avoid capture out of fear that he will be forced back into polytheism.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 3)|
And when Malchus saw them talk together, he doubted not that they would lead him to the emperor, and was sore afraid, and prayed them to let him go, and keep both money and bread, but they held him, and said to him: Of whence art thou? For thou hast found treasure of old emperors, show it to us, and we shall be fellows with thee and keep it secret.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|20}}|
"For if they should come upon you, they would stone you or force you to return to their cult, and in that case ye would never attain prosperity."}}

===Day of Judgement===

Both the Syriac legend and the Qur'anic story state that the youth were awoken as a way to strengthen the faith of believers in the final Day of Judgement.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 4)|
And as soon as the blessed saints of our Lord saw the emperor come, their visages shone like to the sun. And the emperor entered then, and glorified our Lord and embraced them, weeping upon each of them, and said: I see you now like as I should see our Lord raising Lazarus. And then Maximian said to him: Believe us, for forsooth our Lord hath raised us tofore the '''day of the great resurrection'''. And '''to the end that thou believe firmly the resurrection of the dead people''', verily we be raised as ye here see, and live.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|21}}|
Thus did We make their case known to the people, that they might '''know that the promise of Allah is true''', and that there can be no doubt about the '''Hour of Judgment'''. ..."}}

===Place of Worship at Cave===

The Qur'an states that a place of worship was built at the site of the cave after the events it describes. Interestingly, a church was built over the purported sight of the miracle in Ephesus. This cave was a destination for pilgrims for almost a thousand years. By the late 6th century, this church contained marble structures and a large, domed mausoleum.<ref name="hayes">{{cite web|url= http://www.sacred-destinations.com/turkey/ephesus-cave-of-the-seven-sleepers|title= Cave of the Seven Sleepers, Ephesus|publisher= Sacred-Destinations|author= Holly Hayes|date= accessed December 4, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sacred-destinations.com%2Fturkey%2Fephesus-cave-of-the-seven-sleepers&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> This information would have been known to Christians in Syria and likely passed along to the author of the Qur'anic verses as well.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers|
And then he commanded to make precious sepulchres of gold and silver, and to bury their bodies therein. And in the same night they appeared to the emperor, and said to him that he should suffer them to lie on the earth like as they bad lain tofore till that time that our Lord had raised them, unto the time that they should rise again. Then commanded the emperor that the place should be adorned nobly and richly with precious stones, and all the bishops that would confess the resurrection should be assoiled.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|21}}|
... Behold, they dispute among themselves as to their affair. (Some) said, "Construct a building over them": Their Lord knows best about them: those who prevailed over their affair said, "Let us surely build a place of worship over them."}}

===Number of Sleepers===

The author of these verses in the Qur'an does not provide a definitive answer for the number of sleepers, stating the possibility that there were three, five, or seven. The Syrian legend clearly and emphatically states in the first sentence that the story is about seven sleepers.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 1)|
The '''seven sleepers''' were born in the city of Ephesus.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|22}}|
(Some) say they were three, the dog being the fourth among them; (others) say they were five, the dog being the sixth,- doubtfully guessing at the unknown; '''(yet others) say they were seven''', the dog being the eighth. Say thou: "My Lord knoweth best their number; It is but few that know their (real case)." Enter not, therefore, into controversies concerning them, except on a matter that is clear, nor consult any of them about (the affair of) the Sleepers. }}

===Slept for Hundreds of Years===

Both accounts state that the youths slept for hundreds of years. The Qur'an stating that it was 300 years and the Syrian version stating the number was closer to 200. There is considerable variation in different versions of the Seven Sleeper legend as to the time frame that they slept. Though all of them are longer than 200 years.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|25}}|
So they stayed in their Cave three hundred years, and (some) add nine (more).}}

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 4)|
... so they slept but two hundred and eight years. }}

The Syrian account identifies the Emperor persecuting the seven young men as Trajan Decius, who reigned from 249 - 251 CE. Since the story first originated around the middle of the 5th century (circa 450 CE) a sleep of 200 years would be the more accurate number. Given this connection, some Islamic scholars and apologists in modern times have back-peddled on the number of 300 given in the Qur'an, re-interpreting it as a number given by the people at the time and not a definitive number given by Allah.

==Differences with the Syriac version==

While there are many similarities and they are clearly describing the same events, there are also a few key differences between the Quran and Syriac versions.

===Vagueness of the Qur'an===

The author of the Qur'anic account seems to be unclear on a few details. He refuses to give an exact number of sleepers, instead giving a vague range of numbers and says that only Allah knows the right number. He is not specific on the time frame, offering a number of years but nothing definitive. He does not mention any names, fails to mention where these events took place, and does not state when this story happened. This evidence suggests that the author was only vaguely familiar with the story and may not have had access to a complete, written copy; perhaps the story had been orally relayed to him.

===Story's Purpose and Polytheism===

The purpose behind the Syrian story appears to be the affirmation of a bodily resurrection on the Day of Judgement.<ref>For instance, one of the youths states, "Believe us, for forsooth our Lord hath raised us tofore the day of the great resurrection. And to the end that thou believe firmly the resurrection of the dead people, verily we be raised as ye here see, and live." (The Seven Sleepers: par 4)</ref> While the Qur'anic story makes references to the Day of Judgement, it does not mention a resurrection. In fact, the story's stated purpose is to "warn those (also) who say, 'Allah hath begotten a son'"<ref>"''Further, that He may warn those (also) who say, "Allah hath begotten a son":''" - {{Quran|18|4}}</ref> (i.e. Trinitarian Christians). The mainstream Islamic position concerning the Christian doctrine of the Trinity is that it constitutes an act of "shirk" (the sin of practicing idolatry or polytheism) and makes one a "mushrik" (polytheist).<ref>{{cite web|url= http://islamqa.com/en/ref/12713|title= Is the trinity that the Christians believe in mentioned in Islam?|publisher= Islam Q&A|author= |series=Fatwa No. 12713|date= |archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fislamqa.com%2Fen%2Fref%2F12713&date=2013-12-06|deadurl=no}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= http://islamqa.com/en/ref/67626|title= The difference between the mushrikeen and the kuffaar, and to which category do the Jews and Christians belong?|publisher= Islam Q&A|author= |series=Fatwa No. 67626|date= |archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fislamqa.com%2Fen%2Fref%2F67626&date=2013-12-06|deadurl=no}}</ref> So, the Qur'an has taken a story written by Christians and reworked it into a polemic against Christianity.

The Syrian narrative, in its content and structure, is successful in achieving its purpose. The youths awakening to find that their home town has been converted to Christianity is a compelling ending and the mere existence of the youths provides the affirmation of a bodily resurrection. This serves the double purpose of affirming the principle that god will save Christians through persecution, and also exulting in the Christianization of the Roman Empire that had once persecuted Christians. However, in the Qur'anic narrative the youths awaken to the same 'polytheists' and are only questioned by each other concerning the length of their sleep. There is no argument made for why Allah could not have begotten a son, nor an answer provided for what benefits the youths were meant to gain from their long sleep.

==Historicity==

Since it is found within the Qur'an, Islamic scholars and [[apologists]] have defended the historicity of the story.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://quransmessage.com/travelogues/seven%20sleepers%20FM3.htm|title= The Sleepers of the Cave - The Quran, Historical Sources and Observations|publisher= The Quran and its Message|author= Joseph A Islam|date= January 25, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fquransmessage.com%2Ftravelogues%2Fseven%2520sleepers%2520FM3.htm&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> However, there are significant reasons to doubt its historical authenticity. Not only is it scientifically impossible for the human body to live three hundred years but there is good evidence that this story may have been invented as a political and theological polemic within the Syrian Christian Church. These facts, along with connections to many pre-existing legends about sleeping heroes, strongly suggest that this story of the Seven Sleepers should be placed in the category of myth and legend.

===Science===

The longest-living person, whose dates of birth and death were verified to the modern standards of the Guinness Book of World Records and the Gerontology Research Group, was Jeanne Calment, a French woman who lived to the age of 122. The maximum recorded life span for humans has increased from just under 100 in the 18th century to 122 years in the 21st century; if we go back to the 7th century the maximum age was significantly less. Therefore, any account of humans living beyond a century should be viewed with immense skepticism. Dr. Mike Stroud, senior lecturer of Medicine and Nutrition at Southampton University in England, states that the "The average resting human body, doing absolutely nothing, produces about 100 watts of body heat, which could function a light bulb."<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-17095605|title= Who, What, Why: How long can someone survive without food?|publisher= BBC News Magazine|author= Lauren Everitt, Chi Chi Izundu|date= February 20, 2012|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.co.uk%2Fnews%2Fmagazine-17095605&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> Without this heat and energy, cells will begin to decay and organs will fail. In order to maintain this energy, humans require food and water; after two months with no food and water, the human body would cease to function.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=how-long-can-a-person-sur|title= How long can a person survive without food?|publisher= Scientific American|author= Dr. Alan D. Lieberson|date= November 8, 2004|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.scientificamerican.com%2Farticle.cfm%3Fid%3Dhow-long-can-a-person-sur&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> Even in a hibernation-like sleep, a three hundred year lifespan would be impossible.

===Sleeping Hero Legends===

There is a long tradition in ancient cultures of myths about the preservation of important heroes. One such example of this folklore comes from Persia. In their legends, immortals were ancient heroes who were kept in deep sleep until the doomsday, when they wake up to assist the appointed messiah to save the world of cruelty and injustice.<ref>{{cite web|url= |title= Mythological phenomena in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh|publisher= Toos Publications|author= Mahvash Vahed Doost|date= 1989|page= 389|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Often times these immortals were associated with the sacredness of the number seven; and many stories portrayed these saviors to be seven male figures.<ref> {{cite web|url= |title= Yashts. Ed. & Interpretation. 2nd vol.|publisher= Tehran: Asatir Publications|author= Ibrahim Pour Davood|date= 1998|page=77 |archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref>

This legendary motif can be found in many Middle Eastern cultures as well, including Jewish and Christian traditions. The book of Maccabees, an apocryphal scripture that details the deeds of Jewish rebels who opposed Roman rule from 164 BCE to 63 BCE, contains the story of a pious mother and seven brothers. This family is persecuted by an evil king who forces them to eat pork. They refuse and are tortured to death rather than abandon their faith and Jewish customs. <ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Maccabees+7&version=GNT 2 Maccabees Ch 7]</ref> These seven brothers were revered as saints for many generations, spawning cults dedicated to preserving their story. However, because Jews were persecuted and not popular by the 4th century, Christian variations of this legend began to circulate, including the story of St. Felicitas and her seven sons. Dr. Albrecht Berger, professor of Byzantine Studies at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat of Munich, affirms that there is a clear connection between these variations of the Maccabean story of seven brothers and the Christian legend of the Seven Sleepers, with the later being a clear adaptation of the Jewish story.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://books.google.com/books?id=ln5Db7iDHhMC&pg=PA117|title= Dying for the Faith, Killing for the Faith: Old-Testament Faith-Warriors (1 and 2 Maccabees) in Historical Perspective|publisher= BRILL, 2012|author= Albrecht Berger, Gabriela Signori (ed.)|date= 2012|pages=114-118|isbn=9789004211056|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref>

The tradition of sleeping heroes continued beyond the 7th century. Dozens of examples of these types of stories can be found throughout medieval literature.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/sleep.html|title= Sleeping Hero Legends|publisher= University of Pittsburgh|author= D. L. Ashliman|date= August 2, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pitt.edu%2F%7Edash%2Fsleep.html&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> In more modern times, the story of "Rip Van Winkle", by American author Washington Irving (1819) portrays a man who climbs up into a mountain, falls into a magical sleep for twenty years, thinks only a day has passed, returns to his town to realize he recognizes nobody, and discovers that society has dramatically changed.

===Origins of the Legend===

While the complete story of the Seven sleepers was not first written down until the 6th century, the story was known in Syria by the middle of the 5th century. It is first mentioned by Bishop Stephen of Ephesus (c. 448-451 CE) <ref>{{cite web|url= |title= Ephesus after Antiquity: A Late Antique, Byzantine and Turkish City|publisher= Cambridge University Press|author= Clive Foss|date= 1979|page= 43|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> and it is also referenced by Bishop Zachariah of Mitylene (c. 465-536 CE).<ref name="Mitylene"> {{cite web|url= http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/zachariah02.htm|title= Zachariah of Mitylene, Syriac Chronicle: Book II Chapter 1|publisher= M.A. Methuen & Co|author= F. J. Hamilton, D.D. and E. W. Books (trans.)|date= 1899|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.tertullian.org%2Ffathers%2Fzachariah02.htm&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> During this time period, a number of theological controversies were taking place in Syrian Christian communities.<ref>{{cite web|url= |title= The Church of the Ancient Councils|publisher= Crestwood, New York: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press|author= Peter L’Huillier|date= 1996|pages= 199-201|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= |title= The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon vol. 3|publisher= Liverpool University Press|author=Richard Price and Michael Gaddis|date= 2007|pages= 1-3|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Among these was a debate over the nature of the resurrected body. Called the Origenist controversy, after the heretical Christian writer and cleric Origen, this theological disagreement began in Egypt during the late 4th century and by the middle of the 5th century had spread into Asia Minor. Origenists claimed that the resurrected body of the believer was not the same physical body they had during life. Stephen records that the bishops of his time regarded the miracle of the Seven Sleepers as a divine answer to the controversy. In his work, Zachariah of Mitylene uses the case of the Seven Sleepers as evidence toward defending the orthodox position on the resurrection:

{{Quote|Zachariah of Mitylene, Syriac Chronicle: Book II, Ch. 1|I shall set down here the truth of the resurrection, which took place in the days of Theodosius the king, of the bodies of the seven youths who were in a cave in the district of Ephesus, and the Syriac records ; both to keep them in the memory of the saints and for the glory of God, Who is able to do all things.<ref name="Mitylene"/>}}

It seems all too convenient that this miracle of physical preservation would suddenly occur right at the height of a theological controversy about the resurrection of the physical body. This naturally leads to skepticism of the historical nature of these events, rather pointing to the story being invented solely as a polemic for one side in a theological debate.

===Grotto of the Seven Sleepers in Ephesus===

Located just outside of the ancient city of Ephesus in Turkey, the Grotto is a network of catacombs, tombs, and graves around a cave on the eastern slope of Panayirdag hill. Archaeological evidence collected in the 1920s has verified that some of the tombs at the site in Ephesus date back to the middle of the 5th century but it also showed that the cave was in use at least two centuries prior. Among the items collected were pottery shards with Christian symbols along with inscriptions on the walls dedicated to to the seven sleepers. Other pieces of pottery contained images of Greek and Roman gods.<ref name="Honigamann"> Ernest Honigmann, “Stephen of Ephesus and the Legend of the Seven Sleepers,” in Patristic studies (Studi e testi), Biblioteca apostolica vaticana, 1953</ref>

While this evidence confirms that people living near Ephesus associated those buried at this site with the legend of the Sleepers; it does not confirm the actual events of the story. What it does show, is that the legend began sometime in the middle of the 5th century and this site was associated with the story around that same time. Historian Ernest Honigmann points out:

{{Quote|Stephen of Ephesus and the Legend of the Seven Sleepers, p. 168|In the light of the archaeological evidence it now seems incontestable that about the middle of the fifth century seven young Ephesians really believed or tried to make others believe that they had been persecuted at the time of Decius, and that a high ecclesiastical dignitary, in a kind of enthusiastic self-deception, took their strange affirmation for granted, all the more providing him with the weapons which he needed for refuting certain heretics and making orthodoxy triumph.”<ref name="Honigamann"/>}}

Whether this story has an historical core or not is still a matter of debate. However, the evidence appears to point to a speedy acceptance of the legend based more on the desire for it to be true rather than a measured evaluation of the evidence.

===Abu Alanda in Amman Jordan===

Located near Amman Jordan, this site has alternatively been identified as the one mentioned in Surah Al Kahf. It was discovered by the Jordanian archaeologist Rafiq Wafa Ad-Dajani in 1963 CE.<ref name="amman">{{cite web|url= http://www.ammancity.gov.jo/en/services/histdetails.asp?id=3|title= Kahf Ahl Al-Kahf (Cave of the Cavemen)|publisher=Greater Amman Municipality|author= |date= accessed December 5, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ammancity.gov.jo%2Fen%2Fservices%2Fhistdetails.asp%3Fid%3D3&date=2013-12-05|deadurl=no}}</ref> The cave and tomb have become a tourist destination and the locals refer to it as Al-Raqim, or the (cave of) the inscription. However, beyond local tradition, there seems to be little that links this site to the story of the Seven Sleepers.

The location does appear to be an old Byzantine-Roman burial site, but there are thousands of these across the region with almost 750 in just the Irbid–North Jordan Valley region alone.<ref> Palumbo, G., 1994. Jordan Antiquities Database and Information System. Amman: American Center for Oriental Research. Cited in: {{cite web|url= http://www2.mcdonald.cam.ac.uk/projects/iarc/culturewithoutcontext/issue14/rose-burke.htm|title= Making Money from Buried Treasure|publisher= Culture Without Context|author= Jerome C. Rose & Dolores L. Burke|series= Issue 14, Spring 2004|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww2.mcdonald.cam.ac.uk%2Fprojects%2Fiarc%2Fculturewithoutcontext%2Fissue14%2Frose-burke.htm&date=2013-12-05|deadurl=no}}</ref> These tombs often held the remains of multiple people and were usually situated in or around hillsides and caves. In fact, there are a number of similar rock-cut tombs in the area near this cave in Abu Alanda.<ref name="Jordan">{{cite web|url= http://books.google.com/books?id=tI9L9gepYAUC&pg=PA106|title= Jordan|publisher= Rough Guides|author= Matthew Teller|date= 2002|page=106|isbn=9781858287409|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Without any kind of inscriptions or other identifying features, there is little reason to single out this particular site as the one mentioned in the Qur'an. Even the claims of a small ancient church, later converted into a mosque at the site, offer little supporting evidence as churches and chapels were commonly built near grave sites.

Other, spurious claims that the remains of seven individuals and a dog skeleton were found in the cave, along with the discovery of copper coins, cannot be verified as the archaeological work done in the 1960s did not definitely date the items at the site.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://idosi.org/wjihc/wjihc1(3)11/7.pdf|title= Qur’an and Archeological Discoveries: Evidence from the Near East|publisher= World Journal of Islamic History and Civilization|author= Ghassan Taha Yaseen|series=1 (3): 201-212, 2011. ISSN 2225-0883|date= |archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fidosi.org%2Fwjihc%2Fwjihc1%283%2911%2F7.pdf&date=2013-12-05|deadurl=no}}</ref> Human remains, coins, and jewelry are very common in all of the Byzantine tombs in the region.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www2.mcdonald.cam.ac.uk/projects/iarc/culturewithoutcontext/issue14/rose-burke.htm|title= Making Money from Buried Treasure|publisher= Culture Without Context|author= Jerome C. Rose & Dolores L. Burke|series= Issue 14, Spring 2004|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww2.mcdonald.cam.ac.uk%2Fprojects%2Fiarc%2Fculturewithoutcontext%2Fissue14%2Frose-burke.htm&date=2013-12-05|deadurl=no}}</ref> Without proper dating, we have no way to verify if the remains at this site pre-date the Qur'anic story or if they were placed there at some point in the preceding 1,400 years. The cave only has four alcoves and sarcophagi, which implies it was never intended to hold the remains of seven people.

Numerous other sites, in Muslim countries, have also been offered as possible locations of the cave in the Qur'anic story. In Turkey (Ammuriyag Hadj Hamza: subterranean cave of an ancient Greek convent, and Tarsus; grotto), Syria (Damascus: the Ahl al-Kahf Mosque, with seven qibla in the crypt), Egypt (Cairo: cave of the Maghwari in Moqattam), in North Africa there are numerous sites. This attests only to how easy it is to find a cave, cemetery, and religious building situated in the same location.<ref>Geneviève Massignonn, [http://www.dcbuck.com/Articles/Pilgrimage/Pilgrimage.html "The Veneration of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus"], 1963 ([http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcbuck.com%2FArticles%2FPilgrimage%2FPilgrimage.html&date=2013-12-05 archived]).</ref>

==See Also==
{{Hub4|Companions of the Cave|the Companions of the Cave}}

==External Links==

*{{external link| url = http://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Sources/s18.html| title = The Fellows of the Cave| publisher = Answering Islam| author = | date = | archiveurl = http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.answering-islam.org%2FQuran%2FSources%2Fs18.html&date=2013-12-05| deadurl = no}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Sacred history]]
[[Category:Miracles]]
[[Category:Christian tradition]]
[[Category:Revelation]]
[[Category:Allah]]
[[ar:سبعة_نائمون_لأفسس_في_القرآن]]

Seven Sleepers of Ephesus in the Quran

2023-12-09T13:47:38Z

Vixen: /* Disagreement Over Time in Cave */

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}
<metadesc>Syrian legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus in the Qur'an</metadesc>
[[File:Seven sleepers.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Folio from an illustrated Islamic manuscript depicting the Seven Sleepers and the evil emperor led by a [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Racism|dark-skinned Satan]]. Iran, Qazvin. 1550s.]]

The [[Qur'an|Qur'anic]] story of the "Companions of the Cave" has traditionally been explained by the Islamic narrative as proof of [[Allah]]'s divine power whereby he miraculously caused 7 youths to fall asleep and awaken after more than 300 years. Yet comparison with the literary milieu of the Qur'an, 7th century Chrisian culture in the Middle East, reveals parallels to the 7 Sleepers of Ephesus, a Christian legend dating from the 5th century which tells the story of Christian youths being persecuted by the pagan Roman Emperor Decius in the 3rd century. The youths seek shelter in a cave, fall asleep for over 200 years, and venture out only to find that the Empire is now Christian. Their faith confirmed, the youths then die and are embraced by the Lord. Rather than a mere exhibition of god's power, the original story was a parable meant to emphasis the ability of Christian faith to overcome persecution, a celebration of the Christianization of the Roman Empire and an answer to heretics at the time of the story's composition who doubted the literal nature of the physical Resurrection. As the Qur'an does not preserve the entire story, but appears to merely refer to it, the [[tafsir|mufassirun]] of later generations misinterpreted the story, leaving out key components and failing to relay the underlying message of the original parable. In 2023, academic scholar Thomas Eich published his finding that the specific version of the tale found in the Qur'an overlaps significantly with the version taught by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Theodore of Tarsus (d. 690 CE), and which can be situated in an early 7th century Palestinian context.<ref name="Eich2023">Eich, Thomas. [https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/islam-2023-0003/html Muḥammad und Cædmon und die Siebenschläferlegende. Zur Verbindung zwischen Palästina und Canterbury im 7. Jahrhundert] (abstract in English), Der Islam, vol. 100, no. 1, 2023, pp. 7-39. https://doi.org/10.1515/islam-2023-0003</ref>

==Introduction==

The story of the companions of the cave is found in the 18th [[surah]] of the Qur'an, [[The Holy Qur'an: Al-Kahf (The Cave)|al-Kahf]] (the Cave), for which the surah is named. It relates the tale of a young group of believers, who fall into a supernatural sleep in a cave, only to awaken hundreds of years later. This story mimics a story found in the Syriac homily by a Christian bishop named Jacob of Serugh (521 CE).<ref name="Reynolds">Reynolds, Gabriel Said. "Seven Sleepers" in [http://books.google.com/books?id=H-k9oc9xsuAC&pg=PA720 Medieval Islamic Civilization], ed Josef W. Meri, Routledge, 2004, p. 720, ISBN 9780415966900 </ref> His story tells of seven young Christians in Ephesus (an ancient Greek city now situated in modern-day Turkey), who hide from an evil emperor in a cave, fall into a supernatural sleep for hundreds of years, and awaken to find that their home town has been converted to Christianity.<ref name="Gold">Jacobus de Voragine, Archbishop of Genoa, 1275 First Edition Published 1470. "Seven Sleepers" in [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/goldenlegend/GoldenLegend-Volume4.asp The Golden Legend: Volume IV] ([http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fordham.edu%2Fhalsall%2Fbasis%2Fgoldenlegend%2FGoldenLegend-Volume4.asp&date=2013-12-04 archived]).</ref>

===Christian and Jewish Legends in the Qur'an===

It is well known that the Qur'an contains many stories that were first told in Jewish and Christian communities around the Middle East. This includes [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature|apocryphal and legendary tales]] that originated in Syria between the 2nd and early 7th century CE. One of the most widespread of these stories was the legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus. Popular in both Europe and the Middle East during medieval times, this story was translated into Latin and found its way into many Christian works of that era. It also became very prominent in the Muslim world because of its inclusion in the Qur'an. After the Renaissance and Enlightenment of the 16th century, this story fell out of favor and was largely dismissed as mythical. Since the tale is not found in the Bible, it was also rejected by the majority of the world's Christian churches without any theological consequence. The feast day for the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus is no longer observed by the Roman Catholic Church (it is now referred to within the church as a "purely imaginative romance"), and the story today is virtually unknown among the Protestant churches.

===Oral Tradition===

While it is impossible to know the exact details of how the author(s) of the [[Qur'an]] came to know the story of the Seven Sleepers, we do know that according to the Islamic narrative itself [[Muhammad]] had ample opportunities to hear it during his 62 year life. According to the traditional sources, Muhammad traveled to Syria while he was a caravan trader and he may have heard the story there. Visitors to Mecca would have included Syrian Christians, who would have known this popular story as well. Muhammad's followers also could have related this story after contact with Christian communities near the Mediterranean and in Arabia. In short, there were numerous ways in which this story could have be told to Muhammad during his lifetime.

===Significant overlap with 7th century Greek-Palestinian version===
As mentioned above, in 2023 academic scholar Thomas Eich identified a written version of the tale which had circulated in an early 7th century Palestinian monastic community and which significantly overlaps with the Quranic tale. In the abstract of his article he writes:

{{Quote|Part of the abstract from journal article by Thomas Eich (2023)<ref name="Eich2023" />|[...] the archbishop of Canterbury, Theodore of Tarsus (d. 690) [...] biography puts into focus the transposition of Greek-Palestinian and Egyptian monk congregations including relics and texts to Italy and especially Rome during the seventh century. The relevance of the surviving texts from the school of Canterbury for the study of seventh-century Middle Eastern history is then further illustrated with a version of the so-called legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesos recorded in Theodore’s biblical exegesis. Theodore’s specific version of that legend overlaps significantly with the version contained in the Qurʾān in Sura 18 (al-Kahf, “The cave”). It has always been clear that Sūrat al-Kahf refers to the Christian Seven Sleepers legend. However, since all other hitherto known versions of the story differed significantly from the Qurʾān version, the connection between the versions was usually imagined within a model of “oral transmission.” The version recorded from Theodore’s seventh century teaching sessions now allow us to draw a more nuanced picture in which this specific version of the legend can be situated in seventh-century Palestine.}}

In his article (the rest of which is written in German), Eich explains that Theodore spent the period from the 640s until 668 CE in Rome in the Monastery of St. Anastasius, a Greek monastic community which had begun to move there from Palestine from the 630s, probably triggered by the Byzantine conquest of Palestine in 629-30, though possibly due to the Arab conquest several years later. In 669 the Pope sent Theodore to England to take the vacant seat as Archbishop of Canterbury, where his teachings would go on to reflect those of his former Greek-Palestinian monastic community and showed knowledge of the Syriac church fathers.

It is in a Biblical commentary by Theodore when he was in England (surviving in two 9th century and one 11th century Latin manuscripts) where we find a version of the seven sleepers story, quoted below, with exceptional correspondances to the Quranic version. Unlike all other Syriac-Christian references to the legend (which have all been assigned to communities in Palestine, and in one case to Najran in Southern Arabia), in Theodore's version:

*The cave is not walled up. {{Quran|18|18}} likewise suggests that the cave was open.
*It has the dog motif. This appears likewise in {{Quran|18|18}} and {{Quran|18|22}}, though is also very briefly mentioned in material for a pilgrim travel guide written by Theodosius between 518 and 530 CE.
*It mentions the emperor building a church over the site. Similarly, in {{Quran|18|21}} the authorities build a masjid there.

Theodore's version appears to have Syriac origins. Eich points out that Theodore credits his story and its use in the context of Lot's wife to "eastern Fathers". Additionally, the only other Latin source to mention the church built over the cave is that of Gregory of Tours who credits his version to a translator from Syria. Finally, the fact that the story is used to answer a question about the soul of Lot's wife (whether it stays in the body until the day of resurrection) would have been of special interest in the region of Palestine, where a particular pillar of salt associated with her fate after the destruction of Sodom was a well known sight on pilgrimage routes at that time.

Theodore's version occurs in a section of his Biblical commentary on the Gospel of Luke. It is quoted below (machine translated from Eich's German article, which also includes the original Latin text).
{{Quote|Theodore's Biblical commentary quoted by Thomas Eich (machine translated here from German into English)<ref>The Latin text from M. Bischoff and M. Lapidge (eds.) (1994) "Biblical Commentaries from the Canterbury School of Theodore and Hadrian. Cambridge: Cambridge Univesity Press, pp. 416-419 is also quoted in Eich's article as a footnote to his German translation.</ref>|Lot's wife. Her soul is thought by some of the eastern Fathers to remain in her until the Day of Judgement. They cite the example of the seven brothers who fled the persecution of the Emperor Decius and came to a certain cave which was forty miles' distance from the city of Ephesus and, being tired in the evening, they gave themselves over to sleep and their dog with them. And after two hundred years they woke up in the time of the Emperor Theodosius the Younger, sat up and discussed among themselves about going into town to buy food for themselves. They thought they had slept for one night. And two of them set out for the city, taking the dog with them, and they showed their coins; and the men of the city said, 'Look: these men have found a treasure and dug up these coins' - because a portait of Decius appeared on the coins. But they denied it, and told them everything in order. When the men of the city did not believe them, they took some of the city men back with them as witnesses. And when they arrived back at the cave and entered it, suddently all seven brothers fell down dead. The city men who witnessed these events went straight to the emperor Theodosius and reported to him what had happened in proper order. He came and saw that it happened thus, and immediately he covered them with his purple cloak, and henceforth he did not doubt the resurrection, and he devoutly built a church over them.}}

==Parallels with the Syriac version of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus==

Prior to the identification of the above quoted Palestinian version, a number of clear parallels between the Qur'anic story and the legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus had already been identified, though also differences.

The two narratives clearly share many features which would indicate that they are in fact one and the same. They are virtually identical in the events they describe and both contain striking similarities in key details. Both story mention youths, a cave, a long sleep, buying bread with coins, and the Day of Judgement. Since the Syrian legend pre-dates the Qur'anic story by almost two centuries, it should be clear that the author of the Qur'an is simply retelling the Syriac story. The Qur'an even suggests in verse 18:9 that the audience is familiar with the story as they should have already "reflected" upon it and {{Quran|18|22}} indicates that different views on the details of the story were in circulation.

===Trouble===

Both stories begin by stating that a group of youths are in trouble. While the Qur'an gives few details on the nature of their problem, the Syriac legend tells specifically of an emperor, named Decius, who was forcing Christians to make sacrifices to the pagan gods or else face death.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 1)|
The seven sleepers were born in the city of Ephesus. And when Decius the emperor came into Ephesus for the persecution of christian men, he commanded to edify the temples in the middle of the city, so that all should come with him to do sacrifice to the idols, and did do seek all the christian people, and bind them for to make them to do sacrifice, or else to put them to death; in such wise that every man was afeard of the pains that he promised, that the friend forsook his friend, and the son renied his father, and the father the son.<ref name="Gold"/>}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|10}}|
Behold, the youths betook themselves to the Cave: they said, "Our Lord! bestow on us Mercy from Thyself, and dispose of our affair for us in the right way!"}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|16}}|
"When ye turn away from them and the things they worship other than Allah, betake yourselves to the Cave: Your Lord will shower His mercies on you and disposes of your affair towards comfort and ease."}}

===Inscription at the Cave===

In the Qur'anic account, the author asks if the reader has reflected on the companions of the cave and their inscription. The inclusion of the word "inscription" is an important detail connecting the story of the Qur'an with the story of the Seven Sleepers. In the Syriac legend, we have a more detailed narrative that states that the story of the youth's martyrdom was written and laid near the entrance of the cave.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|9}}|
Or dost thou reflect that the Companions of the Cave and of the '''Inscription''' [ar-Raqim] were wonders among Our Sign?}}

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 2)|
Then Decius thought what he should do with them, and, as our Lord would, he enclosed the mouth of the cave wherein they were with stones, to the end that they should die therein for hunger and fault of meat. Then the ministers and two christian men, Theodorus and Rufinus, '''wrote their martyrdom and laid it subtlely among the stones'''.}}

While the Qur'an does not mention the inscription again, it plays an important role in the Syriac story. The people who discover the sleepers use the inscriptions to verify the truthfulness of the seven men's story. This helps make sense of why the author of the Qur'an would mention this detail as part of what the reader should "reflect" upon.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 3)|
And Malchus entered first into the cave to his fellows, and the bishop next after him. And there '''found they among the stones the letters sealed with two seals of silver'''. And then the bishop called them that were come thither, and read them tofore them all, so that they that heard it were all abashed and amarvelled.}}

Among early Qur'anic commentators, there seems to be quite a bit of disagreement on the exact nature of the word "ar-Raqim" which is translated as "inscription" by all the major English translators. Sa'id bin Jubayr, who is held in the highest esteem by scholars of the [[Shiite|Shi'ite]] and [[Sunni]] Islamic traditions, has his opinion recorded In Ibn Kathir's classic [[Tafsir]]. Ibn Kathir relates that Sa'id bin Jubayr said that the "ar-Raqim" was indeed an inscription placed at the entrance of the cave. This confirms the direct connection to the Syriac legend.

{{Quote|Ibn Kathir, "The Story of the People of Al-Kahf"|
With regard to the word '''Ar-Raqim''', Al-`Awfi reported from Ibn `Abbas that it is a valley near Aylah. This was also said in another narration by Atiyah Al-Awfi and Qatadah. Ad-Dahhak said: "As for Al-Kahf, it is a cave in the valley, and Ar-Raqim is the name of the valley." Mujahid said, "Ar-Raqim refers to their buildings." Others said it refers to the valley in which their cave was. Abdur-Razzaq recorded that Ibn Abbas said about Ar-Raqim: "Ka`b used to say that it was the town." Ibn Jurayj reported that Ibn Abbas said, "Ar-Raqim is the mountain in which the cave was." Sa'id bin Jubayr said, "'''Ar-Raqim is a tablet of stone on which they wrote the story of the people of the Cave''', then they placed it at the entrance to the Cave."<ref name="Kathir"> Ibn Kathir, "The Story of the People of Al-Kahf" in [http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2741&Itemid=73 Quran Tafsir Ibn Kathir], accessed December 3, 2013 ([http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.qtafsir.com%2Findex.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26task%3Dview%26id%3D2741%26Itemid%3D73&date=2013-12-04 archived]).</ref>}}

===Disagreement Over Time in Cave===

In retellings of the Syriac legend, there is some dispute about the time the sleepers were in the cave. Apparently, this disagreement among Christians was still an issue in the 7th century when this story was first told to the early proto-Islamic Believer community. The Qur'an relates that Allah has woken the sleepers as a way to test who could calculate the length of their stay the best.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|11}}|
Then We draw (a veil) over their ears, for a number of years, in the Cave, (so that they heard not); Then We roused them, in order '''to test which of the two parties was best at calculating the term of years''' they had tarried!}}

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 4)|
'''It is in doubt of that which is said that they slept''' three hundred and sixty-two years, for they were raised the year of our Lord four hundred and seventy-eight, and Decius reigned but one year and three months, and that was in the year of our Lord two hundred and seventy, and so they slept but two hundred and eight years.}}

===Youths===

Another important detail between the two stories is that the companions are called "youths". This was likely a literary device in the original story to show that young people were more devout and fervent in their faith than older believers. Likewise, the Qur'anic story emphasizes their age as a polemic against those stuck in the same belief as their ancestors.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 2)|
And when they had taken their refection and sat in weeping and wailings, suddenly, as God would, they slept, and when it came on the morn they were sought and could not be found. Wherefore Decius was sorrowful because he had lost such '''young men'''.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|13}}|
We relate to thee their story in truth: '''they were youths''' who believed in their Lord, and We advanced them in guidance: We gave strength to their hearts: Behold, they stood up and said: "Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and of the earth: never shall we call upon any god other than Him: if we did, we should indeed have uttered an enormity!}}

===Perception of Time===

Even though the young men sleep in the cave for hundreds of years, they think they have only slept just a day.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 3)|
And then these holy saints, that were within, awoke and were raised and intersalued each other, and had '''supposed verily that they had slept but one night only''', and remembered of the heaviness that they had the day tofore.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|19}}|
And in like manner We awakened them that they might question one another. A speaker from among them said: How long have ye tarried? They said: '''We have tarried a day or some part of a day''', (Others) said: Your Lord best knoweth what ye have tarried. ...}}

===Money for Bread===

Another similarity between the two stories is that both state that one of the companions goes to the city to buy bread with coins. The Syriac legend states that the name of the person who buys bread is Malchus.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 3)|
He commanded to Malchus to go and buy bread in the city, and bade him bring more than he did yesterday, and also to enquire and demand what the emperor had commanded to do. And then Malchus took '''five shillings''', and issued out of the cave, and when he saw the masons and the stones tofore the cave, he began to bless him, and was much amarvelled.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|19}}|
... Now send one of you with this '''your silver coin''' unto the city, and let him see what food is purest there and bring you a supply thereof. Let him be courteous and let no man know of you.}}

===Fear of Capture===

While attempting to buy bread in town, Malchus is detained by town folk who are amazed that he has an ancient coin in his possession. He is fearful that the emperor and the town folk are pagans who will punish him. In the Qur'anic story, a companion warns the other to avoid capture out of fear that he will be forced back into polytheism.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 3)|
And when Malchus saw them talk together, he doubted not that they would lead him to the emperor, and was sore afraid, and prayed them to let him go, and keep both money and bread, but they held him, and said to him: Of whence art thou? For thou hast found treasure of old emperors, show it to us, and we shall be fellows with thee and keep it secret.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|20}}|
"For if they should come upon you, they would stone you or force you to return to their cult, and in that case ye would never attain prosperity."}}

===Day of Judgement===

Both the Syrian legend and the Qur'anic story state that the youth were awoken as a way to strengthen the faith of believers in the final Day of Judgement.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 4)|
And as soon as the blessed saints of our Lord saw the emperor come, their visages shone like to the sun. And the emperor entered then, and glorified our Lord and embraced them, weeping upon each of them, and said: I see you now like as I should see our Lord raising Lazarus. And then Maximian said to him: Believe us, for forsooth our Lord hath raised us tofore the '''day of the great resurrection'''. And '''to the end that thou believe firmly the resurrection of the dead people''', verily we be raised as ye here see, and live.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|21}}|
Thus did We make their case known to the people, that they might '''know that the promise of Allah is true''', and that there can be no doubt about the '''Hour of Judgment'''. ..."}}

===Place of Worship at Cave===

The Qur'an states that a place of worship was built at the site of the cave after the events it describes. Interestingly, a church was built over the purported sight of the miracle in Ephesus. This cave was a destination for pilgrims for almost a thousand years. By the late 6th century, this church contained marble structures and a large, domed mausoleum.<ref name="hayes">{{cite web|url= http://www.sacred-destinations.com/turkey/ephesus-cave-of-the-seven-sleepers|title= Cave of the Seven Sleepers, Ephesus|publisher= Sacred-Destinations|author= Holly Hayes|date= accessed December 4, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sacred-destinations.com%2Fturkey%2Fephesus-cave-of-the-seven-sleepers&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> This information would have been known to Christians in Syria and likely passed along to the author of the Qur'anic verses as well.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers|
And then he commanded to make precious sepulchres of gold and silver, and to bury their bodies therein. And in the same night they appeared to the emperor, and said to him that he should suffer them to lie on the earth like as they bad lain tofore till that time that our Lord had raised them, unto the time that they should rise again. Then commanded the emperor that the place should be adorned nobly and richly with precious stones, and all the bishops that would confess the resurrection should be assoiled.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|21}}|
... Behold, they dispute among themselves as to their affair. (Some) said, "Construct a building over them": Their Lord knows best about them: those who prevailed over their affair said, "Let us surely build a place of worship over them."}}

===Number of Sleepers===

The author of these verses in the Qur'an does not provide a definitive answer for the number of sleepers, stating the possibility that there were three, five, or seven. The Syrian legend clearly and emphatically states in the first sentence that the story is about seven sleepers.

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 1)|
The '''seven sleepers''' were born in the city of Ephesus.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|22}}|
(Some) say they were three, the dog being the fourth among them; (others) say they were five, the dog being the sixth,- doubtfully guessing at the unknown; '''(yet others) say they were seven''', the dog being the eighth. Say thou: "My Lord knoweth best their number; It is but few that know their (real case)." Enter not, therefore, into controversies concerning them, except on a matter that is clear, nor consult any of them about (the affair of) the Sleepers. }}

===Slept for Hundreds of Years===

Both accounts state that the youths slept for hundreds of years. The Qur'an stating that it was 300 years and the Syrian version stating the number was closer to 200. There is considerable variation in different versions of the Seven Sleeper legend as to the time frame that they slept. Though all of them are longer than 200 years.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|25}}|
So they stayed in their Cave three hundred years, and (some) add nine (more).}}

{{Quote|The Seven Sleepers (par 4)|
... so they slept but two hundred and eight years. }}

The Syrian account identifies the Emperor persecuting the seven young men as Trajan Decius, who reigned from 249 - 251 CE. Since the story first originated around the middle of the 5th century (circa 450 CE) a sleep of 200 years would be the more accurate number. Given this connection, some Islamic scholars and apologists in modern times have back-peddled on the number of 300 given in the Qur'an, re-interpreting it as a number given by the people at the time and not a definitive number given by Allah.

==Differences with the Syriac version==

While there are many similarities and they are clearly describing the same events, there are also a few key differences between the Quran and Syriac versions.

===Vagueness of the Qur'an===

The author of the Qur'anic account seems to be unclear on a few details. He refuses to give an exact number of sleepers, instead giving a vague range of numbers and says that only Allah knows the right number. He is not specific on the time frame, offering a number of years but nothing definitive. He does not mention any names, fails to mention where these events took place, and does not state when this story happened. This evidence suggests that the author was only vaguely familiar with the story and may not have had access to a complete, written copy; perhaps the story had been orally relayed to him.

===Story's Purpose and Polytheism===

The purpose behind the Syrian story appears to be the affirmation of a bodily resurrection on the Day of Judgement.<ref>For instance, one of the youths states, "Believe us, for forsooth our Lord hath raised us tofore the day of the great resurrection. And to the end that thou believe firmly the resurrection of the dead people, verily we be raised as ye here see, and live." (The Seven Sleepers: par 4)</ref> While the Qur'anic story makes references to the Day of Judgement, it does not mention a resurrection. In fact, the story's stated purpose is to "warn those (also) who say, 'Allah hath begotten a son'"<ref>"''Further, that He may warn those (also) who say, "Allah hath begotten a son":''" - {{Quran|18|4}}</ref> (i.e. Trinitarian Christians). The mainstream Islamic position concerning the Christian doctrine of the Trinity is that it constitutes an act of "shirk" (the sin of practicing idolatry or polytheism) and makes one a "mushrik" (polytheist).<ref>{{cite web|url= http://islamqa.com/en/ref/12713|title= Is the trinity that the Christians believe in mentioned in Islam?|publisher= Islam Q&A|author= |series=Fatwa No. 12713|date= |archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fislamqa.com%2Fen%2Fref%2F12713&date=2013-12-06|deadurl=no}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= http://islamqa.com/en/ref/67626|title= The difference between the mushrikeen and the kuffaar, and to which category do the Jews and Christians belong?|publisher= Islam Q&A|author= |series=Fatwa No. 67626|date= |archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fislamqa.com%2Fen%2Fref%2F67626&date=2013-12-06|deadurl=no}}</ref> So, the Qur'an has taken a story written by Christians and reworked it into a polemic against Christianity.

The Syrian narrative, in its content and structure, is successful in achieving its purpose. The youths awakening to find that their home town has been converted to Christianity is a compelling ending and the mere existence of the youths provides the affirmation of a bodily resurrection. This serves the double purpose of affirming the principle that god will save Christians through persecution, and also exulting in the Christianization of the Roman Empire that had once persecuted Christians. However, in the Qur'anic narrative the youths awaken to the same 'polytheists' and are only questioned by each other concerning the length of their sleep. There is no argument made for why Allah could not have begotten a son, nor an answer provided for what benefits the youths were meant to gain from their long sleep.

==Historicity==

Since it is found within the Qur'an, Islamic scholars and [[apologists]] have defended the historicity of the story.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://quransmessage.com/travelogues/seven%20sleepers%20FM3.htm|title= The Sleepers of the Cave - The Quran, Historical Sources and Observations|publisher= The Quran and its Message|author= Joseph A Islam|date= January 25, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fquransmessage.com%2Ftravelogues%2Fseven%2520sleepers%2520FM3.htm&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> However, there are significant reasons to doubt its historical authenticity. Not only is it scientifically impossible for the human body to live three hundred years but there is good evidence that this story may have been invented as a political and theological polemic within the Syrian Christian Church. These facts, along with connections to many pre-existing legends about sleeping heroes, strongly suggest that this story of the Seven Sleepers should be placed in the category of myth and legend.

===Science===

The longest-living person, whose dates of birth and death were verified to the modern standards of the Guinness Book of World Records and the Gerontology Research Group, was Jeanne Calment, a French woman who lived to the age of 122. The maximum recorded life span for humans has increased from just under 100 in the 18th century to 122 years in the 21st century; if we go back to the 7th century the maximum age was significantly less. Therefore, any account of humans living beyond a century should be viewed with immense skepticism. Dr. Mike Stroud, senior lecturer of Medicine and Nutrition at Southampton University in England, states that the "The average resting human body, doing absolutely nothing, produces about 100 watts of body heat, which could function a light bulb."<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-17095605|title= Who, What, Why: How long can someone survive without food?|publisher= BBC News Magazine|author= Lauren Everitt, Chi Chi Izundu|date= February 20, 2012|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.co.uk%2Fnews%2Fmagazine-17095605&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> Without this heat and energy, cells will begin to decay and organs will fail. In order to maintain this energy, humans require food and water; after two months with no food and water, the human body would cease to function.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=how-long-can-a-person-sur|title= How long can a person survive without food?|publisher= Scientific American|author= Dr. Alan D. Lieberson|date= November 8, 2004|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.scientificamerican.com%2Farticle.cfm%3Fid%3Dhow-long-can-a-person-sur&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> Even in a hibernation-like sleep, a three hundred year lifespan would be impossible.

===Sleeping Hero Legends===

There is a long tradition in ancient cultures of myths about the preservation of important heroes. One such example of this folklore comes from Persia. In their legends, immortals were ancient heroes who were kept in deep sleep until the doomsday, when they wake up to assist the appointed messiah to save the world of cruelty and injustice.<ref>{{cite web|url= |title= Mythological phenomena in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh|publisher= Toos Publications|author= Mahvash Vahed Doost|date= 1989|page= 389|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Often times these immortals were associated with the sacredness of the number seven; and many stories portrayed these saviors to be seven male figures.<ref> {{cite web|url= |title= Yashts. Ed. & Interpretation. 2nd vol.|publisher= Tehran: Asatir Publications|author= Ibrahim Pour Davood|date= 1998|page=77 |archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref>

This legendary motif can be found in many Middle Eastern cultures as well, including Jewish and Christian traditions. The book of Maccabees, an apocryphal scripture that details the deeds of Jewish rebels who opposed Roman rule from 164 BCE to 63 BCE, contains the story of a pious mother and seven brothers. This family is persecuted by an evil king who forces them to eat pork. They refuse and are tortured to death rather than abandon their faith and Jewish customs. <ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Maccabees+7&version=GNT 2 Maccabees Ch 7]</ref> These seven brothers were revered as saints for many generations, spawning cults dedicated to preserving their story. However, because Jews were persecuted and not popular by the 4th century, Christian variations of this legend began to circulate, including the story of St. Felicitas and her seven sons. Dr. Albrecht Berger, professor of Byzantine Studies at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat of Munich, affirms that there is a clear connection between these variations of the Maccabean story of seven brothers and the Christian legend of the Seven Sleepers, with the later being a clear adaptation of the Jewish story.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://books.google.com/books?id=ln5Db7iDHhMC&pg=PA117|title= Dying for the Faith, Killing for the Faith: Old-Testament Faith-Warriors (1 and 2 Maccabees) in Historical Perspective|publisher= BRILL, 2012|author= Albrecht Berger, Gabriela Signori (ed.)|date= 2012|pages=114-118|isbn=9789004211056|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref>

The tradition of sleeping heroes continued beyond the 7th century. Dozens of examples of these types of stories can be found throughout medieval literature.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/sleep.html|title= Sleeping Hero Legends|publisher= University of Pittsburgh|author= D. L. Ashliman|date= August 2, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pitt.edu%2F%7Edash%2Fsleep.html&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> In more modern times, the story of "Rip Van Winkle", by American author Washington Irving (1819) portrays a man who climbs up into a mountain, falls into a magical sleep for twenty years, thinks only a day has passed, returns to his town to realize he recognizes nobody, and discovers that society has dramatically changed.

===Origins of the Legend===

While the complete story of the Seven sleepers was not first written down until the 6th century, the story was known in Syria by the middle of the 5th century. It is first mentioned by Bishop Stephen of Ephesus (c. 448-451 CE) <ref>{{cite web|url= |title= Ephesus after Antiquity: A Late Antique, Byzantine and Turkish City|publisher= Cambridge University Press|author= Clive Foss|date= 1979|page= 43|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> and it is also referenced by Bishop Zachariah of Mitylene (c. 465-536 CE).<ref name="Mitylene"> {{cite web|url= http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/zachariah02.htm|title= Zachariah of Mitylene, Syriac Chronicle: Book II Chapter 1|publisher= M.A. Methuen & Co|author= F. J. Hamilton, D.D. and E. W. Books (trans.)|date= 1899|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.tertullian.org%2Ffathers%2Fzachariah02.htm&date=2013-12-04|deadurl=no}}</ref> During this time period, a number of theological controversies were taking place in Syrian Christian communities.<ref>{{cite web|url= |title= The Church of the Ancient Councils|publisher= Crestwood, New York: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press|author= Peter L’Huillier|date= 1996|pages= 199-201|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= |title= The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon vol. 3|publisher= Liverpool University Press|author=Richard Price and Michael Gaddis|date= 2007|pages= 1-3|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Among these was a debate over the nature of the resurrected body. Called the Origenist controversy, after the heretical Christian writer and cleric Origen, this theological disagreement began in Egypt during the late 4th century and by the middle of the 5th century had spread into Asia Minor. Origenists claimed that the resurrected body of the believer was not the same physical body they had during life. Stephen records that the bishops of his time regarded the miracle of the Seven Sleepers as a divine answer to the controversy. In his work, Zachariah of Mitylene uses the case of the Seven Sleepers as evidence toward defending the orthodox position on the resurrection:

{{Quote|Zachariah of Mitylene, Syriac Chronicle: Book II, Ch. 1|I shall set down here the truth of the resurrection, which took place in the days of Theodosius the king, of the bodies of the seven youths who were in a cave in the district of Ephesus, and the Syriac records ; both to keep them in the memory of the saints and for the glory of God, Who is able to do all things.<ref name="Mitylene"/>}}

It seems all too convenient that this miracle of physical preservation would suddenly occur right at the height of a theological controversy about the resurrection of the physical body. This naturally leads to skepticism of the historical nature of these events, rather pointing to the story being invented solely as a polemic for one side in a theological debate.

===Grotto of the Seven Sleepers in Ephesus===

Located just outside of the ancient city of Ephesus in Turkey, the Grotto is a network of catacombs, tombs, and graves around a cave on the eastern slope of Panayirdag hill. Archaeological evidence collected in the 1920s has verified that some of the tombs at the site in Ephesus date back to the middle of the 5th century but it also showed that the cave was in use at least two centuries prior. Among the items collected were pottery shards with Christian symbols along with inscriptions on the walls dedicated to to the seven sleepers. Other pieces of pottery contained images of Greek and Roman gods.<ref name="Honigamann"> Ernest Honigmann, “Stephen of Ephesus and the Legend of the Seven Sleepers,” in Patristic studies (Studi e testi), Biblioteca apostolica vaticana, 1953</ref>

While this evidence confirms that people living near Ephesus associated those buried at this site with the legend of the Sleepers; it does not confirm the actual events of the story. What it does show, is that the legend began sometime in the middle of the 5th century and this site was associated with the story around that same time. Historian Ernest Honigmann points out:

{{Quote|Stephen of Ephesus and the Legend of the Seven Sleepers, p. 168|In the light of the archaeological evidence it now seems incontestable that about the middle of the fifth century seven young Ephesians really believed or tried to make others believe that they had been persecuted at the time of Decius, and that a high ecclesiastical dignitary, in a kind of enthusiastic self-deception, took their strange affirmation for granted, all the more providing him with the weapons which he needed for refuting certain heretics and making orthodoxy triumph.”<ref name="Honigamann"/>}}

Whether this story has an historical core or not is still a matter of debate. However, the evidence appears to point to a speedy acceptance of the legend based more on the desire for it to be true rather than a measured evaluation of the evidence.

===Abu Alanda in Amman Jordan===

Located near Amman Jordan, this site has alternatively been identified as the one mentioned in Surah Al Kahf. It was discovered by the Jordanian archaeologist Rafiq Wafa Ad-Dajani in 1963 CE.<ref name="amman">{{cite web|url= http://www.ammancity.gov.jo/en/services/histdetails.asp?id=3|title= Kahf Ahl Al-Kahf (Cave of the Cavemen)|publisher=Greater Amman Municipality|author= |date= accessed December 5, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ammancity.gov.jo%2Fen%2Fservices%2Fhistdetails.asp%3Fid%3D3&date=2013-12-05|deadurl=no}}</ref> The cave and tomb have become a tourist destination and the locals refer to it as Al-Raqim, or the (cave of) the inscription. However, beyond local tradition, there seems to be little that links this site to the story of the Seven Sleepers.

The location does appear to be an old Byzantine-Roman burial site, but there are thousands of these across the region with almost 750 in just the Irbid–North Jordan Valley region alone.<ref> Palumbo, G., 1994. Jordan Antiquities Database and Information System. Amman: American Center for Oriental Research. Cited in: {{cite web|url= http://www2.mcdonald.cam.ac.uk/projects/iarc/culturewithoutcontext/issue14/rose-burke.htm|title= Making Money from Buried Treasure|publisher= Culture Without Context|author= Jerome C. Rose & Dolores L. Burke|series= Issue 14, Spring 2004|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww2.mcdonald.cam.ac.uk%2Fprojects%2Fiarc%2Fculturewithoutcontext%2Fissue14%2Frose-burke.htm&date=2013-12-05|deadurl=no}}</ref> These tombs often held the remains of multiple people and were usually situated in or around hillsides and caves. In fact, there are a number of similar rock-cut tombs in the area near this cave in Abu Alanda.<ref name="Jordan">{{cite web|url= http://books.google.com/books?id=tI9L9gepYAUC&pg=PA106|title= Jordan|publisher= Rough Guides|author= Matthew Teller|date= 2002|page=106|isbn=9781858287409|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref> Without any kind of inscriptions or other identifying features, there is little reason to single out this particular site as the one mentioned in the Qur'an. Even the claims of a small ancient church, later converted into a mosque at the site, offer little supporting evidence as churches and chapels were commonly built near grave sites.

Other, spurious claims that the remains of seven individuals and a dog skeleton were found in the cave, along with the discovery of copper coins, cannot be verified as the archaeological work done in the 1960s did not definitely date the items at the site.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://idosi.org/wjihc/wjihc1(3)11/7.pdf|title= Qur’an and Archeological Discoveries: Evidence from the Near East|publisher= World Journal of Islamic History and Civilization|author= Ghassan Taha Yaseen|series=1 (3): 201-212, 2011. ISSN 2225-0883|date= |archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fidosi.org%2Fwjihc%2Fwjihc1%283%2911%2F7.pdf&date=2013-12-05|deadurl=no}}</ref> Human remains, coins, and jewelry are very common in all of the Byzantine tombs in the region.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www2.mcdonald.cam.ac.uk/projects/iarc/culturewithoutcontext/issue14/rose-burke.htm|title= Making Money from Buried Treasure|publisher= Culture Without Context|author= Jerome C. Rose & Dolores L. Burke|series= Issue 14, Spring 2004|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww2.mcdonald.cam.ac.uk%2Fprojects%2Fiarc%2Fculturewithoutcontext%2Fissue14%2Frose-burke.htm&date=2013-12-05|deadurl=no}}</ref> Without proper dating, we have no way to verify if the remains at this site pre-date the Qur'anic story or if they were placed there at some point in the preceding 1,400 years. The cave only has four alcoves and sarcophagi, which implies it was never intended to hold the remains of seven people.

Numerous other sites, in Muslim countries, have also been offered as possible locations of the cave in the Qur'anic story. In Turkey (Ammuriyag Hadj Hamza: subterranean cave of an ancient Greek convent, and Tarsus; grotto), Syria (Damascus: the Ahl al-Kahf Mosque, with seven qibla in the crypt), Egypt (Cairo: cave of the Maghwari in Moqattam), in North Africa there are numerous sites. This attests only to how easy it is to find a cave, cemetery, and religious building situated in the same location.<ref>Geneviève Massignonn, [http://www.dcbuck.com/Articles/Pilgrimage/Pilgrimage.html "The Veneration of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus"], 1963 ([http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcbuck.com%2FArticles%2FPilgrimage%2FPilgrimage.html&date=2013-12-05 archived]).</ref>

==See Also==
{{Hub4|Companions of the Cave|the Companions of the Cave}}

==External Links==

*{{external link| url = http://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Sources/s18.html| title = The Fellows of the Cave| publisher = Answering Islam| author = | date = | archiveurl = http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.answering-islam.org%2FQuran%2FSources%2Fs18.html&date=2013-12-05| deadurl = no}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Sacred history]]
[[Category:Miracles]]
[[Category:Christian tradition]]
[[Category:Revelation]]
[[Category:Allah]]
[[ar:سبعة_نائمون_لأفسس_في_القرآن]]

Rape in Islamic Law

2023-09-03T17:58:50Z

Vixen: /* Qur'an 4:24 - Permission to marry slave women, even if they are already married */

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}Rape, known in [[Islamic law]] as ''zina bil-ikrah'' or ''zina bil-jabr'' (literally "[[Zina|fornication]] by force"), is a punishable crime generally defined by Muslim jurists as forced intercourse by a man with a [[Islam and Women|woman]] who is not his wife or [[Slavery|slave]] and without her consent. The consent of a slave for sex, for withdrawal before ejaculation ([[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Al-'Azl|azl]]) or to marry her off to someone else was not considered necessary, historically.<ref name="Ali">{{Cite web|first=Kecia |last=Ali | publication-date=January 20, 2017 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/international-journal-of-middle-east-studies/article/concubinage-and-consent/F8E807073C33F403A91C1ACA0CFA47FD | title=Concubinage and Consent|publisher=Cambridge University Press}}</ref> As with enslaved females, according to Islamic law, married women are required to oblige their husbands' sexual advances.<ref>{{Cite journal|first=Muh Endriyo |last=Susila | year= 2013 |url=https://journal.umy.ac.id/index.php/jmh/article/download/271/234| title=Islamic Perspective on Marital Rape |issue=2|volume=20|publisher=Jurnal Media Hukum, p.328}}</ref> In the view of the Hanafi school of jurisprudence, a husband had legal entitlement to force his wife into intercourse if she did not so oblige and lacked certain legally allowed exemptions such as menstruation or fasting, even though the jurists might consider it unethical in some circumstances, while non-Hanafis neither explicitly authorized nor penalized this.<ref>Kecia Ali (2016) "Sexual Ethics and Islam", Oneworld publications, ISBN: 978-1-78074-381-3 p. 12 
"The Hanafi view that husbands were entitled to have sex forcibly with their wives when the latter did not have a legitimate reason to refuse sex was not widely shared outside that school. Even the majority of Hanafi thinkers who accepted this doctrine recognized a distinction between forced intercourse and more usual sexual relations between spouses; although both were equally licit, sex by force might be unethical"
 And p. 120 "Non-Hanafis do not penalize a husband for forcing sex on his wife, but neither do they explicitly authorize it in the way that al-Khassaf does. For all, marital rape is an oxymoron; rape (ightisab) is a property crime that by definition cannot be committed by a husband."
</ref><ref name="Ali" /> For jurists, the concept of "rape" is equally non-existent in the contexts of both marriage and slavery.<ref>{{Cite book|first=Asifa |last=Quraishi-Landesi |publication-date=15 April 2016 |url=https://books.google.co.in/books?id=QfkFDAAAQBAJ&redir_esc=y | title=Feminism, Law, and Religion|page=178|publisher=Routledge|ISBN=978-1-317-13579-1}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|first=Hina |last=Azam |publication-date=26 June 2015 |url=https://books.google.co.in/books?id=fhy_CQAAQBAJ&pg=PA69&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false | title=Sexual Violation in Islamic Law: Substance, Evidence, and Procedure|page=69|publisher=Cambridge University Press|ISBN=978-1-107-09424-6}}</ref><ref name="Ali" /> Today, many Muslim-majority countries have made marital rape illegal or offer other legal protections, though others (mainly in the Arab world) do not do so, often explicitly, as also some non-Muslim countries.<ref>As of the early 2020s, marital rape is not recognised as a crime in many Muslim-majority countries, nor in India, China, Myanmar, much of the Caribbean, and much of sub-Saharan Africa, though is illegal in Indonesia, Turkey, the Balkans, most of central Asia, and much of west Africa. See the detailed information in the Wikipedia article [[w:Marital rape laws by country|Marital rape laws by country]], though note that in some cases the colour-coded map is inaccurate. A lack of legal protection in some countries and / or attitudes which refuse to accept the concept of marital rape exacerbates the predicament of millions of women suffering [[Forced Marriage]] in certain regions of the world.</ref>

A small number of hadiths were cited by scholars to support the Islamic punishments for rape. These narrations relate to the rape of free women and of female slaves who are not owned by the perpetrator. However, the Qur'an, on numerous occasions, permits Muslim men to have sexual relations with their own female slaves (famously referred to as "what your right hands possess"), often in conjunction with the commandment for men to keep otherwise chaste. In addition, there are hadith narrations of an incident in which Muhammad's companions were permitted to have sex with female war captives prior to them being ransomed back to their tribe, while various other hadiths mention the sexual intercourse which slave owners (including Muhammad) had with their slaves. Many Islamic empires and countries in the past have taken non-Muslims as slaves and sex slaves.<ref name="Slavery 2022">{{cite web | title=Slave past of Kafirs of India and toxic Hindu-Muslim History - Landsca | website=Satyaagrah | date=2022-04-11 | url=https://satyaagrah.com/religion/islam/596-slave-past-of-kafirs-of-india | access-date=2022-04-11}}</ref> It is important to note , however, that slavery was legally abolished in majority Muslim countries around the world in the 19th and 20th centuries (though persists illegally in a few places such as Mauritania<ref name="Mauritania" />). It is also now considered forbidden in the modern context by most scholars, though a minority, such as Saudi Sheikh Saleh Al-Fawzan, argue that slavery remains Islamically legitimate.

Kecia Ali, Associate professor of religion, Boston University (a Muslim convert) says regarding sex with slaves: "For premodern Muslim jurists, as well as for those marginal figures who believe that the permission [for slavery] still holds, the category “rape” doesn’t apply: ownership makes sex lawful; consent is irrelevant."<ref>{{Citation|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kecia-ali/islam-sex-slavery_b_8004824.html|title=The Truth About Islam and Sex Slavery History Is More Complicated Than You Think|author=Kecia Ali|publication-date=August 19th, 2016|newspaper=Huffington Post}} ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230224094334/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/islam-sex-slavery_b_8004824 archive])</ref> Dr. Jonathan Brown, Associate Professor and Chair of Islamic Civilization at Georgetown University (also a Muslim convert) has made similar comments.<ref>"In the case of a slave-concubine, consent was irrelevant because of the master's ownership of the woman in question" Brown, J.A.C. "Slavery & Islam", Chapter 7, London: Oneworld Publications, 2019</ref><ref>"'slave rape' is a tough term to decipher from a Shariah perspective. A male owner of a female slave has the right to sexual access to her. Though he could not physically harm her without potentially being held legally accountable if she complained, her 'consent' would be meaningless since she is his slave." [https://np.reddit.com/r/islam/comments/3h1abm/this_is_dr_jonathan_brown_professor_at_georgetown/cu3dkhd/ Comment by Dr. Jonathan AC Brown on his Reddit AMA session], 2016 ([https://web.archive.org/web/20210225213159/https://np.reddit.com/r/islam/comments/3h1abm/this_is_dr_jonathan_brown_professor_at_georgetown/cu3dkhd/ archive])</ref>

Typically, apologetic approaches to the issue of slaves and concubines propose that the women mentioned in the Quran and hadiths consented to intercourse with their captors and to their enslavement lest they be left destitute since their men had been killed. Critics generally argue that this is highly improbable, point out a hadith in which raped captives were due to be ransomed back to their tribe, and in any case would be incompatible with the modern understanding of consent which could not validly be given in captive circumstances. Some Islamic modernist scholars question the authenticity of the relevant hadiths altogether, in line with their general skepticism towards the hadith corpus and rejection of traditional jurisprudence, and attempt alternative interpretations of the Quranic verses.

==Punishments for rape in Islamic Law and its application in modern contexts==

By the end of the formative period of Islamic law, there was a consensus that rape was to be categorised as a variant of [[Zina]] (fornication, or unlawful intercourse) in which the coerced woman is spared punishment and the male rapist is punished with the [[w:hadd|hadd]] penalty.<ref name="HinaAzam">Hina Azam [http://www.jstor.org/stable/23645194 RAPE AS A VARIANT OF FORNICATION (ZINĀ) IN ISLAMIC LAW: AN EXAMINATION OF THE EARLY LEGAL REPORTS], Journal of Law and Religion, vol. 28, no. 2, 2012, pp. 441–66</ref> This penalty is [[stoning|stoning to death]] (if he is [[Marriage|married]]) or lashings (if he is unmarried) - just as he would receive for ordinary zina. Four reliable muslim male witnesses (bayyinah) or a confession by the perpetrator are required in order to punish the rapist.<ref name="Al Hakam 2022">{{cite web | title=Rape in Islamic law: Establishing the crime and upholding the rights of the innocent | website=Al Hakam | date=23 January 2022 | url=https://www.alhakam.org/rape-in-islam/ | access-date=2 January 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|first=R. |last= Peters | year= 2012 | title=Encyclopaedia of Islam | edition= 2nd|publisher=Brill |editor=P. Bearman |editor2=Th. Bianquis |editor3=C.E. Bosworth |editor4=E. van Donzel |editor5=W.P. Heinrichs|chapter=Zinā or Zināʾ}}</ref> Jurists agreed that there is no punishment for the rape victim. Her word that she was raped is accepted if there is no named perpetrator. If she does name the alleged rapist but is unable to prove the allegation, the Maliki school held the woman liable to receive the hadd penalty of 80 lashes for slander (qadhf), though the judge may spare her this punishment if there is some circumstancial evidence in support of her allegation. Maliki jurists even held that a woman must be punished with the hadd penalty for fornication (zina) if she falls pregnant while unmarried even if she says she was raped, though she is spared punishment if there is evidence of coercion from her physical state or a witness heard her cry for help. In contrast, for the Hanafi school it was enough to avoid punishment if she simply says that she was raped. Hanafis stated that pregnancy of an unmarried woman is not proof of zina, pointing to the principle that hadd punishments are not applied if there is any doubt.<ref>Position paper by Karamah (Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights) [https://karamah.org/zina-rape-and-islamic-law-an-islamic-legal-analysis-of-the-rape-laws-in-pakistan/ Zina, Rape, and Islamic Law: An Islamic Legal Analysis of the Rape Laws in Pakistan](2011)</ref><ref>See the 2nd of the two hadiths here regarding Imam Malik's view: {{Muwatta|41||16}}</ref>

Jurists disagree on whether the rapist must also pay a dowry as compensation to the victim. A controversial position of some modern jurists is that the hadd penalty for outlaws should apply to rapists (hadd ''Hirabah''), described in {{Quran|5|33}}. Others say that rape can be treated by the judge as an offence that receives Tazir (discretionary) punishment (as in Pakistan, for example). These approaches avoid the impractical evidence requirement of four witnesses for applying a zina hadd penalty to the rapist in the absence of his confession. Incidentally, the four witnesses requirement for zina seems to have been introduced by Muhammad when Aisha was accused of adultery.<ref>See {{Quran-range|24|4|17}} and the discussion in [[Zina#Punishments for Zina|Punishments for Zina]]</ref> In some other modern courts where the hadd punishment for zina is applied to rapists, a woman risks being accused of slanderous accusation (qadhf) if she cannot prove her allegation of rape to that evidence standard<ref>Dr Azman Mohd Noor, [http://irep.iium.edu.my/16877/1/PUNISHMENT_FOR_RAPE_IN_ISLAMIC_LAW.pdf Punishment for rape in Islamic Law], Malayan Law Journal Articles [2009] 5 MLJ cxiv</ref> and the rapists go unpunished.<ref>{{Citation|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1016271/a-license-to-rape|title=A license to rape|author=Murtaza Haider|publication-date=June 5, 2003|newspaper=Dawn}}</ref> Pregnancy is used as evidence of sex having occurred and women who report rape or sexual violence can be deemed to have confessed to unlawful sex (zina) and prosecuted for that instead.<ref>[https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/04/29/saudi-arabia-forthcoming-penal-code-should-protect-rights Saudi Arabia: Forthcoming Penal Code Should Protect Rights] - Human Rights Watch 29 April 2022</ref> Due to a number of high profile instances, the risk of being prosecuted for zina creates a strong disincentive for women to report rape in some Muslim countries today.<ref>{{cite web | title=Judged for more than her crime | website=deathpenaltyworldwide.org | date=September 2018 | url=https://www.deathpenaltyworldwide.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Judged-More-Than-Her-Crime.pdf | access-date=28 December 2022}}</ref>

==Punishments for rape narrated in hadiths==
===Rape of a free woman===

Muhammad ordered the stoning of a confessed rapist who attacked a free woman to whom he was not married.

{{Quote|{{al Tirmidhi|15|3|15|1454}}; see also {{Muwatta|36||14}}|Narrated 'Alqamah bin Wa'il Al-Kindi: From his father: "A women went out during the time of the Prophet (ﷺ) to go to Salat, but she was caught by a man and he had relations with her, so she screamed and he left. Then a man came across her and '''she said: 'That man has done this and that to me'''', then she came across a group of Emigrants (Muhajirin) and she said: 'That man did this and that to me.' They went to get the man she thought had relations with her, and they brought him to her. She said: 'Yes, that's him.' So they brought him to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and when he ordered that he be stoned, the man who had relations with her, said: ''''O Messenger of Allah, I am the one who had relations with her.'''' So he said to her: 'Go, for Allah has forgiven you.' Then he said some nice words to the man (who was brought). And '''he said to the man who had relations with her: 'Stone him (to death).'''' Then he said: 'He has repented a repentance that, if the inhabitants of Al-Madinah had repented with, it would have been accepted from them.'"}}

===Rape of another's slave===
If the individual raped is a slave owned by other than the rapist, reparations are due to the owner of the slave in the form of a replacement slave or the amount by which the raped slave's value has been depreciated as a result of the rape. Hina Azam writes that "sexual ursupation of a slave woman was a form of property damage that required financial compensation to her owner for a depreciation of the property's value....usually equal to the amount by which she was depreciated by the act (this being of particular relevance if she was previously a virgin)".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t349/e0075 |title=Rape |last=Azam |first=Hina |date= |website=Oxford Islamic Studies |publisher=http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com |access-date=7 April 2021}}</ref>

Malik in his ''Muwatta'' confirms this punishment. Malik was founder of one of the four Sunni legal schools.

{{Quote|{{Muwatta|36||14}}|Malik related to me from Ibn Shihab that Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan gave a judgment that the rapist had to pay the raped woman her bride- price. Yahya said that he heard Malik say, "What is done in our community about the man who rapes a woman, virgin or non-virgin, if she is free, is that he must pay the bride-price of the like of her. If she is a slave, he must pay what he has diminished of her worth. The hadd-punishment in such cases is applied to the rapist, and there is no punishment applied to the raped woman. If the rapist is a slave, that is against his master unless he wishes to surrender him.}}

The authenticity of hadiths concerning the following incident in which Muhammad commands punishment by stoning for a man who has intercourse with his wife's slave are graded da'if (weak) by al-Albani, while Dar-us-Salam grade them hasan (good).

{{Quote|{{Al Nasai|26|4|26|3365}}; see also {{Abu Dawud|38|4445}}|It was narrated that Salamah bin Al-Muhabbaq said: "The Prophet passed judgment concerning a man who had intercourse with his wife's slave woman: 'If he forced her, then she is free, and he has to give her mistress a similar slave as a replacement; if she obeyed him in that, then she belongs to him, and he has to give her mistress a similar slave as a replacement.'"}}

In another, similar incident, the rapist of his wife's slave is to be punished by stoning.

{{Quote|{{Al Nasai|26|4|26|3362}}; see also {{Abu Dawud|38|4444}}|It was narrated from An-Nu'man bin Bashir that the Prophet said, concerning a man who had intercourse with his wife's slave woman: "If she let him do that, I will flog him with one hundred stripes , and if she did not let him, I will stone him (to death)."}}

Another hadith reports Caliph Umar sentencing a man to stoning for taking a captive girl for himself. In this case, the illegitimacy is due to strict rules on the distribution of war booty. That hadith is discussed in another section below ([[Rape in Islamic Law#Violations of the spoils-distribution system as rape|Violations of the spoils-distribution system as rape]]).

==Sex with female slaves and war captives in the Qur'an==

There is no equivalent term for ‘rape’ in the [[Qur'an]], although {{Quran|4|19}} forbids believing men to inherit wives by compulsion. Nevertheless, while chastity is encouraged as a virtue, it is frequently commanded alongside the recurring exception "except from their wives or those their right hands possess", as set out below. There is no verse in the Qur'an which explicitly discourages forced or coercive sex, despite this being an obvious and virtually certain occurance when it permits sexual access to female slaves or captives.

===Qur'an 23:1-6 & 70:29-30 - Believers should have sex only with their wives and slaves===

A number of verses in the Qur'an mention sexual relations with slaves as a category distinct from wives, making it clear that sexual relations with female slaves are permitted without marrying the slave first. For example, Surah 23 makes mention of successful Muslims and their characteristics:

{{Quote|{{Quran|23|1-6}}|Certainly will the believers have succeeded: They who are during their prayer humbly submissive And they who turn away from ill speech And they who are observant of zakah '''And they who guard their private parts Except from their wives or those their right hands possess''', for indeed, they will not be blamed}}

The instruction to "guard [one's] private parts" is the Qur'an's standard manner of commanding chastity. What one's "right hand possesses" is likewise the Qur'an's standard manner of referring to one's slaves or war captives. Successful believers are those who engage in sexual activities only with their wives and slaves.

The same idea recurs in surah 70:

{{Quote|{{Quran|70|29-30}}|'''And those who guard their private parts, Except from their wives or those their right hands possess''', for indeed, they are not to be blamed}}

===Qur'an 33:50 - Muhammad may have sex with his wives and captives from the war booty===

Another verse sets out Muhammad's licit sexual access to his wives and captives from the war booty (probably alluding to those mentioned earlier in the surah), as well as any of his female first cousins and any believing woman who offers herself to him if he wishes to marry her. The verse states that this is a special permission granted for Muhammad alone, though it is unclear which part of the verse comprises these exclusive rights. A common interpretation was that Muhammad is granted here exemption from the maximum limit of four wives.

The words translated "what Allah has returned to you" (wamā [...] afāa l-lahu ʿalayka) mean Muhammad's share of the spoils of war, since the same language is mirrored in {{Quran-range|59|6|7}} with that meaning. Those verses twice mention "what Allah has returned to his messenger" (wamā afāa l-lahu ʿalā rasūlihi).

{{Quote|{{Quran|33|50}}|'''O Prophet, indeed We have made lawful to you your wives to whom you have given their due compensation and those your right hand possesses from what Allah has returned to you [of captives]''' and the daughters of your paternal uncles and the daughters of your paternal aunts and the daughters of your maternal uncles and the daughters of your maternal aunts who emigrated with you and a believing woman if she gives herself to the Prophet [and] if the Prophet wishes to marry her, [this is] only for you, excluding the [other] believers. '''We certainly know what We have made obligatory upon them concerning their wives and those their right hands possess''', [but this is for you] in order that there will be upon you no discomfort. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful.}}

Earlier verses in the same surah suggest that these women were among the captives, land, houses and wealth seized during a decisive battle with opponents who had left their fortresses ({{Quran-range|33|20|27}}). According to commentators, this was Khaybar, though other views were narrated too.

See also the two verses which follow verse 50, ({{Quran-range|33|51|52}}), which give Muhammad permission to set aside and return to his wives in accordance with his wishes, and forbids Muhammad from exchanging or taking any further wives even if their beauty pleases him, though maintains his limitless permission to take additional concubines.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|33|51|52}}|You, [O Muhammad], may put aside whom you will of them or take to yourself whom you will. And any that you desire of those [wives] from whom you had [temporarily] separated - there is no blame upon you [in returning her]. That is more suitable that they should be content and not grieve and that they should be satisfied with what you have given them - all of them. And Allah knows what is in your hearts. And ever is Allah Knowing and Forbearing.
Not lawful to you, [O Muhammad], are [any additional] women after [this], nor [is it] for you to exchange them for [other] wives, '''even if their beauty were to please you, except what your right hand possesses.''' And ever is Allah, over all things, an Observer.}}

===Qur'an 4:24 - Permission to marry slave women, even if they are already married===

{{Quran-range|4|22|25}} is a passage listing the women who believing men are forbidden to marry, such as their sisters or nieces. Verse 24 states that also forbidden are "married women except those your right hands possess" (i.e. slaves or captives).

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|4|23|24}}|Prohibited to you (For marriage) are:- Your mothers, daughters, sisters; father's sisters, Mother's sisters; brother's daughters, sister's daughters; foster-mothers (Who gave you suck), foster-sisters; your wives' mothers; your step-daughters under your guardianship, born of your wives to whom ye have gone in,- no prohibition if ye have not gone in;- (Those who have been) wives of your sons proceeding from your loins; and two sisters in wedlock at one and the same time, except for what is past; for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful;-'''Also (prohibited are) women already married, except those whom your right hands possess''': Thus hath Allah ordained (Prohibitions) against you: Except for these, all others are lawful, provided ye seek (them in marriage) with gifts from your property,- desiring chastity, not lust, seeing that ye derive benefit from them, give them their dowers (at least) as prescribed; but if, after a dower is prescribed, agree Mutually (to vary it), there is no blame on you, and Allah is All-knowing, All-wise.}}

This verse permits the believers to marry those whom their right hands possess (female [[Slavery|slaves]]) who already have husbands, so long as the dower is paid. Other verses set out in the previous section show that slave owners did not even have to marry their slaves in order to have intercourse with them (See also the section below on the common apologetic claim of [[Rape_in_Islamic_Law#Freedom_and_marriage_as_a_universal_requirement|Freedom and marriage as a universal requirement]]).

The next verse tells any believer who cannot afford to marry a free believing woman to instead marry "from those whom your right hands possess of believing slave girls". This was understood to mean marrying a believing slave girl owned by someone else (which makes sense as it switches to the plural "right hands possess", and a slave owner by definition would not be too poor to marry a free woman). In Islamic law, she would remain a slave after the marriage, but her owner would no longer have the right of sexual access to her, which transfers to her husband alone. The owner had the right to marry off his female slave without her consent, and would own any children produced by the marriage. If the owner himself wished to marry his own slave, he had to free her first. For details see [[Slavery in Islamic Law]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|25}}|And whoever among you cannot [find] the means to marry free, believing women, '''then [he may marry] from those whom your right hands possess of believing slave girls'''. And Allah is most knowing about your faith. You [believers] are of one another. So marry them with the permission of their people and give them their due compensation according to what is acceptable. [They should be] chaste, neither [of] those who commit unlawful intercourse randomly nor those who take [secret] lovers. But once they are sheltered in marriage, if they should commit adultery, then for them is half the punishment for free [unmarried] women. This [allowance] is for him among you who fears sin, but to be patient is better for you. And Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.}}

The verse states that permission is to be sought from her people, though acceptance would inevitably be a choice not free from coercion, given that the alternative was for her owner to retain the right of sexual intercourse with her, granted elsewhere in the Quran. Perhaps in recognition of the potentially coercive nature of such an arrangement, the same verse halves the punishment she would face for certain conduct during the marriage (traditionally interpreted as adultery).

Sahih hadiths in the collections of Muslim and Abu Dawud give the traditional background story for the permission granted by the previous verse ({{Quran|4|24}}): some of Muhammad's fighters were reluctant to have sexual contact with female captives who were already married to the defeated men of the mushrikeen (those who associated partners with Allah).

{{Quote|{{Abu Dawud||2155|darussalam}}|Abu Sa’id Al Khudri said “The Apostle of Allah(ﷺ) sent a military expedition to Awtas on the occasion of the battle of Hunain. They met their enemy and fought with them. They defeated them and took them captives. '''Some of the Companions of Apostle of Allah (ﷺ) were reluctant to have relations with the female captives because of their pagan husbands.''' So, Allah the exalted sent down the Qur’anic verse “And all married women (are forbidden) unto you save those (captives) whom your right hand posses.” This is to say that they are lawful for them when they complete their waiting period.}}

The hadith in Sahih Muslim is found in a chapter dedicated to the topic; the chapter is entitled "Chapter: It is permissible to have intercourse with a female captive after it is established that she is not pregnant, and '''if she has a husband, then her marriage is annulled when she is captured'''".<ref>{{Citation|chapter=(9) Chapter: It is permissible to have intercourse with a female captive after it is established that she is not pregnant, and if she has a husband, then her marriage is annulled when she is captured|title=Sahih Muslim (Book of Suckling)|url=https://sunnah.com/muslim/17}}

See the three hadiths it contains: {{Muslim|8|3432|}}, {{Muslim|8|3433|}}, and {{Muslim|8|3434|}}</ref>{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3432}}|Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (Allah her pleased with him) reported that at the Battle of Hanain Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) sent an army to Autas and encountered the enemy and fought with them. Having overcome them and taken them captives, the Companions of Allah's Messenger (may peace te upon him) seemed to refrain from having intercourse with captive women because of their husbands being polytheists. Then Allah, Most High, sent down regarding that:

'''"And women already married, except those whom your right hands possess (iv. 24)"''' (i. e. they were lawful for them when their 'Idda [waiting] period came to an end).}}

Ibn Kathir, the most prominent of all Qur'an interpreters, had this to say in regards to verse 4:24:

{{Quote|1=[https://tafsir.app/ibn-katheer/4/24 Tafsir Ibn Kathir 4:24]|2=The Ayah means 'also [forbidden are] women already married, except those whom your right hands possess'. You are prohibited from marrying women who are already married, except those whom your right hands possess, except those whom you acquire through war, for you are allowed such women after making sure they are not pregnant [that is, upon the completion of the "iddah" waiting period]. Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri said, "We captured some women from the area of Awtas who were already married, and we disliked having sexual relations with them because they already had husbands. So, we asked the Prophet about this matter, and this Ayah (verse) was revealed, 'Also (forbidden are) women already married, except those whom your right hands possess'. Accordingly, we had sexual relations with these women. [literally: 'as a result of these verses, their (Infidels') wives have become lawful for us']" This is the wording collected by At-Tirmidhi An-Nasa'i, Ibn Jarir and Muslim in his Sahih.}}

Similarly in Tafsir al-Jalalayn (Qur'an interpretation by two Jalals namely: Jalaluddin Mahalli and Jalaluddin Suyuti, both authorities):

{{Quote|1=[https://tafsir.app/jalalayn/4/24 Tafsir al-Jalalayn 4:24]|2=And, forbidden to you are, wedded women, those with spouses, that you should marry them before they have left their spouses, be they Muslim free women or not; save what your right hands own, of captured [slave] girls, whom you may have sexual intercourse with, even if they should have spouses among the enemy camp, but only after they have been absolved of the possibility of pregnancy [after the completion of one menstrual cycle]; this is what God has prescribed for you.}}

In Islamic law, if a slave woman was married her owner had no right of sexual access to her. Some early Muslim scholars held that slave marriages, which could occur between slaves or between a slave and a free person, were automatically dissolved when ownership was transferred because her new owner was buying sexual access to her but two men could not have licit access to the same woman. Later, a consensus emerged that the marriage and licit sexual access remained between the slave woman and her husband alone upon transfer of ownership, whatever his status.<ref>Kecia Ali, "Marriage and Slavery in Early Islam", Massachussets: Harvard University Press, 2010, pp. 154-159</ref>

==Sex with female slaves and war captives in the hadiths==
Scenes of Muhammad's companions, and indeed Muhammad himself, engaging in sexual activity with slaves and captives are common throughout hadith literature. While the female perspective is largely absent, leaving the reader to speculate as to whether the female slave or captive would have been receptive to the advances of Muhammad and his companions, it is fair to assume that in at least some (if not most or indeed all) of these cases, the sexual activity occurred without the female's consent and thus qualified as rape. This is particularly clear in the examples that follow where Muhammad's companions initiate sexual contact with the captive women shortly after having slayed their sons, husbands, fathers, and brothers. At the very least, it can be said that in no such case does Muhammad intervene in and that in all such cases he actively permits what, by all appearances, is an instance of his companion's raping a captive or slave. These are originally free [[Kafir (Infidel)|non-Muslims]] who are captured in battle.<ref>{{Citation|url=http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/508/1/uk_bl_ethos_443314.pdf|title=The legal and social status of women in the Hadith literature (PDF)|author=Salma Saad|page=242|year=1990}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6MC0DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA17|title=Islamic Jurisprudence on the Regulation of Armed Conflict: Text and Context|author=Nesrine Badawi (1 October 2019). p.17. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-41062-6}}</ref> The entire population of a conquered territory can be enslaved, thus providing women who are otherwise rare on the battlefield. This paves the path for concubinage.<ref>{{Citation|url=https://archive.org/details/islamabolitionof0000clar|title=Islam and the Abolition of Slavery|publisher=p. 27. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-522151-0|author=William Gervase Clarence-Smith|year=2006}}</ref> The Muslim military commander is allowed to choose between unconditionally releasing, ransoming or enslaving war captives.<ref>{{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l0SyDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA5|title=The Art of Jihad: Realism in Islamic Political Thought|author=Malik Mufti (1 October 2019)|publisher=SUNY Press. p.5. ISBN 978-1-4384-7638-4}}</ref> If a person converted to Islam after being enslaved, their emancipation would be considered a pious act but not obligatory.<ref>{{Citation|url=https://archive.org/details/islamabolitionof0000clar|title=Islam and the Abolition of Slavery|publisher=p. 22. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-522151-0|author=William Gervase Clarence-Smith|year=2006}}</ref> Islamic law does not allow enslavement of free-born Muslims.<ref>{{Citation|url=|title=Violence in Islamic Thought from the Qur'an to the Mongols|author=Robert Gleave (14 April 2015)|publisher=p.142. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-9424-2}}</ref>

Islamic jurists permitted slave raiding and kidnapping of non-Muslims from [[Dar al-Harb and Dar al-Islam (the Abodes of War and Peace)|Dar al Harb]].<ref>{{Citation|url=https://archive.org/details/islamabolitionof0000clar|title=Islam and the Abolition of Slavery|publisher=p=27–28. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-522151-0|author=William Gervase Clarence-Smith|year=2006}}</ref> South Asian scholars ruled that jihad was not needed to seize non-Muslims nor was it necessary to invite them to Islam before seizing them. Raiders were free to take and enslave any non-Muslim.<ref>{{Citation|url=https://archive.org/details/islamabolitionof0000clar|title=Islam and the Abolition of Slavery|publisher=p=28. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-522151-0|author=William Gervase Clarence-Smith|year=2006}}</ref> However, Islamic jurists held that non-Muslims who lived in areas which had formal pacts with Muslims were to be protected from enslavement.<ref>{{Citation|url=https://archive.org/details/islamabolitionof0000clar|title=Islam and the Abolition of Slavery|publisher=p=27-28. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-522151-0|author=William Gervase Clarence-Smith|year=2006}}</ref>

Non-Muslim residents of an Islamic state who fail to pay [[Jizyah|jizya]] or break their contract with the state can also be enslaved.<ref>{{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dyZ-DAAAQBAJ&pg=PA52|title=Slavery in the Ottoman Empire and its Demise 1800-1909|author=Y. Erdem (20 November 1996)|publisher=p=26. Palgrave Macmillan UK. ISBN 978-0-230-37297-9}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z3VoBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA2|title=Muslim and Christian Contact in the Middle Ages: A Reader|author=Jarbel Rodriguez (2015)|publisher=p=2. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 978-1-4426-0066-9}}</ref>

===Muhammad has intercourse with his slave girl Maria bint Sham'un===
Muhammad had a child with a slave girl of his known as [[w:Maria_al-Qibtiyya|Maria the Copt]], who was a gift to him from the Governor of Alexandria. In a hadith from Sahih Muslim, a phrase translated as "slave girl" is, in the orignal Arabic, umm walad (أُمِّ وَلَدِ) (literally: "mother of the child") and is the title given to a slave concubine who bore her master a child.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|37|6676}}|Anas reported that '''a person was charged with fornication with the slavegirl of Allah's Messenger''' (ﷺ). Thereupon Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said to 'Ali:

Go and strike his neck. 'Ali came to him and he found him in a well making his body cool. 'Ali said to him: Come out, and as he took hold of his hand and brought him out, he found that his sexual organ had been cut. Hadrat 'Ali refrained from striking his neck. He came to Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) and said: Allah's Messenger, he has not even the sexual organ with him.}}

The following hadith is graded Sahih by Dar-us-Salam:

{{Quote|{{Al Nasai||4|36|3411}}|It was narrated from Anas, that '''the Messenger of Allah had a female slave with whom he had intercourse''', but 'Aishah and Hafsah would not leave him alone until he said that she was forbidden for him. Then Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, revealed:

"O Prophet! Why do you forbid (for yourself) that which Allah has allowed to you.' until the end of the Verse.}}

Tafsir al-Jalalayn says of the verse ({{Quran|66|1}}) referred to in this hadith:

{{Quote|1=[https://tafsir.app/jalalayn/66/1 Tafsir al-Jalalayn 66:1]|2=O Prophet! Why do you prohibit what '''God has made lawful for you''' in terms of '''your Coptic handmaiden Māriya''' — when he lay with her in the house of Hafsa who had been away but who upon returning and finding out became upset by the fact that this had taken place in her own house and on her own bed — by saying ‘She is unlawful for me!’ seeking by making her unlawful for you to please your wives? And God is Forgiving Merciful having forgiven you this prohibition.}}

An alternate, or additional circumstance for this verse has also been narrated in multiple sahih hadiths (in yet another version {{Muslim|9|3497}}, Muhammad ate honey at Hafsa's house instead of Zainab's).

{{Quote|{{Al Nasai||4|36|3410}}|'Aishah said that '''the Messenger of Allah used to stay with Zainab bint Jahsh and drink honey at her house'''. Hafsah and I agreed that if the Prophet entered upon either of us, she would say: "'''I perceive the smell of Maghafir (a nasty-smelling gum) on you'''; have you eaten Maghafir?" He came in to one of them, and she said that to him. He said: "'''No, rather I drank honey at the house of Zainab bint Jahsh''', but I will never do it again." Then the following was revealed: 'O Prophet! Why do you forbid (for yourself) that which Allah has allowed to you.' 'If you two turn in repentance to Allah, (it will be better for you)' about 'Aishah and Hafsah, 'And (remember) when the Prophet disclosed a matter in confidence to one of his wives' refers to him saying: "No, rather I drank honey."}}

"Honey" was also a sexual euphemism and an explicit example of its usage in this sense is found in a hadith in Abu Dawud:{{Quote|{{Abudawud|12|2302|}}|Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin:

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was asked about a man who divorced his wife three times, and she married another who entered upon her, but divorced her before having intercourse with her, whether she was lawful for the former husband. She said: The Prophet (ﷺ) replied: She is not lawful for the first (husband) until '''she tastes the honey of the other husband and he tastes her honey'''. }}

Sean Anthony and Catherine Bronson have noted that "Modern scholars have been inclined to regard the more scandalous story involving the slave girl as the earlier one given that it appears in the earliest sources, and despite the fact that the honey story has a superior pedigree in the eyes of the ḥadīth scholars. These modern scholars reason that, if the story of Ḥafṣah’s jealousy after seeing the Prophet with his slave-girl predates the honey story, then exegetes likely contrived the honey narrative at a later date in order to provide an alternative to the unflattering portrayal of the Prophet and his wives in the former story. Furthermore, while the honey story may provide a somewhat plausible explanation for Q 66:1–2, its explanatory
force greatly diminishes when applied to the remainder of the pericope. The gravity of Q 66:5–6, which threatens divorce as a penalty for plotting against the Prophet, makes a poor match for the trifles of the honey story."<ref>Sean Anthony and Catherine Bronson (2016) "Did Ḥafṣah edit the Qurʾān? A response with notes on the codices of the Prophet's wives" Journal of the Interational Quranic Studies Association 1(2016) pp.93-125 (p.102)</ref>

===Ali rapes a captive girl alloted to the khumus (state share of war booty)===

Another relevant hadith is one which concerns an incident which led to the famous event of Ghadir Khumm, which is much disputed between Sunnis and Shias. Both Sunni and Shia sources agree that Muhammad received complaints about 'Ali taking a slave-girl from the ''Khums'' (the fifth of all booty allotted for the state<ref>{{Quran|8|41}}</ref>) to which those complaining felt that no private party was entitled.

The Arabic of the Sunni hadith below mentions 'Ali taking a Ghusl bath (which is mandatory after sexual contact or ejaculation), implying sexual activity. Later, at a place called Ghadir Khumm, Muhammad tried to pacify those who were upset with 'Ali by declaring Ali to be his ''Mawla''. ''Mawla'' is an honorific meaning something between "follower", "ally", and "leader", which the Shia interpret to mean "successor of Muhammad". Thus, in some sense, Ali's having raped a captive becomes the immediate cause of what the Shi'a insist was the the announcement of Ali's succession. The emergent Sunni polemic here casts some doubt on the historical reliability of the hadith, yet, as a hadith included in Sahih Bukhari, it more than meets the Sunni requirements for authenticity.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|5|59|637}}|Narrated Buraida:

The Prophet (ﷺ) sent `Ali to Khalid to bring the Khumus (of the booty) and I hated `Ali, and '''`Ali had taken a bath (after a sexual act with a slave-girl from the Khumus)'''. I said to Khalid, "Don't you see this (i.e. `Ali)?" When we reached the Prophet (ﷺ) I mentioned that to him. He said, "O Buraida! Do you hate `Ali?" I said, "Yes." He said, "Do you hate him, for he deserves more than that from the Khumus."}}

Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (d. 1449), one of the most famous Hadith scholars of all time, points out in his seminal ''Fath al-Bari'' (the still-standard commentary on Sahih Bukhari) what several scholars before him noted: that in accounts of this event, Ali does not observe the required ''istibra''' (waiting period) to determine whether or not the captive girl was pregnant. Al-Asqalani quotes al-Khattabi who summarizes the possibilities: "she was either a virgin [strongly implying a young age in a culture where women married young], had not yet reached maturity, or Ali's ''[[ijtihad]]'' [independent reasoning] led him to not adhere to the waiting period in her case."<ref>"لِاحْتِمَالِ أَنْ تَكُونَ عَذْرَاءَ أَوْ دُونَ الْبُلُوغِ أَوْ أَدَّاهُ اجْتِهَادُهُ أَنْ لَا اسْتِبْرَاءَ فِيهَا" 

{{Citation|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/%D9%81%D8%AA%D8%AD_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%8A_%D8%AC_9_%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%BA%D8%A7%D8%B2%D9%8A/YzZJCwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=%D9%84%D9%90%D8%A7%D8%AD%D9%92%D8%AA%D9%90%D9%85%D9%8E%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%90%20%D8%A3%D9%8E%D9%86%D9%92%20%D8%AA%D9%8E%D9%83%D9%8F%D9%88%D9%86%D9%8E%20%D8%B9%D9%8E%D8%B0%D9%92%D8%B1%D9%8E%D8%A7%D8%A1%D9%8E%20%D8%A3%D9%8E%D9%88%D9%92%20%D8%AF%D9%8F%D9%88%D9%86%D9%8E%20%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%92%D8%A8%D9%8F%D9%84%D9%8F%D9%88%D8%BA%D9%90%20%D8%A3%D9%8E%D9%88%D9%92%20%D8%A3%D9%8E%D8%AF%D9%91%D9%8E%D8%A7%D9%87%D9%8F%20%D8%A7%D8%AC%D9%92%D8%AA%D9%90%D9%87%D9%8E%D8%A7%D8%AF%D9%8F%D9%87%D9%8F%20%D8%A3%D9%8E%D9%86%D9%92%20%D9%84%D9%8E%D8%A7%20%D8%A7%D8%B3%D9%92%D8%AA%D9%90%D8%A8%D9%92%D8%B1%D9%8E%D8%A7%D8%A1%D9%8E%20%D9%81%D9%90%D9%8A%D9%87%D9%8E|title=Fath al-Bari|publisher=Dar Taybah|page=487|volume=9|author=Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani}} (see alternatively [https://archive.org/details/FP2021/08_2029/page/n66/mode/1up?view=theater Fath al-Bari 8/67 (archive.org)])</ref>

The istibra' was the waiting period which had to be observed before commencing intercourse with a newly acquired slave-woman or girl in order to avoid doubts about paternity if she became pregnant. For an adult slave woman this waiting period was one menstral period. Scholars disagreed on the waiting period before sexual intercourse with slave girls too young to menstruate (either a waiting period of one month or three), as discussed in another section below. However, it is worth noting that Ibn Hajar states that "the practice of many Companions" was to not observe istibra' for virgin pre-pubescent girls. See [https://theislamissue.wordpress.com/2019/06/01/child-sex-slavery/ here] for a translation of Ibn Hajar's commentary on this hadith and some reports of this same view attributed to the generation after the companions ('Ikrima and Iyas b. Mu'awiyah).

===Muhammad's companions rape captives intended for ransom===

On one occasion, presented with newly captured women, Muhammad's companions were only concerned about whether coitus interruptus ('azl) was permissible.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|5|59|459}}|Narrated Ibn Muhairiz: I entered the Mosque and saw Abu Said Al-Khudri and sat beside him and asked him about Al-Azl (i.e. coitus interruptus). Abu Said said, "We went out with Allah's Apostle for the Ghazwa of Banu Al-Mustaliq and we received captives from among the Arab captives and we desired women and celibacy became hard on us and we loved to do coitus interruptus. So when we intended to do coitus interruptus, we said, 'How can we do coitus interruptus before asking Allah's Apostle who is present among us?" We asked (him) about it and he said, 'It is better for you not to do so, for if any soul (till the Day of Resurrection) is predestined to exist, it will exist."}}

In another version of the same hadith in Sahih Muslim (also found in Malik's Muwatta and Abu Dawud), it is said that the Muslims' goal was to ransom the women back to members of the defeated party for monetary gain. It is explained that as a result of not wanting to get the women pregnant prior to ransoming them, Muhammad's companions inquired as to whether coitus interruptus was permissible.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3371}}; see also {{Muwatta|29||95}} and {{Abudawud||2167|Hasan}}|Abu Sirma said to Abu Sa'id al Khadri (Allah he pleased with him):

O Abu Sa'id, did you hear Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) mentioning al-'azl? He said: Yes, and added: We went out with Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) on the expedition to the Bi'l-Mustaliq and took captive some excellent Arab women; and we desired them, for we were suffering from the absence of our wives, (but at the same time) '''we also desired ransom for them.''' So we decided to have sexual intercourse with them but by observing 'azl (Withdrawing the male sexual organ before emission of semen to avoid-conception). But we said: We are doing an act whereas Allah's Messenger is amongst us; why not ask him? So we asked Allah's Messenger (ﷺ), and he said: It does not matter if you do not do it, for every soul that is to be born up to the Day of Resurrection will be born.}}

Yet another version of the same story in [[Sahih Bukhari]] is even clearer about Muhammad's companions' sole concern being the potential detriment to the price of the captives if they were impregnated.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|3|34|432}}|Narrated Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri:

that while he was sitting with Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) he said, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! We get female captives as our share of booty, '''and we are interested in their prices''', what is your opinion about coitus interruptus?" The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Do you really do that? It is better for you not to do it. No soul that which Allah has destined to exist, but will surely come into existence.}}

In these narrations captive women were due to be ransomed back to their tribes. This undermines a common modern apologetic claim that enslavement and intercourse with captive women was permitted in order to save them from destitution after their men had been defeated in battle.

===Muhammad's men hesitate to rape married captives until a verse is sent down===

{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3432}}|Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (Allah her pleased with him) reported that at the Battle of Hanain Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) sent an army to Autas and encountered the enemy and fought with them. Having overcome them and taken them captives, the Companions of Allah's Messenger (may peace te upon him) seemed to refrain from having intercourse with captive women because of their husbands being polytheists. Then Allah, Most High, sent down regarding that:

'''"And women already married, except those whom your right hands possess (iv. 24)"''' (i. e. they were lawful for them when their 'Idda [waiting] period came to an end).}}

For other narrations of this hadith see the section above on Quran 4:24.

===Umar tells a man to beat his wife for preventing intercourse with his slave girl===

Abdullah ibn Umar (the son of the 2nd Caliph, [[Umar_ibn_al-Khattab|Umar ibn al-Khattab]]) said that his father ordered a man to have intercourse with a slave girl after his wife had tried to make this haram for him by means of [[Adult_Suckling|adult suckling]].

{{Quote|{{Muwatta|30||13}}|Yahya related to me from Malik that Abdullah ibn Dinar said, "A man came to Abdullah ibn Umar when I waswith him at the place where judgments were given and asked him about the suckling of an older person. Abdullah ibn Umar replied, 'A man came to Umar ibn al-Khattab and said, 'I have a slave-girl and I used to have intercourse with her. My wife went to her and suckled her. When I went to the girl, my wife told me to watch out, because she had suckled her!' Umar told him to beat his wife and to go to his slave-girl because kinship by suckling was only by the suckling of the young.' "}}

===Ghusl (full body wash) not required between intercourse with slave girls===

Imam Malik was asked about intercourse with multiple slave girls.

{{Quote|{{Muwatta|2||90}}|Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi that the slave girls of Abdullah ibn Umar used to wash his feet and bring him a mat of palm leaves while they were menstruating. Malik was asked whether a man who had women and slavegirlscould have intercourse with all of them before he did ghusl. He said, "There is no harm in a man having intercourse with two of his slave girls before he does ghusl. It is disapproved of, however, to go to a freewoman on another's day. There is no harm in making love first to one slave girl and then to another when one is junub." Malik was asked about a man who was junub and water was put down for him to do ghusl with.Then he forgot and put his finger into it to find out whether it was hot or cold. Malik said, "If no filth has soiled his fingers, I do not consider that that makes the water impure."}}

===Explicit distinction between zina and legal intercourse===

Since zina (fornication or adultery) only applies to intercourse with other than one's wives or female slaves, it is only in these contexts that rape is considered possible. The following narration graded hasan (good) by al-Albani in Abu Dawud explicitly makes this distinction by recognizing offspring with one's wives or slaves as legitimate, and included in inheritance, and by labeling the offspring with other women as illegitimate, and removed from inheritance.

{{Quote|{{Abudawud|12|2258}}| 'Amr b. Shu'aib on his father's authority said that his grandfather reported:
The Prophet (ﷺ) decided regarding one who was treated as a member of a family after the death of his father, to whom he was attributed when the heirs said he was one of them, '''that if he was the child of a slave-woman whom the father owned when he had intercourse with her''', he was included among those who sought his inclusion, but received none of the inheritance which was previously divided; he, however, received his portion of the inheritance which had not already been divided; but if the father to whom he was attributed had disowned him, he was not joined to the heirs.

'''If he was a child of a slave-woman whom the father did not possess or of a free woman with whom he had illicit intercourse''', he was not joined to the heirs and did not inherit even if the one to whom he was attributed is the one who claimed paternity, '''since he was a child of fornication whether his mother was free or a slave.''' }}

==Muhammad's other female captives==
On at least two occasions, according to accounts in sahih hadiths, Muhammad captured and cohabited with war captives [[Safiyah]] and [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Muhammads Wives and Concubines#Juwairiya|Juwairiyah]], presumably against their will (having just led the slaughter of their families and tribes).

Surah 33 twice gives Muhammad explicit and direct permission to have sexual contact with his existing [[Muhammad's Marriages|wives]] (having married more than a dozen times, he is prohibited here from marrying further) and with any slaves he may possess now or may acquire in the future.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|33|50|52}}|O Prophet! Lo! We have made lawful unto thee thy wives unto whom thou hast paid their dowries, '''and those whom thy right hand possesseth of those whom Allah hath given thee''' as spoils of war, and the daughters of thine uncle on the father's side and the daughters of thine aunts on the father's side, and the daughters of thine uncle on the mother's side and the daughters of thine aunts on the mother's side who emigrated with thee, and a believing woman if she give herself unto the Prophet and the Prophet desire to ask her in marriage - a privilege for thee only, not for the (rest of) believers - We are Aware of that which We enjoined upon them concerning their wives and those whom their right hands possess - that thou mayst be free from blame, for Allah is ever Forgiving, Merciful. Thou canst defer whom thou wilt of them and receive unto thee whom thou wilt, and whomsoever thou desirest of those whom thou hast set aside (temporarily), it is no sin for thee (to receive her again); that is better; that they may be comforted and not grieve, and may all be pleased with what thou givest them. Allah knoweth what is in your hearts (O men), and Allah is ever Forgiving, Clement. It is not allowed thee to take (other) women henceforth, nor that thou shouldst change them for other wives even though their beauty pleased thee, '''save those whom thy right hand possesseth'''. And Allah is ever Watcher over all things.}}

Earlier verses in the same surah suggest that these women were among the captives, land, houses and wealth seized during a decisive battle with opponents who had left their fortresses ({{Quran-range|33|20|27}}). According to commentators, this was Khaybar, though other views were narrated too.

===Safiyah bint Huayy===
{{Main|Safiyah}}
Safiyah the daughter of Huayy was the wife of a Jewish Rabbi named [[Kinana]]. when Muhammad conquered the Jewish village of Khaibar, he had the Rabbi tortured and then killed. According to an account in Sahih Bukhari, Muhammad then took captive the Rabbi's wife.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|8|367}}|Narrated 'Abdul 'Aziz: Anas said, 'When Allah's Apostle invaded Khaibar, we offered the Fajr prayer there early in the morning) when it was still dark. The Prophet rode and Abu Talha rode too and I was riding behind Abu Talha. The Prophet passed through the lane of Khaibar quickly and my knee was touching the thigh of the Prophet . He uncovered his thigh and I saw the whiteness of the thigh of the Prophet. When he entered the town, he said, 'Allahu Akbar! Khaibar is ruined. Whenever we approach near a (hostile) nation (to fight) then evil will be the morning of those who have been warned.' He repeated this thrice. The people came out for their jobs and some of them said, 'Muhammad (has come).' (Some of our companions added, "With his army.") We conquered Khaibar, took the captives, and the booty was collected. Dihya came and said, 'O Allah's Prophet! Give me a slave girl from the captives.' The Prophet said, 'Go and take any slave girl.' He took Safiya bint Huyai. A man came to the Prophet and said, 'O Allah's Apostles! You gave Safiya bint Huyai to Dihya and she is the chief mistress of the tribes of Quraiza and An-Nadir and she befits none but you.' So the Prophet said, 'Bring him along with her.' So Dihya came with her and when the Prophet saw her, he said to Dihya, 'Take any slave girl other than her from the captives.' Anas added: The Prophet then manumitted her and married her." Thabit asked Anas, "O Abu Hamza! What did the Prophet pay her (as Mahr)?" He said, "Her self was her Mahr for he manumitted her and then married her." Anas added, "While on the way, Um Sulaim dressed her for marriage (ceremony) and at night she sent her as a bride to the Prophet . So the Prophet was a bridegroom and he said, 'Whoever has anything (food) should bring it.' He spread out a leather sheet (for the food) and some brought dates and others cooking butter. (I think he (Anas) mentioned As-SawTq). So they prepared a dish of Hais (a kind of meal). And that was Walima (the marriage banquet) of Allah's Apostle ."}}

===Juwairiyah bint al-Harith===

A hadith from Sunan Abu Dawud explains how, following a surprise attack on the Banu Mustaliq, Muhammad took captive the "very beautiful" Juwairiyah, making Aisha jealous.

{{Quote|1={{Abu Dawud|29|3920}}|2=Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin: Juwayriyyah, daughter of al-Harith ibn al-Mustaliq, fell to the lot of Thabit ibn Qays ibn Shammas, or to her cousin. She entered into an agreement to purchase her freedom. She was a very beautiful woman, most attractive to the eye. Aisha said: She then came to the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) asking him for the purchase of her freedom. When she was standing at the door, I looked at her with disapproval. I realised that the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) would look at her in the same way that I had looked. She said: Apostle of Allah, I am Juwayriyyah, daughter of al-Harith, and something has happened to me, which is not hidden from you. I have fallen to the lot of Thabit ibn Qays ibn Shammas, and I have entered into an agreement to purchase of my freedom. I have come to you to seek assistance for the purchase of my freedom. The Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) said: Are you inclined to that which is better? She asked: What is that, Apostle of Allah? He replied: I shall pay the price of your freedom on your behalf, and I shall marry you. She said: I shall do this. She (Aisha) said: The people then heard that the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) had married Juwayriyyah. They released the captives in their possession and set them free, and said: They are the relatives of the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) by marriage. We did not see any woman greater than Juwayriyyah who brought blessings to her people. One hundred families of Banu al-Mustaliq were set free on account of her.}}

A hadith in Sahih Bukhari confirms the same narrative.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|3|46|717}}|Narrated Ibn Aun: I wrote a letter to Nafi and Nafi wrote in reply to my letter that the Prophet had suddenly attacked Bani Mustaliq without warning while they were heedless and their cattle were being watered at the places of water. Their fighting men were killed and their women and children were taken as captives; the Prophet got Juwairiya on that day. Nafi said that Ibn 'Umar had told him the above narration and that Ibn 'Umar was in that army.}}

==Waiting period before sex with slave girls too young to menstruate==
While it is relatively well known that [[Forced Marriage|forced marriage]] of [[Child Marriage in Islamic Law|children was permitted]] by all schools of Islamic Jurisprudence and that some did not require puberty prior to marital consummation<ref>[[Child Marriage in Islamic Law|child marriage]] was not only permitted by all schools of Islamic law, but a father [[Forced Marriage|could even compell]] his pre-pubescent children or his female slaves to marry someone (he could even [[Slavery_in_Islamic_Law#In_Islamic_law|so compell his male slaves]] according to Malikis and some Hanafi scholars). Marriage could even be forced upon post-pubescent virgin daughters according to the Maliki and Shafi'i schools of jurisprudence. Follow the links for details of all these points. Child marriage and forced marriage are obvious contexts in which rape would occur.</ref> (all of which is illegal today in most modern Muslim-majority countries), less well known is that intercourse was also permitted with pre-pubescent slave girls.

It is important to reiterate at this point that the majority of Islamic scholars today consider slavery to no longer be permissible in a modern context. Slavery was outlawed in Muslim majority countries around the world during the 19th and 20th centuries (though still persists illegally in a few places such as Mauritania where as of the early 2020s, human rights groups estimate that 20% of the population are still enslaved including children<ref name="Mauritania">https://www.newarab.com/features/modern-day-child-slaves-mauritania Mauritania abolished slavery in 1981, but only criminalised slave ownership in 2007 and introduced punishment in 2015</ref>). Modern muslims would generally be as appalled as anyone else to learn of these past practices.

The istibra' was the period of time during which a man may not have sexual intercourse with a female slave that he has just acquired. This was intended to prevent doubts over a child's paternity in case a slave-girl falls pregnant shortly after being bought by a new master.

[https://archive.org/details/FPmfkmfk/mfk03/page/n172/mode/1up?view=theater The Kuwait Encyclopedia of Fiqh, Volume 3, p. 174] summarises the opinions of the Sunni legal schools regarding the length of istibra' for non-menstruating slaves whether because they are either too young or too old. It says that Malikis gave opinions ranging from one month to three months. The Hanbali school said three months, while the Hanafi and Shafi'i schools said it is one month.

The Risala was a famous treatise of Maliki fiqh (jurisprudence). It gives the istibra' for child slave-girls (who do not yet menstruate) as three months. For slaves who do menstruate, the istibra' is instead measured as one menstral period.

{{Quote|[https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book33.html The Risala] 33:5|Istibra' is observed in the case of a slavegirl who changes ownership. It is one menstruation. Ownership changes by selling, giving away, capture, or any other way. If the woman menstruates after being in the possession of the new master before he has bought her, then she does not have to observe an istibra' if she has not gone out. '''The istibra' for a child when she is sold is three months''' as it is for a woman who no longer menstruates. There is no istibra' for a woman who has never had intercourse.}}

Ahmad ibn Hanbal was founder of another major school of jurisprudence. Here Abu Dawud reports Ibn Hanbal's response when the latter was asked about the istibra' for child slave-girls:

{{Quote|''Chapters on Marriage and Divorce: Responses of Ibn Ḥanbal and Ibn Rāhwayh'' Chapter 2 (Abu Dawud) §59-61, translated by Susan Spectorsky, University of Texas Press, 1993<ref name="Spectorsky">''Chapters on Marriage and Divorce'' is a compilation of "responses" that Ahmad ibn Hanbal and his friend Ishaq bin Rahwayh gave to various fiqh questions that people asked them. The book is really three different compilations in one: the first from Abu Dawud, the famous Hadith scholar, the second from Abdullah, Ahmad's son, and the last from al-Kausaj, one of Ahmad's students. The three different compilations were collected and translated by Susan A. Spectorsky, a retired professor at Queens College, City University of New York.</ref>|I heard Aḥmad asked about an istībrāʾ for a girl of ten, and he thought there should be one. I heard Aḥmad say, “A girl of ten years of age may become pregnant.” Someone said to Aḥmad while I was listening, “Even if she is too young to menstruate (ṣaghīra)?” He said, “If she is [very] young, that is, if she is still suckling, then waiting an istibrāʾ has no legal consequences.”}}

Ibn Hanbal's son Abdullah too reported his father's views on this question, as well as on the question of sexual touching of pre-menstral slave-girls. Ibn Hanbal permitted either of these after three months:

{{Quote|''Chapters on Marriage and Divorce: Responses of Ibn Ḥanbal and Ibn Rāhwayh'' Chapter 3 (Abdullah) §138-9, translated by Susan Spectorsky, University of Texas Press, 1993<ref name="Spectorsky" />|I said, “What about a man who buys a female slave not old enough to menstruate?” He said, “He abstains from having sexual intercourse with her for three months.” ... I said to my father, “May he have intimate contact other than that of sexual intercourse with his prepubescent female slave?” He said, “Not until he has abstained from having sexual intercourse with her for three months.” [...]

I asked my father about a man who buys a female slave who is too young to menstruate. “How long should he refrain from having sexual intercourse with her?” He said, “For three months.” I said to my father, “What about intimate contact other than that of intercourse? Can he, for example, touch or kiss her?” He said, “I prefer him not to do that. He should wait an istibrāʾ, for I cannot be certain that if he does touch or kiss her and she is pregnant, he will not do so in an unlawful manner.”}}

Sufyan was the teacher of Ibn Hanbal and Ishaq. Here the views of all three are reported by Ahmad's student al-Kausaj:

{{Quote|''Chapters on Marriage and Divorce: Responses of Ibn Ḥanbal and Ibn Rāhwayh'' Chapter 4 (al-Kausaj) §224, translated by Susan Spectorsky, University of Texas Press, 1993<ref name="Spectorsky" />|I said, “Sufyān said, and he was one of those among the scholars (ahl al-ʿilm) whose opinion was sought, that when a man bought a young female slave, one considered too young for sexual intercourse, that it was not necessary for her to wait an ʿidda. He said, ‘What I prefer when a man buys a female slave too young for intercourse is that her new owner should neither kiss her nor have sexual contact with her, until he has waited a period of istibrāʾ on her behalf, in accordance with the sunna [concerning female slaves].’”

Aḥmad said, “What Sufyān said is excellent.”

Isḥāq said, “There is no harm in his kissing her and having sexual contact with her, because she is among those whom one need not fear having to return to her previous owner because of pregnancy.}}

Shafi'i, founder of another major sunni legal school, said that the istibra' in this situation was one month (as mentioned above). See also the section below about polytheist slaves for his view that sex with polytheist child slaves becomes lawful only once the child has embraced Islam, which may be achieved by coercion in some circumstances.

These views contrast with the statement by Ibn Hajar discussed in another section above, that "the practice of many Companions" was to not observe istibra' for virgin pre-pubescent girls. He may have had in mind narrations similar to some attributed to the tabi'un (2nd generation after the companions) which were collected by Ibn Abi Shaybah (d. 849 CE). A chapter of the Musannaf of Ibn Abi Shaybah records a number of relevant narrations including these from 'Ikrima and the renowned judge Iyas b. Mu'awiyah:

{{Quote|1=[https://archive.org/details/waq110421/06_110426/page/n125/mode/1up?view=theater Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah 16906 and 16907] (for translation and further discussion see [https://theislamissue.wordpress.com/2019/06/01/child-sex-slavery/ here]|2=(16906) Waki <– Ali Bin Al-Mubarak <– Yahya Bin Abi Kathir <– Ikrimah:
Regarding the man who buys a pre-pubescent slave girl, even one younger than that. He said: “There is nothing wrong with touching her before observing Istibra” 

(16907) Zayd Bin Hubab <– Hammad Bin Salamah <– Iyas Bin Muawiyah:
Regarding a man who brought a pre-pubescent slave girl, do not those like her have sexual intercourse? He said: “there is nothing wrong with performing the sexual act upon her without observing istibra”}}

Screenshots of the sources used in this section are also available [https://web.archive.org/web/20220125095756/https://www.reddit.com/r/exmuslim/comments/sca71q/evidence_pedophilia_and_forced_marriages_in_islam/ here (archive)].

==Limitations on rape of slaves and war captives==
===Avoiding severe physical injury===
Beyond the temporary requirement of waiting past the ''Iddah'' period or conversion of a slave, the only restriction on raping one's slaves or wives is that the victims not incur severe physical injury in the process. However, this derives from a generic prohibition against incurring severe physical injury upon anyone at any time, and men are authorized in the view of jurists to [[Wife Beating in Islamic Law|beat]] their wives and slaves as a form of physical discipline if they deny him sexual access or fail to obey him in some other mandatory capacity.

In practical terms, the relevance of the "do-no-harm" principle in this case is that a man should not penetrate his wives or slaves against their will if they are physically too small to withstand penetration (i.e. in the case of [[Child Marriage in Islamic Law|very young girls]]) or if they are seriously ill or injured to the point where penetration would inhibit their healing or magnify their injury. There is no consideration here for harm in the form of "mental anguish", and men are permitted to sexually utilize very young, ill, and/or injured slaves against their will through means other than penetration if such less egregious means will help avoid severe physical injury.

===Waiting until the completion of the ''Iddah'' or childbirth===

A hadith graded sahih by Dar-us-Salam in Abu Dawud describes the ''Iddah'' waiting period as the "one menstrual period" after acquisition of the slave wherein the new owner must abstain from sexual contact in order to ascertain whether or not the slave is pregnant, so as not to confuse paternity.

{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2152|hasan}}|Abu Sa’id Al Khudri traced to Prophet (ﷺ) the following statement regarding the captives taken at Atwas. There must be no intercourse with pregnant woman till she gives birth to her child or with the one who is not pregnant till she has had one menstrual period.}}

Another hadith graded sahih by Dar-us-Salam in Tirmidhi explains that if the slave is pregnant

{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi||3|19|1564}}|Narrated Umm Habibah bint 'Irbad bin Sariyah:

From her father who told her that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) prohibited intercourse with female prisoners, until they deliver what is in their wombs."}}

===Waiting until adult polytheist slaves convert, by force if necessary===

Although Muhammad's men seem to have had intercourse with captive polytheist women whom they had captured during the expedition to Awtas/Autas, most jurists later ruled that this was later forbidden by {{Quran|2|221}} (the verse only forbids marriage to polytheist women, but scholars inferred that this also applied to intercourse with slaves). Intercourse with Muslim, Christian, or Jewish slaves was not affected by this restriction.<ref>{{Citation|url=https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/272452/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201227215257/https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/272452/|title=Ruling on sexual intercourse with one's polytheistic slave-woman|date=November 14, 2014|publisher=Islamweb.net}}</ref>

Early scholars of fiqh devised a workaround for this restriction, including the allowance of raping younger captives who were polytheist:

{{Quote|{{citation| last=Friedmann | first=Yohanan| title=Tolerance and Coercion in Islam: Interfaith Relations in the Muslim Tradition|publisher=Cambridge University Press|ISBN=9780511497568|pages=107-108|date=August 2009|series=Cambridge Studies in Islamic Civilization|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/tolerance-and-coercion-in-islam/603974A9EFEDC7FBD00B38D0845AECAA|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180614220208/https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/tolerance-and-coercion-in-islam/603974A9EFEDC7FBD00B38D0845AECAA}}|According to a report included in the ''Jāmi‘'' of al-Khallāl (d. 311 A.H. / 923 A.D.), '''Ibn Hanbal maintained that

:'''if Zoroastrian and idolatrous women are taken prisoner, they are coerced into Islam; if they embrace it, sexual relations with them are permissible''' and they can (also) be used as maidservants. If they do not embrace Islam, they are used as maidservants but not for sexual relations (''wa idhā subhīna (sic) al-majūsiyyāt wa ‘abadat al awthān ujbirna 'alā al-Islām fa-in asl ama wutiʼna ma 'stukhdimna wa in lam yuslimna 'stukhdimna wa lam yūtaʼna'').

The contradiction inherent in this passage is evident: despite the unspecified coercive measures, some of the women in question refused conversion and, consequently, the masters could not take full advantage of their services. If the only way to embrace Islam is pronouncing the declaration of faith, the conversion of a defiant woman may not be possible: it is not always feasible to force someone to utter the shahāda. '''According to a tradition transmitted on the authority of Hasan al-Basri, the Muslims used various devices to attain their objective: they turned the Zorastrian slave-girl toward the Ka‘ba, ordered her to pronounce the shahāda and to perform ablution. Her master then engaged in sexual relations''' after she had one menstruating period while in his house. Others hold that the master must teach the slave-girl to pray, to purify herself and to shave her private parts before any intercourse. The participation of the girl in this procedure is minimal, and this wording may be interpreted us a considerable lowering of the conversion requirements so that the girl becomes eligible for sexual intercourse as expeditiously as possible. Among the early traditionists, only '''a few were willing to go beyond this and allow sexual relations with a Zoroastrian slave-girl without insisting on at least a semblance of conversion'''.

Shafi‘i's treatment of the issue is slightly different. Speaking of grown-up Zoroastrian or polytheist women taken into captivity, he maintains that no sexual relations with them are allowed before they embrace Islam without bringing up the question of converting them forcibly. If the female captives are minor but were taken captive with at least one of their parents, the ruling is the same. '''If, however, the girl was captured without her parents, or one of her parents embraced Islam, she is considered a Muslim and is coerced into embracing it''' (''nahkumu lahā bihukm al-Islām wa nujbiruhā ‘alayhi''). '''Once this happens, sexual relations with her are lawful.'''}}

==Modern perspectives==
While most Islamic scholars today are comfortable with at least the temporary abolition of slavery in light of the fact that Islamic scriptures universally praise the freeing of slaves as a meritorious act, few are comfortable with the idea of permanently and irreversibly amending divine law. As a result, the legal rulings relating to slaves and the technical permissibility of owning slaves under the proper circumstances (e.g. under the rule of a "legitimate [[Khilafah (Caliphate)|khilafah]]", or caliphate) persist, as exemplified in the following fatwa from the most popular Islamic fatwa website in the world, based in Saudi Arabia.{{Quote|1=

{{citation|url=https://islamqa.info/en/answers/13737/what-is-the-ruling-on-intimacy-with-slave-women | archiveurl=https://archive.fo/16upP| chapter= Fatwa No. 13737: What is the ruling on intimacy with slave women?|publisher= Islam Q&A|date= March 18, 2004|editor=Muhammad Salih al-Munajjid}}|2=With regard to your question about it being permissible for a master to be intimate with his slave woman, the answer is that that is because Allaah has permitted it. }}Likewise, as with all rulings of the shariah, the basic rulings governing family relations are unchanging. It would be difficult even today to find a trusted Islamic authority that does not still, at some level, permit marital rape and give general license for [[Wife Beating in Islamic Law|wife beating]] as a potential means by which to compel one's able but unwilling spouse into sexual activity, among other things.
{{Quote|{{citation|url= https://islamqa.info/en/answers/99756/his-wife-is-not-very-interested-in-intercourse-so-he-resorts-to-masturbation|chapter= Fatwa No. 99756: His wife is not very interested in intercourse so he resorts to masturbation| publisher= Islam Q&A|date= July 22, 2007|editor=Muhammad Salih al-Munajjid|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204173121/https://islamqa.info/en/answers/99756/his-wife-is-not-very-interested-in-intercourse-so-he-resorts-to-masturbation}}|The wife is obliged to obey her husband if he calls her to his bed, and if she refuses then she is sinning, because of the report narrated by al-Bukhaari (3237) and Muslim (1436) from Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him), that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “If a man calls his wife to his bed and she does not come to him, and he goes to sleep angry with her, the angels will curse her until morning.”}}

==Modern revisionary perspectives and criticisms thereof==

===Violations of the spoils-distribution system as rape===

====Quote from al-Shafi'i====
A quote from ''al-Umm'' of Imam al Shafi'i, the founder of the Shafi'i school of Islamic jurisprudence, is sometimes misrepresented<ref name=":0">{{Citation|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112021758/https://www.call-to-monotheism.com/does_islam_permit_muslim_men_to_rape_their_slave_girls_|url=https://www.call-to-monotheism.com/does_islam_permit_muslim_men_to_rape_their_slave_girls_|author=Bassam Zawadi|publisher=Call to Monotheism|chapter=Does Islam Permit Muslim Men to Rape Their Slave Girls?}}</ref> as forbidding slave owners from raping their female slaves.

{{Quote|1={{citation|author=al-Shafi'i|title=al-Umm|volume=3|page=253}}|2="If a man acquires by force a slave-girl, then has sexual intercourse with her after he acquires her by force, and if he is not excused by ignorance, then the slave-girl will be taken from him, he is required to pay the fine, and he will receive the punishment for illegal sexual intercourse."}}

It is clear, however, that "acquires by force" here refers to the manner in which the man gained possession of the slave girl, not a description of the later sexual act. Indeed, this quote comes from the section entitled ghasb (property usurpation). According to Islamic law, a fifth of all war and raid spoils (referred to as the ''Khum -'' literally "fifth"), including captives who may be sold for funds, is to be allotted for public spending. Taking and raping a captive from this public allotment, as [[Rape in Islamic Law#Ali rapes a captive girl alloted to the khumus (state share of war booty)|Ali is reported to have in one instance]], amounts to theft and zina (illegal intercourse). This, as well as taking and raping someone else's slave, is of course prohibited and punishable. Indeed, in the remainder of his many-volume legal work ''al-Umm'', al-Shafi'i painstakingly outlines the laws regarding the sexual obligations of one's wives and slaves, in no place suggesting that rape of the female is punishable in these contexts.

====Quote from Malik====
A quote from the ''Muwatta'' of Imam Malik, founder of the Maliki school of jurisprudence, is also sometimes misrepresented in this vein.<ref name=":0" /> As with the quote taken from ''al-Umm'', this quote from the ''Muwatta'' is likewise only referring to stolen slaves and has no bearing on one's own slaves and wives. Fines for raping slave girls were always paid to the master.<ref>Hina Azam, "Sexual Violation in Islamic Law: Substance, Evidence, and Procedure" New York: Cambridge University Press, 2015, p. 104</ref> And, just like Imam Shafi'i, Malik details the legal practices of slavery in several other places throughout the same text.

{{Quote|1={{Muwatta|36||14}}|2=Malik related to me from Ibn Shihab that Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan gave a judgment that the rapist had to pay the raped woman her bride- price. Yahya said that he heard Malik say, "What is done in our community about the man who rapes a woman, virgin or non-virgin, if she is free, is that he must pay the bride-price of the like of her. If she is a slave, he must pay what he has diminished of her worth. The hadd-punishment in such cases is applied to the rapist, and there is no punishment applied to the raped woman. If the rapist is a slave, that is against his master unless he wishes to surrender him."}}

====Hadith regarding the caliph Umar====

A hadith in the Sunan of al-Bayhaqi describes the Caliph Umar punishing Dhiraar for raping a captive woman and is sometimes presented as evidence that one is not permitted to have sexual intercourse with slaves.<ref name=":0" />

{{Quote|1={{citation|title=Sunan al-Bayhaqi|volume=2|author=al-Bayhaqi|page=263|chapter=Hadith 18685}}|2=

Abu al-Hussain bin al-Fadhl al-Qatan narrated from Abdullah bin Jaffar bin Darestweh from Yaqub bin Sufyan from al-Hassab bin Rabee from Abdullah bin al-Mubarak from Kahmas from Harun bin Al-Asam who said: Umar bin al-Khatab may Allah be pleased with him sent Khalid bin al-Walid in an army, hence Khalid sent Dhiraar bin al-Azwar in a squadron and they invaded a district belonging to the tribe of Bani Asad. They then captured a pretty bride, Dhiraar liked her hence he asked his companions to grant her to him and they did so. He then had sexual intercourse with her, when he completed his mission he felt guilty, and went to Khalid and told him about what he did. Khalid said: 'I permit you and made it lawful to you.' He said: 'No not until you write a message to Umar'. (Then they sent a message to Umar) and Umar answered that he (Dhiraar) should be stoned. By the time Umar's message was delivered, Dhiraar was dead. (Khalid) said: 'Allah didn't want to disgrace Dhiraar'}}

As with the quote taken from Imam Shafi'i, this almost certainly refers to a violation of the system for distributing war spoils. Dhiraar's intercourse with the captive girl was illegal and merited stoning not because of her captive status or lack of consent, but because he had intercourse with the girl without that girl having been allotted to him at the behest of the caliph (Umar in this case), who has the responsibility of distributing spoils. Neither captivity nor consent are mentioned as a factor in the punishment. Indeed, in a [[Rape_in_Islamic_Law#Umar_tells_a_man_to_beat_his_wife_for_preventing_intercourse_with_his_slave_girl|another hadith discussed above]], Umar tells a man to have intercourse with his slave girl after his wife tried to prevent it.

===Freedom and marriage as a universal requirement===

Verses 4:23-24 ({{Quran-range|4|23|24}}) are sometimes presented as evidence for the idea that a man must first manumit and marry a slave in order to have sex with her. The verse lists the types of women a Muslim man is permitted to marry, one given option being his slave women, of whom he may free and marry. While 4:23-24 do not mention slaves outside of a marital context, several other verses (e.g. {{Quran-range|23|1|6}} and {{Quran-range|70|29|30}}) make clear reference to sexual activity with slaves with whom the owner is not married by explicitly distinguishing between his sexual access to his wives and his sexual access to his slaves. The further example of Muhammad's companions raping captives from Banu al-Mustaliq prior to ransoming them (a scenario which effectively necessitates their non-marriage) confirms this idea.<ref>{{Bukhari|5|59|459}}, {{Muslim|8|3371}},{{Muwatta|29||95}}, {{Abudawud||2167}}, and {{Bukhari|3|34|432}}</ref>

In addition, there is the universally attested legal category of the ''Umm Walad'' (literally "mother of child") that is used by Islamic jurists to refer to those slaves who have given birth to one of their master's children. An ''Umm Walad'' is legally distinct from a free mother ''because'' she is still a slave. Indeed, the concept of ''Umm Walad'' is apparently attested even in the prophet's time according to a hadith in Sahih Muslim - further clarifying the matter is the fact that in this very hadith, Muhammad approves of the companion's sexual relations with his unmarried slave girl.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3377}}| Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (Allah be pleased with him) reported that mention was made of 'azl in the presence of Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) whereupon he said:
Why do you practise it? They said: There is a man whose wife has to suckle the child, and if that person has a sexual intercourse with her (she may conceive) which he does not like, '''and there is another person who has a slave-girl and he has a sexual intercourse with her, but he does not like her to have conception so that she may not become Umm Walad''', whereupon he (the Holy Prophet) said: There is no harm if you do not do that, for that (the birth of the child) is something pre- ordained. Ibn 'Aun said: I made a mention of this hadith to Hasan, and he said: By Allah, (it seems) as if there is upbraiding in it (for 'azl).}}

===Encouragement to chastity as a prohibition on rape===

Verse 24:33 ({{Quran|24|33}}), which instructs unmarried men to keep chaste and instructs slaveowners to "force not [their] maids to prostitution", is sometimes presented as evidence for the idea that sexual activity is only permitted in a marital context and that slaveowners may not compel their slave girls to sexual activity of any sort.

{{Quote|1={{Quran|24|33}}|2='''Let those who find not the wherewithal for marriage keep themselves chaste''', until Allah gives them means out of His grace. And if any of your slaves ask for a deed in writing (to enable them to earn their freedom for a certain sum), give them such a deed if ye know any good in them: yea, give them something yourselves out of the means which Allah has given to you. But '''force not your maids to prostitution when they desire chastity''', in order that ye may make a gain in the goods of this life. But if anyone compels them, yet, after such compulsion, is Allah, Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful (to them),}}

Chastity is instructed throughout the Qur'an and is repeatedly defined as the habit of one who "guards their private parts" from all except "their wives [of whom they may have [[Polygamy in Islamic Law|up to four]]] and what their right hand possesses [i.e. female slaves, of whom they may have an unlimited number]" (e.g. {{Quran|23|6}}, {{Quran|33|50}}, {{Quran|33|52}}, and {{Quran|70|30}}). It is clear that, in the view of the Qur'an's author, an unmarried male may be considered chaste even if he engages in sexual activity with a technically unlimited number of women, so long as they are his slaves.

The portion of the verse which instructs slaveowners to "force not [their] maids to prostitution" has traditionally been understood in its simplest sense, which prohibits slaveowners from playing the role of a pimp and trafficking their slave women - such a business built on illegal intercourse is of course prohibited and, understood this way, the verse says nothing of novel import. Another accepted sense of this verse is that if a female slave desires her (or, say, her child's) freedom, her master ought to give her some legal means by which to pursue it, the alternative being her feeling compelled to prostitute herself to earn the funds necessary to purchase that freedom (traditional tafsirs also mention the also undesirable possibility of a master forcing a slave to prostitution as a condition for her freedom). Since such a temptation on the part of the slave girl is all the more plausible given the likelihood that she was captured in a war or raid where her people were both slaughtered and enslaved (leaving her with no means), and so the verse concludes by saying that if a slave girl is driven to such behavior, then Allah will be forgiving. And in the simpler sense, if her master forces her to prostitution, then Allah will forgive her for what was not in her control.<ref>See [https://tafsir.app/qurtubi/24/33 Tafsir Qurtubi 24:33] in particular; see also [https://tafsir.app/tabari/24/33 Tafsir al-Tabari 24:33], [https://tafsir.app/ibn-katheer/24/33 Tafsir Ibn Kathir 24:33], and [https://tafsir.app/24/33 Tafsirs 24:33] in general</ref>

==See Also==
{{Hub4|Rape|Rape}}

==External Links==

*{{external link|url= http://womanstats.wordpress.com/2013/01/16/the-high-rape-scale-in-saudi-arabia/|title= The High Rape-Scale in Saudi Arabia|publisher= WomanStats Project (blog)|author= |date= January 16, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwomanstats.wordpress.com%2F2013%2F01%2F16%2Fthe-high-rape-scale-in-saudi-arabia%2F&date=2013-07-13|deadurl=no}}

==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Shariah (Islamic Law)]]
[[Category:Women]]
[[Category:Honor violence]]
[[Category:Marriage]]
[[Category:Sex]]
[[ru:Изнасилование в Исламе]]
[[Category:Human rights]]
[[Category:Slavery]]
[[Category:Criticism of Islam]]
[[Category:Child Marriage]]
[[Category:Health]]
[[Category:Hudud (punishments)]]
[[ar:الاغتصاب_في_الشريعة_الإسلامية]]

The Massacre of the Banu Qurayzah

2023-07-02T13:54:35Z

Vixen: /* Problems with the Traditional Narrative */

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}[[File:Banu qurayza massacre.jpg|175px|right|thumb|Detail from miniature painting: ''The Prophet, Ali, and the Companions at the Massacre of the Prisoners of the Jewish Tribe of Beni Qurayza'', illustration of a 19th century text by Muhammad Rafi Bazil.]]According to the traditional Islamic sources, in 627 AD as a result of the [[Battle of the Trench]] and the betrayal of the Muslims by the Jewish tribe of Banu Qurayza, the Muslims under the direct military command of the prophet [[Muhammad]] laid siege to the Banu Qurayzah compound. After a siege of around 2 weeks, depending on the source, the Jews of Banu Qurayzah surrendered and entrusted their fate to a trusted intermediary from the Muslims of the tribe of 'Aws, Sa'd bin Mu'adh. Sa'd bin Mu'adh, however, claiming to be following the law of the Torah itself, advised Muhammad to slaughter the men folk of the tribe and sell the women and children into slavery. Muhammad took this advice and as a consequence between 400 and 900 prisoners of the tribe were slaughtered, many in front of their families, and the rest of the tribe were sold into slavery. The event is well attested to in the Islamic historical tradition, and has served as the basis for multiple rulings throughout history dealing with the treatment of captured non-Muslims by Muslim military forces.
==Background==
According to Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad's constant aggressive raids and warmongering against the Meccans had driven them, in alliance with the Jewish tribes he had expelled from Yathrib and the north Arabian tribe of Ghatfan, to put an end to him and his movement once and for all. The three original Jewish tribes of Medina, the Banu Nadir, the Banu Qaynuqaa', and the Banu Qurayza, had seen their number dwindle to one as Muhammad had expelled the Banu Nadir and the Banu Qaynuaqaa' from Medina on different pretexts. Meanwhile their property, including their precious palm trees, had been seized by Muhammad and the Muslims. Together with the Meccans and the Ghatfan, the exiled Jewish tribes of Medina had formed an alliance and gathered an army whose numbers are given in the sira as being around 10,000 strong, including over 600 mounted horsemen against very few cavalry for the Muslims, and 7,000 stronger than the army which had defeated Muhammad at the Muslims at Uhud. Muhammad at this time could call on a force of only around 3,000 men. Muhammad received word of their advance and began to make preparations. A Persian companion of the prophet named Salman, an apparent veteran of the Sassanid's many wars against the Romans, advised that when facing a great number of enemy horseman such as the confederate Jews and Meccans possessed, a good stratagem was to dig a defensive trench. It was decided to pursue this strategy <ref>Martin Lings Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources Inner Traditions 2006, pages 222-223</ref>. The Banu Qurayzah did not provide men to help but did provide entrenching tools and the Muslims strategy relied on the Banu Qurayza, whose fort lay in the rear of the Muslim defenses, not breaking their alliance with Muhammad and joining with the confederates. The strategy of the trench worked to win the battle against the Meccans and their allies, and the confederates were beaten back without many casualties for the Muslims, but this proved to be no end to the fighting.
==Narrative from the Sira==
The series of events leading to the destruction of the Banu Qurayzah started during the battle of the trench. Unable to break the defenses of the Medinian Muslims, the Meccans sent an emissary from their Jewish allies, “the enemy of Allah, Huyayy bin Akhtab An-Nadri” <ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh Oxford Universite Press 2005, p.453</ref>, to the Banu Qurayzah in an attempt to bring their aide and end the stalemate by attacking Muhammad and the Muslims in the rear of their defenses. According to Ibn Ishaq, initially the leader of the Banu Qurayzah Ka'b bin Asad al-Qurayzi did not even allow Huyayy bin Akhtab to enter the compound, but was goaded into doing so be Huyayy's accusation that bin Ka'b did not want to share his food. Ibn Ishaq does not make it clear how he knows this however he claims that the negotiation came to naught due to the Qurayza’s insistence that the Meccans offer hostages in order to assure they would not leave the field of battle till Muhammad was defeated (though they did in fact end up leaving without defeating Muhammad). According to Ibn Ishaq, the Banu Qurayzah after much "wheedling" agreed only to not aide the Muslims or to obstruct or fight the confederates. Ibn Ishaq offers as evidence of the Banu Qurayza’s perfidy an Isnad chain from Yahya bin ‘Abbaad bin ‘Abdullah bin Az-Zubayr with a story that a Muslim woman, Safiyah bint ‘AbdulMuttalib, who saw a Jewish scout of the Banu Qurayzah reconnoitering a Muslim fort in preparation for an attack. She told the fort's commander Hassan of this and asked him to kill the scout, and when he refused she took a club and went out and beat the man to death<ref>ibid, 458</ref>. Other than this Ibn Ishaq presents no evidence that the Jews of the Banu Qurayzah were in league with the confederates. He does, however, relate that Allah “sowed discord” between the confederates and the Banu Qurayza, which resulted in the Meccans retreating without having defeated Muhammad or engaged in a coordinated attack upon the Muslims with the Banu Qurayzah<ref>ibid, 459</ref>

The battle of the trench being won, Muhammad and his men put their entrenching tools and weapons down to head home. According to the sirah, though, Allah had other plans. The angel [[Jibreel]] appeared to Muhammad just as he had put down his weapon, and informed him that the battle was not yet over for the Jews of the Banu Qurayzah still needed to be dealt with due to their treachery, mentioned above. Muhammad informed his men that they were not to pray the 'asr prayer until they reached the Banu Qurayzah compound, meaning he wanted them to go there quickly. The Muslims laid siege to the compound for differing amounts of time depending on the source (Ibn Ishaq claims 25 days before "Allah cast terror in their hearts"). The Banu Qurayzah were told to surrender and accept Islam, something they swore they would never do. Despairing of their position, according to Ibn Ishaq, they discussed three options: accepting Islam, killing their wives and children and engaging in a banzai-style attack against the numerically superior Muslim forces (perhaps, modern commentators have added, in emulation of their religious forbearers at Masada in Palestine), or engaging in a sneak attack on the Jewish Sabbath. The Jews of the Banu Qurayzah found none of these options acceptable.

Unable to come to a decision and under siege for weeks, the Banu Qurayzah asked to speak with Abu Lubaba, a man of the tribe of 'Aws, their allies. Abu Lubaba, when asked what the Banu Qurayzah should do, advised them to surrender to the prophet, but at the same time raised his hand to his neck, indicating they would be slaughtered <ref>ibid, 462</ref>. After he left, he felt that his action in telling the Banu Qurayzah of their fate was a betrayal of the prophet, and he tied himself to a pillar to ask for Allah's forgiveness, an act that Muhammad approved of. Despite this warning, the Banu Qurayzah surrendered to the Muslims the following day <ref>ibid, 463</ref>.

The tribe of 'Aws, allies of the Banu Qurayzah from the time of [[jahilliyah]], asked for mercy for them from the prophet. The prophet, not wanting to cause dissension in his ranks (oaths and alliances of loyalty were very important in tribal Arab society, as in the absence of courts and established governments the only guaranty of security and justice which could be obtained was the promise of protection from allies in the case of murder, family feuds or war), entrusted the fate of the Banu Qurayzah to a trusted elder shaykh of the 'Aws, Sa‘d bin Mu‘adh, who had been mortally wounded during the battle and would in fact die a shortly after the slaughter of the Banu Qurayza. Once Sa'd bin Mu'adh had ascertained that both the Banu Qurayzah and the prophet would abide by his judgement, whatever it be, he gave it without hesitation: the men of the Banu Qurayzah were to be executed to the last, while the women and children should be sold into slavery. Sa'd bin Mu‘adh justified this decision as being from the Torah of the Jews itself. Ibn Ishaq does not cite the verse and chapter from the Bible but this is usually taken as a reference to the book of Deuteronomy 20:12-14:{{Quote|Deuteronomy 20:12-14|וְאִם לֹ֤א תַשְׁלִים֙ עִמָּ֔ךְ וְעָשְׂתָ֥ה עִמְּךָ֖ מִלְחָמָ֑ה וְצַרְתָּ֖ עָלֶֽיהָ וּנְתָנָ֛הּ יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ בְּיָדֶ֑ךָ וְהִכִּיתָ֥ אֶת כָּל זְכוּרָ֖הּ לְפִי חָֽרֶב רַ֣ק הַ֠נָּשִׁים וְהַטַּ֨ף וְהַבְּהֵמָ֜ה וְכֹל֩ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יִהְיֶ֥ה בָעִ֛יר כָּל־ שְׁלָלָ֖הּ תָּבֹ֣ז לָ֑ךְ וְאָֽכַלְתָּ֙ אֶת שְׁלַ֣ל אֹיְבֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָתַ֛ן יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ לָֽךְ

But if the city makes no peace with you, but makes war against you, then you shall besiege it; and when the Lord your God gives it into your hand you shall put all its males to the sword, but the women and the little ones, the cattle, and everything else in the city, all its spoil, you shall take as booty for yourselves; and you shall enjoy the spoil of your enemies, which the Lord your God has given you.}}

Although modern Muslims cite this verse in justification of Mu'adh's verdict, it should be noted that neither Jewish nor Christian tradition understands this verse as a blanket rule for warfare, but rather as a specific command to the Jews under the command of Joshua who were fighting the pagan peoples of the Holy Land. It has not, generally, been used by either religion to justify the sort of massacre that took place in Medina in other historical contexts.

The prisoners, thus condemned, were kept in the house or compound of a Muslim woman d. Al-Harith of the banu al-Najjaar tribe. In the morning they were marched out to a trench which had been dug in the city's market, and executed by decapitation <ref>ibid, 465</ref> . According to the sira of Ibn Ishaq, one woman was amongst them. The other women and the children were given as sexual and labor slaves to the Muslims, with only boys who had not yet reached puberty being allowed to live. According to the sira, the haul of weapons and plunder was substantial, but Muhammad still sent some of the women and children to be sold in the Najd for more horses and weapons <ref>ibid, 466</ref>. Muhammad as was custom received his pick of the loot including his pick of the females, a beautiful Jewish named Rayhana whose husband was decapitated, and the rest went to all the rest of the Muslims, with a Muslim on horse receiving 3 times the spoils of a foot soldier <ref>ibid, 466</ref>.

==Tafsir Accounts==
The famed [[tafsir|mufassir]] [[Ibn Kathir]], drawing upon his own sources as well as many other classical commentators, in his commentary on sura 33 Al-Ahzab الأحزاب "The Confederates" reaffirms many of the pertinent details from the sira narrative. In particular, Ibn Kathir reads into the Quran's denouncement of the [[people of the book]] the perfidious Jews of the tribe of Banu Qurayzah and their betrayal of the prophet:{{Quote|Tafsir of Ibn Kathir Qur'an Surah 33

|وَلِهَذَا قَالَ تَعَالَى: ﴿وَأَنزلَ الَّذِينَ ظَاهَرُوهُمْ﴾ أَيْ: عَاوَنُوا الْأَحْزَابَ وَسَاعَدُوهُمْ عَلَى حَرْبِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ ﴿مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ﴾ يَعْنِي: بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ مِنَ الْيَهُودِ، مِنْ بَعْضِ أَسْبَاطِ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ، كَانَ قَدْ نَزَلَ آبَاؤُهُمُ الْحِجَازَ قَدِيمًا، طَمَعًا فِي اتِّبَاعِ النَّبِيَّ الْأُمِّيَّ الذِي يَجِدُونَهُ مَكْتُوبًا عِنْدَهُمْ فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَالْإِنْجِيلِ، ﴿فَلَمَّا جَاءَهُمْ مَا عَرَفُوا كَفَرُوا بِه﴾ [الْبَقَرَةِ: ٨٩] ، فَعَلَيْهِمْ لَعْنَةُ اللَّهِ.

For thus the most-High said "Those how had backed them (the confederates) came down" meaning: they assisted the confederates and helped them to make war on the Apostle of God (sala allah 'aleyhi wasallam). "From the people of the book" that is to say the Banu Qurayza of the Jews, descendants of the sons of Israel, who had come down to the Hijaz in olden times, doing so (aiding the Meccans) greedily against the followers of the illiterate prophet (Muhammad) whom they found written about in the Torah and the Gospel "when he came to them they did not know him and disbelieved in him" (surah al-baqarah 89) }}He refers here to [[Surah]] 33:{{Quote|{{Quran-range|33|26|27}}| And He brought those of the People of the Scripture who supported them down from their strongholds, and cast panic into their hearts. Some ye slew and ye made captive some.

And He caused you to inherit their land and their houses and their wealth, and land ye have not trodden. Allah is Able to do all things }}Ibn Kathir confirms that it was the angels themselves who implored Muhammad not to stop fighting:{{Quote|Tafisr of Ibn Kathir on Qur'an Surah 33|2=وَرَجَعَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ إِلَى الْمَدِينَةِ مُؤَيَّدًا مَنْصُورًا، وَوَضَعَ النَّاسُ السِّلَاحَ. فَبَيْنَمَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ يَغْتَسِلُ(٤) مِنْ وَعْثَاءِ تِلْكَ الْمُرَابَطَةِ فِي بَيْتِ أُمِّ سَلَمَةَ

إِذْ تَبَدَّى لَهُ جِبْرِيلُ مُعْتَجِرًا بِعِمَامَةٍ مِنْ إِسْتَبْرَقٍ، عَلَى بَغْلَةٍ عَلَيْهَا قَطِيفَةٌ [مِنْ](٥) دِيبَاجٍ، فَقَالَ: أوضَعت السِّلَاحَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ؟ قَالَ: "نَعَمْ". قَالَ: لَكِنَّ الْمَلَائِكَةَ لَمْ تَضَعْ أَسْلِحَتَهَا، وَهَذَا الْآنَ رُجُوعِي مِنْ طَلَبِ الْقَوْمِ. ثُمَّ قَالَ: إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَأْمُرُكَ أَنْ تَنْهَضَ إِلَى بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ. وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ فَقَالَ لَهُ: عذيرَك مِنْ مُقَاتِلٍ، أَوَضَعْتُمُ السِّلَاحَ؟ قَالَ: "نَعَمْ". قَالَ: لَكِنَّا لَمْ نَضَعْ أَسْلِحَتَنَا بَعْدُ، انْهَضْ إِلَى هَؤُلَاءِ. قَالَ: "أَيْنَ؟ ". قَالَ: بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ، فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ أَمَرَنِي أَنْ أُزَلْزِلَ عَلَيْهِمْ. فَنَهَضَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ مِنْ فَوْرِهِ، وَأَمَرَ النَّاسَ بِالْمَسِيرِ إِلَى بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ، وَكَانَتْ عَلَى أَمْيَالٍ مِنَ الْمَدِينَةِ، وَذَلِكَ بَعْدَ صَلَاةِ الظُّهْرِ، وَقَالَ: "لَا يُصَلِّيَنَّ أَحَدٌ مِنْكُمُ الْعَصْرَ إِلَّا فِي بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ".

the Messenger of Allah returned to Al-Madinah in triumph and the people put down their weapons. While the Messenger of Allah was washing off the dust of battle in the house of Umm Salamah, may Allah be pleased with her, Jibril, upon him be peace, came to him wearing a turban of brocade, riding on a mule on which was a cloth of silk brocade. He said, "Have you put down your weapons, O Messenger of Allah" He said, "Yes" He said, "But the angels have not put down their weapons. I have just now come back from pursuing the people." Then he said: "Allah, may He be blessed and exalted, commands you to get up and go to Banu Quraiza. According to another report, "What a fighter you are! Have you put down your weapons" He said, "Yes". He said, "But we have not put down our weapons yet, get up and go to these people." He said: "Where?" He said, "Banu Quraiza, for Allah has commanded me to shake them." So the Messenger of Allah got up immediately, and commanded the people to march towards Banu Quraiza, who were a few miles from Al-Madinah. This was after Salat Az-Zuhr. He said, No one among you should pray `Asr except at Banu Quraiza.}}Thus in the view of Ibn Kathir the fate of the Banu Qurayzah was the work of their own hand, a fate approved of and commanded by heaven itself. According to Ibn Kathir, their fate was exactly what Ibn Ishaq had described:{{Quote| Tafsir Ibn Kathir on Surah 33|2=فَقَالَ: إِنِّي أَحْكُمُ أَنْ تُقْتَلَ مُقَاتلتهم، وتُسبْى ذُرِّيَّتُهُمْ وَأَمْوَالُهُمْ. فَقَالَ لَهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: "لَقَدْ حَكَمْتَ بِحُكْمِ اللَّهِ مِنْ فَوْقِ سَبْعَةِ أَرْقِعَةٍ"(٨) . وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ: "لَقَدْ حكمتَ بِحُكْمِ المَلك". ثُمَّ أَمْرَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ بِالْأَخَادِيدِ فَخُدّت فِي الْأَرْضِ، وَجِيءَ بِهِمْ مُكْتَفِينَ، فَضَرَبَ أَعْنَاقَهُمْ، وَكَانُوا مَا بَيْنَ السَّبْعِمِائَةِ إِلَى الثَّمَانِمِائَةِ، وَسَبَى مَنْ لَمْ يُنبت مِنْهُمْ مَعَ النِّسَاءِ وَأَمْوَالِهِمْ(٩)

Then he (Sa'ad) said: My judgement is that their fighting-age men be killed, and their families and wealth be taken as booty. The prophet (sala allah 'aleyhi wasallam) said "You have judged with the judgement of Allah above the seven heavens." In another narration: "You have judged with the judgement of the King (Allah)." Then the Messenger of Allah commanded that ditches should be dug, so they were dug in the earth, and they were brought tied by their shoulders, and were beheaded. There were between seven hundred and eight hundred of them. The children who had not yet reached adolescence and the women were taken prisoner, and their wealth was seized.}}

==Accounts in Hadiths==
The hadith of Bukhari provide witness for the incidents described by Ishaq. Bukhari confirms that it was the angels who decree that the war be carried to the Banu Qurayza:{{Quote| {{Bukhari|4|52|68}}| Narrated 'Aisha: When Allah's Apostle returned on the day (of the battle) of Al-Khandaq (i.e. Trench), he put down his arms and took a bath. Then Gabriel whose head was covered with dust, came to him saying, "You have put down your arms! By Allah, I have not put down my arms yet." Allah's Apostle said, "Where (to go now)?" Gabriel said, "This way," pointing towards the tribe of Banu Qurayza. So Allah's Apostle went out towards them.}}Similiarly, he confirms that it is was Sa'ad who condemned them to their fate:{{Quote| {{Bukhari|5|58|148}}| Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri: Some people (i.e. the Jews of Bani bin Quraiza) agreed to accept the verdict of Sad bin Muadh so the Prophet sent for him (i.e. Sad bin Muadh). He came riding a donkey, and when he approached the Mosque, the Prophet ﷺ said, "Get up for the best amongst you." or said, "Get up for your chief." Then the Prophet ﷺ said, "O Sad! These people have agreed to accept your verdict." Sad said, "I judge that their warriors should be killed and their children and women should be taken as captives." The Prophet ﷺ said, "You have given a judgment similar to Allah's Judgment (or the King's judgment)."}}Incidentally, Bukhari mentions that even though Ibn Sa'd was called upon to provide a fair judgement to the Banu Qurayzahas a former ally, in fact he went to his death, caused by wounds suffered during the battle of the trench, wishing for death to the infidels:{{Quote| {{Bukhari|5|59|448}}| Sa`d was wounded on the day of Khandaq (i.e. Trench) when a man from Quraish, called Hibban bin Al-`Araqa hit him (with an arrow). The man was Hibban bin Qais from (the tribe of) Bani Mais bin 'Amir bin Lu'ai who shot an arrow at Sa`d's medial arm vein (or main artery of the arm). The Prophet (ﷺ) pitched a tent (for Sa`d) in the Mosque so that he might be near to the Prophet (ﷺ) to visit. When the Prophet returned from the (battle) of Al-Khandaq (i.e. Trench) and laid down his arms and took a bath Gabriel came to him while he (i.e. Gabriel) was shaking the dust off his head, and said, "You have laid down the arms?" By Allah, I have not laid them down. Go out to them (to attack them)." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Where?" Gabriel pointed towards Bani Quraiza. So Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) went to them (i.e. Banu Quraiza) (i.e. besieged them). They then surrendered to the Prophet's judgment but he directed them to Sa`d to give his verdict concerning them. Sa`d said, "I give my judgment that their warriors should be killed, their women and children should be taken as captives, and their properties distributed." Narrated Hisham: My father informed me that `Aisha said, "Sa`d said, "O Allah! You know that there is nothing more beloved to me than to fight in Your Cause against those who disbelieved Your Apostle and turned him out (of Mecca). O Allah! I think you have put to an end the fight between us and them (i.e. Quraish infidels). And if there still remains any fight with the Quraish (infidels), then keep me alive till I fight against them for Your Sake. But if you have brought the war to an end, then let this wound burst and cause my death thereby.' So blood gushed from the wound. There was a tent in the Mosque belonging to Banu Ghifar who were surprised by the blood flowing towards them. They said, 'O people of the tent! What is this thing which is coming to us from your side?' Behold! Blood was flowing profusely out of Sa`d's wound. Sa`d then died because of that."}}Bukhari also mentions the fate of the Banu Qurayza, carried out in accordance with Sa'd's judgement:{{Quote|{{bukhari|5|59|362}}, See Also: {{muslim|19|4364}}|Narrated Abd-Allah ibn Umar: Banu Nadir and Banu Qurayza fought (against the Prophet violating their peace treaty), so the Prophet exiled Bani An-Nadir and allowed Bani Quraiza to remain at their places (in Medina) taking nothing from them till they fought against the Prophet again). He then killed their men and distributed their women, children and property among the Muslims, but some of them came to the Prophet and he granted them safety, and they embraced Islam. He exiled all the Jews from Medina. They were the Jews of Banu Qaynuqa, the tribe of Abdullah bin Salam and the Jews of Bani Haritha and all the other Jews of Medina. }}Sunan Abi Dawud tells us exactly how it was determined, whether a male youth would be spared, based on whether he had reached puberty or not:{{Quote| {{Abudawud|38|4390}}| Narrated Atiyyah al-Qurazi:

I was among the captives of Banu Qurayza. They (the Companions) examined us, and those who had begun to grow hair (pubes) were killed, and those who had not were not killed. I was among those who had not grown hair.}}
==Modern Views and Perspectives==
<center><youtube>UZE1N56fswY</youtube></center>In the clip above Muslim scholar Yasir Qadhi, well respected for his degrees from the Islamic University of Medina as well as from Yale, makes the argument that Muhammad was dealing with treachery and he had taken the maximum punitive actions against it. Qadhi argues that the prophet was justified in every step and showed as much restraint as necessary, being motivated purely by concerns on statecraft and practicality, not by malice. As he says, it is possible to accuse the prophet of being "harsh" but not of acting with malice towards the Banu Qurayza or the Jews in general, as this would not be "academically valid." Yasir Qadhi states that the punishment was "harsh" and yet it is sometimes necessary to be harsh. Yaqeen institute scholar Abu Amina Elias (Justin Parrott) makes the cases that killing the "fighting men" prisoners of the Banu Qurayzah was an "act of self-defense" on the part of the Muslim community and cites Deuteronomy 20:12-14 to justify the actions of the Muslims, agreeing with Ibn Ishaq that Sa'd was judging the Jews by their own law. He also claims that the prophet only sent his men their with arms to "defend themselves" and that the women and children of the Banu Qurayzahwere taken "into captivity" for their protection since all of their men folk had been slaughtered <ref>"Did the Prophet commit genocide against Jews?" Faith in Allah There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger https://abuaminaelias.com/prophet-genocide-banu-qurayza/ April 8, 2013</ref>. Karen Armstrong, in her book A Short History of Islam, likewise claims "The struggle did not indicate any hostility towards Jews in general, but only towards the three rebel tribes. The Quran continued to revere Jewish prophets and to urge Muslims to respect the People of the Book."<ref>Islam:A Short History Karen Armstrong Modern Library 2002</ref>

These arguments are all echoes of the original arguments found in the material above. Ibn Ishaq claims that the Jews of Banu Qurayzah posed a threat to the Muslims via their betrayal and does portray Muhammad as hesitating to decide their fate. Ibn Ishaq even recounts of how "harsh" the punishment was:{{Quote|{{citation|page=462 (paragraph: 686)|trans_title=The Life of Muhammad|title=Sirat Rasul Allah|author1=Ibn Ishaq|author2=Ibn Hisham|author3=al-Tabari|editor=A. Guillaume|year=1955|publisher=Oxford UP|ISBN=0196360331|location=Karachi|url=https://archive.org/details/GuillaumeATheLifeOfMuhammad/page/n381/mode/2up}}|Apostle sent him (Abu Lubaba) to them (Banu Quraiza), and when they saw him they got up to meet him. The women and children went up to him weeping in his face, and he felt sorry for them. They said, ‘Oh Abu Lubaba, do you think that we should submit to Muhammad's judgement? He said ‘yes' and pointed with his hand to his throat signifying slaughter.}}Yet critics of these pro-Islam viewpoints have pointed out that the verse cited by modern Muslims from Deuteronomy to justify the extermination of the Banu Qurayzah was not viewed in this way by traditional Christian or especially Jewish scholarship. According to Jewish doctrine, these verses were revealed to Moses before the Israelites entered the Holy Land, specifically instructing them on how to deal with the people living there.<ref>"Muhammad’s atrocity against the Qurayza Jews" James M. Arlandson Answering Islam https://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Arlandson/qurayza_jews.htm</ref> Morever, the claim that there was no apparent animus towards the Jews of Banu Qurayza on the part of Muhammad is contradicted by Ibn Ishaq's account:{{Quote|Ibn Ishaq: 684 | "When the apostle approached their forts he (Muhammad) said: "You brothers of monkeys...has god disgraced you and brought his vengeance upon you?"

Banu Qurayza replied: "O Abul Qasim (Muhammad), you are not a barbarous person" }}In mocking them as apes, Muhammad is here echoing the Qur'an, which claims that (some) Jews were turned into apes for violating the sabbath (Qur'an 50:60).
Ibn Ishaq also records that Muhammad took one of the Jewish women of the Banu Qurayza, Rayhanah, for himself.<ref>"The Apostle had chosen one of the women for himself, Rayḥāna d. ʿAmr b. Khunāfa, one of the women of B. ʿAmr b. Qurayẓa, and she remained with him until she died, in his power." Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh Oxford Universite Press 2005, p.466</ref> Indeed, according to this account the destruction of this tribe allowed Muhammad to reward his fighters handsomely (and Muhammad himself took a fifth of the booty). Abu Amina Elias's view that the Muslims took such women and children as Rayhana captive simply for their protection also cannot be true, as Ibn Ishaq also recounts that some of them were taken to the far-off region of the Najd to be sold for weapons and horses. Yasir Qadhi himself points out that the Banu Qurayzah were offered freedom to live on were they to accept Islam, and according to the sirah only their hard, petulant hearts which rejected Muhammad despite knowing he was a prophet of the Lord prevented them from allowing themselves to be saved by conversion to Islam. So clearly, at least in the eyes of the sirah, their Jewish religion did, in fact, have something to do with the pitilessness with which Muhammad dealt with them, going against Qadhi's point that the prophet acted without malice or religious animus according to the sources we have. Bukhari also mentions that the prophet commanded his men to abuse the Banu Qurayzah with poetry, which was in ancient Arab times one of the premier ways of promoting enmity with an enemy (Muhammad ordered poets who did this to him to be killed):{{Quote| {{Bukhari|5|59|449}}|Narrated Al-Bara: "On the day of Qurayza’s (besiege), Allah's Apostle said to Hassan bin Thabit, 'Abuse them (with your poems), and Gabriel is with you"}}
==Problems with the Traditional Narrative==
The narrative of the Banu Qurayzah is an accepted part of Islamic law, and multiple Islamic jurists have cited it, including when ruling that certain populations of Jews and other non-believers be massacred. As such there is no question amongst orthodox Muslims that it happened <ref>"Extended Interview: The legacy of Islamic Antisemetism" Andrew Bostom andrewbostom.org 13 June 2008</ref>. Yet the historiography of the subject is not without its own problems.

Within the Islamic tradition, Ibn Ishaq was frequently criticized for giving too much weight to Jewish stories and being biased in general in his retellings of certain events. Malik ibn Anas accusses Ibn Ishaq of being a "liar" for listening to "Jewish stories" <ref>"New Light on the Story of Banu Qurayza and the Jews of Medina", W.N Arafat 2001 p. 100-107</ref>.

Modern scholarship has cast much more serious doubts on the scholarship of Islamic scholars working in the 8th century (2nd Islamic century) such as Ibn Ishaq. As Fred Donner points out, one of the earliest documents we have from the nascent proto-Islamic movement is the ''Constitution of Medina'' صحيفة مدينة also known as the Ummah Document or صحيفة الأمة. This remarkable document, preserved by the Islamic historian [[Al-Tabari]], lays out a compact for the "believers" of Medina, an "ummah" or national community that includes the Jews as "believers" on the same level as the Arab believers. Fred Donner believes this document actually points to an early, occulted history of Islam in which Arab monotheists joined with Jews into one "ummah" under the command of Muhammad. Troublingly for the historical narrative, this document makes mention of many different Jewish tribes, but the main 3 tribes of the sira, the Banu Qurayza, the Banu Qaynuqaa', and the Banu Nadir are conspicuously absent. It is in fact the absence of these tribes which convinces scholars that the document must be very old despite being preserved only in the 9th-century works of Tabari, since a younger document would presumably would have been changed to agree with the established historical narrative. Donner mentions that many early 7th century mosques do not include the qibla facing towards Mecca, and concludes that this story of the massacre of the Banu Qurayzah may have been invented or embellished in order to explain a much later break between the Jewish and Muslim communities <ref>Muhammad and the Believers: At the Orgins of Islam, Fred Donner, Harvard University Press 2010, p. 72-73</ref>.

Patricia Crone and Michael Cook in their groundbreaking work ''Hagarism'' likewise report on an Armenian historian writing in the 7th century known as pseudo-Sebeos. This historian imputes the Arab invasions to a confederation of Jews and Arabs led by Muhammad himself, contradicting the Islamic narrative that Muhammad died before the invasion of Palestine and the Middle East. Pseudo-Sebeos likewise imputes to the Arabs and Jews a shared monotheism and brotherhood through their ancestry to Abraham and his wife Hagar <ref>Hagarism: Making of the Islamic World, Patricia Crone and Michael Cook, Cambridge University Press 1977, p. 6-8</ref>. If this account is to be believed, there could not have been any great massacre of the Jews by Muhammad as we has working with them when he invaded Palestine. Stephen Shoemaker in his work ''The Death of a Prophet'' adds further evidence to thesis of Crone and Cook, marshaling evidence from a wide variety of sources, almost all of which predate the first Islamic sources, that Muhammad himself was actually the leader of the believers when they entered Palestine and he died only after its conquest. In particular he calls attention to a Jewish apocalypse from the 7th century, the Secrets of Rabbi ben Shim'on, which seems to paint Muhammad as the redeemer of the Jews from the oppression of the Romans in the Holy Land. If this is to be believed, and this source predates every Islamic source we have, the massacre of the Banu Qurayzah could not have taken place, since Muhammad, the leader of the invasion of Palestine, was seen as a savior of the Jewish people <ref>The Death of a Prophet, Stephen Shoemaker, University of Pennsylvania Press 2012, p. 27-33</ref>. This would seem to indicate that the break between the Muslims and the Jews took place after his death, and would indicate that stories such as the massacre of the Banu Qurayzahwere fabricated in order to "back date" the break with the Jews to the prophet's own lifetime.

==See Also==

*[[List of Killings Ordered or Supported by Muhammad]]

==External Links==

*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Muhammad/Jews/BQurayza/index.html What really happened to the Banu Qurayza] ''- Collection of articles from Answering Islam''

*[https://www.call-to-monotheism.com/rebuttal_to_answering_islam_s_article__the_bani_quraytha_jews__traitors_or_betrayed_ Rebuttal to Answering Islam's Article "The Bani Quraytha Jews: Traitors or Betrayed?] - ''Muslim Rebuttal to Answering Islam's Article "The Bani Quraytha Jews: Traitors or Betrayed?"''

*[http://www.americanthinker.com/2006/02/muhammad_and_massacre_of_the_q.html Muhammad and Massacre of the Qurayzah Jews] ''- James Arlandson, American Thinker''

*[http://www.kister.huji.ac.il/sites/default/files/banu_qurayza.pdf Massacre of the Banū Qurayẓa: A Re-Examination of a Tradition] ''- M. J. Kister, Jerusalem Studies in Arabic and Islam 8 (1986): 61-96''

==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Muhammad]]
[[Category:People of the Book]]
[[Category:Jihad]]
[[Category:Islamic History]]
[[Category:Sirah]]
[[Category:Sacred history]]
[[ar:مجزرة_بنو_قريظة]]

The Massacre of the Banu Qurayzah

2023-07-02T13:40:40Z

Vixen: /* Problems with the Traditional Narrative */

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}[[File:Banu qurayza massacre.jpg|175px|right|thumb|Detail from miniature painting: ''The Prophet, Ali, and the Companions at the Massacre of the Prisoners of the Jewish Tribe of Beni Qurayza'', illustration of a 19th century text by Muhammad Rafi Bazil.]]According to the traditional Islamic sources, in 627 AD as a result of the [[Battle of the Trench]] and the betrayal of the Muslims by the Jewish tribe of Banu Qurayza, the Muslims under the direct military command of the prophet [[Muhammad]] laid siege to the Banu Qurayzah compound. After a siege of around 2 weeks, depending on the source, the Jews of Banu Qurayzah surrendered and entrusted their fate to a trusted intermediary from the Muslims of the tribe of 'Aws, Sa'd bin Mu'adh. Sa'd bin Mu'adh, however, claiming to be following the law of the Torah itself, advised Muhammad to slaughter the men folk of the tribe and sell the women and children into slavery. Muhammad took this advice and as a consequence between 400 and 900 prisoners of the tribe were slaughtered, many in front of their families, and the rest of the tribe were sold into slavery. The event is well attested to in the Islamic historical tradition, and has served as the basis for multiple rulings throughout history dealing with the treatment of captured non-Muslims by Muslim military forces.
==Background==
According to Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad's constant aggressive raids and warmongering against the Meccans had driven them, in alliance with the Jewish tribes he had expelled from Yathrib and the north Arabian tribe of Ghatfan, to put an end to him and his movement once and for all. The three original Jewish tribes of Medina, the Banu Nadir, the Banu Qaynuqaa', and the Banu Qurayza, had seen their number dwindle to one as Muhammad had expelled the Banu Nadir and the Banu Qaynuaqaa' from Medina on different pretexts. Meanwhile their property, including their precious palm trees, had been seized by Muhammad and the Muslims. Together with the Meccans and the Ghatfan, the exiled Jewish tribes of Medina had formed an alliance and gathered an army whose numbers are given in the sira as being around 10,000 strong, including over 600 mounted horsemen against very few cavalry for the Muslims, and 7,000 stronger than the army which had defeated Muhammad at the Muslims at Uhud. Muhammad at this time could call on a force of only around 3,000 men. Muhammad received word of their advance and began to make preparations. A Persian companion of the prophet named Salman, an apparent veteran of the Sassanid's many wars against the Romans, advised that when facing a great number of enemy horseman such as the confederate Jews and Meccans possessed, a good stratagem was to dig a defensive trench. It was decided to pursue this strategy <ref>Martin Lings Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources Inner Traditions 2006, pages 222-223</ref>. The Banu Qurayzah did not provide men to help but did provide entrenching tools and the Muslims strategy relied on the Banu Qurayza, whose fort lay in the rear of the Muslim defenses, not breaking their alliance with Muhammad and joining with the confederates. The strategy of the trench worked to win the battle against the Meccans and their allies, and the confederates were beaten back without many casualties for the Muslims, but this proved to be no end to the fighting.
==Narrative from the Sira==
The series of events leading to the destruction of the Banu Qurayzah started during the battle of the trench. Unable to break the defenses of the Medinian Muslims, the Meccans sent an emissary from their Jewish allies, “the enemy of Allah, Huyayy bin Akhtab An-Nadri” <ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh Oxford Universite Press 2005, p.453</ref>, to the Banu Qurayzah in an attempt to bring their aide and end the stalemate by attacking Muhammad and the Muslims in the rear of their defenses. According to Ibn Ishaq, initially the leader of the Banu Qurayzah Ka'b bin Asad al-Qurayzi did not even allow Huyayy bin Akhtab to enter the compound, but was goaded into doing so be Huyayy's accusation that bin Ka'b did not want to share his food. Ibn Ishaq does not make it clear how he knows this however he claims that the negotiation came to naught due to the Qurayza’s insistence that the Meccans offer hostages in order to assure they would not leave the field of battle till Muhammad was defeated (though they did in fact end up leaving without defeating Muhammad). According to Ibn Ishaq, the Banu Qurayzah after much "wheedling" agreed only to not aide the Muslims or to obstruct or fight the confederates. Ibn Ishaq offers as evidence of the Banu Qurayza’s perfidy an Isnad chain from Yahya bin ‘Abbaad bin ‘Abdullah bin Az-Zubayr with a story that a Muslim woman, Safiyah bint ‘AbdulMuttalib, who saw a Jewish scout of the Banu Qurayzah reconnoitering a Muslim fort in preparation for an attack. She told the fort's commander Hassan of this and asked him to kill the scout, and when he refused she took a club and went out and beat the man to death<ref>ibid, 458</ref>. Other than this Ibn Ishaq presents no evidence that the Jews of the Banu Qurayzah were in league with the confederates. He does, however, relate that Allah “sowed discord” between the confederates and the Banu Qurayza, which resulted in the Meccans retreating without having defeated Muhammad or engaged in a coordinated attack upon the Muslims with the Banu Qurayzah<ref>ibid, 459</ref>

The battle of the trench being won, Muhammad and his men put their entrenching tools and weapons down to head home. According to the sirah, though, Allah had other plans. The angel [[Jibreel]] appeared to Muhammad just as he had put down his weapon, and informed him that the battle was not yet over for the Jews of the Banu Qurayzah still needed to be dealt with due to their treachery, mentioned above. Muhammad informed his men that they were not to pray the 'asr prayer until they reached the Banu Qurayzah compound, meaning he wanted them to go there quickly. The Muslims laid siege to the compound for differing amounts of time depending on the source (Ibn Ishaq claims 25 days before "Allah cast terror in their hearts"). The Banu Qurayzah were told to surrender and accept Islam, something they swore they would never do. Despairing of their position, according to Ibn Ishaq, they discussed three options: accepting Islam, killing their wives and children and engaging in a banzai-style attack against the numerically superior Muslim forces (perhaps, modern commentators have added, in emulation of their religious forbearers at Masada in Palestine), or engaging in a sneak attack on the Jewish Sabbath. The Jews of the Banu Qurayzah found none of these options acceptable.

Unable to come to a decision and under siege for weeks, the Banu Qurayzah asked to speak with Abu Lubaba, a man of the tribe of 'Aws, their allies. Abu Lubaba, when asked what the Banu Qurayzah should do, advised them to surrender to the prophet, but at the same time raised his hand to his neck, indicating they would be slaughtered <ref>ibid, 462</ref>. After he left, he felt that his action in telling the Banu Qurayzah of their fate was a betrayal of the prophet, and he tied himself to a pillar to ask for Allah's forgiveness, an act that Muhammad approved of. Despite this warning, the Banu Qurayzah surrendered to the Muslims the following day <ref>ibid, 463</ref>.

The tribe of 'Aws, allies of the Banu Qurayzah from the time of [[jahilliyah]], asked for mercy for them from the prophet. The prophet, not wanting to cause dissension in his ranks (oaths and alliances of loyalty were very important in tribal Arab society, as in the absence of courts and established governments the only guaranty of security and justice which could be obtained was the promise of protection from allies in the case of murder, family feuds or war), entrusted the fate of the Banu Qurayzah to a trusted elder shaykh of the 'Aws, Sa‘d bin Mu‘adh, who had been mortally wounded during the battle and would in fact die a shortly after the slaughter of the Banu Qurayza. Once Sa'd bin Mu'adh had ascertained that both the Banu Qurayzah and the prophet would abide by his judgement, whatever it be, he gave it without hesitation: the men of the Banu Qurayzah were to be executed to the last, while the women and children should be sold into slavery. Sa'd bin Mu‘adh justified this decision as being from the Torah of the Jews itself. Ibn Ishaq does not cite the verse and chapter from the Bible but this is usually taken as a reference to the book of Deuteronomy 20:12-14:{{Quote|Deuteronomy 20:12-14|וְאִם לֹ֤א תַשְׁלִים֙ עִמָּ֔ךְ וְעָשְׂתָ֥ה עִמְּךָ֖ מִלְחָמָ֑ה וְצַרְתָּ֖ עָלֶֽיהָ וּנְתָנָ֛הּ יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ בְּיָדֶ֑ךָ וְהִכִּיתָ֥ אֶת כָּל זְכוּרָ֖הּ לְפִי חָֽרֶב רַ֣ק הַ֠נָּשִׁים וְהַטַּ֨ף וְהַבְּהֵמָ֜ה וְכֹל֩ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יִהְיֶ֥ה בָעִ֛יר כָּל־ שְׁלָלָ֖הּ תָּבֹ֣ז לָ֑ךְ וְאָֽכַלְתָּ֙ אֶת שְׁלַ֣ל אֹיְבֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָתַ֛ן יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ לָֽךְ

But if the city makes no peace with you, but makes war against you, then you shall besiege it; and when the Lord your God gives it into your hand you shall put all its males to the sword, but the women and the little ones, the cattle, and everything else in the city, all its spoil, you shall take as booty for yourselves; and you shall enjoy the spoil of your enemies, which the Lord your God has given you.}}

Although modern Muslims cite this verse in justification of Mu'adh's verdict, it should be noted that neither Jewish nor Christian tradition understands this verse as a blanket rule for warfare, but rather as a specific command to the Jews under the command of Joshua who were fighting the pagan peoples of the Holy Land. It has not, generally, been used by either religion to justify the sort of massacre that took place in Medina in other historical contexts.

The prisoners, thus condemned, were kept in the house or compound of a Muslim woman d. Al-Harith of the banu al-Najjaar tribe. In the morning they were marched out to a trench which had been dug in the city's market, and executed by decapitation <ref>ibid, 465</ref> . According to the sira of Ibn Ishaq, one woman was amongst them. The other women and the children were given as sexual and labor slaves to the Muslims, with only boys who had not yet reached puberty being allowed to live. According to the sira, the haul of weapons and plunder was substantial, but Muhammad still sent some of the women and children to be sold in the Najd for more horses and weapons <ref>ibid, 466</ref>. Muhammad as was custom received his pick of the loot including his pick of the females, a beautiful Jewish named Rayhana whose husband was decapitated, and the rest went to all the rest of the Muslims, with a Muslim on horse receiving 3 times the spoils of a foot soldier <ref>ibid, 466</ref>.

==Tafsir Accounts==
The famed [[tafsir|mufassir]] [[Ibn Kathir]], drawing upon his own sources as well as many other classical commentators, in his commentary on sura 33 Al-Ahzab الأحزاب "The Confederates" reaffirms many of the pertinent details from the sira narrative. In particular, Ibn Kathir reads into the Quran's denouncement of the [[people of the book]] the perfidious Jews of the tribe of Banu Qurayzah and their betrayal of the prophet:{{Quote|Tafsir of Ibn Kathir Qur'an Surah 33

|وَلِهَذَا قَالَ تَعَالَى: ﴿وَأَنزلَ الَّذِينَ ظَاهَرُوهُمْ﴾ أَيْ: عَاوَنُوا الْأَحْزَابَ وَسَاعَدُوهُمْ عَلَى حَرْبِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ ﴿مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ﴾ يَعْنِي: بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ مِنَ الْيَهُودِ، مِنْ بَعْضِ أَسْبَاطِ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ، كَانَ قَدْ نَزَلَ آبَاؤُهُمُ الْحِجَازَ قَدِيمًا، طَمَعًا فِي اتِّبَاعِ النَّبِيَّ الْأُمِّيَّ الذِي يَجِدُونَهُ مَكْتُوبًا عِنْدَهُمْ فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَالْإِنْجِيلِ، ﴿فَلَمَّا جَاءَهُمْ مَا عَرَفُوا كَفَرُوا بِه﴾ [الْبَقَرَةِ: ٨٩] ، فَعَلَيْهِمْ لَعْنَةُ اللَّهِ.

For thus the most-High said "Those how had backed them (the confederates) came down" meaning: they assisted the confederates and helped them to make war on the Apostle of God (sala allah 'aleyhi wasallam). "From the people of the book" that is to say the Banu Qurayza of the Jews, descendants of the sons of Israel, who had come down to the Hijaz in olden times, doing so (aiding the Meccans) greedily against the followers of the illiterate prophet (Muhammad) whom they found written about in the Torah and the Gospel "when he came to them they did not know him and disbelieved in him" (surah al-baqarah 89) }}He refers here to [[Surah]] 33:{{Quote|{{Quran-range|33|26|27}}| And He brought those of the People of the Scripture who supported them down from their strongholds, and cast panic into their hearts. Some ye slew and ye made captive some.

And He caused you to inherit their land and their houses and their wealth, and land ye have not trodden. Allah is Able to do all things }}Ibn Kathir confirms that it was the angels themselves who implored Muhammad not to stop fighting:{{Quote|Tafisr of Ibn Kathir on Qur'an Surah 33|2=وَرَجَعَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ إِلَى الْمَدِينَةِ مُؤَيَّدًا مَنْصُورًا، وَوَضَعَ النَّاسُ السِّلَاحَ. فَبَيْنَمَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ يَغْتَسِلُ(٤) مِنْ وَعْثَاءِ تِلْكَ الْمُرَابَطَةِ فِي بَيْتِ أُمِّ سَلَمَةَ

إِذْ تَبَدَّى لَهُ جِبْرِيلُ مُعْتَجِرًا بِعِمَامَةٍ مِنْ إِسْتَبْرَقٍ، عَلَى بَغْلَةٍ عَلَيْهَا قَطِيفَةٌ [مِنْ](٥) دِيبَاجٍ، فَقَالَ: أوضَعت السِّلَاحَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ؟ قَالَ: "نَعَمْ". قَالَ: لَكِنَّ الْمَلَائِكَةَ لَمْ تَضَعْ أَسْلِحَتَهَا، وَهَذَا الْآنَ رُجُوعِي مِنْ طَلَبِ الْقَوْمِ. ثُمَّ قَالَ: إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَأْمُرُكَ أَنْ تَنْهَضَ إِلَى بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ. وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ فَقَالَ لَهُ: عذيرَك مِنْ مُقَاتِلٍ، أَوَضَعْتُمُ السِّلَاحَ؟ قَالَ: "نَعَمْ". قَالَ: لَكِنَّا لَمْ نَضَعْ أَسْلِحَتَنَا بَعْدُ، انْهَضْ إِلَى هَؤُلَاءِ. قَالَ: "أَيْنَ؟ ". قَالَ: بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ، فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ أَمَرَنِي أَنْ أُزَلْزِلَ عَلَيْهِمْ. فَنَهَضَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ مِنْ فَوْرِهِ، وَأَمَرَ النَّاسَ بِالْمَسِيرِ إِلَى بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ، وَكَانَتْ عَلَى أَمْيَالٍ مِنَ الْمَدِينَةِ، وَذَلِكَ بَعْدَ صَلَاةِ الظُّهْرِ، وَقَالَ: "لَا يُصَلِّيَنَّ أَحَدٌ مِنْكُمُ الْعَصْرَ إِلَّا فِي بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ".

the Messenger of Allah returned to Al-Madinah in triumph and the people put down their weapons. While the Messenger of Allah was washing off the dust of battle in the house of Umm Salamah, may Allah be pleased with her, Jibril, upon him be peace, came to him wearing a turban of brocade, riding on a mule on which was a cloth of silk brocade. He said, "Have you put down your weapons, O Messenger of Allah" He said, "Yes" He said, "But the angels have not put down their weapons. I have just now come back from pursuing the people." Then he said: "Allah, may He be blessed and exalted, commands you to get up and go to Banu Quraiza. According to another report, "What a fighter you are! Have you put down your weapons" He said, "Yes". He said, "But we have not put down our weapons yet, get up and go to these people." He said: "Where?" He said, "Banu Quraiza, for Allah has commanded me to shake them." So the Messenger of Allah got up immediately, and commanded the people to march towards Banu Quraiza, who were a few miles from Al-Madinah. This was after Salat Az-Zuhr. He said, No one among you should pray `Asr except at Banu Quraiza.}}Thus in the view of Ibn Kathir the fate of the Banu Qurayzah was the work of their own hand, a fate approved of and commanded by heaven itself. According to Ibn Kathir, their fate was exactly what Ibn Ishaq had described:{{Quote| Tafsir Ibn Kathir on Surah 33|2=فَقَالَ: إِنِّي أَحْكُمُ أَنْ تُقْتَلَ مُقَاتلتهم، وتُسبْى ذُرِّيَّتُهُمْ وَأَمْوَالُهُمْ. فَقَالَ لَهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: "لَقَدْ حَكَمْتَ بِحُكْمِ اللَّهِ مِنْ فَوْقِ سَبْعَةِ أَرْقِعَةٍ"(٨) . وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ: "لَقَدْ حكمتَ بِحُكْمِ المَلك". ثُمَّ أَمْرَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ بِالْأَخَادِيدِ فَخُدّت فِي الْأَرْضِ، وَجِيءَ بِهِمْ مُكْتَفِينَ، فَضَرَبَ أَعْنَاقَهُمْ، وَكَانُوا مَا بَيْنَ السَّبْعِمِائَةِ إِلَى الثَّمَانِمِائَةِ، وَسَبَى مَنْ لَمْ يُنبت مِنْهُمْ مَعَ النِّسَاءِ وَأَمْوَالِهِمْ(٩)

Then he (Sa'ad) said: My judgement is that their fighting-age men be killed, and their families and wealth be taken as booty. The prophet (sala allah 'aleyhi wasallam) said "You have judged with the judgement of Allah above the seven heavens." In another narration: "You have judged with the judgement of the King (Allah)." Then the Messenger of Allah commanded that ditches should be dug, so they were dug in the earth, and they were brought tied by their shoulders, and were beheaded. There were between seven hundred and eight hundred of them. The children who had not yet reached adolescence and the women were taken prisoner, and their wealth was seized.}}

==Accounts in Hadiths==
The hadith of Bukhari provide witness for the incidents described by Ishaq. Bukhari confirms that it was the angels who decree that the war be carried to the Banu Qurayza:{{Quote| {{Bukhari|4|52|68}}| Narrated 'Aisha: When Allah's Apostle returned on the day (of the battle) of Al-Khandaq (i.e. Trench), he put down his arms and took a bath. Then Gabriel whose head was covered with dust, came to him saying, "You have put down your arms! By Allah, I have not put down my arms yet." Allah's Apostle said, "Where (to go now)?" Gabriel said, "This way," pointing towards the tribe of Banu Qurayza. So Allah's Apostle went out towards them.}}Similiarly, he confirms that it is was Sa'ad who condemned them to their fate:{{Quote| {{Bukhari|5|58|148}}| Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri: Some people (i.e. the Jews of Bani bin Quraiza) agreed to accept the verdict of Sad bin Muadh so the Prophet sent for him (i.e. Sad bin Muadh). He came riding a donkey, and when he approached the Mosque, the Prophet ﷺ said, "Get up for the best amongst you." or said, "Get up for your chief." Then the Prophet ﷺ said, "O Sad! These people have agreed to accept your verdict." Sad said, "I judge that their warriors should be killed and their children and women should be taken as captives." The Prophet ﷺ said, "You have given a judgment similar to Allah's Judgment (or the King's judgment)."}}Incidentally, Bukhari mentions that even though Ibn Sa'd was called upon to provide a fair judgement to the Banu Qurayzahas a former ally, in fact he went to his death, caused by wounds suffered during the battle of the trench, wishing for death to the infidels:{{Quote| {{Bukhari|5|59|448}}| Sa`d was wounded on the day of Khandaq (i.e. Trench) when a man from Quraish, called Hibban bin Al-`Araqa hit him (with an arrow). The man was Hibban bin Qais from (the tribe of) Bani Mais bin 'Amir bin Lu'ai who shot an arrow at Sa`d's medial arm vein (or main artery of the arm). The Prophet (ﷺ) pitched a tent (for Sa`d) in the Mosque so that he might be near to the Prophet (ﷺ) to visit. When the Prophet returned from the (battle) of Al-Khandaq (i.e. Trench) and laid down his arms and took a bath Gabriel came to him while he (i.e. Gabriel) was shaking the dust off his head, and said, "You have laid down the arms?" By Allah, I have not laid them down. Go out to them (to attack them)." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Where?" Gabriel pointed towards Bani Quraiza. So Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) went to them (i.e. Banu Quraiza) (i.e. besieged them). They then surrendered to the Prophet's judgment but he directed them to Sa`d to give his verdict concerning them. Sa`d said, "I give my judgment that their warriors should be killed, their women and children should be taken as captives, and their properties distributed." Narrated Hisham: My father informed me that `Aisha said, "Sa`d said, "O Allah! You know that there is nothing more beloved to me than to fight in Your Cause against those who disbelieved Your Apostle and turned him out (of Mecca). O Allah! I think you have put to an end the fight between us and them (i.e. Quraish infidels). And if there still remains any fight with the Quraish (infidels), then keep me alive till I fight against them for Your Sake. But if you have brought the war to an end, then let this wound burst and cause my death thereby.' So blood gushed from the wound. There was a tent in the Mosque belonging to Banu Ghifar who were surprised by the blood flowing towards them. They said, 'O people of the tent! What is this thing which is coming to us from your side?' Behold! Blood was flowing profusely out of Sa`d's wound. Sa`d then died because of that."}}Bukhari also mentions the fate of the Banu Qurayza, carried out in accordance with Sa'd's judgement:{{Quote|{{bukhari|5|59|362}}, See Also: {{muslim|19|4364}}|Narrated Abd-Allah ibn Umar: Banu Nadir and Banu Qurayza fought (against the Prophet violating their peace treaty), so the Prophet exiled Bani An-Nadir and allowed Bani Quraiza to remain at their places (in Medina) taking nothing from them till they fought against the Prophet again). He then killed their men and distributed their women, children and property among the Muslims, but some of them came to the Prophet and he granted them safety, and they embraced Islam. He exiled all the Jews from Medina. They were the Jews of Banu Qaynuqa, the tribe of Abdullah bin Salam and the Jews of Bani Haritha and all the other Jews of Medina. }}Sunan Abi Dawud tells us exactly how it was determined, whether a male youth would be spared, based on whether he had reached puberty or not:{{Quote| {{Abudawud|38|4390}}| Narrated Atiyyah al-Qurazi:

I was among the captives of Banu Qurayza. They (the Companions) examined us, and those who had begun to grow hair (pubes) were killed, and those who had not were not killed. I was among those who had not grown hair.}}
==Modern Views and Perspectives==
<center><youtube>UZE1N56fswY</youtube></center>In the clip above Muslim scholar Yasir Qadhi, well respected for his degrees from the Islamic University of Medina as well as from Yale, makes the argument that Muhammad was dealing with treachery and he had taken the maximum punitive actions against it. Qadhi argues that the prophet was justified in every step and showed as much restraint as necessary, being motivated purely by concerns on statecraft and practicality, not by malice. As he says, it is possible to accuse the prophet of being "harsh" but not of acting with malice towards the Banu Qurayza or the Jews in general, as this would not be "academically valid." Yasir Qadhi states that the punishment was "harsh" and yet it is sometimes necessary to be harsh. Yaqeen institute scholar Abu Amina Elias (Justin Parrott) makes the cases that killing the "fighting men" prisoners of the Banu Qurayzah was an "act of self-defense" on the part of the Muslim community and cites Deuteronomy 20:12-14 to justify the actions of the Muslims, agreeing with Ibn Ishaq that Sa'd was judging the Jews by their own law. He also claims that the prophet only sent his men their with arms to "defend themselves" and that the women and children of the Banu Qurayzahwere taken "into captivity" for their protection since all of their men folk had been slaughtered <ref>"Did the Prophet commit genocide against Jews?" Faith in Allah There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger https://abuaminaelias.com/prophet-genocide-banu-qurayza/ April 8, 2013</ref>. Karen Armstrong, in her book A Short History of Islam, likewise claims "The struggle did not indicate any hostility towards Jews in general, but only towards the three rebel tribes. The Quran continued to revere Jewish prophets and to urge Muslims to respect the People of the Book."<ref>Islam:A Short History Karen Armstrong Modern Library 2002</ref>

These arguments are all echoes of the original arguments found in the material above. Ibn Ishaq claims that the Jews of Banu Qurayzah posed a threat to the Muslims via their betrayal and does portray Muhammad as hesitating to decide their fate. Ibn Ishaq even recounts of how "harsh" the punishment was:{{Quote|{{citation|page=462 (paragraph: 686)|trans_title=The Life of Muhammad|title=Sirat Rasul Allah|author1=Ibn Ishaq|author2=Ibn Hisham|author3=al-Tabari|editor=A. Guillaume|year=1955|publisher=Oxford UP|ISBN=0196360331|location=Karachi|url=https://archive.org/details/GuillaumeATheLifeOfMuhammad/page/n381/mode/2up}}|Apostle sent him (Abu Lubaba) to them (Banu Quraiza), and when they saw him they got up to meet him. The women and children went up to him weeping in his face, and he felt sorry for them. They said, ‘Oh Abu Lubaba, do you think that we should submit to Muhammad's judgement? He said ‘yes' and pointed with his hand to his throat signifying slaughter.}}Yet critics of these pro-Islam viewpoints have pointed out that the verse cited by modern Muslims from Deuteronomy to justify the extermination of the Banu Qurayzah was not viewed in this way by traditional Christian or especially Jewish scholarship. According to Jewish doctrine, these verses were revealed to Moses before the Israelites entered the Holy Land, specifically instructing them on how to deal with the people living there.<ref>"Muhammad’s atrocity against the Qurayza Jews" James M. Arlandson Answering Islam https://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Arlandson/qurayza_jews.htm</ref> Morever, the claim that there was no apparent animus towards the Jews of Banu Qurayza on the part of Muhammad is contradicted by Ibn Ishaq's account:{{Quote|Ibn Ishaq: 684 | "When the apostle approached their forts he (Muhammad) said: "You brothers of monkeys...has god disgraced you and brought his vengeance upon you?"

Banu Qurayza replied: "O Abul Qasim (Muhammad), you are not a barbarous person" }}In mocking them as apes, Muhammad is here echoing the Qur'an, which claims that (some) Jews were turned into apes for violating the sabbath (Qur'an 50:60).
Ibn Ishaq also records that Muhammad took one of the Jewish women of the Banu Qurayza, Rayhanah, for himself.<ref>"The Apostle had chosen one of the women for himself, Rayḥāna d. ʿAmr b. Khunāfa, one of the women of B. ʿAmr b. Qurayẓa, and she remained with him until she died, in his power." Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh Oxford Universite Press 2005, p.466</ref> Indeed, according to this account the destruction of this tribe allowed Muhammad to reward his fighters handsomely (and Muhammad himself took a fifth of the booty). Abu Amina Elias's view that the Muslims took such women and children as Rayhana captive simply for their protection also cannot be true, as Ibn Ishaq also recounts that some of them were taken to the far-off region of the Najd to be sold for weapons and horses. Yasir Qadhi himself points out that the Banu Qurayzah were offered freedom to live on were they to accept Islam, and according to the sirah only their hard, petulant hearts which rejected Muhammad despite knowing he was a prophet of the Lord prevented them from allowing themselves to be saved by conversion to Islam. So clearly, at least in the eyes of the sirah, their Jewish religion did, in fact, have something to do with the pitilessness with which Muhammad dealt with them, going against Qadhi's point that the prophet acted without malice or religious animus according to the sources we have. Bukhari also mentions that the prophet commanded his men to abuse the Banu Qurayzah with poetry, which was in ancient Arab times one of the premier ways of promoting enmity with an enemy (Muhammad ordered poets who did this to him to be killed):{{Quote| {{Bukhari|5|59|449}}|Narrated Al-Bara: "On the day of Qurayza’s (besiege), Allah's Apostle said to Hassan bin Thabit, 'Abuse them (with your poems), and Gabriel is with you"}}
==Problems with the Traditional Narrative==
The narrative of the Banu Qurayzah is an accepted part of Islamic law, and multiple Islamic jurists have cited it, including when ruling that certain populations of Jews and other non-believers be massacred. As such there is no question amongst orthodox Muslims that it happened <ref>"Extended Interview: The legacy of Islamic Antisemetism" Andrew Bostom andrewbostom.org 13 June 2008</ref>. Yet the historiography of the subject is not without its own problems.

Within the Islamic tradition, Ibn Ishaq was frequently criticized for giving too much weight to Jewish stories and being biased in general in his retellings of certain events. Malik ibn Anas accusses Ibn Ishaq of being a "liar" for listening to "Jewish stories" <ref>"New Light on the Story of Banu Qurayza and the Jews of Medina", W.N Arafat 2001 p. 100-107</ref>.

Modern scholarship has cast much more serious doubts on the scholarship of Islamic scholars working in the 8th century (2nd Islamic century) such as Ibn Ishaq. As Fred Donner points out, one of the earliest documents we have from the nascent proto-Islamic movement is the ''Constitution of Medina'' صحيفة مدينة also known as the Ummah Document or صحيفة الأمة. This remarkable document, preserved by the Islamic historian [[Al-Tabari]], lays out a compact for the "believers" of Medina, an "ummah" or national community that includes the Jews as "believers" on the same level as the Arab believers. Fred Donner believes this document actually points to an early, occulted history of Islam in which Arab monotheists joined with Jews into one "ummah" under the command of Muhammad. Troublingly for the historical narrative, this document makes mention of many different Jewish tribes, but the main 3 tribes of the sira, the Banu Qurayza, the Banu Qaynuqaa', and the Banu Nadir are conspicuously absent. It is in fact the absence of these tribes which convinces scholars that the document must be very old despite being preserved only in the 9th-century works of Tabari, since a younger document would presumably would have been changed to agree with the established historical narrative. Donner mentions that many early 7th century mosques do not include the qibla facing towards Mecca, and concludes that this story of the massacre of the Banu Qurayzah may have been invented or embellished in order to explain a much later break between the Jewish and Muslim communities <ref>Muhammad and the Believers: At the Orgins of Islam, Fred Donner, Harvard University Press 2010, p. 72-73</ref>.

Patricia Crone and Michael Cook in their groundbreaking work ''Hagarism'' likewise report on an Armenian historian writing in the 7th century known as pseudo-Sabeous. This historian imputes the Arab invasions to a confederation of Jews and Arabs led by Muhammad himself, contradicting the Islamic narrative that Muhammad died before the invasion of Palestine and the Middle East. Pseudo-Sebeos likewise imputes to the Arabs and Jews a shared monotheism and brotherhood through their ancestry to Abraham and his wife Hagar <ref>Hagarism: Making of the Islamic World, Patricia Crone and Michael Cook, Cambridge University Press 1977, p. 6-8</ref>. If this account is to be believed, there could not have been any great massacre of the Jews by Muhammad as we has working with them when he invaded Palestine. Stephen Shoemaker in his work ''The Death of a Prophet'' adds further evidence to thesis of Crone and Cook, marshaling evidence from a wide variety of sources, almost all of which predate the first Islamic sources, that Muhammad himself was actually the leader of the believers when they entered Palestine and he died only after its conquest. In particular he calls attention to a Jewish apocalypse from the 7th century, the Secrets of Rabbi ben Shim'on, which seems to paint Muhammad as the redeemer of the Jews from the oppression of the Romans in the Holy Land. If this is to be believed, and this source predates every Islamic source we have, the massacre of the Banu Qurayzahcould not have taken place, since Muhammad, the leader of the invasion of Palestine, was seen as a savior of the Jewish people <ref>The Death of a Prophet, Stephen Shoemaker, University of Pennsylvania Press 2012, p. 27-33</ref>. This would seem to indicate that the break between the Muslims and the Jews took place after his death, and would indicate that stories such as the massacre of the Banu Qurayzahwere fabricated in order to "back date" the break with the Jews to the prophet's own lifetime.

==See Also==

*[[List of Killings Ordered or Supported by Muhammad]]

==External Links==

*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Muhammad/Jews/BQurayza/index.html What really happened to the Banu Qurayza] ''- Collection of articles from Answering Islam''

*[https://www.call-to-monotheism.com/rebuttal_to_answering_islam_s_article__the_bani_quraytha_jews__traitors_or_betrayed_ Rebuttal to Answering Islam's Article "The Bani Quraytha Jews: Traitors or Betrayed?] - ''Muslim Rebuttal to Answering Islam's Article "The Bani Quraytha Jews: Traitors or Betrayed?"''

*[http://www.americanthinker.com/2006/02/muhammad_and_massacre_of_the_q.html Muhammad and Massacre of the Qurayzah Jews] ''- James Arlandson, American Thinker''

*[http://www.kister.huji.ac.il/sites/default/files/banu_qurayza.pdf Massacre of the Banū Qurayẓa: A Re-Examination of a Tradition] ''- M. J. Kister, Jerusalem Studies in Arabic and Islam 8 (1986): 61-96''

==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Muhammad]]
[[Category:People of the Book]]
[[Category:Jihad]]
[[Category:Islamic History]]
[[Category:Sirah]]
[[Category:Sacred history]]
[[ar:مجزرة_بنو_قريظة]]

The Massacre of the Banu Qurayzah

2023-06-11T19:02:02Z

Vixen: /* Modern Views and Perspectives */

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}[[File:Banu qurayza massacre.jpg|175px|right|thumb|Detail from miniature painting: ''The Prophet, Ali, and the Companions at the Massacre of the Prisoners of the Jewish Tribe of Beni Qurayza'', illustration of a 19th century text by Muhammad Rafi Bazil.]]According to the traditional Islamic sources, in 627 AD as a result of the [[Battle of the Trench]] and the betrayal of the Muslims by the Jewish tribe of Banu Qurayza, the Muslims under the direct military command of the prophet [[Muhammad]] laid siege to the Banu Qurayzah compound. After a siege of around 2 weeks, depending on the source, the Jews of Banu Qurayzah surrendered and entrusted their fate to a trusted intermediary from the Muslims of the tribe of 'Aws, Sa'd bin Mu'adh. Sa'd bin Mu'adh, however, claiming to be following the law of the Torah itself, advised Muhammad to slaughter the men folk of the tribe and sell the women and children into slavery. Muhammad took this advice and as a consequence between 400 and 900 prisoners of the tribe were slaughtered, many in front of their families, and the rest of the tribe were sold into slavery. The event is well attested to in the Islamic historical tradition, and has served as the basis for multiple rulings throughout history dealing with the treatment of captured non-Muslims by Muslim military forces.
==Background==
According to Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad's constant aggressive raids and warmongering against the Meccans had driven them, in alliance with the Jewish tribes he had expelled from Yathrib and the north Arabian tribe of Ghatfan, to put an end to him and his movement once and for all. The three original Jewish tribes of Medina, the Banu Nadir, the Banu Qaynuqaa', and the Banu Qurayza, had seen their number dwindle to one as Muhammad had expelled the Banu Nadir and the Banu Qaynuaqaa' from Medina on different pretexts. Meanwhile their property, including their precious palm trees, had been seized by Muhammad and the Muslims. Together with the Meccans and the Ghatfan, the exiled Jewish tribes of Medina had formed an alliance and gathered an army whose numbers are given in the sira as being around 10,000 strong, including over 600 mounted horsemen against very few cavalry for the Muslims, and 7,000 stronger than the army which had defeated Muhammad at the Muslims at Uhud. Muhammad at this time could call on a force of only around 3,000 men. Muhammad received word of their advance and began to make preparations. A Persian companion of the prophet named Salman, an apparent veteran of the Sassanid's many wars against the Romans, advised that when facing a great number of enemy horseman such as the confederate Jews and Meccans possessed, a good stratagem was to dig a defensive trench. It was decided to pursue this strategy <ref>Martin Lings Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources Inner Traditions 2006, pages 222-223</ref>. The Banu Qurayzah did not provide men to help but did provide entrenching tools and the Muslims strategy relied on the Banu Qurayza, whose fort lay in the rear of the Muslim defenses, not breaking their alliance with Muhammad and joining with the confederates. The strategy of the trench worked to win the battle against the Meccans and their allies, and the confederates were beaten back without many casualties for the Muslims, but this proved to be no end to the fighting.
==Narrative from the Sira==
The series of events leading to the destruction of the Banu Qurayzah started during the battle of the trench. Unable to break the defenses of the Medinian Muslims, the Meccans sent an emissary from their Jewish allies, “the enemy of Allah, Huyayy bin Akhtab An-Nadri” <ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh Oxford Universite Press 2005, p.453</ref>, to the Banu Qurayzah in an attempt to bring their aide and end the stalemate by attacking Muhammad and the Muslims in the rear of their defenses. According to Ibn Ishaq, initially the leader of the Banu Qurayzah Ka'b bin Asad al-Qurayzi did not even allow Huyayy bin Akhtab to enter the compound, but was goaded into doing so be Huyayy's accusation that bin Ka'b did not want to share his food. Ibn Ishaq does not make it clear how he knows this however he claims that the negotiation came to naught due to the Qurayza’s insistence that the Meccans offer hostages in order to assure they would not leave the field of battle till Muhammad was defeated (though they did in fact end up leaving without defeating Muhammad). According to Ibn Ishaq, the Banu Qurayzah after much "wheedling" agreed only to not aide the Muslims or to obstruct or fight the confederates. Ibn Ishaq offers as evidence of the Banu Qurayza’s perfidy an Isnad chain from Yahya bin ‘Abbaad bin ‘Abdullah bin Az-Zubayr with a story that a Muslim woman, Safiyah bint ‘AbdulMuttalib, who saw a Jewish scout of the Banu Qurayzah reconnoitering a Muslim fort in preparation for an attack. She told the fort's commander Hassan of this and asked him to kill the scout, and when he refused she took a club and went out and beat the man to death<ref>ibid, 458</ref>. Other than this Ibn Ishaq presents no evidence that the Jews of the Banu Qurayzah were in league with the confederates. He does, however, relate that Allah “sowed discord” between the confederates and the Banu Qurayza, which resulted in the Meccans retreating without having defeated Muhammad or engaged in a coordinated attack upon the Muslims with the Banu Qurayzah<ref>ibid, 459</ref>

The battle of the trench being won, Muhammad and his men put their entrenching tools and weapons down to head home. According to the sirah, though, Allah had other plans. The angel [[Jibreel]] appeared to Muhammad just as he had put down his weapon, and informed him that the battle was not yet over for the Jews of the Banu Qurayzah still needed to be dealt with due to their treachery, mentioned above. Muhammad informed his men that they were not to pray the 'asr prayer until they reached the Banu Qurayzah compound, meaning he wanted them to go there quickly. The Muslims laid siege to the compound for differing amounts of time depending on the source (Ibn Ishaq claims 25 days before "Allah cast terror in their hearts"). The Banu Qurayzah were told to surrender and accept Islam, something they swore they would never do. Despairing of their position, according to Ibn Ishaq, they discussed three options: accepting Islam, killing their wives and children and engaging in a banzai-style attack against the numerically superior Muslim forces (perhaps, modern commentators have added, in emulation of their religious forbearers at Masada in Palestine), or engaging in a sneak attack on the Jewish Sabbath. The Jews of the Banu Qurayzah found none of these options acceptable.

Unable to come to a decision and under siege for weeks, the Banu Qurayzah asked to speak with Abu Lubaba, a man of the tribe of 'Aws, their allies. Abu Lubaba, when asked what the Banu Qurayzah should do, advised them to surrender to the prophet, but at the same time raised his hand to his neck, indicating they would be slaughtered <ref>ibid, 462</ref>. After he left, he felt that his action in telling the Banu Qurayzah of their fate was a betrayal of the prophet, and he tied himself to a pillar to ask for Allah's forgiveness, an act that Muhammad approved of. Despite this warning, the Banu Qurayzah surrendered to the Muslims the following day <ref>ibid, 463</ref>.

The tribe of 'Aws, allies of the Banu Qurayzah from the time of [[jahilliyah]], asked for mercy for them from the prophet. The prophet, not wanting to cause dissension in his ranks (oaths and alliances of loyalty were very important in tribal Arab society, as in the absence of courts and established governments the only guaranty of security and justice which could be obtained was the promise of protection from allies in the case of murder, family feuds or war), entrusted the fate of the Banu Qurayzah to a trusted elder shaykh of the 'Aws, Sa‘d bin Mu‘adh, who had been mortally wounded during the battle and would in fact die a shortly after the slaughter of the Banu Qurayza. Once Sa'd bin Mu'adh had ascertained that both the Banu Qurayzah and the prophet would abide by his judgement, whatever it be, he gave it without hesitation: the men of the Banu Qurayzah were to be executed to the last, while the women and children should be sold into slavery. Sa'd bin Mu‘adh justified this decision as being from the Torah of the Jews itself. Ibn Ishaq does not cite the verse and chapter from the Bible but this is usually taken as a reference to the book of Deuteronomy 20:12-14:{{Quote|Deuteronomy 20:12-14|וְאִם לֹ֤א תַשְׁלִים֙ עִמָּ֔ךְ וְעָשְׂתָ֥ה עִמְּךָ֖ מִלְחָמָ֑ה וְצַרְתָּ֖ עָלֶֽיהָ וּנְתָנָ֛הּ יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ בְּיָדֶ֑ךָ וְהִכִּיתָ֥ אֶת כָּל זְכוּרָ֖הּ לְפִי חָֽרֶב רַ֣ק הַ֠נָּשִׁים וְהַטַּ֨ף וְהַבְּהֵמָ֜ה וְכֹל֩ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יִהְיֶ֥ה בָעִ֛יר כָּל־ שְׁלָלָ֖הּ תָּבֹ֣ז לָ֑ךְ וְאָֽכַלְתָּ֙ אֶת שְׁלַ֣ל אֹיְבֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָתַ֛ן יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ לָֽךְ

But if the city makes no peace with you, but makes war against you, then you shall besiege it; and when the Lord your God gives it into your hand you shall put all its males to the sword, but the women and the little ones, the cattle, and everything else in the city, all its spoil, you shall take as booty for yourselves; and you shall enjoy the spoil of your enemies, which the Lord your God has given you.}}

Although modern Muslims cite this verse in justification of Mu'adh's verdict, it should be noted that neither Jewish nor Christian tradition understands this verse as a blanket rule for warfare, but rather as a specific command to the Jews under the command of Joshua who were fighting the pagan peoples of the Holy Land. It has not, generally, been used by either religion to justify the sort of massacre that took place in Medina in other historical contexts.

The prisoners, thus condemned, were kept in the house or compound of a Muslim woman d. Al-Harith of the banu al-Najjaar tribe. In the morning they were marched out to a trench which had been dug in the city's market, and executed by decapitation <ref>ibid, 465</ref> . According to the sira of Ibn Ishaq, one woman was amongst them. The other women and the children were given as sexual and labor slaves to the Muslims, with only boys who had not yet reached puberty being allowed to live. According to the sira, the haul of weapons and plunder was substantial, but Muhammad still sent some of the women and children to be sold in the Najd for more horses and weapons <ref>ibid, 466</ref>. Muhammad as was custom received his pick of the loot including his pick of the females, a beautiful Jewish named Rayhana whose husband was decapitated, and the rest went to all the rest of the Muslims, with a Muslim on horse receiving 3 times the spoils of a foot soldier <ref>ibid, 466</ref>.

==Tafsir Accounts==
The famed [[tafsir|mufassir]] [[Ibn Kathir]], drawing upon his own sources as well as many other classical commentators, in his commentary on sura 33 Al-Ahzab الأحزاب "The Confederates" reaffirms many of the pertinent details from the sira narrative. In particular, Ibn Kathir reads into the Quran's denouncement of the [[people of the book]] the perfidious Jews of the tribe of Banu Qurayzah and their betrayal of the prophet:{{Quote|Tafsir of Ibn Kathir Qur'an Surah 33

|وَلِهَذَا قَالَ تَعَالَى: ﴿وَأَنزلَ الَّذِينَ ظَاهَرُوهُمْ﴾ أَيْ: عَاوَنُوا الْأَحْزَابَ وَسَاعَدُوهُمْ عَلَى حَرْبِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ ﴿مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ﴾ يَعْنِي: بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ مِنَ الْيَهُودِ، مِنْ بَعْضِ أَسْبَاطِ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ، كَانَ قَدْ نَزَلَ آبَاؤُهُمُ الْحِجَازَ قَدِيمًا، طَمَعًا فِي اتِّبَاعِ النَّبِيَّ الْأُمِّيَّ الذِي يَجِدُونَهُ مَكْتُوبًا عِنْدَهُمْ فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَالْإِنْجِيلِ، ﴿فَلَمَّا جَاءَهُمْ مَا عَرَفُوا كَفَرُوا بِه﴾ [الْبَقَرَةِ: ٨٩] ، فَعَلَيْهِمْ لَعْنَةُ اللَّهِ.

For thus the most-High said "Those how had backed them (the confederates) came down" meaning: they assisted the confederates and helped them to make war on the Apostle of God (sala allah 'aleyhi wasallam). "From the people of the book" that is to say the Banu Qurayza of the Jews, descendants of the sons of Israel, who had come down to the Hijaz in olden times, doing so (aiding the Meccans) greedily against the followers of the illiterate prophet (Muhammad) whom they found written about in the Torah and the Gospel "when he came to them they did not know him and disbelieved in him" (surah al-baqarah 89) }}He refers here to [[Surah]] 33:{{Quote|{{Quran-range|33|26|27}}| And He brought those of the People of the Scripture who supported them down from their strongholds, and cast panic into their hearts. Some ye slew and ye made captive some.

And He caused you to inherit their land and their houses and their wealth, and land ye have not trodden. Allah is Able to do all things }}Ibn Kathir confirms that it was the angels themselves who implored Muhammad not to stop fighting:{{Quote|Tafisr of Ibn Kathir on Qur'an Surah 33|2=وَرَجَعَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ إِلَى الْمَدِينَةِ مُؤَيَّدًا مَنْصُورًا، وَوَضَعَ النَّاسُ السِّلَاحَ. فَبَيْنَمَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ يَغْتَسِلُ(٤) مِنْ وَعْثَاءِ تِلْكَ الْمُرَابَطَةِ فِي بَيْتِ أُمِّ سَلَمَةَ

إِذْ تَبَدَّى لَهُ جِبْرِيلُ مُعْتَجِرًا بِعِمَامَةٍ مِنْ إِسْتَبْرَقٍ، عَلَى بَغْلَةٍ عَلَيْهَا قَطِيفَةٌ [مِنْ](٥) دِيبَاجٍ، فَقَالَ: أوضَعت السِّلَاحَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ؟ قَالَ: "نَعَمْ". قَالَ: لَكِنَّ الْمَلَائِكَةَ لَمْ تَضَعْ أَسْلِحَتَهَا، وَهَذَا الْآنَ رُجُوعِي مِنْ طَلَبِ الْقَوْمِ. ثُمَّ قَالَ: إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَأْمُرُكَ أَنْ تَنْهَضَ إِلَى بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ. وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ فَقَالَ لَهُ: عذيرَك مِنْ مُقَاتِلٍ، أَوَضَعْتُمُ السِّلَاحَ؟ قَالَ: "نَعَمْ". قَالَ: لَكِنَّا لَمْ نَضَعْ أَسْلِحَتَنَا بَعْدُ، انْهَضْ إِلَى هَؤُلَاءِ. قَالَ: "أَيْنَ؟ ". قَالَ: بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ، فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ أَمَرَنِي أَنْ أُزَلْزِلَ عَلَيْهِمْ. فَنَهَضَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ مِنْ فَوْرِهِ، وَأَمَرَ النَّاسَ بِالْمَسِيرِ إِلَى بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ، وَكَانَتْ عَلَى أَمْيَالٍ مِنَ الْمَدِينَةِ، وَذَلِكَ بَعْدَ صَلَاةِ الظُّهْرِ، وَقَالَ: "لَا يُصَلِّيَنَّ أَحَدٌ مِنْكُمُ الْعَصْرَ إِلَّا فِي بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ".

the Messenger of Allah returned to Al-Madinah in triumph and the people put down their weapons. While the Messenger of Allah was washing off the dust of battle in the house of Umm Salamah, may Allah be pleased with her, Jibril, upon him be peace, came to him wearing a turban of brocade, riding on a mule on which was a cloth of silk brocade. He said, "Have you put down your weapons, O Messenger of Allah" He said, "Yes" He said, "But the angels have not put down their weapons. I have just now come back from pursuing the people." Then he said: "Allah, may He be blessed and exalted, commands you to get up and go to Banu Quraiza. According to another report, "What a fighter you are! Have you put down your weapons" He said, "Yes". He said, "But we have not put down our weapons yet, get up and go to these people." He said: "Where?" He said, "Banu Quraiza, for Allah has commanded me to shake them." So the Messenger of Allah got up immediately, and commanded the people to march towards Banu Quraiza, who were a few miles from Al-Madinah. This was after Salat Az-Zuhr. He said, No one among you should pray `Asr except at Banu Quraiza.}}Thus in the view of Ibn Kathir the fate of the Banu Qurayzah was the work of their own hand, a fate approved of and commanded by heaven itself. According to Ibn Kathir, their fate was exactly what Ibn Ishaq had described:{{Quote| Tafsir Ibn Kathir on Surah 33|2=فَقَالَ: إِنِّي أَحْكُمُ أَنْ تُقْتَلَ مُقَاتلتهم، وتُسبْى ذُرِّيَّتُهُمْ وَأَمْوَالُهُمْ. فَقَالَ لَهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: "لَقَدْ حَكَمْتَ بِحُكْمِ اللَّهِ مِنْ فَوْقِ سَبْعَةِ أَرْقِعَةٍ"(٨) . وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ: "لَقَدْ حكمتَ بِحُكْمِ المَلك". ثُمَّ أَمْرَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ بِالْأَخَادِيدِ فَخُدّت فِي الْأَرْضِ، وَجِيءَ بِهِمْ مُكْتَفِينَ، فَضَرَبَ أَعْنَاقَهُمْ، وَكَانُوا مَا بَيْنَ السَّبْعِمِائَةِ إِلَى الثَّمَانِمِائَةِ، وَسَبَى مَنْ لَمْ يُنبت مِنْهُمْ مَعَ النِّسَاءِ وَأَمْوَالِهِمْ(٩)

Then he (Sa'ad) said: My judgement is that their fighting-age men be killed, and their families and wealth be taken as booty. The prophet (sala allah 'aleyhi wasallam) said "You have judged with the judgement of Allah above the seven heavens." In another narration: "You have judged with the judgement of the King (Allah)." Then the Messenger of Allah commanded that ditches should be dug, so they were dug in the earth, and they were brought tied by their shoulders, and were beheaded. There were between seven hundred and eight hundred of them. The children who had not yet reached adolescence and the women were taken prisoner, and their wealth was seized.}}

==Accounts in Hadiths==
The hadith of Bukhari provide witness for the incidents described by Ishaq. Bukhari confirms that it was the angels who decree that the war be carried to the Banu Qurayza:{{Quote| {{Bukhari|4|52|68}}| Narrated 'Aisha: When Allah's Apostle returned on the day (of the battle) of Al-Khandaq (i.e. Trench), he put down his arms and took a bath. Then Gabriel whose head was covered with dust, came to him saying, "You have put down your arms! By Allah, I have not put down my arms yet." Allah's Apostle said, "Where (to go now)?" Gabriel said, "This way," pointing towards the tribe of Banu Qurayza. So Allah's Apostle went out towards them.}}Similiarly, he confirms that it is was Sa'ad who condemned them to their fate:{{Quote| {{Bukhari|5|58|148}}| Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri: Some people (i.e. the Jews of Bani bin Quraiza) agreed to accept the verdict of Sad bin Muadh so the Prophet sent for him (i.e. Sad bin Muadh). He came riding a donkey, and when he approached the Mosque, the Prophet ﷺ said, "Get up for the best amongst you." or said, "Get up for your chief." Then the Prophet ﷺ said, "O Sad! These people have agreed to accept your verdict." Sad said, "I judge that their warriors should be killed and their children and women should be taken as captives." The Prophet ﷺ said, "You have given a judgment similar to Allah's Judgment (or the King's judgment)."}}Incidentally, Bukhari mentions that even though Ibn Sa'd was called upon to provide a fair judgement to the Banu Qurayzahas a former ally, in fact he went to his death, caused by wounds suffered during the battle of the trench, wishing for death to the infidels:{{Quote| {{Bukhari|5|59|448}}| Sa`d was wounded on the day of Khandaq (i.e. Trench) when a man from Quraish, called Hibban bin Al-`Araqa hit him (with an arrow). The man was Hibban bin Qais from (the tribe of) Bani Mais bin 'Amir bin Lu'ai who shot an arrow at Sa`d's medial arm vein (or main artery of the arm). The Prophet (ﷺ) pitched a tent (for Sa`d) in the Mosque so that he might be near to the Prophet (ﷺ) to visit. When the Prophet returned from the (battle) of Al-Khandaq (i.e. Trench) and laid down his arms and took a bath Gabriel came to him while he (i.e. Gabriel) was shaking the dust off his head, and said, "You have laid down the arms?" By Allah, I have not laid them down. Go out to them (to attack them)." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Where?" Gabriel pointed towards Bani Quraiza. So Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) went to them (i.e. Banu Quraiza) (i.e. besieged them). They then surrendered to the Prophet's judgment but he directed them to Sa`d to give his verdict concerning them. Sa`d said, "I give my judgment that their warriors should be killed, their women and children should be taken as captives, and their properties distributed." Narrated Hisham: My father informed me that `Aisha said, "Sa`d said, "O Allah! You know that there is nothing more beloved to me than to fight in Your Cause against those who disbelieved Your Apostle and turned him out (of Mecca). O Allah! I think you have put to an end the fight between us and them (i.e. Quraish infidels). And if there still remains any fight with the Quraish (infidels), then keep me alive till I fight against them for Your Sake. But if you have brought the war to an end, then let this wound burst and cause my death thereby.' So blood gushed from the wound. There was a tent in the Mosque belonging to Banu Ghifar who were surprised by the blood flowing towards them. They said, 'O people of the tent! What is this thing which is coming to us from your side?' Behold! Blood was flowing profusely out of Sa`d's wound. Sa`d then died because of that."}}Bukhari also mentions the fate of the Banu Qurayza, carried out in accordance with Sa'd's judgement:{{Quote|{{bukhari|5|59|362}}, See Also: {{muslim|19|4364}}|Narrated Abd-Allah ibn Umar: Banu Nadir and Banu Qurayza fought (against the Prophet violating their peace treaty), so the Prophet exiled Bani An-Nadir and allowed Bani Quraiza to remain at their places (in Medina) taking nothing from them till they fought against the Prophet again). He then killed their men and distributed their women, children and property among the Muslims, but some of them came to the Prophet and he granted them safety, and they embraced Islam. He exiled all the Jews from Medina. They were the Jews of Banu Qaynuqa, the tribe of Abdullah bin Salam and the Jews of Bani Haritha and all the other Jews of Medina. }}Sunan Abi Dawud tells us exactly how it was determined, whether a male youth would be spared, based on whether he had reached puberty or not:{{Quote| {{Abudawud|38|4390}}| Narrated Atiyyah al-Qurazi:

I was among the captives of Banu Qurayza. They (the Companions) examined us, and those who had begun to grow hair (pubes) were killed, and those who had not were not killed. I was among those who had not grown hair.}}
==Modern Views and Perspectives==
<center><youtube>UZE1N56fswY</youtube></center>In the clip above Muslim scholar Yasir Qadhi, well respected for his degrees from the Islamic University of Medina as well as from Yale, makes the argument that Muhammad was dealing with treachery and he had taken the maximum punitive actions against it. Qadhi argues that the prophet was justified in every step and showed as much restraint as necessary, being motivated purely by concerns on statecraft and practicality, not by malice. As he says, it is possible to accuse the prophet of being "harsh" but not of acting with malice towards the Banu Qurayza or the Jews in general, as this would not be "academically valid." Yasir Qadhi states that the punishment was "harsh" and yet it is sometimes necessary to be harsh. Yaqeen institute scholar Abu Amina Elias (Justin Parrott) makes the cases that killing the "fighting men" prisoners of the Banu Qurayzah was an "act of self-defense" on the part of the Muslim community and cites Deuteronomy 20:12-14 to justify the actions of the Muslims, agreeing with Ibn Ishaq that Sa'd was judging the Jews by their own law. He also claims that the prophet only sent his men their with arms to "defend themselves" and that the women and children of the Banu Qurayzahwere taken "into captivity" for their protection since all of their men folk had been slaughtered <ref>"Did the Prophet commit genocide against Jews?" Faith in Allah There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger https://abuaminaelias.com/prophet-genocide-banu-qurayza/ April 8, 2013</ref>. Karen Armstrong, in her book A Short History of Islam, likewise claims "The struggle did not indicate any hostility towards Jews in general, but only towards the three rebel tribes. The Quran continued to revere Jewish prophets and to urge Muslims to respect the People of the Book."<ref>Islam:A Short History Karen Armstrong Modern Library 2002</ref>

These arguments are all echoes of the original arguments found in the material above. Ibn Ishaq claims that the Jews of Banu Qurayzah posed a threat to the Muslims via their betrayal and does portray Muhammad as hesitating to decide their fate. Ibn Ishaq even recounts of how "harsh" the punishment was:{{Quote|{{citation|page=462 (paragraph: 686)|trans_title=The Life of Muhammad|title=Sirat Rasul Allah|author1=Ibn Ishaq|author2=Ibn Hisham|author3=al-Tabari|editor=A. Guillaume|year=1955|publisher=Oxford UP|ISBN=0196360331|location=Karachi|url=https://archive.org/details/GuillaumeATheLifeOfMuhammad/page/n381/mode/2up}}|Apostle sent him (Abu Lubaba) to them (Banu Quraiza), and when they saw him they got up to meet him. The women and children went up to him weeping in his face, and he felt sorry for them. They said, ‘Oh Abu Lubaba, do you think that we should submit to Muhammad's judgement? He said ‘yes' and pointed with his hand to his throat signifying slaughter.}}Yet critics of these pro-Islam viewpoints have pointed out that the verse cited by modern Muslims from Deuteronomy to justify the extermination of the Banu Qurayzah was not viewed in this way by traditional Christian or especially Jewish scholarship. According to Jewish doctrine, these verses were revealed to Moses before the Israelites entered the Holy Land, specifically instructing them on how to deal with the people living there.<ref>"Muhammad’s atrocity against the Qurayza Jews" James M. Arlandson Answering Islam https://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Arlandson/qurayza_jews.htm</ref> Morever, the claim that there was no apparent animus towards the Jews of Banu Qurayza on the part of Muhammad is contradicted by Ibn Ishaq's account:{{Quote|Ibn Ishaq: 684 | "When the apostle approached their forts he (Muhammad) said: "You brothers of monkeys...has god disgraced you and brought his vengeance upon you?"

Banu Qurayza replied: "O Abul Qasim (Muhammad), you are not a barbarous person" }}In mocking them as apes, Muhammad is here echoing the Qur'an, which claims that (some) Jews were turned into apes for violating the sabbath (Qur'an 50:60).
Ibn Ishaq also records that Muhammad took one of the Jewish women of the Banu Qurayza, Rayhanah, for himself.<ref>"The Apostle had chosen one of the women for himself, Rayḥāna d. ʿAmr b. Khunāfa, one of the women of B. ʿAmr b. Qurayẓa, and she remained with him until she died, in his power." Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh Oxford Universite Press 2005, p.466</ref> Indeed, according to this account the destruction of this tribe allowed Muhammad to reward his fighters handsomely (and Muhammad himself took a fifth of the booty). Abu Amina Elias's view that the Muslims took such women and children as Rayhana captive simply for their protection also cannot be true, as Ibn Ishaq also recounts that some of them were taken to the far-off region of the Najd to be sold for weapons and horses. Yasir Qadhi himself points out that the Banu Qurayzah were offered freedom to live on were they to accept Islam, and according to the sirah only their hard, petulant hearts which rejected Muhammad despite knowing he was a prophet of the Lord prevented them from allowing themselves to be saved by conversion to Islam. So clearly, at least in the eyes of the sirah, their Jewish religion did, in fact, have something to do with the pitilessness with which Muhammad dealt with them, going against Qadhi's point that the prophet acted without malice or religious animus according to the sources we have. Bukhari also mentions that the prophet commanded his men to abuse the Banu Qurayzah with poetry, which was in ancient Arab times one of the premier ways of promoting enmity with an enemy (Muhammad ordered poets who did this to him to be killed):{{Quote| {{Bukhari|5|59|449}}|Narrated Al-Bara: "On the day of Qurayza’s (besiege), Allah's Apostle said to Hassan bin Thabit, 'Abuse them (with your poems), and Gabriel is with you"}}
==Problems with the Traditional Narrative==
The narrative of the Banu Qurayzahis an accepted part of Islamic law, and multiple Islamic jurists have cited it, including when ruling that certain populations of Jews and other non-believers be massacred. As such there is no question amongst orthodox Muslims that it happened <ref>"Extended Interview: The legacy of Islamic Antisemetism" Andrew Bostom andrewbostom.org 13 June 2008</ref>. Yet the historiography of the subject is not without its own problems.

Within the Islamic tradition, Ibn Ishaq was frequently criticized for giving too much weight to Jewish stories and being biased in general in his retellings of certain events. Malik ibn Anas accusses Ibn Ishaq of being a "liar" for listening to "Jewish stories" <ref>"New Light on the Story of Banu Qurayza and the Jews of Medina", W.N Arafat 2001 p. 100-107</ref>.

Modern scholarship has cast much more serious doubts on the scholarship of Islamic scholars working in the 8th century (2nd Islamic century) such as Ibn Ishaq. As Fred Donner points out, one of the earliest documents we have from the nascent proto-Islamic movement is the ''Constitution of Medina'' صحيفة مدينة also known as the Ummah Document or صحيفة الأمة. This remarkable document, preserved by the Islamic historian [[Al-Tabari]], lays out a compact for the "believers" of Medina, an "ummah" or national community that includes the Jews as "believers" on the same level as the Arab believers. Fred Donner believes this document actually points to an early, occulted history of Islam in which Arab monotheists joined with Jews into one "ummah" under the command of Muhammad. Troublingly for the historical narrative, this document makes mention of many different Jewish tribes, but the main 3 tribes of the sira, the Banu Qurayza, the Banu Qaynuqaa', and the Banu Nadir are conspicuously absent. It is in fact the absence of these tribes which convinces scholars that the document must be very old despite being preserved only in the 9th-century works of Tabari, since a younger document would presumably would have been changed to agree with the established historical narrative. Donner mentions that many early 7th century mosques do not include the qibla facing towards Mecca, and concludes that this story of the massacre of the Banu Qurayzah may have been invented or embellished in order to explain a much later break between the Jewish and Muslim communities <ref>Muhammad and the Believers: At the Orgins of Islam, Fred Donner, Harvard University Press 2010, p. 72-73</ref>.

Patricia Crone and Michael Cook in their groundbreaking work ''Hagarism'' likewise report on an Armenian historian writing in the 7th century known as pseudo-Sabeous. This historian imputes the Arab invasions to a confederation of Jews and Arabs led by Muhammad himself, contradicting the Islamic narrative that Muhammad died before the invasion of Palestine and the Middle East. Pseudo-Sebeos likewise imputes to the Arabs and Jews a shared monotheism and brotherhood through their ancestry to Abraham and his wife Hagar <ref>Hagarism: Making of the Islamic World, Patricia Crone and Michael Cook, Cambridge University Press 1977, p. 6-8</ref>. If this account is to be believed, there could not have been any great massacre of the Jews by Muhammad as we has working with them when he invaded Palestine. Stephen Shoemaker in his work ''The Death of a Prophet'' adds further evidence to thesis of Crone and Cook, marshaling evidence from a wide variety of sources, almost all of which predate the first Islamic sources, that Muhammad himself was actually the leader of the believers when they entered Palestine and he died only after its conquest. In particular he calls attention to a Jewish apocalypse from the 7th century, the Secrets of Rabbi ben Shim'on, which seems to paint Muhammad as the redeemer of the Jews from the oppression of the Romans in the Holy Land. If this is to be believed, and this source predates every Islamic source we have, the massacre of the Banu Qurayzahcould not have taken place, since Muhammad, the leader of the invasion of Palestine, was seen as a savior of the Jewish people <ref>The Death of a Prophet, Stephen Shoemaker, University of Pennsylvania Press 2012, p. 27-33</ref>. This would seem to indicate that the break between the Muslims and the Jews took place after his death, and would indicate that stories such as the massacre of the Banu Qurayzahwere fabricated in order to "back date" the break with the Jews to the prophet's own lifetime.

==See Also==

*[[List of Killings Ordered or Supported by Muhammad]]

==External Links==

*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Muhammad/Jews/BQurayza/index.html What really happened to the Banu Qurayza] ''- Collection of articles from Answering Islam''

*[https://www.call-to-monotheism.com/rebuttal_to_answering_islam_s_article__the_bani_quraytha_jews__traitors_or_betrayed_ Rebuttal to Answering Islam's Article "The Bani Quraytha Jews: Traitors or Betrayed?] - ''Muslim Rebuttal to Answering Islam's Article "The Bani Quraytha Jews: Traitors or Betrayed?"''

*[http://www.americanthinker.com/2006/02/muhammad_and_massacre_of_the_q.html Muhammad and Massacre of the Qurayzah Jews] ''- James Arlandson, American Thinker''

*[http://www.kister.huji.ac.il/sites/default/files/banu_qurayza.pdf Massacre of the Banū Qurayẓa: A Re-Examination of a Tradition] ''- M. J. Kister, Jerusalem Studies in Arabic and Islam 8 (1986): 61-96''

==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Muhammad]]
[[Category:People of the Book]]
[[Category:Jihad]]
[[Category:Islamic History]]
[[Category:Sirah]]
[[Category:Sacred history]]
[[ar:مجزرة_بنو_قريظة]]

The Massacre of the Banu Qurayzah

2023-06-11T18:55:18Z

Vixen: /* Accounts in Hadiths */

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}[[File:Banu qurayza massacre.jpg|175px|right|thumb|Detail from miniature painting: ''The Prophet, Ali, and the Companions at the Massacre of the Prisoners of the Jewish Tribe of Beni Qurayza'', illustration of a 19th century text by Muhammad Rafi Bazil.]]According to the traditional Islamic sources, in 627 AD as a result of the [[Battle of the Trench]] and the betrayal of the Muslims by the Jewish tribe of Banu Qurayza, the Muslims under the direct military command of the prophet [[Muhammad]] laid siege to the Banu Qurayzah compound. After a siege of around 2 weeks, depending on the source, the Jews of Banu Qurayzah surrendered and entrusted their fate to a trusted intermediary from the Muslims of the tribe of 'Aws, Sa'd bin Mu'adh. Sa'd bin Mu'adh, however, claiming to be following the law of the Torah itself, advised Muhammad to slaughter the men folk of the tribe and sell the women and children into slavery. Muhammad took this advice and as a consequence between 400 and 900 prisoners of the tribe were slaughtered, many in front of their families, and the rest of the tribe were sold into slavery. The event is well attested to in the Islamic historical tradition, and has served as the basis for multiple rulings throughout history dealing with the treatment of captured non-Muslims by Muslim military forces.
==Background==
According to Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad's constant aggressive raids and warmongering against the Meccans had driven them, in alliance with the Jewish tribes he had expelled from Yathrib and the north Arabian tribe of Ghatfan, to put an end to him and his movement once and for all. The three original Jewish tribes of Medina, the Banu Nadir, the Banu Qaynuqaa', and the Banu Qurayza, had seen their number dwindle to one as Muhammad had expelled the Banu Nadir and the Banu Qaynuaqaa' from Medina on different pretexts. Meanwhile their property, including their precious palm trees, had been seized by Muhammad and the Muslims. Together with the Meccans and the Ghatfan, the exiled Jewish tribes of Medina had formed an alliance and gathered an army whose numbers are given in the sira as being around 10,000 strong, including over 600 mounted horsemen against very few cavalry for the Muslims, and 7,000 stronger than the army which had defeated Muhammad at the Muslims at Uhud. Muhammad at this time could call on a force of only around 3,000 men. Muhammad received word of their advance and began to make preparations. A Persian companion of the prophet named Salman, an apparent veteran of the Sassanid's many wars against the Romans, advised that when facing a great number of enemy horseman such as the confederate Jews and Meccans possessed, a good stratagem was to dig a defensive trench. It was decided to pursue this strategy <ref>Martin Lings Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources Inner Traditions 2006, pages 222-223</ref>. The Banu Qurayzah did not provide men to help but did provide entrenching tools and the Muslims strategy relied on the Banu Qurayza, whose fort lay in the rear of the Muslim defenses, not breaking their alliance with Muhammad and joining with the confederates. The strategy of the trench worked to win the battle against the Meccans and their allies, and the confederates were beaten back without many casualties for the Muslims, but this proved to be no end to the fighting.
==Narrative from the Sira==
The series of events leading to the destruction of the Banu Qurayzah started during the battle of the trench. Unable to break the defenses of the Medinian Muslims, the Meccans sent an emissary from their Jewish allies, “the enemy of Allah, Huyayy bin Akhtab An-Nadri” <ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh Oxford Universite Press 2005, p.453</ref>, to the Banu Qurayzah in an attempt to bring their aide and end the stalemate by attacking Muhammad and the Muslims in the rear of their defenses. According to Ibn Ishaq, initially the leader of the Banu Qurayzah Ka'b bin Asad al-Qurayzi did not even allow Huyayy bin Akhtab to enter the compound, but was goaded into doing so be Huyayy's accusation that bin Ka'b did not want to share his food. Ibn Ishaq does not make it clear how he knows this however he claims that the negotiation came to naught due to the Qurayza’s insistence that the Meccans offer hostages in order to assure they would not leave the field of battle till Muhammad was defeated (though they did in fact end up leaving without defeating Muhammad). According to Ibn Ishaq, the Banu Qurayzah after much "wheedling" agreed only to not aide the Muslims or to obstruct or fight the confederates. Ibn Ishaq offers as evidence of the Banu Qurayza’s perfidy an Isnad chain from Yahya bin ‘Abbaad bin ‘Abdullah bin Az-Zubayr with a story that a Muslim woman, Safiyah bint ‘AbdulMuttalib, who saw a Jewish scout of the Banu Qurayzah reconnoitering a Muslim fort in preparation for an attack. She told the fort's commander Hassan of this and asked him to kill the scout, and when he refused she took a club and went out and beat the man to death<ref>ibid, 458</ref>. Other than this Ibn Ishaq presents no evidence that the Jews of the Banu Qurayzah were in league with the confederates. He does, however, relate that Allah “sowed discord” between the confederates and the Banu Qurayza, which resulted in the Meccans retreating without having defeated Muhammad or engaged in a coordinated attack upon the Muslims with the Banu Qurayzah<ref>ibid, 459</ref>

The battle of the trench being won, Muhammad and his men put their entrenching tools and weapons down to head home. According to the sirah, though, Allah had other plans. The angel [[Jibreel]] appeared to Muhammad just as he had put down his weapon, and informed him that the battle was not yet over for the Jews of the Banu Qurayzah still needed to be dealt with due to their treachery, mentioned above. Muhammad informed his men that they were not to pray the 'asr prayer until they reached the Banu Qurayzah compound, meaning he wanted them to go there quickly. The Muslims laid siege to the compound for differing amounts of time depending on the source (Ibn Ishaq claims 25 days before "Allah cast terror in their hearts"). The Banu Qurayzah were told to surrender and accept Islam, something they swore they would never do. Despairing of their position, according to Ibn Ishaq, they discussed three options: accepting Islam, killing their wives and children and engaging in a banzai-style attack against the numerically superior Muslim forces (perhaps, modern commentators have added, in emulation of their religious forbearers at Masada in Palestine), or engaging in a sneak attack on the Jewish Sabbath. The Jews of the Banu Qurayzah found none of these options acceptable.

Unable to come to a decision and under siege for weeks, the Banu Qurayzah asked to speak with Abu Lubaba, a man of the tribe of 'Aws, their allies. Abu Lubaba, when asked what the Banu Qurayzah should do, advised them to surrender to the prophet, but at the same time raised his hand to his neck, indicating they would be slaughtered <ref>ibid, 462</ref>. After he left, he felt that his action in telling the Banu Qurayzah of their fate was a betrayal of the prophet, and he tied himself to a pillar to ask for Allah's forgiveness, an act that Muhammad approved of. Despite this warning, the Banu Qurayzah surrendered to the Muslims the following day <ref>ibid, 463</ref>.

The tribe of 'Aws, allies of the Banu Qurayzah from the time of [[jahilliyah]], asked for mercy for them from the prophet. The prophet, not wanting to cause dissension in his ranks (oaths and alliances of loyalty were very important in tribal Arab society, as in the absence of courts and established governments the only guaranty of security and justice which could be obtained was the promise of protection from allies in the case of murder, family feuds or war), entrusted the fate of the Banu Qurayzah to a trusted elder shaykh of the 'Aws, Sa‘d bin Mu‘adh, who had been mortally wounded during the battle and would in fact die a shortly after the slaughter of the Banu Qurayza. Once Sa'd bin Mu'adh had ascertained that both the Banu Qurayzah and the prophet would abide by his judgement, whatever it be, he gave it without hesitation: the men of the Banu Qurayzah were to be executed to the last, while the women and children should be sold into slavery. Sa'd bin Mu‘adh justified this decision as being from the Torah of the Jews itself. Ibn Ishaq does not cite the verse and chapter from the Bible but this is usually taken as a reference to the book of Deuteronomy 20:12-14:{{Quote|Deuteronomy 20:12-14|וְאִם לֹ֤א תַשְׁלִים֙ עִמָּ֔ךְ וְעָשְׂתָ֥ה עִמְּךָ֖ מִלְחָמָ֑ה וְצַרְתָּ֖ עָלֶֽיהָ וּנְתָנָ֛הּ יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ בְּיָדֶ֑ךָ וְהִכִּיתָ֥ אֶת כָּל זְכוּרָ֖הּ לְפִי חָֽרֶב רַ֣ק הַ֠נָּשִׁים וְהַטַּ֨ף וְהַבְּהֵמָ֜ה וְכֹל֩ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יִהְיֶ֥ה בָעִ֛יר כָּל־ שְׁלָלָ֖הּ תָּבֹ֣ז לָ֑ךְ וְאָֽכַלְתָּ֙ אֶת שְׁלַ֣ל אֹיְבֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָתַ֛ן יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ לָֽךְ

But if the city makes no peace with you, but makes war against you, then you shall besiege it; and when the Lord your God gives it into your hand you shall put all its males to the sword, but the women and the little ones, the cattle, and everything else in the city, all its spoil, you shall take as booty for yourselves; and you shall enjoy the spoil of your enemies, which the Lord your God has given you.}}

Although modern Muslims cite this verse in justification of Mu'adh's verdict, it should be noted that neither Jewish nor Christian tradition understands this verse as a blanket rule for warfare, but rather as a specific command to the Jews under the command of Joshua who were fighting the pagan peoples of the Holy Land. It has not, generally, been used by either religion to justify the sort of massacre that took place in Medina in other historical contexts.

The prisoners, thus condemned, were kept in the house or compound of a Muslim woman d. Al-Harith of the banu al-Najjaar tribe. In the morning they were marched out to a trench which had been dug in the city's market, and executed by decapitation <ref>ibid, 465</ref> . According to the sira of Ibn Ishaq, one woman was amongst them. The other women and the children were given as sexual and labor slaves to the Muslims, with only boys who had not yet reached puberty being allowed to live. According to the sira, the haul of weapons and plunder was substantial, but Muhammad still sent some of the women and children to be sold in the Najd for more horses and weapons <ref>ibid, 466</ref>. Muhammad as was custom received his pick of the loot including his pick of the females, a beautiful Jewish named Rayhana whose husband was decapitated, and the rest went to all the rest of the Muslims, with a Muslim on horse receiving 3 times the spoils of a foot soldier <ref>ibid, 466</ref>.

==Tafsir Accounts==
The famed [[tafsir|mufassir]] [[Ibn Kathir]], drawing upon his own sources as well as many other classical commentators, in his commentary on sura 33 Al-Ahzab الأحزاب "The Confederates" reaffirms many of the pertinent details from the sira narrative. In particular, Ibn Kathir reads into the Quran's denouncement of the [[people of the book]] the perfidious Jews of the tribe of Banu Qurayzah and their betrayal of the prophet:{{Quote|Tafsir of Ibn Kathir Qur'an Surah 33

|وَلِهَذَا قَالَ تَعَالَى: ﴿وَأَنزلَ الَّذِينَ ظَاهَرُوهُمْ﴾ أَيْ: عَاوَنُوا الْأَحْزَابَ وَسَاعَدُوهُمْ عَلَى حَرْبِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ ﴿مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ﴾ يَعْنِي: بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ مِنَ الْيَهُودِ، مِنْ بَعْضِ أَسْبَاطِ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ، كَانَ قَدْ نَزَلَ آبَاؤُهُمُ الْحِجَازَ قَدِيمًا، طَمَعًا فِي اتِّبَاعِ النَّبِيَّ الْأُمِّيَّ الذِي يَجِدُونَهُ مَكْتُوبًا عِنْدَهُمْ فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَالْإِنْجِيلِ، ﴿فَلَمَّا جَاءَهُمْ مَا عَرَفُوا كَفَرُوا بِه﴾ [الْبَقَرَةِ: ٨٩] ، فَعَلَيْهِمْ لَعْنَةُ اللَّهِ.

For thus the most-High said "Those how had backed them (the confederates) came down" meaning: they assisted the confederates and helped them to make war on the Apostle of God (sala allah 'aleyhi wasallam). "From the people of the book" that is to say the Banu Qurayza of the Jews, descendants of the sons of Israel, who had come down to the Hijaz in olden times, doing so (aiding the Meccans) greedily against the followers of the illiterate prophet (Muhammad) whom they found written about in the Torah and the Gospel "when he came to them they did not know him and disbelieved in him" (surah al-baqarah 89) }}He refers here to [[Surah]] 33:{{Quote|{{Quran-range|33|26|27}}| And He brought those of the People of the Scripture who supported them down from their strongholds, and cast panic into their hearts. Some ye slew and ye made captive some.

And He caused you to inherit their land and their houses and their wealth, and land ye have not trodden. Allah is Able to do all things }}Ibn Kathir confirms that it was the angels themselves who implored Muhammad not to stop fighting:{{Quote|Tafisr of Ibn Kathir on Qur'an Surah 33|2=وَرَجَعَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ إِلَى الْمَدِينَةِ مُؤَيَّدًا مَنْصُورًا، وَوَضَعَ النَّاسُ السِّلَاحَ. فَبَيْنَمَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ يَغْتَسِلُ(٤) مِنْ وَعْثَاءِ تِلْكَ الْمُرَابَطَةِ فِي بَيْتِ أُمِّ سَلَمَةَ

إِذْ تَبَدَّى لَهُ جِبْرِيلُ مُعْتَجِرًا بِعِمَامَةٍ مِنْ إِسْتَبْرَقٍ، عَلَى بَغْلَةٍ عَلَيْهَا قَطِيفَةٌ [مِنْ](٥) دِيبَاجٍ، فَقَالَ: أوضَعت السِّلَاحَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ؟ قَالَ: "نَعَمْ". قَالَ: لَكِنَّ الْمَلَائِكَةَ لَمْ تَضَعْ أَسْلِحَتَهَا، وَهَذَا الْآنَ رُجُوعِي مِنْ طَلَبِ الْقَوْمِ. ثُمَّ قَالَ: إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَأْمُرُكَ أَنْ تَنْهَضَ إِلَى بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ. وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ فَقَالَ لَهُ: عذيرَك مِنْ مُقَاتِلٍ، أَوَضَعْتُمُ السِّلَاحَ؟ قَالَ: "نَعَمْ". قَالَ: لَكِنَّا لَمْ نَضَعْ أَسْلِحَتَنَا بَعْدُ، انْهَضْ إِلَى هَؤُلَاءِ. قَالَ: "أَيْنَ؟ ". قَالَ: بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ، فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ أَمَرَنِي أَنْ أُزَلْزِلَ عَلَيْهِمْ. فَنَهَضَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ مِنْ فَوْرِهِ، وَأَمَرَ النَّاسَ بِالْمَسِيرِ إِلَى بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ، وَكَانَتْ عَلَى أَمْيَالٍ مِنَ الْمَدِينَةِ، وَذَلِكَ بَعْدَ صَلَاةِ الظُّهْرِ، وَقَالَ: "لَا يُصَلِّيَنَّ أَحَدٌ مِنْكُمُ الْعَصْرَ إِلَّا فِي بَنِي قُرَيْظَةَ".

the Messenger of Allah returned to Al-Madinah in triumph and the people put down their weapons. While the Messenger of Allah was washing off the dust of battle in the house of Umm Salamah, may Allah be pleased with her, Jibril, upon him be peace, came to him wearing a turban of brocade, riding on a mule on which was a cloth of silk brocade. He said, "Have you put down your weapons, O Messenger of Allah" He said, "Yes" He said, "But the angels have not put down their weapons. I have just now come back from pursuing the people." Then he said: "Allah, may He be blessed and exalted, commands you to get up and go to Banu Quraiza. According to another report, "What a fighter you are! Have you put down your weapons" He said, "Yes". He said, "But we have not put down our weapons yet, get up and go to these people." He said: "Where?" He said, "Banu Quraiza, for Allah has commanded me to shake them." So the Messenger of Allah got up immediately, and commanded the people to march towards Banu Quraiza, who were a few miles from Al-Madinah. This was after Salat Az-Zuhr. He said, No one among you should pray `Asr except at Banu Quraiza.}}Thus in the view of Ibn Kathir the fate of the Banu Qurayzah was the work of their own hand, a fate approved of and commanded by heaven itself. According to Ibn Kathir, their fate was exactly what Ibn Ishaq had described:{{Quote| Tafsir Ibn Kathir on Surah 33|2=فَقَالَ: إِنِّي أَحْكُمُ أَنْ تُقْتَلَ مُقَاتلتهم، وتُسبْى ذُرِّيَّتُهُمْ وَأَمْوَالُهُمْ. فَقَالَ لَهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: "لَقَدْ حَكَمْتَ بِحُكْمِ اللَّهِ مِنْ فَوْقِ سَبْعَةِ أَرْقِعَةٍ"(٨) . وَفِي رِوَايَةٍ: "لَقَدْ حكمتَ بِحُكْمِ المَلك". ثُمَّ أَمْرَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ بِالْأَخَادِيدِ فَخُدّت فِي الْأَرْضِ، وَجِيءَ بِهِمْ مُكْتَفِينَ، فَضَرَبَ أَعْنَاقَهُمْ، وَكَانُوا مَا بَيْنَ السَّبْعِمِائَةِ إِلَى الثَّمَانِمِائَةِ، وَسَبَى مَنْ لَمْ يُنبت مِنْهُمْ مَعَ النِّسَاءِ وَأَمْوَالِهِمْ(٩)

Then he (Sa'ad) said: My judgement is that their fighting-age men be killed, and their families and wealth be taken as booty. The prophet (sala allah 'aleyhi wasallam) said "You have judged with the judgement of Allah above the seven heavens." In another narration: "You have judged with the judgement of the King (Allah)." Then the Messenger of Allah commanded that ditches should be dug, so they were dug in the earth, and they were brought tied by their shoulders, and were beheaded. There were between seven hundred and eight hundred of them. The children who had not yet reached adolescence and the women were taken prisoner, and their wealth was seized.}}

==Accounts in Hadiths==
The hadith of Bukhari provide witness for the incidents described by Ishaq. Bukhari confirms that it was the angels who decree that the war be carried to the Banu Qurayza:{{Quote| {{Bukhari|4|52|68}}| Narrated 'Aisha: When Allah's Apostle returned on the day (of the battle) of Al-Khandaq (i.e. Trench), he put down his arms and took a bath. Then Gabriel whose head was covered with dust, came to him saying, "You have put down your arms! By Allah, I have not put down my arms yet." Allah's Apostle said, "Where (to go now)?" Gabriel said, "This way," pointing towards the tribe of Banu Qurayza. So Allah's Apostle went out towards them.}}Similiarly, he confirms that it is was Sa'ad who condemned them to their fate:{{Quote| {{Bukhari|5|58|148}}| Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri: Some people (i.e. the Jews of Bani bin Quraiza) agreed to accept the verdict of Sad bin Muadh so the Prophet sent for him (i.e. Sad bin Muadh). He came riding a donkey, and when he approached the Mosque, the Prophet ﷺ said, "Get up for the best amongst you." or said, "Get up for your chief." Then the Prophet ﷺ said, "O Sad! These people have agreed to accept your verdict." Sad said, "I judge that their warriors should be killed and their children and women should be taken as captives." The Prophet ﷺ said, "You have given a judgment similar to Allah's Judgment (or the King's judgment)."}}Incidentally, Bukhari mentions that even though Ibn Sa'd was called upon to provide a fair judgement to the Banu Qurayzahas a former ally, in fact he went to his death, caused by wounds suffered during the battle of the trench, wishing for death to the infidels:{{Quote| {{Bukhari|5|59|448}}| Sa`d was wounded on the day of Khandaq (i.e. Trench) when a man from Quraish, called Hibban bin Al-`Araqa hit him (with an arrow). The man was Hibban bin Qais from (the tribe of) Bani Mais bin 'Amir bin Lu'ai who shot an arrow at Sa`d's medial arm vein (or main artery of the arm). The Prophet (ﷺ) pitched a tent (for Sa`d) in the Mosque so that he might be near to the Prophet (ﷺ) to visit. When the Prophet returned from the (battle) of Al-Khandaq (i.e. Trench) and laid down his arms and took a bath Gabriel came to him while he (i.e. Gabriel) was shaking the dust off his head, and said, "You have laid down the arms?" By Allah, I have not laid them down. Go out to them (to attack them)." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Where?" Gabriel pointed towards Bani Quraiza. So Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) went to them (i.e. Banu Quraiza) (i.e. besieged them). They then surrendered to the Prophet's judgment but he directed them to Sa`d to give his verdict concerning them. Sa`d said, "I give my judgment that their warriors should be killed, their women and children should be taken as captives, and their properties distributed." Narrated Hisham: My father informed me that `Aisha said, "Sa`d said, "O Allah! You know that there is nothing more beloved to me than to fight in Your Cause against those who disbelieved Your Apostle and turned him out (of Mecca). O Allah! I think you have put to an end the fight between us and them (i.e. Quraish infidels). And if there still remains any fight with the Quraish (infidels), then keep me alive till I fight against them for Your Sake. But if you have brought the war to an end, then let this wound burst and cause my death thereby.' So blood gushed from the wound. There was a tent in the Mosque belonging to Banu Ghifar who were surprised by the blood flowing towards them. They said, 'O people of the tent! What is this thing which is coming to us from your side?' Behold! Blood was flowing profusely out of Sa`d's wound. Sa`d then died because of that."}}Bukhari also mentions the fate of the Banu Qurayza, carried out in accordance with Sa'd's judgement:{{Quote|{{bukhari|5|59|362}}, See Also: {{muslim|19|4364}}|Narrated Abd-Allah ibn Umar: Banu Nadir and Banu Qurayza fought (against the Prophet violating their peace treaty), so the Prophet exiled Bani An-Nadir and allowed Bani Quraiza to remain at their places (in Medina) taking nothing from them till they fought against the Prophet again). He then killed their men and distributed their women, children and property among the Muslims, but some of them came to the Prophet and he granted them safety, and they embraced Islam. He exiled all the Jews from Medina. They were the Jews of Banu Qaynuqa, the tribe of Abdullah bin Salam and the Jews of Bani Haritha and all the other Jews of Medina. }}Sunan Abi Dawud tells us exactly how it was determined, whether a male youth would be spared, based on whether he had had reached puberty or not:{{Quote| {{Abudawud|38|4390}}| Narrated Atiyyah al-Qurazi:

I was among the captives of Banu Qurayza. They (the Companions) examined us, and those who had begun to grow hair (pubes) were killed, and those who had not were not killed. I was among those who had not grown hair.}}
==Modern Views and Perspectives==
<center><youtube>UZE1N56fswY</youtube></center>In the clip above Muslim scholar Yasir Qadhi, well respected for his degrees from the Islamic University of Medina as well as from Yale, makes the argument that Muhammad was dealing with treachery and he had taken the maximum punitive actions against it. Qadhi argues that the prophet was justified in every step and showed as much restraint as necessary, being motivated purely by concerns on statecraft and practicality, not by malice. As he says, it is possible to accuse the prophet of being "harsh" but not of acting with malice towards the Banu Qurayza or the Jews in general, as this would not be "academically valid." Yasir Qadhi states that the punishment was "harsh" and yet it is sometimes necessary to be harsh. Yaqeen institute scholar Abu Amina Elias (Justin Parrott) makes the cases that killing the "fighting men" prisoners of the Banu Qurayzah was an "act of self-defense" on the part of the Muslim community and cites Deuteronomy 20:12-14 to justify the actions of the Muslims, agreeing with Ibn Ishaq that Sa'd was judging the Jews by their own law. He also claims that the prophet only sent his men their with arms to "defend themselves" and that the women and children of the Banu Qurayzahwere taken "into captivity" for their protection since all of their men folk had been slaughtered <ref>"Did the Prophet commit genocide against Jews?" Faith in Allah There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger https://abuaminaelias.com/prophet-genocide-banu-qurayza/ April 8, 2013</ref>. Karen Armstrong, in her book A Short History of Islam, likewise claims "The struggle did not indicate any hostility towards Jews in general, but only towards the three rebel tribes. The Quran continued to revere Jewish prophets and to urge Muslims to respect the People of the Book."<ref>Islam:A Short History Karen Armstrong Modern Library 2002</ref>

These arguments are all echoes of the original arguments found in the material above. Ibn Ishaq claims that the Jews of Banu Qurayzah posed a threat to the Muslims via their betrayal and does portray Muhammad as hesitating to decide their fate. Ibn Ishaq even recounts of how "harsh" the punishment was:{{Quote|{{citation|page=462 (paragraph: 686)|trans_title=The Life of Muhammad|title=Sirat Rasul Allah|author1=Ibn Ishaq|author2=Ibn Hisham|author3=al-Tabari|editor=A. Guillaume|year=1955|publisher=Oxford UP|ISBN=0196360331|location=Karachi|url=https://archive.org/details/GuillaumeATheLifeOfMuhammad/page/n381/mode/2up}}|Apostle sent him (Abu Lubaba) to them (Banu Quraiza), and when they saw him they got up to meet him. The women and children went up to him weeping in his face, and he felt sorry for them. They said, ‘Oh Abu Lubaba, do you think that we should submit to Muhammad's judgement? He said ‘yes' and pointed with his hand to his throat signifying slaughter.}}Yet critics of these pro-Islam viewpoints have pointed out that the verse cited by modern Muslims from Deuteronomy to justify the extermination of the Banu Qurayzah was not viewed in this way by traditional Christian or especially Jewish scholarship. According to Jewish doctrine, these verses were revealed to Moses before the Israelites entered the Holy Land, specifically instructing them on how to deal with the people living there.<ref>"Muhammad’s atrocity against the Qurayza Jews" James M. Arlandson Answering Islam https://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Arlandson/qurayza_jews.htm</ref> Morever, the claim that there was no apparent animus towards the Jews of Banu Qurayza on the part of Muhammad is contradicted by Ibn Ishaq's account:{{Quote|Ibn Ishaq: 684 | "When the apostle approached their forts he (Muhammad) said: "You brothers of monkeys...has god disgraced you and brought his vengeance upon you?"

Banu Qurayza replied: "O Abul Qasim (Muhammad), you are not a barbarous person" }}In mocking them as apes, Muhammad is here echoing the Qur'an, which claims that (some) Jews were turned into apes for violating the sabbath (Qur'an 50:60).
Ibn Ishaq also records that Muhammad took one of the Jewish women of the Banu Qurayza, Rayhanah, for himself.<ref>"The Apostle had chosen one of the women for himself, Rayḥāna d. ʿAmr b. Khunāfa, one of the women of B. ʿAmr b. Qurayẓa, and she remained with him until she died, in his power." Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh Oxford Universite Press 2005, p.466</ref> Indeed, according to this account the destruction of this tribe allowed Muhammad to reward his fighters handsomely (and Muhammad himself took a fifth of the booty). Abu Amina Elias's view that the Muslims took such women and children as Rayhana captive simply for their protection also cannot be true, as Ibn Ishaq also recounts that some of them were taken to the far-off region of the Najd to be sold for weapons and horses. Yasir Qadhi himself points out that the Banu Qurayzah were offered freedom to live on were they to accept Islam, and according to the sirah only their hard, petulant hearts which rejected Muhammad despite knowing he was a prophet of the Lord prevented them from allowing themselves to be saved by conversion to Islam. So clearly, at least in the eyes of the sirah, their Jewish religion did, in fact, have something to do with the pitilessness with which Muhammad dealt with them, going against Qadhi's point that the prophet acted without malice or religious animus according to the sources we have. Bukhari also mentions that the prophet commanded his men to abuse the Banu Qurayzah with poetry, which was in ancient Arab times one of the premier ways of promoting enmity with an enemy (Muhammad ordered poets who did this to him to be killed):{{Quote| {{Bukhari|5|59|449}}|Narrated Al-Bara: "On the day of Qurayza’s (besiege), Allah's Apostle said to Hassan bin Thabit, 'Abuse them (with your poems), and Gabriel is with you"}}
==Problems with the Traditional Narrative==
The narrative of the Banu Qurayzahis an accepted part of Islamic law, and multiple Islamic jurists have cited it, including when ruling that certain populations of Jews and other non-believers be massacred. As such there is no question amongst orthodox Muslims that it happened <ref>"Extended Interview: The legacy of Islamic Antisemetism" Andrew Bostom andrewbostom.org 13 June 2008</ref>. Yet the historiography of the subject is not without its own problems.

Within the Islamic tradition, Ibn Ishaq was frequently criticized for giving too much weight to Jewish stories and being biased in general in his retellings of certain events. Malik ibn Anas accusses Ibn Ishaq of being a "liar" for listening to "Jewish stories" <ref>"New Light on the Story of Banu Qurayza and the Jews of Medina", W.N Arafat 2001 p. 100-107</ref>.

Modern scholarship has cast much more serious doubts on the scholarship of Islamic scholars working in the 8th century (2nd Islamic century) such as Ibn Ishaq. As Fred Donner points out, one of the earliest documents we have from the nascent proto-Islamic movement is the ''Constitution of Medina'' صحيفة مدينة also known as the Ummah Document or صحيفة الأمة. This remarkable document, preserved by the Islamic historian [[Al-Tabari]], lays out a compact for the "believers" of Medina, an "ummah" or national community that includes the Jews as "believers" on the same level as the Arab believers. Fred Donner believes this document actually points to an early, occulted history of Islam in which Arab monotheists joined with Jews into one "ummah" under the command of Muhammad. Troublingly for the historical narrative, this document makes mention of many different Jewish tribes, but the main 3 tribes of the sira, the Banu Qurayza, the Banu Qaynuqaa', and the Banu Nadir are conspicuously absent. It is in fact the absence of these tribes which convinces scholars that the document must be very old despite being preserved only in the 9th-century works of Tabari, since a younger document would presumably would have been changed to agree with the established historical narrative. Donner mentions that many early 7th century mosques do not include the qibla facing towards Mecca, and concludes that this story of the massacre of the Banu Qurayzah may have been invented or embellished in order to explain a much later break between the Jewish and Muslim communities <ref>Muhammad and the Believers: At the Orgins of Islam, Fred Donner, Harvard University Press 2010, p. 72-73</ref>.

Patricia Crone and Michael Cook in their groundbreaking work ''Hagarism'' likewise report on an Armenian historian writing in the 7th century known as pseudo-Sabeous. This historian imputes the Arab invasions to a confederation of Jews and Arabs led by Muhammad himself, contradicting the Islamic narrative that Muhammad died before the invasion of Palestine and the Middle East. Pseudo-Sebeos likewise imputes to the Arabs and Jews a shared monotheism and brotherhood through their ancestry to Abraham and his wife Hagar <ref>Hagarism: Making of the Islamic World, Patricia Crone and Michael Cook, Cambridge University Press 1977, p. 6-8</ref>. If this account is to be believed, there could not have been any great massacre of the Jews by Muhammad as we has working with them when he invaded Palestine. Stephen Shoemaker in his work ''The Death of a Prophet'' adds further evidence to thesis of Crone and Cook, marshaling evidence from a wide variety of sources, almost all of which predate the first Islamic sources, that Muhammad himself was actually the leader of the believers when they entered Palestine and he died only after its conquest. In particular he calls attention to a Jewish apocalypse from the 7th century, the Secrets of Rabbi ben Shim'on, which seems to paint Muhammad as the redeemer of the Jews from the oppression of the Romans in the Holy Land. If this is to be believed, and this source predates every Islamic source we have, the massacre of the Banu Qurayzahcould not have taken place, since Muhammad, the leader of the invasion of Palestine, was seen as a savior of the Jewish people <ref>The Death of a Prophet, Stephen Shoemaker, University of Pennsylvania Press 2012, p. 27-33</ref>. This would seem to indicate that the break between the Muslims and the Jews took place after his death, and would indicate that stories such as the massacre of the Banu Qurayzahwere fabricated in order to "back date" the break with the Jews to the prophet's own lifetime.

==See Also==

*[[List of Killings Ordered or Supported by Muhammad]]

==External Links==

*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Muhammad/Jews/BQurayza/index.html What really happened to the Banu Qurayza] ''- Collection of articles from Answering Islam''

*[https://www.call-to-monotheism.com/rebuttal_to_answering_islam_s_article__the_bani_quraytha_jews__traitors_or_betrayed_ Rebuttal to Answering Islam's Article "The Bani Quraytha Jews: Traitors or Betrayed?] - ''Muslim Rebuttal to Answering Islam's Article "The Bani Quraytha Jews: Traitors or Betrayed?"''

*[http://www.americanthinker.com/2006/02/muhammad_and_massacre_of_the_q.html Muhammad and Massacre of the Qurayzah Jews] ''- James Arlandson, American Thinker''

*[http://www.kister.huji.ac.il/sites/default/files/banu_qurayza.pdf Massacre of the Banū Qurayẓa: A Re-Examination of a Tradition] ''- M. J. Kister, Jerusalem Studies in Arabic and Islam 8 (1986): 61-96''

==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Muhammad]]
[[Category:People of the Book]]
[[Category:Jihad]]
[[Category:Islamic History]]
[[Category:Sirah]]
[[Category:Sacred history]]
[[ar:مجزرة_بنو_قريظة]]

Adult Suckling

2023-06-04T11:24:58Z

Vixen: /* Adult suckling in scripture */

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'''Adult suckling''' (Arabic: '''رَضَاعَةُ الْكَبِيرِ'''), or the act of breastfeeding a male adult, is mentioned in several relied-upon collections of [[Hadith|hadiths]]. According to five hadiths in [[Sahih Muslim]], [[Muhammad]] once plainly instructed the daughter (or wife -- sources are unclear) of a [[Sahabah|companion]] named Suhail to suckle a "grown-up" freedman named Salim so that Salim would become the daughter's ''mahram'', or a relation whom the daughter could no longer marry, and thus render Salim's cohabitation with the family appropriate and [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)|legal]].<ref>[https://quranx.com/Hadith/Muslim/Reference/Hadith-1453 Sahih Muslim, hadiths 3424-3428]</ref> Reports in the Muwatta of Imam Malik<ref>{{Muwatta|30|3|17}}</ref> and Sunan Ibn Majah<ref>{{Ibn Majah|9|3|9|1944}}</ref> add that this instruction was reified by a verse in the [[Qur'an]], Islam's holy scripture, which was still present in the Qur'an after [[Muhammad's Death|Muhammad's death]], indicating that it had not been [[Naskh (Abrogation)|abrogated]] by Muhammad while he was alive. The report in Sunan Abu Dawud continues with [[Aisha]], Muhammad's favorite wife, reporting that while she was "preoccupied with [Muhammad's] death", "a tame sheep came in and ate" the scrap of paper upon which the verse of "breastfeeding an adult" was written. The practice, sanctioned by a number of traditional jurists, is popularly rejected by Islamic scholars today.

Translated literally, "mahram" means "that which is prohibited (haram)", which explains the phrasing used in the hadiths (e.g. "[he] would become unlawful for [her]"). The word mahram is used to refer to relations who one cannot marry. As a result of mahrams not being permitted to conceive of each other as marital/sexual prospects (e.g. a brother and sister), the female does not have to observe all the requirements of hijab and is permitted to be alone with a male.

Following the publication of a book in Egypt promoting adult suckling by Dr. Abd Al-Mahdi Abd Al-Qadir, a scholar at al-Azhar (the "Harvard of Islam"), another scholar at al-Azhar, Dr. Izzat Atiyya, published a [[fatwa]] promoting the practice in a widely-read weekly magazine in 2007, causing national and international controversy. The Egyptian government subsequently called for the removal of the relevant edition of the magazine from sellers' shelves and Dr. Atiyya was suspended from his post at al-Azhar.<ref name=":0" />

==Adult suckling in scripture==

===In the hadiths===
An entire chapter in Sahih Muslim, containing six hadiths, is dedicated to the topic of "Breastfeeding an adult" (باب رَضَاعَةِ الْكَبِيرِ).<ref>{{Citation|title=Sahih Muslim|chapter=(7) Chapter: Breastfeeding an adult|trans_chapter=باب رَضَاعَةِ الْكَبِيرِ‏|url=https://sunnah.com/muslim/17|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201213071552/https://sunnah.com/muslim/17}}</ref> The hadiths describes how, via suckling, an adult male can become a female's mahram and thus be allowed to accompany her in private. {{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3425}}|'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Salim, the freed slave of Abu Hadhaifa, lived with him and his family in their house. She (i. e. the daughter of Suhail came to Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) and said: Salim has attained (puberty) as men attain, and he understands what they understand, and he enters our house freely, I, however, perceive that something (rankles) in the heart of Abu Hudhaifa, whereupon '''Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) said to her: Suckle him and you would become unlawful for him''', and (the rankling) which Abu Hudhaifa feels in his heart will disappear. '''She returned and said: So I suckled him, and what (was there) in the heart of Abu Hudhaifa disappeared'''.|}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3424}}|A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Sahla bint Suhail came to Allah's Apostle (may peace be eupon him) and said:

Messengerof Allah, I see on the face of Abu Hudhaifa (signs of disgust) on entering of Salim (who is an ally) into (our house), whereupon Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) said: Suckle him. '''She said: How can I suckle him as he is a grown-up man? Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) smiled and said: I already know that he is a young man.''' 'Amr has made this addition in his narration: that he [Salim] participated in the Battle of Badr and in the narration of Ibn 'Umar (the words are): Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) laughed.}}{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3426}}|Ibn Abu Mulaika reported that al-Qasim b. Muhammad b. Abu Bakr had narrated to him that 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Sahla bint Suhail b. 'Amr came to Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) and said:

Messenger of Allah, Salim (the freed slave of Abu Hudhaifa) is living with us in our house, and he has attained (puberty) as men attain it and has acquired knowledge (of the sex problems) as men acquire, whereupon he said: Suckle him so that he may become unlawful (in regard to marriage) for you He (Ibn Abu Mulaika) said: '''I refrained from (narrating this hadith) for a year or so on account of fear. I then met al-Qasim and said to him: You narrated to me a hadith which I did not narrate (to anyone) afterwards. He said: What is that? I informed him, whereupon he said: Narrate it on my authority that 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) had narrated that to me.'''}}
Hadiths regarding adult suckling are also found in the Muwatta of Imam Malik, the Sunan of Ibn Majah, and the Musnad of Imam Ahmad.
====Aisha's opinion vs. that of her co-wives====
One of the six hadiths on adult suckling in Sahih Muslim describes Aisha as the individual who instructed Muhammad's companions to implement the practice sanctioned by Muhammad.
{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3427}}|Umm Salama said to 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her):

A young boy who is at the threshold of puberty comes to you. '''I, however, do not like that he should come to me, whereupon 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) said: Don't you see in Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) a model for you?''' She also said: The wife of Abu Hudhaifa said: Messenger of Allah, Salim comes to me and now he is a (grown-up) person, and there is something that (rankles) in the mind of Abu Hudhaifa about him, whereupon Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: Suckle him (so that he may become your foster-child), and thus he may be able to come to you (freely).}}
An account described in the ''Umm'' of Imam Shafi'i provides further detail, stating that Aisha enforced the suckling requirement on all those who wanted to meet with her. Imam Shafi'i also describes how Aisha would have her sister Umm Kulthum suckle those who wanted to meet with Aisha in her place, since being the mahram of one person renders one the mahram of all of that person's sibling.
{{Quote|{{citation|url=https://app.turath.io/book/1655|author=Imam Shafi'i|title=al-Umm|volume=5|page=28|publisher=al-Maktabah al-Shamilah|chapter=مَا يحرم مِنْ النِّسَاء بِالْقَرَابَةِ}}; translation taken from: {{citation|url=http://www.hadith-studies.com/Burton-Theories-Abrogation.pdf|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20170914141028/http://www.hadith-studies.com/Burton-Theories-Abrogation.pdf|page=157|author=John Burton|publisher=Edinburgh University Press|title=The Sources of Islamic Law: Islamic theories of abrogation|year=1990}}|[Aisha] reported that 'in what was revealed of the Kur'an, ten attested breast-feeds were mentioned as required to establish the marriage-ban [i.e. render the suckled person a ''mahram'']. The ten were replaced by mention of five attested breast-feeds. The Prophet died and the five were still being recited in the Kur'an. '''No man ever called upon 'A'isha who had not completed the minimum course of five sucklings.''' 
'Abdullah b. al-Zubayr reports that the Prophet said, 'One suckling does not constitute the ban, nor two, nor does one or two sucks.' 
'Urwa b. al-Zubayr reports that the Prophet commanded the wife of Abu Hudhayfa to feed her husbands ''mawla'' [freed slave], Salim, so that he could go on living with them. The prophet specified five breast-feeds. 
'''Salim b. 'Abdullah reports that he was never able to visit 'A'isha. She had sent him to be suckled by her sister Umm Kulthum who, however, suckled him only three times, then fell sick. Salim added, 'Thus, I never did complete the course of ten sucklings.''''}}

Similar statements are found in the following hadith in Muwatta Malik, where we also see that Muhammad's other wives adamantly refused the instruction, and considered the ruling given by Muhammad to be a special dispensation just for Salim and Suhail's daughter. <ref>{{Citation|url=https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/342208/aaishahs-view-regarding-breastfeeding-adult|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20210104022820/https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/342208/aaishahs-view-regarding-breastfeeding-adult|publication-date=January 1st, 2017|publisher=IslamWeb.net|title=Fatwa No 342208: Aa'ishah's view regarding breastfeeding adult}}</ref>
{{Quote|{{Muwatta|30||12}}|..."Sahla bint Suhayl who was the wife of Abu Hudhayfa, and one of the tribe of Amr ibn Luayy, came to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and said, 'Messenger of Allah! We think of Salim as a son and he comes in to see me while I am uncovered. We only have one room, so what do you think about the situation?' The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'Give him five drinks of your milk and he will be mahram by it.' She then saw him as a foster son. A'isha umm al-muminin took that as a precedent for whatever men she wanted to be able to come to see her. '''She ordered her sister, Umm Kulthum bint Abi Bakr as-Siddiq and the daughters of her brother to give milk to whichever men she wanted to be able to come in to see her.''' The rest of the wives of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, refused to let anyone come in to them by such nursing. They said, 'No! By Allah! We think that what the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, ordered Sahla bint Suhayl to do was only an indulgence concerning the nursing of Salim alone. '''No! By Allah! No one will come in upon us by such nursing!''' "This is what the wives of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, thought about the suckling of an older person."}}

Similar sentiments from Muhammad's other wives are expressed in a hadith in Sahih Muslim.
{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3429}}|Umm Salama, the wife of Allah's Apostle (ﷺ), used to say that all wives of Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) disclaimed the idea that one with this type of fosterage (having been suckled after the proper period) should come to them. and said to 'A'isha: By Allah, we do not find this but a sort of concession given by Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) only for Salim, and no one was ging to be allowed to enter (our houses) with this type of fosterage and we do not subscribe to this view.}}

===In the Qur'an===
Accounts provided in the hadith agree that a verse requiring ten sucklings was revealed, followed by a verse requiring just five sucklings. The same hadiths detailing these verses state that the final verse, having been written only upon a scrap of paper stored under Aisha's pillow, was lost after the death of Muhammad when a sheep entered her room and ate the scrap of paper. As noted above, the ruling had been very unpopular with Muhammad's other wives. The Qur'anic verse on stoning adulterers is likewise said to have been lost in this same incident.{{Quote|{{Muwatta|30|3|17}}|Yahya related to me from Malik from Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr ibn Hazm from Amra bint Abd ar-Rahman that A'isha, the wife of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "'''Amongst what was sent down of the Qur'an was 'ten known sucklings make haram' - then it was abrogated by 'five known sucklings'.''' When the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, died, it was what is now recited of the Qur'an."

Yahya said that Malik said, "One does not act on this."}}

{{Quote|{{Ibn Majah|9|3|9|1944}}|It was narrated that 'Aishah said:

“'''The Verse of stoning and of breastfeeding an adult ten times was revealed, and the paper was with me under my pillow.''' When the Messenger of Allah died, we were preoccupied with his death, and '''a tame sheep came in and ate it'''.” '''These verses were abrogated in recitation but not ruling.''' Other ahadith establish the number for fosterage to be 5.}}

{{Quote|{{Ibn Majah|9|3|9|1942}}|It was narrated that 'Aishah said:

“Once of the things that Allah revealed in the the Qur'an and then abrogated [the word translated as "abrogated" is سقط, which means "dropped"<ref>[http://ejtaal.net/aa/#hw4=h496,ll=1426,ls=h5,la=h2037,sg=h517,ha=h337,br=h466,pr=h78,aan=h272,mgf=h431,vi=h193,kz=h1116,mr=h316,mn=h640,uqw=h781,umr=h509,ums=h430,umj=h372,ulq=h938,uqa=h200,uqq=h155,bdw=h435,amr=h309,asb=h460,auh=h756,dhq=h262,mht=h420,msb=h113,tla=h57,amj=h360,ens=h191,mis=h1035 Lane's Lexicon سقط]</ref>, and not نسخ, which is the word used to refer to legal [[Abrogation|abrogation]]<ref>[http://ejtaal.net/aa/#hw4=h1141,ll=2886,ls=h54,la=h4406,sg=h1135,ha=h777,br=h958,pr=h155,aan=h662,mgf=h807,vi=h370,kz=h2649,mr=h721,mn=h1412,uqw=h1643,umr=h1073,ums=h905,umj=h842,ulq=h1662,uqa=h417,uqq=h393,bdw=h878,amr=h631,asb=h985,auh=h1607,dhq=h562,mht=h895,msb=h237,tla=h95,amj=h826,ens=h191,mis=h2189 Lane's Lexicon نسخ]</ref>. This is also the usage found in the Qur'an itself<ref>{{quran|2|106}}</ref>] was that '''nothing makes marriage prohibited except ten breastfeedings or five well-known (breastfeedings''').” (Sahih)}}

==2007 Azhar fatwas==

===Dr. Izzat Atiyya===
In 2007, Dr. Izzat Atiyya, the head of the hadith department at al-Azhar university (one of if the highest authorities in [[Sunni]] Islam today and the world's most renowned Islamic university - often described as the "Harvard of Islam"), issued a [[fatwa]] empowering Muslims to implement the practice of adult suckling to avoid the social and professional inconveniences generated by the requirements of female [[hijab]]. He encouraged that one should be breastfed by a woman's sisters or mother in order to attain mahram status if it was not possible for whatever reason to suckle the woman directly. He also encouraged that women who adopt children, since there is no legal recognition for adoption in Islamic law, ought to breastfeed their adopted sons, no matter their age, so that they can establish a legal mother-son relationship. The fatwa was published in ''al-Watani al-Yawm'', a weekly newspaper published by Egypt's ruling National Democratic Front party, and explained by Dr. Atiyya in person during an interview with the publication. Dr. Atiyya repeatedly declared that the sources he quoted belonged to the Islamic holy texts with the highest possible authority. According to him no less than 90,000 contemporary scholars confirmed that the hadith referred to is authentic. Dr. Abd Al-Mahdi Abd Al-Qadir, another scholar at al-Azhar, wrote and published a book rendering similar ideas based on the same Islamic sources prior to Dr. Atiyya's fatwa.<ref name=":0">{{citation|publisher=MEMRI|date=June 3rd, 2007|url=https://www.memri.org/reports/al-azhar-lecturer-suspended-after-issuing-controversial-fatwa-recommending-breastfeeding-men|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201213113417/https://www.memri.org/reports/al-azhar-lecturer-suspended-after-issuing-controversial-fatwa-recommending-breastfeeding-men|author=L. Lavi|chapter=Al-Azhar Lecturer Suspended after Issuing Controversial Fatwa Recommending Breastfeeding of Men by Women in the Workplace|title=Inquiry & Analysis Series|volume=355}}; see also {{citation|title=Al-Watani Al-Yawm|date=May 15th, 2007|location=Egypt|publisher=National Democratic Front Party}}</ref>

{{Quote|Quote from Dr. Atiyya; {{citation|publisher=MEMRI|date=June 3rd, 2007|url=https://www.memri.org/reports/al-azhar-lecturer-suspended-after-issuing-controversial-fatwa-recommending-breastfeeding-men|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201213113417/https://www.memri.org/reports/al-azhar-lecturer-suspended-after-issuing-controversial-fatwa-recommending-breastfeeding-men|author=L. Lavi|chapter=Al-Azhar Lecturer Suspended after Issuing Controversial Fatwa Recommending Breastfeeding of Men by Women in the Workplace|title=Inquiry & Analysis Series|volume=355}}; see also {{citation|title=Al-Watani Al-Yawm|date=May 15th, 2007|location=Egypt|publisher=National Democratic Front Party}}|"The religious ruling that appears in the Prophet's conduct [Sunna] confirms that '''breastfeeding allows a man and a woman to be together in private, even if they are not family and if the woman did not nurse the man in his infancy''', before he was weaned – providing that their being together serves some purpose, religious or secular...

"Being together in private means being in a room with the door closed, so that nobody can see them... A man and a woman who are not family members are not permitted [to do this], because it raises suspicions and doubts. A man and a woman who are alone together are not [necessarily] having sex, but this possibility exists, and breastfeeding provides a solution to this problem... I also insist that the breastfeeding relationship be officially documented in writing... The contract will state that this woman has suckled this man... After this, the woman may remove her hijab and expose her hair in the man's [presence]...

"is that the man and the woman must be related through breastfeeding. '''[This can also be achieved] by means of the man's mother or sister suckling the woman, or by means of the woman's mother or sister suckling the man''', since [all of these solutions legally] turn them into brother and sister...

"The logic behind [the concept] of breastfeeding an adult is to transform the bestial relationship between [two people] into a religious relationship based on [religious] duties... Since [this] breastfeeding takes place between [two] adults, the man is still permitted to marry the woman [who breastfed him], whereas [a woman] who nursed [a man] in his infancy is not permitted to marry him...

"'''The adult must suckle directly from the [woman's] breast...''' [This according to a hadith attributed to Aisha, wife of the Prophet's Muhammad], which tells of Salem [the adopted son of Abu Hudheifa] who was breastfed by Abu-Hudheifa's wife when he was already a grown man with a beard, by the Prophet's order... Other methods, such as [transferring] the milk to a container, are [less desirable]...

"[As for the possibility of using a breast-pump, which] increases the production of the milk glands... that is a matter for doctors and religious scholars who must determine if the milk [thus produced] is real milk, i.e., if its composition is identical to that of the [woman's] original milk. If it is, this method is permissible...

'''"The fact that the hadith regarding the breastfeeding of an adult is inconceivable to the mind does not make it invalid. This is a reliable hadith, and rejecting it is tantamount to rejecting Allah's Messenger and questioning the Prophet's tradition."'''}}

Dr. Atiyya's fatwa was followed by immense controversy in Egypt and internationally. Shortly after publication, a committee assembled by al-Azhar suspended Dr. Atiyya from his academic post and the Egyptian information minister ordered the removal of the relevant edition of ''al-Watan al-Yawm'' from sellers' shelves. Dr. Atiyya was ordered by al-Azhar to make a public apology. Dr. Atiyya complied.<ref name=":0" />

{{Quote|Quote from Dr. Atiyya; Ibid.; see also {{citation|title=Al-Watani Al-Yawm|date=May 22nd, 2007|location=Egypt|publisher=National Democratic Front Party}}|"'''My statements on the issue of breastfeeding an adult were based on the imams Ibn Hazm, Ibn Taymiyya, Ibn Al-Qayyim, Al-Shawkani and Amin Khattab [Al-Subki], and on conclusions I drew from the statements of Ibn Hajar [Al-Askalani].''' However, I hold that only the breastfeeding of an infant creates a family relationship [that prohibits marriage between the parties and allows them to be together], as the Four Imams [i.e., the founders of the four Sunni legal schools] said, while the [act of] breastfeeding a grown man [mentioned in the hadith] was a [specific] incident that came to serve a [specific] purpose, and the fatwa I issued was based solely on my personal interpretation. Based on what I have learned with my brothers the religious scholars, I apologize for my earlier [statements] and retract my opinion, which contradicts [the norms accepted] by the public."}}

===Responses===
The head of the al-Azhar Supreme Council, Sheikh Dr. Muhammad Sayyid Tantawi, publicly refused to accept Dr. Atiyya's apology.<ref name=":0" />

{{Quote|Quote from the head of the al-Azhar Supreme Council, Sheikh Dr. Muhammad Sayyid Tantawi; Ibid.|"We must not be too lax in matters of religion, especially when the matter at hand is a fatwa that significantly affects people's actual lives, inclinations, and views – because it speaks to their natural emotions which [lead them to] embrace what is permitted and shun prohibitions." Tantawi said, "Society cannot tolerate [a fatwa] that undermines its religious stability. There is enough chaos with all the unsupervised fatwas [published] on some satellite channels. We will never permit this chaos to spread to the religious establishment and to Al-Azhar."}}

Dr. Abd al-Fatah Asaker commented saying that hadiths such as the relevant hadiths could not be accepted as authentic, even if they came from [[Sahih Bukhari]] or Sahih Muslim.<ref name=":0" />

{{Quote|Quote from Dr. Abd al-Fatah Asaker; Ibid.|"Would Dr. Abd Al-Mahdi [Abd Al-Qadr] agree [to let] his wife, daughter, sister or even his mother breastfeed a grown man – whether a stranger or a family member? Would the Muslim scholars [want people] to say that their wives breastfeed any man who comes along? . . . It is inconceivable that Islam, which commands the believing [men and women] to lower their eyes [in modesty], should permit a strange man to place his mouth on the breast of a married woman and suckle from [it]."}}

The Muslim Brotherhood also criticized the fatwa harshly and took the matter to parliament. Despite 50 Egyptian MPs discussing the matter however, they "refrained from submitting a parliamentary question in order to avoid creating too big an uproar".<ref name=":0" />
==External links==

*[https://theislamissue.wordpress.com/2019/02/15/breastfeeding-adults-in-islam/ Breastfeeding adults in Islam]
*[http://memri.org/bin/latestnews.cgi?ID=IA35507#_edn1 The Middle East Media Research Institute on Dr. Atiyyas Suspension and related matters (with many links)]
*[http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2007/05/16/34518.html Article in Arabic on Al Arabia online with more than 2400 comments]
*{{Citation|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/2020*/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6681511.stm|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6681511.stm|chapter=Breastfeeding fatwa causes stir|publisher=BBC|publication-date=May 22nd, 2007}}

==References==
[[Category:Women]]
[[Category:Shariah (Islamic Law)]]
[[ar:رضاعة_الكبار]]
<references />

Scientific Errors in the Quran

2023-03-09T20:31:11Z

Vixen: /* Geocentricism */

{{QualityScore|Lead=3|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=3|References=4}}A common criticism of the [[Quran]], [[Scientific Errors in the Hadith|as with the Hadith]], is that it contains numerous [[Islam and Science|scientific]] and [[Historical Errors in the Qur'an|historical errors]], with no obvious attempts to differentiate its understanding of the natural world and historical events from the common folklore and misconceptions of the people living in 7th century Arabia. Modern responses typically appeal to metaphor, alternative meanings, or phenomenological interpretations of such verses. They also argue that the wording needed to be acceptable to people of its time. Critics typically argue that an all-knowing, perfect communicator would nevertheless have been able to avoid statements in the Quran that reinforced misconceptions of the time, caused future generations to have doubts about its perfection, and on a scale that critics contend is an overwhelming weakness.

==Astronomy==

===Geocentricism===
{{Main|Geocentrism and the Quran|l1=Geocentrism and the Qur'an}}

The Qur'an mentions a few times that the sun and the moon travel in an orbit or sphere/hemisphere (fee falakin فِى فَلَكٍ<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000227.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2443 فَلَكٍ] and [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000228.pdf p. 2444]</ref>), but does not mention once that the Earth does too. This is consistent with an Earth-centered (geocentric) view of the cosmos that places a motionless Earth at the center of the universe and all "heavenly bodies" travel around the Earth. This was the prevailing understanding of the universe prior to the 16th century when Copernicus helped explain and popularize a sun-centered (heliocentric) view of the universe. Tellingly, the sun's orbit is almost always mentioned in the context of night and day ({{Quran|13|2}} being the only exception) and is always mentioned with that of the moon (which does in fact orbit the Earth each month, and likewise appears, to the unaided eye, to traverse the sky each night when it is visible).
{{Quote|{{cite quran|36|37|end=40|style=ref}}|
A token unto them is night. We strip it of the day, and lo! they are in darkness. And the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise. And for the moon We have appointed mansions till she return like an old shrivelled palm-leaf. It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day. They float each in an orbit.}}
{{Quran-range|36|37|40}}, occurring in a passage about night and day, right after describing the change from day to night, states that the sun runs on to a resting place for it (لِمُسْتَقَرٍّ لَّهَا). There are also [[sahih]] [[hadith]] ({{Muslim|1|297}}) that mention the sun's daily cycle using the same Arabic word to mean a resting place, which is underneath Allah's throne, and is where each night the sun prostrates and is asked to go and rise 'from its rising place' (مِنْ مَطْلِعِهَا). This cycle repeats, until one day Allah asks the sun to rise 'from your setting place' (مِنْ مَغْرِبِكِ).

The alternative view among exegetes was that this refers to the sun's final resting on the last day. Other verses talk about the sun swimming for a 'term appointed' (using a different Arabic word). Another version of the above hadith probably supports this view (for details of all these things see footnotes [https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Geocentrism_and_the_Quran#Primary_Evidence in the main article]). Whichever interpretation was intended, the sun's movement is nevertheless mentioned right after describing day and night, just as the next verse mentions the different mansions appointed for the moon each night. The whole passage is about day and night and the sun and moon's movement in that context.
{{Quote|{{Quran|21|33}}|And He it is Who created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. They float, each in an orbit.}}

A modern vantage point would explain the above Qur'anic description of the sun moving in an orbit as a reference to our sun orbiting the black hole at the center of the milky way galaxy every 225 million years. Critics argue that this is of no relevance to human time scales, and that nothing from the text implies that the sun is orbiting anything other than the Earth. The Quran never in any way differentiates the sun's orbit from that of the moon and consistently implies that they are of a common nature.

{{Quote|{{Quran|31|29}}|'''Hast thou not seen''' how Allah causeth the night to pass into the day and causeth the day to pass into the night, and hath subdued the sun and the moon (to do their work), each running unto an appointed term; and that Allah is Informed of what ye do?}}
Here the sun running / pursuing its course (يَجْرِىٓ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume2/00000051.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 415 يَجْرِىٓ]</ref> is something that the author expects people to have seen (thus posing another challenge for the galactic orbit interpretation).

{{Quote|{{cite quran|91|1|end=2|style=ref}}|
By the Sun and his (glorious) splendour; By the Moon as she follows him; }}
The word translated as "follow"<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000350.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 313 تَلَىٰ]</ref> is primarily defined as to follow, go or walk behind, follow in way of imitation, of action etc. and was often used for animals like camels following behind each other. The Moon does not actually follow behind the sun's movement, nor does it provide its own light like the sun. The verse is most suggestive of a worldview in which the moon and sun traverse the same or similar paths after one another, which is what a 7th century person might believe from observing the sky. Critics would expect a less suspicious choice of wording in a perfect book if it merely meant the sun and moon appear one after the other. One day instead of following the sun, the moon will by joined with it according to another verse (see the [https://wikiislam.net/index.php?title=Scientific_Errors_in_the_Quran&stable=0#The_similar_size_and_distance_of_the_sun_and_moon Similar Size and Distance of the Sun and Moon] section below).

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|258}}|Abraham said, ‘Indeed Allah brings the sun from the east; now you bring it from the west.’ So the disbeliever was overwhelmed [by astonishment], and Allah does not guide the wrongdoing people.}}
Here the Qur'an quotes a few lines from a debate between Abraham and a disbelieving King, where Abraham replies that Allah 'brings the sun' (''yatee biashshamsi'' يَأْتِى بِٱلشَّمْسِ) from the east. The Arabic verb and preposition indicates that the sun actually moves. The verb means to come<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000052.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 15 يَأْتِى]</ref>, and when it has an object with the bi- preposition it means to bring, as in many other instances in the Qur'an. While the story is quoting a mere human's words, the author apparently believes it to be a good response and sees no problem with it.

===Setting and rising place of the sun===
{{Main|Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring - Part One}}

In these verses, the author presents a version of a popular legend from the 7th century of a man named Dhu'l-Qarnayn who visits the places where the sun sets and rises.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|86}}|
Till, when he reached the setting-place of the sun, he found it setting in a muddy spring, and found a people thereabout. We said: O Dhu'l-Qarneyn! Either punish or show them kindness. }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|90}}|
Till, when he reached the rising-place of the sun, he found it rising on a people for whom We had appointed no shelter therefrom. }}

Centuries after Muhammad lived, people with better astronomical knowledge introduced interpretations of these verses such that Dhu'l-Qarnayn only traveled until he reached "the west" or to a spot "at the time" when the sun set and not the "place" where the sun set. However, these alternative interpretations are severely undermined by the [[Dhul-Qarnayn_and_the_Sun_Setting_in_a_Muddy_Spring_-_Part_One#First_interpretation:_He_reached_the_west_and_east|context and Arabic words used in these verses]], which instead point to physical locations where the sun did its setting and rising. A plethora of evidence shows that the early Muslims understood the verse in this straightforward way.

===Earth and heavens created in six days===
{{Main|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Creation}}

The Qur'an presents the prevailing Middle-Eastern myth that the Earth and heavens were formed in six days. This is in sharp contrast with the findings of modern cosmology which show the Earth to have formed some 9 billion years after the beginning of the universe.

Unlike the hundreds of other verses where the Arabic word yawm or its plural ayyam (أَيَّامٍ) is understood to mean day or days, when the Quran describes the creation of the world some modern Muslim scholars have appealed to its alternative meaning, 'time period'. The author makes no attempt to convey long time periods or to distinguish his description from the prevailing Middle-Eastern creation myths in this regard (or from his own usage of the term 'yawm' elsewhere in the text), which feature six literal days of creation (for example, the Bible in Genesis 1:5 reads, "Evening came and morning came: The first day.").

Neither the universe nor Earth were formed in six distinct long periods of time. There is likewise apparently no attempt to indicate, even poetically, the vast duration of time in which the universe has developed, (namely, 13.8 billion years).

{{Quote|{{Quran|50|38}}|
We created the heavens and the earth and all between them in Six Days, nor did any sense of weariness touch Us}}

The Earth specifically was created in two days according to the Qur'an, and in four days (on days three and four according to the [[Tafsir|tafsirs]]) were created mountains and the sustenance of the Earth.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|41|9|10}}|Say: Is it that ye deny Him Who created the earth in two Days? And do ye join equals with Him? He is the Lord of (all) the Worlds. He set on the (earth), mountains standing firm, high above it, and bestowed blessings on the earth, and measure therein all things to give them nourishment in due proportion, in four Days, in accordance with (the needs of) those who seek (Sustenance).}}

Mountains nonetheless continue to rise and erode to this day. Similarly, living things and their sustenance continue to evolve, yet the Qur'an says that the creation of mountains and sustenance occurred in a specific period that ended two days before the creation of the universe was completed. See the next section regarding the final two of the six days (from {{Quran-range|41|11|12}}) which immediately follow the verses discussed above.

===Earth created before stars===

The [[w:Abundance of elements in Earth's crust|elements in the Earth's crust]] and core were first formed in stars by [[w:Nucleosynthesis|nucleosynthesis]]. When those stars exploded as [[w:Supernova|supernovas]], they expelled the elements that were used in future solar systems such as Earth's own. Modern radiometric dating of meteorites and rocks from the Earth and Moon show that these bodies were formed at the same time as the sun and its other planets, [[w:Age_of_the_Earth|4.5 billion years ago]]. The Qur'an, on the other hand, describes the Earth as being fully formed before the stars.

{{Quran|41|12}} states that lamps (or more specifically, stars in the similar verse {{Quran|37|6}}) were placed in the nearest of the seven heavens. But before there were seven heavens and while heaven was just smoke, the Earth already existed according to the previous verse, {{Quran|41|11}}, and the Earth's creation and completion in the preceding days is described in the verses immediately preceeding that one {{Quran-range|41|9|10}}, discussed in the previous section above. The creation sequence is thus as follows:

#Heaven and completed Earth;
#Seven heavens and each given its mandate;
#The nearest heaven adorned with stars and guarded.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|41|11|12}}|
Then turned He to the heaven when it was smoke, and said unto it and unto the earth: Come both of you, willingly or loth. They said: We come, obedient. '''Then He ordained them seven heavens in two Days''' and inspired in each heaven its mandate; '''and We decked the nether heaven with lamps''', and rendered it inviolable. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Knower. }}

{{Quran|2|29}} further confirms that heaven was only fashioned seven heavens when, according to the Quran, everything on Earth had been created.

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}|
He it is Who created for you all that is in the earth. Then turned He to the heaven, and fashioned it as seven heavens. And He is knower of all things.}}

The word lamps (masabeeha مَصَٰبِيحَ) in {{Quran|41|12}} and {{Quran|67|5}} with which Allah adorns (zayyanna زَيَّنَّا) the lowest heaven would need, of course, to include any luminous bodies such as the stars. These are termed as ''kawakib'' (كَوَاكِبِ) in {{Quran|37|6}}, a word that also appears in Joseph's dream ({{Quran|12|4}}) and the destruction of the heavens ({{Quran-range|82|1|2}}).

Some modern Muslim scholars attempt to reconcile the Qur'anic description with modern science by arguing that the word 'Then' in the verses above indicate does not indicate sequence, but that it instead means 'moreover'. This argument collides with the fact that these words (thumma in {{Quran|41|11}} and {{Quran|2|29}}, and fa in {{Quran|41|12}} - all translated as 'then') are generally used to indicate sequence. In other contexts, thumma was sometimes used to mean 'moreover'. This alternative usage, however, would always be unambiguous and clear in context, unlike in the passages quoted above, which evidently describe a stepwise process - the creation of the heavens subsequent to that of the Earth.

In another passage, {{Quran-range|79|27|33}}, the heaven (singular) has already been raised and proportioned as a ceiling before the earth is spread, pastures produced and mountains fixed. Ibn Kathir notes in his tafsir that Ibn 'Abbas said the Earth was created first before each of these events and that scholars intepreted the Arabic word dahaha (دَحَىٰهَآ) in verse 79:30 to refer to a specific kind of spreading that occured after everything on Earth had been created.<ref>[https://quranx.com/tafsirs/2.29 Tafsir ibn Kathir 2:29]</ref> However, the passage nevertheless appears to contradict the sequence of {{Quran-range|41|9|12}}, in which the heaven is still "smoke" after Earth's sustinence and mountains have been placed.

====Earth and heavens torn apart====

Modern Muslim scholars generally maintain that the following verse is compatible with and even predictive of the Big Bang theory. According to the Big Bang theory, the Universe was formed 13.8 billion years ago due to a rapid expansion from singularity. The earth was then formed, 4.54 billion years ago, from accretion of debris that surrounded the precursor of the Sun. There was at no stage a "separation" of the "joined" earth and heavens.

The ancient concept can be traced back to [https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/epic/hd_epic.htm Mesopotamian creation myths] in which heaven was separated from earth. {{Quran|21|30}} and similar verses assume that listeners are familiar with the basic outlines of this myth which was extremely wide-spread at the time of [[Muhammad]] and his [[Sahabah|companions]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|30}}|
Do not the Unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of creation), before we clove them asunder? We made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe? }}

The word translated "joined together" is ratqan (رَتْقًا)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000193.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1027 رَتْقًا] </ref> meaning closed up or sewn up, also used metaphorically in terms of reconciling people, but does not imply a homogenous mass or state.

The separation of the heavens and earth can be read in the context of verses that mention something "between" their fully formed state (which seems to be occupied by the clouds {{Quran|2|164}} and birds {{Quran|24|41}}).

{{Quote|{{Quran|50|38}}|
And verily We created the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them, in six Days, and naught of weariness touched Us.}}

There is no scientific theory in which the Earth and heavens were torn apart from each other. The verse states that "We clove them" (dual pronoun 'huma'), not "We clove it", thereby indicating that the Earth and heavens are distinct after the cloving. If one holds that {{Quran|21|30}} describes the big bang, the atomic particles that would later form the Earth would at the beginning would have to be separated from those that would go on to form everything else in the universe. This, however, bears no resemblance to modern scientific cosmology, wherein the material that forms the Earth passed through at least one earlier generation of stars, and more recently was part of various asteroids, comets and planetesimals orbiting the sun (which could all be described as being in the 'heavens') that sometimes collided and merged with each other, sometimes split apart, and gradually coalesced under gravity to form the Earth and other planets.

The very next verse {{Quran|21|31}} speaks of mountains being placed on the Earth. Here, 'the Earth' must mean an actual world, yet modern interpretations of the previous verse hold that 'the Earth' refers merely to atomic particles at the time of the big bang.

====Heaven made from smoke====
{{main|Quran and a Universe from Smoke}}

There is no stage in the formation of the universe that involved smoke (carbon particles suspended as a result of combustion; the word translated smoke is the noun dukhan دُخَانٍ, which means literal smoke of the sort that rises from a fire<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000027.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 861 دُخَانٍ]</ref>). Similarly, the Earth and heavens did not each "come" as separate entities at any point in time. Rather, the Earth is a part of this universe and has developed within it.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|41|11|12}}|
Then turned He to the heaven when it was smoke, and said unto it and unto the earth: Come both of you, willingly or loth. They said: We come, obedient. Then He ordained them seven heavens in two Days and inspired in each heaven its mandate; and We decked the nether heaven with lamps, and rendered it inviolable. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Knower. }}

Some modern Muslim scholars nevertheless interpret 'smoke' as the primordial state of the universe after the big bang. It is worth noting, however, that the verse indicates a time when heaven alone, but not the Earth, was smoke. This is especially challenging when one considers that the Earth and its mountains are described as already existing in the previous two verses ({{Quran-range|41|9|10}}, discussed above).

===Seven Earths===
{{Main|Cosmology of the Quran|l1=Cosmology of the Qur'an}}

{{Quran|65|12}} plainly states that there exist seven earths.

{{Quote|{{Quran|65|12}}|
Allah it is who hath created seven heavens, and of the earth the like thereof. The commandment cometh down among them slowly, that ye may know that Allah is Able to do all things, and that Allah surroundeth all things in knowledge.}}

A hadith in [[Sahih Bukhari|Bukhari]] reveals that these seven Earths are stacked above each other.
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|3|43|634}}| The Prophet said, "Whoever takes a piece of the land of others unjustly, '''he will sink down the seven earths''' on the Day of Resurrection.}}

The number, like seven heavens, might have come from a misunderstanding or indigenous interpretation of mythology from classical antiquity in which there were seven moving planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, the sun and moon). The number seven, however, does not accord with the findings of modern astronomers, which know there to be eight ordinary planets and five dwarf planets, making for a grand total of thirteen in our solar system. Modern astronomy also has found many thousands of planets in other solar systems and Cosmologists estimate that hundreds of billions of stars and planets exist in the universe at large.

===Seven heavens===
{{Main|Cosmology of the Quran|l1=Cosmology of the Qur'an}}

The universe consists of hundreds of billions of galaxies, each with hundreds of billions of stars. The Quran states that beyond our heaven which contains the stars, there exist another six heavens. The myth of seven heavens was a common idea prevalent in the Middle East during the time when the Qur'an was first recited.

{{Quote|{{Quran|71|15}}|
See ye not how Allah has created the seven heavens one above another}}

Some modern Islamic scholars have argued that these verses refer to the seven layers of the atmosphere. However, {{Quran|37|6}} states that stars occupy the nearest heaven. Additionally, there are 5 rather than 7 principal layers to the [[W:Atmosphere of Earth|Earth's atmosphere]], and likewise only 5 rather than 7 major layers to the [[w:Structure_of_Earth|Earth itself]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|37|6}}| Surely We have adorned the nearest heaven with an adornment, the stars}}

===Similar size and distance of the sun and moon===
{{Main|Geocentrism and the Quran|l1=Geocentrism and the Qur'an}}

In a passage about events on the day of resurrection, the Qur'an implies that the sun and moon are of comparable size and distance. As already noted, the Quran says that the moon "follows" the sun ({{Quran-range|91|1|2}}), and "It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day." ({{Quran|36|40}}). Verse {{Quran|75|9}} adds that on the last day the sun and moon will be joined together. While such a perspective is intuitive for one in seventh century Arabia viewing the sun and moon with their unaided eye and observing eclipses, modern science has revealed that 64.3 million moons could fit in the sun.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|75|8|9}}|And the moon darkens And the sun and the moon are joined,}}

The Arabic word translated as "are joined" is ''jumi'a'', a verb which means to collect together, gather together, bring together.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume2/00000091.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 455 جُمِعَ]</ref> Critics note that this would require the moon to travel 98 million miles away from Earth and into the sun, which is over 400 times wider. To describe them as brought together (jumi'a) in such a scenario would hardly be apt, critics argue, and a very odd apocalyptic event. Rather, the description sits comfortably in the ancient understanding of the cosmos, whereby the sun and moon were assumed to be two roughly equivalent celestial bodies in the sky above the Earth.

It is worth noting that the "darkening" of the moon in verse 8 is an Arabic word which in hadiths refers to a lunar or solar eclipse (in this case lunar). However, for a lunar eclipse to occur (when the earth's shadow is cast upon the moon) the sun and moon are on opposite sides of the earth and thus are not in any sense "joined". Nor does "joined" in verse 9 work as a reference to a solar eclipse (when the sun occasionally casts a shadow of the moon on the earth). The moon is invisible during the portion of a month when it can eclipse the sun since it must be on the daylit side of the earth, and hence the moon does not "darken" or itself become eclipsed (verse 8) as it passes between observers and the sun but rather its silhouette becomes visible.

===Moon split in two===
{{Main|Moon Split Miracle}}

The Qur'an (according to a common interpretation) and a hadith tradition state that the moon was miraculously split into two pieces and then, presumably, put back together again. There is, however, no scientific evidence suggesting that the moon was ever been split into two parts. Critics have pointed out that since the moon is visible to half the planet at any given time, there should exist numerous accounts from different parts of the world attesting to the event if it in fact happened. The Romans, Greeks, Egyptians, Persians, Chinese and Indians had avid astronomers who, critics maintain, should have seen this event and recorded it in their histories. The complete absence of any such historical record from other civilizations contemporary to Muhammad is thus presented as a strong indication that the event described in scripture never happened.

{{Quote|{{Quran|54|1-3}}|The hour drew nigh and the moon did rend asunder. }}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|6|60|387}}|Narrated Ibn Masud:

During the lifetime of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) the moon was split into two parts; one part remained over the mountain, and the other part went beyond the mountain. On that, Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "Witness this miracle."
}}

===Nature of the moon's light===

Modern Muslim scholars have sometimes argued that the Qur'an predicted the realization that the moon does not emit its own light, but simply reflects light coming from the Sun. The Arabic word for reflected (''in`ikaas'') does not appear in the two Qur'anic verses that say the Moon is a "light". Instead, the word ''noor'' (nooran نُورًا) is used, which simply means "a light", and, in another verse, the word ''muneer'' (''muneeran'' مُّنِيرًا) is used, which means "giving light" and is from the same root as ''noor''. Nonetheless, the usage of these words is vague and appears to permit alternative interpretations.

{{Quote|{{Quran|10|5}}|
He it is Who appointed the sun a splendour and the moon a light, and measured for her stages, that ye might know the number of the years, and the reckoning. Allah created not (all) that save in truth. He detaileth the revelations for people who have knowledge.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|71|16}}|
And hath made the moon a light therein, and made the sun a lamp?}}

''Noor'' appears again (this time as a participle muneeran مُّنِيرًا) in a similar verse about the moon:

{{Quote|{{Quran|25|61}}|
Blessed be He Who hath placed in the heaven mansions of the stars, and hath placed therein a great lamp and a moon giving light!"}}

{{Quran-range|33|45|46}} most clearly displays the meaning of ''noor'' to be "light" rather than "reflected light". A lamp is described as "shining light" with the same Arabic word used in {{Quran|25|61}} (muneeran مُّنِيرًا):

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|33|45|46}}|
O Prophet! Lo! We have sent thee as a witness and a bringer of good tidings and a warner. And as a summoner unto Allah by His permission, and as a lamp '''that giveth light'''.}}

In Lane's Lexicon of classical arabic, the word ''muneer'' (مُّنِيرً) is defined as 'Giving light, shining bright, bright, or shining brightly'.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000120.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2866 مُّنِيرً]</ref> ''Noor'' is defined on the previous page as 'Light; whatever it may be; and the rays thereof'.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000119.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2865 نُورًا]</ref> In reference to {{Quran|10|5}} (quoted above) which describe the moon with this word, Lane writes, 'In the Kur. x. 5, the sun is termed ضياء and the moon نور and it is said that ضياء is ''essential'', but نور is ''accidental'' [light]'. The notion of essential and accidental light and its application to the sun and moon originates not from the Arabs at the time of the Qur'an, but rather from the book ''Kitab al-Manazir'', commonly known as 'Optics', published in 1572 by the great polymath and optics pioneer al-Hazen. Lane goes on to say, citing the highly regarded Taj al-Arus classical dictionary, 'it [light] is of two kinds, the light of the present world and that of the world to come; and the former is either perceived sensibly, by the eye, and this is what diffuses itself from luminous bodies, as the sun and moon and stars, and is mentioned in the Kur. x. 5 referred to above'.

The word ''noor'' is also used in {{Quran|24|35}} to show that Allah is the "light" of the universe. The author does not imply that Allah reflects light from another source, but rather that he is the ultimate source of all light.

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|35}}|
Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The Parable of His Light is as if there were a Niche and within it a Lamp: the Lamp enclosed in Glass: the glass as it were a brilliant star: Lit from a blessed Tree, an Olive, neither of the east nor of the west, whose oil is well-nigh luminous, though fire scarce touched it: Light upon Light! Allah doth guide whom He will to His Light: Allah doth set forth Parables for men: and Allah doth know all things.}}

===Meteors as stars fired at devils===
{{Main|Mistranslations_of_Islamic_Scripture_(English)#.2867:5.29_Shooting_stars|l1=Mistranslations of Qur'an 67:5}}

The Qur'an states that stars (''kawakib'' ٱلْكَوَاكِبِ) and/or lamps (''masabih'' مَصَٰبِيحَ) adorn the heavens and guard against devils. While stars are giant balls of gas thousands of times larger than the earth, meteors are small rocky masses or grains of debris which burn up after entering the earth's atmosphere. Many ancient people confused the two, as meteors look like stars that are streaking across the sky; this is why they were often called [[w:Meteoroid|shooting stars]] or falling stars. In the following verse, the Qur'an asserts that Allah uses stars as missiles to ward away devils. This draws on an Arab myth that was common at the time the Qur'an was first recited.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|37|6|10}}|
We have indeed decked the lower heaven with beauty (in) the stars, (For beauty) '''and for guard''' against all obstinate rebellious evil spirits, (So) they should not strain their ears in the direction of the Exalted Assembly but be cast away from every side, Repulsed, for they are under a perpetual penalty, Except such as snatch away something by stealth, and they are pursued by a flaming fire, of piercing brightness.}}

The same Arabic words are used at the start of {{Quran|67|5}} as in {{Quran|37|6}} (زَيَّنَّا ٱلسَّمَآءَ ٱلدُّنْيَا), except that in {{Quran|67|5}} the word lamps is used instead of stars. The lamps that 'beautify the heaven' refer to stars (and perhaps also the 5 visible planets), which are always there. Meteors, on the other hand, are now known to be distinct from the distant stars. They are often not much larger than grains of sand and only become visible for a second when they burn up, generating light in the Earth's atmosphere.

{{Quote|{{Quran|67|5}}|
And verily We have beautified the world's heaven with lamps, '''and We have made them''' missiles for the devils, and for them We have prepared the doom of flame.}}

A hadith in [[Sahih Muslim]] confirms that the 'pursuant flames / missiles' in the two verses refer to meteors which they saw shooting across the sky.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|26|5538}}|'Abdullah. Ibn 'Abbas reported:
A person from the Ansar who was amongst the Companions of Allah's Messenger (pbuh reported to me: As we were sitting during the night with Allah's Messenger (pbuh), a meteor shot gave a dazzling light. Allah's Messenger (pbuh) said: What did you say in the pre-Islamic days when there was such a shot (of meteor)? They said: Allah and His Messenger know best (the actual position), but we, however, used to say that that very night a great man had been born and a great man had died, whereupon Allah's Messenger pbuh) said: (These meteors) are shot neither at the death of anyone nor on the birth of anyone. Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, issues Command when He decides to do a thing. Then (the Angels) supporting the Throne sing His glory, then sing the dwellers of heaven who are near to them until this glory of God reaches them who are in the heaven of this world. Then those who are near the supporters of the Throne ask these supporters of the Throne: What your Lord has said? And they accordingly inform them what He says. Then the dwellers of heaven seek information from them until this information reaches the heaven of the world. In this process of transmission (the jinn snatches) what he manages to overhear and he carries it to his friends. And when the Angels see the jinn they attack them with meteors. If they narrate only which they manage to snatch that is correct but they alloy it with lies and make additions to it.}}

Other relevant verses are {{Quran-range|55|33|35}} (flame of fire and smoke, though a slightly different context) and {{Quran-range|72|8|9}}.

===The entire heaven has a night and day===
The Qur'anic conception of the cosmos accords with its author's visual perception of the sky, even to the extent that in {{Quran-range|79|28|29}} night and day is mistaken as a feature of the entire heaven (the lowest heaven is elsewhere said to be adorned with stars, as discussed above). In these verses the night and morning brightness are said to be an attribute of the heaven (l-samāu) which Allah built (banāhā) and raised (rafaʿa) as a ceiling (samkahā) and ordered it (fasawwāhā) when he created the heaven and earth.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|79|27|30}}|Are ye the harder to create, or is the heaven that He built? He raised the height thereof and ordered it; And He made dark the night '''thereof''', and He brought forth the morn '''thereof'''. And after that He spread the earth,}}

The possessive hā suffix in laylahā (its night) and ḍuḥāhā (its morning light) relates night and day to the heaven in its entirety. In reality, the night and day we experience is a feature of the earth's rotation on its axis. There is no sense in which the earth's night and day (which happen at the same time) apply across the wider cosmos.

In order to confirm the interpretation of these verses it is important to look at how the significant words are used elsewhere in the Quran. "The night" is a very common word in the Quran, and the morning light is used in the same context in {{Quran-range|93|1|2}} and {{Quran|91|1}} (see also {{Quran|79|46}}).

Indeed, {{Quran-range|91|1|6}} has many of the same Arabic words as {{Quran-range|79|27|30}}: "its morning light" (this time of the sun), "the night", and "the heaven" (singular) "built" by Allah. Putting the two passages together, it seems that the author of the Quran intuitively believed that the night and the sun's morning light were features pertaining to the entire visible heaven.

Other verses are helpful to confirm what is meant by the heaven (singular) in this context. {{Quran|2|29}} states that Allah turned (is'tawā) to the heaven and fashioned them (fasawwāhunna) seven heavens. These are two forms of the same Arabic verb as is translated "ordered" in {{Quran|79|28}} in the above quote.

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}|He it is Who created for you all that is in the earth. Then turned He to the heaven, and fashioned it as seven heavens. And He is knower of all things.}}

The word "raised" in {{Quran|79|28}} is similarly used for the creation of the heaven (singular) and earth in {{Quran|88|18}} and the heavens (plural) raised without visible pillars in {{Quran|13|2}}.

The word "he built it" in v. 27 (banāhā) also occurs in {{Quran|50|6}}, which says regarding the heaven (singular) that Allah "built it" and "adorned it" (wazayyannāhā), a word which in other verses refers to the stars adorning the lowest heaven ({{Quran|37|6}}, {{Quran|41|12}} and {{Quran|67|5}}, as discussed in the [[Scientific_Errors_in_the_Quran#Earth created before stars|Earth created before stars]] section above).

===The sky/heaven as a ceiling===

{{Main|Cosmology of the Quran}}

A common myth at the time of the Quran's composition was that the sky or heavens were held up with pillars, which is also a Biblical motif. While classical Muslim scholars often believed in a dome shaped heaven, some academic scholars have argued that the Quranic heavens are flat, stacked expanses (see main article). These heavens are like roofs ({{Quran|2|22}}, {{Quran|21|32}}, {{Quran|40|64}}), in layers ({{Quran|71|15}} and {{Quran|67|3}}), while {{Quran|13|2}} further emphasizes this image by pointing out that, unlike what one would expect with an Arabian tent, the roof that is the sky is without visible pillars (perhaps phrased with deliberate ambiguity). {{Quran|81|11}} adds that the sky is like a covering that can be 'stripped away', while {{Quran|21|104}} states that it will eventually be rolled or folded up.

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|22}}|[He] who made for you the earth a bed [spread out] and the sky a ceiling and sent down from the sky, rain and brought forth thereby fruits as provision for you. So do not attribute to Allah equals while you know [that there is nothing similar to Him].}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|71|15}}|Do you not consider how Allah has created seven heavens in layers}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|78|12}}|And We have built above you seven strong (heavens)}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|2}}|
Allah is He Who raised the heavens without any pillars that ye can see}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|81|11}}|
And when the sky is stripped away}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|104}}|The Day when We will fold the heaven like the folding of a [written] sheet for the records. As We began the first creation, We will repeat it. [That is] a promise binding upon Us. Indeed, We will do it.}}

===The sky/heaven as a guarded ceiling===

{{Quran|21|32}} relates to the verses about devils chased by shooting stars (meteors) that guard the lowest heaven. {{Quran-range|37|6|10}}, discussed above, which contains a noun meaning "guard" from the same Arabic root (hafiza) as the verb in this verse.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume2/00000237.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 601 حفظ]</ref> Interestingly, modern science has revealed that the things guarding the sky / heaven can also pose a threat to living things on Earth - asteroids and meteorites have penetrated the atmosphere and hit the earth throughout the course of history. This includes the [[w:Chicxulub crater|massive meteorite]] that hit near the [[w:Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán Peninsula]] 65 million years which killed off numerous species, including most dinosaurs. The guarded ceiling does not, it appears, protect one from these apocalyptic intruders.

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|32}}|
And We made the sky a protected ceiling, but they, from its signs, are turning away.}}

===The sky/heaven as something that can fall===

The Quran describes the sky/heaven as a roof held up by Allah that can fall or fragments of which may break off and fall upon unfortunate individuals. This is challenging in light of the modern realization that the sky is simply a conglomeration of various gasses.

{{Quote|{{Quran|52|44}}|And if they were to see a fragment of the heaven falling, they would say: A heap of clouds.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|9}}|See they not what is before them and behind them, of the sky and the earth? If We wished, We could cause the earth to swallow them up, or cause a piece of the sky to fall upon them. Verily in this is a Sign for every devotee that turns to Allah (in repentance).}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|22|65}}|Hast thou not seen how Allah hath made all that is in the earth subservient unto you? And the ship runneth upon the sea by His command, and He holdeth back the heaven from falling on the earth unless by His leave. Lo! Allah is, for mankind, Full of Pity, Merciful.}}

===Heavens to be rolled up===

{{Quran|21|104}} and {{Quran|39|67}} state that the heavens will be 'rolled up' come the day of judgement, implying the corporeality and 'flatness' of space.
{{Quote|{{Quran|21|104}}|The Day when We shall roll up the heavens as a recorder rolleth up a written scroll. }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|39|67}}|No just estimate have they made of Allah, such as is due to Him: On the Day of Judgment the whole of the earth will be but His handful, and the heavens will be rolled up in His right hand: Glory to Him! High is He above the Partners they attribute to Him!}}

===Stars as something that fall===

The Qur'an says that the stars will fall (inkadarat ٱنكَدَرَتْ) as one of many dramatic events surrounding the last day. The word كدر in the form used in this verse (form VII) meant 'to dart down', as is said of a bird or hawk, or to fall and scatter.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000124.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2596 ٱنكَدَرَتْ]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|81|2}}|And when the stars fall}}

The structure of space-time is such that nothing, not even stars, can move faster than the velocity of light. That is, even if the stars were to move close to light speed across the sky, their apparent motion would be so slight relative to their distance that it would nonetheless be imperceptible to the naked eye. Moreover, as many visible stars are hundreds of light years away (the nearest star is more than four light years away), the light from such events would take years to reach our eyes. Indeed, many stars still visible in the sky ceased to exist centuries ago and it is only their light which is just now reaching the Earth.

===The cause of shadows changing length===
Shadows are produced when the sun's light is obstructed. The Earth's rotation causes these shadows to change size and lengthen. {{Quran-range|25|45|46}} states that the reason shadows fluctuate in size rather than being stationary is because Allah has made the sun their guide. This appears to confirm the geocentric outlook widely evidenced elsewhere in the Qur'an, for it is only on a geocentric view that shadows would be of fixed length if the sun (rather than the Earth) were not made to do something.

{{Quote|{{Quran|25|45-46}}|
Hast thou not turned thy vision to thy Lord?- How He doth prolong the shadow! If He willed, He could make it stationary! then do We make the sun its guide; Then We draw it in towards Ourselves,- a contraction by easy stages.}}

Interestingly, {{Quran|25|46}} follows up by stating that Allah 'draws the shadows towards himself'. The exact meaning of this verse is unclear, but if it regards the retraction of an object's shadow 'back onto itself' - that is, to a state where there is no shadow or the shadow is at its shortest - then perhaps it can be interpreted to describe the gradual 'pointing of the shadow towards heaven' or 'upwards towards Allah'. Even this reading is difficult to justify, however, and the verse is perhaps best regarded as having lost intelligibility beyond the vague spiritual sense in which it may be read.

===Disregard of North and South Poles===
{{Main|The Ramadan Pole Paradox}}

In polar regions, the longevity of day and night vary during summer and winter. The day gets shorter and shorter in winter until there are days or weeks of uninterrupted night. At the poles themselves, day and night alternately last for six months and all phases of the moon occur several times between sunrise and sunset. These circumstances render many of the most important Islamic rituals impracticable and suggest that the author(s) of the Qur'an and hadith, in so far as they aspired to produce a religion of global practicability, were not aware of the extreme distortions to the day length that take place near the poles.

{{Quote|{{Quran|36|40}}|
It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day. They float each in an orbit. }}

When reading this verse one may also wonder in what sense day and night each have an orbit (See [[Geocentrism and the Quran]]).

See also the [https://wikiislam.net/index.php?title=Scientific_Errors_in_the_Quran&stable=0#Fasting_and_Prayer_Requirements_Near_the_Poles Fasting and Prayer Requirements Near the Poles] section below.

==Biology==

===Evolution===

The Qur'an takes what is perhaps best described as the creationist view of the origins and history of life on earth. This diverges sharply from the overwhelming scientific evidence that humans have evolved from prior life forms, over the course of millions of years and through natural selection.<ref>https://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence</ref> Consequently, while some Muslim scholars reinterpret the Quran in order that they may accept the theory of evolution, most reject it in favor of a creationist world view. Opinion polls show that the majority of Muslims agree Islam and evolution are not compatible.

====First humans created from clay====
{{Main|Creation of Humans from Clay}}

The Qur’an states that the first man was created instantaneously from clay (''salsalin'' صَلْصَٰلٍ) / ''mud'' (hamain حَمَإٍ). There is no indication that the author is aware of the evolution of human life over millions of years or our common ancestry with apes and primates. While some scientists argue over the detailed mechanisms driving evolution, they agree that common descent is an overwhelmingly proven fact.

{{Quote|{{Quran|15|26}}|
We created man from sounding clay, from mud molded into shape; }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|55|14}}|
He created man from clay like [that of] pottery.}}

The Quran also states, in a similar vein, that the first man was created from dust (''turabin'' تُرَابٍ).

{{Quote|{{Quran|3|59}}|
Lo! the likeness of Jesus with Allah is as the likeness of Adam. He created him of dust, then He said unto him: Be! and he is.}}

====Adam and Eve====
{{Main|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Creation|Evolution and Islam}}

The Qur’an contains stories concerning the 'first humans' which detail, among other matters, how all people are descended from Adam and Eve (called ''Hawa'' in Arabic), the two earliest ancestors. These humans were created in a garden (the word for paradise in Arabic is ''jannah'', which literally means 'garden') and then brought to Earth fully formed (Sahih Hadiths say Adam was 60 cubits - or 90 feet - tall). This view of the origins of human life is directly challenged by overwhelming DNA evidence and the numerous fossils of pre-Homo sapiens species that lived on earth for millions of years prior to the evolution modern humans.<ref>http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence</ref> Powerful DNA evidence that humans have common ancestry with other primates include endogenous retroviruses<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXfDF5Ew3Gc DNA Evidence That Humans & Chimps Share A Common Ancestor: Endogenous Retroviruses] - Youtube.com</ref> and the fusion of chromosomes<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dK3O6KYPmEw Professor Ken Miller on DNA fusion events]- Youtube.com</ref> in the exact same genetic locations.

{{Quote|{{Quran|7|189}}|
It is He who created you from one soul and created from it its mate that he might dwell in security with her. And when he covers her, she carries a light burden and continues therein. And when it becomes heavy, they both invoke Allah, their Lord, "If You should give us a good [child], we will surely be among the grateful."}}

In the above verse the poetic allusion to sex and pregnancy and the couple's invocation to Allah leaves no doubt that the first sentence is a reference to common descent from Adam (in similar verses this is less explicit). All the classical exegetes state that this “single being” (نَّفْسٍ وَٰحِدَةٍ ) refers to Adam. Both classical Sunni and Shia Tafsirs confirm this and there are even mutawatir hadith narrations (mass transmitted reports) implying that all humans descend from Adam (for details, see [[Evolution_and_Islam|Evolution and Islam]]).

Another verse describes the literal descent of humanity from one man with reference to the sexual means by which it was achieved ("despised fluid" i.e. semen) after Allah had created that first man out of clay.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|32|7|8}}|Who made all things good which He created, and He began the creation of man from clay; Then He made his seed from a draught of despised fluid;}}
The word translated “seed” in the Pickthall translation is nasl نسل, which means progeny (i.e. descendants).<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000286.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 3032 نسل]</ref>

Some modern Muslim scholars argue that the notion of two ancestral “parents” is consistent with recent scientific findings that show a common female and male ancestor of all modern humans. This results, however, from a confusion with the nicknames (Mitochondrial Eve and Y-chromosomal Adam) by which scientists have referred to human's earliest genetic ancestors. These two individuals, however, are distinct from the Quranic characters as they are simply the last common male and female ancestors of everyone alive today and not of all humans in history. More importantly, whereas the Qur'an describes Eve as Adam's wife (who, notably, was created ''after'' him), Mitochondrial Eve lived some 50,000 to 80,000 years earlier than Y-chromosomal Adam.<ref>http://biologos.org/blog/does-genetics-point-to-a-single-primal-couple</ref> Genetic evidence also overwhelmingly indicates that humans diverged from earlier species as a population rather than as a single couple.<ref>http://whyevolutionistrue.wordpress.com/2011/09/18/how-big-was-the-human-population-bottleneck-not-anything-close-to-2/</ref>

===Embryology===
{{Main|Embryology in the Quran|l1=Embryology in the Qur'an}}

The Qur'an contain descriptions regarding bodily fluids and the stages of development of the human embryo. Many of these descriptions are extremely vague and most bear a telling resemblance to [[Greek and Jewish Ideas about Reproduction in the Quran and Hadith|similar descriptions]] found in the [[w:Talmud|Jewish Talmud]] as well as the ideas of ancient Greeks, [[History of Embryology|such as Galen]]. These descriptions do not accord with the findings of modern science and are generally considered unremarkable in the seventh-century Arabian context wherein the Quran was first recited.

====Semen originating between the backbone and ribs====
{{Main|Quran and Semen Production|l1=Qur'an and Semen Production}}

The Qur'an states that semen originates from somewhere between the backbone and ribs. Other verses and hadiths too suggest a reproductive function for the backbone. While this aligns with the views of the physicians of antiquity, modern science has shown that sperm comes from the [[w:testicle|testicles]] and semen from various glands behind and below the bladder, which is not between the backbone and ribs.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|86|6|7}}|
He is created from a drop emitted- Proceeding from '''between the backbone and the ribs''' }}

====Embryo formed from semen====
{{Main|Greek and Jewish Ideas about Reproduction in the Quran and Hadith}}

The Qur'an describes the initial formation of a human embryo out of fluid emanating from the man, which has been placed in the womb (and possibly mixed with a female fluid). This reflects the widespread contemporary view at that time that semen is the material from which the embryo is initially formed, as taught by Hippocrates, Galen, and the Jewish Talmud. It is also evident in hadiths. By contrast, modern science has shown that semen is the vehicle for the sperm cells, one of which fuses with a woman's [[w:ovum|ovum]] in her [[w:fallopian tube|fallopian tube]], and that the resulting cell divides (rather than the seminal medium) and travels back into the womb for implantation.

While many English translations mention a "drop of seed", or "drop of sperm", the Arabic word used in the Quran is ''nutfah'', which literally means a small amount of liquid and was a euphemism for semen.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|77|20|22}}|
Did We not create you from a '''liquid disdained'''? And '''We placed it in a firm lodging''' For a known extent.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|23|13}}|'''Then placed him''' as a drop (of seed) [nutfah] '''in a safe lodging;'''}}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|80|18|19}}|
'''From what thing''' doth He create him? From a drop of seed [nutfah]. He createth him and proportioneth him}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|76|2}}|Indeed, We created man from a sperm-drop mixture [nutfatin amshajin] that We may try him; and We made him hearing and seeing.}}

====Disregard of female ovum====

The Quran, in all its discussion of human reproduction, does not mention the role of the ovum, implying instead that reproduction is caused simply by storage and mingling of the male semen in the female womb. Although visible to the human eye, the female ovum is very small and unknown in the 7th century - this appears to explain its omission in the Quran.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|86|6|7}}|He was created from a fluid, ejected, Emerging from between the backbone and the ribs.}}

====Humans created from a clot of blood====
{{Main|Embryology in the Quran|l1=Embryology in the Qur'an}}

The Qur'an describes humans as being formed from a clot of blood after an initial semen stage. By contrast, modern science has revealed that there is no stage in embryonic development where the relevant material is a clot of blood. The Quranic description is likely influenced by a simplistic attempt at explaining human reproduction based on unaided-eye observations of an early-term miscarriage and a woman's menstrual cycle. While in modern times some Muslims scholars have advanced alternative meanings for the relevant word, the historical certainty that the word can mean clotted blood (also the unanimous understanding in the classical tafsirs), which has a clear biological meaning, while being used in the Qur'an in the context of a biological description (formation of a baby), renders the modern reinterpretations extremely challenging.

{{Quote|{{Quran|23|14}}|
Then We made the sperm into a clot of congealed blood...}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|96|2}}|
Created man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed blood: }}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|430}}|Narrated 'Abdullah bin Mus'ud:

“Allah's Apostle, the true and truly inspired said, "(The matter of the Creation of) a human being is put together in the womb of the mother in forty days, and then he becomes a '''clot of thick blood for a similar period''', and then a piece of flesh for a similar period.”}}

====Gender decided at clot stage====
The Qur'an states that an embryo is transformed from semen into a clot, shaped (presumably into a human mold), and then determined into either the male or female sex. Modern genetics, on the other hand, has shown that the sex of a human is decided at the moment of conception.<ref>{{cite book|first=eds.: Anthony S. Fauci [et al.] ; eds. of previous ed.: T. R. Harrison [et al.]|title=Harrison's principles of internal medicine.|date=2008|publisher=McGraw-Hill Medical|location=New York [etc.]|isbn=978-0-07-147693-5|pages=2339–2346|edition=17th ed.}}</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|75|37|39}}|Was he not a drop of fluid which gushed forth? Then he became a clot; then (Allah) shaped and fashioned And made of him a pair, the male and female.}}

While translators mostly use "And" in verse 39, the Arabic particle is ''fa'', as also in the previous conjunction, which indicates sequence (i.e. 'and then').<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000105.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2321 ف]</ref> Classical tafsirs share this reading, and the same reading is reflected in a sahih hadith found in both Bukhari and Muslim:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|6|315}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "At every womb Allah appoints an angel who says, 'O Lord! A drop of semen, O Lord! A clot. O Lord! A little lump of flesh." Then if Allah wishes (to complete) its creation, the angel asks, (O Lord!) Will it be a male or female, a wretched or a blessed, and how much will his provision be? And what will his age be?' So all that is written while the child is still in the mother's womb."}}

====Bones formed before flesh====
{{Main|Embryology in the Quran|l1=Embryology in the Qur'an}}

The Qur'an states that the bones of a human embryo are formed first and then covered up with flesh. By contrast, modern science has shown that muscles and the cartilage 'models' of the future bones start to form at the same time and in parallel. Muscles have started to form before the cartilage models start to be replaced with actual bone.

{{Quote|{{Quran|23|14}}|
Then We made the sperm into a clot of congealed blood; then of that clot We made a (foetus) lump; then we made out of that lump bones then (not and) clothed the bones with flesh; then we developed out of it another creature. So blessed be Allah, the best to create!}}

The Qur'an again parallels the influential Greek physician Galen, who says:

{{Quote|1=Galen, ''On semen'', p.101|2=And now the third period of gestation has come. After nature has made outlines of all the organs and the substance of the semen is used up, the time has come for nature to articulate the organs precisely and to bring all the parts to completion. Thus it caused flesh to grow on and around all the bones...}}

===All organisms created in pairs===
The Quran states that all beings are created in pairs. However, modern science has revealed that not every creature procreates or reproduces through a male and female sexual relationship. The [[w:Desert grassland whiptail lizard|whiptail lizard]] in the U.S. Southwest, Mexico, and South America, for instance, is an all-females species which reproduces by [[w:parthenogenesis|parthenogenesis]]. [[w:virus|Viruses]] (if considered a life form) reproduce using a host's DNA and are neither female nor male. [[w:Bacteria|Bacteria]] reproduce by cell division. [[w:Fungus|Fungus]] can reproduce either asexually or sexually with thousands of genders. Many species of plants also reproduce either asexually or through [[w:Pollination|pollination]]. Hermaphrodites of all species also do not appear to fit in to this dichotomy.

{{Quote|{{Quran|51|49}}|
And of '''every thing''' We have created pairs: That ye may receive instruction. }}
{{Quote|{{Quran|36|36}}|
Glory to Allah, Who created in pairs '''all things''' that the earth produces, as well as their own (human) kind and (other) things of which they have no knowledge. }}

===Fetus in three layers of darkness===

The word ''butun'' (بطن) means belly/abdomen/midriff, though some translators have opted to use the more specific (and evocative) word "womb".<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000257.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 220 بطن]</ref> Classical tafsirs interpreted the "three darknesses" as the placenta, womb (uterus), and belly. Modern science has revealed there to be many more such layers in the human body, such as the endometrium, myometrium, perimetrium, peritoneum, besides the cervix uteri, corpus uteri, abdomen (with walls), and placenta (with layers). In terms of extra-embryonic membranes, there is also the allantois, which is a sac-like structure and does not surround the embryo, but becomes part of the umbilical cord and is not in any real sense 'a darkness' viz-a-viz the embryo. The other two membranes, the chorion and amnion, together form the [[w:Amniotic_sac|amniotic sac]], which is quite thin and transparent. The idea of three membranes around the fetus ([[w:Chorion|chorion]], [[w:Allantois|allantois]], and [[w:Amnion|amnion]]) was taught by the highly influential Greek physician, Galen, and the description found in the Quran in all likelihood draws on Galen's widespread influence in the late antique world.

{{Quote|{{Quran|39|6}}|
He created you from one soul. Then He made from it its mate, and He produced for you from the grazing livestock eight mates. He creates you in the wombs of your mothers, creation after creation, within three darknesses. That is Allah, your Lord; to Him belongs dominion. There is no deity except Him, so how are you averted?}}

===Functions of the heart===
The Quran describes the literal heart as a locus of contemplation and thought, an ancient concept known as [[w:Cardiocentric hypothesis|cardiocentrism]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|22|46}}|So have they not traveled through the earth and '''have hearts by which to reason''' and ears by which to hear? For indeed, it is not eyes that are blinded, but blinded are '''the hearts which are within the breasts'''.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|46}}|And We place upon their hearts veils lest they should understand it, and in their ears a deafness; and when thou makest mention of thy Lord alone in the Qur'an, they turn their backs in aversion. }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|11|5}}|Lo! now they fold up their breasts that they may hide (their thoughts) from Him. At the very moment when they cover themselves with their clothing, Allah knoweth that which they keep hidden and that which they proclaim. Lo! He is Aware of what is in the breasts (of men). }}

===Source and purity of Milk===
The Qur'an states that milk is produced in the body somewhere between excretions and blood. The mammary glands, where milk is produced and stored, are, however, not located near the intestines, which is where excrement is stored. Many kinds of cattle and goat milk needs processing or pasteurization before they can safely be consumed; the milk is often infected with bacteria and other micro-organisms. A significant number of humans are lactose intolerant and unable to digest milk without experiencing abdominal bloating and cramps, flatulence, diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting. These realities appear to challenge the Qur'anic notion that milk is 'pure' and 'agreeable'.

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|66}}|
And verily in cattle (too) will ye find an instructive sign. From what is within their bodies '''between excretions and blood''', We produce, for your drink, milk, '''pure and agreeable''' to those who drink it. }}

==Geology and meteorology==

===Flat Earth===
{{Main|Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth|l1=Islamic Views on the Shape of the Earth}}

====Facing toward Mecca====

The Qur'an instructs Muslims to face the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca when they pray. In consideration of the roundness of the Earth, scholars developed the great circle method to carry out this instruction. However, a number of problems have been suggested: one facing Mecca also necessarily has their back turned to it (a display of disrespect which is roundly prohibited in Islam), and one directly opposite Mecca on the globe may pray in any direction. A similar consideration leads North American Muslims, who live in the hemisphere of this antipode of Mecca, to instead prefer the rhumb-line technique since the great circle method would cause people north and south in the Americas to face away from each as they pray (great circle lines from this antipode diverge cross the continent before they start to converge again when they enter the hemisphere of Mecca). Finally, Astronauts in Earth's orbit or on the Moon and Mars would are essentially unable to follow these instructions (suggesting that the author of the Qur'an did not have such future realities in mind).

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|149}}|
From whencesoever Thou startest forth, turn Thy face in the direction of the sacred Mosque; that is indeed the truth from the Lord. And Allah is not unmindful of what ye do.}}

====Fasting and prayer requirements near the Poles====
{{Main|The Ramadan Pole Paradox}}

The Qur'an instructs Muslims to fast by abstaining from food and drink from sunrise till sunset during Ramadan. In the polar regions there are six months of sunlight and six months of perpetual night during Summer and Winter. Such fasting is not practicable for anyone living in the polar regions, and very easy (depth of Winter) or extremely hard (height of Summer) in places within around 40 degrees latitude of the poles. Various rules have been contrived by Muslim scholars for those at such latitudes to try to accommodate the (here inconvenient) fact that we live on a round Earth.

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|187}}|
...Then strictly observe the fast till nightfall...}}

A similar issue emerges for the five daily prayers. Persons living in the polar region would not be able to make a sunset or sunrise prayer for much of the year. Even in less extreme contextxs, for cities further south like Aberdeen in Scotland, the gap between the night prayer (Isha) and the dawn prayer (Fajr) is still around 4 and a half hours in June, so a person praying five times a day is required to interrupt their sleep around 3.20am, then go back to sleep before getting up for the day. These challenges would likely not have been on the mind of the author of the Quran during the 7th century in Arabia.

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|78}}|
Establish regular prayers - at the sun's decline till the darkness of the night, and the morning prayer and reading: for the prayer and reading in the morning carry their testimony.}}

====Earth as spread out and flat====

The author of the Qur'an mentions that the Earth is 'spread out' and laid flat. The Arabic word here (sataha) was used to describe making the flat top or roof of a house or chamber and making a top surface flat.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000081.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1357 سُطِحَ]</ref> Words from the same root mean the flat top surface or roof of a house or chamber, a bounded flat plane in geometry, a level place upon which dates can be spread, a rolling pin (which expands the dough), plane or flat.

{{Quote|{{Quran|88|20}}|And at the Earth, how it is spread out?}}

The Qur'anic commentary of al-Jalalayn agrees with this understanding of the verse saying that legal scholars at his time agree that the earth is flat and not spherical.

{{Quote|1=[http://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=74&tSoraNo=88&tAyahNo=20&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=2 Tafsir al-Jalalayn for verse 88:20]|2=And the earth, how it was laid out flat?, and thus infer from this the power of God, exalted be He, and His Oneness? The commencing with the [mention of] camels is because they are closer in contact with it [the earth] than any other [animal]. As for His words sutihat, 'laid out flat', this on a literal reading suggests '''that the earth is flat, which is the opinion of most of the scholars''' of the [revealed] Law, and '''not a sphere as astronomers (ahl al-hay'a) have it''', even if this [latter] does not contradict any of the pillars of the Law.}}

====Earth as like carpet====

The Arabic word (''bisaatan'') used here means a thing that is spread or spread out or forth, and particularly a carpet.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 204 بِسَاطًا]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|71|19}}|And Allah has made the earth for you as a carpet (spread out)}}

====Earth as like a couch====

The Earth is described using an Arabic word (''firashan'') that means a thing that is spread on the ground to sit or lay upon.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000155.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2371 فِرَٰشًا]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|22}}|
[He] who made for you the earth a bed [spread out] and the sky a ceiling and sent down from the sky, rain and brought forth thereby fruits as provision for you. So do not attribute to Allah equals while you know [that there is nothing similar to Him].}}

The same root word for couch in {{Quran|2|22}} is used as a verb in {{Quran|51|48}} in the sense of to spread (the first word translated spread here).

{{Quote|{{Quran|51|48}}|And the earth, '''We have spread it'''; how excellent (are) the Spreaders!}}

====Earth as like a bed====

The Earth is described as a 'bed' (or 'carpet' in the Yusuf Ali translation) in verse {{Quran|20|53}}, and similarly {{Quran|43|10}}. The Arabic word (''mahdan'') suggests something completely flat and spread out on the ground (and not, for instance, 'rolled up' for storage).<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000267.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2739 مَهْدًا]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|20|53}}|
Who hath appointed the earth '''as a bed''' and hath threaded roads for you therein and hath sent down water from the sky and thereby We have brought forth divers kinds of vegetation}}

Sometimes the same Arabic word is translated as expanse, as in {{Quran-range|78|6|7}}. Together with the next verse, the Earth is here a thing spread out and pegged down by mountains.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|78|6|7}}|Have We not made the earth as a '''wide expanse''', And the mountains as pegs?}}

The same root word is used as a participle at the end of {{Quran|51|48}}.

{{Quote|{{Quran|51|48}}|And the earth, We have spread it; how excellent (are) '''the Spreaders!'''}}

====Earth stretched out====

In the verse below, as also in {{Quran|13|3}} and {{Quran|50|7}}, the Qur'an uses a verb (''madadna'') that meant to extend by drawing or pulling, stretch out, expand.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000223.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2695 مدد]</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|15|19}}|And the earth We have spread out (like a carpet); set thereon mountains firm and immovable; and produced therein all kinds of things in due balance.}}

====Earth as a level plain====

The Qur'an describes a time in the future when mountains will be removed. {{Quran|18|47}} uses an Arabic word (''baarizatan'') that means "entirely apparent" to describe the Earth at this time.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000224.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 187 بَارِزَةً]</ref> {{Quran|20|106}} uses words (''qa'an'' and ''safsafan'') that mean a level plain.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000248.pdf Lane's Lexicon, Suppliment p. 2994 قَاعًا], [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000418.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1694 صَفْصَفًا]</ref> This description implies the Earth is flat and level and that it is the mountains which give it shape.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|47}}|And (bethink you of) the Day when we remove the hills and ye see the earth emerging, and We gather them together so as to leave not one of them behind.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|20|105|107}}|They will ask thee of the mountains (on that day). Say: My Lord will break them into scattered dust. And leave it as '''an empty plain''', Wherein thou seest neither curve nor ruggedness.}}

===Permanent barrier between fresh and salt water===
When a fresh water river flows into the sea or ocean, there is a transition region in between. This transition region is called an estuary where the fresh water remains temporarily separated from the salt water. However, this separation is not absolute, is not permanent, and the different salinity levels between the two bodies of water eventually homogenize. The Qur'an, by contrast, suggests that the separation between the two types of water is absolute, permanent, and maintained by some sort of divine barrier placed between them.

{{Quote|{{Quran|25|53}}| It is He Who has let free the two bodies of flowing water: One palatable and sweet, and the other salt and bitter; yet has He made a barrier between them, '''a partition that is forbidden to be passed'''. }}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|55|19|22}}|He released the two seas, meeting [side by side]; Between them is a barrier [so] neither of them transgresses. So which of the favors of your Lord would you deny? From both of them emerge pearl and coral.}}

Another reference to "the two seas" (bahrayn) is found in the story of Moses and his servant.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|18|60|61}}|And [mention] when Moses said to his servant, "I will not cease [traveling] until I reach the junction of the two seas or continue for a long period." But when they reached the junction between them, they forgot their fish, and it took its course into the sea, slipping away.}}

The story of Moses and his servant is one of four stories in Surah al-Kahf. Modern academic scholarship has identified antecedants of each story in the lore of late antiquity. This particular story is almost unanimously considered to derive from a legend about Alexander the Great and his search for the water of life. For details see the section on the four stories in Surah al-Kahf in the article [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature]].

It may further be compared to the ancient Akkadian myth of the Abzu, the name for a fresh water underground sea that was given a religious quality in Sumerian and Akkadian mythology. Lakes, springs, rivers, wells, and other sources of fresh water were thought to draw their water from the Abzu underground sea, while the Ocean that surrounded the world was a saltwater sea. This underground sea is called Tehom in the Hebrew Bible. For example, Genesis 49:25 says, "blessings of the heavens above, and Tehom lying beneath".<ref>Wensinck, Arent Jan (1918). "The Ocean in the Literature of the Western Semites". Verhandelingen der Koninklijke Akademie van Wetenschappen te Amsterdam. Afdeeling Letterkunde. Nieuwe reeks. dl. 19. no. 2. page 14</ref> Wensinck explains, "Thus it appears that the idea of there being a sea of sweet water under our earth, the ancient Tehom, which is the source of springs and rivers, is common to the Western Semites".<ref>ibid. page 17</ref> Similarly in Greek mythology, the world was surrounded by Oceanus, the world-ocean of classical antiquity. Oceanus was personified as the god Titan, whose consort was the aquatic sea goddess Tethys. It was also thought that rainfall was due a third ocean above the "Firmament of the Sky" (a vast reservoir above the firmament of the sky is also described in the Genesis creation narrative).

Whether the two seas mentioned in the Qur'an referred to these mythological seas or a more general inviolable barrier between bodies of salt and fresh water, critics argue that the verse in question is scientifically wrong.

===Mountains as pegs which prevent the earth from shaking===
{{Main|The Quran and Mountains}}
Modern geology has discovered that large plates in the crust of the earth are responsible for the formation of mountains. Called plate tectonics, the slow movement of these massive plates meet and the pressure between them pushes up the crust, forming mountains while also causing earthquakes and faults in the Earth's surface. The formation of mountains and occurance of earthquakes are thus both largely the result of destabilizing tectonic activity. They are part of the same ongoing process and one cannot exist without the other. The Qur'an, by contrast, holds that mountains are like pegs in the ground, stabilizing the Earth which would shake without them.

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|15}}|
And He has set up on the earth mountains standing firm, lest it should shake with you; and rivers and roads; that ye may guide yourselves}}
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|78|6|7}}|Have We not made the earth as a wide expanse, And the mountains as pegs?}}

===Mountains cast upon Earth===
{{Main|The Quran and Mountains}}
Mountains are usually formed through the movement and collision of lithospheric (tectonic) plates. This is an ongoing process that continues to this day as the plates slowly move. The Quran, by contrast, states that the mountains on Earth's surface were cast upon it by God. Other verses state that creation of mountains occurred during the first four days, as discussed in the section above on creation of earth and heaven in six days. The imagery is clear when one considers the above verses which describe the Mountains as 'pegs' which stabilize the Earth (which is itself compared to a carpet and bed matt in other verses).

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|15}}|
And He has cast into the earth firmly set mountains, lest it shift with you, and [made] rivers and roads, that you may be guided,}}

The word 'he has cast' is ''alqa'' (lam-qaf-ya), which in this form (Arabic verb form IV) is frequently used elsewhere in the Quran to mean throw or cast. It is the same word as is used in {{Quran|3|44}} when lots are cast using pens (it would be easy to imagine that mountains were similarly scattered), and {{Quran|12|10}} when the prophet Yusuf is cast down into the well, and in {{Quran|20|20}} when Moses casts down his staff, which becomes a snake.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000266.pdf Lane's Lexicon, Suppliment p. 3012 أَلْقَىٰ]</ref>

===Chests contract with altitude===
{{Quran|6|125}} states that a person's chest cavity gets smaller at higher altitude. Modern science, by contrast, has revealed that the opposite is the case.

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|125}}|Those whom Allah (in His plan) willeth to guide,- He openeth their breast to Islam; those whom He willeth to leave straying,- He maketh their breast close and constricted, as if they had to climb up to the skies: thus doth Allah (heap) the penalty on those who refuse to believe.}}

===Earthquakes as a punishment===
The Quran describes Earthquakes, blizzards, hurricanes, and other destructive natural activity as being a sort of punishment for the people they inflict. Research, however, has not found any correlation between civilizations' irreligiosity and their susceptibility to these or other type of natural disaster.

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|45}}|
Do then those who devise evil (plots) feel secure that Allah will not cause the earth to swallow them up, or that the Wrath will not seize them from directions they little perceive?}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|29|37}}|
But they denied him, and the dreadful earthquake took them, and morning found them prostrate in their dwelling place. }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|68}}|
Do ye then feel secure that He will not cause you to be swallowed up beneath the earth when ye are on land, or that He will not send against you a violent tornado (with showers of stones) so that ye shall find no one to carry out your affairs for you}}

===Disregard of evaporation in water cycle===
Some modern Muslim scholars argue that the water cycle is described in the Qur'an. Every verse about rain in the Qur'an implies that rain comes either directly from the sky or from Allah. The crucial step of evaporation of water into the air is never mentioned. That Quran describes a linear process orchestrated by Allah rather than a cyclical process (as with the water cycle) renders these modern reinterpretations challenging.

{{Quote|{{Quran|43|11}}|
That sends down (from time to time) rain from the sky in due measure;- and We raise to life therewith a land that is dead; even so will ye be raised (from the dead)}}

===Mountains of hail in the sky===

Hail forms in cumulonimbus clouds when updrafts raise water droplets to an altitude where they freeze. The Qur'an, by contrast, describes mountain-like masses of hail in the sky / heaven.

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|43}}|
Hast thou not seen how Allah wafteth the clouds, then gathereth them, then maketh them layers, and thou seest the rain come forth from between them; '''He sendeth down from the heaven mountains wherein is hail''', and smiteth therewith whom He will, and averteth it from whom He will. The flashing of His lightning all but snatcheth away the sight.

'''Transliteration:''' wayunazzilu (and he sends down) mina (from) alssamai (the sky) min (from) jibalin (mountains) feeha (in it ['it' is feminine here so must refer to the sky]) min (of) baradin (hail)
}}

Tafsirs such as al-Jalalayn and the one attributed to Ibn Abbas say that this means mountains in the sky.<ref>[https://tafsir.app/jalalayn/24/43 Tafsir al-Jalalayn 24:43]</ref> Ibn Kathir notes two views, that these are literally mountains of hail in the sky, or that they are a metaphor for clouds.<ref>[https://tafsir.app/ibn-katheer/24/43 Tafsir Ibn Kathir 24:43]</ref> Clouds could poetically be described as mountains in the sky, but the verse says "mountains of hail in the sky", which critics would say strongly suggests large masses of ice (in the clouds or otherwise), and it was sometimes understood in this literal way as evidenced in tafsirs.

===Allah smites with thunderbolts===

The Quran describes thunder and lightning in a manner typical of ancient mythology. Allah, in a manner evocative of the legends most famously regarding Zeus, smites persons he wishes to punish with thunderbolts. A hadith, graded hasan (good) by Dar-us-Salam, further states that Muhammad believed the sound of thunder was an angel striking the clouds, which the angel drives along with a piece of fire (evoking the image of a whip of fire).

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|13}}|
And the thunder declares His glory with His praise, and the angels too for awe of Him; and He sends the thunderbolts and smites with them whom He pleases, yet they dispute concerning Allah, and He is mighty in prowess.}}

{{Quote|{{Al Tirmidhi|44|5|44|3117}}|Narrated Ibn 'Abbas:
"The Jews came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said: 'O Abul-Qasim! Inform us about the thunder, what is it?' He said: 'An angel among the angels, who is responsible for the clouds. He has a piece of fire wherever that he drives the clouds wherever Allah wills.' They said: 'Then what is this noise we hear?' He said: 'It is him, striking the clouds when he drives them on, until it goes where it is ordered.' They said: 'You have told the truth.'}}

==Zoology==

===Ants converse and recognize humans===

Ants primarily communicate with each other using pheromones (chemical signals). While scientists have discovered that ants make some noises, nothing has ever indicated that the brains of ants could produce anything approximating complex speech. By contrast, the Qur'an recounts the story of an ant warning her fellow ants of the approach of Solomon's large army of humans. Solomon is able to understand her speech and proceeds, presumably, to leave the ants be.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|27|18|19}}|
At length, when they came to a (lowly) valley of ants, '''one of the ants said: "O ye ants, get into your habitations, lest Solomon and his hosts crush you (under foot) without knowing it." So he smiled, amused at her speech;''' and he said: "O my Lord! so order me that I may be grateful for Thy favours, which thou hast bestowed on me and on my parents, and that I may work the righteousness that will please Thee: And admit me, by Thy Grace, to the ranks of Thy righteous Servants." }}

===Four types of cattle===

The Qur'an states that Allah has provided four kinds of cattle (eight including male and female). There exist, however, many more than four species of cattle. The word "cattle" in {{Quran|39|6}} is ''al-ana'ami'', from a root meaning plentiful subsistence and in this form meant pasturing (i.e. grazing) animals.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000289.pdf Lane's Lexicon, Suppliment p. 3035 أَنْعَٰمِ]</ref> The word ''azwajin'' ("kinds" in the translation of 39:6 below) generally means "mate" or "member of a pair".<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000432.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1266 أَزْوَٰجٍ]</ref> {{Quran|6|143-144}} clarifies that this refers to male and female pairs of sheep, goats, oxen, and camels, suggesting that the author of the Qur'an was aware of four kinds of grazing animals useful for humans (horses, mules and donkeys are considered a separate category from al-ana'ami, see {{Quran-range|16|5|8}}). This does not include many other types of cattle from the regions outside of Arabia, such as reindeer, which were and remain important to people in northern latitudes.

{{Quote|{{Quran|39|6}}|
He created you from one being, then from that (being) He made its mate; and He hath provided for you of '''cattle eight kinds'''. He created you in the wombs of your mothers, creation after creation, in a threefold gloom. Such is Allah, your Lord. His is the Sovereignty. There is no Allah save Him. How then are ye turned away}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|142-144}}|'''And of the cattle (He produceth) some for burdens, some for food.''' Eat of that which Allah hath bestowed upon you, and follow not the footsteps of the devil, for lo! he is an open foe to you. '''Eight pairs: Of the sheep twain, and of the goats twain.''' Say: Hath He forbidden the two males or the two females, or that which the wombs of the two females contain? Expound to me (the case) with knowledge, if ye are truthful. '''And of the camels twain and of the oxen twain.''' Say: Hath He forbidden the two males or the two females, or that which the wombs of the two females contain; or were ye by to witness when Allah commanded you (all) this? Then who doth greater wrong than he who deviseth a lie concerning Allah, that he may lead mankind astray without knowledge. Lo! Allah guideth not wrongdoing folk.}}

===Horses created as transportation===

After thousands of years of domestication and cross-breeding, horses were domesticated approximately 4,000 years ago in East Europe and Central Asia. Prior to this, horses were wild animals not yet suitably bred for this purpose. Today feral horses are descendants of once domesticated horses that aren't tamed or used for human transportation. By contrast, the Qur'an appears to suggest that horses were created by Allah already prepared to serve human purposes.

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|8}}|
And (He has created) horses, mules, and donkeys, for you to ride and use for show; and He has created (other) things of which ye have no knowledge.}}

===All animals live in communities===

The Qur'an emphatically states that all animals live in "communities". Many animals, such as the jaguar or leopard, are however well known for being solitary creatures, rarely meeting in pairs and then only to mate. Animals of these kinds do not live in communities and rather tend to resort to violence when their solitude is disturbed (the opposite, some argue, of what it means to live in a community). There also exist species whose young are not raised as family and which lay eggs and abandon them before hatching. Sea Turtles, for instance, bury their eggs on a beach and leave them. When an egg hatches the baby turtle must dig to the surface and make a sprint to the sea or perish. Some reptiles behave similarly. The Carolina anole, which is a lizard species, is another such example. These anoles lay a single egg every 2 weeks, around 10 in total, each taking 5 to 7 weeks to hatch. Anole hatchlings must fend for themselves and are by nature solitary creatures from birth.

One modern translation of the Quran interprets ''umamun'' (community / nation) to mean "genus" (group of species, plural: genera). This interpretation appears difficult, however, for while today we categorize species into genera, families, and other taxonomic ranks within evolutionary tree (phylogenetic) models, such categories are understood as an evolutionary process in which, even now, sub-groups of many species are diverging and gradually evolving into new species.

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|38}}|
'''There is not an animal (that lives) on the earth, nor a being that flies on its wings, but (forms part of) communities like you. Nothing have we omitted from the Book''', and they (all) shall be gathered to their Lord in the end.}}

===Bird flight as a miracle===

Modern science has revealed the aerodynamic properties of birds' anatomy which enable them to fly. Bird flight essentially functions by creating a difference in the air pressure between the lower and upper part of the wing and this creates lift that pushes the bird upward. The wings of birds have evolved over millions of years and have thereby refined birds' flight abilities. By contrast, the Quran states that 'nothing' holds birds in the air, except for the miraculous power of Allah.

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|79}}|
Do they not look at the birds, held poised in the midst of (the air and) the sky? Nothing holds them up but (the power of) Allah. Verily in this are signs for those who believe}}
==History==
{{Main|Historical Errors in the Quran}}
Below are a selection of historical errors found in the Quran, a more complete list is located in the article dedicated to [[Historical Errors in the Quran|historical errors in the Quran]].

===Massive wall of iron===
The Qur'an presents a version of the Syrian legend of Alexander the Great as a great king who helps a tribe of people build a massive wall of iron between two mountains. The Quran then states, along with the hadith, that this wall and the tribes it traps will remain in place until the Day of Judgement. Modern satellites and near comprehensive exploration of the Earth's surface, however, have yet to reveal any trace of such massive structure.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|18|96|97}}|
"Bring me blocks of iron." At length, when he had '''filled up the space between the two steep mountain-sides''', He said, "Blow (with your bellows)" Then, when he had made it (red) as fire, he said: "Bring me, that I may pour over it, molten lead." Thus were they made powerless to scale it or to dig through it.
}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|96}}|Until the Gog and Magog (people) are let through (their barrier), and they swiftly swarm from every hill.}}

===Mary as part of the Trinity===

Mainstream Christian doctrine has never held Mary to be a part of the Trinity. The Qur'an, however, apparently implies as much, leading many to conclude that Muhammad misunderstood Christian doctrine.

{{Quote|{{Quran|5|116}}|
And behold! Allah will say: "O Jesus the son of Mary! Didst thou say unto men, '''worship me and my mother as gods''' in derogation of Allah'?" He will say: "Glory to Thee! never could I say what I had no right (to say). Had I said such a thing, thou wouldst indeed have known it. Thou knowest what is in my heart, Thou I know not what is in Thine. For Thou knowest in full all that is hidden}}

This alternative formulation of the trinity is present even more clearly in {{Quran-range|5|72|75}}, which makes no mention of the holy spirit and takes measure to disprove the divinity of Jesus and his mother by pointing out that they, like normal human beings, also ate food.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|5|72|75}}|They surely disbelieve who say: Lo! Allah is the Messiah, son of Mary. The Messiah (himself) said: O Children of Israel, worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord. Lo! whoso ascribeth partners unto Allah, for him Allah hath forbidden paradise. His abode is the Fire. For evil-doers there will be no helpers. '''They surely disbelieve who say: Lo! Allah is the third of three'''; when there is no Allah save the One Allah. If they desist not from so saying a painful doom will fall on those of them who disbelieve. Will they not rather turn unto Allah and seek forgiveness of Him? For Allah is Forgiving, Merciful. '''The Messiah, son of Mary, was no other than a messenger''', messengers (the like of whom) had passed away before him. '''And his mother was a saintly woman. And they both used to eat (earthly) food.''' See how We make the revelations clear for them, and see how they are turned away!}}

A common interpretation advocated by Muslim scholars today is that this refers to a fringe Arab Christian sect known as the Collyridians. However, this sect were only mentioned in a 4th century CE book on heresies. The most plausible alternative interpretation proposed so far relates these verses to a Byzantine theological dispute and contemporary war propaganda (for details, see the Qur'anic Trinity section of the article [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature]]).

===Mary as Miriam===
{{main|Mary the sister of Aaron in the Quran}}

Mary the mother of Jesus was born in the first century BCE and was not related to Moses and his family whose story is set 1500 years earlier. Miriam was the sister of Moses and Aaron and daughter of Amram (Imran). The Quran appears to confuse these two characters, as it describes Mary, the mother of Jesus, as the "Sister of Aaron" and her mother as the "wife of Imran" in context where the "Imran" being discussed is evidently Miriam's father. A possible source of this confusion is the fact that both Miriam and Mary had the same name in Arabic, or were at least similar enough sounding for the original distinction to have been lost or neglected (the word used in either case in the Quran is the same and is pronounced ''maryam'').

{{Quote|{{Quran|19|27-28}}|Then she brought him to her own folk, carrying him. They said: O Mary! Thou hast come with an amazing thing. '''O sister of Aaron!''' Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|66|12}}|And Mary, '''daughter of 'Imran''', whose body was chaste, therefor We breathed therein something of Our Spirit. And she put faith in the words of her Lord and His scriptures, and was of the obedient.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|3|33-36}}| Lo! Allah preferred Adam and Noah and the Family of Abraham '''and the Family of 'Imran''' above (all His) creatures. They were descendants one of another. Allah is Hearer, Knower. (Remember) when the '''wife of 'Imran''' said: My Lord! I have vowed unto Thee that which is in my belly as a consecrated (offering). Accept it from me. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Hearer, the Knower! And when she was delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am delivered of a female - Allah knew best of what she was delivered - the male is not as the female; and lo! I have named her Mary, and lo! I crave Thy protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast.}}

"Wife of 'Imran" is here im'ra-atu ʿim'rāna, literally woman of Imran, though the same construction certainly means "wife" a few verses later ({{Quran|3|40}}), and in several other verses.

Some modern academic scholars cite evidence that this could be a case of typology (deliberate literary allusion between characters - see main article). This may be the best explanation, although the verses would still be misleading as historical statements. {{Muslim|25|5326}} seeks to explain the coincidence based on alleged customary forms of address (to explain "sister of Aaron") or naming customs (to explain why Imran named his daughter Mary), depending on interpretation of the hadith. Either interpretation only reduces part of the coincidence. Even if a naming custom could increase the odds that this father-daughter pair would share names with some earlier biblical family, a further coincidence would still be required if her father happened to be named the same as the father (Imran) in the particular biblical family alluded to when his daughter is addressed as "sister of Aaron". Another attempted explanation is that this Imran actually had a son called Aaron as well as a daughter named Mary.

===Ezra as the son of God in Jewish doctrine===

Historically, Judaism has been a strict form of monotheism. The Quran, by contrast, describes the Jews as practitioners of polytheism by stating that they hold ''Uzair'' (Ezra) to be the son of God. This is compared directly with the Christian doctrine which hold Jesus to be the son of God. This appears to be a confusion resulting from conflating the alternative senses in which Jewish and Christian theologians have employed and understood the word "son".

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|30}}|
The Jews call 'Uzair a son of Allah, and the Christians call Christ the son of Allah. That is a saying from their mouth; (in this) they but imitate what the unbelievers of old used to say. Allah's curse be on them: how they are deluded away from the Truth! }}

===David invented coats of mail===

Historians commonly credited the invention of coat mail (not to be confused with scale armor) to the Celts in the 3rd century BCE.<ref name="books.google.com">Richard A. Gabriel, [http://books.google.com/books?id=HscIwvtkq2UC&pg=PA79 ''The ancient world''], Greenwood Publishing Group, 2007 P.79</ref>. Mail has also been found in a 5th century BCE Scythian grave, and there is a cumbersome Etruscan pattern mail artifact from the 4th century BCE.<ref>Robinson, H. R., [https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=BaDMDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA10 ''Oriental Armour''], New York:Dover Publications, 1995, pp.10-12</ref> The nature of coat mail is such that it should persist for several millennia, and such advantageous military technologies would spread rapidly, so it is unlikely that coat mail would have originated much earlier, undiscovered by archaeologists. While, older translations of the Bible mention Goliath and David wearing a "coat of mail" in 1 Samuel 17:5 and 17:38 respectively, this is a well known mistranslation for a word meaning armor in general.

In the Qur'an, by contrast, David in the 10th century BCE is taught by Allah how to make long coats of mail (''sabighatin'' سَٰبِغَٰتٍ<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000022.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1298 سبغ]</ref>) after Allah made the iron (''al hadid'' ٱلْحَدِيدَ) malleable for him and told him to measure the chainmail links (''as-sardi'' ٱلسَّرْدِ) thereof.<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000022.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1298 سَٰبِغَٰتٍ], [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000071.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1347 ٱلسَّرْدِ]</ref> A second passage adds that people should be thankful for this knowledge which has been passed down since David and protects them today.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|34|10|11}}| And assuredly We gave David grace from Us, (saying): O ye hills and birds, echo his psalms of praise! And We made the iron supple unto him, Saying: Make thou long coats of mail and measure the links (thereof). And do ye right. Lo! I am Seer of what ye do. }}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|21|79|80}}| And We made Solomon to understand (the case); and unto each of them We gave judgment and knowledge. And we subdued the hills and the birds to hymn (His) praise along with David. We were the doers (thereof). And We taught him the art of making garments (of mail) to protect you in your daring. Are ye then thankful?}}

Chainmail seems to have been familiar to the early Muslims. Muhammad is narrated as using a metaphor of two coats of iron (junnataani min hadeedin جُنَّتَانِ مِنْ حَدِيدٍ), one owned by a generous person and the other by a miser in whose coat every ring (halqat حَلْقَةٍ<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume2/00000265.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 629 حلقة]</ref>) becomes close together ({{Muslim|5|2229}}). Ibn Kathir [https://quranx.com/tafsirs/34.11 in his tafsir for 34:11] has narrations in which Mujahid and Ibn Abbas use that same arabic word meaning rings (الحلقة) to explain the Quranic verse<ref>[https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=34&tAyahNo=11&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 Tafsir of Ibn Kathir for 34:11 (Arabic)]</ref>.

===Crucifixions in ancient Egypt===

The first historical reference to crucifixion as a method of execution is from 500 BCE, when the technique began being used in several middle eastern cultures. The Qur'an, by contrast, tells of crucifixions at the time of Moses (approximately 1500 BCE) as well as Joseph (approximately 2000 BCE).

Ancient Egypt has been subjected to extensive study by archaeologists. While there exists hieroglyphic evidence of people impaled through upright stakes in ancient Egypt, this remains distinct from the Palm-tree crucifixions described in the Quran, as Palm trees are of too great girth to be used to vertically impale an individual.

{{Quote|{{Quran|12|41}}|
O two companions of prison, as for one of you, he will give drink to his master of wine; but as for the other, he will be crucified, and the birds will eat from his head. The matter has been decreed about which you both inquire." }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|20|71}}|
(Pharaoh) said: Ye put faith in him before I give you leave. Lo! he is your chief who taught you magic. Now surely I shall cut off your hands and your feet alternately, and '''I shall crucify you on the trunks of palm trees''', and ye shall know for certain which of us hath sterner and more lasting punishment.}}

===The singular Pharaoh===

Geographically, the Coptic land of Egypt is adjacent to Arabia. Thus, most Arabs were aware of the preservation method applied by the ancient Egyptian to their pharaohs. Pharaohs were preserved intact using methods such as salt to dry the body (hence, salt in the body of Ramesses II does not suggest that he drowned in the dead sea). There were many pharaohs from numerous dynasties who were preserved in this way. The Qur'an, by contrast, only speaks of "Pharaoh" (''Firaun'') singularly, as a proper noun without the definite article, suggesting that its author was unaware of the multiplicity of pharaohs.

{{Quote|{{Quran|10|92}}|
This day shall We save thee in the body, that thou mayest be a sign to those who come after thee! but verily, many among mankind are heedless of Our Signs!" }}

===Nabatean rock tombs at al-Hijr as homes and palaces from before the time of Pharaoh===

The Qur'an frequently lists destroyed peoples of the past, particularly the peoples of Noah, Lot, Pharaoh's army, Midian, Aad and its successor, Thamud. The destruction of Thamud after they disbelieved their prophet Salih is mentioned many times, either by an earthquake {{Quran|7|78}} or a thunderous blast (for example {{Quran|54|31}}).

Its destruction is also alluded to by a believer from the family of Pharaoh:

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|40|28|37}}|And a believing man from the family of Pharaoh who concealed his faith said [...] And he who believed said, "O my people, indeed I fear for you [a fate] like the day of the companies - Like the custom of the people of Noah and of 'Aad and Thamud and those after them. And Allah wants no injustice for [His] servants.}}

The companies / factions (l-aḥzābu) is a term used collectively for the list of destroyed cities also in {{Quran-range|38|12|14}}.

[[w:Thamud|Thamud]] is a term used by experts for a people or peoples of a particular region over a number of centuries (8th century BCE to the 4th century CE), but the Qur'an speaks only of a particular destruction of Thamud after the warnings of their prophet Salih went unheeded. It describes them as the builders of well known palaces and homes, skillfully carved from the mountains, clarified in the Quran and hadith as a place in Arabia known as al Hijr (the rocky tract), or Mada'in Salih today.

The errors in the Quran here are two-fold: It is now known that these were actually elaborately carved tombs, not homes or palaces, and that they were made by the Nabateans from the 2nd century BCE to the 2nd century AD, not before the time of the Pharaohs<ref>[https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1293 Hegra Archaeological Site (al-Hijr / Madā ͐ in Ṣāliḥ) - unesco.org (includes many photographs of the tombs)]</ref>. Petra in Jordan was the Nabateans' more famous city before al Hijr. There are over 100 tombs at al-Hijr, some very large, and many of them small, believed even by a 14th Century CE Arab traveller to contain the bones of the people of Thamud in their houses.<ref>[https://whc.unesco.org/document/168945 al-Hijr UNESCO nomination document] p.36 (includes detailed site description)</ref>. Nabatean inscriptions forbid opening the tombs, reusing them or moving the bodies. The town of al-Hegra where the people lived some distance from the surrounding rock tombs was built of mud-brick and stone.<ref>[https://www.arabnews.com/node/350178 History and mystery of Al-Hijr, ancient capital of the Nabateans in Arabia] - Arabnews.com</ref>

The Quran says Thamud carved palaces from its plains, and homes from its mountains:

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|7|73|74}}|And to the Thamud [We sent] their brother Salih. He said, "O my people, worship Allah; you have no deity other than Him. There has come to you clear evidence from your Lord. This is the she-camel of Allah [sent] to you as a sign. So leave her to eat within Allah 's land and do not touch her with harm, lest there seize you a painful punishment. And remember when He made you successors after the 'Aad and settled you in the land, [and] '''you take for yourselves palaces from its plains and carve from the mountains, homes [ buyūtan بُيُوتًا <ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000317.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 280 بيوت ]</ref>]'''. Then remember the favors of Allah and do not commit abuse on the earth, spreading corruption."}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|26|149}}|And you carve out of the mountains, homes [ buyūtan بُيُوتًا ], with skill.}}

These ruins were well known to Muhammad's listeners:

{{Quote|{{Quran|29|38}}|And [We destroyed] 'Aad and Thamud, and it has become clear to you from their [ruined] dwellings [ masākinihim مَّسَٰكِنِهِمْ <ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000118.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1394 مسكن]</ref>]. And Satan had made pleasing to them their deeds and averted them from the path, and they were endowed with perception.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|89|9}}|And [with] Thamud, who carved out the rocks in the valley?}}

Al-Hijr is widely accepted as this location. It is also mentioned once by name in {{Quran-range|15|80|83}} ("the companions of al-Hijr") and its description and destruction matches that for Thamud.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|15|80|83}}|And certainly did the companions of Thamud [ al-Hijr ٱلْحِجْرِ ] deny the messengers. And We gave them Our signs, but from them they were turning away. And they used to carve from the mountains, houses [ buyūtan بُيُوتًا ], feeling secure. But the shriek seized them at early morning.}}

Al-Hijr is also identified in hadiths as the "al Hijr, land of Thamud" (al hijr ardi Thamudi الْحِجْرِ أَرْضِ ثَمُودَ):

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|55|562}}|Narrated `Abdullah bin `Umar:

The people landed at the land of Thamud called Al-Hijr along with Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and they took water from its well for drinking and kneading the dough with it as well. (When Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) heard about it) he ordered them to pour out the water they had taken from its wells and feed the camels with the dough, and ordered them to take water from the well whence the she-camel (of Prophet Salih) used to drink.}}

===Samarians in ancient Egypt===
The Qu'ran states that Moses dealt with a Samarian during his time. However the Samarians did not exist until well over half a millennium after Moses is supposed to have existed.

Oxford Bibliographies (an academic website) says the following:

{{Quote|[https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780195393361/obo-9780195393361-0176.xml Oxford Bibliographies - Samaria/Samaritans]|Samaria (Hebrew: Shomron) is mentioned in the Bible in 1 Kings 16:24 as the name of the mountain on which Omri, ruler of the northern Israelite kingdom in the 9th century BCE, built his capital, naming it also Samaria. After the conquest of the Northern Kingdom by the Assyrians in 722/721 BCE, the district surrounding the city was likewise called Samaria (Assyrian: Samerina). The Bible presents an etiology or folk etymology when it claims that the city was named after Shemer, the original owner from whom Omri bought the hill. It is more likely that the name is derived from the root šmr, to “watch, to guard”; that is, the hill was a point from which particularly the north–south route could be watched and guarded.}}

The likely root of the Quranic confusion is the story in the Bible, [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Hosea%208&version=NIV Hosea 8:5-8] or [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Kings%2012&version=NIV 1 Kings 12:25-29] where there is mentioned a golden calf (or two of them) created in Samaria after the time of Solomon. One modern perspective holds that the Qur'an might be referring to Zimri, son of Salu (Numbers 25:14). However, the Quranic character is referred to three times in {{Quran-range|20|85|88}} as l-sāmiriyu with the definite article, "the Samiri", so this is a descriptive title rather than a proper name.

{{Quote|{{Quran|20|85}}|“( Allah) said; ‘We have tested thy people in thy absence: the Samiri has led them astray’.” }}{{Quote|{{Quran|20|95}}|“( Moses) said, ‘What then is thy case, O Samiri?’”}}

===Noah's worldwide flood===

The Quran contains a version of the worldwide-flood story widespread in ancient near-Eastern mythology and most famously found in the Bible. Since geological evidence suggests such a flood never took place, some modern Muslim scholars have reinterpreted the account in the Quran as referring to a more limited, local flood. Several elements in the tale, however, militate against this rereading. Elsewhere in the Quran whenever the heavens and earth are mentioned together, it means in their entirety. In this story waters are released from both of them. Another such detail is the storage of "two of each kind" of animal aboard the ship, since it is not clear what purpose this would serve if the flood were local. Similarly, the purpose of the boat itself appears unclear in this reading - as with the ample warning time that Noah was given, he and his family could have simply evacuated the area that was to be flooded. The relevant passage also states plainly that nothing, not even a tall mountain, could save an individual from drowning on that day except for Allah - this seems to contradict the idea that individuals and animals could have escaped the flood simply by evacuating the flooded area. Noah is recorded praying to God, "O my Lord! Leave not of the Unbelievers [kuffar], a single one on Earth!" - the flood is an answer to this prayer, which likewise suggests that the flood described is a global flood that drowns all those not chosen by Allah to persist aboard the ark.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|54|11|12}}|Then opened We the gates of heaven with pouring water And caused the earth to gush forth springs, so that the waters met for a predestined purpose.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|At length, behold! there came Our command, and the fountains of the earth gushed forth! '''We said: "Embark therein, of each kind two, male and female''', and your family - except those against whom the word has already gone forth,- and the Believers." but only a few believed with him.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|11|43}}|The son replied: "I will betake myself to some mountain: it will save me from the water." Noah said: '''"This day nothing can save''', from the command of Allah, any but those on whom He hath mercy! "And the waves came between them, and the son was among those overwhelmed in the Flood.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|71|26}}|And Noah, said: "O my Lord! Leave not of the Unbelievers, a single one on earth!}}

===Flood waters boiled from an oven===

Aside from waters pouring from gates in the heaven, the Qur'an further describes the flood waters as boiling from an oven. There is no scientific nor historical evidence for a large flood of this nature. This element is not found even in more ancient versions of the story (Epic of Gilgamesh, Atra hasis, and Ziusudra). Its ultimate origin appears to be a highly tenuous rabbinical exergisis in the Babylonian Talmud, based on a word in an unrelated verse that means heat or wrath.<ref>[https://biblehub.com/lexicon/esther/7-10.htm biblehub.com]</ref>

{{Quote|1=[https://www.sefaria.org/Rosh_Hashanah.12a.4?lang=bi Tracate Rosh Hashanah]|2=The Gemara answers: Even according to Rabbi Eliezer a change was made, in accordance with the statement of Rav Ḥisda, as Rav Ḥisda said: They sinned with boiling heat, and they were punished with boiling heat; they sinned with the boiling heat of the sin of forbidden sexual relations, and they were punished with the boiling heat of scalding waters. This is derived from a verbal analogy. It is written here, with regard to the flood: “And the waters abated” (Genesis 8:1), and it is written elsewhere, with regard to King Ahasuerus: “And the heated anger of the king abated” (Esther 7:10), which implies that the word “abated” means cooled. This indicates that at first the waters of the flood had been scalding hot.}}

Note that in his translation, Yusuf Ali mistranslates the Aramaic loan word for the oven (alttannooru ٱلتَّنُّورُ)<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000355.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 318 تَّنُّورُ]</ref> as "fountains". The Arabic verb translated "gushed forth" (fara فَارَ) means "boiled" in the context of water in a cooking pot<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000241.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2457 فور]</ref>, as well as in the other verse where it is used, {{Quran|67|7}}.

{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass '''and the oven gushed forth water''', We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|
Then We inspired in him, saying: Make the ship under Our eyes and Our inspiration. Then, when Our command cometh '''and the oven gusheth water''', introduce therein of every (kind) two spouses, and thy household save him thereof against whom the Word hath already gone forth. And plead not with Me on behalf of those who have done wrong. Lo! they will be drowned.}}

===Noah's ark holding every species===

Part of the legend of Noah's Ark is that a pair of every living species was stored on board. Modern science has revealed, however, that there are over a hundred thousand species of animals including penguins, polar bears, koala bears, and kangaroos that live spread across the entire planet and each of which require different climates, habitats, and diets. These discoveries appear to render the idea that all animals could have been kept on board a single ship impossible.

{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|
(Thus it was) till, when Our commandment came to pass and the oven gushed forth water, We said: Load therein two of every kind, a pair (the male and female), and thy household, save him against whom the word hath gone forth already, and those who believe. And but a few were they who believed with him.}}

===Countable currency in ancient Egypt===
Surah Yusuf mentions that the caravan that rescued the eponymous prophet from the pit sold him to an Egyptian "for a low price, a few dirhams". Leaving aside the fact that dirham coins did not exist in ancient Egypt, a more fundamental problem is that the price is indicated as having been some kind of discreetly countable currency: darāhima maʿdūdatin ("dirhams counted"). The word maʿdūdatin occurs throughout the Quran denoting something discreetly numbered, for example "[Fasting for] a limited number of days" in {{Quran|2|184}}. Thus, it is not describing a weight of valuable material, but a countable currency. Such a thing did not exist in ancient Egypt. Rather, there were stone weights, particularly the denben, for measuring amounts of precious metals and to price other goods that could be barter traded, but not itself nor units of metal used as a means of exchange.<ref>[https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1079/trade-in-ancient-egypt/ Trade in ancient Egypt] - World History Encyclopedia</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|12|20}}|And they sold him for a reduced price - a few dirhams - and they were, concerning him, of those content with little.}}

==Sociology==

===Linguistics===

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|31}}|And He taught Adam the names - all of them. Then He showed them to the angels and said, "Inform Me of the names of these, if you are truthful."}}

The Qur'an, in multiple instances, states that the first humans "Adam and Eve" spoke to each other in some kind of language, and that God told them the names of 'all things'. Modern linguistics has revealed, however, that the type of sentences constructed in the Qur'an were not spoken by humans until over 100,000 years after the first humans evolved. The language of the first humans would be incomprehensible to us and they would not be able to express the kinds of sentences that Adam and Eve do in the Qur'an. The earliest forms of human communication were entirely different in nature from the sorts of languages humans have used in the last several thousands of years.

Some 1.9 million species of plants and animals have been identified and named, out of some 8.7 million that may actually exist<ref name="plos">{{cite journal | author= Mora, C.| title=How Many Species Are There on Earth and in the Ocean?|journal=[[PLoS Biology]]|date=August 23, 2011|url=http://www.plosbiology.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pbio.1001127 |doi=10.1371/journal.pbio.1001127 |pmid=21886479 |pmc=3160336 |volume=9 |pages=e1001127|display-authors=etal}}</ref>. Millions more have become extinct. Far more numerous are the living objects, galaxies, the countless stars and planets of the universe. In light of this, it is not clear what is meant by the idea that Allah taught Adam 'all the names', especially since the first humans do not appear to have been extremely knowledgeable.

Incidentally, the element in the Quranic verse in which the angels could not name animals when Adam was a tale invented by a Rabbi. See the relevant section on that topic in the article [[Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature]].

===Arabic as eminently accessible===

Fewer than 4% of the world's population grows up speaking Arabic. The Arabic of this 4%, however, is not the Arabic of the Quran and is instead comprised of various regional dialects of modern colloquial Arabic. The text of the Quran is thus directly accessible only to a small portion of the world's population. Additionally, there are present in the Quran many words, phrases, and references whose original 7th century Arabic meaning, being unrecorded, has been entirely lost to history or, in some cases, has remained subject to inconclusive debates. Consequently, while Muslims are obligated to pray and recite the Quran in Arabic, it is only a small proportion of the Muslim population that can claim to have some sense of what they recite on a daily basis. These circumstances are difficult to reconcile with the Quran's assertion that the Quran was 'revealed in Arabic so that people may understand it'.

{{Quote|{{Quran|43|3}}|
We have made it a Qur'an in Arabic, that ye may be able to understand (and learn wisdom). }}

==Miracles and myths==

===Humans turned apes===

The Qur'an records a miraculous event where Sabbath breakers are transformed into apes. There is, however, no scientific evidence that humans were ever transformed into apes.

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|65}}|
And well ye knew those amongst you who transgressed in the matter of the Sabbath: We said to them: "Be ye apes, despised and rejected." }}

===Mooing statue===

The Qur'an describes a statue of a calf that was capable of mooing.
{{Quote|{{Quran|20|88}}|So he brought forth for them a calf, a (mere) body, which had a mooing sound, so they said: This is your god and the god of Musa, but he forgot.}}

===Hordes trapped by iron wall===
{{Main|Dhul-Qarnayn and the Alexander Romance}}

The Quran states that two massive tribes of beasts (Gog and Magog) were and will continue until the Day of Judgement to be trapped behind a massive wall of Iron erected by Dhul-Qarnayn. According to the Qur'an, these two tribes were trapped by Dhul-Qarnayn behind this metal wall and will only be let free on the day of Judgement. However, no such wall or tribes have ever been found despite the advent of global satellite imagery.

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|96}}|
Until the Gog and Magog (people) are let through (their barrier), and they swiftly swarm from every hill. }}

===Supernatural food===
The Qur'an states that Jesus received a feast sent down from heaven. There have, however, never been any scientifically verified accounts of food descending from heaven.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|5|114|115}}|
Jesus, son of Mary, said: O Allah, Lord of us! '''Send down for us a table spread with food from heaven, that it may be a feast for us''', for the first of us and for the last of us, and a sign from Thee. Give us sustenance, for Thou art the Best of Sustainers. Allah said: Lo! I send it down for you. And whoso disbelieveth of you afterward, him surely will I punish with a punishment wherewith I have not punished any of (My) creatures.}}

===Stick turned serpent===
The Quran states that Moses' staff transformed into a serpent. There is no scientific evidence that suggests such a transformation would be possible.{{Quote|{{Quran|7|107}}|
Then (Moses) threw his rod, and behold! it was a serpent, plain (for all to see)! }}

===Army of genies and birds===

A story in the Qur'an, drawing on Jewish folklore, states that Solomon commanded a massive army comprised of 'Jinns and men and birds'. Solomon is described as speaking with a Hoopoe bird and thereafter desiring to execute the bird when it is tardy to his assembly. The Hoopoe bird, it is then revealed, was only delayed because it had been spying on a beautiful female ruler, Queen Sheba, who Solomon subsequently insists is misguided and must be conquered. At this point, Solomon assigns a Jinn from his assembly the task of stealing Queen Sheba's magnificent throne. There is, however, no scientific evidence that Jinn exist, that birds can be commanded as soldiers, or that birds can engage in elaborate conversations with humans.

{{Quote|{{Quran|27|16-17}}|
And Solomon was David's heir. He said: "O ye people! We have been taught the speech of birds, and on us has been bestowed (a little) of all things: this is indeed Grace manifest (from Allah.)And before Solomon were marshalled his hosts― of Jinns and men and birds, and they were all kept in order and ranks.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|27|20-23}}|
And he took a muster of the Birds; and he said: "Why is it I see not the Hoopoe? Or is he among the absentees? I will certainly punish him with a severe Penalty, or execute him, unless he bring me a clear reason (for absence). But the Hoopoe tarried not far: he (came up and) said: "I have compassed (territory) which thou hast not compassed, and I have come to thee from Saba with tidings true. I found (there) a woman ruling over them and provided with every requisite; and she has a magnificent throne.}}

===Living inside a big fish===

The Quran presents a version of the Biblical tale in which Jonah is swallowed by a whale ('the big Fish') and then lives in the whale for some time while praying. Scientific research, however, suggests that a person could not persist long inside a whale's digestive tract and, if not crushed by the whale or by water pressure, would almost immediately suffocate.

{{Quote|{{Quran|37|142}}|Then the big Fish did swallow him, and he had done acts worthy of blame. Had it not been that he (repented and) glorified Allah, He would certainly have remained inside the Fish till the Day of Resurrection. But We cast him forth, on the naked shore in a state of sickness}}

===Buraq, the winged horse===
{{Main|Buraq}}

While it took one week to travel from Mecca to Jerusalem (the location of the alleged 'farthest Mosque') by camel, the Qur'an states that a magical winged horse, called the Buraq, transported Muhammad from Mecca to Jerusalem in a matter of minutes. While creatures like the Buraq were common characters in near Easter myths, scientific research has not found any evidence that flying horses exist.

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|1}}|
Glory to (Allah) Who did take His servant for a Journey by night from the Sacred Mosque to the farthest Mosque, whose precincts We did bless,- in order that We might show him some of Our Signs: for He is the One Who heareth and seeth (all things). }}

===Speaking body parts===

The Quran states that human organs will, on the Day of Judgement, testify against their own persons. Scientific research does not suggest that this is possible.

{{Quote|{{Quran|24|24}}|
On the Day when their tongues, their hands, and their feet will bear witness against them as to their actions. }}

===Sea split in half===

The Quran present a version of the story where Moses splits the sea and crosses it with the Israelites. Scientific research does not suggest that this is possible.

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|50}}|
And remember '''We divided the sea for you''' and saved you and drowned Pharaoh's people within your very sight. }}

===Manipulating the wind===

The Quran says that Solomon had the power to control the wind and traditional sources elaborate that Solomon could use this wind to fly upon a gigantic wooden carpet to wherever he pleased. Scientific research does not suggest that this is possible. Historical research also fails to find any real record of a king traveling the earth upon a m flying carpet.

{{Quote|{{Quran|38|36}}|
Then We subjected the wind to his power, to flow gently to his order, Whithersoever he willed }}

{{Quote|Tafsir Ibn-Kathir on 21:81 | A flying carpet made from wood, on top of which he could carry everything in his kingdom including chairs, to wherever Solomon wants to go, whilst flocks of birds would fly over to give shade }}

===Testimony of a dead man===

The Quran states that Allah instructed a group of people to strike a murdered man with a piece of a heifer (young female cow that has not yet borne a calf) in order to temporarily resurrect him and discover the identity of the murderer. Scientific research does not suggest that this is possible.

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|73}}|
And We said: Smite him with some of it. Thus Allah bringeth the dead to life and showeth you His portents so that ye may understand. }}

===Mountains and birds sing psalms===
The Qur'an states that hills and birds would sing the psalms with David. Scientific research does not suggest that hills can sing, and no birds living the proximity of David were or are capable of imitating human sounds.{{Quote|{{Quran|34|10}}|
And assuredly We gave David grace from Us, (saying): O ye hills and birds, echo his psalms of praise! And We made the iron supple unto him}}

==Other==

===Nonmathematical hereditary laws===

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|11-12}}|
4.11: Allah (thus) directs you as regards your Children's (Inheritance): to the male, a portion equal to that of two females: if only daughters, two or more, their share is two-thirds of the inheritance; if only one, her share is a half. For parents, a sixth share of the inheritance to each, if the deceased left children; if no children, and the parents are the (only) heirs, the mother has a third; if the deceased Left brothers (or sisters) the mother has a sixth. (The distribution in all cases ('s) after the payment of legacies and debts. Ye know not whether your parents or your children are nearest to you in benefit. These are settled portions ordained by Allah; and Allah is All-knowing, Al-wise.

4.12: In what your wives leave, your share is a half, if they leave no child; but if they leave a child, ye get a fourth; after payment of legacies and debts. In what ye leave, their share is a fourth, if ye leave no child; but if ye leave a child, they get an eighth; after payment of legacies and debts. If the man or woman whose inheritance is in question, has left neither ascendants nor descendants, but has left a brother or a sister, each one of the two gets a sixth; but if more than two, they share in a third; after payment of legacies and debts; so that no loss is caused (to any one). Thus is it ordained by Allah; and Allah is All-knowing, Most Forbearing. }}The shares of inheritance outlined in the Quran do not add up to one, and there is no way to reconcile the shares presented.<ref>http://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Contra/i001.html</ref> By contrast, the Quran states that the rules it contains are perfect.

*Wife: 1/8 = 3/24,
*Daughters: 2/3 = 16/24,
*Father: 1/6 = 4/24,
*Mother: 1/6 = 4/24,
*'''Total''' = 27/24=1.125

===Lying forelocks===
The Quran describes liars as possessing 'lying, sinful forelocks'. The forelock, however, is not a part of brain and hosts no neural activity. While some Muslim scholars have argued that this is a prophetic reference to the prefrontal cortex, the verse does not appear to be describing the individual's brain, but rather appears to make metaphorical metonymic use of the word 'forelock' to refer to the 'lying, sinful' person themselves.

{{Quote|{{Quran|96|15-16}}|
Let him beware! If he desist not, We will drag him by the forelock. A lying, sinful forelock.}}

==See Also==

*[[Islam and Science]]

==References==
{{reflist}}\
[[Category:Apologetics]]
[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Cosmology]]
[[Category:Criticism of Islam]]
[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Reproductive sciences]]
[[ar:أخطاء_علمية_في_القرآن]]

Geocentrism and the Quran

2023-03-01T14:56:13Z

Vixen: There is no word that means "running" in the verse i removed

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}

[[File:Geocentrism2.jpg|thumb]]

In several verses the [[Qur'an]] describes the movement of the sun and moon, a few times mentioning that they travel in a circuitous path, or sphere/hemisphere (''fee falakin'' فِى فَلَكٍ), but does not mention once that the Earth too is in motion.<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak">Falak [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000227.pdf Lane's Lexicon Volume 1 page 2443] and [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000228.pdf page 2444] Lane also says that the Arab astronomers said there were seven of these spheres for the sun, moon, and the five visible planets, rotating about the celestial pole. This must reflect the post-Qur'anic influence of Ptolemy, whose astronomical work was translated for the Arabs from the 8th century onwards.</ref> The geocentric (Earth-centered) view was the prevailing understanding of the universe prior to the 16th century when Copernicus helped explain and popularize a sun-centered (heliocentric) view of the universe.

In the Qur'an, the sun's movement is almost always mentioned in the context of night and day ({{Quran|13|2}} being the only exception) and is always mentioned with that of the moon, which does in fact orbit the Earth each month, and appears, to the unaided eye, to traverse the sky each night when it is visible. The Quran assumes that the sun's movement is familiar to its audience and is to be understood as a sign. In other verses the moon is said to follow the sun, which is not allowed to overtake it, though they will be brought together on the last day.

==Background==

===In Islamic cosmology===
The Qur'an says that both the sun and the moon swim or float in a circuitous path, celestial sphere or, more likely, a hemisphere (a ''falak'' in the Arabic<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak" />). It seems that Allah brings the sun from the east, which then goes high above the Earth, and after sunset goes to a resting place. All this takes place around an Earth that is spread out (or flattened) and which possesses a firmament of seven heavens built atop it without visible pillars.

===Historical background===
Geocentrism is the notion that the Earth is the (immovable) center of our universe, thus all celestial bodies move around it. The ancient Greeks and the Europeans of the middle ages thought that the celestial bodies (the sun, the moon and the 5 visible planets) all moved in celestial spheres around a spherical Earth. This was the theory of Ptolemy (d. 170 CE), who was followed by [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth#Greek_and_Indian_astronomical_knowledge|Muslim astronomers from the 9th century CE]] onwards, though Islamic texts expressing doubts about his ideas started to appear regularly from the 10th century.<ref>{{citation|last=Hoskin|first=Michael|title=The Cambridge Concise History of Astronomy|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1999|isbn=978-0-521-57600-0|date=25 April 2021|page=60}}</ref> Aside from notable exceptions such as Aristarchus of Samos, heliocentrism was only advocated by occasional figures with small followings and widely rejected before the work of Copernicus.

Geocentrism is different from the idea that the [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth|Earth is flat]]. However, while those who believe in geocentrism do not always hold the Earth to be flat, those who hold the Earth to be flat almost invariably believe in geocentrism.

====Historical influences on Islamic cosmology====
The geocentrism and general cosmography of the Qur'an shows little or no influence from Ptolemaic concepts of heavenly spheres, each containing a celestial body, according to which paradigm the Qur'an and the word ''falak'' later came to be interpreted<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak" /><ref name="vanBladelCords">{{citation|last1=van Bladel |first1=Kevin |date=2007 |title=Heavenly cords and prophetic authority in the Qur’an and its Late Antique context |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40379198 |journal=Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies |volume=70 |issue=2 |pages=223-246 |doi= |access-date=25 April 2021}}</ref> In a paper on Qur'anic cosmography, Damien Janos notes that the "Qurʾānic cosmology stems from a different religious background and it does not contain any conspicuous signs of synthesis or assimilation with the cosmological trends indebted to Ptolemaic astronomy"<ref>{{citation |last1=Janos |first1=Damien |date=2012 |title=Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective: some notes on the formation of a religious wordview |journal=Religion |volume=42 |issue=2 |pages=215-231}} See p. 224</ref> and observes that in various respects the two paradigms are incompatible, particularly as the celestial bodies move in the lowest part of the seven heavens in the Qur'anic model.<ref>Ibid. p. 221</ref> Rather, the Qur'an is more reflective of its Biblical and Mesopotamian predecessors (see also [[Cosmology of the Quran]]). In the same paper Janos does, however, theorise that the Qur'anic ''falak'' may contain Greek influence given how often it was interpreted in terms of circularity or sphericity by Muslim scholars. He also considers as a possible hypothesis that both the ''falak'' and seven heavens "can be construed as having not a fully spherical shape, but rather a hemispherical or domed-shape", and the sun would transit back to its origin in the east "via an underground passage", which "finds some support in traditional Arabic reports [...] and seems to have Mesopotamian antecendents".<ref>Ibid. p. 228</ref>

==Geocentrism in the Qur'an==

The Qur'an in several places and contexts advances or alludes to descriptions of the heavenly bodies which explicitly or implicitly entail a geocentric model of the cosmos.

===Quran 36:37-40 - The sun's daily cycle and resting place===

{{Quran-range|36|37|40}} is a passage about night and day and the cycles of the sun and moon in that context.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|36|37|40}}|A token unto them is night. '''We strip it of the day, and lo! they are in darkness and the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him.''' That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise. And for the moon We have appointed mansions till she return like an old shrivelled palm-leaf. It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day. They float each in an orbit.
 '''Word by word:''' ''Waalshshamsu'' (and the sun) ''tajree'' (runs) ''limustaqarrin'' (to a resting point) ''laha'' (of it).}}

Immediately after describing the change from day to night the passage states that the sun runs on to a designated "resting place" (ِmustaqarrin مُسْتَقَرٍّ See footnotes regarding the Arabic word here, which differs from similar verses).<ref name="mustaqarrin">A few translations use instead, "appointed term", though in nearly all other verses where we find mustaqarrin (qaf-ra-ra قرر [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000029.pdf Lane's Lexicon Volume 1 page 2501]) as a participle they translate it as a place of settlement or an abode or resting place. There are other verses (35:13, 31:29, 39:5, 13:2) that mention the sun and moon running (with the same verb as is translated "run" in 36:38) for a term appointed, but these use the words لِأَجَلٍ مُّسَمًّى which do indeed mean a term appointed - However, note that mustaqarrin مُسْتَقَرٍّ in 36:38 is a different word.</ref> There is also a sahih hadith that use the same Arabic word as in {{Quran|36|38}} to identify "a resting place" as part of the sun's daily cycle.<ref>See {{Muslim|1|297}} (also {{Bukhari|6|60|326}} and {{Bukhari|6|60|327}} where Q. 36:38 is explained such that the resting place is under the throne)</ref> An alternative view is that this refers to the sun's final resting on the last day rather than some temporal location. Another narration of the same hadith possibly supports this view.<ref>See {{Bukhari|4|54|421}} and {{Bukhari|9|93|520}} where Q. 36:38 is instead mentioned at the end, possibly indicating that the مُسْتَقَرٍّ (resting place) in 36:38 refers to the end of the world when the sun is asked to rise from its setting place (مِنْ مَغْرِبِهَا) instead of under the throne each night.</ref> Whichever meaning was originally intended, the sun's movement is nevertheless mentioned right after describing day and night, just as the next verse mentions the different mansions appointed for the moon each night. The whole passage is about day and night and the sun and moon's movement in that context.

The phrase "It is not for the sun to overtake the moon" in {{Quran|36|40}} does not, critics point out, comfortably fit a heliocentric perspective, yet is quite natural from a 7th century perspective where the sun and moon were believed to orbit the same world, and indeed, would one day be joined together (discussed in another section below). The word translated 'for' in the phrase 'It is not for the sun...' in {{Quran|36|40}} is ''yanbaghee (''يَنۢبَغِى'')'', which means "fitting", "suitable", "proper", "behoves", "right and allowable", "good, "facilitated", "easy", "practicable", or "manageable"<ref>ba-ghayn-ya [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000269.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 233]</ref> and the word translated 'overtake' is ''tudrika'' (تُدْرِكَ), which means "catches up and comes upon".<ref>dal-ra-kaf [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000039.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 873]</ref>

====The sun's movement is almost always mentioned in the context of day and night====
An important observation is that the sun's movement is almost always mentioned in the context of night and day, {{Quran|13|2}} being the only exception. See the "floating" of the sun and moon in {{Quran|21|33}} and {{Quran|36|40}} (discussed in the next section), and the "running" of the sun and moon in {{Quran|31|29}}, {{Quran|35|13}}, {{Quran-range|36|37|40}}, and {{Quran|39|5}}. Similarly, {{Quran|14|33}} (the word translated there as "constant in their courses" is daibayni, which is simply a verb meaning to strive, toil, labour, hold on or continue<ref>dal-alif-ba [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000005.pdf Lane's Lexicon Volume 1 page 106]</ref>).

===Quran 21:33 and 36:40 - The sun, moon, night and day all float in a falak===

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|33}}|And He it is Who created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. They all float in rounded courses.
 '''Word by word:''' ''khalaqa'' (created) ''allayla'' (the night) ''waalnnahara'' (and the day) ''waalshshamsa'' (and the sun) ''waalqamara'' (and the moon) ''kullun'' (each) ''fee'' (in) ''falakin'' (a rounded course) ''yasbahoona'' (they swim)}}

{{Quote|{{quran-range|36|37|40}}|A token unto them is night. We strip it of the day, and lo! they are in darkness and the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise. And for the moon We have appointed mansions till she return like an old shrivelled palm-leaf. '''It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day. They float each in an orbit.'''}}

The last sentence in Arabic is the same in both verses. They state that the sun and moon (and night and day) all "float" or "swim" in an orbit, or more precisely, each in a ''falak'', a word with various meanings related to the celestial sphere or dome-shaped things, as described in Lane's lexicon of classical arabic.<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak" /> The main definition Lane provides is the place of the revolving of the stars, the celestial sphere, generally imagined to be a hemisphere by the Arabs, or the pole of the heavens. The more common English translations, 'orbit', or 'rounded course', seem to be based on the meanings related to roundness or circling. Ibn 'Abbas is recorded in the ''tafasir'' (commentaries) of al-Tabari and of Ibn Kathir explaining that the sun and moon swimming in a falak means 'in a whirl (whorl), like the whirl of a spindle' (a whirl was a hemisphere-shaped object).<ref>The Arabic reads:فِي فَلْكَة كَفَلْكَةِ الْمِغْزَل fee falka, ka-falkati almighzal - [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=1&tSoraNo=36&tAyahNo=40&tDisplay=yes&Page=3&Size=1&LanguageId=1 al-Tabari] and [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=36&tAyahNo=40&tDisplay=yes&Page=4&Size=1&LanguageId=1 Ibn Kathir on 36:40] or for an interpretation in English [http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Ya-Seen/Among-the-Signs-of-the-Might-a--- qtafsir.com]</ref> Similarly, Ibn Kathir records in his tafsir for 21:33, "Ibn Abbas said, 'Spinning like as spins the spindle in a whirl'".<ref>[https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=21&tAyahNo=33&tDisplay=yes&Page=3&Size=1&LanguageId=1 Ibn Kathir on 21:33] and in English [http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Al-Anbiya/In-everything-there-is-a-Sign---- qtafsir.com]</ref> Lane translates the exact same words attributed to Ibn 'Abbas as "the whirl of a spindle...thus called because of its roundness...it is a piece of wood, generally of hemispherical form, or nearly so, through the middle of which the upper part of the spindle-pin is inserted". Such translations may also be based on another Ibn 'Abbas comment, as noted by Ibn Kathir, that the sun runs in its falak in the sky or heaven during the day, and when it sets, it runs at night in its falak underneath the Earth until it rises in the east.<ref>"Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Ibn `Abbas said, 'The sun is like flowing water, running in its course [falakha] in the sky [alssama] during the day. When it sets, it travels [at night - bi al-layli (omitted in the translation)] in its course [falakha] beneath the earth until it rises in the east.' He said, 'The same is true in the case of the moon.' Its chain of narration is Sahih." [http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Luqman/The-Might-and-Power-of-Allah-A--- Tafsir ibn Kathir for Qur'an 31:29] For the Arabic, see [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=31&tAyahNo=29&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 altafsir.com]</ref> Al-Tabari further mentions other opinions, such as that it means the pole of the heavens, and similarly, the shape of an iron millstone (or perhaps the iron axis thereof).

====No mention of Earth's orbit====
Critics often point out that while, according to the Quran, the stars have certain fixed "settings" (''mawaqi'', {{Quran|56|75}}); and while the day, night, sun and moon are mentioned as all floating in a falak; and while the sun and moon are often mentioned as running their courses, there is never any indication whatsoever that the Earth itself runs any kind of course or orbit.

====The galactic orbit interpretation====
Modern Islamic scholars have often argued that references in the Qur'an to the sun's movement refer to its orbit around our milky way galaxy rather than to a geocentric orbit.

Critics point out that the 225 million year galactic orbit has no relevance to human time-scales, while the Quran almost always mentions the sun's movement in the context of night and day. Another response is that the entire solar system, and not just the sun, orbits the gravity well of our galaxy. This is considered a problem because therefore the moon can equally be said to orbit the galaxy, yet in verses like {{Quran-range|36|37|40}} the floating of the moon in a falak seems to relate to the phases of the lunar cycle. There is yet another problem discussed in the next section below, which is perhaps even more important.

===Quran 31:29 and 13:2 - The sun's movement is visible and is a sign===
Critics of the galactic orbit interpretation have further responded that the author of the Qur'an describes a movement of the sun (as well as of the moon) which he expects its listeners to see and interpret as a sign, and for this reason the reference cannot be to the sun's galactic orbit.

{{Quote|{{Quran|31|29}}|'''Do you not see''' that Allah causes the night to enter the day and causes the day to enter the night and has subjected the sun and the moon, each running [its course] for a specified term, and that Allah, with whatever you do, is Acquainted?}}

The words 'and that' (''wa anna'') towards the end of the verse indicate that "Do you not see" applies to the entire verse, suggesting that it is not just the day and night, but also the running of the sun and moon that the 7th century listeners of the Qur'an were expected to know about. Critics maintain the implication here is that the audience could 'see' the night turn into day and vice versa, and that they could see the sun and the moon running their courses across the sky.

The words "don't you see" (''alam tara'' أَلَمْ تَرَ<ref>ra-alif-ya راي [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000164.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 998</ref>) may be interpreted in the sense of "don't you know" or "aren't you aware", but nonetheless function as an appeal to common knowledge. To critics, this common 7th century Arabian knowledge of geocentrism is erroneous, and in affirming this erroneous perception, the Quran itself may be said to err.

{{Quran|13|2}} and {{Quran|36|38}} state that the running of the sun and moon to an appointed term, or the sun running to its resting place, respectively, are signs (''ayaat'') to mankind, implying they are facts known to and appreciated by a 7th century Arabian audience. Verse 13:2 states that these signs are explained in detail in the Qur'an in order to strengthen the faith of its listeners. Critics argue that this directly undermines the idea that the Quran could have been alluding to the galactic orbit of the sun, for such an orbit remained unknown to the Quran's original audience, and thus could not strengthen their faith, nor anyone's faith, until some fourteen centuries after the Quran's authorship.

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|2}}| […] '''He has subjected the sun and the moon! Each one runs for a term appointed'''. He regulates the matter, '''explaining the signs [l-āyāti] in detail''', so you can be certain of meeting with your Lord.
 '''Word by word:''' ''yudabbiru'' (he arranges / regulates) ''al-amra'' (the matter) ''yufassilu'' (he explains in detail) ''al-ayaati'' (the signs) ''la-allakum'' (so you may) ''biliqai'' (meeting) ''rabbikum'' (with your Lord) ''tūqinūna'' (be certain)}}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|36|37|40}}|'''A token [āyatun] unto them''' is night. We strip it of the day, and lo! they are in darkness and the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him. [...]}}

The word translated "running" (''yajree'' يَجْرِىٓ) in the three above-quoted verses and similar ones was used in classical Arabic to describe the physical travelling of heavenly bodies along their courses, and in general means to run, as in running water. It is used in {{Quran|31|31}} to describe the sailing of ships, two verses after the first example quoted above.<ref>jiim-ra-ya جرى [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume2/00000051.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 415</ref>

Some critics also argue that {{Quran|25|45}} indirectly comments on the sun's movement.

{{Quote|{{Quran|25|45|}}|Have you not seen see how your Lord spread the shadow. If He willed he could make it stationary. Then do We make the sun its guide.
 '''Word by word:''' ''ash shamsa'' (the sun) ''`alayhi'' (for it) ''dalilaan'' (a guide / an indication)}}

Aside from other light sources, shadows on Earth are produced when the sun's light is obstructed. The Earth's rotation causes these shadows to change size and lengthen. The above verses state that the reason shadows fluctuate in size rather than being stationary is because Allah has made the sun their guide. Critics note that this appears to confirm the geocentric outlook widely evidenced elsewhere in the Qur'an, for it is only on a geocentric view that shadows would be of fixed length if the sun (rather than the Earth) were not made to do something.

The length of the shadow cast by the sun is also used to determine the start of the Asr prayer time; the apparent movement of the sun is still used to schedule various Islamic rituals, as discussed further below.

===Quran 91:1-2 - The moon follows the sun===

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|91|1|2}}|By the sun and his brightness, And the moon when she followeth him
 '''Word by word:''' ''Waalshshamsi'' (and the sun) ''waduhaha'' (and its brightness) ''Waalqamari'' (and the moon) ''itha talaha'' (when it follows it)}}

In the view of critics, this suggests that the sun takes a path or action similar or at least comparable to that of the moon (which goes around earth once per month, and to an ancient person would appear to do so on a nightly basis). The word translated "follow" is used many other places to mean recite, but is primarily defined as "to follow", "go", "walk behind", or "follow in way of imitation" or "of action", and was used for animals like camels following behind each other.<ref>Ta-Lam-Waw [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000350.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 313]</ref> Critics note that while the moon neither follows behind the sun's movement nor provides its own light like the sun, a pre-modern observer would get the impression that the moon and sun, in a sense, "chase" one another in their course about the Earth (an impression the Quran appears to agree with).

===Quran 75:8-9 - The similar size and distance of the sun and moon (one day they will be joined)===

In a passage about events on the day of resurrection, the Quran makes an assertion which, critics argue, strongly builds on the implication that the sun and moon are of a similar size and are located a similar distance from Earth. As already noted, the Quran says that the moon "follows" the sun ({{Quran-range|91|1|2}}), and "It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day." ({{Quran|36|40}}). Verse {{Quran-range|75|8|9}} adds that on the last day the sun and moon will be joined together:

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|75|8|9}}|And the moon darkens And the sun and the moon are joined,}}

The word translated "are joined" is ''jumi'a'', a verb which means to collect together, gather together, bring together.<ref>Jama'a [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume2/00000091.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 455]</ref> Critics note that this would require the moon to travel 98 million miles away from Earth and into the sun, which is over 400 times wider. To describe them as brought together (jumi'a) in such a scenario would hardly be apt, critics argue, and a very odd apocalyptic event. Rather, the description sits comfortably in the ancient understanding of the cosmos, whereby the sun and moon were assumed to be two roughly equivalent celestial bodies in the sky above the Earth.

It is worth noting that the "darkening" of the moon in verse 8 is an Arabic word which in hadiths refers to a lunar or solar eclipse (in this case lunar). However, for a lunar eclipse to occur (when the earth's shadow is cast upon the moon) the sun and moon are on opposite sides of the earth and thus are not in any sense "joined". Nor does "joined" in verse 9 work as a reference to a solar eclipse (when the sun occasionally casts a shadow of the moon on the earth). The moon is invisible during the portion of a month when it can eclipse the sun since it must be on the daylit side of the earth, and hence the moon does not "darken" or itself become eclipsed (verse 8) as it passes between observers and the sun but rather its silhouette becomes visible.

===The sun and its movement is always paired with the moon===
The movement of the sun is always mentioned with that of the moon, whether described as running (yajree/tajree) or floating (yasbahoona), or toiling (daibayni). Additionally, in these verses they are nearly always mentioned in the context of night and day (the exception being 13:2), as discussed in an earlier section above.

Here are some of the many verses where the sun and moon are paired (other examples can be found quoted across the article).

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|36|37|40}}|A token unto them is night. We strip it of the day, and lo! they are in darkness and the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise. And for the moon We have appointed mansions till she return like an old shrivelled palm-leaf. It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day. They float each in an orbit.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|33}}|And He it is Who created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. They all float in rounded courses.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|31|29}}|Do you not see that Allah causes the night to enter the day and causes the day to enter the night and has subjected the sun and the moon, each running [its course] for a specified term, and that Allah, with whatever you do, is Acquainted?}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|12}}|He has made subject to you the Night and the Day; the Sun and the moon}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|14|33}}|And He hath made subject to you the Sun and the moon, both diligently pursuing their courses; and the night and the day hath he (also) made subject to you.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|41|37}}|Among His Signs are the Night and the Day, and the Sun and the Moon. [...]}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|39|5}}| He created the heavens and the earth in true (proportions): He makes the Night overlap the Day, and the Day overlap the Night: He has subjected the sun and the moon (to His law): Each one follows a course for a time appointed. Is not He the Exalted in Power - He Who forgives again and again? }}

{{Quran-range|35|11|13}} explains that it is not only humans that were created in pairs (male and female), but also the two bodies of flowing waters (one salty and one sweet), the night and the day, and the sun and the moon.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|35|11|13}}|And Allah did create you from dust; then from a sperm-drop; then He made you in pairs. And no female conceives, or lays down (her load), but with His knowledge. Nor is a man long-lived granted length of days, nor is a part cut off from his life, but is in a Decree (ordained). All this is easy to Allah. Nor are the two bodies of flowing water alike,- the one palatable, sweet, and pleasant to drink, and the other, salt and bitter. Yet from each (kind of water) do ye eat flesh fresh and tender, and ye extract ornaments to wear; and thou seest the ships therein that plough the waves, that ye may seek (thus) of the Bounty of Allah that ye may be grateful. He merges Night into Day, and he merges Day into Night, and he has subjected the sun and the moon (to his Law): each one runs its course for a term appointed. Such is Allah your Lord: to Him belongs all Dominion.}}

===Quran 2:258 - Abraham's challenge: Allah brings the sun from the east, so bring it from the west!===
Various verses describe the shape of the sun's course. The general scheme involves Allah bringing the sun from east and the sun traveling high and eventually going back down. Critics and modern Islamic scholars agree, however, that most of these verses are comparable to the kind of convenient colloquialisms we still use today (see {{Quran|20|059}}, {{Quran|20|130}}, {{Quran|17|078}}, {{Quran-range|6|77|78}}, and {{Quran|18|17}}). Some of these verses, however, have been the object of considerable debate between the two groups.

{{Quran|2|258}} approvingly quotes a few lines from a debate between Abraham and a disbelieving king, where Abraham replies that Allah brings the sun (''yatee biashshamsi'' يَأْتِى بِٱلشَّمْسِ) from the east. The arabic verb and preposition indicate that the sun is conceived of as physically moving.<ref>alif-taa-ya [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000052.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 15] The verb means to come, and when it has an object with the bi preposition it means to bring, as in many other instances in the Qur'an.</ref>

{{Quote|{{cite Quran|2|258|style=ref}}|Abraham said, ‘Indeed '''Allah brings the sun from the east'''; now you bring it from the west.’ So the disbeliever was overwhelmed [by astonishment], and Allah does not guide the wrongdoing people.}}

Critics conclude that the Qur'an is clear about the course of the sun: it does not describe a complete orbit, but rather a rounded course, presumably in a hemisphere (''falak''<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak" />) that has a beginning, an end, and a highest point.

===Quran 18:83-90 - The sun sets in a muddy spring and rises on a people without shelter===

{{Quran-range|18|83|90}} also describes the physical, terrestrial locations where the sun is supposed to rise and set in response to a question about an existing legend. Here, in the Quranic account of life of Dhul Qarnayan or Alexander the Great, the physical setting place of the sun, located in muddy spring, can be seen by human eyes. Indeed, in this account, a human tribe is said to live adjacent to this celestial setting place.
[[Category:Dhul-Qarnayn|Dhul-Qarnayn]]
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|18|84|90}}|They will ask thee of Dhu'l-Qarneyn. Say: I shall recite unto you a remembrance of him. Lo! We made him strong in the land and gave him unto every thing a road. And he followed a road. '''Till, when he reached the setting-place of the sun, he found it setting in a muddy spring''', and found a people thereabout. We said: O Dhu'l-Qarneyn! Either punish or show them kindness. Then he followed a road. '''Till, when he reached the rising-place of the sun, he found it rising on a people for whom We had appointed no shelter therefrom.'''}}

There is [[Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring - Part One|historical evidence]] from early Quranic commentaries and other sources, including contemporary Arabic and Syriac poems of the same legend, to the effect that early Muslims took this account literally.

===Quran 79:27-29 - The entire heaven has a night and day===
The Qur'anic conception of the cosmos accords with its author's visual perception of the sky, even to the extent that in {{Quran-range|79|28|29}} night and day is mistaken as a feature of the entire heaven. In these verses the night and morning brightness are said to be an attribute of the heaven (l-samāu) which Allah built (banāhā) and raised (rafaʿa) as a ceiling (samkahā) and ordered it (fasawwāhā) when he created the heaven and earth.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|79|27|30}}|Are ye the harder to create, or is the heaven that He built? He raised the height thereof and ordered it; And He made dark the night '''thereof''', and He brought forth the morn '''thereof'''. And after that He spread the earth,}}

The possessive hā suffix in laylahā (its night) and ḍuḥāhā (its morning light) relates night and day to the heaven in its entirety. In reality, the night and day we experience is a feature of the earth's rotation on its axis. There is no sense in which the earth's night and day (which happen at the same time) apply across the wider cosmos.

In order to confirm the interpretation of these verses it is important to look at how the significant words are used elsewhere in the Quran. "The night" is a very common word in the Quran, and the morning light is used in the same context in {{Quran-range|93|1-2}} and {{Quran-range|91|1}} (see also {{Quran|79|46}}).

Indeed, {{Quran-range|91|1|6}} has many of the same Arabic words as {{Quran-range|79|27|30}}: "its morning light" (this time of the sun), "the night", and "the heaven" (singular) "built" by Allah. Putting the two passages together, it seems that the author of the Quran intuitively believed that the night and the sun's morning light were features pertaining to the entire visible heaven. This does not accord in any way with the modern heliocentric understanding of our local solar system.

Other verses are helpful to confirm what is meant by the heaven (singular) in this context. {{Quran|2|29}} states that Allah turned (is'tawā) to the heaven and fashioned them (fasawwāhunna) seven heavens. These are two forms of the same Arabic verb as is translated "ordered" in {{Quran|79|28}} in the above quote.

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}|He it is Who created for you all that is in the earth. Then turned He to the heaven, and fashioned it as seven heavens. And He is knower of all things.}}

The word "raised" in {{Quran|79|28}} is similarly used for the creation of the heaven (singular) and earth in {{Quran|88|18}} and the heavens (plural) raised without visible pillars in {{Quran|13|2}}.

The word "he built it" in v. 27 (banāhā) also occurs in {{Quran|50|6}}, which says regarding the heaven (singular) that Allah "built it" and "adorned it" (wazayyannāhā), a word which in other verses refers to the stars or lamps adorning the lowest heaven ({{Quran|37|6}}, {{Quran|41|12}} and {{Quran|67|5}}).

===The regular cycle of the sun===

According to several verses in the Qur'an, the sun's cycle is repeated on a regular basis and is comparable in this respect to the orbit of the Moon as well as the cycle of night and day.

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|2}}|[…] He made the Sun and the moon subservient (to you); '''each one pursues its course to an appointed time'''; He '''regulates''' the affair, making clear the signs}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|31|29}}|Seest thou not that Allah merges night into day and he merges day into night and he has subjected the sun, and the moon each '''running its course for a term appointed'''. And Allah is aware of what you do.}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|55|5}}|The Sun and the moon follow '''courses (exactly) computed'''
 '''Word by word:''' ''Alshamsu'' (the sun) ''waalqamaru'' (and the moon) ''bihusbanin''}}

''Husban'' can mean a number of things: "definite reckoning", "appointed courses", "numbering", "revolving firmament", "running appointed", and "scheduled course". In many English translations the word 'course' or 'celestial sphere' is used. In this verse, the word ''falak'' is not used; {{Quran|55|5}} only indicates that the sun and the moon behave in a calculated, scheduled, or otherwise pre-appointed manner. This verse and similar verses are consequently marshalled by critics as further evidence that the Quran espouses a geocentric cosmology, as the sun's daily cycle and the moon's monthly cycle serve ritual timekeeping purposes such as for determining prayer and fasting times in Islam (see next section).

===The sun and timekeeping===

In Muhammad's lifetime it was common practice to use the sun and moon for timekeeping, which helps explain the emphasis in the Qur'an on the regulated and scheduled nature of the courses of the sun and moon as a sign from Allah and as a divinely sanctioned monthly calendar (see previous section).

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|96}}|He it is that cleaves the day-break (from the dark): He makes the night for rest and tranquility and '''the sun and moon for the reckoning [of time]''')}}{{Quote|{{Quran|9|36}}|Indeed, (the) number (of) the months with Allah (is) twelve months in (the) ordinance (of) Allah (from the) Day He created the heavens and the earth; of them, four (are) sacred. That (is) the religion the upright, so (do) not wrong therein yourselves. And fight the polytheists all together, as they fight you all together. And know that Allah (is) with the righteous.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|10|5}}|It is He Who made the Sun to be a shining glory and the moon to be a light (of beauty), and measured out stages for her; '''that ye might know the number of years and the count [of time]'''. Nowise did Allah create this but in truth and righteousness. (Thus) doth He explain His Signs in detail, for those who have knowledge.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|12}}|And We have made the night and the day two signs, then We have made the sign of the night to pass away and We have made the sign of the day manifest, so that you may seek grace from your Lord, and '''that you might know the numbering of years and the reckoning'''; and We have explained everything with distinctness.}}

The moon (the sign, or ''ayah'', of the night) is used to count the years, which comprise the twelve [[Islamic Lunar Calendar|lunar months]] making up the Islamic year, and the sun is to be used to keep track of time. The only solar movement to be used for timekeeping is the apparent daily course of the sun (from east up and then down to the west). To this day, virtually all mainstream Islamic authorities use the (less precise and regularly unpredictable) lunar calendar to determine the date and the apparent position of the sun from any given location to determine the ''waqt'' (prescribed time) of daily [[Salah|''salats'']] (prayers). In some cases, as with the Burj Khalifa, which is one of the tallest buildings in the world and which is located in the United Arab Emirates, this means that prayer times differ one the top floor of the building from the prayer times on the bottom floor of the building, as the moment of sunset and sunrise varies as one ascends in elevation.

====The sun and the daily prayers====
The only examples of the sun being used for timekeeping in the Qur'an employ the sun's apparent daily movement along the sky. Each of the five daily prayers described either directly or indirectly or alluded to in some manner in the Quran. These references all involve mention of the physical, orbital position of the sun. The first prayer, ''salat al-fajr'', takes place right before sun rise and is mentioned in {{Quran|17|78}}, {{Quran|20|130}}, and {{Quran|24|58}}. The second prayer, ''salat al-zuhr'', takes place right after the sun reaches its zenith, but before the shadow of the Sun becomes twice its length from midday. This prayer is possibly mentioned in {{Quran|17|78}} as prayer at the "decline of the sun". The third prayer, ''salat al-asr'', takes place when the sun is between zenith and sunset, when the length of a shadow of a stick is either once or twice its length. This prayer is mentioned in {{Quran|2|238}} as "the middle prayer" and in {{Quran|20|130}} and {{Quran|50|39}} as the "exhalt[ing of Allah] with praise" before the sun's "setting". The fourth prayer, ''salat al-maghrib'', takes place right after sunset. This prayer is not clearly mentioned, but {{Quran|20|130}} and {{Quran|50|39}} mention the "exhalt[ing of Allah] with praise" before rather than after "sunset". The latter verse also mentions "the two ends of the day". The fifth prayer, ''salat al-isha'', takes place at night, between sunset and sunrise. This prayer is mentioned {{Quran|11|114}}, {{Quran|17|79}}, and {{Quran|20|130}}.

==Modern heliocentric re-readings==

In light of the many verses describing a geocentric system and the difficulties this poses in reconciling the Qur'an with the findings of modern science, many modern Islamic scholars have attempted to re-read the Quran as describing a heliocentric system. A major factor in these re-readings, as mentioned above, has been identifying the ''falak'' of the sun described in the Quran as a reference to the sun's orbit of the Milky Way galaxy. Likewise discussed above, {{Quran|36|40}} ('it is not for the sun to overtake the moon...') has been re-read in a manner concordant with a heliocentric model.

===Quran 91:1-4===
In addition to the above two re-readings, two other verses are advanced to suggest that the author of the Quran was aware of the Earth's rotation about its axis.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|91|1|end=4|style=ref}}|By the sun and his brightness, And the moon when she followeth him, And the day when it revealeth him, And the night when it enshroudeth him
 '''Word by word:''' ''Waalnnahari'' (and the day) ''itha'' (when) ''jallaha'' (it displays it) ''Waallayli'' (and the night) ''itha'' (when) ''yaghshaha'' (it covers it)}}

In its plain sense, it appears that 'day' and 'night' here may refer to the process of the Earth's rotation revealing and obstructing the view of the sun (though the verse can also fit with a geocentric view where 'day' and 'night' are processes when the sun is above or below the horizon). While modern Islamic scholars frequently use this verse to defend a heliocentric reading of the Quran, critics argue that the verse's agreement with heliocentrism is undermined when certain other verses in the Quran are considered which appear to elucidate its meaning.

In addition, critics argue, because the Earth is actually a globe, there are no specific times 'when' (''itha'') the day reveals the sun or the night conceals it. Rather, at all times half the Earth is in daytime and half in nighttime, so the sun is at all times being both revealed and concealed. This problem, critics note, would not arise if the word 'when' (''itha'') were simply removed from these verses (an exclusion the author of Quran, if inclined to heliocentrism, would likely have made).

The other verses considered in this context by critics which use the the same Arabic verb as found in {{Quran-range|91|1|4}}, are said to show that the verb here does not simply signify that the body of the earth is blocking the line of sight to something. {{Quran-range|92|1|2}} use the same words found {{Quran-range|91|3|4}}, but without the pronoun suffix at the end. Thus, critics conclude, the "night" is when things generally are "covered", and not just the sun on the other side of the Earth. Likewise, the "day" is when things generally are "revealed". In this reading, the verbs employed are used only in a poetic manner.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|92|1|end=2|style=ref}}|By the night enshrouding, And the day resplendent
 '''Word by word:''' ''Waallayli'' (and the night) ''itha'' (when) ''yaghsha'' (it covers) ''Waalnnahari'' (and the day) ''itha'' (when) ''tajalla'' (it displays)}}

In {{Quran|10|27}}, the night's "cover" (the same verb as in {{Quran|91|4}}) is used to apply to all things and not just the sun. As a result, critics argue, it is difficult to interpret the night covering the sun in {{Quran|91|4}} as literally meaning that the body of the earth covers the sun on its other side. The word "pieces" in the translation means portion or piece cut off from the whole.<ref>qaf-taa-ayn [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000244.pdf Lane's Lexicon Suppliment page 2990]</ref>

{{Quote|{{cite quran|10|27|style=ref}}|they will have no one to save them from Allah; as if their faces are covered with pieces of the dark night}}

The same Arabic word for cover appears again in {{Quran|7|54}}, where it is the day doing the "covering", or possibly the other way round (the Arabic is ambiguous and translations differ, while tafsirs take the view that it means either or both). Critics argue that it is far from clear how the verse could be interpreted as describing a rotating Earth blocking the night (however that conception may be interpreted) in a manner analogous to the heliocentric interpretation of {{Quran|91|4}}. Critics then assert, instead, that the plain sense of these verses and the Quran at large hold the day and night to be active and physically independent entities.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|7|54|style=ref}}|He covereth the night with the day, which is in haste to follow it}}

===Quran 39:5===
The other verse advanced by modern Islamic scholars as favoring a heliocentric re-reading of the scripture is {{Quran|39|5}}. Here the word translated "wraps" (''kawwara'', as with a turban, for example) is argued to be indicative of the rotation of the Earth.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|39|5|style=ref}}|He created the heavens and earth in truth. He wraps the night over the day and wraps the day over the night and has subjected the sun and the moon, each running [its course] for a specified term.}}

As with {{Quran|7|54}} and {{Quran|36|37}} and the verses where the day and night (as well as the sun and moon) are said to swim in a ''falak''<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak" /> (see above), the night and day in this verse are referred to as some kind of entities. Here, critics argue that it would make sense to describe the Earth as passing through night and day or possibly to say that night and day wrap around the earth, as one might spin an item in order to wrap it with something. But, the critics note, the Qur'an instead says that Allah wraps the day and night over one another rather than the earth, suggesting that the night and day possess some manner of corporeal form.

To this, some modern Islamic scholars have responded that 'day' here refers to that half of the Earth that is currently sunward and that 'night' refers to the shadow of the Earth cast by the sun. Critics are, however, unsatisfied with this rebuttal. They note that if this argument is accepted, then in order to make the next phrase work, the 'night' would instead have to refer to that half of the Earth that is currently opposite the sun, and, moreover, the 'day' would have to refer to the light from the sun.

Two verses nearly identical to {{Quran|39|5}} are {{Quran|31|29}} and {{Quran|35|13}} (also containing similar phrasing are {{Quran|3|27}}, {{Quran|22|61}}, and {{Quran|57|6}}) where instead of "he wraps", the verb "he causes to enter" (''yooliju'') is used. Critics argue that, along with {{Quran|7|54}} where the day is said to "cover" and "chase" the night (or possibly vice versa) and {{Quran|36|37}} where Allah strips the day from the night, these verses present a picture of the day and night successively being wrapped across each other and in so doing covering the other and entering into it. It is in this picture, they note, that night never "outruns" (''sabiqu'') the day ({{Quran|36|40}}).

====The argument of timeless comprehensibility====
Modern Islamic scholars also make the case that though indirect, {{Quran|39|5}} is as direct a reference to the Earth's rotation as would have permitted the point to be made while keeping 7th century Arabs from immediately dismissing Muhammad's message on grounds of pre-modern incredulity. To emphasize this point, modern Islamic scholars evoke the doctrine of the maximal possible perfection of every verse in the Quran and suggest that Allah struck the perfect balance of simultaneously alluding to modern science while speaking in terms comprehensible to the inhabitants of a 7th century Arabian desert. To this presentation, critics have responded pointing out that Muhammad's message was immediately dismissed and mocked by most of his contemporaries anyways, and that widespread conversion to Islam was more a consequence of Muhammad's later military success than his preaching and doctrine. According to hadith tradition, Muhammad did not hesitate to tell his contemporaries he had met an [[Jibreel (Angel Gabriel)|angel]], ridden a [[Buraq|winged beast]] up to Allah, and accomplished other fantastic feats. This having been the case, critics ask why Allah should not simply have gone ahead and stated plainly what he wanted to state, knowing that his message would thereby have increasingly resonated generations later. To critics, the author of the Quran did not see his description of the heavens as scientifically novel or as couched in compromised language for the sake of comprehensibility, but was simply describing the universe he held to exist in common with his audience in order to inspire awe, all while having no real regard for their ridicule or mockery of him.

==Islamic authorities on geocentrism==
===Geocentrism in hadiths===

Hadiths graded as authentic by Islamic scholars and found in collections like Sahih Muslim maintain that the sun moves around the earth and goes to its resting place at night, until it is told to return to "its rising place" (matli'iha), a word which also appears in {{Quran|18|90}} when Dhu'l Qarnayn reaches the rising place of the sun (mali'a ash-shamsi).<ref>In contrast, the generic east is always indicated with the word al mashriq or its derivatives everywhere else in the Quran.</ref> One day the sun will be told instead to go and emerge "from the place of your setting" (min maghribiki), and so, it will go and emerge "from the place of its setting" (min maghribiha), often mistranslated as "the west" in other narrations of this prophecy, despite the possessive suffix and lack of definite article<ref>Muhsin Khan, English translator of Sahih Bukhari is particularly guilty of this. Compare with min al maghribi which can in fact be translated as the sun rising "from the west" in {{Quran|2|258}}</ref>. The direct address to the sun and possessive pronouns show that this is not a mere figure of speech about the rotation of the Earth or the east and the west.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|1|297}}|It is narrated on the authority of Abu Dharr that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) one day said: Do you know where the Sun goes? They replied: Allah and His Apostle know best. He (the Holy Prophet) observed: Verily it (the Sun) glides till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it falls prostrate and remains there until it is asked: Rise up and go to the place whence you came, and it goes back and continues emerging out '''from its rising place''' and then glides till it reaches its place of rest under the Throne and falls prostrate and remains in that state until it is asked: Rise up and return to the place whence you came, and it returns and emerges out from it rising place and the it glides (in such a normal way) that the people do not discern anything (unusual in it) till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it would be said to it: Rise up and emerge out '''from the place of your setting''', and it will rise from the place of its setting. The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said. Do you know when it would happen? It would happen at the time when faith will not benefit one who has not previously believed or has derived no good from the faith.}}

Similar versions of this hadith are found in Sahih Bukhari and elsewhere in Sahih Muslim. In another hadith Muhammad recorded telling the story of an earlier prophet who asked the sun to stop moving, whereafter the sun complied with his request. This hadith is based on the story of Joshua found in the Bible and is also found in Sahih Muslim:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|53|353}}|…So, the prophet carried out the expedition and when he reached that town at the time or nearly at the time of the ‘Asr prayer, he said to the sun, ‘'''O sun!''' You are under Allah’s Order and I am under Allah’s Order O Allah! '''Stop it (i.e. the sun) from setting.’''' It was stopped till Allah made him victorious…}}

These Hadiths are all deemed '[[sahih]]' (authentic) according to Islamic scholars. According to historians, however, even if these hadiths are not historically reliable, they nonetheless indicate what very early Muslim authorities believed about the sun and are thus useful in interpreting the intended meaning of the Qur'an.

===Ancient and modern Muslim astronomers===

Muhammad's Muslim contemporaries all accepted the Qur'an's geocentric cosmology. References in the Hadith of the ''ansari'' or others in Muhammad's environment arguing about this point with their prophet or among themselves are nonexistent. Famous Muslim astronomers (people who certainly read, and knew the Qur'an) like the Arab astronomer ''Ibn al-Shatir'' and the Persian ''Nasir al-Din al-Tusi'' used Greek (geocentric) astronomy to create complex models of the ‘universe’ that were geocentric (to pre-moderns, the 'universe' comprised the local solar system).

In a televised debate aired on Iraqi Al-Fayhaa TV (October 31, 2007), the Islamic astronomer ''Fadhel Al-Sa'd'' asserted the following:

{{Quote|1=[http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/1684.htm Iraqi Researcher Defies Scientific Axioms: The Earth Is Flat and Much Larger than the Sun (Which Is Also Flat)] MEMRI TV, Video No. 1684|2=The sun circles the Earth because it is smaller than the Earth, as is evident in Koranic verses. Have you ever seen how the sun moves? I have seen the sun moving. The sun makes one move every 24 hours. What I say is based on Koranic science. He bases his arguments on the kind of science that I reject categorically -- the modern science that they teach in schools. This science is a heretic innovation that has no confirmation in the Koran. No verse in the Koran indicates that the Earth is round or that it rotates. Anything that has no indication in the Koran is false.}}

In Fadhel Al-Sa'd's view, the moon's diameter is 1,200,000 km, while that of the sun is only 2,400,000 km.

==See also==

{{Hub4|Cosmology|Cosmology}}

==External link==

*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWLA-MZBhyE Muhammad's Geocentric Universe]'' - YouTube video''

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Cosmology]]
[[ru:Геоцентризм]]
{{page_title|Geocentrism and the Qur'an}}
[[Category:Critics of Islam]]
[[Category:Apologetics]]

Geocentrism and the Quran

2023-03-01T14:36:25Z

Vixen: /* Quran 36:37-40 - The sun's daily cycle and resting place */

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[[File:Geocentrism2.jpg|thumb]]

In several verses the [[Qur'an]] describes the movement of the sun and moon, a few times mentioning that they travel in a circuitous path, or sphere/hemisphere (''fee falakin'' فِى فَلَكٍ), but does not mention once that the Earth too is in motion.<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak">Falak [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000227.pdf Lane's Lexicon Volume 1 page 2443] and [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000228.pdf page 2444] Lane also says that the Arab astronomers said there were seven of these spheres for the sun, moon, and the five visible planets, rotating about the celestial pole. This must reflect the post-Qur'anic influence of Ptolemy, whose astronomical work was translated for the Arabs from the 8th century onwards.</ref> The geocentric (Earth-centered) view was the prevailing understanding of the universe prior to the 16th century when Copernicus helped explain and popularize a sun-centered (heliocentric) view of the universe.

In the Qur'an, the sun's movement is almost always mentioned in the context of night and day ({{Quran|13|2}} being the only exception) and is always mentioned with that of the moon, which does in fact orbit the Earth each month, and appears, to the unaided eye, to traverse the sky each night when it is visible. The Quran assumes that the sun's movement is familiar to its audience and is to be understood as a sign. In other verses the moon is said to follow the sun, which is not allowed to overtake it, though they will be brought together on the last day.

==Background==

===In Islamic cosmology===
The Qur'an says that both the sun and the moon swim or float in a circuitous path, celestial sphere or, more likely, a hemisphere (a ''falak'' in the Arabic<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak" />). It seems that Allah brings the sun from the east, which then goes high above the Earth, and after sunset goes to a resting place. All this takes place around an Earth that is spread out (or flattened) and which possesses a firmament of seven heavens built atop it without visible pillars.

===Historical background===
Geocentrism is the notion that the Earth is the (immovable) center of our universe, thus all celestial bodies move around it. The ancient Greeks and the Europeans of the middle ages thought that the celestial bodies (the sun, the moon and the 5 visible planets) all moved in celestial spheres around a spherical Earth. This was the theory of Ptolemy (d. 170 CE), who was followed by [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth#Greek_and_Indian_astronomical_knowledge|Muslim astronomers from the 9th century CE]] onwards, though Islamic texts expressing doubts about his ideas started to appear regularly from the 10th century.<ref>{{citation|last=Hoskin|first=Michael|title=The Cambridge Concise History of Astronomy|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1999|isbn=978-0-521-57600-0|date=25 April 2021|page=60}}</ref> Aside from notable exceptions such as Aristarchus of Samos, heliocentrism was only advocated by occasional figures with small followings and widely rejected before the work of Copernicus.

Geocentrism is different from the idea that the [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth|Earth is flat]]. However, while those who believe in geocentrism do not always hold the Earth to be flat, those who hold the Earth to be flat almost invariably believe in geocentrism.

====Historical influences on Islamic cosmology====
The geocentrism and general cosmography of the Qur'an shows little or no influence from Ptolemaic concepts of heavenly spheres, each containing a celestial body, according to which paradigm the Qur'an and the word ''falak'' later came to be interpreted<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak" /><ref name="vanBladelCords">{{citation|last1=van Bladel |first1=Kevin |date=2007 |title=Heavenly cords and prophetic authority in the Qur’an and its Late Antique context |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40379198 |journal=Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies |volume=70 |issue=2 |pages=223-246 |doi= |access-date=25 April 2021}}</ref> In a paper on Qur'anic cosmography, Damien Janos notes that the "Qurʾānic cosmology stems from a different religious background and it does not contain any conspicuous signs of synthesis or assimilation with the cosmological trends indebted to Ptolemaic astronomy"<ref>{{citation |last1=Janos |first1=Damien |date=2012 |title=Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective: some notes on the formation of a religious wordview |journal=Religion |volume=42 |issue=2 |pages=215-231}} See p. 224</ref> and observes that in various respects the two paradigms are incompatible, particularly as the celestial bodies move in the lowest part of the seven heavens in the Qur'anic model.<ref>Ibid. p. 221</ref> Rather, the Qur'an is more reflective of its Biblical and Mesopotamian predecessors (see also [[Cosmology of the Quran]]). In the same paper Janos does, however, theorise that the Qur'anic ''falak'' may contain Greek influence given how often it was interpreted in terms of circularity or sphericity by Muslim scholars. He also considers as a possible hypothesis that both the ''falak'' and seven heavens "can be construed as having not a fully spherical shape, but rather a hemispherical or domed-shape", and the sun would transit back to its origin in the east "via an underground passage", which "finds some support in traditional Arabic reports [...] and seems to have Mesopotamian antecendents".<ref>Ibid. p. 228</ref>

==Geocentrism in the Qur'an==

The Qur'an in several places and contexts advances or alludes to descriptions of the heavenly bodies which explicitly or implicitly entail a geocentric model of the cosmos.

===Quran 36:37-40 - The sun's daily cycle and resting place===

{{Quran-range|36|37|40}} is a passage about night and day and the cycles of the sun and moon in that context.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|36|37|40}}|A token unto them is night. '''We strip it of the day, and lo! they are in darkness and the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him.''' That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise. And for the moon We have appointed mansions till she return like an old shrivelled palm-leaf. It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day. They float each in an orbit.
 '''Word by word:''' ''Waalshshamsu'' (and the sun) ''tajree'' (runs) ''limustaqarrin'' (to a resting point) ''laha'' (of it).}}

Immediately after describing the change from day to night the passage states that the sun runs on to a designated "resting place" (ِmustaqarrin مُسْتَقَرٍّ See footnotes regarding the Arabic word here, which differs from similar verses).<ref name="mustaqarrin">A few translations use instead, "appointed term", though in nearly all other verses where we find mustaqarrin (qaf-ra-ra قرر [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000029.pdf Lane's Lexicon Volume 1 page 2501]) as a participle they translate it as a place of settlement or an abode or resting place. There are other verses (35:13, 31:29, 39:5, 13:2) that mention the sun and moon running (with the same verb as is translated "run" in 36:38) for a term appointed, but these use the words لِأَجَلٍ مُّسَمًّى which do indeed mean a term appointed - However, note that mustaqarrin مُسْتَقَرٍّ in 36:38 is a different word.</ref> There is also a sahih hadith that use the same Arabic word as in {{Quran|36|38}} to identify "a resting place" as part of the sun's daily cycle.<ref>See {{Muslim|1|297}} (also {{Bukhari|6|60|326}} and {{Bukhari|6|60|327}} where Q. 36:38 is explained such that the resting place is under the throne)</ref> An alternative view is that this refers to the sun's final resting on the last day rather than some temporal location. Another narration of the same hadith possibly supports this view.<ref>See {{Bukhari|4|54|421}} and {{Bukhari|9|93|520}} where Q. 36:38 is instead mentioned at the end, possibly indicating that the مُسْتَقَرٍّ (resting place) in 36:38 refers to the end of the world when the sun is asked to rise from its setting place (مِنْ مَغْرِبِهَا) instead of under the throne each night.</ref> Whichever meaning was originally intended, the sun's movement is nevertheless mentioned right after describing day and night, just as the next verse mentions the different mansions appointed for the moon each night. The whole passage is about day and night and the sun and moon's movement in that context.

The phrase "It is not for the sun to overtake the moon" in {{Quran|36|40}} does not, critics point out, comfortably fit a heliocentric perspective, yet is quite natural from a 7th century perspective where the sun and moon were believed to orbit the same world, and indeed, would one day be joined together (discussed in another section below). The word translated 'for' in the phrase 'It is not for the sun...' in {{Quran|36|40}} is ''yanbaghee (''يَنۢبَغِى'')'', which means "fitting", "suitable", "proper", "behoves", "right and allowable", "good, "facilitated", "easy", "practicable", or "manageable"<ref>ba-ghayn-ya [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000269.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 233]</ref> and the word translated 'overtake' is ''tudrika'' (تُدْرِكَ), which means "catches up and comes upon".<ref>dal-ra-kaf [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000039.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 873]</ref>

====The sun's movement is almost always mentioned in the context of day and night====
An important observation is that the sun's movement is almost always mentioned in the context of night and day, {{Quran|13|2}} being the only exception. See the "floating" of the sun and moon in {{Quran|21|33}} and {{Quran|36|40}} (discussed in the next section), and the "running" of the sun and moon in {{Quran|21|33}}, {{Quran|31|29}}, {{Quran|35|13}}, {{Quran-range|36|37|40}}, and {{Quran|39|5}}. Similarly, {{Quran|14|33}} (the word translated there as "constant in their courses" is daibayni, which is simply a verb meaning to strive, toil, labour, hold on or continue<ref>dal-alif-ba [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000005.pdf Lane's Lexicon Volume 1 page 106]</ref>).

===Quran 21:33 and 36:40 - The sun, moon, night and day all float in a falak===

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|33}}|And He it is Who created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. They all float in rounded courses.
 '''Word by word:''' ''khalaqa'' (created) ''allayla'' (the night) ''waalnnahara'' (and the day) ''waalshshamsa'' (and the sun) ''waalqamara'' (and the moon) ''kullun'' (each) ''fee'' (in) ''falakin'' (a rounded course) ''yasbahoona'' (they swim)}}

{{Quote|{{quran-range|36|37|40}}|A token unto them is night. We strip it of the day, and lo! they are in darkness and the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise. And for the moon We have appointed mansions till she return like an old shrivelled palm-leaf. '''It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day. They float each in an orbit.'''}}

The last sentence in Arabic is the same in both verses. They state that the sun and moon (and night and day) all "float" or "swim" in an orbit, or more precisely, each in a ''falak'', a word with various meanings related to the celestial sphere or dome-shaped things, as described in Lane's lexicon of classical arabic.<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak" /> The main definition Lane provides is the place of the revolving of the stars, the celestial sphere, generally imagined to be a hemisphere by the Arabs, or the pole of the heavens. The more common English translations, 'orbit', or 'rounded course', seem to be based on the meanings related to roundness or circling. Ibn 'Abbas is recorded in the ''tafasir'' (commentaries) of al-Tabari and of Ibn Kathir explaining that the sun and moon swimming in a falak means 'in a whirl (whorl), like the whirl of a spindle' (a whirl was a hemisphere-shaped object).<ref>The Arabic reads:فِي فَلْكَة كَفَلْكَةِ الْمِغْزَل fee falka, ka-falkati almighzal - [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=1&tSoraNo=36&tAyahNo=40&tDisplay=yes&Page=3&Size=1&LanguageId=1 al-Tabari] and [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=36&tAyahNo=40&tDisplay=yes&Page=4&Size=1&LanguageId=1 Ibn Kathir on 36:40] or for an interpretation in English [http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Ya-Seen/Among-the-Signs-of-the-Might-a--- qtafsir.com]</ref> Similarly, Ibn Kathir records in his tafsir for 21:33, "Ibn Abbas said, 'Spinning like as spins the spindle in a whirl'".<ref>[https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=21&tAyahNo=33&tDisplay=yes&Page=3&Size=1&LanguageId=1 Ibn Kathir on 21:33] and in English [http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Al-Anbiya/In-everything-there-is-a-Sign---- qtafsir.com]</ref> Lane translates the exact same words attributed to Ibn 'Abbas as "the whirl of a spindle...thus called because of its roundness...it is a piece of wood, generally of hemispherical form, or nearly so, through the middle of which the upper part of the spindle-pin is inserted". Such translations may also be based on another Ibn 'Abbas comment, as noted by Ibn Kathir, that the sun runs in its falak in the sky or heaven during the day, and when it sets, it runs at night in its falak underneath the Earth until it rises in the east.<ref>"Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Ibn `Abbas said, 'The sun is like flowing water, running in its course [falakha] in the sky [alssama] during the day. When it sets, it travels [at night - bi al-layli (omitted in the translation)] in its course [falakha] beneath the earth until it rises in the east.' He said, 'The same is true in the case of the moon.' Its chain of narration is Sahih." [http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Luqman/The-Might-and-Power-of-Allah-A--- Tafsir ibn Kathir for Qur'an 31:29] For the Arabic, see [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=31&tAyahNo=29&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 altafsir.com]</ref> Al-Tabari further mentions other opinions, such as that it means the pole of the heavens, and similarly, the shape of an iron millstone (or perhaps the iron axis thereof).

====No mention of Earth's orbit====
Critics often point out that while, according to the Quran, the stars have certain fixed "settings" (''mawaqi'', {{Quran|56|75}}); and while the day, night, sun and moon are mentioned as all floating in a falak; and while the sun and moon are often mentioned as running their courses, there is never any indication whatsoever that the Earth itself runs any kind of course or orbit.

====The galactic orbit interpretation====
Modern Islamic scholars have often argued that references in the Qur'an to the sun's movement refer to its orbit around our milky way galaxy rather than to a geocentric orbit.

Critics point out that the 225 million year galactic orbit has no relevance to human time-scales, while the Quran almost always mentions the sun's movement in the context of night and day. Another response is that the entire solar system, and not just the sun, orbits the gravity well of our galaxy. This is considered a problem because therefore the moon can equally be said to orbit the galaxy, yet in verses like {{Quran-range|36|37|40}} the floating of the moon in a falak seems to relate to the phases of the lunar cycle. There is yet another problem discussed in the next section below, which is perhaps even more important.

===Quran 31:29 and 13:2 - The sun's movement is visible and is a sign===
Critics of the galactic orbit interpretation have further responded that the author of the Qur'an describes a movement of the sun (as well as of the moon) which he expects its listeners to see and interpret as a sign, and for this reason the reference cannot be to the sun's galactic orbit.

{{Quote|{{Quran|31|29}}|'''Do you not see''' that Allah causes the night to enter the day and causes the day to enter the night and has subjected the sun and the moon, each running [its course] for a specified term, and that Allah, with whatever you do, is Acquainted?}}

The words 'and that' (''wa anna'') towards the end of the verse indicate that "Do you not see" applies to the entire verse, suggesting that it is not just the day and night, but also the running of the sun and moon that the 7th century listeners of the Qur'an were expected to know about. Critics maintain the implication here is that the audience could 'see' the night turn into day and vice versa, and that they could see the sun and the moon running their courses across the sky.

The words "don't you see" (''alam tara'' أَلَمْ تَرَ<ref>ra-alif-ya راي [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000164.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 998</ref>) may be interpreted in the sense of "don't you know" or "aren't you aware", but nonetheless function as an appeal to common knowledge. To critics, this common 7th century Arabian knowledge of geocentrism is erroneous, and in affirming this erroneous perception, the Quran itself may be said to err.

{{Quran|13|2}} and {{Quran|36|38}} state that the running of the sun and moon to an appointed term, or the sun running to its resting place, respectively, are signs (''ayaat'') to mankind, implying they are facts known to and appreciated by a 7th century Arabian audience. Verse 13:2 states that these signs are explained in detail in the Qur'an in order to strengthen the faith of its listeners. Critics argue that this directly undermines the idea that the Quran could have been alluding to the galactic orbit of the sun, for such an orbit remained unknown to the Quran's original audience, and thus could not strengthen their faith, nor anyone's faith, until some fourteen centuries after the Quran's authorship.

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|2}}| […] '''He has subjected the sun and the moon! Each one runs for a term appointed'''. He regulates the matter, '''explaining the signs [l-āyāti] in detail''', so you can be certain of meeting with your Lord.
 '''Word by word:''' ''yudabbiru'' (he arranges / regulates) ''al-amra'' (the matter) ''yufassilu'' (he explains in detail) ''al-ayaati'' (the signs) ''la-allakum'' (so you may) ''biliqai'' (meeting) ''rabbikum'' (with your Lord) ''tūqinūna'' (be certain)}}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|36|37|40}}|'''A token [āyatun] unto them''' is night. We strip it of the day, and lo! they are in darkness and the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him. [...]}}

The word translated "running" (''yajree'' يَجْرِىٓ) in the three above-quoted verses and similar ones was used in classical Arabic to describe the physical travelling of heavenly bodies along their courses, and in general means to run, as in running water. It is used in {{Quran|31|31}} to describe the sailing of ships, two verses after the first example quoted above.<ref>jiim-ra-ya جرى [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume2/00000051.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 415</ref>

Some critics also argue that {{Quran|25|45}} indirectly comments on the sun's movement.

{{Quote|{{Quran|25|45|}}|Have you not seen see how your Lord spread the shadow. If He willed he could make it stationary. Then do We make the sun its guide.
 '''Word by word:''' ''ash shamsa'' (the sun) ''`alayhi'' (for it) ''dalilaan'' (a guide / an indication)}}

Aside from other light sources, shadows on Earth are produced when the sun's light is obstructed. The Earth's rotation causes these shadows to change size and lengthen. The above verses state that the reason shadows fluctuate in size rather than being stationary is because Allah has made the sun their guide. Critics note that this appears to confirm the geocentric outlook widely evidenced elsewhere in the Qur'an, for it is only on a geocentric view that shadows would be of fixed length if the sun (rather than the Earth) were not made to do something.

The length of the shadow cast by the sun is also used to determine the start of the Asr prayer time; the apparent movement of the sun is still used to schedule various Islamic rituals, as discussed further below.

===Quran 91:1-2 - The moon follows the sun===

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|91|1|2}}|By the sun and his brightness, And the moon when she followeth him
 '''Word by word:''' ''Waalshshamsi'' (and the sun) ''waduhaha'' (and its brightness) ''Waalqamari'' (and the moon) ''itha talaha'' (when it follows it)}}

In the view of critics, this suggests that the sun takes a path or action similar or at least comparable to that of the moon (which goes around earth once per month, and to an ancient person would appear to do so on a nightly basis). The word translated "follow" is used many other places to mean recite, but is primarily defined as "to follow", "go", "walk behind", or "follow in way of imitation" or "of action", and was used for animals like camels following behind each other.<ref>Ta-Lam-Waw [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000350.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 313]</ref> Critics note that while the moon neither follows behind the sun's movement nor provides its own light like the sun, a pre-modern observer would get the impression that the moon and sun, in a sense, "chase" one another in their course about the Earth (an impression the Quran appears to agree with).

===Quran 75:8-9 - The similar size and distance of the sun and moon (one day they will be joined)===

In a passage about events on the day of resurrection, the Quran makes an assertion which, critics argue, strongly builds on the implication that the sun and moon are of a similar size and are located a similar distance from Earth. As already noted, the Quran says that the moon "follows" the sun ({{Quran-range|91|1|2}}), and "It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day." ({{Quran|36|40}}). Verse {{Quran-range|75|8|9}} adds that on the last day the sun and moon will be joined together:

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|75|8|9}}|And the moon darkens And the sun and the moon are joined,}}

The word translated "are joined" is ''jumi'a'', a verb which means to collect together, gather together, bring together.<ref>Jama'a [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume2/00000091.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 455]</ref> Critics note that this would require the moon to travel 98 million miles away from Earth and into the sun, which is over 400 times wider. To describe them as brought together (jumi'a) in such a scenario would hardly be apt, critics argue, and a very odd apocalyptic event. Rather, the description sits comfortably in the ancient understanding of the cosmos, whereby the sun and moon were assumed to be two roughly equivalent celestial bodies in the sky above the Earth.

It is worth noting that the "darkening" of the moon in verse 8 is an Arabic word which in hadiths refers to a lunar or solar eclipse (in this case lunar). However, for a lunar eclipse to occur (when the earth's shadow is cast upon the moon) the sun and moon are on opposite sides of the earth and thus are not in any sense "joined". Nor does "joined" in verse 9 work as a reference to a solar eclipse (when the sun occasionally casts a shadow of the moon on the earth). The moon is invisible during the portion of a month when it can eclipse the sun since it must be on the daylit side of the earth, and hence the moon does not "darken" or itself become eclipsed (verse 8) as it passes between observers and the sun but rather its silhouette becomes visible.

===The sun and its movement is always paired with the moon===
The movement of the sun is always mentioned with that of the moon, whether described as running (yajree/tajree) or floating (yasbahoona), or toiling (daibayni). Additionally, in these verses they are nearly always mentioned in the context of night and day (the exception being 13:2), as discussed in an earlier section above.

Here are some of the many verses where the sun and moon are paired (other examples can be found quoted across the article).

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|36|37|40}}|A token unto them is night. We strip it of the day, and lo! they are in darkness and the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise. And for the moon We have appointed mansions till she return like an old shrivelled palm-leaf. It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day. They float each in an orbit.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|33}}|And He it is Who created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. They all float in rounded courses.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|31|29}}|Do you not see that Allah causes the night to enter the day and causes the day to enter the night and has subjected the sun and the moon, each running [its course] for a specified term, and that Allah, with whatever you do, is Acquainted?}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|12}}|He has made subject to you the Night and the Day; the Sun and the moon}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|14|33}}|And He hath made subject to you the Sun and the moon, both diligently pursuing their courses; and the night and the day hath he (also) made subject to you.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|41|37}}|Among His Signs are the Night and the Day, and the Sun and the Moon. [...]}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|39|5}}| He created the heavens and the earth in true (proportions): He makes the Night overlap the Day, and the Day overlap the Night: He has subjected the sun and the moon (to His law): Each one follows a course for a time appointed. Is not He the Exalted in Power - He Who forgives again and again? }}

{{Quran-range|35|11|13}} explains that it is not only humans that were created in pairs (male and female), but also the two bodies of flowing waters (one salty and one sweet), the night and the day, and the sun and the moon.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|35|11|13}}|And Allah did create you from dust; then from a sperm-drop; then He made you in pairs. And no female conceives, or lays down (her load), but with His knowledge. Nor is a man long-lived granted length of days, nor is a part cut off from his life, but is in a Decree (ordained). All this is easy to Allah. Nor are the two bodies of flowing water alike,- the one palatable, sweet, and pleasant to drink, and the other, salt and bitter. Yet from each (kind of water) do ye eat flesh fresh and tender, and ye extract ornaments to wear; and thou seest the ships therein that plough the waves, that ye may seek (thus) of the Bounty of Allah that ye may be grateful. He merges Night into Day, and he merges Day into Night, and he has subjected the sun and the moon (to his Law): each one runs its course for a term appointed. Such is Allah your Lord: to Him belongs all Dominion.}}

===Quran 2:258 - Abraham's challenge: Allah brings the sun from the east, so bring it from the west!===
Various verses describe the shape of the sun's course. The general scheme involves Allah bringing the sun from east and the sun traveling high and eventually going back down. Critics and modern Islamic scholars agree, however, that most of these verses are comparable to the kind of convenient colloquialisms we still use today (see {{Quran|20|059}}, {{Quran|20|130}}, {{Quran|17|078}}, {{Quran-range|6|77|78}}, and {{Quran|18|17}}). Some of these verses, however, have been the object of considerable debate between the two groups.

{{Quran|2|258}} approvingly quotes a few lines from a debate between Abraham and a disbelieving king, where Abraham replies that Allah brings the sun (''yatee biashshamsi'' يَأْتِى بِٱلشَّمْسِ) from the east. The arabic verb and preposition indicate that the sun is conceived of as physically moving.<ref>alif-taa-ya [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000052.pdf Lane's Lexicon Book 1 page 15] The verb means to come, and when it has an object with the bi preposition it means to bring, as in many other instances in the Qur'an.</ref>

{{Quote|{{cite Quran|2|258|style=ref}}|Abraham said, ‘Indeed '''Allah brings the sun from the east'''; now you bring it from the west.’ So the disbeliever was overwhelmed [by astonishment], and Allah does not guide the wrongdoing people.}}

Critics conclude that the Qur'an is clear about the course of the sun: it does not describe a complete orbit, but rather a rounded course, presumably in a hemisphere (''falak''<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak" />) that has a beginning, an end, and a highest point.

===Quran 18:83-90 - The sun sets in a muddy spring and rises on a people without shelter===

{{Quran-range|18|83|90}} also describes the physical, terrestrial locations where the sun is supposed to rise and set in response to a question about an existing legend. Here, in the Quranic account of life of Dhul Qarnayan or Alexander the Great, the physical setting place of the sun, located in muddy spring, can be seen by human eyes. Indeed, in this account, a human tribe is said to live adjacent to this celestial setting place.
[[Category:Dhul-Qarnayn|Dhul-Qarnayn]]
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|18|84|90}}|They will ask thee of Dhu'l-Qarneyn. Say: I shall recite unto you a remembrance of him. Lo! We made him strong in the land and gave him unto every thing a road. And he followed a road. '''Till, when he reached the setting-place of the sun, he found it setting in a muddy spring''', and found a people thereabout. We said: O Dhu'l-Qarneyn! Either punish or show them kindness. Then he followed a road. '''Till, when he reached the rising-place of the sun, he found it rising on a people for whom We had appointed no shelter therefrom.'''}}

There is [[Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring - Part One|historical evidence]] from early Quranic commentaries and other sources, including contemporary Arabic and Syriac poems of the same legend, to the effect that early Muslims took this account literally.

===Quran 79:27-29 - The entire heaven has a night and day===
The Qur'anic conception of the cosmos accords with its author's visual perception of the sky, even to the extent that in {{Quran-range|79|28|29}} night and day is mistaken as a feature of the entire heaven. In these verses the night and morning brightness are said to be an attribute of the heaven (l-samāu) which Allah built (banāhā) and raised (rafaʿa) as a ceiling (samkahā) and ordered it (fasawwāhā) when he created the heaven and earth.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|79|27|30}}|Are ye the harder to create, or is the heaven that He built? He raised the height thereof and ordered it; And He made dark the night '''thereof''', and He brought forth the morn '''thereof'''. And after that He spread the earth,}}

The possessive hā suffix in laylahā (its night) and ḍuḥāhā (its morning light) relates night and day to the heaven in its entirety. In reality, the night and day we experience is a feature of the earth's rotation on its axis. There is no sense in which the earth's night and day (which happen at the same time) apply across the wider cosmos.

In order to confirm the interpretation of these verses it is important to look at how the significant words are used elsewhere in the Quran. "The night" is a very common word in the Quran, and the morning light is used in the same context in {{Quran-range|93|1-2}} and {{Quran-range|91|1}} (see also {{Quran|79|46}}).

Indeed, {{Quran-range|91|1|6}} has many of the same Arabic words as {{Quran-range|79|27|30}}: "its morning light" (this time of the sun), "the night", and "the heaven" (singular) "built" by Allah. Putting the two passages together, it seems that the author of the Quran intuitively believed that the night and the sun's morning light were features pertaining to the entire visible heaven. This does not accord in any way with the modern heliocentric understanding of our local solar system.

Other verses are helpful to confirm what is meant by the heaven (singular) in this context. {{Quran|2|29}} states that Allah turned (is'tawā) to the heaven and fashioned them (fasawwāhunna) seven heavens. These are two forms of the same Arabic verb as is translated "ordered" in {{Quran|79|28}} in the above quote.

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}|He it is Who created for you all that is in the earth. Then turned He to the heaven, and fashioned it as seven heavens. And He is knower of all things.}}

The word "raised" in {{Quran|79|28}} is similarly used for the creation of the heaven (singular) and earth in {{Quran|88|18}} and the heavens (plural) raised without visible pillars in {{Quran|13|2}}.

The word "he built it" in v. 27 (banāhā) also occurs in {{Quran|50|6}}, which says regarding the heaven (singular) that Allah "built it" and "adorned it" (wazayyannāhā), a word which in other verses refers to the stars or lamps adorning the lowest heaven ({{Quran|37|6}}, {{Quran|41|12}} and {{Quran|67|5}}).

===The regular cycle of the sun===

According to several verses in the Qur'an, the sun's cycle is repeated on a regular basis and is comparable in this respect to the orbit of the Moon as well as the cycle of night and day.

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|2}}|[…] He made the Sun and the moon subservient (to you); '''each one pursues its course to an appointed time'''; He '''regulates''' the affair, making clear the signs}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|31|29}}|Seest thou not that Allah merges night into day and he merges day into night and he has subjected the sun, and the moon each '''running its course for a term appointed'''. And Allah is aware of what you do.}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|55|5}}|The Sun and the moon follow '''courses (exactly) computed'''
 '''Word by word:''' ''Alshamsu'' (the sun) ''waalqamaru'' (and the moon) ''bihusbanin''}}

''Husban'' can mean a number of things: "definite reckoning", "appointed courses", "numbering", "revolving firmament", "running appointed", and "scheduled course". In many English translations the word 'course' or 'celestial sphere' is used. In this verse, the word ''falak'' is not used; {{Quran|55|5}} only indicates that the sun and the moon behave in a calculated, scheduled, or otherwise pre-appointed manner. This verse and similar verses are consequently marshalled by critics as further evidence that the Quran espouses a geocentric cosmology, as the sun's daily cycle and the moon's monthly cycle serve ritual timekeeping purposes such as for determining prayer and fasting times in Islam (see next section).

===The sun and timekeeping===

In Muhammad's lifetime it was common practice to use the sun and moon for timekeeping, which helps explain the emphasis in the Qur'an on the regulated and scheduled nature of the courses of the sun and moon as a sign from Allah and as a divinely sanctioned monthly calendar (see previous section).

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|96}}|He it is that cleaves the day-break (from the dark): He makes the night for rest and tranquility and '''the sun and moon for the reckoning [of time]''')}}{{Quote|{{Quran|9|36}}|Indeed, (the) number (of) the months with Allah (is) twelve months in (the) ordinance (of) Allah (from the) Day He created the heavens and the earth; of them, four (are) sacred. That (is) the religion the upright, so (do) not wrong therein yourselves. And fight the polytheists all together, as they fight you all together. And know that Allah (is) with the righteous.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|10|5}}|It is He Who made the Sun to be a shining glory and the moon to be a light (of beauty), and measured out stages for her; '''that ye might know the number of years and the count [of time]'''. Nowise did Allah create this but in truth and righteousness. (Thus) doth He explain His Signs in detail, for those who have knowledge.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|12}}|And We have made the night and the day two signs, then We have made the sign of the night to pass away and We have made the sign of the day manifest, so that you may seek grace from your Lord, and '''that you might know the numbering of years and the reckoning'''; and We have explained everything with distinctness.}}

The moon (the sign, or ''ayah'', of the night) is used to count the years, which comprise the twelve [[Islamic Lunar Calendar|lunar months]] making up the Islamic year, and the sun is to be used to keep track of time. The only solar movement to be used for timekeeping is the apparent daily course of the sun (from east up and then down to the west). To this day, virtually all mainstream Islamic authorities use the (less precise and regularly unpredictable) lunar calendar to determine the date and the apparent position of the sun from any given location to determine the ''waqt'' (prescribed time) of daily [[Salah|''salats'']] (prayers). In some cases, as with the Burj Khalifa, which is one of the tallest buildings in the world and which is located in the United Arab Emirates, this means that prayer times differ one the top floor of the building from the prayer times on the bottom floor of the building, as the moment of sunset and sunrise varies as one ascends in elevation.

====The sun and the daily prayers====
The only examples of the sun being used for timekeeping in the Qur'an employ the sun's apparent daily movement along the sky. Each of the five daily prayers described either directly or indirectly or alluded to in some manner in the Quran. These references all involve mention of the physical, orbital position of the sun. The first prayer, ''salat al-fajr'', takes place right before sun rise and is mentioned in {{Quran|17|78}}, {{Quran|20|130}}, and {{Quran|24|58}}. The second prayer, ''salat al-zuhr'', takes place right after the sun reaches its zenith, but before the shadow of the Sun becomes twice its length from midday. This prayer is possibly mentioned in {{Quran|17|78}} as prayer at the "decline of the sun". The third prayer, ''salat al-asr'', takes place when the sun is between zenith and sunset, when the length of a shadow of a stick is either once or twice its length. This prayer is mentioned in {{Quran|2|238}} as "the middle prayer" and in {{Quran|20|130}} and {{Quran|50|39}} as the "exhalt[ing of Allah] with praise" before the sun's "setting". The fourth prayer, ''salat al-maghrib'', takes place right after sunset. This prayer is not clearly mentioned, but {{Quran|20|130}} and {{Quran|50|39}} mention the "exhalt[ing of Allah] with praise" before rather than after "sunset". The latter verse also mentions "the two ends of the day". The fifth prayer, ''salat al-isha'', takes place at night, between sunset and sunrise. This prayer is mentioned {{Quran|11|114}}, {{Quran|17|79}}, and {{Quran|20|130}}.

==Modern heliocentric re-readings==

In light of the many verses describing a geocentric system and the difficulties this poses in reconciling the Qur'an with the findings of modern science, many modern Islamic scholars have attempted to re-read the Quran as describing a heliocentric system. A major factor in these re-readings, as mentioned above, has been identifying the ''falak'' of the sun described in the Quran as a reference to the sun's orbit of the Milky Way galaxy. Likewise discussed above, {{Quran|36|40}} ('it is not for the sun to overtake the moon...') has been re-read in a manner concordant with a heliocentric model.

===Quran 91:1-4===
In addition to the above two re-readings, two other verses are advanced to suggest that the author of the Quran was aware of the Earth's rotation about its axis.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|91|1|end=4|style=ref}}|By the sun and his brightness, And the moon when she followeth him, And the day when it revealeth him, And the night when it enshroudeth him
 '''Word by word:''' ''Waalnnahari'' (and the day) ''itha'' (when) ''jallaha'' (it displays it) ''Waallayli'' (and the night) ''itha'' (when) ''yaghshaha'' (it covers it)}}

In its plain sense, it appears that 'day' and 'night' here may refer to the process of the Earth's rotation revealing and obstructing the view of the sun (though the verse can also fit with a geocentric view where 'day' and 'night' are processes when the sun is above or below the horizon). While modern Islamic scholars frequently use this verse to defend a heliocentric reading of the Quran, critics argue that the verse's agreement with heliocentrism is undermined when certain other verses in the Quran are considered which appear to elucidate its meaning.

In addition, critics argue, because the Earth is actually a globe, there are no specific times 'when' (''itha'') the day reveals the sun or the night conceals it. Rather, at all times half the Earth is in daytime and half in nighttime, so the sun is at all times being both revealed and concealed. This problem, critics note, would not arise if the word 'when' (''itha'') were simply removed from these verses (an exclusion the author of Quran, if inclined to heliocentrism, would likely have made).

The other verses considered in this context by critics which use the the same Arabic verb as found in {{Quran-range|91|1|4}}, are said to show that the verb here does not simply signify that the body of the earth is blocking the line of sight to something. {{Quran-range|92|1|2}} use the same words found {{Quran-range|91|3|4}}, but without the pronoun suffix at the end. Thus, critics conclude, the "night" is when things generally are "covered", and not just the sun on the other side of the Earth. Likewise, the "day" is when things generally are "revealed". In this reading, the verbs employed are used only in a poetic manner.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|92|1|end=2|style=ref}}|By the night enshrouding, And the day resplendent
 '''Word by word:''' ''Waallayli'' (and the night) ''itha'' (when) ''yaghsha'' (it covers) ''Waalnnahari'' (and the day) ''itha'' (when) ''tajalla'' (it displays)}}

In {{Quran|10|27}}, the night's "cover" (the same verb as in {{Quran|91|4}}) is used to apply to all things and not just the sun. As a result, critics argue, it is difficult to interpret the night covering the sun in {{Quran|91|4}} as literally meaning that the body of the earth covers the sun on its other side. The word "pieces" in the translation means portion or piece cut off from the whole.<ref>qaf-taa-ayn [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000244.pdf Lane's Lexicon Suppliment page 2990]</ref>

{{Quote|{{cite quran|10|27|style=ref}}|they will have no one to save them from Allah; as if their faces are covered with pieces of the dark night}}

The same Arabic word for cover appears again in {{Quran|7|54}}, where it is the day doing the "covering", or possibly the other way round (the Arabic is ambiguous and translations differ, while tafsirs take the view that it means either or both). Critics argue that it is far from clear how the verse could be interpreted as describing a rotating Earth blocking the night (however that conception may be interpreted) in a manner analogous to the heliocentric interpretation of {{Quran|91|4}}. Critics then assert, instead, that the plain sense of these verses and the Quran at large hold the day and night to be active and physically independent entities.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|7|54|style=ref}}|He covereth the night with the day, which is in haste to follow it}}

===Quran 39:5===
The other verse advanced by modern Islamic scholars as favoring a heliocentric re-reading of the scripture is {{Quran|39|5}}. Here the word translated "wraps" (''kawwara'', as with a turban, for example) is argued to be indicative of the rotation of the Earth.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|39|5|style=ref}}|He created the heavens and earth in truth. He wraps the night over the day and wraps the day over the night and has subjected the sun and the moon, each running [its course] for a specified term.}}

As with {{Quran|7|54}} and {{Quran|36|37}} and the verses where the day and night (as well as the sun and moon) are said to swim in a ''falak''<ref name="LanesLexiconFalak" /> (see above), the night and day in this verse are referred to as some kind of entities. Here, critics argue that it would make sense to describe the Earth as passing through night and day or possibly to say that night and day wrap around the earth, as one might spin an item in order to wrap it with something. But, the critics note, the Qur'an instead says that Allah wraps the day and night over one another rather than the earth, suggesting that the night and day possess some manner of corporeal form.

To this, some modern Islamic scholars have responded that 'day' here refers to that half of the Earth that is currently sunward and that 'night' refers to the shadow of the Earth cast by the sun. Critics are, however, unsatisfied with this rebuttal. They note that if this argument is accepted, then in order to make the next phrase work, the 'night' would instead have to refer to that half of the Earth that is currently opposite the sun, and, moreover, the 'day' would have to refer to the light from the sun.

Two verses nearly identical to {{Quran|39|5}} are {{Quran|31|29}} and {{Quran|35|13}} (also containing similar phrasing are {{Quran|3|27}}, {{Quran|22|61}}, and {{Quran|57|6}}) where instead of "he wraps", the verb "he causes to enter" (''yooliju'') is used. Critics argue that, along with {{Quran|7|54}} where the day is said to "cover" and "chase" the night (or possibly vice versa) and {{Quran|36|37}} where Allah strips the day from the night, these verses present a picture of the day and night successively being wrapped across each other and in so doing covering the other and entering into it. It is in this picture, they note, that night never "outruns" (''sabiqu'') the day ({{Quran|36|40}}).

====The argument of timeless comprehensibility====
Modern Islamic scholars also make the case that though indirect, {{Quran|39|5}} is as direct a reference to the Earth's rotation as would have permitted the point to be made while keeping 7th century Arabs from immediately dismissing Muhammad's message on grounds of pre-modern incredulity. To emphasize this point, modern Islamic scholars evoke the doctrine of the maximal possible perfection of every verse in the Quran and suggest that Allah struck the perfect balance of simultaneously alluding to modern science while speaking in terms comprehensible to the inhabitants of a 7th century Arabian desert. To this presentation, critics have responded pointing out that Muhammad's message was immediately dismissed and mocked by most of his contemporaries anyways, and that widespread conversion to Islam was more a consequence of Muhammad's later military success than his preaching and doctrine. According to hadith tradition, Muhammad did not hesitate to tell his contemporaries he had met an [[Jibreel (Angel Gabriel)|angel]], ridden a [[Buraq|winged beast]] up to Allah, and accomplished other fantastic feats. This having been the case, critics ask why Allah should not simply have gone ahead and stated plainly what he wanted to state, knowing that his message would thereby have increasingly resonated generations later. To critics, the author of the Quran did not see his description of the heavens as scientifically novel or as couched in compromised language for the sake of comprehensibility, but was simply describing the universe he held to exist in common with his audience in order to inspire awe, all while having no real regard for their ridicule or mockery of him.

==Islamic authorities on geocentrism==
===Geocentrism in hadiths===

Hadiths graded as authentic by Islamic scholars and found in collections like Sahih Muslim maintain that the sun moves around the earth and goes to its resting place at night, until it is told to return to "its rising place" (matli'iha), a word which also appears in {{Quran|18|90}} when Dhu'l Qarnayn reaches the rising place of the sun (mali'a ash-shamsi).<ref>In contrast, the generic east is always indicated with the word al mashriq or its derivatives everywhere else in the Quran.</ref> One day the sun will be told instead to go and emerge "from the place of your setting" (min maghribiki), and so, it will go and emerge "from the place of its setting" (min maghribiha), often mistranslated as "the west" in other narrations of this prophecy, despite the possessive suffix and lack of definite article<ref>Muhsin Khan, English translator of Sahih Bukhari is particularly guilty of this. Compare with min al maghribi which can in fact be translated as the sun rising "from the west" in {{Quran|2|258}}</ref>. The direct address to the sun and possessive pronouns show that this is not a mere figure of speech about the rotation of the Earth or the east and the west.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|1|297}}|It is narrated on the authority of Abu Dharr that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) one day said: Do you know where the Sun goes? They replied: Allah and His Apostle know best. He (the Holy Prophet) observed: Verily it (the Sun) glides till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it falls prostrate and remains there until it is asked: Rise up and go to the place whence you came, and it goes back and continues emerging out '''from its rising place''' and then glides till it reaches its place of rest under the Throne and falls prostrate and remains in that state until it is asked: Rise up and return to the place whence you came, and it returns and emerges out from it rising place and the it glides (in such a normal way) that the people do not discern anything (unusual in it) till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it would be said to it: Rise up and emerge out '''from the place of your setting''', and it will rise from the place of its setting. The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said. Do you know when it would happen? It would happen at the time when faith will not benefit one who has not previously believed or has derived no good from the faith.}}

Similar versions of this hadith are found in Sahih Bukhari and elsewhere in Sahih Muslim. In another hadith Muhammad recorded telling the story of an earlier prophet who asked the sun to stop moving, whereafter the sun complied with his request. This hadith is based on the story of Joshua found in the Bible and is also found in Sahih Muslim:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|53|353}}|…So, the prophet carried out the expedition and when he reached that town at the time or nearly at the time of the ‘Asr prayer, he said to the sun, ‘'''O sun!''' You are under Allah’s Order and I am under Allah’s Order O Allah! '''Stop it (i.e. the sun) from setting.’''' It was stopped till Allah made him victorious…}}

These Hadiths are all deemed '[[sahih]]' (authentic) according to Islamic scholars. According to historians, however, even if these hadiths are not historically reliable, they nonetheless indicate what very early Muslim authorities believed about the sun and are thus useful in interpreting the intended meaning of the Qur'an.

===Ancient and modern Muslim astronomers===

Muhammad's Muslim contemporaries all accepted the Qur'an's geocentric cosmology. References in the Hadith of the ''ansari'' or others in Muhammad's environment arguing about this point with their prophet or among themselves are nonexistent. Famous Muslim astronomers (people who certainly read, and knew the Qur'an) like the Arab astronomer ''Ibn al-Shatir'' and the Persian ''Nasir al-Din al-Tusi'' used Greek (geocentric) astronomy to create complex models of the ‘universe’ that were geocentric (to pre-moderns, the 'universe' comprised the local solar system).

In a televised debate aired on Iraqi Al-Fayhaa TV (October 31, 2007), the Islamic astronomer ''Fadhel Al-Sa'd'' asserted the following:

{{Quote|1=[http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/1684.htm Iraqi Researcher Defies Scientific Axioms: The Earth Is Flat and Much Larger than the Sun (Which Is Also Flat)] MEMRI TV, Video No. 1684|2=The sun circles the Earth because it is smaller than the Earth, as is evident in Koranic verses. Have you ever seen how the sun moves? I have seen the sun moving. The sun makes one move every 24 hours. What I say is based on Koranic science. He bases his arguments on the kind of science that I reject categorically -- the modern science that they teach in schools. This science is a heretic innovation that has no confirmation in the Koran. No verse in the Koran indicates that the Earth is round or that it rotates. Anything that has no indication in the Koran is false.}}

In Fadhel Al-Sa'd's view, the moon's diameter is 1,200,000 km, while that of the sun is only 2,400,000 km.

==See also==

{{Hub4|Cosmology|Cosmology}}

==External link==

*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWLA-MZBhyE Muhammad's Geocentric Universe]'' - YouTube video''

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Cosmology]]
[[ru:Геоцентризм]]
{{page_title|Geocentrism and the Qur'an}}
[[Category:Critics of Islam]]
[[Category:Apologetics]]

List of Killings Ordered or Supported by Muhammad

2022-08-17T16:18:24Z

Vixen:

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The sirah maghaazi literature, the earliest biographical literature produced by the Arabic tradition, portrays Muhammad as a warlord and statebuilder par excellence. Although it does portray him sometimes showing mercy to his opponents, just as often if not more so it portrays him as ordering the killings of transgressors against the divine law, political and religious enemies, personal enemies or threats to his person, and poets who made fun of him. The earliest biographers such as ibn Ishaq are quite detailed in showing how the prophet did not suffer poetry against him and made a point of ordering the murder of such poets. As with the rest of the sira maghaazi literature many questions remain about the reliability of these accounts from the perspective of ''wie es eigentlich gewesen'' or "as it actually happened. " What is not in doubt, though, is the authority these hold within the Islamic tradition. These narratives, taken together as the sirah, form the most authoritative biographical source for Muslims on the life of the prophet. Their presentation of him as a warlord who ordered the execution of so many of his political and religious enemies thus bears considerable impact on the image that Muslims have of [[Muhammad ibn Abdullah]] as [[Uswa Hasana]], the perfect man and the founder of their religion, the great religion and final revelation by [[Allah (God)]] to mankind.
==Views of modern scholarship==
Typically, academic scholars have doubts about the reliability of the sῑra literature and the maghāzī (raid, expedition) accounts therein. In a detailed analysis of protagonists, repeated motifs and textual devices, Ershan Roohi has identified that several accounts of political assassinations in the sira literature may have been motivated by tribes seeking to glorify their ancestors, or for apologetic purposes to exonerate them or their tribe for having at one time resisted acceptance of Islam, in the latter case particularly those stories which involve assassins of Jewish descent or affiliation killing members of their own tribe or confederates for the sake of Muhammad and the new religion.<ref>Eshan Roohi (2021) [https://www.academia.edu/56044561/Between_History_and_Ancestral_Lore_A_Literary_Approach_to_the_S%C4%ABras_Narratives_of_Political_Assassinations Between History and Ancestral Lore: A Literary Approach to the Sīra’s Narratives of Political Assassinations] Der Islam, Vol. 98 (2) doi:10.1515/islam-2021-0029</ref>

Of relevance to the list below, Roohi argues on the basis of repeated story and textual devices that the assassination of Ibn Abi al-Huqaiq was largely fabricated by the Khazraj tribe whom al-Tabari records desired to compete with the assassination by a rival Medinan tribe, al-Aws, of another blasphemous poet, Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf. The identities of the alleged assassins of Ka'b in turn have been argued to be concocted to whitewash their Jewish affiliations and sympathies, particularly in the case of Muhammad b. Maslama, who also is said to have beheaded the Jewish leader Kinana and participated in the killings of the Jewish poet Ibn Abi al-Huqaiq already mentioned and Jewish leader al-Yusayr mentioned below. The story of 'Asma' bint Marwan's murder by the blind Umayr employs a repeated motif of a blind man killing a female blasphemer, which occurs a second time later in the list below without named protagonists. Roohi also questions a few other assassination stories due to plausible motives to cast the alleged killers in a more favourable light or having transferred motifs: Ibn Sunayna (part of a trend to glorify his alledged assassin, Muhayyisa), Amr ibn Jihash (the hitman was allegedly hired by his cousin Ibn Yamin, who elsewhere is reported to have deplored the murder of Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf), Al-Yusayr ibn Rizam and Khalid ibn Sufyan (whose alleged murders by Unays include a number of transferable story motifs).

Regarding the stories as a whole, Roohi's view is that "if we tend not to go so far as to reject them as ex nihilo inventions, it may be safe at least to hold an agnostic view as to their historicity" and that it would be "prudent not to accept at face value" the image portrayed in the sira. On the other hand, while Roohi envisages that the above is the "tip of the iceberg" in terms of literary topoi (transferable motifs or formulae) used in the sira, critics would notice that the list of killings on this page is considerably more varied and extensive than the several cases for which he was able to identify specific grounds for suspicion.

==List of Killings==
The following list of killings is roughly in chronological order.

 <center>{{legend|#EEEEEE|Ordered by Muhammad|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}
{{legend|#E3E3B6|Supported but not ordered by Muhammad|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}} {{legend|#FFD4D4|Women and/or children|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}} {{legend|#B6B6E3|Apostates|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}} {{legend|#FFF3D4|Reasons including writing or reciting poetry|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}} {{legend|#DEFFD4|Reasons including "causing offence"|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}} {{legend|#D4F4FF|Reasons including monetary gain|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}} {{legend|#FDFF75|Reasons including preventing idolatry or rival prophets|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}</center> 

Names in '''bold''' indicate that the ''only'' reason why the sources indicate Muhammad wanted them to be killed or threatened with death was because they had mocked, insulted, or cast doubt on him, or to extort economic gain, or to destroy idolatry or rival prophets. All others may have been killed for additional reasons such as posing or inciting a physical threat, or deserved punishment for murder or harming people, as indicated in the Reasons column.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: left;"
! width="10" |No.
! width="280" |Name
! width="130" |Date
! width="330" |Reason(s) for Ordering or Supporting Killing
! width="200" |Result
! width="230" |Notable Primary Sources
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |1
| style="background: #FFD4D4;" |'Asma' bint Marwan
|January 624<ref name="William Muir Elder and co 130">{{citation|title=The life of Mahomet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=YDwBAAAAQAAJ&pg=front|authors=William Muir |year=1861| publisher = Smith, Elder and co|page=130}}</ref>
| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |Kill 'Asma' bint Marwan for opposing Muhammad with poetry and for provoking others to attack him<ref name="Sa'd 1967 35">{{cite book|last=Sa'd|first=Ibn|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=_vnXAAAAMAAJ&q|title= Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2|year=1967|publisher=Pakistan Historical Society|asin=B0007JAWMK|page=35|quote=SARIYYAH OF `UMAYR IBN `ADI. Then (occurred) the sariyyah of `Umayr ibn `Adi Ibn Kharashah al-Khatmi against `Asma' Bint Marwan, of Banu Umayyah Ibn Zayd, when five nights had remained from the month of Ramadan, in the beginning of the nineteenth month from the hijrah of the apostle of Allah.}}</ref><ref name="Haddad">{{cite book|last=Yvonne Yazbeck Haddad, Ellison Banks Findly|title=Women, religion, and social change|year=1985|publisher=SUNY Press|location=NewYork|isbn=0-88706-069-2|page=24}}</ref><ref name="William Muir Elder and co 130">{{citation|title=The life of Mahomet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=YDwBAAAAQAAJ&pg=front|authors=William Muir |year=1861| publisher = Smith, Elder and co|page=130}}</ref>
|
Asma' bint Marwan assassinated<ref name="William Muir Elder and co 130">{{citation|title=The life of Mahomet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=YDwBAAAAQAAJ&pg=front|authors=William Muir |year=1861| publisher = Smith, Elder and co|page=130}}</ref><ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p. 210.</ref>
|
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad pp. 675-676">Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, pp. 675-676.</ref>
*Ibn Sa'd, Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2<ref name="Sa'd 1967 35" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |2
|Abu 'Afak
|February 624<ref name="William Muir Elder and co 133">{{citation|title=The life of Mahomet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=YDwBAAAAQAAJ&pg=front|authors=William Muir |year=1861| publisher = Smith, Elder and co|page=133}}</ref>
| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |Kill the Jewish poet Abu Afak for opposing Muhammad through poetry<ref name="Haddad">{{cite book|last=Yvonne Yazbeck Haddad, Ellison Banks Findly|title=Women, religion, and social change|year=1985|publisher=SUNY Press|location=NewYork|isbn=0-88706-069-2|page=24}}</ref><ref name="Muhammad pp. 675-676" /><ref name="William Muir Elder and co 133">{{citation|title=The life of Mahomet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=YDwBAAAAQAAJ&pg=front|authors=William Muir |year=1861| publisher = Smith, Elder and co|page=133}}</ref><ref>De Mahdi Rizqullah Ahmad, Darussalam, [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=G7YA55Ih59oC&pg=PA433 A Biography of the Prophet of Islam (Vol 1 & 2)], p. 433.</ref>, and according to ibn Sa'd, instigating the people against Muhammad<ref name="ibn Sa'd p31">"''Then occurred the "sariyyah" of Salim Ibn Umayr al-Amri against Abu Afak, the Jew, in [the month of] Shawwal in the beginning of the twentieth month from the hijrah''" - Sa'd, Ibn (1967). ''[http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=_vnXAAAAMAAJ&q Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2.]'' Pakistan Historical Society. p. 31.</ref>
|
Abu Afak assassinated<ref name="William Muir Elder and co 133">{{citation|title=The life of Mahomet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=YDwBAAAAQAAJ&pg=front|authors=William Muir |year=1861| publisher = Smith, Elder and co|page=133}}</ref><ref name="Muhammad pp. 675-676" /><ref name="Haddad">{{cite book|last=Yvonne Yazbeck Haddad, Ellison Banks Findly|title=Women, religion, and social change|year=1985|publisher=SUNY Press|location=NewYork|isbn=0-88706-069-2|page=24}}</ref>
|
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad pp. 675-676" />
*Ibn Sa'd, Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2<ref name="ibn Sa'd p31" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |3
|Al Nadr ibn al-Harith
|After Battle of Badr March 624<ref name="Mubarakpuri p. 274">Safi ur Rahman Al Mubarakpuri, The sealed nectar: biography of the Noble Prophet, p. 274.</ref>
| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |According to Mubarakpuri, Al Nadir was captured during the Battle of Badr. A Qur'an verse was revealed about Nadr bin Harith for mocking the Qur'an as "tales of the ancients". He was one of two prisoners who were executed and not allowed to be ransomed by their clans because he mocked and harassed Muhammad and wrote poems and stories criticizing him<ref name="Mubarakpuri p. 274" /><ref name="Haykal 1976 Part 2 p 223">Muḥammad Ḥusayn Haykal, Ismaʼil R. Al-Faruqi, The life of Muḥammad: Volume 1976, Part 2, p. 223.</ref>. According to Waqidi, he also tortured companions of Muhammad<ref>“Surely, you tortured his companions” The Life of Muhammad: Al-Waqidi's Kitab al-Maghazi (Routledge Studies in Classical Islam). Faizer, Rizwi [Editor]. Routledge pp.53-54</ref>
|
Nadr bin Harith beheaded by Ali<ref name="Mubarakpuri p. 274" /><ref name="Haykal 1976 Part 2 p 223"></ref>
|
*{{Quran|83|13}}<ref name="Muhammad pp. 162-163">Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, pp. 162-163.</ref>
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad pp. 162-163" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |4
|Uqba bin Abu Muayt
|After Battle of Badr March 624<ref name="Mubarakpuri p. 274" />
| style="background: #DEFFD4;" |Uqba bin Abu Muayt was captured in the Battle of Badr and was killed instead of being ransomed, because he threw dead animal entrails on Muhammad, and wrapped his garmet around Muhammad's neck while he was praying<ref name="Mubarakpuri p. 274" /><ref name="Haykal 1976 Part 2 p 223"></ref>
|
Uqba bin Abu Muayt beheaded by Asim ibn Thabbit or Ali<ref name="Mubarakpuri p. 274" /><ref name="Haykal 1976 Part 2 p 223"></ref>
|
*{{Bukhari|1|9|499}}, {{Bukhari|6|60|339}}
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p. 308.</ref>
*Tabari, Volume 9, The last years of the Prophet<ref>{{citation|title=The last years of the Prophet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=XxG8BsHNw-MC&pg=PA121|authors=Al Tabari, Isma'il Qurban Husayn (translator)|year=25 Sep 1990|publisher=State University of New York Press
|isbn=978-0887066917|page=121}} ([http://www.scribd.com/doc/44661705/Al-Tabari-The-Last-2-Years-of-the-Prophet-s-SAW-Life online])</ref>
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |5
|Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf
|September 624<ref>{{cite book|last=Sa'd|first=Ibn|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=_vnXAAAAMAAJ&q|title= Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2|year=1967|publisher=Pakistan Historical Society|asin=B0007JAWMK|page=35|quote=SARIYYAH FOR SLAYING KA'B IBN AL-ASHRAF Then (occurred) the sariyyah for slaying Ka'b Ibn al-Ashraf, the Jew. It took place on 14 Rabi' al-Awwal (4. September AC 624))}}</ref><ref> {{cite book | author = Montgomery Watt, W. | editor = P.J. Bearman, Th. Bianquis, C.E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel and W.P. Heinrichs | encyclopedia =Encyclopaedia of Islam Online| title = Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf| publisher = Brill Academic Publishers | id = ISSN 1573-3912}}</ref><ref name="stillman13">{{cite book | first=Norman | last=Stillman | title=The Jews of Arab Lands: A History and Source Book | publisher=Jewish Publication Society of America | location=Philadelphia | year=1979 |page=13}} ISBN 0827601166 p. 13.</ref>
| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |According to Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad ordered his followers to kill Ka'b because he "had gone to Mecca after Badr and "inveighed" against Muhammad and composed verses in which he bewailed the victims of Quraysh who had been killed at Badr. Shortly afterwards he returned to Medina and composed amatory verses of an insulting nature about the Muslim women".<ref name="ibn Ishaq p364-369">Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p. 364-369.</ref><ref>Uri Rubin, The Assassination of Kaʿb b. al-Ashraf, Oriens, Vol. 32. (1990), pp. 65-71.</ref><ref name="online">Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, pp.151-153. ([http://www.webcitation.org/60tWdFK8C online])</ref>. Ibn Kathir adds that he incited the people to fight Muhammad.
|
Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf assassinated<ref name="online" />
|
*{{Bukhari|5|59|369}}, {{muslim|19|4436}}
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="ibn Ishaq p364-369" />
*Ibn Kathir's Sira al-Nabawiyya<ref>Ibn Kathir says of al-Ashraf: "he harmed the messenger of God (SAAS) by ridiculing him in verse and he rode in to Quraysh to incite them further", and "He went to Medina where he proclaimed his enmity and incited people to go to war. He had not left Mecca before he had united them to fight the Messenger of God (SAAS)" Ibn Kathir, Sira al-Nabawiyya Volume 3, Translator:Trevor Gassick, Centre for Muslim Contribution to Civilisation, p.6-7</ref>
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |6
|Abu Rafi' ibn Abi Al-Huqaiq
|December 624<ref name="Hegira Volume 4 p 14">William Muir, The life of Mahomet and history of Islam to the era of the Hegira, Volume 4, p. 14
</ref>

| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |Kill Abu Rafi' ibn Abi Al-Huqaiq for mocking Muhammad with his poetry and for helping the troops of the Confederates by providing them with money and supplies<ref name="webcitation.org">Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, p. 204. ([http://www.webcitation.org/60uzg0jSV online])</ref><ref name="Hegira Volume 4 p 14"></ref>
|
Abu Rafi assassinated<ref name="webcitation.org" /><ref name="Hegira Volume 4 p 14"></ref>
|
*{{Bukhari|4|52|264}}, {{Bukhari|5|59|370}}, {{Bukhari|5|59|371}}, {{Bukhari|5|59|372}} and more<ref>{{citation|title=The Sealed Nectar|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=-ppPqzawIrIC&printsec=frontcover| first=Saifur Rahman Al|last=Mubarakpuri|year=2005|publisher=Darussalam Publications|page=204}}</ref>
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p. 482. "THE KILLING OF SALLAM IBN ABU'L-HUQAYQ"</ref>
*Tabari, Volume 7, The foundation of the community<ref>{{citation|title=The foundation of the community|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=ctvk-fdtklYC&pg=PA100|first=Al|last=Tabari |year=2008|publisher=State University of New York Press|isbn=978-0887063442|page=100}}</ref>
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |7
|Khalid ibn Sufyan
|625<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar pp. 186-187">Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, pp. 186-187. ([http://www.webcitation.org/60v1IUE4A online])</ref>

|Kill Khalid bin Sufyan, because there were reports he considered an attack on Medina and that he was inciting the people on Nakhla or Uranah to fight Muslims<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar pp. 186-187" /><ref name="first great general 126">{{citation|title=Muhammad, Islam's first great general|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=nadbe2XP2o4C&pg=PA126|first=Richard A. |last=Gabriel |year=2008|publisher=University of Oklahoma Press
|isbn=9780806138602|page=126}}</ref>
|
Khalid ibn Sufyan assassinated<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar pp. 186-187" /><ref name="first great general 126"></ref>
|
*Musnad Ahmad 3:496<ref>[http://www.sunnah.org/ibadaat/tawassul_3.htm Sunnah.org], says Ahmad 3:496, al-Waqidi 2:533, [http://archive.is/hqM8x archive]</ref>
*{{Abudawud||1244|Hasan}}
*Ibn Hisham, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar pp. 186-187" />
*Tabari, Volume 9, The last years of the Prophet<ref>{{citation|title=The last years of the Prophet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=XxG8BsHNw-MC&pg=PA121|authors=Al Tabari, Isma'il Qurban Husayn (translator)|year=25 Sep 1990|publisher=State University of New York Press
|isbn=978-0887066917|pages=121}} ([http://www.scribd.com/doc/44661705/Al-Tabari-The-Last-2-Years-of-the-Prophet-s-SAW-Life online])</ref><ref>{{citation|title=The life of the prophet Muḥammad: a translation of al-Sīra al-Nabawiyya|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=klAKAQAAMAAJ&q|authors=Ismāʻīl ibn ʻUmar Ibn Kathīr|year=2000|publisher=Garnet|isbn=978-1859640098|page=190}} </ref>
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |8
|Abu 'Azzah 'Amr bin 'Abd Allah al-Jumahi
|March 625<ref name="Muhammad at Medina">{{cite book|author=Watt, W. Montgomery|title=[http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=GfAGAQAAIAAJ Muhammad at Medina]|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1956|isbn=978-0195773071|page=34|quote=The expeditions to Hamra' al-Asad and Qatan (March and June 625)}} ([http://www.archive.org/details/muhammadatmedina029655mbp free online])</ref>

|Behead Abu 'Azzah 'Amr bin 'Abd Allah al-Jumahi because he was a prisoner of War captured during the Invasion of Hamra al-Asad, that Muhammad released once, but he took up arms against him again<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 183">Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, p. 183. ([http://www.webcitation.org/60v0RdHwu online])</ref><ref name="Tabari 2008 141–142">{{citation|title=The foundation of the community|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=ctvk-fdtklYC&pg=PA147|first=Al|last=Tabari |year=2008|publisher=State University of New York Press|isbn=978-0887063442|pages=141–142}} pp. 141-142</ref>
|
Abu 'Azzah beheaded by Ali<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 183" /><ref name="Tabari 2008 141–142" />
|
*Tabari, Volume 7, The foundation of the community<ref name="Tabari 2008 141–142" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |9
|Muawiyah bin Al Mugheerah
|March 625<ref name="Muhammad at Medina" />

|Kill Muawiyah bin Al Mugheerah, because he was accused by Muhammad of being a spy. He went to Uthman (his cousin) for shelter, and Uthman arranged for his return to Mecca, but he stayed too long in Medina. After Muhammad heard he was still in Medina, he ordered his death<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 183" /><ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq’s Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p. 390.</ref>
|
Muawiyah bin Al Mugheerah captured and executed<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 183" /><ref name="Muhammad pp. 755-756">Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq’s Sīrat rasūl Allāh, pp. 755-756 (footnotes).</ref>
|
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad pp. 755-756" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |10
| style="background: #B6B6E3;" |Al-Harith bin Suwayd al-Ansari
|March 625<ref name="Muhammad at Medina" />
|Kill Al-Harith bin Suwayd<ref>De Mahdi Rizqullah Ahmad, Darussalam, [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=G7YA55Ih59oC&pg=PA433 A Biography of the Prophet of Islam (Vol 1 & 2)], p. 433.</ref> because according to some Islamic traditions, Allah revealed Qur'an 3:86-8, which indicated that those who reject Islam after accepting it should be punished.<ref name="Ze'ev Maghen" /> Al-Harith bin Suwayd was a Muslim who fought in the Battle of Uhud and killed some Muslims, he then joined the Quraysh and left Islam. After being threatened with those verses, Al-Harith sent his brother to Muhammad to ask for his forgiveness.<ref name="Muhammad pp. 755-756" /><ref name="A. Rahman pp. 25-26">S. A. Rahman, Punishment of Apostasy in Islam, pp. 25-26.</ref><ref name="ReferenceA">Asbab al-nuzul by al-Wahidi, Commentary of Quran 3:86, ([http://www.webcitation.org/61Bnjklqy online])</ref>
|
Conflicting reports

#Muhammad allowed his return but then decided to kill him. Al-Harith was beheaded by Uthman<ref name="Muhammad pp. 755-756" /><ref name="A. Rahman pp. 25-26" />
#Allah revealed Qur'an 3:89 and Al-Harith repented and "became a good Muslim"<ref name="ReferenceA" /><ref name="Ze'ev Maghen">{{cite web|url= https://books.google.it/books?id=eZQH0xCYiaAC&pg=PA44&lpg=PA44&dq=Al-Harith+bin+Suwayd+al-Ansari&source=bl&ots=7hmDxk25f0&sig=ghd1mLrN9L_R5o-6LNgdPyuZeEQ&hl=it&sa=X&ei=PLiyVOicH4jvaOCjgaAE&ved=0CCUQ6AEwATgU#v=onepage&q&f=false|title= After Hardship Cometh Ease: The Jews as Backdrop for Muslim |publisher= Walter de Gruyter|author= Ze'ev Maghen|date= 2006|page=44|archiveurl= |deadurl=no}}</ref>
|
*{{Quran-range|3|86|88}}<ref name="A. Rahman pp. 25-26" /><ref name="Ze'ev Maghen" />
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad pp. 755-756" />
|-
! style="background: #E3E3B6;" |11
|Amr ibn Jihash (convert to Islam)<ref name="Muhammad Saed Abdul-Rahman p. 44">Muhammad Saed Abdul-Rahman, Tafsir Ibn Kathir Juz' 28 (Part 28): Al-Mujadila 1 to At-Tahrim 12 2nd Edition, p. 44. ([http://www.webcitation.org/61AAwJ3bW online])</ref>
|During the Invasion of Banu Nadir<ref name="Muhammad Saed Abdul-Rahman p. 44" /> (Aug 625)<ref>Tabari, The foundation of the community, p.161.</ref>
|According to Ibn Kathir and Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad said to Yamin bim Umayr, about Amr ibn Jash "Have you seen the way your cousin has treated me and what he proposed to do?"<ref name="Muhammad p. 438">Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq’s Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p. 438.</ref><ref name="Muhammad Saed Abdul-Rahman p. 44"></ref> Muhammad accused him of trying to assassinate him<ref>Muhammad Saed Abdul-Rahman, Tafsir Ibn Kathir Juz' 28 (Part 28): Al-Mujadila 1 to At-Tahrim 12 2nd Edition, p. 43. ([http://www.webcitation.org/61AAwJ3bW online])</ref>
|
Amr ibn Jihash is assassinated after a Muslim offers a reward for his killing<ref name="Muhammad Saed Abdul-Rahman p. 44"></ref>
|
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad p. 438" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |12
|Abu Sufyan
|627<ref name="Abū Khalīl 2003 242">{{cite book|last=Abū Khalīl|first=Shawqī |title=[http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=8BziirH6UKMC&pg=PA242 Atlas of the Quran]|publisher= Dar-us-Salam|year=2003|isbn=978-9960897547|page=242}}</ref>

|Amr bin Umayyah al-Damri sent to assassinate Abu Sufyan (Quraysh leader)<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 211">Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, p. 211. ([http://www.webcitation.org/60v1IUE4A online])</ref><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 211" />
|
3 polytheists killed by Muslims<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 211" />
|
*Tabari, Volume 7, The foundation of the community<ref>{{citation|title=The foundation of the community|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=ctvk-fdtklYC&pg=PA147|first=Al|last=Tabari |year=2008|publisher=State University of New York Press|isbn=978-0887063442|page=147}}</ref>
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |13
| style="background: #FFD4D4;" |Banu Qurayza tribe
|February–March 627<ref>{{citation|title= The life of Mahomet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=QyIPouT4DqcC&printsec=frontcover| authors=William Muir|publisher=Kessinger Publishing|year=2003|isbn=9780766177413|page=317}}</ref>

|
Attack Banu Qurayza because according to Muslim tradition he had been ordered to do so by the angel Gabriel.<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar pp. 201-205">Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, pp. 201-205. ([http://www.webcitation.org/60wWxNMpU online])</ref><ref name="Tafsir Ibn Kathir Juz'21">{{citation|title=Tafsir Ibn Kathir Juz'21|url= http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=jAHs9Wboz4gC&pg=PA213| authors=Ibn Kathir, Saed Abdul-Rahman |year=2009|publisher= MSA Publication Limited |pages=213|isbn= 9781861796110}}([http://www.tafsir.com/default.asp?sid=33&tid=41539 online])</ref><ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq’s Sīrat rasūl Allāh, pp. 461-464.</ref><ref name="Peters223">Peters, ''Muhammad and the Origins of Islam'', p. 222-224.</ref><ref name="Stillman140">Stillman, The Jews of Arab Lands: A History and Source Book, pp. 137-141.</ref><ref name="Inamdar">{{citation|title=Muhammad and the Rise of Islam: The Creation of Group Identity|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=PNDXAAAAMAAJ&q|authors=Subhash C. Inamdar|year=2001|publisher=Psychosocial Press|isbn=1887841288|page=166 (footnotes)}}</ref> One of Muhammad's companions decided that "the men should be killed, the property divided, and the women and children taken as captives". Muhammad approved of the ruling, calling it similar to God's judgment,<ref name="Peters223" /><ref name="Stillman140" /><ref name="Oxford University Press">{{citation|title=The Life of Muhammad (Sirat Rasul Allah)|author= Ibn Ishaq, A. Guillaume (translator)|isbn= 978-0-19-636033-1 |year=2002|publisher= Oxford University Press|pages=461–464}} pp. 461–464.</ref><ref name="Adil">Adil, ''Muhammad: The Messenger of Islam'', p. 395f.</ref><ref name="The life of Mahomet">{{citation|title= The life of Mahomet| url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=QyIPouT4DqcC&printsec=frontcover| author= William Muir|publisher=Kessinger Publishing| year=2003| isbn=9780766177413|page=329}}</ref> after which all male members of the tribe who had reached puberty were beheaded<ref name="Tafsir Ibn Kathir Juz'21" /><ref name="Kister 1990 p. 54">Kister (1990), Society and religion from Jāhiliyya to Islam, p. 54.</ref>
|
Muslims: 2 killed<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar pp. 201-205" /> Non-Muslims:

#600-900 beheaded (Tabari, Ibn Hisham) <ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar pp. 201-205" /><ref name="Tafsir Ibn Kathir Juz'21" /><ref>{{citation|title= Volume 8, Victory of Islam|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=-ppPqzawIrIC&pg=PA201| authors=Al Tabari, Michael Fishbein (translator)|year=1997|publisher= State University of New York Press |isbn=9780791431504
|pages=35–36}} pp. 35–36</ref>
#All Males and 1 woman beheaded (Hadith)<ref>{{abudawud|14|2665}}</ref><ref>{{Bukhari|4|52|280}}</ref>
|
*{{quran|33|26}},<ref name="Tafsir Ibn Kathir Juz'21" /> Qur'an 33:09 & 33:10<ref>{{citation|title=Tafsir Ibn Kathir Juz'21|url= http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=jAHs9Wboz4gC&pg=PA194| authors=Ibn Kathir, Saed Abdul-Rahman |year=2009|publisher= MSA Publication Limited |pages=213|isbn= 9781861796110}} ([http://www.tafsir.com/default.asp?sid=33&tid=41359 online])</ref><ref>Muhammad Husayn Haykal, The Life of Muhammad, p. 338.</ref>
*{{abudawud|38|4390}}
*{{Bukhari|4|52|68}}, {{Bukhari|4|57|66}} and more
*Tabari, Volume 8, Victory of Islam<ref>{{citation|title= Volume 8, Victory of Islam|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=sD8_ePcl1UoC&dq| authors=Al Tabari, Michael Fishbein (translator)|year=1997|publisher= State University of New York Press |isbn=9780791431504|pages=35–36}} pp. 35–36.</ref>
|-
! style="background: #FFD4D4;" |14
|Unknown laughing woman from Banu Qurayza tribe.
|February–March 627<ref>{{citation|title= The life of Mahomet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=QyIPouT4DqcC&printsec=frontcover| authors=William Muir|publisher=Kessinger Publishing|year=2003|isbn=9780766177413|page=317}}</ref>
|The woman was conversing with A'isha and laughing, as her men were killed by Muhammad in the market. Suddenly someone called her and told that she will be killed, because of something she did (threw the millstone on Khallad b. Suwayd and killed him). She was then taken away and beheaded. A'isha used to say, "I shall never forget my wonder at her good spirits, gladness and her loud laughter when all the time she knew that she would be killed"
|
Woman was then taken away and beheaded.
|
*Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, pp. 465, 765<ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, pp. 465, 765.</ref>
*Abd Al Malik Ibn Hisham - The Prophetic Biography (Sirah Of Ibnu Hisham) - 1st Edition - DKI, pp. 467-468<ref>Abd Al Malik Ibn Hisham - The Prophetic Biography (Sirah Of Ibnu Hisham) - 1st Edition - DKI, pp. 466-468</ref>
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |15
|Abdullah ibn Ubayy
|December 627<ref name="Abū Khalīl 2003 242" /> (during Invasion of Banu Mustaliq<ref>Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, p. 208-210. ([http://www.webcitation.org/60wabZqtW online])</ref> )
| style="background: #DEFFD4;" |Kill Abdullah ibn Ubayy, to whom verse 63:8 refers, and who was accused by Muhammad of slandering his family by spreading false rumors about Aisha (his wife).<ref>{{citation|title=Tafsir Ibn Kathir Juz' 18 (Part 18): Al-Muminum 1 to Al-Furqan 20 2nd Edition|authors=Ibn Kathīr, Muhammad Saed Abdul-Rahman|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=UXIMSE5E-soC&pg=PA77|year=2009|publisher=MSA Publication Limited
|isbn=9781861797223|pages=77}} </ref> His son offered to behead him<ref>Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, pp. 209-210. ([http://www.webcitation.org/60wabZqtW online])</ref><ref>{{citation|title=The Life of Mohammed|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=fOyO-TSo5nEC&printsec=frontcover| first=Hussain|last=Haykal|year=1994|publisher=Islamic Book Trust
|isbn=978-8187746461|page=354}}</ref>
|
Muhammad calls off assassination and says to Umar "if I had had him (Abdullah bin Ubai) killed, a large number of dignitaries would have furiously hastened to fight for him"<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 210">Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, p. 210. ([http://www.webcitation.org/60wabZqtW online])</ref> Later he reveals a Quran verse forbidding Muslims from attending the funeral of disbelievers and "hypocrites"<ref>{{citation|title=Tafsir Ibn Kathir (Volume 4), Volume 4|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=bT8A7qQ-7ZoC&pg=PA490|page=490}}</ref><ref>{{citation|title=Tafsir Ibn Kathir Juz' 10 (Part 10): Al-Anfal 41 To At-Tauba 92|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=9PL5jJ_ZOI0C&pg=PA221|first=Muhammad Saed | last=Rahman |year=2008 | publisher=MSA publication limited | isbn=9781861795786|page=221}}</ref>
|
*{{Quran-range|63|7|8}}
*{{Bukhari|6|60|424}}
*{{Bukhari|5|59|462}}
*Ibn Hisham, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 210" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |16
|Al-Yusayr ibn Rizam
|February 628<ref name="Abū Khalīl 2003 242" />

|Kill Al-Yusayr ibn Rizam because Muhammad heard that his group was preparing to attack him<ref name="William Muir p. 17">William Muir, The life of Mahomet and history of Islam to the era of the Hegira, Volume 4, p. 17</ref><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 241">Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, p. 241. ([http://www.webcitation.org/60y5XJmQz online])</ref>
|
30 killed by Muslims<ref name="William Muir p. 17" /><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 241" />
|
*Tirmidhi no. 3923<ref>[http://www.box.net/shared/xvsxnaj7el Tirmidhi (Partial translation)], see no. 3923, p. 182.</ref>
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref>{{cite book|authors=Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator)|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=w7tuAAAAMAAJ&q|title=The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh|year=1998|publisher=Oxford University Press|page=665|quote=Abdullah b. Rawaha's raid to kill al-Yusayr b. Rizam}}</ref>
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |17
| style="background: #B6B6E3;" |Eight men from 'Ukil
|February 628<ref name="Abū Khalīl 2003 242" />

|Kill 8 men who came to him and converted to Islam, but then apostatized, killed one Muslim and drove off with Muhammad's camels<ref name="William Muir pp. 18-19">William Muir, The life of Mahomet and history of Islam to the era of the Hegira, Volume 4, pp. 18-19.</ref>
|
Muslims: 1 killed Non-Muslims: 8 tortured to death<ref name="William Muir pp. 18-19" /><ref>{{Bukhari|1|4|234}}</ref>
|
*{{Quran-range|5|33|39}}<ref name="William Muir pp. 18-19" /><ref>[http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=ZmSQPIkTyN0C&pg=PA392 Tafsir ibn Kathir, Surai Madiah 5:39, "The Punishment of those who cause mischief in the Land"], and [http://www.tafsir.com/default.asp?sid=5&tid=13751 Tafsir ibn Kathir, 5:39, Text version]</ref>
*{{Bukhari|1|4|234}}, {{Bukhari|5|59|505}}, {{Bukhari|7|71|623}} and more
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |18
|'''Kinana ibn al-Rabi ibn Abu al-Huqayq'''
|July 628<ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, pp. 755, 763.</ref>
| style="background: #D4F4FF;" |Torture Kinana ibn al-Rabi to find location of allegedly hidden treasure of Banu Nadir<ref name="Mubarakpuri 1996 p. 372">Mubarakpuri (1996), The sealed nectar: biography of the Noble Prophet, p. 372.</ref><ref name="Watt W Montgomery 218">{{cite book|author=Watt, W. Montgomery|title=[http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=GfAGAQAAIAAJ Muhammad at Medina]|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1956|isbn=978-0195773071|page=218}} ([http://www.archive.org/details/muhammadatmedina029655mbp free online])</ref>
|
Kinana ibn al-Rabi ibn Abu al-Huqayq beheaded after being tortured with fire<ref name="Mubarakpuri 1996 p. 372" /><ref name="Watt W Montgomery 218">{{cite book|author=Watt, W. Montgomery|title=[http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=GfAGAQAAIAAJ Muhammad at Medina]|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1956|isbn=978-0195773071|page=218}} ([http://www.archive.org/details/muhammadatmedina029655mbp free online])</ref>
|
*{{abudawud|19|3000}}
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator). 1956. The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq’s Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p.515</ref>
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |19
|Rifa’ah bin Qays
|629<ref>{{citation|title=The last years of the Prophet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=XxG8BsHNw-MC&pg=PA123|authors=Al Tabari, Isma'il Qurban Husayn (translator)|year=25 Sep 1990|publisher=State University of New York Press
|isbn=978-0887066917|pages=123}} ([http://www.scribd.com/doc/44661705/Al-Tabari-The-Last-2-Years-of-the-Prophet-s-SAW-Life online])</ref><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 242">Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, p. 242. ([http://www.webcitation.org/60y5XJmQz online])</ref>

|To kill Rifa’ah bin Qays, because Muhammad heard they were allegedly enticing the people of Qais to fight him<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 242" />
|
1 beheaded,<ref name="Muhammad pp. 671-672">Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, pp. 671-672.</ref> 4 women captured by Muslims<ref name="Volume 8, Victory of Islam">{{citation|title= Volume 8, Victory of Islam|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=sD8_ePcl1UoC&dq| authors=Al Tabari, Michael Fishbein (translator)|year=1997|publisher= State University of New York Press |isbn=9780791431504
|page=151}}</ref>
|
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad pp. 671-672" />
*Tabari, Volume 8, History of Islam<ref name="Volume 8, Victory of Islam" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |20
|Abdullah bin Khatal
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333">{{citation|title=Muhammad: a prophet for all humanity|url= http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=k8xyO3fQkccC&pg=PT327
| first=Maulana |last=Wahid Khan|year=2002|publisher=Goodword |pages=327–333}}</ref><ref name="ReferenceB">{{Bukhari|5|59|582}}</ref><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 254">Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, p. 254.</ref>
| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |Kill Abdullah bin Khatal for killing a slave and fleeing, as well and for reciting poems insulting Muhammad<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="ReferenceB" /><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 254" />
|
2 Muslims execute him, after finding him hiding under the curtains of the Ka'aba<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="ReferenceB" /><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 254" />
|
*{{Bukhari|5|59|582}}, {{Bukhari|3|29|72}}
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad p. 551">Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p. 551.</ref>
*Ibn Sa'd, Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2<ref name="Sa'd 1967 174">{{cite book|last=Sa'd|first=Ibn|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=_vnXAAAAMAAJ&q|title= Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2|year=1967|publisher=Pakistan Historical Society|asin=B0007JAWMK|page=174}}</ref>
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |21
| style="background: #FFD4D4;" |'''Fartana'''
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Hussain Haykal p. 440">Hussain Haykal, The Life of Mohammed, p. 440.</ref>
| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |Kill Fartana (a slave girl of Abdullah ibn Khatal), because she used to sing satirical songs about Muhammad<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 254" />
|
Fartana is killed<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 254" /><ref name="Hussain Haykal p. 440" />
|
*{{abudawud|14|2677}}
*{{abudawud|14|2678}}
*{{Al Nasai||5|37|4072}}
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad p. 550">Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p. 550.</ref>
*Ibn Sa'd, Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2<ref name="Sa'd 1967 174" />
*Al-Waqidi, Kitab al-Maghazi<ref name="Waqidi p406">The Life of Muhammad: Al-Waqidi's Kitab al-Maghazi (Routledge Studies in Classical Islam). Faizer, Rizwi [Editor]. Routledge p.406</ref>
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |22
| style="background: #FFD4D4;" |'''Quraybah'''
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |Kill Quraybah (a slave girl of Abdullah ibn Khatal), because she used to sing satirical songs about Muhammad<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|
Quraybah converts to Islam and is pardoned<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Sa'd 1967 174" />
|
*{{abudawud|14|2677}}
*{{abudawud|14|2678}}
*{{Al Nasai||5|37|4072}}
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad p. 550" />
*Ibn Sa'd, Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2<ref name="Sa'd 1967 174" />
*Al-Waqidi, Kitab al-Maghazi<ref name="Waqidi p406" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |23
|Huwayrith ibn Nafidh
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |When Muhammad's daughters were fleeing Medina, he stabbed their camels, causing injuries. He was a poet who "disgraced and abused" Islam<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 254" /><ref name="A. Rahman p. 68">S. A. Rahman, Punishment of Apostasy in Islam, p. 68.</ref>
|
Huwayrith ibn Nafidh killed<ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 254" /><ref name="A. Rahman p. 68" /> by Ali<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad p. 551" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |24
| style="background: #B6B6E3;" |Miqyas ibn Subabah
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|Miqyas killed a Muslim who accidentally killed his brother, and escaped to Mecca and became an apostate by embracing polytheism<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 254" /><ref name="Muhammad p. 551" /><ref name="A. Rahman p. 68" />
|
Miqyas killed<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 254" /><ref name="A. Rahman p. 68" />
|
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad p. 551" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |25
| style="background: #FFD4D4;" |'''Sara'''
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
| style="background: #DEFFD4;" |Ibn Ishaq says Muhammad ordered Sara be killed because she "had insulted him in Mecca"<ref name="Muhammad p. 551" /><ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|
Conflicting reports:

#Ibn Ishaq reports that she embraced Islam but was killed later, during the time of Umar<ref name="Muhammad p. 551" />
#Tabari reports she was killed<ref name="books.google.com">{{citation|title= Volume 8, Victory of Islam|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=sD8_ePcl1UoC&dq| authors=Al Tabari, Michael Fishbein (translator)|year=1997|publisher= State University of New York Press |isbn=9780791431504
|pages=179-180}}</ref>
|
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad p. 551" />
*Tabari, Volume 8, History of Islam<ref name="books.google.com" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |26
|Harith ibn Hisham
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|Kill Harith ibn Hisham, reason unknown<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Muhammad p. 551" />, though he was among those who fought against the Muslims in the battle of Uhud<ref>{{Al Tirmidhi||5|44|3004}}.</ref>>
|
According to Ibn Sa'd, Zubayr ibn Abi Umayyah and Harith ibn Hisham both sought refuge in a Muslim relatives house, the relative pleaded with Muhammad for mercy, so he pardoned them on the condition they embrace Islam<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Sa'd 1967 179">{{cite book|last=Sa'd|first=Ibn|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=_vnXAAAAMAAJ&q|title= Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2|year=1967|publisher=Pakistan Historical Society|asin=B0007JAWMK|page=179}}</ref>
|
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad p. 551" />
*Ibn Sa'd, Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2<ref name="Sa'd 1967 179" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |27
|Zubayr ibn Abi Umayyah
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|Kill Zubayr ibn Abi Umayyah, reason unknown<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Muhammad p. 551" />
|
See above result<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Muhammad p. 551" />
|
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad p. 551" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |28
|'''al-Aswad al-Ansi'''
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
| style="background: #FDFF75;" |Muhammad sent a messenger to Yemen instructing that al-Aswad al-Ansi (not to be confused with Habbar al-Aswad) should be killed because he was a "false prophet"<ref name="The last years of the Prophet">{{citation|title=The last years of the Prophet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=XxG8BsHNw-MC&pg=PA121|authors=Al Tabari, Isma'il Qurban Husayn (translator)|year=25 Sep 1990|publisher=State University of New York Press
|isbn=978-0887066917|page=167}} ([http://www.scribd.com/doc/44661705/Al-Tabari-The-Last-2-Years-of-the-Prophet-s-SAW-Life online])</ref> and a "liar"<ref name="ReferenceC">{{Bukhari|5|59|662}}</ref>. Al-Baladhuri reports that al-Aswad was a false prophet and refused Muhammad's invitation to accept Islam.<ref name="Baladhuri">Abu-l Abbas Ahmad Ibn Jabir al-Baladhuri, "Futuh al-Buldan", Chapter XXI: Al-Aswad al-‘Ansi and those in al-Yaman who apostatized with him, translated by Philip Khuri Hitti, 1916, New York: Columbia University</ref>
|
Tabari reports that al-Aswad al-Ansi was killed the day before Muhammad's own death after he sent a messenger to persuade the local al-Abna' people to kill him<ref name="The last years of the Prophet" /><ref name="ReferenceC" /> Al Baladhuri adds further detail that Muhammad chose this plan because the al-Abna' already had grievances against al-Aswad.<ref name="Baladhuri" />
|
*{{Bukhari|5|59|662}}, {{Bukhari|4|56|817}}
*Tabari, Volume 9, The last years of the Prophet<ref name="The last years of the Prophet" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |29
|Ikrimah ibn Abu Jahl
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
| style="background: #DEFFD4;" |Kill Ikrimah ibn Abu Jahl, bcause he was hostile to Muhammad like his father Abu Jahl<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Muhammad p. 551" />
|
Conflicting reports

#Ibn Ishaq says, his wife "became a Muslim and asked for immunity for him and the apostle gave it"<ref name="Muhammad p. 551" />
#Tabari says he was "eliminated"<ref name="http">{{citation|title= Volume 8, Victory of Islam|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=sD8_ePcl1UoC&dq| authors=Al Tabari, Michael Fishbein (translator)|year=1997|publisher= State University of New York Press |isbn=9780791431504
|page=180}}</ref>
|
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad p. 551" />
*Tabari, Volume 8, History of Islam<ref name="http" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |30
|Wahshi ibn Harb
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|Kill Wahshi ibn Harb, for killing Muhammad's uncle during the Battle of Uhud<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|
Wahshi ibn Harb pardoned by Muhammad after he asks for forgiveness and offers to convert to Islam<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Ibn Sa'd p. 179">Ibn Sa'd, Syed Moinul Haq (translator), Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2, p. 179.</ref>
|
*Ibn Sa'd, Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2<ref name="Ibn Sa'd p. 179" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |31
|'''Ka'b ibn Zuhayr ibn Abi Sulama'''
|After Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |Assassinate Ka'b ibn Zuhayr ibn Abi Sulama for writing satirical poems about Muhammad<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref>M. Th. Houtsma, E.J. Brill's first encyclopedia of Islam, 1913-1936, p. 584.</ref><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 287">Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, p. 287.</ref>. One of his poems recorded by Ibn Ishaq includes the line, "I was told that the Messenger of Allah threatened me (with death), but with the Messenger of Allah I have hope of finding pardon"<ref name="Muhammad p. 597-601">Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq’s Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p. 597-601.</ref>.
|
Ibn Ishaq wrote that when one of the Ansar asked permission to behead Ka'b, "the apostle told him to let him alone because he had come repentant breaking from his past", so he was pardoned<ref name="Muhammad p. 597-601" /><ref name="Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar p. 287" />
|
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad p. 597-601" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |32
|'''Al-Harith bin al-Talatil'''
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |For mocking Muhammad through poetry<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|
Al-Harith bin al-Talatil is killed by Ali<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref name="Umar Ibn Kathīr p. 57">Ismāʻīl ibn ʻUmar Ibn Kathīr, Trevor Le Gassick (translator), The life of the prophet Muḥammad: a translation of al-Sīra al-Nabawiyya, p. 57.</ref>
|
*Ibn Kathir's Sira al-Nabawiyya<ref name="Umar Ibn Kathīr p. 57" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |33
|'''Abdullah ibn Ziba'ra'''
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |Kill Abdullah ibn Ziba'ra, for writing insulting poems about Muhammad<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|
Ibn Hisham reports that Abdullah ibn Ziba'ra repented and converted to Islam, so Muhammad pardoned him<ref name="Wahid 327-333" /><ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq’s Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p. 556</ref> and that he had fled because "the apostle had killed some of the men in Mecca who had satirized and insulted him".<ref name="Hisham p597">Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq’s Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p. 597</ref>
|
*Al-Waqidi's Kitab al-Maghazi<ref name="Waqidi p417">The Life of Muhammad: Al-Waqidi's Kitab al-Maghazi (Routledge Studies in Classical Islam). Faizer, Rizwi [Editor]. Routledge p.417</ref>
*Ibn Sa'd, Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir<ref>Ibn Sa'd, Syed Moinul Haq (translator), Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2, p. 174.</ref>
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Hisham p597" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |34
|'''Hubayrah'''
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
| style="background: #FFF3D4;" |Kill Hubayrah (cousin of al Ziba'ra), for mocking Muhammad through poetry<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|
Tabari Volume 39 states, Hubayrah "ran away when Mecca was conquered, and died in Najran as an infidel"<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />. Ibn Ishaq reports that he fled because "the apostle had killed some of the men in Mecca who had satirized and insulted him".<ref name="Hisham p597" />
|
*Tabari, Volume 39, Biographies of the Prophet's companions and their successors<ref>{{citation|title=Biographies of the Prophet's companions and their successors|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=czSP046th6IC&printsec=frontcover|authors=Tabari, Ella Landau-Tasseron|year=1998|publisher=State University of New York Press
|isbn=0791428192|page=196 (footnote 852)}}</ref>
*Al-Waqidi's Kitab al-Maghazi<ref name="Waqidi p417" />
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Hisham p597" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |35
| style="background: #FFD4D4;" |Hind bint Utbah
|During/after Conquest of Mecca (Jan 630)<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|Kill Hind bint Utbah (wife of Abu Sufyan) for cutting out the heart of Muhammad's uncle Hamza after he died, during the Battle of Uhud<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|
Tabari said, Hind "swore allegiance and became a Muslim.",<ref name="Tabari, Michael Fishbein p. 181">Al Tabari, Michael Fishbein (translator), Volume 8, Victory of Islam, p. 181.</ref> she was pardoned by Muhammad<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
|
*{{abudawud|33|4153}}
*Tabari, Volume 8, History of Islam<ref name="Tabari, Michael Fishbein p. 181" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |36
|'''King or Prince of Dumatul Jandal'''
|October 630<ref>{{cite book|last=Abu Khalil|first=Shawqi|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=mZmBkoDa9fcC&printsec=frontcover|title=Atlas of the Prophet's biography: places, nations, landmarks|date=1 March 2004|publisher=Dar-us-Salam|isbn=978-9960897714|page=239}}</ref>
| style="background: #D4F4FF;" |Attack the chief of Duma for Jizyah and booty<ref name="books.google.co.uk">{{citation|title=The last years of the Prophet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=XxG8BsHNw-MC&printsec=frontcover|authors=Al Tabari, Isma'il Qurban Husayn (translator)|year=25 Sep 1990|publisher=State University of New York Press
|isbn=978-0887066917|pages=58–59}} pp. 58–59. ([http://www.scribd.com/doc/44661705/Al-Tabari-The-Last-2-Years-of-the-Prophet-s-SAW-Life online])</ref><ref>Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, p. 277.</ref>
|
1 killed, 2 taken captive. The Chief of Duma was released unharmed.<ref>{{cite book|last=Muir|first=William|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=QyIPouT4DqcC&pg=PA458|title=Life of Mahomet|date=10 August 2003|publisher=Kessinger Publishing Co|isbn=978-0766177413|pages=458–459}}</ref>
|
*{{abudawud|19|3031}}
*Ibn Sa'd, Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2<ref>{{cite book|last=Sa'd|first=Ibn|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?ei=AUL5Tf7sN8jIsgaVreXVDw&ct=result&id=_vnXAAAAMAAJ&dq|title= Kitab al-tabaqat al-kabir, Volume 2|year=1967|publisher=Pakistan Historical Society|asin=B0007JAWMK|page=205}}</ref>
*Tabari, Volume 9, The last years of the Prophet<ref name="books.google.co.uk" />
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |37
|Umaiya bin Khalaf Abi Safwan
|Unknown
|Kill Umaiya bin Khalaf, Muhammad's reason is unknown.<ref name="The life and times of Muhammad">{{cite book|author=Sir John Bagot Glubb|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=AMrXAAAAMAAJ&q|title=The life and times of Muhammad|year=1998|publisher=Madison Books|page=187}}. ISBN 9781568331126</ref> But Bilal wanted to kill him for torturing him<ref name="Haykal, Ismaʼil R 1976, p. 229">"''This Umayyah was Bilal's previous master who used to torture him by forcing him down to the ground''" - Muḥammad Ḥusayn Haykal, Ismaʼil R. Al-Faruqi, The life of Muḥammad: Volume 1976, Part 2, p. 229.</ref>
|
Umaiya bin Khalaf killed by Bilal<ref name="The life and times of Muhammad" /><ref name="Haykal, Ismaʼil R 1976, p. 229" />
|
*{{Bukhari|4|56|826}}
|-
! style="background: #E3E3B6;" |38
| style="background: #FFD4D4;" |'''Blind man's wife/concubine'''
|Unknown
| style="background: #DEFFD4;" |Killed by a Muslim on his own initiative because the woman insulted Muhammad. When Muhammad learned what had happened he said no retaliation is payable for her blood.<ref name="617AvlDgL">[http://www.webcitation.org/617AvlDgL Ruling on one who insults the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)], Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 22809</ref><ref name="Abudawud 38 4348">{{Abudawud|38|4348}}</ref>
|
Blind Muslim kills his wife/concubine<ref name="617AvlDgL">[http://www.webcitation.org/617AvlDgL Ruling on one who insults the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)], Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 22809</ref><ref name="Abudawud 38 4348" />
|
*{{abudawud|38|4348}}
*{{Al Nasai||5|37|4075}}
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |39
|Ibn Sunayna
|Unknown
|Muhammad reportedly ordered his followers to "kill any Jew that falls into your power", Muhayissa heard this and went out to kill Ibn Sunayna (a Jew)<ref name="Jewish Publication Society">{{cite book|author=Norman A. Stillman|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=bFN2ismyhEYC&pg=PA128|title=The Jews of Arab lands: a history and source book|year=2003|publisher=Jewish Publication Society|page=128}} ISBN 9780827601987</ref><ref name="Sir John Bagot Glubb p. 199">{{cite book|author=Sir John Bagot Glubb|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=AMrXAAAAMAAJ&q|title=The life and times of Muhammad|year=1998|publisher=Madison Books|page=199}} ISBN 9781568331126</ref>
|
Ibn Sunayna killed by Muhayissa<ref name="Jewish Publication Society" /><ref name="Sir John Bagot Glubb p. 199" />
|
*{{abudawud|19|2996}}
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref>Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq, Alfred Guillaume (translator), The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh, p. 369.</ref>
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |40
| style="background: #B6B6E3;" |'''Abdallah ibn Sa'd ibn Abi Sarh'''
|During/after Conquest of Mecca<ref name="Wahid 327-333" />
(Jan 630)[
| style="background: #DEFFD4;" |Kill Abdallah ibn Sa‘ad, because he became and apostate (left Islam) and fled to Mecca. He also claimed that he was the one who wrote certain verses of the Qur'an and started to mock Muhammad, which made him angry<ref name="Sir. William 1861 131">{{citation|title=The life of Mahomet|url= http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Feo9AAAAYAAJ&pg=PA131 |first=Muir| last=Sir. William|year=1861 | publisher=Abe books|page=131}}</ref>
|
On the day of the Conquest of Mecca, Abdallah ibn Sa'd ibn Abi Sarh accepted Islam again<ref name="Tabari ibn Sarh">Al-Tabari, "History of al-Tabari Vol. 9 - The Last Years of the Prophet", transl. Ismail K. Poonawala, p.148, Albany: State University of New York Press</ref>. A misunderstanding leads to his pardoning. He was brought in front of Muhammad and offered his loyalty, Muhammad upheld his hand to indicate that his followers should kill him, but the Muslims thought he pardoned him.<ref name="Sir. William 1861 131" /> He said "Was not there a wise man among you who would stand up to him when he saw that I had withheld my hand from accepting his allegiance, and kill him?"<ref>{{abudawud|38|4346}}</ref>
|
*{{abudawud|38|4346}}, {{abudawud|14|2677}}
*Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah<ref name="Muhammad p. 550" />
*Al-Tabari, History Vol.9<ref name="Tabari ibn Sarh" />
|-
! style="background: #E3E3B6;" |41
|'''Ibn an-Nawwahah'''
|Unknown
| style="background: #FDFF75;" |Ibn Kathir and Sunan Abu Dawud record that Muhammad once said about Ibn an-Nawwahah "I would have cut off your head, if it was not that emissaries are not killed" because he claimed Musaylimah was a Prophet, so Abdullah ibn Masud killed Ibn an-Nawwahah when he was no longer an emissary<ref name="Mubarakpuri p. 379">Shaykh Safiur Rahman Al Mubarakpuri, Ismāʻīl ibn ʻUmar Ibn Kathīr, Ṣafī al-Raḥmān Mubārakfūrī, Tafsir Ibn Kathir (Volume 4), Volume 4, p. 379. ([http://www.webcitation.org/619xF7mgV online])</ref><ref name="abudawud 14 2756">{{abudawud|14|2756}}</ref>
|
Abdullah ibn Masud beheads Ibn an-Nawwahah<ref name="Mubarakpuri p. 379" /><ref name="abudawud 14 2756">{{abudawud|14|2756}}</ref>
|
*{{abudawud|14|2756}}
*Tabari, Volume 10, Conquest of Arabia<ref>{{citation|title=The conquest of Arabia|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=VA5Uke7IpHkC&pg=PA16|first=Al|last=Tabari|year=1993|publisher=State University of New York Press
|isbn=978-0791410714|page=107}}</ref>
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |42
|Nameless spy
|Unknown
|Kill a man Muhammad suspected of being a spy<ref name="The Middle East p. 423">The Middle East: Abstracts and index, Part 1, p. 423.</ref><ref name="Bukhari 4 52 286">{{Bukhari|4|52|286}}</ref>
|
Salama bin Al-Akwa chases and kills the suspected spy<ref name="The Middle East p. 423" /><ref name="Bukhari 4 52 286">{{Bukhari|4|52|286}}</ref>
|
*{{Bukhari|4|52|286}}
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |43
|Man from Aslam tribe
|Unknown
|Kill a man from the Aslam tribe for Adultery<ref name="Nabil A. Haroun p. 9">Dr. Nabil A. Haroun, Islamic Books, ISBN 9773161277, Teach Yourself Islam, p. 9.</ref><ref name="Abudawud 38 4414">{{Abudawud|38|4414}}</ref>
|
Man from Aslam tribe stoned to death<ref name="Nabil A. Haroun p. 9" /><ref name="Abudawud 38 4414">{{Abudawud|38|4414}}</ref>
|
*{{Abudawud|38|4414}}
|-
! style="background: #EEEEEE;" |44
|'''Bahilah and Banu Khath'am tribes'''
|632
| style="background: #FDFF75;" |Muhammad sends Jarir ibn-'Abdullah to destroy the Ka'aba of Yemen, Dhu-l-Khalasah, which was the subject of idolatry. Jarir reports back to Muhammad of the destruction and killings, which Muhammad approves.
|
100 men of the Bahilah, and 200 of banu-Khath'am were killed in order to destroy the idol of Dur l-Khalasa<ref name="Hisham ibn al kalbi">Ibn al Kalbi, Hisham (1952). The book of idols: being a translation from the Arabic of the Kitāb al-asnām. Princeton University Press. pp. 31–2</ref>
|
*{{Bukhari|5|59|641}}, {{Bukhari|4|52|262}}, {{Bukhari|4|52|310}}
*Hisham ibn al Kalbi, [https://books.google.com/books?id=G4HXAAAAMAAJ The Book of Idols]<ref name="Hisham ibn al kalbi" />
|} 

==External Links==

*[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.masud.co.uk/ISLAM/misc/alshifa/pt4ch1sec2.htm|2=2012-08-25}} The proof of the necessity of killing anyone who curses the Prophet or finds fault with him] ''- Muslim website''
*[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.reddit.com/r/exmuslim/comments/tql65/full_rejoinder_to_balqis_rebuttal_of_wikiislam/|2=2012-09-10}} Full rejoinder to Balqis' rebuttal of WikiIslam Assassination List] ''- r/exmuslim user responds to objections raised by apologists''

==Main Sources==
{{refbegin}}
* {{citation|title=When the Moon Split|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=xJL6gxPUV4EC&pg=PA147| first=Saifur Rahman Al|last=Mubarakpuri |year=2002|publisher=DarusSalam|isbn=978-9960-897-28-8}}
* {{citation|title=The Sealed Nectar|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=-ppPqzawIrIC&printsec=frontcover| first=Saifur Rahman Al|last=Mubarakpuri|year=2005|publisher=Darussalam Publications}}. Note: This is the free version available on Google Books
* {{citation|title=The sealed nectar: biography of the Noble Prophet|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=r_80rJHIaOMC&pg=PA244 | first=Saifur Rahman Al|last=Mubarakpuri|year=2005|publisher=Darussalam Publications|isbn=978-9960-899-55-8 }}
* {{cite book|last=Muḥammad Ibn ʻAbd al-Wahhāb|first=Imam|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=8JRzr6mC55IC&printsec=frontcover|title=Mukhtaṣar zād al-maʻād|year=1998|publisher=Oxford University Press}}
* {{cite book|last=Abu Khalil|first=Shawqi|url= http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=mZmBkoDa9fcC&printsec=frontcover|title=Atlas of the Prophet's biography: places, nations, landmarks|date=1 March 2004|publisher=Dar-us-Salam|isbn=978-9960-897-71-4}}
* {{citation|title= The life of Mahomet and history of Islam to the era of the Hegira, Volume 4|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Feo9AAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover| first=William|last=Muir|year=1861|publisher=Smith, Elder & Co}}
*{{citation|title=The Life of Mohammed|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=fOyO-TSo5nEC&printsec=frontcover| first=Hussain|last=Haykal|year=1994|publisher=Islamic Book Trust
|isbn=978-8187746461}}
*{{citation|title=Muhammad, Islams first general|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=nadbe2XP2o4C&pg=PA198| first=Richard A. |last=Gabriel |year=2008|publisher=University of Oklahoma Press
|isbn=9780806138602}}
*{{cite book|last=Muḥammad Ibn ʻAbd al-Wahhāb|first=Imam|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=8JRzr6mC55IC&printsec=frontcover|title=Mukhtaṣar zād al-maʻād|year=2003|publisher=Darussalam publishers Ltd|isbn=978-9960897189}}
*{{cite book|last=Ibn Hisham, Ibn Ishaq|first=Alfred Guillaume (translator)|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=w7tuAAAAMAAJ&q|title=The life of Muhammad: a translation of Isḥāq's Sīrat rasūl Allāh|year=1998|publisher=Oxford University Press}}
{{refend}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Muhammad]]
[[Category:Jihad]]
[[bg:Списък с убийствата, заповядани или подкрепени от Мухаммад]]
[[Category:Sacred history]]
[[Category:Sirah]]
[[Category:Muhammad's contemporaries]]

Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Zakat and Sadaqah

2022-07-25T12:28:11Z

Vixen:

{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=3|References=4}}
{{QuranHadithScholarsIndex}}

The terms [[Zakat]] (obligatory tax) and Sadaqah (voluntary charity) are sometimes used interchangeably in Islamic literature, with some sources listing zakat as covering also voluntary acts of charity. Although Islamic scholars find Arabic etymologies for both terms, in fact zakat from its Arabic spelling زكاة clearly falls into a class of loan words from Aramaic which also includes [[sala]] صلاة, while the use of "sadaqa" صدقة to mean "alms" for the poor (voluntarily given as an act of religious faith) finds its antecedent in the Aramaic of the Jewish Targum Onqelos. In terms of Islamic theology, the zakat is a tax incumbent on all Muslims, assessed as a percentage of wealth on various possessions such as land and crops. Its main purpose is to support the Muslim poor, but it may also be used for other pursuits of the Islamic State such as [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Jihad|jihad]]. The payment of zakat is one of the 5 [[pillars]] of Islam, paying it is thus [[fard|mandatory]] for the believer, and denying the necessity of its payment constitutes an act of [[kufr]] or unbelief.

==Qur'an==

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|43}}|Establish worship, pay the poor-due, and bow your heads with those who bow (in worship).}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|219}}|... And they ask thee what they ought to spend. Say: that which is superfluous. Thus Allah maketh plain to you (His) revelations, that haply ye may reflect.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|254}}|O ye who believe! Spend out of (the bounties) We have provided for you, before the Day comes when no bargaining (Will avail), nor friendship nor intercession. Those who reject Faith they are the wrong-doers.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|262}}|Those who spend their wealth for the cause of Allah and afterward make not reproach and injury to follow that which they have spent; their reward is with their Lord, and there shall no fear come upon them, neither shall they grieve.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|270}}|And whatever ye spend in charity or devotion, be sure Allah knows it all. But the wrong-doers have no helpers.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|272}}|The guiding of them is not thy duty (O Muhammad), but Allah guideth whom He will. And whatsoever good thing ye spend, it is for yourselves, when ye spend not save in search of Allah's Countenance; and whatsoever good thing ye spend, it will be repaid to you in full, and ye will not be wronged.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|273}}|(Alms are) for the poor who are straitened for the cause of Allah, who cannot travel in the land (for trade). The unthinking man accounteth them wealthy because of their restraint. Thou shalt know them by their mark: They do not beg of men with importunity. And whatsoever good thing ye spend, lo! Allah knoweth it.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|77}}|Hast thou not seen those unto whom it was said: Withhold your hands, establish worship and pay the poordue, but when fighting was prescribed for them behold! a party of them fear mankind even as their fear of Allah or with greater fear, and say: Our Lord! Why hast Thou ordained fighting for us? If only Thou wouldst give us respite yet a while! Say (unto them, O Muhammad): The comfort of this world is scant; the Hereafter will be better for him who wardeth off (evil); and ye will not be wronged the down upon a date-stone.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|5}}|But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the Pagans wherever ye find them, and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem (of war); but if they repent, and establish regular prayers and practise regular charity, then open the way for them: for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|60}}|Alms are only for the poor and the needy, and the officials (appointed) over them, '''and those whose hearts are made to incline (to truth)''' and the (ransoming of) captives and those in debts and in the way of Allah and the wayfarer; an ordinance from Allah; and Allah is knowing, Wise.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|71}}|And the believers, men and women, are protecting friends one of another; they enjoin the right and forbid the wrong, and they establish worship and they pay the poor-due, and they obey Allah and His messenger. As for these, Allah will have mercy on them. Lo! Allah is Mighty, Wise.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|17|26|29}}|Give the kinsman his due, and the needy, and the wayfarer, and squander not (thy wealth) in wantonness. Lo! the squanderers were ever brothers of the devils, and the devil was ever an ingrate to his Lord. But if thou turn away from them, seeking mercy from thy Lord, for which thou hopest, then speak unto them a reasonable word. And let not thy hand be chained to thy neck nor open it with a complete opening, lest thou sit down rebuked, denuded.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|28|86}}|And thou hadst not expected that the Book would be sent to thee except as a Mercy from thy Lord: Therefore lend not thou support in any way to those who reject (Allah's Message).}}

==Hadith==

===Sahih Bukhari===

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|486}}|Narrated Abu Huraira: Allah's Apostle said, "Whoever is made wealthy by Allah and does not pay the Zakat of his wealth, then on the Day of Resurrection his wealth will be made like a bald-headed poisonous male snake with two black spots over the eyes. The snake will encircle his neck and bite his cheeks and say, 'I am your wealth, I am your treasure.' " Then the Prophet recited the holy verses:-- 'Let not those who withhold . . .' (to the end of the verse). (3.180).}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|489}}|Narrated Al-Ahnaf bin Qais: While I was sitting with some people from Quraish, a man with very rough hair, clothes, and appearance came and stood in front of us, greeted us and said, "Inform those who hoard wealth, that a stone will be heated in the Hell-fire and will be put on the nipples of their breasts till it comes out from the bones of their shoulders and then put on the bones of their shoulders till it comes through the nipples of their breasts the stone will be moving and hitting." After saying that, the person retreated and sat by the side of the pillar, I followed him and sat beside him, and I did not know who he was. I said to him, "I think the people disliked what you had said." He said, "These people do not understand anything, although my friend told me." I asked, "Who is your friend?" He said, "The Prophet said (to me), [...]}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|522}}|Narrated Abu Huraira: The Prophet said, "Every day two angels come down from Heaven and one of them says, 'O Allah! Compensate every person who spends in Your Cause,' and the other (angel) says, 'O Allah! Destroy every miser.' "}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|536}}|Narrated Abu Huraira: Abu Bakr said, "By Allah! If they (pay me the Zakat and) with-hold even a she-kid which they used to pay during the life-time of Allah's Apostle, I will fight with them for it." 'Umar said, "It was nothing but Allah Who opened Abu Bakr's chest towards the decision to fight, and I came to know that his decision was right."}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|539}}|Narrated Abu Dhar: Once I went to him (the Prophet ) and he said, "By Allah in Whose Hands my life is (or probably said, 'By Allah, except Whom none has the right to be worshipped) whoever had camels or cows or sheep and did not pay their Zakat, those animals will be brought on the Day of Resurrection far bigger and fatter than before and they will tread him under their hooves, and will butt him with their horns, and (those animals will come in circle): When the last does its turn, the first will start again, and this punishment will go on till Allah has finished the judgments amongst the people."}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|542}}|Narrated Abu Huraira: Allah's Apostle said, "There is no Zakat either on a horse or a slave belonging to a Muslim"}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|543}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:- The Prophet said,"There is no Zakat either on a slave or on a horse belonging to a Muslim.}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|547}}|Narrated Abu Huraira: Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) ordered (a person) to collect Zakat, and that person returned and told him that Ibn Jamil, Khalid bin Al-Walid, and Abbas bin 'Abdul Muttalib had refused to give Zakat." The Prophet said, "What made Ibn Jamll refuse to give Zakat though he was a poor man, and was made wealthy by Allah and His Apostle ? But '''you are unfair in asking Zakat from Khalid as he is keeping his armor for Allah's Cause (for Jihad)'''. As for Abbas bin 'Abdul Muttalib, he is the uncle of Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) and Zakat is compulsory on him and he should pay it double."}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|2|24|556}}|Narrated Sad (bin Abi Waqqas): Allah's Apostle distributed something (from the resources of Zakat) amongst a group of people while I was sitting amongst them, but he left a man whom I considered the best of the lot. So, I went up to Allah's Apostle and asked him secretly, "Why have you left that person? By Allah! I consider him a believer." The Prophet said, "Or merely a Muslim (Who surrender to Allah)." I remained quiet for a while but could not help repeating my question because of what I knew about him. I said, "O Allah's Apostle! Why have you left that person? By Allah! I consider him a believer. " The Prophet said, "Or merely a Muslim." I remained quiet for a while but could not help repeating my question because of what I knew about him. I said, "O Allah's Apostle! Why have you left that person? By Allah! I consider him a believer." The Prophet said, "Or merely a Muslim." Then '''Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) said, "I give to a person while another is dearer to me, for fear that he may be thrown in the Hell-fire on his face (by renegating from Islam)."'''}}

===Sahih Muslim===

{{Quote|{{Muslim|5|2144}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messsenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: No Sadaqa is due from a Muslim on his slave or horse.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|5|2145}}, See Also: {{Muslim|5|2146}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: No Sadaqa is due from a Muslim on his slave or horse.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|5|2148}}|Abu Huraira reported that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) sent Umar for (collecting) Sadaqa (zakat), and it was said that Ibn Jamil, Khalid b. Walid and 'Abbas the uncle of the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him), refused (to pay it). Upon this the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: Ibn Jamil is taking revenge but for this that he was destitute and Allah made him rich. As regards Khalid, '''you are unjust to Khalid, for be reserved his armours and weapons for the sake of Allah''', and as for 'Abbas, I shall be responsible for it and an equal amount along with it. And he again said: 'Umar, bear this in mind, the uncle of a person is like his father.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|5|2166}}|Jabir b. 'Abdullah al-Ansari reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: The owner of a camel who does not pay what is due on it (would be punished in this way) that on the Day of Resurrection many more (along with his camel) would come and the owner would be made to sit on a soft sandy ground and they would trample him with their feet and hooves. And no owner of the cattle who does not pay what is due on them (would be spared the punishment) but on the Day of Resurrection, many more would come and he (the owner) would be made to sit on the soft sandy ground and would be gored by their horns and trampled under their feet. And no owner of the goats and sheep who does not pay what is due on them (would be spared of punishment) but many more would come on the Day of Resurrection and he (the owner) would be made to sit on a soft sandy ground and they would gore him with their horns and trample him under their hooves. And there would be more (among this flock of sheep and goat) without horns or with broken horns. And no owner of the treasure who does not pay its due but his treasure would come on the Day of Resurrection like a bald snake and would pursue him with its mouth open, and when it would come near he would run away from it, and he would be called thus:" Take your treasure which you concealed, for I do not need it." When he would find no way out he would put his hand in its mouth and it would gnaw it like a he-camel. Abu Zubair said: We heard Ubaid b. Umair saying this. We then asked Jabir b. 'Abdullah about this. And he also said like Ubaid b. Umair, Abu Zubair said: I heard 'Ubaid b. 'Umair saying: A man said: Messenger of Allah, what is due on camels? He said: Milking them near water, and lending of bucket (used for drawing water from it), or lending its male for mating with a she-camel and providing it as a ride for the sake of Allah.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|5|2205}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: There is never a day wherein servants (of God) get up at morn, but are not visited by two angels. One of them says: 0 Allah, give him more who spends (for the sake of Allah), and the other says: 0 Allah, bring destruction to one who withholds.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|5|2227}}|Abu Haraira reported that the likeness of one who spends [in the path of Allah] or one who gives charity is that of a person who has two cloaks or two coats-of-mail over him right from the breast to the collar bones. And when the spender (and the other narrator said, when the giver of charity) makes up his mind to give charity, it (coat-mail) becomes expanded for him. But when a miserly person intends to spend, it contracts and every ring grips the place where it is. For the giver of charity, this coat-of. mail expands to cover his whole body and obliterates even his footprints. Abu Huraira said: (The miserly man) tries to expand it (the coat-of-mail) but it does not expand.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|5|2300}}, See Also: {{Muslim|5|2301}}, and {{Muslim|5|2302}}|Sa'd reported that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) bestow- ed (some gifts) upon a group of people and I was sitting amongst them. The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him), however, left a person and he did not give him any. thing. and he seemed to me the most excellent among them (and thus deserved the gifts more than anyone else). So I stood up before the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) and said to him in undertone: Messenger of Allah, what obout so and so? By Allah, I find him a believer. He (the Messenger of Allah) said: He may be a Muslim. I kept quiet for a short while, and then what I knew of him urged me (to plead his case again) and I said: Messenger of Allah, what about so and so? By Allah, I find him a believer. Upon this he (the Holy Prophet) said: He may, be a Muslim. I again remained quiet for a short while, and what I knew of him again urged me (to plead his case so I) said: Messenger of Allah, what about so and so? By Allah, I find him a believer. Upon this he '''(the Holy Prophet) said: He may be a Muslim. I often bestow (something) upon a person, whereas someone else is dearer to me than he, because of the fear that he may fall headling into the fire'''. And in the hadith transmitted by Hulwani this statement was repeated twice.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|5|2303}}, See Also: {{Muslim|5|2304}}, and {{Muslim|5|2305}}|Anas b. Malik reported that when on the Day of Hunain Allah conferred upon His Apostle (may peace be upon him) the riches of Hawazin (without armed encounter), the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) set about distributing to some persons of Quraish one hundred camels Upon this they (the young people from the Ansar) said: May Allah grant pardon to the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) that he bestowed (these camels) upon the people of Quraish, and he ignored us, whereas our swords are still dripping blood. Anas b. Malik said: Their statement was conveyed to the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) and he sent (someone) to the Ansar and gathered them under a tent of leather. When they had assembled, the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) came to thera and said: What is this news that has reached me from you? The wise people of the Ansar said: Messenger of Allah, so far as the sagacious amongst us are concerned they have said nothing, but we have amongst us persons of immature age; they said: May Allah grant pardon to the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) that he gave to the Quraish and ignored us (despite the fact) that our swords are besmeared with their blood. Upon this '''the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: I give (at times material gifts) to persons who were quite recently in the state of unbelief, so that I may incline them to truth''' Don't you feel delighted that people should go with riches, and you should go back to your places with the Apostle of Allah? By Allah, that with which you would return is better than that with which they would return. They said: Yes, Messenger of Allah, we are pleased. The Holy Prophet said too: You would find marked preference (in conferring of the material gifts) in future, so you should show patience till you meet Allah and His Messenger and I would he at the Haud Kauthar. They said: We would show patience.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|5|2313}}|Abdullah b. Zaid reported that '''when the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) conquered Hunain he distributed the booty, and he bestowed upon those whose hearts it was intended to win'''. It was conveyed to him (the Holy Prophet) that the Ansar cherished a desire that they should be given (that very portion) which the people (of Quraish) had got. Upon this the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) stood up and, after having praised Allah and lauded Him, addressed them thus: 0 people of Ansar, did I not find you erring and Allah guided you aright through me, and (in the state of) being destitute and Allah made you free from want through me, and in a state of disunity and Allah united you through me, and they (the Ansar) said: Allah and His Messenger are most benevolent. He (again) said: Why do you not answer me? They said: Allah and His Messenger are the most benevolent. He said, If you wish you should say so and so, and the event (should take) such and such course (and in this connection he made a mention) of so many things. 'Amr is under the impressionthat he has not been able to remember them. He (the Holy Prophet) further said: Don't you feel happy (over this state of affairs) that the people should go away with goats and camels, and you go to your places along with the Messenger of Allah? The Ansar are inner garments (more close to me) and (other) people are outer garments. Had there not been migration, I would have been a man from among the Ansar. If the people were to tread a valley or a narrow path, I would tread the valley (chosen) by the Ansar or narrow path (trodden) by them. And you would soon find after me preferences (over you in getting material benefits). So you should show patience till you meet me at the Haud (Kauthar).}}

===Al-Nasai===
{{Quote|{{cite web|url=https://sunnah.com/nasai/25/102 |title=Sunan al-Nasai |publisher= |author= |date= |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20140819181248/http://sunnah.com/nasai/25/102 |deadurl=no}}|It was narrated that Khuraim bin Fatik said: "The Messenger of Allah said: 'Whoever spends in the cause of Allah, it will be recorded for him seven hundred fold.'"<ref>This means the reward will be 700-fold.</ref> (Sahih)}}

==Scholars==

===Not for Non-Muslims===

{{Quote|1=[http://qa.sunnipath.com/issue_view.asp?HD=1&ID=1527&CATE=5 Zakat Cannot Be Given To Non-Muslims] Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, SunniPath Q&A, July 3, 2005|2=There is '''scholarly consensus (ijma`) that zakat cannot be given to non-Muslims''', as mentioned by Ibn al-Mundhir, Kasani, Ibn Qudama, Buhuti, and others.

Muwaffaq Ibn Qudama, a great Hanbali Imam, says in his Mughni:

'We do not know of any difference of opinion among the people of knowledge (ahl al-`ilm) that zakat on wealth cannot be given to a kafir' Ibn al-Mundhir said, 'There is consensus of all those whose positions we know from the people of knowledge that a non-Muslim (dhimmi) cannot be given any zakat.'

'This is because the Prophet (Allah bless him & give him peace) said to Mu`adh [in the authentic hadith, reported by Bukhari 1365, Muslim 26-27, and elsewhere], 'Tell them that they are obliged to give a charity (i.e. zakat) that is taken from their rich and given to their poor.'

'The Prophet Muhammad (Allah bless him and give him peace) specified the Muslims as giving it to their poor, just as he specified that it is only obligatory on their rich.' [Ibn Qudama, al-Mughni, 2.1774]

The hadith commentators mention that their '''above refers to 'the Muslims,' in both cases'''. This is how Imam Kasani explained it in his Bada'i` al-Sana'i` in Hanafi fiqh, too.

As for 'those whose hearts are to be inclined,'''' this category has been abrogated''' according to the Hanafi scholars. [Hidaya] There is difference of opinion regarding this point, however, among the schools of fiqh.}}

{{Quote|1=[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.islamicawakening.com/viewarticle.php?articleID=984|2=2011-10-02}} The way of giving Zakat al-Fitr in non-Islamic Lands] Haytham bin Jawwad al-Haddad, Islam Awakening, Article ID: 984|2=It is best that zakatu-l-fitr be given to the poor and the needy (al-miskin - someone whose level of poverty is more or less than the poor (al-faqir), but does not let others know of his need nor does he beg from others), these are the first two categories of the eight to whom zakat is normally given to; this due to his salallahu alayhi wa salam saying, ‘…and as food for the needy’. The majority of scholars are of the opinion that '''zakatu-l-fitr is not to be given to non-Muslims'''.}}

{{Quote|1=[{{Reference archive|1=http://islamqa.com/en/ref/21384|2=2011-10-02}} Giving zakaah to kaafirs] Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid, Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 21384|2='''It is not permissible to give zakaah on one’s wealth or crops, or Zakaat al-Fitr, to kaafirs, even if they are poor, or wayfarers, or debtors''', and if one who gives zakaah to them, that is not counted as zakaah.

It is permissible to give regular charity – '''not obligatory''' charity (i.e., zakaah) to poor kaafirs, and to exhange gifts and with them and treat them well '''to soften their hearts towards Islam''', so long as they have not carried out any hostile actions against the Muslims, which would disallow that. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Allaah does not forbid you to deal justly and kindly with those who fought not against you on account of religion nor drove you out of your homes. Verily, Allaah loves those who deal with equity”

[al-Mumtahanah 60:8]

And Allaah is the Source of strength. May Allaah bless our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions, and grant them peace.

From Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah, vol. 10, p. 30

There is one category of zakaah that may be given to the kuffaar, which is “'''to attract the hearts of those who have been inclined (towards Islam)'''” (cf. al-Tawbah 9:60). It is permissible to give zakaah funds to those kaafirs who hold positions of authority and influence among their people, if there is the hope that by giving them something they may become Muslims, then those who are under them may become Muslim too. And Allaah is the Source of strength.}}

{{Quote|1=[{{Reference archive|1=http://islam1.org/iar/imam/archives/2004/12/30/zakatulmal_zakat.php|2=2011-10-14}} Zakat-ul-mal (Zakat)] Imam's Corner, The Islamic Association of Raleigh|2=WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE ZAKAT?

There are eight categories of people eligible to receive Zakat. They have been specified in the Noble Qur'an what can be translated as, "Alms are for the poor, the needy, the employees who administer the funds, those whose hearts have been recently reconciled to the Truth, those in bondage, those in debt, in the cause of Allah, and the wayfarer, (thus it is) ordained by Allah, and Allah is most knowledgeable, most wise." [Surah At-Tawbah (9:60)]

Based on this verse, the ways of spending Zakat funds can be classified as follows:

1. For the poor (Fuqara') who do not have enough to take care of their basic needs.

2. For the needy (Masakeen) whose basic needs are met but their income does not take care of other important needs.

3. For those whose sole job is to collect and distribute the Zakat funds.

4. '''For those who are close to accepting Islam as a religion, and those non-Muslims whose evil can be avoided if they receive money'''. . . . 
WHO IS NOT ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE ZAKAT?

There are categories of people who are not eligible to receive Zakat. They include:

1. the rich who have enough to support themselves

2. the healthy person who is capable of working and earning his living, unless he cannot find a job or his job does not provide him with enough money to support himself and his family. About these two categories, the Prophet (SAW) said: "Alms are not to be given to the rich or to the well-built.” [An authentic Hadith reported by Imam Abu Dawood] The term "well-built” conveys the meaning that he is able to work and support himself.

In addition, Zakat cannot be paid to:

3. one's dependents whom he is responsible for supporting. These include the wife, the parents, grandparents (up to the eldest living grand grandparent), children, and grandchildren (down to the last born grand grandchild).

Finally, Zakat cannot be paid to:

4. '''a non-Muslim, unless this person belongs to category No. 4 of those eligible to receive Zakat (see previous section)'''.}}

{{Quote|1=[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.askimam.org/fatwa/fatwa.php?askid=e01c5dcc9256165fc5b55997b66a482e|2=2011-10-17}} Imam of our Masjid has given Fatwa that Zakat can be given to non muslims] Muhammed Zakariyya Desai, Ask Imam, Fatwa No. 15407, July 22, 2007|2=''Question:''

Imam of our Masjid has given Fatwa that Zakat can be given to non muslims. They give reference to the Ayah in Qur'an that it does not prohibit in detail giving zakat to nonmuslims. Can you please give your response.

''Answer:''

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

Assalaamu `alaykum waRahmatullahi Wabarakatoh

At the outset, you must understand that not all the commands are expressly mentioned in the Quraan. There are many instances where Allah would indicate a command and not elaborate. For example, lets take the command of Salaah. Allah only states "Perform your Salaah and discharge your Zakaat". Where in the Quraan do we find the explanation of how many Rakaats to perform for Fajr, Zuhr, Asr, Maghrib and Esha? Where in the Quraan does Allah mention the minimum amount on which Zakaat has to be discharged?

'''Surely, these are not mentioned in the Quraan. These are explained in detail by our beloved Rasulullah ( صلى الله عليه و سلّم ) in his Ahadith'''. Do not become fooled by those who only claim to follow the rulings of the Quraan and ignore the Ahadith. The Quraan and Hadith are inseparable and one can never be guided if he/she ignores any one.

You state that the Imaam has referred to an Ayah of the Quraan that states it is permissible to give Zakaat (obligatory) to non Muslims. '''You may ask him to forward that Ayah to us. We have not come across any such Ayah'''. Furthermore, the '''Fuqahaa are express in their works that it is not permissible to give Zakaat to non Muslims'''.

Therefore, you should not become deceived by people who claim to only follow the Quraan. There is no need to discuss this issue in detail as any person with sound academic background would know this. If the Imaam is sincere he may contact us directly and we would engage with him on an academic level after coming to know his qualifications. We do not wish to discuss issues with someone whom we do not know as sometimes this is time consuming and a futile exercise.

And Allah knows best

Wassalam

Muhammed Zakariyya Desai,

Checked and Approved by:

Mufti Emraan Vawda

Darul Iftaa, Madrassah In'aamiyyah}}

{{Quote|[http://www.shafiifiqh.com/maktabah/relianceoftraveller.pdf Reliance of the Traveller: A Classic Manual of Islamic Sacred Law] Ahmad ibn Naqib al-Misri, Edited and Translated by Nuh Ha Mim Keller|THE EIGHT CATEGORIES OF RECIPIENTS

'''h8.7''' It is obligatory to distribute one's zakat among eight categories of recipients (O: meaning that zakat goes to none besides them), one-eighth of the zakat to each category. . . . 
THOSE WHOSE HEARTS ARE TO BE RECONCILED

'''h8.14''' - The fourth category is those whose hearts are to be reconciled. '''If they are non-Muslims, they are not given zakat''', but if Muslims, then they may be given it (O: so that their certainly may increase, or if they are recent converts to Islam and are alienated from their kin). . . . 
'''h8.24''' - '''It is not permissible to give zakat to a non-Muslim''', or to someone whom one is obliged to support (def: m12.1), such as a wife or family member.}}

===Spend on Jihad===

{{Quote|Yusuf al-Qaradawi, Fiqh az-Zakat: A Comparative Study|The most honorable form of jihad nowadays is fighting for the liberation of Muslim land from the domination of unbelievers, regardless of their religion or ideology. The communist and the capitalist, the Westerner and the Easterner, Christian, Jew, pagan or unbeliever, all are aggressors when they attack and occupy Muslim land. Fighting in defence of the home of Islam is obligatory until the enemy is driven away and Muslims are liberated. . . . 
Today Muslim land is occupied in Palestine, Kashmire, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Chad, Somalia, Cyprus, Samarqand, Bukhara, Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Albania and serveral other occupied countries. Declaring holy war to save these Muslim lands is an Islamic duty, and '''fighting for such purposes in those occupied territories is the Way of Allah for which zakat must be spent'''. . . . 
The most important form of jihad today is serious, purposefully organized work to rebuild Islamic society and state and to implement the Islamic way of life in the political, cultural and economic domains. '''This is certainly most deserving of zakat'''.}}

{{Quote|1=[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.onislam.net/english/ask-the-scholar/international-relations-and-jihad/jihad-rulings-and-regulations/174504-spending-zakah-money-on-jihad.html?Regulations=|2=2011-10-13}} Spending Zakah Money on Jihad] Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, IslamOnline, March 9, 2011|2=''Question:''

As-salamu `alaykum.Is a Muslim allowed to spend some of the money of Zakah (obligatory charity) on his journey to take part in Jihad in the Cause of Allah?

''Answer:''

Wa `alaykum as-salam warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

First of all, we would like to thank you for the great confidence you have in us. We hope our efforts meet your expectations.

It is the duty of every Muslim to support all his fellow Muslims in all times especially at times of calamities as all Muslims constitute one body when an organ of it aches, all the other organs feel ill as a result. In his Hadith, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) stated: ''"A Muslim is a brother of a Muslim. He must not wrong him, nor fail him, nor hand him over (to enemies)."'' Muslim scholars state that there is nothing wrong in paying the Zakah as well as sadaqah to oppressed Muslims in Iraq, Palestine, Kashmir, Burma and in every part of the world.

In his response to the question, ''Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi'', the prominent Muslim scholar, states the following:

The meaning of Jihad in our present time particularly refers to striving to liberate Muslim lands from the grip of the disbelievers who usurped them and imposed on them their own laws in lieu of the Divine Law. Those disbelievers may be Jews, Christians or both or even pagans, who follow no particular religion at all. Disbelievers are all alike.

Capitalists, Communists, Westerners, Easterners, People of the Book and pagans are by no means different from one other. They should all be fiercely fought if they attempt to occupy any part of the Muslim land. This duty falls on those closest to the occupied land, who should be aided by those closest to them, who, in turn, ought to be aided by those closest to them, till it becomes incumbent on all Muslims to take part in Jihad.

Muslims have never been more severely afflicted than they are nowadays. Many of their lands have been captured by the disbelievers, on top of which is Palestine that has fallen victim to corrupt Jews. Similarly, Kashmir has been dominated by pagan Hindus. Chechnya and other Islamic states have fallen in the grip of pagan tyrannical communism.

Retrieving these lands, freeing them from the clutches of atheists and their twisted laws is the joint responsibility of all Muslims. Declaring Jihad to save our land is an Islamic obligation.

If war is waged anywhere to achieve this goal, namely to free the occupied lands of the laws and the tyranny of disbelievers, it is undoubtedly '''a case of Jihad for the sake of Allah. It thus needs to be financed from the money of Zakah''', the amount of which is to be decided based on the total sum of the charity, the requirements of Jihad as well as the degree of the need of other potential recipients of charity. This is all to be decided by reliable scholars, if they are to be found.

Allah Almighty knows best.}}

{{Quote|1=[{{Reference archive|1=http://islam1.org/iar/imam/archives/2004/12/30/zakatulmal_zakat.php|2=2011-10-14}} Zakat-ul-mal (Zakat)] Imam's Corner, The Islamic Association of Raleigh|2=WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE ZAKAT?

There are eight categories of people eligible to receive Zakat. They have been specified in the Noble Qur'an what can be translated as, "Alms are for the poor, the needy, the employees who administer the funds, those whose hearts have been recently reconciled to the Truth, those in bondage, those in debt, in the cause of Allah, and the wayfarer, (thus it is) ordained by Allah, and Allah is most knowledgeable, most wise." [Surah At-Tawbah (9:60)]

Based on this verse, the ways of spending Zakat funds can be classified as follows: . . . 
7. In the cause of Allah (SWT): the scholars have said that what is meant here is that '''Zakat can be given to those who volunteer to fight in the cause of Allah''' (SWT) and do not receive a fixed salary from the government.}}

{{Quote|[http://www.shafiifiqh.com/maktabah/relianceoftraveller.pdf Reliance of the Traveller: A Classic Manual of Islamic Sacred Law] Ahmad ibn Naqib al-Misri, Edited and Translated by Nuh Ha Mim Keller|THE EIGHT CATEGORIES OF RECIPIENTS

'''h8.7''' - '''It is obligatory to distribute one's zakat among eight categories of recipients (O: meaning that zakat goes to none besides them)''', one-eighth of the zakat to each category.
(n: In the Hanafi school, it is valid for the giver to distribute his zakat to all of the categories, some of
them, or to confine himself to just one of them (al-Lubab fi sharh al-Kitab(y88), 1.155).) . . . 
THOSE FIGHTING FOR ALLAH
'''h8.17''' - '''The seventh category is those fighting for Allah, meaning people engaged in Islamic military operations''' for whom no salary has been allotted in the army roster (O: but who are volunteers for jihad without remuneration). They are given enough to suffice them for the operation, even if affluent; of weapons, mounts, clothing, and expenses (O: for the duration of the journey, round trip, and the time they spend there, even if prolonged. Though nothing has been mentioned here of the expense involved in supporting such people's families during this period, it seems clear that they should also be given it).}}

===Zakat as an obligation===

{{Quote|{{cite web|url=http://bewley.virtualave.net/Riszakat.html |title=The Risala of 'Abdullah ibn Abi Zayd al-Qayrawani (922-996): A Treatise on Maliki Fiqh |publisher= |author= |date= |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20170106100112/http://bewley.virtualave.net/Riszakat.html |deadurl=no}}|'''25.1 Its Ruling'''

'''It is obligatory to pay zakat on money, crops and livestock.'''

[Money consists gold and silver and is mentioned in respect to the tradition. What is mentioned of gold and silver is called "specie" ('ayn) by its honour. Crops consists of food groups used for life in general. Livestock refers to camels, cattle, and sheep and goats.

'''Zakat became an obligation in the second year of Hijra. The evidence for its obligatory nature is the Book, Sunna and consensus. Whoever disputes its obligatory nature is an unbeliever. If someone affirms that it is obligatory but refuses to pay it, he is beaten and it is taken from him by force''' and that is enough: he is not an unbeliever. Ibn Habib says he is an unbeliever, but this is unlikely.}}

==Shia hadith==

This is a 10th-century hadith compiled by Al-Shaykh al-Saduq (the truthful scholar) Ibn Babawayh.

{{Quote|Khisal of al-Saduq, ch. 10.|The Messenger of Allah (S) says, “O ‘Ali! There are ten deniers of Almighty Allah in this Ummah; Tale-tellers, the magicians, the gigolos, those who have anal intercourse with non-mahram women, those who have intercourse with animals, those who commit incest, those who try to spread mischief, those who supply weapons to disbelievers (which shall be used against Muslims), those who do not pay Zakat and those who in spite of being capable do not perform Hajj and meet their death.”}}

Imam Ja’far as-Sadiq decreed the following about Zakat.

{{Quote|Wasa’il ul-Shia Vol. 6 page 18|“Doubtlessly, the Almighty Allah has necessitated a portion for the destitute in the wealth of the rich people. It is such an obligation that is praised if fulfilled by the affluent people. It is Zakat and one who pays it, his blood is Harām. (i.e. it is Harām to kill him). And those who pay it are called Muslims.<ref>Shi'ite scholars say this part is an implicit declaration that anyone who does not pay Zakat is a kafir.</ref>
...
 One who avoids paying Zakat equal to one carat (four grains of barley) is neither a believer nor a Muslim. He is the same whose condition at the time of death is mentioned by Allah that he shall say, “Send me back my Lord, send me back, haply (''sic'') I may do good in that which I left.
 ... 
One who does not pay Zakat even if it is equal to one carat, he is expelled from belief and dies as a Jew or a Christian.
 ... 
Death penalty is permissible in Islam for two kinds of sinners. And no one will issue a decree regarding the two until the advent of the Qaem of the progeny of Mohammed. Then Imam Mahdi will issue decree on the basis of divine laws. One of the two is the adulterer who fornicated despite having a wife. He shall be stoned to death. The second is the one who does not pay Zakat. He shall be beheaded.
 ... 
Monetary loss in desert or seas is only due to the non payment of Zakat. And when the Qaem of the progeny of Mohammed reappears he shall arrest and execute those who do not pay Zakat.}}

==See Also==

{{Hub4|Zakat|Zakat}}

==External links==

*[http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/Articles/Islamic-Relief.htm Islamic Relief and the Myth of Non-Discriminating Muslim Charity] - ''The Religion Of Peace''

[[Category:QHS]]
[[Category:Dhimma]]
[[Category:Shariah (Islamic Law)]]
[[Category:Islamic finance]]
<references />

Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Toilet Etiquette

2022-07-25T12:23:28Z

Vixen:

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Both urination and defecation are sources of ritual impurity according to [[shari'ah]], and the improper methods of doing both may even doom one to the [[fire]]. As such the Islamic tradition has much to say about how, when, and where a person does both things, as well as how they are to clean themselves afterwards.

==Do's and Dont's==

===Say a prayer when entering, to ward off jinn and demons===

{{Quote|{{Abudawud|1|6}}|Narrated Zayd ibn Arqam:
The Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) said: These privies are frequented by the jinns and devils. So when anyone amongst you goes there, he should say: "I seek refuge in Allah from male and female devils."}}

{{Quote| {{Muslim|3|729}}|Anas reported: When the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) entered the privy, and in the hadith transmitted by Hushaim (the words are): When the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) entered the lavatory, he used to say: O Allah, I seek refuge in Thee from wicked and noxious things.}}

{{Quote| {{Bukhari|1|4|144}}|Narrated Anas:

Whenever the Prophet went to answer the call of nature, he used to say, "Allah-umma inni a'udhu bika minal khubuthi wal khaba'ith i.e. O Allah, I seek Refuge with You from all offensive and wicked things (evil deeds and evil spirits)."}}

===Remove your rings===

{{Quote| {{Abudawud|1|19}}|Narrated Anas ibn Malik:

When the Prophet (peace be upon him) entered the privy, he removed his ring.}}

===Do not face nor turn your back to the direction of the Ka'aba===

{{Quote| {{Bukhari|1|8|388}}|Narrated Abu Aiyub Al-Ansari:

The Prophet said, “While defecating, neither face nor turn your back to the Qibla but face either east or west.” Abu Aiyub added. “When we arrived in Sham we came across some lavatories facing the Qibla; therefore we turned ourselves while using them and asked for Allah’s forgiveness.”}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|2|507}}|Abu Ayyub reported: The Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: Whenever you go to the desert, neither turn your face nor turn your back towards the Qibla while answering the call of nature (الْغَائِطَ), but face towards the east or the west. Abu Ayyub said: When we came to Syria we found that the latrines already built there were facing towards the Qibla. We turned our faces away from them and begged forgiveness of the Lord. He said: Yes.}}

*The official translations say euphemisms like "answering the call of nature", but the original Arabic version says just one word الْغَائِطَ (al-ghaa'it), which explicitly refers to feces <ref>https://www.almaany.com/en/dict/ar-en/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%BA%D8%A7%D8%A6%D8%B7/</ref>.

===Do not hold nor touch the penis with your right hand===

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|4|156}}|Narrated Abu Qatada:

The Prophet said, "Whenever anyone of you makes water he should not hold his penis or clean his private parts with his right hand. (And while drinking) one should not breathe in the drinking utensil ."}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|4|155}}|Narrated Abu Qatada:

Allah's Apostle said, "Whenever anyone of you drinks water, he should not breathe in the drinking utensil, and whenever anyone of you goes to a lavatory, he should neither touch his penis nor clean his private parts with his right hand."}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|2|512}}|Abu Qatada reported it from his father that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: When anyone amongst you enters the privy he should not touch his penis with his right hand.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|2|511}}|Abu Qatada reported it from his father: The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: None of you should hold penis with his right hand while urinating, or wipe himself with his right hand in privy and should not breathe into the vessel (from which he drinks).}}

===Do not stand while urinating===

{{Quote|https://quranx.com/hadith/Tirmidhi/DarusSalam/Volume-1/Book-1/Hadith-12/| Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said: “Whoever tells you that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to urinate standing up, do not believe him. He only ever used to urinate sitting down.”<ref>"''Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, al-Tahaarah, 12; he said, this is the most saheeh report on this topic. It was also classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Sunan al-Tirmidhi, no. 11''" - [http://www.islam-qa.com/en/ref/9790 Is it haraam to urinate standing up?] - Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 9790</ref> }}

{{Quote|{{Abudawud|1|22}}|Narrated Amr ibn al-'As:

AbdurRahman ibn Hasanah reported: I and Amr ibn al-'As went to the Prophet (peace be upon him). He came out with a leather shield (in his hand). He covered himself with it and urinated. Then we said: Look at him. He is urinating as a woman does. The Prophet (peace be upon him), heard this and said: Do you not know what befell a person from amongst Banu Isra'il (the children of Israel)? When urine fell on them, they would cut off the place where the urine fell; but he (that person) forbade them (to do so), and was punished in his grave.}}

{{Quote| {{Muslim|2|508}}|Abu Huraira said: When any one amongst you squats for answering the call of nature, he should neither turn his face towards the Qibla nor turn his back towards it.}}

===Do not uncover your private parts until after squatting===

{{Quote|{{Abudawud|1|14}}|Narrated Abdullah ibn Umar:

When the Prophet (peace be upon him) wanted to relieve himself, he would not raise his garment, until he lowered himself near the ground.}}

{{Quote|https://quranx.com/hadith/Tirmidhi/DarusSalam/Volume-1/Book-1/Hadith-14/ |Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: “When the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) wanted to answer the call of nature, he would not lift his garment until he had squatted close to the ground.”<ref>"''Reported by al-Tirmidhi, 14; see also Saheeh al-Jaami’, 4652''" - [http://www.islam-qa.com/en/ref/2532 Muslim bathroom etiquette] - Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 2532</ref>}}

===Do not soil yourself with urine, this is a major sin===

{{Quote|https://sunnah.com/ibnmajah/1/82|The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Most of the punishment of the grave will be because of urine.”<ref>"''Reported by Ibn Maajah, 342; see also Saheeh al-Jaami’, 1202''" - [http://www.islam-qa.com/en/ref/2532 Muslim bathroom etiquette] - Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 2532</ref>}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|4|215}}| Narrated Ibn 'Abbas:

Once the Prophet, while passing through one of the grave-yards of Medina or Mecca heard the voices of two persons who were being tortured in their graves. The Prophet said, "These two persons are being tortured not for a major sin (to avoid)." The Prophet then added, "Yes! (they are being tortured for a major sin). Indeed, one of them never saved himself from being soiled with his urine while the other used to go about with calumnies (to make enmiy between friends). The Prophet then asked for a green leaf of a date-palm tree, broke it into two pieces and put one on each grave. On being asked why he had done so, he replied, "I hope that their torture might be lessened, till these get dried." }}

===Do not speak while in the toilet===

{{Quote|{{Abudawud|1|15}}|Narrated AbuSa'id al-Khudri:

I heard the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) say: When two persons go together for relieving themselves uncovering their private parts and talking together, Allah, the Great and Majestic, becomes wrathful at this (action).}}

{{Quote|{{Abudawud|1|17}}|Narrated Muhajir ibn Qunfudh:

Muhajir came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) while he was urinating. He saluted him. The Prophet (peace be upon him) did not return the salutation to him until he performed ablution. He then apologised to him, saying: I disliked remembering Allah except in the state of purification.}}

{{Quote|An-Nasaa'i 37, Ibn Majah 353|A man said salaam to the Prophet (saw) while he was in the toilet, he did not answer the salaam.}}

{{Quote|Ibn Nujaym, al-Bahr al-Raiq (8.236)|It is disliked to give salams to someone in the toilet, and they do not answer back. Likewise the one eating [such that there is food in their mouth, because they are busy and unable to answer], reciting Quran, busy with Sacred Knowledge.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://qa.sunnipath.com/issue_view.asp?HD=1&ID=2118&CATE=34|title= Giving salams to someone in the toilet|publisher= SunniPath|author= Shaykh Faraz Rabbani|series=Question ID 2118|date= |archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fqa.sunnipath.com%2Fissue_view.asp%3FHD%3D1%26ID%3D2118%26CATE%3D34&date=2014-01-19|deadurl=no}}</ref>}}

===Clean yourself with an odd number of stones===

{{Quote| {{Bukhari|1|4|162}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet said, "Whoever performs ablution should clean his nose with water by putting the water in it and then blowing it out, and whoever cleans his private parts with stones should do it with odd number of stones."}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|2|458}}|Abu Huraira reported Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) as saying: When anyone wipes himself with pebbles (after answering the call of nature) he must make use of an odd number and when any one of you performs ablution he must snuff in his nose water and then clean it.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|2|460}}|Abu Huraira reported: The Messenger of Allah (way peace he upon him) said: When anyone performs ablution he must clean his nose and when anyone wipes himself with pebbles (after answering the call of nature) he must do that odd number of times.}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|2|463}}|Jabir b. 'Abdullah reported that he heard the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) say: When anyone wipes himself with pebbles (after answering the call of nature) he should do this odd number of times.}}

===Do not clean yourself with less than three stones===

{{Quote|{{Muslim|2|505}}|Salman said that (one among) the polytheists remarked: I see that your friend even teaches you about the excrement. He replied; Yes, he has in fact forbidden us that anyone amongst us should cleanse himself with his right hand, or face the Qibla. He has forbidden the use of dung or bone for it, and he has also instructed us not to use less than three pebbles (for this purpose).}}

{{Quote|{{Abudawud|1|7}}|Narrated Salman al-Farsi:

It was said to Salman: Your Prophet teaches you everything, even about excrement. He replied: Yes. He has forbidden us to face the qiblah at the time of easing or urinating, and cleansing with right hand, and cleansing with less than three stones, or cleansing with dung or bone.}}

===Do not use dung or bones===

{{Quote|{{Abudawud|1|39}}|Narrated Abdullah ibn Mas'ud:

A deputation of the jinn came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and said: O Muhammad, forbid your community to cleans themselves with a bone or dung or charcoal, for in them Allah has provided sustenance for us. So the Prophet (peace be upon him) forbade them to do so.}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|4|157}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

I followed the Prophet while he was going out to answer the call of nature. He used not to look this way or that. So, when I approached near him he said to me, "Fetch for me some stones for ' cleaning the privates parts (or said something similar), and do not bring a bone or a piece of dung." So I brought the stones in the corner of my garment and placed them by his side and I then went away from him. When he finished (from answering the call of nature) he used, them .}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|4|158}}|Narrated 'Abdullah:

The Prophet went out to answer the call of nature and asked me to bring three stones. I found two stones and searched for the third but could not find it. So took a dried piece of dung and brought it to him. He took the two stones and threw away the dung and said, "This is a filthy thing."}}

{{Quote|{{Muslim|2|506}}|Jabir reported: The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) forbade the use of bone or the droppings of camels for wiping (after excretion).}}

{{Quote|{{Abudawud|1|36}}|Narrated Ruwayfi' ibn Thabit:

... The Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) said: You may live for a long time after I am gone, Ruwayfi', so, tell people that if anyone ties his beard or wears round his neck a string to ward off the evil eye, or cleanses himself with animal dung or bone, Muhammad has nothing to do with him.}}

===Do not use your right hand===

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|69|534}}|Narrated Abu Qatada:

Allah's Apostle said, "When you drink (water), do not breath in the vessel; and when you urinate, do not touch your penis with your right hand. And when you cleanse yourself after defecation, do not use your right hand."}}

===Wash yourself, once you're done===

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|4|137}}|Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah's Apostle said, "The prayer of a person who does Hadath (passes urine, stool, or wind) is not accepted till he performs (repeats) the ablution." A person from Hadaramout asked Abu Huraira, "What is 'Hadath'?" Abu Huraira replied, " 'Hadath' means the passing of wind from the anus."}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|4|152}}, See also: {{Bukhari|1|4|153}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:

Whenever Allah's Apostle went to answer the call of nature, I along with another boy used to accompany him with a tumbler full of water. (Hisham commented, "So that he might wash his private parts with it.)"}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|4|154}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:

Whenever Allah's Apostle went to answer the call of nature, I along with another boy used to carry a tumbler full of water (for cleaning the private parts) and an 'Anza (spear-headed stuck [sic]).}}
Note: The above hadith should say 'spear-headed stick'.

{{Quote|{{Abudawud|1|44}}|Narrated AbuHurayrah:

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: The following verse was revealed in connection with the people of Quba': "In it are men who love to be purified" (ix.108). He (AbuHurayrah) said: They used to cleanse themselves with water after easing. So the verse was revealed in connection with them.}}

===No need for Wudu' After Relieving Yourself in the River===

{{Quote|{{Muslim|7|2942}}|Usama b. Zaid (Allah be pleased with him) reported: Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) on his way back from 'Arafat got down in one of these creeks (to answer the call of nature), and after he had done that I poured water (over his hands) and said: Are you going to pray? Thereupon he said: The place of prayer is ahead of you.}}

===Say a prayer when exiting the toilet===

{{Quote|{{Abudawud|1|30}}|Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin:

When the Prophet (peace be upon him) came out of the privy, he used to say: "Grant me Thy forgiveness."<ref>Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah and At-Tirmithi. An-Nasa'i recorded it in 'Amalul-Yawm wal-Laylah. Also see Ibn Al-Qayyim's Zadul-Ma'ad, 2/387.</ref>}}

==See Also==

{{Hub4|Hygiene|Hygiene}}

{{Translation-links-english|[[Korán, hadísy a učenci: Toaletní etiketa|Czech]]}}

==External Links==

*[{{Reference archive|1=http://dawah2tawheed.com/pdf/shariah/the_islamic_personality/Aadaab_of_Going_Toilet.pdf|2=2011-04-09}} Aadaab ut Takhallie (manners of going to the toilet)] ''- PDF''

==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:QHS]]
[[Category:Health]]
[[Category:Hygiene]]
[[Category:Shariah (Islamic Law)]]

Mary, Sister of Aaron

2022-05-05T12:01:05Z

Vixen: /* References */

[[bg:Грешки в Корана: Моисей и Аарон – вуйчовци на Иисус]]
{{QualityScore|Lead=3|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}'''Mary (Miriam) the sister of Aaron''' (and of Moses), is a phrase used in the [[Quran]] to refer to Mary the mother of [[Jesus]].<ref>{{Quran-range|19|27|34}}</ref> From at least the 8th century, and perhaps as far back as [[Muhammad ibn Abdullah|Muhammad]]'s time, [[Critics of Islam|critics]] have attacked this verse as a simple but revealing error.<ref name=":02">Mughira b. Shu'ba reported: When I came to Najran, they (the Christians of Najran) asked me: You read "O sister of Harun" (i. e. Hadrat Maryam) in the Qur'an, whereas Moses was born much before Jesus. When I came back to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) I asked him about that, whereupon he said: The (people of the old age) used to give names (to their persons) after the names of Apostles and pious persons who had gone before them. {{Muslim|25|5326|}}</ref> In [[Arabic]] both Mary the mother of Jesus and Mary the sister of Aaron and Moses are called by the same name, مريم (''Maryam''). Skeptical Jewish and Christian scholars believed that Muhammad had mistaken Jesus' mother for Moses' sister.<ref name=":02" /> While they shared a name, according to the Bible these two women lived more than a thousand years apart. In the [[hadith]] Muhammad explains that this criticism was a misunderstanding, but, according to these same texts many remained unconvinced.<ref name=":02" /> Ultimately, it seems, the Hadith and sirah traditions came to assert that Aaron and Moses had a sister whose name was Kulthum rather than Miriam, which seems to point to the tradition’s fundamental inability to understand the context of these verses and how they relate to the two biblical Miriams.<ref>{{Quran-range|19|27|28}}.</ref><ref>{{Muslim|25|5326}}.</ref><ref>[http://www.al-islam.org/hayat-al-qulub-vol2-allamah-muhammad-baqir-al-majlisi/ Majlisi, ''Hayat al-Qulub'' 2:26].</ref> In contrast to the traditional narrative, some modern scholars have rather found in this surah a complex web of inter-textual references, pointing to a highly literate and Christian audience of the original text <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 8</ref><ref>Suleiman A. Mourad, “Mary in the Qur’an: a reexamination of her presentation,” The Qur'an in its Historical Context, Edited by Gabriel Said Reynolds (2008): 165.</ref>.
==Mention of Mary in the Quran==
===Qur'an===
Mary the mother of Jesus is called sister of Aaron in sura 19:{{Quote|{{Quran-range|19|27|34}}|Then '''she brought him to her own folk,''' carrying him. '''They said: O Mary!''' Thou hast come with an amazing thing.

(19:28) '''O sister of Aaron!''' Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.

'''Then she pointed to him.''' They said: How can we talk to one who is in the cradle, a young boy?

'''He spake: Lo! I am the slave of Allah.''' He hath given me the Scripture and hath appointed me a Prophet,

And hath made me blessed wheresoever I may be, and hath enjoined upon me prayer and almsgiving so long as I remain alive,

And (hath made me) dutiful toward her who bore me, and hath not made me arrogant, unblest.

Peace on me the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I shall be raised alive!

'''Such was Jesus, son of Mary:''' (this is) a statement of the truth concerning which they doubt.
}}The Qur'an also says the wife of Imran gave birth to the virgin Mary who gave birth to Jesus.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|3|35|45}}|(Remember) when '''the wife of 'Imran said''': My Lord! I have vowed unto Thee '''that which is in my belly''' as a consecrated (offering). Accept it from me. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Hearer, the Knower!

And when she was delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am delivered of a female - Allah knew best of what she was delivered - the male is not as the female; and lo! '''I have named her Mary,''' and lo! I crave Thy protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast.

And her Lord accepted her with full acceptance and vouchsafed to her a goodly growth; and made Zachariah her guardian. Whenever Zachariah went into the sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food. He said: O Mary! Whence cometh unto thee this (food)? She answered: It is from Allah. Allah giveth without stint to whom He will.

Then Zachariah prayed unto his Lord and said: My Lord! Bestow upon me of Thy bounty goodly offspring. Lo! Thou art the Hearer of Prayer.

And the angels called to him as he stood praying in the sanctuary: Allah giveth thee glad tidings of (a son whose name is) John, (who cometh) to confirm a word from Allah lordly, chaste, a prophet of the righteous.

He said: My Lord! How can I have a son when age hath overtaken me already and my wife is barren? (The angel) answered: So (it will be). Allah doeth what He will.

He said: My Lord! Appoint a token for me. (The angel) said: The token unto thee (shall be) that thou shalt not speak unto mankind three days except by signs. Remember thy Lord much, and praise (Him) in the early hours of night and morning.

And when the angels said: O Mary! Lo! Allah hath chosen thee and made thee pure, and hath preferred thee above (all) the women of creation.

O Mary! Be obedient to thy Lord, prostrate thyself and bow with those who bow (in worship).

This is of the tidings of things hidden. We reveal it unto thee (Muhammad). Thou wast not present with them when they threw their pens (to know) which of them should be the guardian of Mary, nor wast thou present with them when they quarrelled (thereupon).

(And remember) when the angels said: '''O Mary! Lo! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary,''' illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near (unto Allah).

He will speak unto mankind in his cradle and in his manhood, and he is of the righteous.

'''She said: My Lord! How can I have a child when no mortal hath touched me?''' He said: So (it will be). Allah createth what He will. If He decreeth a thing, He saith unto it only: Be! and it is.}}The Quran mentions prominent families:{{Quote|{{Quran|3|33}}|Indeed, Allah chose Adam and Noah and the family of Abraham and the family of 'Imran over the worlds -}}
==Relevant Quotations==
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|3|35|45}}|(Remember) when '''the wife of 'Imran said''': My Lord! I have vowed unto Thee '''that which is in my belly''' as a consecrated (offering). Accept it from me. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Hearer, the Knower!

And when she was delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am delivered of a female - Allah knew best of what she was delivered - the male is not as the female; and lo! '''I have named her Mary,''' and lo! I crave Thy protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast.

And her Lord accepted her with full acceptance and vouchsafed to her a goodly growth; and made Zachariah her guardian. Whenever Zachariah went into the sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food. He said: O Mary! Whence cometh unto thee this (food)? She answered: It is from Allah. Allah giveth without stint to whom He will.

Then Zachariah prayed unto his Lord and said: My Lord! Bestow upon me of Thy bounty goodly offspring. Lo! Thou art the Hearer of Prayer.

And the angels called to him as he stood praying in the sanctuary: Allah giveth thee glad tidings of (a son whose name is) John, (who cometh) to confirm a word from Allah lordly, chaste, a prophet of the righteous.

He said: My Lord! How can I have a son when age hath overtaken me already and my wife is barren? (The angel) answered: So (it will be). Allah doeth what He will.

He said: My Lord! Appoint a token for me. (The angel) said: The token unto thee (shall be) that thou shalt not speak unto mankind three days except by signs. Remember thy Lord much, and praise (Him) in the early hours of night and morning.

And when the angels said: O Mary! Lo! Allah hath chosen thee and made thee pure, and hath preferred thee above (all) the women of creation.

O Mary! Be obedient to thy Lord, prostrate thyself and bow with those who bow (in worship).

This is of the tidings of things hidden. We reveal it unto thee (Muhammad). Thou wast not present with them when they threw their pens (to know) which of them should be the guardian of Mary, nor wast thou present with them when they quarrelled (thereupon).

(And remember) when the angels said: '''O Mary! Lo! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary,''' illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near (unto Allah).

He will speak unto mankind in his cradle and in his manhood, and he is of the righteous.

'''She said: My Lord! How can I have a child when no mortal hath touched me?''' He said: So (it will be). Allah createth what He will. If He decreeth a thing, He saith unto it only: Be! and it is.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|66|12}}|And '''Mary, daughter of 'Imran, whose body was chaste, therefor We breathed therein something of Our Spirit.''' And she put faith in the words of her Lord and His scriptures, and was of the obedient.

}}{{Quote|{{Quran|19|28}}|O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.}}{{Quote|{{Muslim|25|5326}}| Mughira b. Shu'ba reported:

When I came to Najran, they (the Christians of Najran) asked me: You read "O sister of Harun" (i. e. Hadrat Maryam) in the Qur'an, whereas Moses was born much before Jesus. When I came back to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) I asked him about that, whereupon he said: The (people of the old age) used to give names (to their persons) after the names of Apostles and pious persons who had gone before them.}}{{Quote|Tafsir Ibn Kathir (non-abridged) on 19:28 <ref>http://quran.al-islam.com/Page.aspx?pageid=221&BookID=11&Page=1</ref> | وَقَالَ اِبْن جَرِير حَدَّثَنِي يَعْقُوب حَدَّثَنَا اِبْن عُلَيَّة عَنْ سَعِيد بْن أَبِي صَدَقَة عَنْ مُحَمَّد بْن سِيرِينَ قَالَ أُنْبِئْت أَنَّ كَعْبًا قَالَ إِنَّ قَوْله : " يَا أُخْت هَارُون " لَيْسَ بِهَارُون أَخِي مُوسَى قَالَ فَقَالَتْ لَهُ عَائِشَة كَذَبْت قَالَ يَا أُمّ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ إِنْ كَانَ النَّبِيّ صَلَّى اللَّه عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَهُ فَهُوَ أَعْلَم وَأَخْبَر وَإِلَّا فَإِنِّي أَجِد بَيْنهمَا سِتّمِائَةِ سَنَة قَالَ فَسَكَتَتْ وَفِي هَذَا التَّارِيخ نَظَر

 

It was narrated from Ibn Jarir, narrated from Yaqub, narrated from Ibn U’laya, narrated from Sa’id Ibn Abi Sadaqa, narrated from Muhammad Ibn Sireen who stated that he was told that Ka’b said the verse that reads, "O sister of Harun (Aaron)!" (of Sura 19:28) does not refer to Aaron the brother of Moses. Aisha replied to Ka’b, "You have lied." Ka’b responded, "O Mother of the believers! If the prophet, may Allah’s prayers be upon him, has said it, and he is more knowledgeable, then this is what he related. Besides, I find the difference in time between them (Jesus and Moses) to be 600 years." He said that she remained silent.}}
==Biblical and Talmudic accounts of Mary==
Miriam, Aaron, and Moses were the children of Amram (Imran in Arabic):{{Quote|1 Chronicles 6:3 |The children of Amram:

Aaron, Moses and Miriam.}}Mary, the mother of Jesus, was the daughter of Joachim and from the family of David (not from the family of Aaron):{{Quote|The gospel of the birth of Mary, 1:1-2 |The blessed and ever glorious Virgin Mary, sprung from the royal race and family of David, was born in the city of Nazareth, and educated at Jerusalem, in the temple of the Lord.

Her father's name was Joachim, and her mother's Anna. The family of her father was of Galilee and the city of Nazareth. The family of her mother was of Bethlehem.}}
==Traditional Muslim Explanations==
Ibn Kathir gave the following explanation in his tafsir:{{Quote|1=[http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2684&Itemid=75 Maryam with Al-Masih before the People, Their Rejection of Her and His Reply to Them] Tafsir Ibn Kathir|2=(O sister of Harun!) referring to the brother of Musa, because she was of his descendants. This is similar to the saying, `O brother of Tamim,' to one who is from the Tamimi tribe, and `O brother of Mudar,' to one who is from the Mudari tribe. It has also been said that she was related to a righteous man among them whose name was Harun and she was comparable to him in her abstinence and worship.}}That he mentioned two alternative explanations suggests he was unsure regarding the certainty of either of them.
==="Sister of Aaron means a descendant of Aaron"===
The Qur'an says "sister (أُخْتَ) of Aaron" and people understood the verse to literally mean "sister of Aaron". Only after this relation was criticized as an error did it become instead understood as a metaphor meaning "a descendant of Aaron". Christian sources consistently stated that Mary was from the family of David, so many wondered why the Qur'an would describe her as instead being from the family of Aaron. Some point out that in Luke 1:5, Elizabeth is said to be a descendant of Aaron; and in Luke 1:36, Elizabeth is said to be a cousin or relative of Mary <ref>https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+1</ref>. But being related to another person does not guarantee that one also descends from any particular one of that person’s distant ancestors (Aaron in this case).

Furthermore, if she was a known descendant of Aaron, then one wonders why the learned Arab Christians (and Aisha and Mughira b. Shu'ba) of Muhammad's time were unaware of this.

The additional description of her as the "daughter of Amram (Imran)" in Surahs 3 and 66 appears to make the matter even foggier and more clearly problematic.
==="Mary coincidentally had a father called Imran and a brother called Aaron"===
Christian sources say her father was named Joachim, and they don't mention she had a brother called Aaron. And if she had a brother called Aaron, then the question still is, why is she called "sister of Aaron"? If this brother is so important that he had to be mentioned with her name, why don't we hear more about him? It is more probable that the author of the Qur'an thought that she really is the sister of Aaron and Moses, and so in the Qur'an people called her "sister of Aaron" to emphasize her social status.{{Quote|{{Quran|19|28}}|O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.}}In other words, the people asked "How can you have a baby without a husband, when you are from such a moral family".

==Moses' Father==
In Hebrew he is called Amram (עַמְרָם) with the letter ''mem'' (ם) at the end. In the Arabic Bible he is also called Amram (عمرام), with the letter ''meem'' (م) at the end:{{Quote|1 Chronicles 6:3 in Arabic Bible|أبْناءُ عَمْرامَ هُمْ هارُونُ وَمُوسَى وَمَرْيَمُ

The children of Amram: Aaron, Moses and Miriam.}}In Islamic sources he is called Imran (عمران). English translators commonly choose to translate the name as Amram:{{Quote|History of at-Tabari, volume 3|

The Genealogy of Moses b. Amram

}}The Arabic original has the letter ''nun'' (ن) at the end:{{Quote|History of at-Tabari (ِArabic) <ref>https://al-maktaba.org/book/9783/383</ref>|ذكر نسب موسى بن عمران

Genealogy of Musa bin Imran (عمران)}}Miriam was the daughter of Amram and a sister of Aaron. The Qur'an describes Mary, the mother of Jesus, as being a daughter of Amram and a sister of Aaron - in the same family relationship as Miriam. Many people, including Aisha, understood Mary and Miriam to be the same person, based on their understanding of the Qur'anic text.

When Christians criticized the verse which calls Mary "sister of Aaron" in the Quran, Muhammad's response was that "people were named after pious persons who lived before them". Islamic scholars concluded that Mary was either called "sister of Aaron" because she was his descendant or she had a brother coincidentally called Aaron. Both these solutions seem to be inventions, because Mary was not known to be a descendant of Aaron and she was not known to have a brother called "Aaron". On the other hand, Miriam was well-known to be a sister of Aaron.

Since Mary and Miriam are both pronounced Maryam in Arabic, it seems possible that Muhammad, based on the Christian stories he heard,<ref>For example from Waraqa ibn Nawfal.</ref> mixed these two women into one person when he was making up the Qur'an.

==Modern Scholarly Interpretations==

Some Modern scholars note that the author of Surat-Maryam had an in-depth knowledge of Christian tradition, and that he may have been a Christian clergyman whose work was used by the incipient believers movement, or who had joined the movement himself. As the author was evidently steeped in Christian tradition, it seems unlikely that he would have made a mistake about of Mary, the mother of Jesus, conflating her with Mary, the sister of Aaron and Moses. Rather, what is being invoked here is likely both Mary's descent from the scions of the Jewish people, Moses and Aaron, as well a priestly tradition in the Church of Kathisma in Jerusalem, linking the Dormition (apparent death, followed by the resurrection and assumption of Mary alive into heaven) with the priesthood of Aaron. A pre-Islamic Georgian Christian homiletic text exists that seems to explicitly call Mary the sister of Aaron. The shared phrasing between this Georgian text from Jerusalem and the Qur'an is remarkable; it suggests that whoever the author is of the rest of the Qur'an and even surat-Maryam, the author of this specific passage must have been a Christian from the area around Jerusalem, who was intimately familiar with the Christian tradition around the church of Kathisma and the liturgical traditions the church possessed around the virgin Mary <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 10. </ref>.
===References to Other Narratives===
The entire first portion of Surat-Maryam (verses 1-63) makes constant references to apocryphal stories from legendary apocryphal gospels such as the Protoevangelium of James and the gospel of Pseudo-Matthew. These texts outline an infancy gospel of the Virgin Mary, telling of her father Joachim and mother Ana, righteous Jews who served the poor and followed the word of the Lord. Joachim was excluded from a temple ritual because of his lack of a child, however, since all righteous men of Israel had children. He went to the desert to pray and fast while Ana prayed for children from the Lord; after seeing a sparrow's nest in a tree, the angel of the Lord appeared to her and informed her that she would bear a child. In their joy for being granted a child at such an advanced age, the couple dedicated the child, Mary, as a perpetual virgin to the Lord. When she grew older she was entrusted to the care of an older man, Joseph, who would act as her husband but would not engage in sexual intercourse with her. When the Lord impregnated Mary with Jesus, the Jews accused Joseph and Mary of violating her oath to the Lord. The priest of the temple put Joseph to the test of the water of the ordeal of the Lord, drinking it and returning unharmed; furthermore, when Mary gave birth to Jesus, a blinding white light bathed the cave she was in, and both the midwife and the accused inserted their finger into her vagina and were shocked to see that even after Jesus' birth she was still a virgin. After seeing these great signs, the faith of Mary and Joseph was vindicated. Although these sources are uncredited in Muslim exegesis, there is no doubt that Surat-Maryam makes numerous references to this Marian infancy cycle, and in ayah 25 it also makes explicit reference to the Palm miracle recorded in the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew 20:1-2 (itself a reworking of the pagan fable of Leto giving birth to Apollo <ref> Suleiman A. Mourad, “Mary in the Qur’an: a reexamination of her presentation,” The Qur'an in its Historical Context, Edited by Gabriel Said Reynolds (2008): 169.</ref>).

{{Quote|{{Quran|19|23-26}}|
فَنَادَىٰهَا مِن تَحْتِهَآ أَلَّا تَحْزَنِى قَدْ جَعَلَ رَبُّكِ تَحْتَكِ سَرِيًّا
فَأَجَآءَهَا ٱلْمَخَاضُ إِلَىٰ جِذْعِ ٱلنَّخْلَةِ قَالَتْ يَٰلَيْتَنِى مِتُّ قَبْلَ هَٰذَا وَكُنتُ نَسْيًا مَّنسِيًّا
وَهُزِّىٓ إِلَيْكِ بِجِذْعِ ٱلنَّخْلَةِ تُسَٰقِطْ عَلَيْكِ رُطَبًا جَنِيًّا
فَكُلِى وَٱشْرَبِى وَقَرِّى عَيْنًا ۖ فَإِمَّا تَرَيِنَّ مِنَ ٱلْبَشَرِ أَحَدًا فَقُولِىٓ إِنِّى نَذَرْتُ لِلرَّحْمَٰنِ صَوْمًا فَلَنْ أُكَلِّمَ ٱلْيَوْمَ إِنسِيًّا

And the pangs of childbirth drove her unto the trunk of the palm-tree. She said: Oh, would that I had died ere this and had become a thing of naught, forgotten!Then (one) cried unto her from below her, saying: Grieve not! Thy Lord hath placed a rivulet beneath thee, And shake the trunk of the palm-tree toward thee, thou wilt cause ripe dates to fall upon thee. So eat and drink and be consoled. And if thou meetest any mortal, say: Lo! I have vowed a fast unto the Beneficent, and may not speak this day to any mortal.}}

Compare with the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew:

{{Quote| The Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Chapter 20 http://www.gnosis.org/library/psudomat.htm| And it came to pass on the third day of their journey, while they were walking, that the blessed Mary was fatigued by the excessive heat of the sun in the desert; and seeing a palm tree, she said to Joseph: Let me rest a little under the shade of this tree. Joseph therefore made haste, and led her to the palm, and made her come down from her beast. And as the blessed Mary was sitting there, she looked up to the foliage of the palm, and saw it full of fruit, and said to Joseph: I wish it were possible to get some of the fruit of this palm. And Joseph said to her: I wonder that thou sayest this, when thou seest how high the palm tree is; and that thou thinkest of eating of its fruit. I am thinking more of the want of water, because the skins are now empty, and we have none wherewith to refresh ourselves and our cattle. Then the child Jesus, with a joyful countenance, reposing in the bosom of His mother, said to the palm: O tree, bend thy branches, and refresh my mother with thy fruit. And immediately at these words the palm bent its top down to the very feet of the blessed Mary; and they gathered from it fruit, with which they were all refreshed. And after they had gathered all its fruit, it remained bent down, waiting the order to rise from Him who bad commanded it to stoop. Then Jesus said to it: Raise thyself, O palm tree, and be strong, and be the companion of my trees, which are in the paradise of my Father; and open from thy roots a vein of water which has been hid in the earth, and let the waters flow, so that we may be satisfied from thee. And it rose up immediately, and at its root there began to come forth a spring of water exceedingly clear and cool and sparkling. And when they saw the spring of water, they rejoiced with great joy, and were satisfied, themselves and all their cattle and their beasts. Wherefore they gave thanks to God.}}

===The Palestinian Connection===
There exists in Palestine a Byzantine Church dedicated to the virgin Mary, the church of the Kathisma or Holy Throne of the virgin Mary. This church has a deep and complex relationship with the Islamic tradition, and was the likely model for the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 15.</ref>. Around the time of Muhammad, this church was a center of the Christian cult of the virgin Mary. Unlike modern Catholic and Orthodox Church, where only the Bible is read from the lectionary during the mass, at this time it was not unusual for reading to be done from the apocrypha and other non-canonized works. The Kathisma was built upon the site of the palm miracle mentioned in Pseudo Matthew chapter 20 and surat Maryam verse 23-25. According to the lectionary found for this church, the miracle of the palm, the virgin conception of Jesus, the immaculate (sin-free, virgin) conception of Mary, and the dormition (assumption into heaven alive) of Mary were all celebrated at this church. The Marian stational liturgy of the Dormition was celebrated here from the 13th of August to the 17th of August in the church calendar. In addition, in the middle of this celebration there were also reading on the 14th of August from the ''Life of Jeremiah''. The ''Life'' purports to tell how the prophet Jeremiah saved the Ark of the Covenant and concealed it after the destruction of the 1st temple by the Babylonians. A text from the Kathisma , preserved in Georgian, one of the languages of mass celebration at the church, adds an extra prophecy to the story in the ''Life of Jeremiah'' <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 13. </ref>.

{{Quote|The Lection of Jeremiah|

“And the prophet [Jeremiah] said: ‘His coming will be a sign for you, and for other children
at the end of the world.57 And nobody will bring forth the hidden Ark from the rock, except the
priest Aaron, '''''the brother of Mary'''''. And nobody will unveil the tables therein, nor be able to read
them, except the lawgiver Moses, the chosen of the Lord. And at the resurrection of the dead, the
Ark will be the first to rise from the rock and to be placed on Mount Sinai, so that the word of the
prophet David will be fulfilled, in which he said: ‘Arise, O Lord, to your resting place, You
and the Ark of Your holiness’, which is the Holy Virgin Mary who passes from this world
to the presence of God, she to whom the apostles proclaimed in Zion the praise of Myrrh
saying: ‘Today the Virgin is being guided from Bethlehem to Zion, and today from earth
to heaven’, and all the saints are gathered together around her and wait for the Lord, putting to
flight the enemy who aims to destroy them.”}}

 The use of "sister of Aaron" (here reversed as "the brother of Mary" for Aaron) is being invoked here deliberately by the Georgian author, who always uses "Mary" for the mother of Jesus and "Miriam" for the actual sister of Aaron. The Qur'an is thus not showing its ignorance here; rather the reference to Mary as Aaron's sister is a reference to the celebration of the cult of the virgin Mary in Palestine. It is thus unlikely that an uneducated pagan audience in Mecca or Medina might have understood this verse; there are several explanations for how such a complex reference could have made its way into the Qur'an, and none of them align with the traditional narrative:

#The Arab audience of the northern Hijaz was not actually illiterate and pagan as the sirah and tafsir literature would have us believe, but was rather already in Muhammad's time largely Christian and intimately familiar with the literate, multi-lingual Grecophone and Syriac-speaking culture of the Byzantine near east.
#This surah (at least the first section) was not composed as the preaching of Muhammad, but was rather the product of Christian holy men working for an Arabic-speaking audience inside of the Byzantine empire; the first part of the surah which makes these allusions is thus a separate text from the later part of the surah which is heavily "Islamic" and lacks the complex Christian allusions. The entire surah as a whole is thus a composite work.
#Muhammad did not compose and preach this surah in the Hijaz, but rather in or around Palestine for an audience that would understand it; if Shoemaker in his book ''The Death of a Prophet'' is to be believed, this could have been after he personally conquered Jerusalem itself.

===Likely Meaning of Imran===

When the Qur'an states that Mary is the daughter of 'Imran, it is likely using typology, an approach to scripture that sees later figures as reflections of their biblical forebears. Thus what the Qur'an is here saying, through the mother of Jewish interlocuters, is that Mary and her family were pre-figured by the family of Aaron and Miryam. This pre-figurement further plays into the links established between Mary and Miriam at the church of the Kathisma, and once again demonstrates the author’s intimate knowledge of the Palestinian cult of the virgin Mary <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 9.</ref>.

==See Also==

*[[Imran in Islam]]

*[[Scientific Errors in the Quran]]

*[[Contradictions in the Quran‎]]

*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Contra/qbhc06.html "Mary, Sister of Aaron & Daughter of Amram" (Answering Islam)]

*[http://www.gnosis.org/library/psudomat.htm "Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew" (The Gnostic Society Library)]

*[http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/infancyjames.html "The Infancy Gospel of James" AKA the Protoevangelium of James (Early Christian Writings)]

*[https://www.academia.edu/12358270/The_Quran_and_its_Hypertextuality_in_Light_of_Redaction_Criticism "The Quran and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism" (Academia.edu)]
{{Translation-links-english|[[Marie, sestra Áronova, v Koránu|Czech]]}}

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Christian tradition]]
[[Category:Jewish tradition]]
[[Category:Sacred history]]

Mary, Sister of Aaron

2022-05-03T21:42:42Z

Vixen: /* Relevant Quotations */

[[bg:Грешки в Корана: Моисей и Аарон – вуйчовци на Иисус]]
{{QualityScore|Lead=3|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}'''Mary (Miriam) the sister of Aaron''' (and of Moses), is a phrase used in the [[Quran]] to refer to Mary the mother of [[Jesus]].<ref>{{Quran-range|19|27|34}}</ref> From at least the 8th century, and perhaps as far back as [[Muhammad ibn Abdullah|Muhammad]]'s time, [[Critics of Islam|critics]] have attacked this verse as a simple but revealing error.<ref name=":02">Mughira b. Shu'ba reported: When I came to Najran, they (the Christians of Najran) asked me: You read "O sister of Harun" (i. e. Hadrat Maryam) in the Qur'an, whereas Moses was born much before Jesus. When I came back to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) I asked him about that, whereupon he said: The (people of the old age) used to give names (to their persons) after the names of Apostles and pious persons who had gone before them. {{Muslim|28|13}}</ref> In [[Arabic]] both Mary the mother of Jesus and Mary the sister of Aaron and Moses are called by the same name, مريم (''Maryam''). Skeptical Jewish and Christian scholars believed that Muhammad had mistaken Jesus' mother for Moses' sister.<ref name=":02" /> While they shared a name, according to the Bible these two women lived more than a thousand years apart. In the [[hadith]] Muhammad explains that this criticism was a misunderstanding, but, according to these same texts many remained unconvinced.<ref name=":02" /> Ultimately, it seems, the Hadith and sirah traditions came to assert that Aaron and Moses had a sister whose name was Kulthum rather than Miriam, which seems to point to the tradition’s fundamental inability to understand the context of these verses and how they relate to the two biblical Miriams.<ref>{{Quran-range|19|27|28}}.</ref><ref>{{Muslim|25|5326}}.</ref><ref>[http://www.al-islam.org/hayat-al-qulub-vol2-allamah-muhammad-baqir-al-majlisi/ Majlisi, ''Hayat al-Qulub'' 2:26].</ref> In contrast to the traditional narrative, some modern scholars have rather found in this surah a complex web of inter-textual references, pointing to a highly literate and Christian audience of the original text <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 8</ref><ref>Suleiman A. Mourad, “Mary in the Qur’an: a reexamination of her presentation,” The Qur'an in its Historical Context, Edited by Gabriel Said Reynolds (2008): 165.</ref>.
==Mention of Mary in the Quran==
===Qur'an===
Mary the mother of Jesus is called sister of Aaron in sura 19:{{Quote|{{Quran-range|19|27|34}}|Then '''she brought him to her own folk,''' carrying him. '''They said: O Mary!''' Thou hast come with an amazing thing.

(19:28) '''O sister of Aaron!''' Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.

'''Then she pointed to him.''' They said: How can we talk to one who is in the cradle, a young boy?

'''He spake: Lo! I am the slave of Allah.''' He hath given me the Scripture and hath appointed me a Prophet,

And hath made me blessed wheresoever I may be, and hath enjoined upon me prayer and almsgiving so long as I remain alive,

And (hath made me) dutiful toward her who bore me, and hath not made me arrogant, unblest.

Peace on me the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I shall be raised alive!

'''Such was Jesus, son of Mary:''' (this is) a statement of the truth concerning which they doubt.
}}The Qur'an also says the wife of Imran gave birth to the virgin Mary who gave birth to Jesus.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|3|35|45}}|(Remember) when '''the wife of 'Imran said''': My Lord! I have vowed unto Thee '''that which is in my belly''' as a consecrated (offering). Accept it from me. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Hearer, the Knower!

And when she was delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am delivered of a female - Allah knew best of what she was delivered - the male is not as the female; and lo! '''I have named her Mary,''' and lo! I crave Thy protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast.

And her Lord accepted her with full acceptance and vouchsafed to her a goodly growth; and made Zachariah her guardian. Whenever Zachariah went into the sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food. He said: O Mary! Whence cometh unto thee this (food)? She answered: It is from Allah. Allah giveth without stint to whom He will.

Then Zachariah prayed unto his Lord and said: My Lord! Bestow upon me of Thy bounty goodly offspring. Lo! Thou art the Hearer of Prayer.

And the angels called to him as he stood praying in the sanctuary: Allah giveth thee glad tidings of (a son whose name is) John, (who cometh) to confirm a word from Allah lordly, chaste, a prophet of the righteous.

He said: My Lord! How can I have a son when age hath overtaken me already and my wife is barren? (The angel) answered: So (it will be). Allah doeth what He will.

He said: My Lord! Appoint a token for me. (The angel) said: The token unto thee (shall be) that thou shalt not speak unto mankind three days except by signs. Remember thy Lord much, and praise (Him) in the early hours of night and morning.

And when the angels said: O Mary! Lo! Allah hath chosen thee and made thee pure, and hath preferred thee above (all) the women of creation.

O Mary! Be obedient to thy Lord, prostrate thyself and bow with those who bow (in worship).

This is of the tidings of things hidden. We reveal it unto thee (Muhammad). Thou wast not present with them when they threw their pens (to know) which of them should be the guardian of Mary, nor wast thou present with them when they quarrelled (thereupon).

(And remember) when the angels said: '''O Mary! Lo! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary,''' illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near (unto Allah).

He will speak unto mankind in his cradle and in his manhood, and he is of the righteous.

'''She said: My Lord! How can I have a child when no mortal hath touched me?''' He said: So (it will be). Allah createth what He will. If He decreeth a thing, He saith unto it only: Be! and it is.}}The Quran mentions prominent families:{{Quote|{{Quran|3|33}}|Indeed, Allah chose Adam and Noah and the family of Abraham and the family of 'Imran over the worlds -}}
==Relevant Quotations==
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|3|35|45}}|(Remember) when '''the wife of 'Imran said''': My Lord! I have vowed unto Thee '''that which is in my belly''' as a consecrated (offering). Accept it from me. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Hearer, the Knower!

And when she was delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am delivered of a female - Allah knew best of what she was delivered - the male is not as the female; and lo! '''I have named her Mary,''' and lo! I crave Thy protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast.

And her Lord accepted her with full acceptance and vouchsafed to her a goodly growth; and made Zachariah her guardian. Whenever Zachariah went into the sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food. He said: O Mary! Whence cometh unto thee this (food)? She answered: It is from Allah. Allah giveth without stint to whom He will.

Then Zachariah prayed unto his Lord and said: My Lord! Bestow upon me of Thy bounty goodly offspring. Lo! Thou art the Hearer of Prayer.

And the angels called to him as he stood praying in the sanctuary: Allah giveth thee glad tidings of (a son whose name is) John, (who cometh) to confirm a word from Allah lordly, chaste, a prophet of the righteous.

He said: My Lord! How can I have a son when age hath overtaken me already and my wife is barren? (The angel) answered: So (it will be). Allah doeth what He will.

He said: My Lord! Appoint a token for me. (The angel) said: The token unto thee (shall be) that thou shalt not speak unto mankind three days except by signs. Remember thy Lord much, and praise (Him) in the early hours of night and morning.

And when the angels said: O Mary! Lo! Allah hath chosen thee and made thee pure, and hath preferred thee above (all) the women of creation.

O Mary! Be obedient to thy Lord, prostrate thyself and bow with those who bow (in worship).

This is of the tidings of things hidden. We reveal it unto thee (Muhammad). Thou wast not present with them when they threw their pens (to know) which of them should be the guardian of Mary, nor wast thou present with them when they quarrelled (thereupon).

(And remember) when the angels said: '''O Mary! Lo! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary,''' illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near (unto Allah).

He will speak unto mankind in his cradle and in his manhood, and he is of the righteous.

'''She said: My Lord! How can I have a child when no mortal hath touched me?''' He said: So (it will be). Allah createth what He will. If He decreeth a thing, He saith unto it only: Be! and it is.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|66|12}}|And '''Mary, daughter of 'Imran, whose body was chaste, therefor We breathed therein something of Our Spirit.''' And she put faith in the words of her Lord and His scriptures, and was of the obedient.

}}{{Quote|{{Quran|19|28}}|O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.}}{{Quote|{{Muslim|25|5326}}| Mughira b. Shu'ba reported:

When I came to Najran, they (the Christians of Najran) asked me: You read "O sister of Harun" (i. e. Hadrat Maryam) in the Qur'an, whereas Moses was born much before Jesus. When I came back to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) I asked him about that, whereupon he said: The (people of the old age) used to give names (to their persons) after the names of Apostles and pious persons who had gone before them.}}{{Quote|Tafsir Ibn Kathir (non-abridged) on 19:28 <ref>http://quran.al-islam.com/Page.aspx?pageid=221&BookID=11&Page=1</ref> | وَقَالَ اِبْن جَرِير حَدَّثَنِي يَعْقُوب حَدَّثَنَا اِبْن عُلَيَّة عَنْ سَعِيد بْن أَبِي صَدَقَة عَنْ مُحَمَّد بْن سِيرِينَ قَالَ أُنْبِئْت أَنَّ كَعْبًا قَالَ إِنَّ قَوْله : " يَا أُخْت هَارُون " لَيْسَ بِهَارُون أَخِي مُوسَى قَالَ فَقَالَتْ لَهُ عَائِشَة كَذَبْت قَالَ يَا أُمّ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ إِنْ كَانَ النَّبِيّ صَلَّى اللَّه عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَهُ فَهُوَ أَعْلَم وَأَخْبَر وَإِلَّا فَإِنِّي أَجِد بَيْنهمَا سِتّمِائَةِ سَنَة قَالَ فَسَكَتَتْ وَفِي هَذَا التَّارِيخ نَظَر

 

It was narrated from Ibn Jarir, narrated from Yaqub, narrated from Ibn U’laya, narrated from Sa’id Ibn Abi Sadaqa, narrated from Muhammad Ibn Sireen who stated that he was told that Ka’b said the verse that reads, "O sister of Harun (Aaron)!" (of Sura 19:28) does not refer to Aaron the brother of Moses. Aisha replied to Ka’b, "You have lied." Ka’b responded, "O Mother of the believers! If the prophet, may Allah’s prayers be upon him, has said it, and he is more knowledgeable, then this is what he related. Besides, I find the difference in time between them (Jesus and Moses) to be 600 years." He said that she remained silent.}}
==Biblical and Talmudic accounts of Mary==
Miriam, Aaron, and Moses were the children of Amram (Imran in Arabic):{{Quote|1 Chronicles 6:3 |The children of Amram:

Aaron, Moses and Miriam.}}Mary, the mother of Jesus, was the daughter of Joachim and from the family of David (not from the family of Aaron):{{Quote|The gospel of the birth of Mary, 1:1-2 |The blessed and ever glorious Virgin Mary, sprung from the royal race and family of David, was born in the city of Nazareth, and educated at Jerusalem, in the temple of the Lord.

Her father's name was Joachim, and her mother's Anna. The family of her father was of Galilee and the city of Nazareth. The family of her mother was of Bethlehem.}}
==Traditional Muslim Explanations==
Ibn Kathir gave the following explanation in his tafsir:{{Quote|1=[http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2684&Itemid=75 Maryam with Al-Masih before the People, Their Rejection of Her and His Reply to Them] Tafsir Ibn Kathir|2=(O sister of Harun!) referring to the brother of Musa, because she was of his descendants. This is similar to the saying, `O brother of Tamim,' to one who is from the Tamimi tribe, and `O brother of Mudar,' to one who is from the Mudari tribe. It has also been said that she was related to a righteous man among them whose name was Harun and she was comparable to him in her abstinence and worship.}}That he mentioned two alternative explanations suggests he was unsure regarding the certainty of either of them.
==="Sister of Aaron means a descendant of Aaron"===
The Qur'an says "sister (أُخْتَ) of Aaron" and people understood the verse to literally mean "sister of Aaron". Only after this relation was criticized as an error did it become instead understood as a metaphor meaning "a descendant of Aaron". Christian sources consistently stated that Mary was from the family of David, so many wondered why the Qur'an would describe her as instead being from the family of Aaron. Some point out that in Luke 1:5, Elizabeth is said to be a descendant of Aaron; and in Luke 1:36, Elizabeth is said to be a cousin or relative of Mary <ref>https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+1</ref>. But being related to another person does not guarantee that one also descends from any particular one of that person’s distant ancestors (Aaron in this case).

Furthermore, if she was a known descendant of Aaron, then one wonders why the learned Arab Christians (and Aisha and Mughira b. Shu'ba) of Muhammad's time were unaware of this.

The additional description of her as the "daughter of Amram (Imran)" in Surahs 3 and 66 appears to make the matter even foggier and more clearly problematic.
==="Mary coincidentally had a father called Imran and a brother called Aaron"===
Christian sources say her father was named Joachim, and they don't mention she had a brother called Aaron. And if she had a brother called Aaron, then the question still is, why is she called "sister of Aaron"? If this brother is so important that he had to be mentioned with her name, why don't we hear more about him? It is more probable that the author of the Qur'an thought that she really is the sister of Aaron and Moses, and so in the Qur'an people called her "sister of Aaron" to emphasize her social status.{{Quote|{{Quran|19|28}}|O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.}}In other words, the people asked "How can you have a baby without a husband, when you are from such a moral family".

==Moses' Father==
In Hebrew he is called Amram (עַמְרָם) with the letter ''mem'' (ם) at the end. In the Arabic Bible he is also called Amram (عمرام), with the letter ''meem'' (م) at the end:{{Quote|1 Chronicles 6:3 in Arabic Bible|أبْناءُ عَمْرامَ هُمْ هارُونُ وَمُوسَى وَمَرْيَمُ

The children of Amram: Aaron, Moses and Miriam.}}In Islamic sources he is called Imran (عمران). English translators commonly choose to translate the name as Amram:{{Quote|History of at-Tabari, volume 3|

The Genealogy of Moses b. Amram

}}The Arabic original has the letter ''nun'' (ن) at the end:{{Quote|History of at-Tabari (ِArabic) <ref>https://al-maktaba.org/book/9783/383</ref>|ذكر نسب موسى بن عمران

Genealogy of Musa bin Imran (عمران)}}Miriam was the daughter of Amram and a sister of Aaron. The Qur'an describes Mary, the mother of Jesus, as being a daughter of Amram and a sister of Aaron - in the same family relationship as Miriam. Many people, including Aisha, understood Mary and Miriam to be the same person, based on their understanding of the Qur'anic text.

When Christians criticized the verse which calls Mary "sister of Aaron" in the Quran, Muhammad's response was that "people were named after pious persons who lived before them". Islamic scholars concluded that Mary was either called "sister of Aaron" because she was his descendant or she had a brother coincidentally called Aaron. Both these solutions seem to be inventions, because Mary was not known to be a descendant of Aaron and she was not known to have a brother called "Aaron". On the other hand, Miriam was well-known to be a sister of Aaron.

Since Mary and Miriam are both pronounced Maryam in Arabic, it seems possible that Muhammad, based on the Christian stories he heard,<ref>For example from Waraqa ibn Nawfal.</ref> mixed these two women into one person when he was making up the Qur'an.

==Modern Scholarly Interpretations==

Some Modern scholars note that the author of Surat-Maryam had an in-depth knowledge of Christian tradition, and that he may have been a Christian clergyman whose work was used by the incipient believers movement, or who had joined the movement himself. As the author was evidently steeped in Christian tradition, it seems unlikely that he would have made a mistake about of Mary, the mother of Jesus, conflating her with Mary, the sister of Aaron and Moses. Rather, what is being invoked here is likely both Mary's descent from the scions of the Jewish people, Moses and Aaron, as well a priestly tradition in the Church of Kathisma in Jerusalem, linking the Dormition (apparent death, followed by the resurrection and assumption of Mary alive into heaven) with the priesthood of Aaron. A pre-Islamic Georgian Christian homiletic text exists that seems to explicitly call Mary the sister of Aaron. The shared phrasing between this Georgian text from Jerusalem and the Qur'an is remarkable; it suggests that whoever the author is of the rest of the Qur'an and even surat-Maryam, the author of this specific passage must have been a Christian from the area around Jerusalem, who was intimately familiar with the Christian tradition around the church of Kathisma and the liturgical traditions the church possessed around the virgin Mary <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 10. </ref>.
===References to Other Narratives===
The entire first portion of Surat-Maryam (verses 1-63) makes constant references to apocryphal stories from legendary apocryphal gospels such as the Protoevangelium of James and the gospel of Pseudo-Matthew. These texts outline an infancy gospel of the Virgin Mary, telling of her father Joachim and mother Ana, righteous Jews who served the poor and followed the word of the Lord. Joachim was excluded from a temple ritual because of his lack of a child, however, since all righteous men of Israel had children. He went to the desert to pray and fast while Ana prayed for children from the Lord; after seeing a sparrow's nest in a tree, the angel of the Lord appeared to her and informed her that she would bear a child. In their joy for being granted a child at such an advanced age, the couple dedicated the child, Mary, as a perpetual virgin to the Lord. When she grew older she was entrusted to the care of an older man, Joseph, who would act as her husband but would not engage in sexual intercourse with her. When the Lord impregnated Mary with Jesus, the Jews accused Joseph and Mary of violating her oath to the Lord. The priest of the temple put Joseph to the test of the water of the ordeal of the Lord, drinking it and returning unharmed; furthermore, when Mary gave birth to Jesus, a blinding white light bathed the cave she was in, and both the midwife and the accused inserted their finger into her vagina and were shocked to see that even after Jesus' birth she was still a virgin. After seeing these great signs, the faith of Mary and Joseph was vindicated. Although these sources are uncredited in Muslim exegesis, there is no doubt that Surat-Maryam makes numerous references to this Marian infancy cycle, and in ayah 25 it also makes explicit reference to the Palm miracle recorded in the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew 20:1-2 (itself a reworking of the pagan fable of Leto giving birth to Apollo <ref> Suleiman A. Mourad, “Mary in the Qur’an: a reexamination of her presentation,” The Qur'an in its Historical Context, Edited by Gabriel Said Reynolds (2008): 169.</ref>).

{{Quote|{{Quran|19|23-26}}|
فَنَادَىٰهَا مِن تَحْتِهَآ أَلَّا تَحْزَنِى قَدْ جَعَلَ رَبُّكِ تَحْتَكِ سَرِيًّا
فَأَجَآءَهَا ٱلْمَخَاضُ إِلَىٰ جِذْعِ ٱلنَّخْلَةِ قَالَتْ يَٰلَيْتَنِى مِتُّ قَبْلَ هَٰذَا وَكُنتُ نَسْيًا مَّنسِيًّا
وَهُزِّىٓ إِلَيْكِ بِجِذْعِ ٱلنَّخْلَةِ تُسَٰقِطْ عَلَيْكِ رُطَبًا جَنِيًّا
فَكُلِى وَٱشْرَبِى وَقَرِّى عَيْنًا ۖ فَإِمَّا تَرَيِنَّ مِنَ ٱلْبَشَرِ أَحَدًا فَقُولِىٓ إِنِّى نَذَرْتُ لِلرَّحْمَٰنِ صَوْمًا فَلَنْ أُكَلِّمَ ٱلْيَوْمَ إِنسِيًّا

And the pangs of childbirth drove her unto the trunk of the palm-tree. She said: Oh, would that I had died ere this and had become a thing of naught, forgotten!Then (one) cried unto her from below her, saying: Grieve not! Thy Lord hath placed a rivulet beneath thee, And shake the trunk of the palm-tree toward thee, thou wilt cause ripe dates to fall upon thee. So eat and drink and be consoled. And if thou meetest any mortal, say: Lo! I have vowed a fast unto the Beneficent, and may not speak this day to any mortal.}}

Compare with the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew:

{{Quote| The Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Chapter 20 http://www.gnosis.org/library/psudomat.htm| And it came to pass on the third day of their journey, while they were walking, that the blessed Mary was fatigued by the excessive heat of the sun in the desert; and seeing a palm tree, she said to Joseph: Let me rest a little under the shade of this tree. Joseph therefore made haste, and led her to the palm, and made her come down from her beast. And as the blessed Mary was sitting there, she looked up to the foliage of the palm, and saw it full of fruit, and said to Joseph: I wish it were possible to get some of the fruit of this palm. And Joseph said to her: I wonder that thou sayest this, when thou seest how high the palm tree is; and that thou thinkest of eating of its fruit. I am thinking more of the want of water, because the skins are now empty, and we have none wherewith to refresh ourselves and our cattle. Then the child Jesus, with a joyful countenance, reposing in the bosom of His mother, said to the palm: O tree, bend thy branches, and refresh my mother with thy fruit. And immediately at these words the palm bent its top down to the very feet of the blessed Mary; and they gathered from it fruit, with which they were all refreshed. And after they had gathered all its fruit, it remained bent down, waiting the order to rise from Him who bad commanded it to stoop. Then Jesus said to it: Raise thyself, O palm tree, and be strong, and be the companion of my trees, which are in the paradise of my Father; and open from thy roots a vein of water which has been hid in the earth, and let the waters flow, so that we may be satisfied from thee. And it rose up immediately, and at its root there began to come forth a spring of water exceedingly clear and cool and sparkling. And when they saw the spring of water, they rejoiced with great joy, and were satisfied, themselves and all their cattle and their beasts. Wherefore they gave thanks to God.}}

===The Palestinian Connection===
There exists in Palestine a Byzantine Church dedicated to the virgin Mary, the church of the Kathisma or Holy Throne of the virgin Mary. This church has a deep and complex relationship with the Islamic tradition, and was the likely model for the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 15.</ref>. Around the time of Muhammad, this church was a center of the Christian cult of the virgin Mary. Unlike modern Catholic and Orthodox Church, where only the Bible is read from the lectionary during the mass, at this time it was not unusual for reading to be done from the apocrypha and other non-canonized works. The Kathisma was built upon the site of the palm miracle mentioned in Pseudo Matthew chapter 20 and surat Maryam verse 23-25. According to the lectionary found for this church, the miracle of the palm, the virgin conception of Jesus, the immaculate (sin-free, virgin) conception of Mary, and the dormition (assumption into heaven alive) of Mary were all celebrated at this church. The Marian stational liturgy of the Dormition was celebrated here from the 13th of August to the 17th of August in the church calendar. In addition, in the middle of this celebration there were also reading on the 14th of August from the ''Life of Jeremiah''. The ''Life'' purports to tell how the prophet Jeremiah saved the Ark of the Covenant and concealed it after the destruction of the 1st temple by the Babylonians. A text from the Kathisma , preserved in Georgian, one of the languages of mass celebration at the church, adds an extra prophecy to the story in the ''Life of Jeremiah'' <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 13. </ref>.

{{Quote|The Lection of Jeremiah|

“And the prophet [Jeremiah] said: ‘His coming will be a sign for you, and for other children
at the end of the world.57 And nobody will bring forth the hidden Ark from the rock, except the
priest Aaron, '''''the brother of Mary'''''. And nobody will unveil the tables therein, nor be able to read
them, except the lawgiver Moses, the chosen of the Lord. And at the resurrection of the dead, the
Ark will be the first to rise from the rock and to be placed on Mount Sinai, so that the word of the
prophet David will be fulfilled, in which he said: ‘Arise, O Lord, to your resting place, You
and the Ark of Your holiness’, which is the Holy Virgin Mary who passes from this world
to the presence of God, she to whom the apostles proclaimed in Zion the praise of Myrrh
saying: ‘Today the Virgin is being guided from Bethlehem to Zion, and today from earth
to heaven’, and all the saints are gathered together around her and wait for the Lord, putting to
flight the enemy who aims to destroy them.”}}

 The use of "sister of Aaron" (here reversed as "the brother of Mary" for Aaron) is being invoked here deliberately by the Georgian author, who always uses "Mary" for the mother of Jesus and "Miriam" for the actual sister of Aaron. The Qur'an is thus not showing its ignorance here; rather the reference to Mary as Aaron's sister is a reference to the celebration of the cult of the virgin Mary in Palestine. It is thus unlikely that an uneducated pagan audience in Mecca or Medina might have understood this verse; there are several explanations for how such a complex reference could have made its way into the Qur'an, and none of them align with the traditional narrative:

#The Arab audience of the northern Hijaz was not actually illiterate and pagan as the sirah and tafsir literature would have us believe, but was rather already in Muhammad's time largely Christian and intimately familiar with the literate, multi-lingual Grecophone and Syriac-speaking culture of the Byzantine near east.
#This surah (at least the first section) was not composed as the preaching of Muhammad, but was rather the product of Christian holy men working for an Arabic-speaking audience inside of the Byzantine empire; the first part of the surah which makes these allusions is thus a separate text from the later part of the surah which is heavily "Islamic" and lacks the complex Christian allusions. The entire surah as a whole is thus a composite work.
#Muhammad did not compose and preach this surah in the Hijaz, but rather in or around Palestine for an audience that would understand it; if Shoemaker in his book ''The Death of a Prophet'' is to be believed, this could have been after he personally conquered Jerusalem itself.

===Likely Meaning of Imran===

When the Qur'an states that Mary is the daughter of 'Imran, it is likely using typology, an approach to scripture that sees later figures as reflections of their biblical forebears. Thus what the Qur'an is here saying, through the mother of Jewish interlocuters, is that Mary and her family were pre-figured by the family of Aaron and Miryam. This pre-figurement further plays into the links established between Mary and Miriam at the church of the Kathisma, and once again demonstrates the author’s intimate knowledge of the Palestinian cult of the virgin Mary <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 9.</ref>.

==See Also==

*[[Imran in Islam]]

*[[Scientific Errors in the Quran]]

*[[Contradictions in the Quran‎]]

*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Contra/qbhc06.html "Mary, Sister of Aaron & Daughter of Amram" (Answering Islam)]

*[http://www.gnosis.org/library/psudomat.htm "Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew" (The Gnostic Society Library)]

*[http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/infancyjames.html "The Infancy Gospel of James" AKA the Protoevangelium of James (Early Christian Writings)]

*[https://www.academia.edu/12358270/The_Quran_and_its_Hypertextuality_in_Light_of_Redaction_Criticism "The Quran and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism" (Academia.edu)]
{{Translation-links-english|[[Marie, sestra Áronova, v Koránu|Czech]]}}

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Christian tradition]]
[[Category:Jewish tradition]]
[[Category:Sacred history]]

Mary, Sister of Aaron

2022-05-03T21:42:01Z

Vixen:

[[bg:Грешки в Корана: Моисей и Аарон – вуйчовци на Иисус]]
{{QualityScore|Lead=3|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=4}}'''Mary (Miriam) the sister of Aaron''' (and of Moses), is a phrase used in the [[Quran]] to refer to Mary the mother of [[Jesus]].<ref>{{Quran-range|19|27|34}}</ref> From at least the 8th century, and perhaps as far back as [[Muhammad ibn Abdullah|Muhammad]]'s time, [[Critics of Islam|critics]] have attacked this verse as a simple but revealing error.<ref name=":02">Mughira b. Shu'ba reported: When I came to Najran, they (the Christians of Najran) asked me: You read "O sister of Harun" (i. e. Hadrat Maryam) in the Qur'an, whereas Moses was born much before Jesus. When I came back to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) I asked him about that, whereupon he said: The (people of the old age) used to give names (to their persons) after the names of Apostles and pious persons who had gone before them. {{Muslim|28|13}}</ref> In [[Arabic]] both Mary the mother of Jesus and Mary the sister of Aaron and Moses are called by the same name, مريم (''Maryam''). Skeptical Jewish and Christian scholars believed that Muhammad had mistaken Jesus' mother for Moses' sister.<ref name=":02" /> While they shared a name, according to the Bible these two women lived more than a thousand years apart. In the [[hadith]] Muhammad explains that this criticism was a misunderstanding, but, according to these same texts many remained unconvinced.<ref name=":02" /> Ultimately, it seems, the Hadith and sirah traditions came to assert that Aaron and Moses had a sister whose name was Kulthum rather than Miriam, which seems to point to the tradition’s fundamental inability to understand the context of these verses and how they relate to the two biblical Miriams.<ref>{{Quran-range|19|27|28}}.</ref><ref>{{Muslim|25|5326}}.</ref><ref>[http://www.al-islam.org/hayat-al-qulub-vol2-allamah-muhammad-baqir-al-majlisi/ Majlisi, ''Hayat al-Qulub'' 2:26].</ref> In contrast to the traditional narrative, some modern scholars have rather found in this surah a complex web of inter-textual references, pointing to a highly literate and Christian audience of the original text <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 8</ref><ref>Suleiman A. Mourad, “Mary in the Qur’an: a reexamination of her presentation,” The Qur'an in its Historical Context, Edited by Gabriel Said Reynolds (2008): 165.</ref>.
==Mention of Mary in the Quran==
===Qur'an===
Mary the mother of Jesus is called sister of Aaron in sura 19:{{Quote|{{Quran-range|19|27|34}}|Then '''she brought him to her own folk,''' carrying him. '''They said: O Mary!''' Thou hast come with an amazing thing.

(19:28) '''O sister of Aaron!''' Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.

'''Then she pointed to him.''' They said: How can we talk to one who is in the cradle, a young boy?

'''He spake: Lo! I am the slave of Allah.''' He hath given me the Scripture and hath appointed me a Prophet,

And hath made me blessed wheresoever I may be, and hath enjoined upon me prayer and almsgiving so long as I remain alive,

And (hath made me) dutiful toward her who bore me, and hath not made me arrogant, unblest.

Peace on me the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I shall be raised alive!

'''Such was Jesus, son of Mary:''' (this is) a statement of the truth concerning which they doubt.
}}The Qur'an also says the wife of Imran gave birth to the virgin Mary who gave birth to Jesus.{{Quote|{{Quran-range|3|35|45}}|(Remember) when '''the wife of 'Imran said''': My Lord! I have vowed unto Thee '''that which is in my belly''' as a consecrated (offering). Accept it from me. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Hearer, the Knower!

And when she was delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am delivered of a female - Allah knew best of what she was delivered - the male is not as the female; and lo! '''I have named her Mary,''' and lo! I crave Thy protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast.

And her Lord accepted her with full acceptance and vouchsafed to her a goodly growth; and made Zachariah her guardian. Whenever Zachariah went into the sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food. He said: O Mary! Whence cometh unto thee this (food)? She answered: It is from Allah. Allah giveth without stint to whom He will.

Then Zachariah prayed unto his Lord and said: My Lord! Bestow upon me of Thy bounty goodly offspring. Lo! Thou art the Hearer of Prayer.

And the angels called to him as he stood praying in the sanctuary: Allah giveth thee glad tidings of (a son whose name is) John, (who cometh) to confirm a word from Allah lordly, chaste, a prophet of the righteous.

He said: My Lord! How can I have a son when age hath overtaken me already and my wife is barren? (The angel) answered: So (it will be). Allah doeth what He will.

He said: My Lord! Appoint a token for me. (The angel) said: The token unto thee (shall be) that thou shalt not speak unto mankind three days except by signs. Remember thy Lord much, and praise (Him) in the early hours of night and morning.

And when the angels said: O Mary! Lo! Allah hath chosen thee and made thee pure, and hath preferred thee above (all) the women of creation.

O Mary! Be obedient to thy Lord, prostrate thyself and bow with those who bow (in worship).

This is of the tidings of things hidden. We reveal it unto thee (Muhammad). Thou wast not present with them when they threw their pens (to know) which of them should be the guardian of Mary, nor wast thou present with them when they quarrelled (thereupon).

(And remember) when the angels said: '''O Mary! Lo! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary,''' illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near (unto Allah).

He will speak unto mankind in his cradle and in his manhood, and he is of the righteous.

'''She said: My Lord! How can I have a child when no mortal hath touched me?''' He said: So (it will be). Allah createth what He will. If He decreeth a thing, He saith unto it only: Be! and it is.}}The Quran mentions prominent families:{{Quote|{{Quran|3|33}}|Indeed, Allah chose Adam and Noah and the family of Abraham and the family of 'Imran over the worlds -}}
==Relevant Quotations==
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|3|35|45}}|(Remember) when '''the wife of 'Imran said''': My Lord! I have vowed unto Thee '''that which is in my belly''' as a consecrated (offering). Accept it from me. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Hearer, the Knower!

And when she was delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am delivered of a female - Allah knew best of what she was delivered - the male is not as the female; and lo! '''I have named her Mary,''' and lo! I crave Thy protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast.

And her Lord accepted her with full acceptance and vouchsafed to her a goodly growth; and made Zachariah her guardian. Whenever Zachariah went into the sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food. He said: O Mary! Whence cometh unto thee this (food)? She answered: It is from Allah. Allah giveth without stint to whom He will.

Then Zachariah prayed unto his Lord and said: My Lord! Bestow upon me of Thy bounty goodly offspring. Lo! Thou art the Hearer of Prayer.

And the angels called to him as he stood praying in the sanctuary: Allah giveth thee glad tidings of (a son whose name is) John, (who cometh) to confirm a word from Allah lordly, chaste, a prophet of the righteous.

He said: My Lord! How can I have a son when age hath overtaken me already and my wife is barren? (The angel) answered: So (it will be). Allah doeth what He will.

He said: My Lord! Appoint a token for me. (The angel) said: The token unto thee (shall be) that thou shalt not speak unto mankind three days except by signs. Remember thy Lord much, and praise (Him) in the early hours of night and morning.

And when the angels said: O Mary! Lo! Allah hath chosen thee and made thee pure, and hath preferred thee above (all) the women of creation.

O Mary! Be obedient to thy Lord, prostrate thyself and bow with those who bow (in worship).

This is of the tidings of things hidden. We reveal it unto thee (Muhammad). Thou wast not present with them when they threw their pens (to know) which of them should be the guardian of Mary, nor wast thou present with them when they quarrelled (thereupon).

(And remember) when the angels said: '''O Mary! Lo! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary,''' illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near (unto Allah).

He will speak unto mankind in his cradle and in his manhood, and he is of the righteous.

'''She said: My Lord! How can I have a child when no mortal hath touched me?''' He said: So (it will be). Allah createth what He will. If He decreeth a thing, He saith unto it only: Be! and it is.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|66|12}}|And '''Mary, daughter of 'Imran, whose body was chaste, therefor We breathed therein something of Our Spirit.''' And she put faith in the words of her Lord and His scriptures, and was of the obedient.

}}{{Quote|{{Quran|19|28}}|O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.}}{{Quote|{{Muslim|38|13}}| Mughira b. Shu'ba reported:

When I came to Najran, they (the Christians of Najran) asked me: You read "O sister of Harun" (i. e. Hadrat Maryam) in the Qur'an, whereas Moses was born much before Jesus. When I came back to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) I asked him about that, whereupon he said: The (people of the old age) used to give names (to their persons) after the names of Apostles and pious persons who had gone before them.}}{{Quote|Tafsir Ibn Kathir (non-abridged) on 19:28 <ref>http://quran.al-islam.com/Page.aspx?pageid=221&BookID=11&Page=1</ref> | وَقَالَ اِبْن جَرِير حَدَّثَنِي يَعْقُوب حَدَّثَنَا اِبْن عُلَيَّة عَنْ سَعِيد بْن أَبِي صَدَقَة عَنْ مُحَمَّد بْن سِيرِينَ قَالَ أُنْبِئْت أَنَّ كَعْبًا قَالَ إِنَّ قَوْله : " يَا أُخْت هَارُون " لَيْسَ بِهَارُون أَخِي مُوسَى قَالَ فَقَالَتْ لَهُ عَائِشَة كَذَبْت قَالَ يَا أُمّ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ إِنْ كَانَ النَّبِيّ صَلَّى اللَّه عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَهُ فَهُوَ أَعْلَم وَأَخْبَر وَإِلَّا فَإِنِّي أَجِد بَيْنهمَا سِتّمِائَةِ سَنَة قَالَ فَسَكَتَتْ وَفِي هَذَا التَّارِيخ نَظَر

 

It was narrated from Ibn Jarir, narrated from Yaqub, narrated from Ibn U’laya, narrated from Sa’id Ibn Abi Sadaqa, narrated from Muhammad Ibn Sireen who stated that he was told that Ka’b said the verse that reads, "O sister of Harun (Aaron)!" (of Sura 19:28) does not refer to Aaron the brother of Moses. Aisha replied to Ka’b, "You have lied." Ka’b responded, "O Mother of the believers! If the prophet, may Allah’s prayers be upon him, has said it, and he is more knowledgeable, then this is what he related. Besides, I find the difference in time between them (Jesus and Moses) to be 600 years." He said that she remained silent.}}
==Biblical and Talmudic accounts of Mary==
Miriam, Aaron, and Moses were the children of Amram (Imran in Arabic):{{Quote|1 Chronicles 6:3 |The children of Amram:

Aaron, Moses and Miriam.}}Mary, the mother of Jesus, was the daughter of Joachim and from the family of David (not from the family of Aaron):{{Quote|The gospel of the birth of Mary, 1:1-2 |The blessed and ever glorious Virgin Mary, sprung from the royal race and family of David, was born in the city of Nazareth, and educated at Jerusalem, in the temple of the Lord.

Her father's name was Joachim, and her mother's Anna. The family of her father was of Galilee and the city of Nazareth. The family of her mother was of Bethlehem.}}
==Traditional Muslim Explanations==
Ibn Kathir gave the following explanation in his tafsir:{{Quote|1=[http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2684&Itemid=75 Maryam with Al-Masih before the People, Their Rejection of Her and His Reply to Them] Tafsir Ibn Kathir|2=(O sister of Harun!) referring to the brother of Musa, because she was of his descendants. This is similar to the saying, `O brother of Tamim,' to one who is from the Tamimi tribe, and `O brother of Mudar,' to one who is from the Mudari tribe. It has also been said that she was related to a righteous man among them whose name was Harun and she was comparable to him in her abstinence and worship.}}That he mentioned two alternative explanations suggests he was unsure regarding the certainty of either of them.
==="Sister of Aaron means a descendant of Aaron"===
The Qur'an says "sister (أُخْتَ) of Aaron" and people understood the verse to literally mean "sister of Aaron". Only after this relation was criticized as an error did it become instead understood as a metaphor meaning "a descendant of Aaron". Christian sources consistently stated that Mary was from the family of David, so many wondered why the Qur'an would describe her as instead being from the family of Aaron. Some point out that in Luke 1:5, Elizabeth is said to be a descendant of Aaron; and in Luke 1:36, Elizabeth is said to be a cousin or relative of Mary <ref>https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+1</ref>. But being related to another person does not guarantee that one also descends from any particular one of that person’s distant ancestors (Aaron in this case).

Furthermore, if she was a known descendant of Aaron, then one wonders why the learned Arab Christians (and Aisha and Mughira b. Shu'ba) of Muhammad's time were unaware of this.

The additional description of her as the "daughter of Amram (Imran)" in Surahs 3 and 66 appears to make the matter even foggier and more clearly problematic.
==="Mary coincidentally had a father called Imran and a brother called Aaron"===
Christian sources say her father was named Joachim, and they don't mention she had a brother called Aaron. And if she had a brother called Aaron, then the question still is, why is she called "sister of Aaron"? If this brother is so important that he had to be mentioned with her name, why don't we hear more about him? It is more probable that the author of the Qur'an thought that she really is the sister of Aaron and Moses, and so in the Qur'an people called her "sister of Aaron" to emphasize her social status.{{Quote|{{Quran|19|28}}|O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.}}In other words, the people asked "How can you have a baby without a husband, when you are from such a moral family".

==Moses' Father==
In Hebrew he is called Amram (עַמְרָם) with the letter ''mem'' (ם) at the end. In the Arabic Bible he is also called Amram (عمرام), with the letter ''meem'' (م) at the end:{{Quote|1 Chronicles 6:3 in Arabic Bible|أبْناءُ عَمْرامَ هُمْ هارُونُ وَمُوسَى وَمَرْيَمُ

The children of Amram: Aaron, Moses and Miriam.}}In Islamic sources he is called Imran (عمران). English translators commonly choose to translate the name as Amram:{{Quote|History of at-Tabari, volume 3|

The Genealogy of Moses b. Amram

}}The Arabic original has the letter ''nun'' (ن) at the end:{{Quote|History of at-Tabari (ِArabic) <ref>https://al-maktaba.org/book/9783/383</ref>|ذكر نسب موسى بن عمران

Genealogy of Musa bin Imran (عمران)}}Miriam was the daughter of Amram and a sister of Aaron. The Qur'an describes Mary, the mother of Jesus, as being a daughter of Amram and a sister of Aaron - in the same family relationship as Miriam. Many people, including Aisha, understood Mary and Miriam to be the same person, based on their understanding of the Qur'anic text.

When Christians criticized the verse which calls Mary "sister of Aaron" in the Quran, Muhammad's response was that "people were named after pious persons who lived before them". Islamic scholars concluded that Mary was either called "sister of Aaron" because she was his descendant or she had a brother coincidentally called Aaron. Both these solutions seem to be inventions, because Mary was not known to be a descendant of Aaron and she was not known to have a brother called "Aaron". On the other hand, Miriam was well-known to be a sister of Aaron.

Since Mary and Miriam are both pronounced Maryam in Arabic, it seems possible that Muhammad, based on the Christian stories he heard,<ref>For example from Waraqa ibn Nawfal.</ref> mixed these two women into one person when he was making up the Qur'an.

==Modern Scholarly Interpretations==

Some Modern scholars note that the author of Surat-Maryam had an in-depth knowledge of Christian tradition, and that he may have been a Christian clergyman whose work was used by the incipient believers movement, or who had joined the movement himself. As the author was evidently steeped in Christian tradition, it seems unlikely that he would have made a mistake about of Mary, the mother of Jesus, conflating her with Mary, the sister of Aaron and Moses. Rather, what is being invoked here is likely both Mary's descent from the scions of the Jewish people, Moses and Aaron, as well a priestly tradition in the Church of Kathisma in Jerusalem, linking the Dormition (apparent death, followed by the resurrection and assumption of Mary alive into heaven) with the priesthood of Aaron. A pre-Islamic Georgian Christian homiletic text exists that seems to explicitly call Mary the sister of Aaron. The shared phrasing between this Georgian text from Jerusalem and the Qur'an is remarkable; it suggests that whoever the author is of the rest of the Qur'an and even surat-Maryam, the author of this specific passage must have been a Christian from the area around Jerusalem, who was intimately familiar with the Christian tradition around the church of Kathisma and the liturgical traditions the church possessed around the virgin Mary <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 10. </ref>.
===References to Other Narratives===
The entire first portion of Surat-Maryam (verses 1-63) makes constant references to apocryphal stories from legendary apocryphal gospels such as the Protoevangelium of James and the gospel of Pseudo-Matthew. These texts outline an infancy gospel of the Virgin Mary, telling of her father Joachim and mother Ana, righteous Jews who served the poor and followed the word of the Lord. Joachim was excluded from a temple ritual because of his lack of a child, however, since all righteous men of Israel had children. He went to the desert to pray and fast while Ana prayed for children from the Lord; after seeing a sparrow's nest in a tree, the angel of the Lord appeared to her and informed her that she would bear a child. In their joy for being granted a child at such an advanced age, the couple dedicated the child, Mary, as a perpetual virgin to the Lord. When she grew older she was entrusted to the care of an older man, Joseph, who would act as her husband but would not engage in sexual intercourse with her. When the Lord impregnated Mary with Jesus, the Jews accused Joseph and Mary of violating her oath to the Lord. The priest of the temple put Joseph to the test of the water of the ordeal of the Lord, drinking it and returning unharmed; furthermore, when Mary gave birth to Jesus, a blinding white light bathed the cave she was in, and both the midwife and the accused inserted their finger into her vagina and were shocked to see that even after Jesus' birth she was still a virgin. After seeing these great signs, the faith of Mary and Joseph was vindicated. Although these sources are uncredited in Muslim exegesis, there is no doubt that Surat-Maryam makes numerous references to this Marian infancy cycle, and in ayah 25 it also makes explicit reference to the Palm miracle recorded in the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew 20:1-2 (itself a reworking of the pagan fable of Leto giving birth to Apollo <ref> Suleiman A. Mourad, “Mary in the Qur’an: a reexamination of her presentation,” The Qur'an in its Historical Context, Edited by Gabriel Said Reynolds (2008): 169.</ref>).

{{Quote|{{Quran|19|23-26}}|
فَنَادَىٰهَا مِن تَحْتِهَآ أَلَّا تَحْزَنِى قَدْ جَعَلَ رَبُّكِ تَحْتَكِ سَرِيًّا
فَأَجَآءَهَا ٱلْمَخَاضُ إِلَىٰ جِذْعِ ٱلنَّخْلَةِ قَالَتْ يَٰلَيْتَنِى مِتُّ قَبْلَ هَٰذَا وَكُنتُ نَسْيًا مَّنسِيًّا
وَهُزِّىٓ إِلَيْكِ بِجِذْعِ ٱلنَّخْلَةِ تُسَٰقِطْ عَلَيْكِ رُطَبًا جَنِيًّا
فَكُلِى وَٱشْرَبِى وَقَرِّى عَيْنًا ۖ فَإِمَّا تَرَيِنَّ مِنَ ٱلْبَشَرِ أَحَدًا فَقُولِىٓ إِنِّى نَذَرْتُ لِلرَّحْمَٰنِ صَوْمًا فَلَنْ أُكَلِّمَ ٱلْيَوْمَ إِنسِيًّا

And the pangs of childbirth drove her unto the trunk of the palm-tree. She said: Oh, would that I had died ere this and had become a thing of naught, forgotten!Then (one) cried unto her from below her, saying: Grieve not! Thy Lord hath placed a rivulet beneath thee, And shake the trunk of the palm-tree toward thee, thou wilt cause ripe dates to fall upon thee. So eat and drink and be consoled. And if thou meetest any mortal, say: Lo! I have vowed a fast unto the Beneficent, and may not speak this day to any mortal.}}

Compare with the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew:

{{Quote| The Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Chapter 20 http://www.gnosis.org/library/psudomat.htm| And it came to pass on the third day of their journey, while they were walking, that the blessed Mary was fatigued by the excessive heat of the sun in the desert; and seeing a palm tree, she said to Joseph: Let me rest a little under the shade of this tree. Joseph therefore made haste, and led her to the palm, and made her come down from her beast. And as the blessed Mary was sitting there, she looked up to the foliage of the palm, and saw it full of fruit, and said to Joseph: I wish it were possible to get some of the fruit of this palm. And Joseph said to her: I wonder that thou sayest this, when thou seest how high the palm tree is; and that thou thinkest of eating of its fruit. I am thinking more of the want of water, because the skins are now empty, and we have none wherewith to refresh ourselves and our cattle. Then the child Jesus, with a joyful countenance, reposing in the bosom of His mother, said to the palm: O tree, bend thy branches, and refresh my mother with thy fruit. And immediately at these words the palm bent its top down to the very feet of the blessed Mary; and they gathered from it fruit, with which they were all refreshed. And after they had gathered all its fruit, it remained bent down, waiting the order to rise from Him who bad commanded it to stoop. Then Jesus said to it: Raise thyself, O palm tree, and be strong, and be the companion of my trees, which are in the paradise of my Father; and open from thy roots a vein of water which has been hid in the earth, and let the waters flow, so that we may be satisfied from thee. And it rose up immediately, and at its root there began to come forth a spring of water exceedingly clear and cool and sparkling. And when they saw the spring of water, they rejoiced with great joy, and were satisfied, themselves and all their cattle and their beasts. Wherefore they gave thanks to God.}}

===The Palestinian Connection===
There exists in Palestine a Byzantine Church dedicated to the virgin Mary, the church of the Kathisma or Holy Throne of the virgin Mary. This church has a deep and complex relationship with the Islamic tradition, and was the likely model for the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 15.</ref>. Around the time of Muhammad, this church was a center of the Christian cult of the virgin Mary. Unlike modern Catholic and Orthodox Church, where only the Bible is read from the lectionary during the mass, at this time it was not unusual for reading to be done from the apocrypha and other non-canonized works. The Kathisma was built upon the site of the palm miracle mentioned in Pseudo Matthew chapter 20 and surat Maryam verse 23-25. According to the lectionary found for this church, the miracle of the palm, the virgin conception of Jesus, the immaculate (sin-free, virgin) conception of Mary, and the dormition (assumption into heaven alive) of Mary were all celebrated at this church. The Marian stational liturgy of the Dormition was celebrated here from the 13th of August to the 17th of August in the church calendar. In addition, in the middle of this celebration there were also reading on the 14th of August from the ''Life of Jeremiah''. The ''Life'' purports to tell how the prophet Jeremiah saved the Ark of the Covenant and concealed it after the destruction of the 1st temple by the Babylonians. A text from the Kathisma , preserved in Georgian, one of the languages of mass celebration at the church, adds an extra prophecy to the story in the ''Life of Jeremiah'' <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 13. </ref>.

{{Quote|The Lection of Jeremiah|

“And the prophet [Jeremiah] said: ‘His coming will be a sign for you, and for other children
at the end of the world.57 And nobody will bring forth the hidden Ark from the rock, except the
priest Aaron, '''''the brother of Mary'''''. And nobody will unveil the tables therein, nor be able to read
them, except the lawgiver Moses, the chosen of the Lord. And at the resurrection of the dead, the
Ark will be the first to rise from the rock and to be placed on Mount Sinai, so that the word of the
prophet David will be fulfilled, in which he said: ‘Arise, O Lord, to your resting place, You
and the Ark of Your holiness’, which is the Holy Virgin Mary who passes from this world
to the presence of God, she to whom the apostles proclaimed in Zion the praise of Myrrh
saying: ‘Today the Virgin is being guided from Bethlehem to Zion, and today from earth
to heaven’, and all the saints are gathered together around her and wait for the Lord, putting to
flight the enemy who aims to destroy them.”}}

 The use of "sister of Aaron" (here reversed as "the brother of Mary" for Aaron) is being invoked here deliberately by the Georgian author, who always uses "Mary" for the mother of Jesus and "Miriam" for the actual sister of Aaron. The Qur'an is thus not showing its ignorance here; rather the reference to Mary as Aaron's sister is a reference to the celebration of the cult of the virgin Mary in Palestine. It is thus unlikely that an uneducated pagan audience in Mecca or Medina might have understood this verse; there are several explanations for how such a complex reference could have made its way into the Qur'an, and none of them align with the traditional narrative:

#The Arab audience of the northern Hijaz was not actually illiterate and pagan as the sirah and tafsir literature would have us believe, but was rather already in Muhammad's time largely Christian and intimately familiar with the literate, multi-lingual Grecophone and Syriac-speaking culture of the Byzantine near east.
#This surah (at least the first section) was not composed as the preaching of Muhammad, but was rather the product of Christian holy men working for an Arabic-speaking audience inside of the Byzantine empire; the first part of the surah which makes these allusions is thus a separate text from the later part of the surah which is heavily "Islamic" and lacks the complex Christian allusions. The entire surah as a whole is thus a composite work.
#Muhammad did not compose and preach this surah in the Hijaz, but rather in or around Palestine for an audience that would understand it; if Shoemaker in his book ''The Death of a Prophet'' is to be believed, this could have been after he personally conquered Jerusalem itself.

===Likely Meaning of Imran===

When the Qur'an states that Mary is the daughter of 'Imran, it is likely using typology, an approach to scripture that sees later figures as reflections of their biblical forebears. Thus what the Qur'an is here saying, through the mother of Jewish interlocuters, is that Mary and her family were pre-figured by the family of Aaron and Miryam. This pre-figurement further plays into the links established between Mary and Miriam at the church of the Kathisma, and once again demonstrates the author’s intimate knowledge of the Palestinian cult of the virgin Mary <ref> Guillaume Dye, “The Qur’ān and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism,” The Fourth Nangeroni Meeting Early Islam: The Sectarian Milieu of Late Antiquity? (Early Islamic Studies Seminar, Milan) (15-19 June 2015): 9.</ref>.

==See Also==

*[[Imran in Islam]]

*[[Scientific Errors in the Quran]]

*[[Contradictions in the Quran‎]]

*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Contra/qbhc06.html "Mary, Sister of Aaron & Daughter of Amram" (Answering Islam)]

*[http://www.gnosis.org/library/psudomat.htm "Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew" (The Gnostic Society Library)]

*[http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/infancyjames.html "The Infancy Gospel of James" AKA the Protoevangelium of James (Early Christian Writings)]

*[https://www.academia.edu/12358270/The_Quran_and_its_Hypertextuality_in_Light_of_Redaction_Criticism "The Quran and its Hypertextuality in Light of Redaction Criticism" (Academia.edu)]
{{Translation-links-english|[[Marie, sestra Áronova, v Koránu|Czech]]}}

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Christian tradition]]
[[Category:Jewish tradition]]
[[Category:Sacred history]]

Hijab

2022-04-05T17:55:44Z

Vixen: /* In the Quran */

{{QualityScore|Lead=3|Structure=3|Content=3|Language=4|References=3}}[[File:Hijabs.jpg|thumb]]All [[Madh'hab|schools]] of [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)|Islamic law]] require that Muslim [[Islam and Women|women]] wear observe the '''''hijab'''''. Conceptually, the hijab is a set of requirements according to which both women and men must cover certain parts of their body (the Arabic word ''hijab'' literally refers to the concept of 'veiling'). While the requirements for men are similar to common expectations of public decency in the modern world, those for women extend to cover the entirety of the body except for their face and hands, with legal schools differing on the requirements for women to cover their feet, face, and wrists. Colloquially, the word "hijab" refers to the headgear employed by Muslim women to cover their hair and neck. There are many cultural variations on the hijab garment, many of which provide different degrees of coverage, including famously the ''burqa'', ''niqab'', and ''dupata''.

While the [[Quran]] contains general guidelines on why and how the hijab should be observed, the [[Hadith|hadith literature]] is more particular in its discussion of what the [[Asbab al-Nuzul (Revelational Circumstances of the Quran)|circumstances behind the revelation]] of the hijab requirements were and what precisely it entails. The reasoning and requirements found in the Quran and hadith differ, with the account in the hadith suggesting the hijab is intended to protect the anonymity of women, particularly Muhammad's wives who were being targeted and harassed by his close companion [[Umar ibn al-Khattab|Umar]] (also the second of the [[Rashidun Caliphs|rightly-guided caliphs]]), and the account in the Quran suggesting that the hijab is intended to hide women's beauty so as to prevent molestation.

Classically, both of these accounts have been embraced and attempts have been made to reconcile them. But in recent times, both accounts have proven problematic. The Quranic account has been objected to because it suggests that women somehow share responsibility for their harassment on the basis of their attire and the hadith account has proven difficult both because it paints Umar, a highly-revered religious figure and friend of [[Muhammad]]'s, as an unsavory character and because it suggests that Muhammad was not alone responsible for the formulation of the Sharia, which is supposed to be divinely-revealed and unchanging.

==In the Quran==
The Qur'an generally advances the view that an unveiled woman is to some extent deliberately exposing herself to the increased possibility of harassment or assault. Consequently, the idea that the criminal's culpability in some way reduced as a result of this "encouragement" is widespread among Islamic scholars and societies.

This reasoning differs significantly from the story found in the hadith regarding the reason for the revelation of the hijab requirements, where ideas of modesty and protection against assault are absent. Critics have suggested that if the story found in the hadith regarding the revelation of the hijab verses is reliable, then the reasoning of modesty given in the verses was most likely a latter rationalization of the practice on Muhammad's part rather than the original motivation.

===Quran 24:31===
{{Quran|24|31}} states that the purpose of the hijab is to hide women's [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Beauty and Makeup|beauty]] from men.{{quote |{{Quran|24|31}}|'''Corpus:''' And say to the believing women (that) they should lower [of] their gaze and they should guard their chastity, and not (to) display their adornment except what is apparent of it. And '''let them draw their head covers over their bosoms''', and not (to) display their adornment except to their husbands, or their fathers or fathers (of) their husbands or their sons or sons (of) their husbands or their brothers or sons (of) their brothers or sons (of) their sisters, or their women or what possess their right hands or the attendants having no physical desire among [the] men or [the] children who (are) not aware of private aspects (of) the women. And not let them stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allah altogether O believers! So that you may succeed. 
'''Yusuf Ali:''' And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; '''that they should draw their veils over their bosoms''' and not display their beauty except to their husbands, their fathers, their husband's fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons, their brothers or their brothers' sons, or their sisters' sons, or their women, or the slaves whom their right hands possess, or male servants free of physical needs, or small children who have no sense of the shame of sex; and that they should not strike their feet in order to draw attention to their hidden ornaments. And O ye Believers! turn ye all together towards Allah, that ye may attain Bliss. 
'''Pickthal:''' And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and be modest, and to display of their adornment only that which is apparent, '''and to draw their veils over their bosoms''', and not to reveal their adornment save to their own husbands or fathers or husbands' fathers, or their sons or their husbands' sons, or their brothers or their brothers' sons or sisters' sons, or their women, or their slaves, or male attendants who lack vigour, or children who know naught of women's nakedness. And let them not stamp their feet so as to reveal what they hide of their adornment. And turn unto Allah together, O believers, in order that ye may succeed. 
'''Daryabadi:''' And say thou unto the believing women that they shall lower their sights and guard their private parts and shall not disclose their adornment except that which appeareth thereof; and '''they shall draw their scarves over their bosoms'''; and shall not disclose their adornment except unto their husbands or their fathers or their husbands fathers or their sons or their husbands sons or their brothers or their brothers sons or their sisters sons or their Women or those whom their right hands own or male followers wanting in sex desire or children not acquainted with the privy parts of women; and they Shall not strike their feet so that there be known that which they hide of their adornment. And turn penitently unto Allah ye all, O ye believers, haply ye may thrive!}}

===Quran 33:59===
{{Quran|33|59}} states that the purpose of the hijab is to distinguish free Muslim women (presumably from non-Muslim or slave women, who do not have to observe the hijab) in order to prevent them from being molested/harassed.{{quote |{{Quran|33|59}}|'''Corpus:'''O Prophet! Say to your wives and your daughters and (the) women (of) the believers to draw over themselves [of] their outer garments. That (is) more suitable that they should be known and not harmed. And is Allah Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. 
'''Yusuf Ali:''' O Prophet! Tell thy wives and daughters, and the believing women, that they should cast their outer garments over their persons (when abroad): that is most convenient, that they should be known (as such) and not molested. And Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. 
'''Pickthal:''' O Prophet! Tell thy wives and thy daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks close round them (when they go abroad). That will be better, so that they may be recognized and not annoyed. Allah is ever Forgiving, Merciful. 
'''Daryabadi:''' O Prophet! say unto thy wives and thy daughters and women of the believers that they should let down upon them their wrapping- garments. That would be more likely to distinguish them so that they will not be affronted. And Allah is ever Forgiving, Merciful.}}

==Revelation of the hijab verses==

===Umar bin Al-Khattab's spies on Sauda===
According to hadiths found in [[Sahih Bukhari|Sahih al-Bukhari]], the most authoritative hadith collection, the series of events leading up to the [[revelation]] of the requirements of the hijab was as follows. First, Umar repeatedly asked Muhammad that Allah should reveal verses of the Qur'an pertaining to the veiling of women. Next, when no such revelation was forthcoming from Muhammad, Umar went out one night and stalked one of [[Muhammad's Marriages|Muhammad's wives]] when she went out to relieve herself. Identifying the wife as Sauda bint Zam'a, he called out to her by name, noting that he had succeeded in recognizing her in her compromised circumstance. After this, Sauda presumably returned home embarrassed by the incident and reported what occurred to Muhammad, finally resulting in the revelation of the verses pertaining to the hijab.{{quote |{{Bukhari|1|4|148}}( {{external link|url=https://sunnah.com/bukhari:146 |title=sunnah.com/bukhari:146|publisher= |author= |date= |archiveurl= |deadurl=no}} )|Narrated 'Aisha:
The wives of the Prophet used to go to Al-Manasi, a vast open place (near Baqia at Medina) to answer the call of nature at night. 'Umar used to say to the Prophet "Let your wives be veiled," but Allah's Apostle did not do so. One night Sauda bint Zam'a the wife of the Prophet went out at 'Isha' time and she was a tall lady. 'Umar addressed her and said, "I have recognized you, O Sauda." He said so, as he desired eagerly that the verses of Al-Hijab (the observing of veils by the Muslim women) may be revealed. So Allah revealed the verses of "Al-Hijab" (A complete body cover excluding the eyes). }}

{{quote |{{Bukhari|8|74|257}}|Narrated 'Aisha:
(the wife of the Prophet) 'Umar bin Al-Khattab used to say to Allah's Apostle "Let your wives be veiled" But he did not do so. The wives of the Prophet used to go out to answer the call of nature at night only at Al-Manasi.' Once Sauda, the daughter of Zam'a went out and she was a tall woman. 'Umar bin Al-Khattab saw her while he was in a gathering, and said, "I have recognized you, O Sauda!" He ('Umar) said so as he was anxious for some Divine orders regarding the veil (the veiling of women.) So Allah revealed the Verse of veiling. (Al-Hijab; a complete body cover excluding the eyes). (See Hadith No. 148, Vol. 1) }}

{{quote| {{Muslim|26|5397}}|'A'isha reported that the wives of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) used to go out in the cover of night when they went to open fields (in the outskirts of Medina) for easing themselves. 'Umar b Khattab used to say: Allah's Messenger, ask your ladies to observe veil, but Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) did not do that. So there went out Sauda, daughter of Zarn'a, the wife of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him), during one of the nights when it was dark. She was a tall statured lady. 'Umar called her saying: Sauda, we recognise you. (He did this with the hope that the verses pertaining to veil would be revealed.) 'A'isha said: Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, then revealed the verses pertaining to veil. }}

====Allah agrees with Umar====
{{Main|Convenient Revelations}}
Following the incident with Sauda and a number of other incidents where Umar had directly preceded revelation in his recommendations to Muhammad, Muhammad proclaimed that Allah had come, on multiple occasions, to agree with Umar.{{quote | {{Bukhari|6|60|10}}|Narrated Anas:

Umar said, "I agreed with Allah in three things," or said, "My Lord agreed with me in three things. I said, 'O Allah's Apostle! Would that you took the station of Abraham as a place of prayer.' I also said, 'O Allah's Apostle! Good and bad persons visit you! Would that you ordered the Mothers of the believers to cover themselves with veils.' So the Divine Verses of Al-Hijab (i.e. veiling of the women) were revealed. I came to know that the Prophet had blamed some of his wives so I entered upon them and said, 'You should either stop (troubling the Prophet ) or else Allah will give His Apostle better wives than you.' When I came to one of his wives, she said to me, 'O 'Umar! Does Allah's Apostle haven't what he could advise his wives with, that you try to advise them?' " Thereupon Allah revealed:--
"It may be, if he divorced you (all) his Lord will give him instead of you, wives better than you Muslims (who submit to Allah).." (66.5) }}

{{quote |{{Bukhari|6|60|313}} ( {{external link|url=https://sunnah.com/bukhari:4790|title=sunnah.com/bukhari:4790|publisher= |author= |date= |archiveurl= |deadurl=no}} ) | Narrated Umar:

I said, "O Allah's Apostle! Good and bad persons enter upon you, so I suggest that you order the mothers of the Believers (i.e. your wives) to observe veils." Then Allah revealed the Verses of Al-Hijab. }}

{{quote | {{Muslim|31|5903}}| Ibn Umar reported Umar as saying: My lord concorded with (my judgments) on three occasions. In case of the Station of Ibrahim, in case of the observance of veil and in case of the prisoners of Badr.}}

====Umar ups the ante====
After Umar's wish of having Muslim women veiled was fulfilled, he set his sights on having the clothing requirements increased to the point of making the women completely unrecognizable. To this end, he again spied on Sauda as she had gone out to relieve herself, this time notifying her that because she was a distinctively "fat huge lady", the newly-obligated veil did not suffice in obscuring her identity. Embarrassed yet again, Sauda returned home to inform Muhammad. Then feasting on a piece of meat and apparently disturbed by the interruption, Muhammad immediately received revelation from God alerting Sauda that Umar's demands would not this time be met. Accordingly, Sauda was informed that she would be allowed to relieve herself outdoors in spite of Umar's harassment.{{quote |{{Bukhari|6|60|318}}|Narrated Aisha:

Sauda (the wife of the Prophet) went out to answer the call of nature after it was made obligatory (for all the Muslims ladies) to observe the veil. She was a fat huge lady, and everybody who knew her before could recognize her. So 'Umar bin Al-Khattab saw her and said, "O Sauda! By Allah, you cannot hide yourself from us, so think of a way by which you should not be recognized on going out. Sauda returned while Allah's Apostle was in my house taking his supper and a bone covered with meat was in his hand. She entered and said, "O Allah's Apostle! I went out to answer the call of nature and 'Umar said to me so-and-so." Then Allah inspired him (the Prophet) and when the state of inspiration was over and the bone was still in his hand as he had not put in down, he said (to Sauda), "You (women) have been allowed to go out for your needs."}}

{{quote | {{Muslim|26|5395}}| A'isha reported that Sauda (Allah be pleased with her) went out (in the fields) in order to answer the call of nature even after the time when veil had been prescribed for women. She had been a bulky lady, significant in height amongst the women, and she could not conceal herself from him who had known her. 'Umar b. Khattab saw her and said: Sauda, by Allah, you cannot conceal from us. Therefore, be careful when you go out. She ('A'isha) said: She turned back. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) was at that time in my house having his evening meal and there was a bone in his hand. She (Sauda) cline and said: Allah's Messenger. I went out and 'Umar said to me so and so. She ('A'isha) reported: There came the revelation to him and then it was over; the bone was then in his hand and he had not thrown it and he said: "Permission has been granted to you that you may go out for your needs."}}

==Reasoning on the hijab==
[[File:Hijab propaganda billboard.jpg|thumb|Billboard in Tehran reading "hijab is security"]]
===Protection of chastity and against assault===
While Islamic legal scholars are assiduous in pointing out that Islamic laws, being direct orders from God, need not provide practical benefit to merit fulfillment, most today hold that the practical reasoning behind the obligation of the hijab is that it protects women from sexual assault by suppressing their attractiveness and serves to help them guard their own chastity. The following hadith account is often referenced in this vein of reasoning.

{{quote |{{Muslim|26|5416}}|'Abd bin Hamid reported from 'Abd Ar-Rizaaq reported from Ma'amar, reported from Az-Zuhri, from 'Urwa, from 'A'isha that a eunuch used to come to the wives of Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) and they did not count him as a male with sexual desire. Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) one day came as he was sitting with some of his women and he was busy in describing the bodily characteristics of a lady and saying: when she approaches you it is with four (folds of fat) and if she goes away from is it with eight (folds of fat). Thereupon Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) said: Do I not see that this one knows what, behold, is here, the women ought not to be exposed like this. She (" A'isha) said: Then they began to wear hijab around him (the eunuch)[sic]}}{{quote |{{Abudawud|32|4095}}|Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin:

A mukhannath (eunuch) used to enter upon the wives of Prophet (peace be upon him). They (the people) counted him among those who were free of sexual desires. One day the Prophet (peace be upon him) entered upon us when he was with one of his wives, and was describing the qualities of a woman, saying: When she comes forward, she comes forward with four (folds in her stomach), and when she goes backward, she goes backward with eight (folds in her stomach). The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: Do I not see that this (man) knows what here lies. Then they (the wives) observed veil from him. }}
====Traditional counter-perspectives and modern criticisms====

While modern scholars have inclined precipitously toward the rationale of chastity and assault protection, most probably due to its appealing to some form of practical reasoning, the traditional understanding and the understanding most straightforwardly found in the Islamic scriptures themselves appears to be that the hjiab serves to obscure the public identity of women to some extent and to prevent men from observing their physique. One criticism that has been presented against the above interpretation of the account regarding the eunuch found in the hadiths is that if Muhammad's concern had been the chastity and protection of the women from assault, then whether or not they wore the hijab in the presence of eunuch should not have made a difference. A eunuch, after all, could not pose any threat to the women's chastity or safety. The reason Muhammad did give in the hadiths is that he did not want the eunuch to observe the women. This, rather than the protection of women as such, appears to better fit both the legal requirements of the hijab and narratives presented in Islamic scriptures.

A more poignant criticism presented by critics, however, has been that if the hijab seeks to protect women from sexual assault, it wholly fails to serve this purpose. Islamic countries where the overwhelming majorities of women observe the hijab have been found to have some of the highest rates of women experiencing all manner of sexual harassment. In Egypt, for instance, women and young girls are harassed 7 times every 200 meters<ref>[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.ghanamedianews.com/us/sports/item/1072-egypt’s-ncw-chief-says-women-harassed-7-times-every-200-meters.html|2=2012-12-31}} Egypt’s NCW chief says women harassed 7 times every 200 meters] - GhanaMed, September 6, 2012</ref><ref>Manar Ammar - [{{Reference archive|1=http://www.bikyamasr.com/77158/sexual-harassment-and-pedophilia-await-egyptian-girls-outside-schools/|2=2012-09-14}} Sexual harassment awaits Egyptian girls outside schools] - Bikya Masr, September 10, 2012</ref> and in Saudi Arabia, where the observance of hijab is strictly enforced throughout the country, women experience one of the highest rates of [[Rape in Islamic Law|rape]] in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://womanstats.wordpress.com/2013/01/16/the-high-rape-scale-in-saudi-arabia/|title= The High Rape-Scale in Saudi Arabia|publisher= WomanStats Project (blog)|author= |date= January 16, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwomanstats.wordpress.com%2F2013%2F01%2F16%2Fthe-high-rape-scale-in-saudi-arabia%2F&date=2013-07-13|deadurl=no}}</ref>

==Types of veiling==

===Physical barriers===
Another type of veiling, also referred to in Arabic as ''hijab'', is that effected through physical barriers. While Islamic legal schools disagree about the requirement and use of physical barriers in addition to hijab as matter of personal clothing, the use of physical barriers is the rule rather than the exception in much of the Islamic world and even make frequent appearance in Western diasporic settings.

====At home====
In addition to the generic employment of physical barriers wherever both men and women are present, there is the more specific practice of the "household hijab". The idea of separating male and female visitors at one's home is inspired by hadith accounts which describe this practice in Muhammad's household as well as a Quranic allusion thereto. According to the hadiths, the separate revelation regarding the household hijab was also situationally inspired. Here, the story is that Muhammad had visitors and was bothered to find them lingering to chat with his wives after they had dinner.

{{quote |{{Bukhari|6|60|314}}; see also {{Bukhari|6|60|315}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:

When Allah's Apostle married Zainab bint Jahsh, he invited the people to a meal. They took the meal and remained sitting and talking. Then the Prophet (showed them) as if he is ready to get up, yet they did not get up. When he noticed that (there was no response to his movement), he got up, and the others too, got up except three persons who kept on sitting. The Prophet came back in order to enter his house, but he went away again. Then they left, whereupon I set out and went to the Prophet to tell him that they had departed, so he came and entered his house. '''I wanted to enter along with him, but he put a screen between me and him. Then Allah revealed: '''
''''O you who believe! Do not enter the houses of the Prophet...' (33.53)''' }}

{{quote |{{Bukhari|6|60|316}}; see also {{Bukhari|6|60|317}} & {{Bukhari|7|62|95}}|Narrated Anas:

A banquet of bread and meat was held on the occasion of the marriage of the Prophet to Zainab bint Jahsh. I was sent to invite the people (to the banquet), and so the people started coming (in groups); They would eat and then leave. Another batch would come, eat and leave. So I kept on inviting the people till I found nobody to invite. Then I said, "O Allah's Prophet! I do not find anybody to invite." He said, "Carry away the remaining food." Then a batch of three persons stayed in the house chatting. The Prophet left and went towards the dwelling place of Aisha and said, "Peace and Allah's Mercy be on you, O the people of the house!" She replied, "Peace and the mercy of Allah be on you too. How did you find your wife? May Allah bless you. Then he went to the dwelling places of all his other wives and said to them the same as he said to Aisha and they said to him the same as Aisha had said to him. Then the Prophet returned and found a group of three persons still in the house chatting. The Prophet was a very shy person, '''so he went out (for the second time) and went towards the dwelling place of 'Aisha. I do not remember whether I informed him that the people have gone away. So he returned and as soon as he entered the gate, he drew the curtain between me and him, and then the Verse of Al-Hijab was revealed.''' }}

{{quote | {{Bukhari|8|74|255}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:

that he was a boy of ten at the time when the Prophet emigrated to Medina. He added: I served Allah's Apostle for ten years (the last part of his life time) and I know more than the people about the occasion whereupon the order of Al-Hijab was revealed (to the Prophet). Ubai b n Ka'b used to ask me about it. It was revealed (for the first time) during the marriage of Allah's Apostle with Zainab bint Jahsh. In the morning, the Prophet was a bride-groom of her and he Invited the people, who took their meals and went away, but a group of them remained with Allah's Apostle and they prolonged their stay. Allah's Apostle got up and went out, and I too, went out along with him till he came to the lintel of 'Aisha's dwelling place. Allah's Apostle thought that those people had left by then, so he returned, and I too, returned with him till he entered upon Zainab and found that they were still sitting there and had not yet gone. The Prophet went out again, and so did I with him till he reached the lintel of 'Aisha's dwelling place, and then he thought that those people must have left by then, so he returned, and so did I with him, and found those people had gone.''' At that time the Divine Verse of Al-Hijab was revealed, and the Prophet set a screen between me and him (his family).''' }}

==See also==

*[[Convenient Revelations]]

==External links==

*[https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2016/04/13/why-dress-codes-cant-stop-sexual-assault/ Why dress codes can’t stop sexual assault] - Washington Post

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Women]]
[[Category:Shariah (Islamic Law)]]
[[Category:Hijab]]
[[Category:Honor violence]]
[[Category:Criticism of Islam]]
[[Category:Human rights]]

'Iddah (Female Menstrual Waiting Period)

2022-03-25T18:15:30Z

Vixen: /* Why no waiting period in name of "mourning" for the captive/slave women? */

In Islamic [[Sharia]], '<nowiki/>''iddah'' or '''iddat'' (Arabic: العدة‎; ''period (of waiting)''), also spelled ''iddah'', ''idda'', or ''iddat'', is the period a woman must observe after the death of her husband or after a divorce, during which she has to face numbers of restrictions<ref name="Esposito2004">{{cite book | editor = John L. Esposito | date = 21 October 2004 | title = The Oxford Dictionary of Islam | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 131 | isbn = 978-0-19-975726-8 | oclc = 286438886 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=E324pQEEQQcC}}</ref>.

The 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby)
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. (On paper; in actuality she would not get the attention, love, or support and emotional help from any man for 6 menstrual cycles. The first 3 menstrual cycles are the process of Divorce, during which time she cannot not leave the husband's house, and her husband cannot touch her. And after the divorce, again she has to endure another "waiting period" of 3 more menstrual cycles with many restrictions. She practically has to stay under these strict restrictions for about 6 months).

Muslim scholars defend these restrictions upon the women in 'Iddah. They claim that rulings of 'Iddah could neither be abolished, nor could they be changed as the rulings of the [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)| Islamic Sharia]] are based upon wisdom, justice and the best interests of the women, and they protect the women against the gender oppression and misogyny, while the man made laws of the modern Western world lead to the sexual exploitation of the women<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/39286 Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website: Is it correct to think that fatwas may vary according to time and place?] </ref><ref>[https://yaqeeninstitute.org/read/paper/women-in-islamic-law-examining-five-prevalent-myths Women in Islamic Law: Examining Five Prevalent Myths]</ref>. Yet in point of fact women are forced to unilaterally face these restrictions, which make their life difficult, while the husbands don't have to face any restriction. The basis of these restrictions, the need to be sure of fatherhood, has been rendered obsolete by modern science. In addition, these restrictions are not found anywhere in the bible or Judeo-Christian tradition. Their antecedents seem rather to be pre-Islamic Arab culture (which is known as "Time of Ignorance (i.e. jāhiliyyah)"<ref>[https://www.al-islam.org/man-and-ignorance/what-does-jahiliyah-mean What does Jahiliyah mean?]</ref>.
==The different lengths of the waiting periods and their reasons==
The length of 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A prisoner/slave woman''': The waiting period is becoming free from the blood of the first menstrual cycle<ref name=":3">[https://web.archive.org/web/20201219104233/https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book33.html 'Idda, Istibra' and Maintenance]</ref>. The reason is to determine the PARENTAGE of the child. Islam considers first menstrual cycle as enough to determine if a woman is pregnant or not.
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. The reason is to give time to the couple to solve their dispute during this period<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0">[https://brill.com/view/book/9789047426202/Bej.9789004172739.i-227_018.xml Reason for the waiting period]</ref>.
*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days. The reason is to give time to the woman to MOURN the death of her husband<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0" />.
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby). The reason is to prevent that another man (as 2nd husband) could "water" the fetus from the previous husband<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://quranx.com/Hadith/AbuDawud/DarusSalam/Hadith-2158/ Sunnan Abu Dawud, Hadith 2158]</ref>.

==Restrictions upon the woman during her 'Iddah:==

Islamic 'Iddah not only prohibits the women from remarriage with another man, but it also puts other restrictions upon them.

===First Restriction: She has to undergo the 'Iddah even without any 'maintenance' money===
According to the traditional rulings of Shari'ah, after the death and divorce of a woman's husband she is not entitled to any support from his family or estate. As the Dar-ul-Ifta says:{{Quote|[https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Dar-ul-Ifta]|The '''maintenance and providing of shelter for a woman observing the Iddat of Death are not the responsibility of her in-laws. She also does not have the right to take her maintenance out of the Estate of her deceased husband.'''}}A woman has no choice but to compulsorily undergo the 'Iddah of period of 4 months and 10 days (or up to 9 months in case of pregnancy), yet she has no right for maintenance money from the estate of her husband for this long period of time, and this in traditional cultures where women often rely upon men for their sustenance. In such cultures this stricture would be a huge financial burden upon the women, who often did not and do not even have any source of income.

===Second Restriction: She has to stay in the house of her ex-Husband during the entirety of the ‘Iddah===
According to the ruling of traditional Islamic Sharia'h, if a woman's husband dies then she is allowed to stay ''only'' in the house of her husband during this whole period of 'Iddah. She is not allowed to spend this time of 'Iddah in any other place (like house of her parents or any other family members).<ref>Fatwas Website Islamqa.Org. [https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ Laws of Iddat].</ref><ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/10670/what-a-recently-widowed-woman-is-not-allowed-to-do Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website]</ref> Sunan Abu Dawud bears witness to this custom, and further clarifies that her need for financial support is not to be taken into consideration:
====The woman has to stay in the husband’s house, even if it doesn’t belong to her husband, or even if he hasn’t left any maintenance money for the wife====
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2293|hasan}}|Furay'ah said that she came to the Messenger of Allah and asked him whether she could return to her people, Banu Khidrah, for her husband went out seeking his slaves who ran away. When they met him at al-Qudum, they murdered him.

So I asked the Messenger of Allah: "Should I return to my people, '''for he did not leave any dwelling house of his own and maintenance for me'''?

She said: The Messenger of Allah replied: Yes. She said: I came out, and when I was in the apartment or in the mosque, he called for me, or he commanded (someone to call me) and, therefore, I was called.

He said: what did you say? So I repeated my story which I had already mentioned about my husband.

'''Thereupon he said: Stay in your house till the term (of four months and 10 days) lapses.'''

She said: So I passed my waiting period in it (her house) for four months and ten days. When Uthman ibn Affan became caliph, he sent for me and asked me about that; so I informed him, '''and he followed it and decided cases accordingly'''.}}

Although this clearly serves the purpose of insuring that the next man who marries her does not inherit a son from the previous marriage or another man she had relations with during her 'Iddah, the wellbeing of the woman here is not considered at all; her need to either work to support herself or be with her own family for succor and support is not taken into account at all, and neither is her freedom of movement and intention.

===Third Restriction: The Woman should not leave the house even for daily walks, or visit the relatives or attend any social gathering===
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20211014113704/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45453/visiting-relatives-in-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]|'''Question''': Is a woman allowed to visit family members like her parents or sisters if she is observing iddat and use the excuse that she will be with her family so she doesn’t see the problem?
'''Answer''': A woman who has been divorced is not allowed to leave the confines of her home during the iddat for whatever reason, '''be it to visit friends or relatives or to attend the funeral of even her parents'''.}}
Many Islamic fatawa (religious rulings) decree that Muslim women observing their 'iddah must not leave their (husband's) house even for a walk and certainly not for any type of social gathering ([https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114224/https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/349861/woman-in-iddah-may-go-out-for-need Fatwa 1], [https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114300/https://idealwoman.org/2021/can-a-woman-go-out-for-a-walk-during-iddat/ Fatwa 2]). Although this makes sense from the perspective of insuring that her next husband does not inherit the baby of a man she had relations with during her 'iddah and that any pregnancy which comes about in the 'iddah can only be the work of her husband, it completely disregards her human rights. No consideration is given for the women's freedom of movement, freedom of choice, social or relationship needs.

===Fourth Restriction: The woman should not even use collyrium/kohl on her eyes even for eye disease, since it beautifies her===
Although a woman is allowed to take medical care during her ‘iddah, still she should not use collyrium/kohl as a cure even against any eye disease, since this substance can be used as a form of makeup to beautifie her.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari||68|81|in-book}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said, "No."}}

===Fifth Restriction: Women are not allowed to use good clothes, jewelry, perfume, Henna and to comb their hair or to oil it===
Women observing their 'Iddah are not allowed to wear good clothes, or jewelry, or use perfume or Henna. Even combing their hair and applying the oil to it is forbidden<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]</ref>. Washing the face with aloe is also forbidden.
{{Quote|[https://sunnah.com/mishkat:3333 Mishkat al-Masabih 3333]|Umm Salama said: God’s Messenger came to visit me when Abu Salama died, and I had put the juice of aloes on myself. He asked me what it was, and I told him it was only the juice of aloes and contained no perfume, so he said, “It gives the face a glow, so apply it only at night and remove it in the daytime, and do not comb yourself with scent or henna, for it is a dye.” I asked God’s Messenger what I should use when combing myself, and he told me to use lote-tree leaves and smear my head copiously with them. Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani declared this Hadith to be FAIR (حسن) (link).}}Although these strictures again work to keep the woman from having any intercourse or attracting any male attention during her 'iddah by keeping herself (relatively) unattractive, these laws once again completely disregard the happiness and freedom of the woman to whom they are applied. They also seem excessively harsh, as if she is truly keeping herself confined to her house the question arises as to who would see her with all of this makeup on even if she did apply it.

==Pre-Islamic Influences on the Concept of ‘Iddah==
According to the following hadith, the concept of 'iddah was taken from pre-Islamic Arabian culture:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||5336|darussalam}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said,''' "No." Then Allah's Messenger added, "It is just a matter of four months and ten days. In the Pre-Islamic Period of ignorance a widow among you should throw a globe of dung when one year has elapsed (i.e. she had to stay in ‘Iddah for the whole one year)." '''}}Apparently women even at the time the hadith was created were complaining of the burdens of the 'iddah, but the hadith admonishes them that they ought to be thankful for Islam, since in the jahiliyyah (the pre-islamic time of "ignorance" before the coming of Islam in the Arab peninsula) the 'iddah lasted a whole year. That there were complaints, though, can be seen from the existence of the hadith in the first place, so even in the time of this hadith women were not happy with them; by comparison, modern secular culture imposes no such restrictions on women at all.

==Waiting period for the captive/slave-women==
The waiting period of captive/slave-women is as follows:

*If she is a virgin girl, then no waiting period is necessary, and the Muslim owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
*If she's married and has a husband, then the waiting period is to become free of the first menstrual blood. Even if this blood stopped the first night after the capture/purchase, the owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
{{Quote|{{Abudawud|11|2153}}|(Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said): ... it is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the Last Day to have intercourse with a captive woman till she is free from a menstrual course (i.e. her first menstrual blood).}}
Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd (who is also knows as younger Imam Malik), writes in his Fiqh book Risalah:
{{Quote|[http://web.archive.org/web/20160117184347/http://www.dhspriory.org/kenny/RISALA.htm Risalah by Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd]|واستبراء الامة في انتقال الملك حيضة انتقل الملك ببيع أو هبة أو سبي أو غير ذلك. ومن هي في حيازته قدحاضت عنده ثم إنه اشتراها فلا استبراء عليها إن لم تكن تخرج.
The istibrā' (waiting) period for a slave concubine who changes ownership is one menstruation. Ownership may change by selling, giving away, capture, or any other way. If the woman menstruates after being taken possession of in advance by her new owner, and then he buys her, she does not have to go through a period of istibrā' (i.e. waiting period).}}
Even if the first menstrual blood stops the first night after becoming captive/purchase, the Muslim owner is allowed to have sex with her the same night.

Saffiyyah (a Jewish captive woman) became free of her blood the next night after her father, brother and husband were killed in the war by Muslims. Thus Muhammad had sex with her the next night
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||4211|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:

We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, (then) the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet (ﷺ) selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba, (which is 14 miles away from Khaibar)' Safiya became clean from her menses then Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) married her.}}

==Criticism of the Islamic 'Iddah==

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a widow===
Some Islamic du'aah, shaykhs, and ulemaa' argue that the reason for the 4 month and 10 days long 'iddah of a widow is to ''''mourn'''<nowiki/>' the death of the husband.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Reason for 4 months 10 days long Iddah of a widow [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/88684/rights-of-a-deceased-husband-on-his-wife]</ref> Yet it should be noted that there is no obligation of any “mourning” upon a man if the wife dies. There is a clear a double standard vis-a-vis the same situation involving a man and a woman, as the husband is totally free to marry a new wife the same night, without any waiting period in name of "mourning." He's also totally free to have sex with his other wives and dozens of slave girls the same night as his divorce, and there is no restriction upon him in name of "mourning."

Moreover, the 'iddah is even incumbent upon the widow in cases where she has never seen her husband after the marriage, and in cases where the marriage has not been consummated, and even if she is a minor child, or even if the marriage was abusive <ref>Widow has to observe 'Iddah even if she never saw the husband after the marriage, or even if she is a small child. [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/145179/the-waiting-period-of-an-old-woman-after-the-death-of-her-husband]</ref>. ''In all such cases, a widow has no emotional connection with the deceased husband, but still she has to undergo the restrictions of 'Iddah in name of mourning''. As such, feminist critics of the institution of the 'iddah have decried it as misogynist.

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a pregnant woman===
According to the Quran, the 'iddah of a pregnant woman is till the birth of a child ([https://quranx.com/65.4 Quran 65:4]).

Muhammad in the hadith of Sunan Abu Dawud justifies the practice in this manner:
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2158|darussalam}}|رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ يَوْمَ حُنَيْنٍ قَالَ ‏"‏ لاَ يَحِلُّ لاِمْرِئٍ يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ أَنْ يَسْقِيَ مَاءَهُ زَرْعَ غَيْرِهِ ‏"

The Messenger of Allah said: It is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the last day '''to water what another has sown with his water (meaning intercourse with a woman who is pregnant from her previous husband).'''}}
This prohibition seems to imply some impurification of the fetus by the seed of the second man, but scientifically once the woman has been impregnated this is impossible, the DNA of the baby will not be affected by any other semen in the woman's body. This hadith thus seems to present an unscientific view of human gestation. Moreover, the man is under all circumstances able to take sexual pleasure from any other wife or sex slave that he possess immediately after the end of his marital bond, but it is only the woman who is not allowed to fulfil her natural need to have love and sex from any man.

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that a pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband till the delivery====
A pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|If a woman is pregnant and her husband divorces her, she will have to remain in that house until she delivers her child.}}
This ruling is criticized while a woman is alone in the house of her ex-husband, and she has to observe Purdah (Hijab) from him too<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Staying in the house of ex-husband, but also doing Purdah (Hijab) from him.] </ref>. Living under one roof with the ex-husband is a cause of mental torture for a woman.

As compared to the house of ex-husband, she could find a lot of love in house of her parents or relatives and live freely there and deliver the child in the comfort of her family.

===Criticism of 'Iddah in case of divorce===
There are 2 procedures of giving the Triple Talaq in traditional Sunni Islam<ref name=":1">[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/2373/giving-talaaq-divorce-three-times-at-once-is-bidah 3 Talaqs in one sitting and the Quranic way of giving divorce]</ref><ref name=":2">[https://tripakshalitigation.com/types-of-talaq-under-muslim-law/ Types of Talaqs under the Muslim Law]</ref>:

*Either the husband may pronounce the 3 Talaqs (repeating the word for "divorce" in Arabic, "talaq talaq talaq") in one sitting (known as Talaq al-Bidah).
*Or husband gives each divorce after one menstrual cycle without touching her (known as Talaq al-Sunnah). This means, the process of 3 Talaqs takes 3 menstrual cycles.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Bidah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in one sitting):====
In the first case of triple Talaqs in one sitting, a woman has to go the restrictions of 'Iddah for 3 menstrual cycles before remarrying another man. But this ruling is criticized, while the parentage of the child could be determined only after the first menstrual cycle (as in case of the captive/slave woman). Therefore, logically the 'Iddah should be only one menstrual cycle long if this idea were to be followed to its logical conclusion<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20220113121219/https://atheism-vs-islam.com/index.php/women/94-iddah-i-e-waiting-period-is-illogical-unnecessary-oppressive-injustice-against-the-women Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles in case of 3 Talaqs in one sitting]</ref>. There is no chance of reconciliation between the couple after the 3 Talaqs.

Moreover, it is also claimed that in the present modern era, it is not necessary to wait even for one menstrual cycle, as the pregnancy could be determined right away through the medical tests.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Sunnah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in 3 different sittings)====
In case of Talaq al-Sunnah, '''the process of divorce''' itself takes the time of 3 menstrual cycles, during which husband is not allowed to touch the woman<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />. Therefore, this process of divorce (which is 3 menstrual cycles long) is itself enough to make sure if the woman is pregnant or not (as the husband has not touched her during this period).

Yet according to the traditional Sunni Islam, a woman has to undergo 3 more menstrual cycles of 'Iddah (i.e. The whole process of Divorce + ‘Iddah lasts for at least 6 menstrual cycles for a divorced woman).
{{Quote|[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/12667/the-iddah-of-a-woman-divorced-by-talaaq The ‘iddah of a woman divorced by talaaq]|If the woman is not pregnant and she menstruates (is of child-bearing age), then her ‘iddah is three complete menstrual cycles after the divorce, i.e., her period comes then she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure. That is three complete menstrual cycles, regardless of whether the time between them is long or short. Based on this, if he divorces her and she is breastfeeding and does not menstruate until two years later, then she remains in ‘iddah until she has had three menstrual cycles, so she may stay in this state for two years or more. The point is that she should go through three complete menstrual cycles whether the time involved is long or short, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And divorced women shall wait (as regards their marriage) for three menstrual periods”

[al-Baqarah 2:228]}}

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that in case of Divorce too, woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband during the period of 'Iddah====
Not only does the widow have to compulsorily stay in the house of her deceased husband during 'Iddah, but in case of divorce too, the woman is forced by these laws stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|When the husband divorces his wife, she will have to spend her Iddat in the matrimonial home. She must not leave the house during the day nor at night, nor can she make nikah with anyone else ... This rule will apply irrespective of whether the man issued one two or three divorces, and irrespective of whether he issued a talaaqul baa-in (irrevocable divorce) or a talaaq-ur-raj’ee (revocable Talaaq). The same rule will apply in all cases ... If she is observing her ‘Iddat in the same house wherein the man who issued a talaaqul baain to her is also living, she will have to observe strict Purdah (Hijab) with him.}}
The critics of this ruling point out that after the irrevocable triple talaq (either in one sitting or three different sittings), no reconciliation is possible (except that she marries another man and he also divorces her), which begs the question of why an 'iddah is even necessary in today's world with genetic parental testing.

===Implantation Bleeding Despite Being pregnant===
Islamic du'aah and shaikhs claim that the Islamic 'Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles is correct, while some women have implantation bleeding despite being pregnant, and it is difficult for a woman to differentiate between the periods and the [https://www.healthline.com/health/how-long-does-spotting-last#implantation-spotting implantation bleeding]. Yet despite this rule, traditional Islamic law itself stipulates an 'Iddah of a prisoner/slave woman as only one menstrual cycle, in contradiction to this idea. If parentage were the main issue, the status of the woman (free or slave) should not matter. Also the 'Iddah of a free Muslim woman in the case of [[Khul']] is only one period.<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/5163/does-iddah-apply-in-the-case-of-khula 'Iddah in Khul' is one menstrual period]</ref> Even Muhammad himself slept with [[Safiyah]] the same night when her first menstrual blood stopped, after he had murdered her previous husband. Note that Safiyyah was not a slave, but a free woman when Muhammad took her as a wife: {{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3325}}|He (the Holy Prophet) then granted Saffiyyah emancipation and married her. Thabit said to him: Abu Hamza, how much dower did he (the Holy Prophet) give to her? He said: He granted her freedom and then married her. On the way Umm Sulaim embellished her and then sent her to him (the Holy Prophet) at night.}}{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||2893|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik: We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba,' '''Safiya became clean from her (first) menses then Allah's Apostle took her into his bed.'''}}

There is no Sahih Hadith of the prophet in which he ever mentions the 'Iddah of 3 periods due to any implantation bleeding. Muhammad adopted the practice of 'Iddah from his native Arabian culture. It is in response to modern conceptions of biology and ideals about women's rights that these arguments about parentage have been formulated. But Muslims will fail, as contradictions in Islam will then occur (like Muslims having sex with prisoner/slave women and while Muhammad had himself sex with Safiyyah after only the first menstrual cycle). They are not based on the actual source material but rather on a desire to make the source material acceptable to a modern audience.

===Why no waiting period in name of "mourning" for the captive/slave women?===
In spite of the aforementioned claims of concern for the well-being of women, according to traditional [[Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence)]] Muslim men are allowed to derive sexual pleasures from the virgin girls taken as war booty during Jihad without giving them any 'waiting period' to mourn their dead family members. As far as the non-virgin slaves taken as war booty are concerned, if they already have husbands, then vaginal coitus is not allowed till they become free of their first menstrual period, but the Muslim Mujhaahiduun (i.e. warriors) are allowed to undress them the same night and to take all kinds of other sexual pleasures and sexual favors from them aside from vaginal penetration.
{{Quote|1=[http://web.archive.org/save/http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfrom=4080&idto=4081&bk_no=52&ID=1404&idfrom=4523&idto=5022&bookid=18&startno=425 Imam Ibn Hajar al-Asqallani, in his book Fath-ul-Bari]|2=وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج

Translation:

Atta said: ‘There is no harm to drive sexual pleasure from the body of the pregnant slave/(or prisoner) woman except from vagina’}}
According to Islamic Scholars, the Fiqh (Jurisprudence) of Imam Bukhari lies in the “Headings of Chapters” of his Book. And Imam Bukhari gave this heading in his book Sahih Bukhari<ref>[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]</ref>:<blockquote>''Chapter: If one buys a slave woman, can he then take her along with him in a journey without her completing her waiting period?''</blockquote>Under this heading, Imam Bukhari writes:
{{Quote|1=[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]|2=ولم ير الحسن بأسا أن يقبلها أو يباشرها. وقال ابن عمر ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ إذا وهبت الوليدة التي توطأ أو بيعت أو عتقت فليستبرأ رحمها بحيضة، ولا تستبرأ العذراء. وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج.

Translation:

Hasan Basri finds nothing objectionable in kissing a woman or to having sex with her. And Ibn Umar said that such a slave woman who is given as a present, or who is sold, or who is made free, but sex had been done with her before that, then she had to undergo a waiting period. '''And Atta said if a slave woman had become pregnant (from the earlier owner/husband), then still pleasure could be derived from the whole of her body, except for her vagina.'''}}
The sorrow and pain of such women are recorded in Tabari:
{{Quote|1=[https://books.google.de/books?id=4A-4ZC4l0dMC&pg=PA122&lpg=PA122&dq=she+commanded+that+Safiyyah+should+be+kept+behind+him+and+that+the+Messenger+of+God+had+chosen+her+for+himself&source=bl&ots=pHDBKo-6Bv&sig=W8sWDq8ZJ4nLwFZpsA1obfYZJ48&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwizjuC41L7bAhVHXRQKHSEhD7EQ6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q=she%20commanded%20that%20Safiyyah%20should%20be%20kept%20behind%20him%20and%20that%20the%20Messenger%20of%20God%20had%20chosen%20her%20for%20himself&f=false History of Tabari, Volume 8, Page 112]|2=Ibn Ishaq said: After the Messenger of God conquered al-Qamus, Safiyyah bint Huyayy was brought to him, and another woman with her. Bilal (a companion), who was the one who brought them, led them past some of the slain Jews. When the woman who was with Safiyyah saw them, she cried out, struck her face, and poured dust on her head. When the Messenger of God saw her, he said, "Take this she-devil away from me!" ... The Messenger of God said to Bilal, when he saw the Jewish woman doing what he saw her do, "Are you devoid of mercy, Bilal, that you take two women past their slain men?"}}

The clear disregard for the well-being of women presents a conundrum for modern day advocates of these Islamic laws and traditions. On one hand, Islamic law advocates claim that a Muslim woman is not allowed to be wed during 3 periods/months long 'Iddah while she is mentally under stress after the divorce. Yet on the flip side of the coin, by endorsing a tradition with such endorsements of sexual slavery, they ignore any such mental stress for the prisoner women and girls. Far away from the subject of divorce, even after killing all the men of their family, Muslim men are allowed their use sex objects the very same night that their slavery begins. They are provided with no 'waiting period' to come out of their mental stress.

Contrary to Islam, even the laws of the Jewish Bible allowed the prisoner women to mourn their relatives for one complete month, during which men were not allowed to take any other sexual services from them.

{{Quote|1=[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2021&version=NIV Bible, Deuteronomy, Chap 21]|2=יכִּֽי־תֵצֵ֥א לַמִּלְחָמָ֖ה עַל־אֹֽיְבֶ֑יךָ וּנְתָנ֞וֹ יְהֹוָ֧ה אֱלֹהֶ֛יךָ בְּיָדֶ֖ךָ וְשָׁבִ֥יתָ שִׁבְיֽוֹ:

יאוְרָאִ֨יתָ֙ בַּשִּׁבְיָ֔ה אֵ֖שֶׁת יְפַת־תֹּ֑אַר וְחָֽשַׁקְתָּ֣ בָ֔הּ וְלָֽקַחְתָּ֥ לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

יבוַֽהֲבֵאתָ֖הּ אֶל־תּ֣וֹךְ בֵּיתֶ֑ךָ וְגִלְּחָה֙ אֶת־רֹאשָׁ֔הּ וְעָֽשְׂתָ֖ה אֶת־צִפָּֽרְנֶֽיהָ:

יגוְהֵסִ֩ירָה֩ אֶת־שִׂמְלַ֨ת שִׁבְיָ֜הּ מֵֽעָלֶ֗יהָ וְיָֽשְׁבָה֙ בְּבֵיתֶ֔ךָ וּבָֽכְתָ֛ה אֶת־אָבִ֥יהָ וְאֶת־אִמָּ֖הּ יֶ֣רַח יָמִ֑ים וְאַ֨חַר כֵּ֜ן תָּב֤וֹא אֵלֶ֨יהָ֙ וּבְעַלְתָּ֔הּ וְהָֽיְתָ֥ה לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

ידוְהָיָ֞ה אִם־לֹ֧א חָפַ֣צְתָּ בָּ֗הּ וְשִׁלַּחְתָּהּ֙ לְנַפְשָׁ֔הּ וּמָכֹ֥ר לֹֽא־תִמְכְּרֶ֖נָּה בַּכָּ֑סֶף לֹֽא־תִתְעַמֵּ֣ר בָּ֔הּ תַּ֖חַת אֲשֶׁ֥ר עִנִּיתָֽהּ:

'''Marrying a Captive Woman'''

(10) When you go to war against your enemies and the Lord your God delivers them into your hands and you take captives,

(11) if you notice among the captives a beautiful woman and are attracted to her, you may take her as your wife.

(12) Bring her into your home and have her shave her head, trim her nails

(13) and put aside the clothes she was wearing when captured. '''After she has lived in your house and mourned her father and mother for a full month''', then you may go to her and be her husband and she shall be your wife.

(14) If you are not pleased with her, let her go wherever she wishes. You must not sell her or treat her as a slave, since you have dishonored her.}}

In creating these new rulings around taking the sexual pleasure of female sex slaves, Islamic law rejected the law of the Bible in this case, and more closely followed the laws of the pagan Arab society of the time of Muhammad, as it benefitted the Muslims financially and they were free to seek sexual pleasures through the prisoner women the same night.

==References==
{{reflist}}

'Iddah (Female Menstrual Waiting Period)

2022-03-25T17:59:35Z

Vixen: /* Why no waiting period in name of "mourning" for the captive/slave women? */

In Islamic [[Sharia]], '<nowiki/>''iddah'' or '''iddat'' (Arabic: العدة‎; ''period (of waiting)''), also spelled ''iddah'', ''idda'', or ''iddat'', is the period a woman must observe after the death of her husband or after a divorce, during which she has to face numbers of restrictions<ref name="Esposito2004">{{cite book | editor = John L. Esposito | date = 21 October 2004 | title = The Oxford Dictionary of Islam | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 131 | isbn = 978-0-19-975726-8 | oclc = 286438886 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=E324pQEEQQcC}}</ref>.

The 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby)
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. (On paper; in actuality she would not get the attention, love, or support and emotional help from any man for 6 menstrual cycles. The first 3 menstrual cycles are the process of Divorce, during which time she cannot not leave the husband's house, and her husband cannot touch her. And after the divorce, again she has to endure another "waiting period" of 3 more menstrual cycles with many restrictions. She practically has to stay under these strict restrictions for about 6 months).

Muslim scholars defend these restrictions upon the women in 'Iddah. They claim that rulings of 'Iddah could neither be abolished, nor could they be changed as the rulings of the [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)| Islamic Sharia]] are based upon wisdom, justice and the best interests of the women, and they protect the women against the gender oppression and misogyny, while the man made laws of the modern Western world lead to the sexual exploitation of the women<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/39286 Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website: Is it correct to think that fatwas may vary according to time and place?] </ref><ref>[https://yaqeeninstitute.org/read/paper/women-in-islamic-law-examining-five-prevalent-myths Women in Islamic Law: Examining Five Prevalent Myths]</ref>. Yet in point of fact women are forced to unilaterally face these restrictions, which make their life difficult, while the husbands don't have to face any restriction. The basis of these restrictions, the need to be sure of fatherhood, has been rendered obsolete by modern science. In addition, these restrictions are not found anywhere in the bible or Judeo-Christian tradition. Their antecedents seem rather to be pre-Islamic Arab culture (which is known as "Time of Ignorance (i.e. jāhiliyyah)"<ref>[https://www.al-islam.org/man-and-ignorance/what-does-jahiliyah-mean What does Jahiliyah mean?]</ref>.
==The different lengths of the waiting periods and their reasons==
The length of 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A prisoner/slave woman''': The waiting period is becoming free from the blood of the first menstrual cycle<ref name=":3">[https://web.archive.org/web/20201219104233/https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book33.html 'Idda, Istibra' and Maintenance]</ref>. The reason is to determine the PARENTAGE of the child. Islam considers first menstrual cycle as enough to determine if a woman is pregnant or not.
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. The reason is to give time to the couple to solve their dispute during this period<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0">[https://brill.com/view/book/9789047426202/Bej.9789004172739.i-227_018.xml Reason for the waiting period]</ref>.
*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days. The reason is to give time to the woman to MOURN the death of her husband<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0" />.
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby). The reason is to prevent that another man (as 2nd husband) could "water" the fetus from the previous husband<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://quranx.com/Hadith/AbuDawud/DarusSalam/Hadith-2158/ Sunnan Abu Dawud, Hadith 2158]</ref>.

==Restrictions upon the woman during her 'Iddah:==

Islamic 'Iddah not only prohibits the women from remarriage with another man, but it also puts other restrictions upon them.

===First Restriction: She has to undergo the 'Iddah even without any 'maintenance' money===
According to the traditional rulings of Shari'ah, after the death and divorce of a woman's husband she is not entitled to any support from his family or estate. As the Dar-ul-Ifta says:{{Quote|[https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Dar-ul-Ifta]|The '''maintenance and providing of shelter for a woman observing the Iddat of Death are not the responsibility of her in-laws. She also does not have the right to take her maintenance out of the Estate of her deceased husband.'''}}A woman has no choice but to compulsorily undergo the 'Iddah of period of 4 months and 10 days (or up to 9 months in case of pregnancy), yet she has no right for maintenance money from the estate of her husband for this long period of time, and this in traditional cultures where women often rely upon men for their sustenance. In such cultures this stricture would be a huge financial burden upon the women, who often did not and do not even have any source of income.

===Second Restriction: She has to stay in the house of her ex-Husband during the entirety of the ‘Iddah===
According to the ruling of traditional Islamic Sharia'h, if a woman's husband dies then she is allowed to stay ''only'' in the house of her husband during this whole period of 'Iddah. She is not allowed to spend this time of 'Iddah in any other place (like house of her parents or any other family members).<ref>Fatwas Website Islamqa.Org. [https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ Laws of Iddat].</ref><ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/10670/what-a-recently-widowed-woman-is-not-allowed-to-do Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website]</ref> Sunan Abu Dawud bears witness to this custom, and further clarifies that her need for financial support is not to be taken into consideration:
====The woman has to stay in the husband’s house, even if it doesn’t belong to her husband, or even if he hasn’t left any maintenance money for the wife====
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2293|hasan}}|Furay'ah said that she came to the Messenger of Allah and asked him whether she could return to her people, Banu Khidrah, for her husband went out seeking his slaves who ran away. When they met him at al-Qudum, they murdered him.

So I asked the Messenger of Allah: "Should I return to my people, '''for he did not leave any dwelling house of his own and maintenance for me'''?

She said: The Messenger of Allah replied: Yes. She said: I came out, and when I was in the apartment or in the mosque, he called for me, or he commanded (someone to call me) and, therefore, I was called.

He said: what did you say? So I repeated my story which I had already mentioned about my husband.

'''Thereupon he said: Stay in your house till the term (of four months and 10 days) lapses.'''

She said: So I passed my waiting period in it (her house) for four months and ten days. When Uthman ibn Affan became caliph, he sent for me and asked me about that; so I informed him, '''and he followed it and decided cases accordingly'''.}}

Although this clearly serves the purpose of insuring that the next man who marries her does not inherit a son from the previous marriage or another man she had relations with during her 'Iddah, the wellbeing of the woman here is not considered at all; her need to either work to support herself or be with her own family for succor and support is not taken into account at all, and neither is her freedom of movement and intention.

===Third Restriction: The Woman should not leave the house even for daily walks, or visit the relatives or attend any social gathering===
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20211014113704/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45453/visiting-relatives-in-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]|'''Question''': Is a woman allowed to visit family members like her parents or sisters if she is observing iddat and use the excuse that she will be with her family so she doesn’t see the problem?
'''Answer''': A woman who has been divorced is not allowed to leave the confines of her home during the iddat for whatever reason, '''be it to visit friends or relatives or to attend the funeral of even her parents'''.}}
Many Islamic fatawa (religious rulings) decree that Muslim women observing their 'iddah must not leave their (husband's) house even for a walk and certainly not for any type of social gathering ([https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114224/https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/349861/woman-in-iddah-may-go-out-for-need Fatwa 1], [https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114300/https://idealwoman.org/2021/can-a-woman-go-out-for-a-walk-during-iddat/ Fatwa 2]). Although this makes sense from the perspective of insuring that her next husband does not inherit the baby of a man she had relations with during her 'iddah and that any pregnancy which comes about in the 'iddah can only be the work of her husband, it completely disregards her human rights. No consideration is given for the women's freedom of movement, freedom of choice, social or relationship needs.

===Fourth Restriction: The woman should not even use collyrium/kohl on her eyes even for eye disease, since it beautifies her===
Although a woman is allowed to take medical care during her ‘iddah, still she should not use collyrium/kohl as a cure even against any eye disease, since this substance can be used as a form of makeup to beautifie her.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari||68|81|in-book}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said, "No."}}

===Fifth Restriction: Women are not allowed to use good clothes, jewelry, perfume, Henna and to comb their hair or to oil it===
Women observing their 'Iddah are not allowed to wear good clothes, or jewelry, or use perfume or Henna. Even combing their hair and applying the oil to it is forbidden<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]</ref>. Washing the face with aloe is also forbidden.
{{Quote|[https://sunnah.com/mishkat:3333 Mishkat al-Masabih 3333]|Umm Salama said: God’s Messenger came to visit me when Abu Salama died, and I had put the juice of aloes on myself. He asked me what it was, and I told him it was only the juice of aloes and contained no perfume, so he said, “It gives the face a glow, so apply it only at night and remove it in the daytime, and do not comb yourself with scent or henna, for it is a dye.” I asked God’s Messenger what I should use when combing myself, and he told me to use lote-tree leaves and smear my head copiously with them. Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani declared this Hadith to be FAIR (حسن) (link).}}Although these strictures again work to keep the woman from having any intercourse or attracting any male attention during her 'iddah by keeping herself (relatively) unattractive, these laws once again completely disregard the happiness and freedom of the woman to whom they are applied. They also seem excessively harsh, as if she is truly keeping herself confined to her house the question arises as to who would see her with all of this makeup on even if she did apply it.

==Pre-Islamic Influences on the Concept of ‘Iddah==
According to the following hadith, the concept of 'iddah was taken from pre-Islamic Arabian culture:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||5336|darussalam}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said,''' "No." Then Allah's Messenger added, "It is just a matter of four months and ten days. In the Pre-Islamic Period of ignorance a widow among you should throw a globe of dung when one year has elapsed (i.e. she had to stay in ‘Iddah for the whole one year)." '''}}Apparently women even at the time the hadith was created were complaining of the burdens of the 'iddah, but the hadith admonishes them that they ought to be thankful for Islam, since in the jahiliyyah (the pre-islamic time of "ignorance" before the coming of Islam in the Arab peninsula) the 'iddah lasted a whole year. That there were complaints, though, can be seen from the existence of the hadith in the first place, so even in the time of this hadith women were not happy with them; by comparison, modern secular culture imposes no such restrictions on women at all.

==Waiting period for the captive/slave-women==
The waiting period of captive/slave-women is as follows:

*If she is a virgin girl, then no waiting period is necessary, and the Muslim owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
*If she's married and has a husband, then the waiting period is to become free of the first menstrual blood. Even if this blood stopped the first night after the capture/purchase, the owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
{{Quote|{{Abudawud|11|2153}}|(Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said): ... it is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the Last Day to have intercourse with a captive woman till she is free from a menstrual course (i.e. her first menstrual blood).}}
Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd (who is also knows as younger Imam Malik), writes in his Fiqh book Risalah:
{{Quote|[http://web.archive.org/web/20160117184347/http://www.dhspriory.org/kenny/RISALA.htm Risalah by Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd]|واستبراء الامة في انتقال الملك حيضة انتقل الملك ببيع أو هبة أو سبي أو غير ذلك. ومن هي في حيازته قدحاضت عنده ثم إنه اشتراها فلا استبراء عليها إن لم تكن تخرج.
The istibrā' (waiting) period for a slave concubine who changes ownership is one menstruation. Ownership may change by selling, giving away, capture, or any other way. If the woman menstruates after being taken possession of in advance by her new owner, and then he buys her, she does not have to go through a period of istibrā' (i.e. waiting period).}}
Even if the first menstrual blood stops the first night after becoming captive/purchase, the Muslim owner is allowed to have sex with her the same night.

Saffiyyah (a Jewish captive woman) became free of her blood the next night after her father, brother and husband were killed in the war by Muslims. Thus Muhammad had sex with her the next night
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||4211|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:

We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, (then) the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet (ﷺ) selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba, (which is 14 miles away from Khaibar)' Safiya became clean from her menses then Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) married her.}}

==Criticism of the Islamic 'Iddah==

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a widow===
Some Islamic du'aah, shaykhs, and ulemaa' argue that the reason for the 4 month and 10 days long 'iddah of a widow is to ''''mourn'''<nowiki/>' the death of the husband.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Reason for 4 months 10 days long Iddah of a widow [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/88684/rights-of-a-deceased-husband-on-his-wife]</ref> Yet it should be noted that there is no obligation of any “mourning” upon a man if the wife dies. There is a clear a double standard vis-a-vis the same situation involving a man and a woman, as the husband is totally free to marry a new wife the same night, without any waiting period in name of "mourning." He's also totally free to have sex with his other wives and dozens of slave girls the same night as his divorce, and there is no restriction upon him in name of "mourning."

Moreover, the 'iddah is even incumbent upon the widow in cases where she has never seen her husband after the marriage, and in cases where the marriage has not been consummated, and even if she is a minor child, or even if the marriage was abusive <ref>Widow has to observe 'Iddah even if she never saw the husband after the marriage, or even if she is a small child. [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/145179/the-waiting-period-of-an-old-woman-after-the-death-of-her-husband]</ref>. ''In all such cases, a widow has no emotional connection with the deceased husband, but still she has to undergo the restrictions of 'Iddah in name of mourning''. As such, feminist critics of the institution of the 'iddah have decried it as misogynist.

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a pregnant woman===
According to the Quran, the 'iddah of a pregnant woman is till the birth of a child ([https://quranx.com/65.4 Quran 65:4]).

Muhammad in the hadith of Sunan Abu Dawud justifies the practice in this manner:
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2158|darussalam}}|رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ يَوْمَ حُنَيْنٍ قَالَ ‏"‏ لاَ يَحِلُّ لاِمْرِئٍ يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ أَنْ يَسْقِيَ مَاءَهُ زَرْعَ غَيْرِهِ ‏"

The Messenger of Allah said: It is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the last day '''to water what another has sown with his water (meaning intercourse with a woman who is pregnant from her previous husband).'''}}
This prohibition seems to imply some impurification of the fetus by the seed of the second man, but scientifically once the woman has been impregnated this is impossible, the DNA of the baby will not be affected by any other semen in the woman's body. This hadith thus seems to present an unscientific view of human gestation. Moreover, the man is under all circumstances able to take sexual pleasure from any other wife or sex slave that he possess immediately after the end of his marital bond, but it is only the woman who is not allowed to fulfil her natural need to have love and sex from any man.

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that a pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband till the delivery====
A pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|If a woman is pregnant and her husband divorces her, she will have to remain in that house until she delivers her child.}}
This ruling is criticized while a woman is alone in the house of her ex-husband, and she has to observe Purdah (Hijab) from him too<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Staying in the house of ex-husband, but also doing Purdah (Hijab) from him.] </ref>. Living under one roof with the ex-husband is a cause of mental torture for a woman.

As compared to the house of ex-husband, she could find a lot of love in house of her parents or relatives and live freely there and deliver the child in the comfort of her family.

===Criticism of 'Iddah in case of divorce===
There are 2 procedures of giving the Triple Talaq in traditional Sunni Islam<ref name=":1">[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/2373/giving-talaaq-divorce-three-times-at-once-is-bidah 3 Talaqs in one sitting and the Quranic way of giving divorce]</ref><ref name=":2">[https://tripakshalitigation.com/types-of-talaq-under-muslim-law/ Types of Talaqs under the Muslim Law]</ref>:

*Either the husband may pronounce the 3 Talaqs (repeating the word for "divorce" in Arabic, "talaq talaq talaq") in one sitting (known as Talaq al-Bidah).
*Or husband gives each divorce after one menstrual cycle without touching her (known as Talaq al-Sunnah). This means, the process of 3 Talaqs takes 3 menstrual cycles.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Bidah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in one sitting):====
In the first case of triple Talaqs in one sitting, a woman has to go the restrictions of 'Iddah for 3 menstrual cycles before remarrying another man. But this ruling is criticized, while the parentage of the child could be determined only after the first menstrual cycle (as in case of the captive/slave woman). Therefore, logically the 'Iddah should be only one menstrual cycle long if this idea were to be followed to its logical conclusion<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20220113121219/https://atheism-vs-islam.com/index.php/women/94-iddah-i-e-waiting-period-is-illogical-unnecessary-oppressive-injustice-against-the-women Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles in case of 3 Talaqs in one sitting]</ref>. There is no chance of reconciliation between the couple after the 3 Talaqs.

Moreover, it is also claimed that in the present modern era, it is not necessary to wait even for one menstrual cycle, as the pregnancy could be determined right away through the medical tests.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Sunnah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in 3 different sittings)====
In case of Talaq al-Sunnah, '''the process of divorce''' itself takes the time of 3 menstrual cycles, during which husband is not allowed to touch the woman<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />. Therefore, this process of divorce (which is 3 menstrual cycles long) is itself enough to make sure if the woman is pregnant or not (as the husband has not touched her during this period).

Yet according to the traditional Sunni Islam, a woman has to undergo 3 more menstrual cycles of 'Iddah (i.e. The whole process of Divorce + ‘Iddah lasts for at least 6 menstrual cycles for a divorced woman).
{{Quote|[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/12667/the-iddah-of-a-woman-divorced-by-talaaq The ‘iddah of a woman divorced by talaaq]|If the woman is not pregnant and she menstruates (is of child-bearing age), then her ‘iddah is three complete menstrual cycles after the divorce, i.e., her period comes then she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure. That is three complete menstrual cycles, regardless of whether the time between them is long or short. Based on this, if he divorces her and she is breastfeeding and does not menstruate until two years later, then she remains in ‘iddah until she has had three menstrual cycles, so she may stay in this state for two years or more. The point is that she should go through three complete menstrual cycles whether the time involved is long or short, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And divorced women shall wait (as regards their marriage) for three menstrual periods”

[al-Baqarah 2:228]}}

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that in case of Divorce too, woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband during the period of 'Iddah====
Not only does the widow have to compulsorily stay in the house of her deceased husband during 'Iddah, but in case of divorce too, the woman is forced by these laws stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|When the husband divorces his wife, she will have to spend her Iddat in the matrimonial home. She must not leave the house during the day nor at night, nor can she make nikah with anyone else ... This rule will apply irrespective of whether the man issued one two or three divorces, and irrespective of whether he issued a talaaqul baa-in (irrevocable divorce) or a talaaq-ur-raj’ee (revocable Talaaq). The same rule will apply in all cases ... If she is observing her ‘Iddat in the same house wherein the man who issued a talaaqul baain to her is also living, she will have to observe strict Purdah (Hijab) with him.}}
The critics of this ruling point out that after the irrevocable triple talaq (either in one sitting or three different sittings), no reconciliation is possible (except that she marries another man and he also divorces her), which begs the question of why an 'iddah is even necessary in today's world with genetic parental testing.

===Implantation Bleeding Despite Being pregnant===
Islamic du'aah and shaikhs claim that the Islamic 'Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles is correct, while some women have implantation bleeding despite being pregnant, and it is difficult for a woman to differentiate between the periods and the [https://www.healthline.com/health/how-long-does-spotting-last#implantation-spotting implantation bleeding]. Yet despite this rule, traditional Islamic law itself stipulates an 'Iddah of a prisoner/slave woman as only one menstrual cycle, in contradiction to this idea. If parentage were the main issue, the status of the woman (free or slave) should not matter. Also the 'Iddah of a free Muslim woman in the case of [[Khul']] is only one period.<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/5163/does-iddah-apply-in-the-case-of-khula 'Iddah in Khul' is one menstrual period]</ref> Even Muhammad himself slept with [[Safiyah]] the same night when her first menstrual blood stopped, after he had murdered her previous husband. Note that Safiyyah was not a slave, but a free woman when Muhammad took her as a wife: {{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3325}}|He (the Holy Prophet) then granted Saffiyyah emancipation and married her. Thabit said to him: Abu Hamza, how much dower did he (the Holy Prophet) give to her? He said: He granted her freedom and then married her. On the way Umm Sulaim embellished her and then sent her to him (the Holy Prophet) at night.}}{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||2893|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik: We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba,' '''Safiya became clean from her (first) menses then Allah's Apostle took her into his bed.'''}}

There is no Sahih Hadith of the prophet in which he ever mentions the 'Iddah of 3 periods due to any implantation bleeding. Muhammad adopted the practice of 'Iddah from his native Arabian culture. It is in response to modern conceptions of biology and ideals about women's rights that these arguments about parentage have been formulated. But Muslims will fail, as contradictions in Islam will then occur (like Muslims having sex with prisoner/slave women and while Muhammad had himself sex with Safiyyah after only the first menstrual cycle). They are not based on the actual source material but rather on a desire to make the source material acceptable to a modern audience.

===Why no waiting period in name of "mourning" for the captive/slave women?===
In spite of the aforementioned claims of concern for the well-being of women, according to traditional [[Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence)]] Muslim men are allowed to derive sexual pleasures from the virgin girls taken as war booty during Jihad without giving them any 'waiting period' to mourn their dead family members. As far as the non-virgin slaves taken as war booty are concerned, if already have husbands, then vaginal coitus is not allowed till they become free of their first menstrual period, but the Muslim Mujhaahiduun (i.e. warriors) are allowed to undress them the same night and to take all kinds of other sexual pleasures and sexual favors from them aside from vaginal penetration.
{{Quote|1=[http://web.archive.org/save/http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfrom=4080&idto=4081&bk_no=52&ID=1404&idfrom=4523&idto=5022&bookid=18&startno=425 Imam Ibn Hajar al-Asqallani, in his book Fath-ul-Bari]|2=وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج

Translation:

Atta said: ‘There is no harm to drive sexual pleasure from the body of the pregnant slave/(or prisoner) woman except from vagina’}}
According to Islamic Scholars, the Fiqh (Jurisprudence) of Imam Bukhari lies in the “Headings of Chapters” of his Book. And Imam Bukhari gave this heading in his book Sahih Bukhari<ref>[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]</ref>:<blockquote>''Chapter: If one buys a slave woman, can he then take her along with him in a journey without her completing her waiting period?''</blockquote>Under this heading, Imam Bukhari writes:
{{Quote|1=[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]|2=ولم ير الحسن بأسا أن يقبلها أو يباشرها. وقال ابن عمر ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ إذا وهبت الوليدة التي توطأ أو بيعت أو عتقت فليستبرأ رحمها بحيضة، ولا تستبرأ العذراء. وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج.

Translation:

Hasan Basri finds nothing objectionable in kissing a woman or to having sex with her. And Ibn Umar said that such a slave woman who is given as a present, or who is sold, or who is made free, but sex had been done with her before that, then she had to undergo a waiting period. '''And Atta said if a slave woman had become pregnant (from the earlier owner/husband), then still pleasure could be derived from the whole of her body, except for her vagina.'''}}
The sorrow and pain of such women are recorded in Tabari:
{{Quote|1=[https://books.google.de/books?id=4A-4ZC4l0dMC&pg=PA122&lpg=PA122&dq=she+commanded+that+Safiyyah+should+be+kept+behind+him+and+that+the+Messenger+of+God+had+chosen+her+for+himself&source=bl&ots=pHDBKo-6Bv&sig=W8sWDq8ZJ4nLwFZpsA1obfYZJ48&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwizjuC41L7bAhVHXRQKHSEhD7EQ6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q=she%20commanded%20that%20Safiyyah%20should%20be%20kept%20behind%20him%20and%20that%20the%20Messenger%20of%20God%20had%20chosen%20her%20for%20himself&f=false History of Tabari, Volume 8, Page 112]|2=Ibn Ishaq said: After the Messenger of God conquered al-Qamus, Safiyyah bint Huyayy was brought to him, and another woman with her. Bilal (a companion), who was the one who brought them, led them past some of the slain Jews. When the woman who was with Safiyyah saw them, she cried out, struck her face, and poured dust on her head. When the Messenger of God saw her, he said, "Take this she-devil away from me!" ... The Messenger of God said to Bilal, when he saw the Jewish woman doing what he saw her do, "Are you devoid of mercy, Bilal, that you take two women past their slain men?"}}

The clear disregard for the well-being of women presents a conundrum for modern day advocates of these Islamic laws and traditions. On one hand, Islamic law advocates claim that a Muslim woman is not allowed to be wed during 3 periods/months long 'Iddah while she is mentally under stress after the divorce. Yet on the flip side of the coin, by endorsing a tradition with such endorsements of sexual slavery, they ignore any such mental stress for the prisoner women and girls. Far away from the subject of divorce, even after killing all the men of their family, Muslim men are allowed their use sex objects the very same night that their slavery begins. They are provided with no 'waiting period' to come out of their mental stress.

Contrary to Islam, even the laws of the Jewish Bible allowed the prisoner women to mourn their relatives for one complete month, during which men were not allowed to take any other sexual services from them.

{{Quote|1=[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2021&version=NIV Bible, Deuteronomy, Chap 21]|2=יכִּֽי־תֵצֵ֥א לַמִּלְחָמָ֖ה עַל־אֹֽיְבֶ֑יךָ וּנְתָנ֞וֹ יְהֹוָ֧ה אֱלֹהֶ֛יךָ בְּיָדֶ֖ךָ וְשָׁבִ֥יתָ שִׁבְיֽוֹ:

יאוְרָאִ֨יתָ֙ בַּשִּׁבְיָ֔ה אֵ֖שֶׁת יְפַת־תֹּ֑אַר וְחָֽשַׁקְתָּ֣ בָ֔הּ וְלָֽקַחְתָּ֥ לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

יבוַֽהֲבֵאתָ֖הּ אֶל־תּ֣וֹךְ בֵּיתֶ֑ךָ וְגִלְּחָה֙ אֶת־רֹאשָׁ֔הּ וְעָֽשְׂתָ֖ה אֶת־צִפָּֽרְנֶֽיהָ:

יגוְהֵסִ֩ירָה֩ אֶת־שִׂמְלַ֨ת שִׁבְיָ֜הּ מֵֽעָלֶ֗יהָ וְיָֽשְׁבָה֙ בְּבֵיתֶ֔ךָ וּבָֽכְתָ֛ה אֶת־אָבִ֥יהָ וְאֶת־אִמָּ֖הּ יֶ֣רַח יָמִ֑ים וְאַ֨חַר כֵּ֜ן תָּב֤וֹא אֵלֶ֨יהָ֙ וּבְעַלְתָּ֔הּ וְהָֽיְתָ֥ה לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

ידוְהָיָ֞ה אִם־לֹ֧א חָפַ֣צְתָּ בָּ֗הּ וְשִׁלַּחְתָּהּ֙ לְנַפְשָׁ֔הּ וּמָכֹ֥ר לֹֽא־תִמְכְּרֶ֖נָּה בַּכָּ֑סֶף לֹֽא־תִתְעַמֵּ֣ר בָּ֔הּ תַּ֖חַת אֲשֶׁ֥ר עִנִּיתָֽהּ:

'''Marrying a Captive Woman'''

(10) When you go to war against your enemies and the Lord your God delivers them into your hands and you take captives,

(11) if you notice among the captives a beautiful woman and are attracted to her, you may take her as your wife.

(12) Bring her into your home and have her shave her head, trim her nails

(13) and put aside the clothes she was wearing when captured. '''After she has lived in your house and mourned her father and mother for a full month''', then you may go to her and be her husband and she shall be your wife.

(14) If you are not pleased with her, let her go wherever she wishes. You must not sell her or treat her as a slave, since you have dishonored her.}}

In creating these new rulings around taking the sexual pleasure of female sex slaves, Islamic law rejected the law of the Bible in this case, and more closely followed the laws of the pagan Arab society of the time of Muhammad, as it benefitted the Muslims financially and they were free to seek sexual pleasures through the prisoner women the same night.

==References==
{{reflist}}

'Iddah (Female Menstrual Waiting Period)

2022-03-25T13:39:58Z

Vixen: /* Implantation Bleeding Despite Being pregnant */

In Islamic [[Sharia]], '<nowiki/>''iddah'' or '''iddat'' (Arabic: العدة‎; ''period (of waiting)''), also spelled ''iddah'', ''idda'', or ''iddat'', is the period a woman must observe after the death of her husband or after a divorce, during which she has to face numbers of restrictions<ref name="Esposito2004">{{cite book | editor = John L. Esposito | date = 21 October 2004 | title = The Oxford Dictionary of Islam | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 131 | isbn = 978-0-19-975726-8 | oclc = 286438886 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=E324pQEEQQcC}}</ref>.

The 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby)
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. (On paper; in actuality she would not get the attention, love, or support and emotional help from any man for 6 menstrual cycles. The first 3 menstrual cycles are the process of Divorce, during which time she cannot not leave the husband's house, and her husband cannot touch her. And after the divorce, again she has to endure another "waiting period" of 3 more menstrual cycles with many restrictions. She practically has to stay under these strict restrictions for about 6 months).

Muslim scholars defend these restrictions upon the women in 'Iddah. They claim that rulings of 'Iddah could neither be abolished, nor could they be changed as the rulings of the [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)| Islamic Sharia]] are based upon wisdom, justice and the best interests of the women, and they protect the women against the gender oppression and misogyny, while the man made laws of the modern Western world lead to the sexual exploitation of the women<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/39286 Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website: Is it correct to think that fatwas may vary according to time and place?] </ref><ref>[https://yaqeeninstitute.org/read/paper/women-in-islamic-law-examining-five-prevalent-myths Women in Islamic Law: Examining Five Prevalent Myths]</ref>. Yet in point of fact women are forced to unilaterally face these restrictions, which make their life difficult, while the husbands don't have to face any restriction. The basis of these restrictions, the need to be sure of fatherhood, has been rendered obsolete by modern science. In addition, these restrictions are not found anywhere in the bible or Judeo-Christian tradition. Their antecedents seem rather to be pre-Islamic Arab culture (which is known as "Time of Ignorance (i.e. jāhiliyyah)"<ref>[https://www.al-islam.org/man-and-ignorance/what-does-jahiliyah-mean What does Jahiliyah mean?]</ref>.
==The different lengths of the waiting periods and their reasons==
The length of 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A prisoner/slave woman''': The waiting period is becoming free from the blood of the first menstrual cycle<ref name=":3">[https://web.archive.org/web/20201219104233/https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book33.html 'Idda, Istibra' and Maintenance]</ref>. The reason is to determine the PARENTAGE of the child. Islam considers first menstrual cycle as enough to determine if a woman is pregnant or not.
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. The reason is to give time to the couple to solve their dispute during this period<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0">[https://brill.com/view/book/9789047426202/Bej.9789004172739.i-227_018.xml Reason for the waiting period]</ref>.
*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days. The reason is to give time to the woman to MOURN the death of her husband<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0" />.
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby). The reason is to prevent that another man (as 2nd husband) could "water" the fetus from the previous husband<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://quranx.com/Hadith/AbuDawud/DarusSalam/Hadith-2158/ Sunnan Abu Dawud, Hadith 2158]</ref>.

==Restrictions upon the woman during her 'Iddah:==

Islamic 'Iddah not only prohibits the women from remarriage with another man, but it also puts other restrictions upon them.

===First Restriction: She has to undergo the 'Iddah even without any 'maintenance' money===
According to the traditional rulings of Shari'ah, after the death and divorce of a woman's husband she is not entitled to any support from his family or estate. As the Dar-ul-Ifta says:{{Quote|[https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Dar-ul-Ifta]|The '''maintenance and providing of shelter for a woman observing the Iddat of Death are not the responsibility of her in-laws. She also does not have the right to take her maintenance out of the Estate of her deceased husband.'''}}A woman has no choice but to compulsorily undergo the 'Iddah of period of 4 months and 10 days (or up to 9 months in case of pregnancy), yet she has no right for maintenance money from the estate of her husband for this long period of time, and this in traditional cultures where women often rely upon men for their sustenance. In such cultures this stricture would be a huge financial burden upon the women, who often did not and do not even have any source of income.

===Second Restriction: She has to stay in the house of her ex-Husband during the entirety of the ‘Iddah===
According to the ruling of traditional Islamic Sharia'h, if a woman's husband dies then she is allowed to stay ''only'' in the house of her husband during this whole period of 'Iddah. She is not allowed to spend this time of 'Iddah in any other place (like house of her parents or any other family members).<ref>Fatwas Website Islamqa.Org. [https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ Laws of Iddat].</ref><ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/10670/what-a-recently-widowed-woman-is-not-allowed-to-do Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website]</ref> Sunan Abu Dawud bears witness to this custom, and further clarifies that her need for financial support is not to be taken into consideration:
====The woman has to stay in the husband’s house, even if it doesn’t belong to her husband, or even if he hasn’t left any maintenance money for the wife====
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2293|hasan}}|Furay'ah said that she came to the Messenger of Allah and asked him whether she could return to her people, Banu Khidrah, for her husband went out seeking his slaves who ran away. When they met him at al-Qudum, they murdered him.

So I asked the Messenger of Allah: "Should I return to my people, '''for he did not leave any dwelling house of his own and maintenance for me'''?

She said: The Messenger of Allah replied: Yes. She said: I came out, and when I was in the apartment or in the mosque, he called for me, or he commanded (someone to call me) and, therefore, I was called.

He said: what did you say? So I repeated my story which I had already mentioned about my husband.

'''Thereupon he said: Stay in your house till the term (of four months and 10 days) lapses.'''

She said: So I passed my waiting period in it (her house) for four months and ten days. When Uthman ibn Affan became caliph, he sent for me and asked me about that; so I informed him, '''and he followed it and decided cases accordingly'''.}}

Although this clearly serves the purpose of insuring that the next man who marries her does not inherit a son from the previous marriage or another man she had relations with during her 'Iddah, the wellbeing of the woman here is not considered at all; her need to either work to support herself or be with her own family for succor and support is not taken into account at all, and neither is her freedom of movement and intention.

===Third Restriction: The Woman should not leave the house even for daily walks, or visit the relatives or attend any social gathering===
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20211014113704/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45453/visiting-relatives-in-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]|'''Question''': Is a woman allowed to visit family members like her parents or sisters if she is observing iddat and use the excuse that she will be with her family so she doesn’t see the problem?
'''Answer''': A woman who has been divorced is not allowed to leave the confines of her home during the iddat for whatever reason, '''be it to visit friends or relatives or to attend the funeral of even her parents'''.}}
Many Islamic fatawa (religious rulings) decree that Muslim women observing their 'iddah must not leave their (husband's) house even for a walk and certainly not for any type of social gathering ([https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114224/https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/349861/woman-in-iddah-may-go-out-for-need Fatwa 1], [https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114300/https://idealwoman.org/2021/can-a-woman-go-out-for-a-walk-during-iddat/ Fatwa 2]). Although this makes sense from the perspective of insuring that her next husband does not inherit the baby of a man she had relations with during her 'iddah and that any pregnancy which comes about in the 'iddah can only be the work of her husband, it completely disregards her human rights. No consideration is given for the women's freedom of movement, freedom of choice, social or relationship needs.

===Fourth Restriction: The woman should not even use collyrium/kohl on her eyes even for eye disease, since it beautifies her===
Although a woman is allowed to take medical care during her ‘iddah, still she should not use collyrium/kohl as a cure even against any eye disease, since this substance can be used as a form of makeup to beautifie her.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari||68|81|in-book}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said, "No."}}

===Fifth Restriction: Women are not allowed to use good clothes, jewelry, perfume, Henna and to comb their hair or to oil it===
Women observing their 'Iddah are not allowed to wear good clothes, or jewelry, or use perfume or Henna. Even combing their hair and applying the oil to it is forbidden<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]</ref>. Washing the face with aloe is also forbidden.
{{Quote|[https://sunnah.com/mishkat:3333 Mishkat al-Masabih 3333]|Umm Salama said: God’s Messenger came to visit me when Abu Salama died, and I had put the juice of aloes on myself. He asked me what it was, and I told him it was only the juice of aloes and contained no perfume, so he said, “It gives the face a glow, so apply it only at night and remove it in the daytime, and do not comb yourself with scent or henna, for it is a dye.” I asked God’s Messenger what I should use when combing myself, and he told me to use lote-tree leaves and smear my head copiously with them. Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani declared this Hadith to be FAIR (حسن) (link).}}Although these strictures again work to keep the woman from having any intercourse or attracting any male attention during her 'iddah by keeping herself (relatively) unattractive, these laws once again completely disregard the happiness and freedom of the woman to whom they are applied. They also seem excessively harsh, as if she is truly keeping herself confined to her house the question arises as to who would see her with all of this makeup on even if she did apply it.

==Pre-Islamic Influences on the Concept of ‘Iddah==
According to the following hadith, the concept of 'iddah was taken from pre-Islamic Arabian culture:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||5336|darussalam}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said,''' "No." Then Allah's Messenger added, "It is just a matter of four months and ten days. In the Pre-Islamic Period of ignorance a widow among you should throw a globe of dung when one year has elapsed (i.e. she had to stay in ‘Iddah for the whole one year)." '''}}Apparently women even at the time the hadith was created were complaining of the burdens of the 'iddah, but the hadith admonishes them that they ought to be thankful for Islam, since in the jahiliyyah (the pre-islamic time of "ignorance" before the coming of Islam in the Arab peninsula) the 'iddah lasted a whole year. That there were complaints, though, can be seen from the existence of the hadith in the first place, so even in the time of this hadith women were not happy with them; by comparison, modern secular culture imposes no such restrictions on women at all.

==Waiting period for the captive/slave-women==
The waiting period of captive/slave-women is as follows:

*If she is a virgin girl, then no waiting period is necessary, and the Muslim owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
*If she's married and has a husband, then the waiting period is to become free of the first menstrual blood. Even if this blood stopped the first night after the capture/purchase, the owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
{{Quote|{{Abudawud|11|2153}}|(Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said): ... it is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the Last Day to have intercourse with a captive woman till she is free from a menstrual course (i.e. her first menstrual blood).}}
Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd (who is also knows as younger Imam Malik), writes in his Fiqh book Risalah:
{{Quote|[http://web.archive.org/web/20160117184347/http://www.dhspriory.org/kenny/RISALA.htm Risalah by Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd]|واستبراء الامة في انتقال الملك حيضة انتقل الملك ببيع أو هبة أو سبي أو غير ذلك. ومن هي في حيازته قدحاضت عنده ثم إنه اشتراها فلا استبراء عليها إن لم تكن تخرج.
The istibrā' (waiting) period for a slave concubine who changes ownership is one menstruation. Ownership may change by selling, giving away, capture, or any other way. If the woman menstruates after being taken possession of in advance by her new owner, and then he buys her, she does not have to go through a period of istibrā' (i.e. waiting period).}}
Even if the first menstrual blood stops the first night after becoming captive/purchase, the Muslim owner is allowed to have sex with her the same night.

Saffiyyah (a Jewish captive woman) became free of her blood the next night after her father, brother and husband were killed in the war by Muslims. Thus Muhammad had sex with her the next night
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||4211|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:

We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, (then) the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet (ﷺ) selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba, (which is 14 miles away from Khaibar)' Safiya became clean from her menses then Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) married her.}}

==Criticism of the Islamic 'Iddah==

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a widow===
Some Islamic du'aah, shaykhs, and ulemaa' argue that the reason for the 4 month and 10 days long 'iddah of a widow is to ''''mourn'''<nowiki/>' the death of the husband.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Reason for 4 months 10 days long Iddah of a widow [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/88684/rights-of-a-deceased-husband-on-his-wife]</ref> Yet it should be noted that there is no obligation of any “mourning” upon a man if the wife dies. There is a clear a double standard vis-a-vis the same situation involving a man and a woman, as the husband is totally free to marry a new wife the same night, without any waiting period in name of "mourning." He's also totally free to have sex with his other wives and dozens of slave girls the same night as his divorce, and there is no restriction upon him in name of "mourning."

Moreover, the 'iddah is even incumbent upon the widow in cases where she has never seen her husband after the marriage, and in cases where the marriage has not been consummated, and even if she is a minor child, or even if the marriage was abusive <ref>Widow has to observe 'Iddah even if she never saw the husband after the marriage, or even if she is a small child. [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/145179/the-waiting-period-of-an-old-woman-after-the-death-of-her-husband]</ref>. ''In all such cases, a widow has no emotional connection with the deceased husband, but still she has to undergo the restrictions of 'Iddah in name of mourning''. As such, feminist critics of the institution of the 'iddah have decried it as misogynist.

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a pregnant woman===
According to the Quran, the 'iddah of a pregnant woman is till the birth of a child ([https://quranx.com/65.4 Quran 65:4]).

Muhammad in the hadith of Sunan Abu Dawud justifies the practice in this manner:
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2158|darussalam}}|رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ يَوْمَ حُنَيْنٍ قَالَ ‏"‏ لاَ يَحِلُّ لاِمْرِئٍ يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ أَنْ يَسْقِيَ مَاءَهُ زَرْعَ غَيْرِهِ ‏"

The Messenger of Allah said: It is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the last day '''to water what another has sown with his water (meaning intercourse with a woman who is pregnant from her previous husband).'''}}
This prohibition seems to imply some impurification of the fetus by the seed of the second man, but scientifically once the woman has been impregnated this is impossible, the DNA of the baby will not be affected by any other semen in the woman's body. This hadith thus seems to present an unscientific view of human gestation. Moreover, the man is under all circumstances able to take sexual pleasure from any other wife or sex slave that he possess immediately after the end of his marital bond, but it is only the woman who is not allowed to fulfil her natural need to have love and sex from any man.

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that a pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband till the delivery====
A pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|If a woman is pregnant and her husband divorces her, she will have to remain in that house until she delivers her child.}}
This ruling is criticized while a woman is alone in the house of her ex-husband, and she has to observe Purdah (Hijab) from him too<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Staying in the house of ex-husband, but also doing Purdah (Hijab) from him.] </ref>. Living under one roof with the ex-husband is a cause of mental torture for a woman.

As compared to the house of ex-husband, she could find a lot of love in house of her parents or relatives and live freely there and deliver the child in the comfort of her family.

===Criticism of 'Iddah in case of divorce===
There are 2 procedures of giving the Triple Talaq in traditional Sunni Islam<ref name=":1">[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/2373/giving-talaaq-divorce-three-times-at-once-is-bidah 3 Talaqs in one sitting and the Quranic way of giving divorce]</ref><ref name=":2">[https://tripakshalitigation.com/types-of-talaq-under-muslim-law/ Types of Talaqs under the Muslim Law]</ref>:

*Either the husband may pronounce the 3 Talaqs (repeating the word for "divorce" in Arabic, "talaq talaq talaq") in one sitting (known as Talaq al-Bidah).
*Or husband gives each divorce after one menstrual cycle without touching her (known as Talaq al-Sunnah). This means, the process of 3 Talaqs takes 3 menstrual cycles.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Bidah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in one sitting):====
In the first case of triple Talaqs in one sitting, a woman has to go the restrictions of 'Iddah for 3 menstrual cycles before remarrying another man. But this ruling is criticized, while the parentage of the child could be determined only after the first menstrual cycle (as in case of the captive/slave woman). Therefore, logically the 'Iddah should be only one menstrual cycle long if this idea were to be followed to its logical conclusion<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20220113121219/https://atheism-vs-islam.com/index.php/women/94-iddah-i-e-waiting-period-is-illogical-unnecessary-oppressive-injustice-against-the-women Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles in case of 3 Talaqs in one sitting]</ref>. There is no chance of reconciliation between the couple after the 3 Talaqs.

Moreover, it is also claimed that in the present modern era, it is not necessary to wait even for one menstrual cycle, as the pregnancy could be determined right away through the medical tests.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Sunnah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in 3 different sittings)====
In case of Talaq al-Sunnah, '''the process of divorce''' itself takes the time of 3 menstrual cycles, during which husband is not allowed to touch the woman<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />. Therefore, this process of divorce (which is 3 menstrual cycles long) is itself enough to make sure if the woman is pregnant or not (as the husband has not touched her during this period).

Yet according to the traditional Sunni Islam, a woman has to undergo 3 more menstrual cycles of 'Iddah (i.e. The whole process of Divorce + ‘Iddah lasts for at least 6 menstrual cycles for a divorced woman).
{{Quote|[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/12667/the-iddah-of-a-woman-divorced-by-talaaq The ‘iddah of a woman divorced by talaaq]|If the woman is not pregnant and she menstruates (is of child-bearing age), then her ‘iddah is three complete menstrual cycles after the divorce, i.e., her period comes then she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure. That is three complete menstrual cycles, regardless of whether the time between them is long or short. Based on this, if he divorces her and she is breastfeeding and does not menstruate until two years later, then she remains in ‘iddah until she has had three menstrual cycles, so she may stay in this state for two years or more. The point is that she should go through three complete menstrual cycles whether the time involved is long or short, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And divorced women shall wait (as regards their marriage) for three menstrual periods”

[al-Baqarah 2:228]}}

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that in case of Divorce too, woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband during the period of 'Iddah====
Not only does the widow have to compulsorily stay in the house of her deceased husband during 'Iddah, but in case of divorce too, the woman is forced by these laws stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|When the husband divorces his wife, she will have to spend her Iddat in the matrimonial home. She must not leave the house during the day nor at night, nor can she make nikah with anyone else ... This rule will apply irrespective of whether the man issued one two or three divorces, and irrespective of whether he issued a talaaqul baa-in (irrevocable divorce) or a talaaq-ur-raj’ee (revocable Talaaq). The same rule will apply in all cases ... If she is observing her ‘Iddat in the same house wherein the man who issued a talaaqul baain to her is also living, she will have to observe strict Purdah (Hijab) with him.}}
The critics of this ruling point out that after the irrevocable triple talaq (either in one sitting or three different sittings), no reconciliation is possible (except that she marries another man and he also divorces her), which begs the question of why an 'iddah is even necessary in today's world with genetic parental testing.

===Implantation Bleeding Despite Being pregnant===
Islamic du'aah and shaikhs claim that the Islamic 'Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles is correct, while some women have implantation bleeding despite being pregnant, and it is difficult for a woman to differentiate between the periods and the [https://www.healthline.com/health/how-long-does-spotting-last#implantation-spotting implantation bleeding]. Yet despite this rule, traditional Islamic law itself stipulates an 'Iddah of a prisoner/slave woman as only one menstrual cycle, in contradiction to this idea. If parentage were the main issue, the status of the woman (free or slave) should not matter. Also the 'Iddah of a free Muslim woman in the case of [[Khul']] is only one period.<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/5163/does-iddah-apply-in-the-case-of-khula 'Iddah in Khul' is one menstrual period]</ref> Even Muhammad himself slept with [[Safiyah]] the same night when her first menstrual blood stopped, after he had murdered her previous husband. Note that Safiyyah was not a slave, but a free woman when Muhammad took her as a wife: {{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3325}}|He (the Holy Prophet) then granted Saffiyyah emancipation and married her. Thabit said to him: Abu Hamza, how much dower did he (the Holy Prophet) give to her? He said: He granted her freedom and then married her. On the way Umm Sulaim embellished her and then sent her to him (the Holy Prophet) at night.}}{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||2893|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik: We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba,' '''Safiya became clean from her (first) menses then Allah's Apostle took her into his bed.'''}}

There is no Sahih Hadith of the prophet in which he ever mentions the 'Iddah of 3 periods due to any implantation bleeding. Muhammad adopted the practice of 'Iddah from his native Arabian culture. It is in response to modern conceptions of biology and ideals about women's rights that these arguments about parentage have been formulated. But Muslims will fail, as contradictions in Islam will then occur (like Muslims having sex with prisoner/slave women and while Muhammad had himself sex with Safiyyah after only the first menstrual cycle. They are not based on the actual source material but rather on a desire to make the source material acceptable to a modern audience.

===Why no waiting period in name of "mourning" for the captive/slave women?===
In spite of the aforementioned claims of concern for the well-being of women, according to traditional [[Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence)]] Muslim men are allowed to derive sexual pleasures from the virgin girls taken as war booty during Jihad without giving them any 'waiting period' to mourn their dead family members. As far as the non-virgin slaves taken as war booty are concerned, if already have husbands, then vaginal coitus is not allowed till they become free of their first menstrual period, but the Muslim Mujhaahiduun (i.e. warriors) are allowed to undress them the same night and to take all kinds of other sexual pleasures and sexual favors from them aside from vaginal penetration.
{{Quote|1=[http://web.archive.org/save/http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfrom=4080&idto=4081&bk_no=52&ID=1404&idfrom=4523&idto=5022&bookid=18&startno=425 Imam Ibn Hajar al-Asqallani, in his book Fath-ul-Bari]|2=وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج

Translation:

Atta said: ‘There is no harm to drive sexual pleasure from the body of the pregnant slave/(or prisoner) woman except from vagina’}}
According to Islamic Scholars, the Fiqh (Jurisprudence) of Imam Bukhari lies in the “Headings of Chapters” of his Book. And Imam Bukhari gave this heading in his book Sahih Bukhari<ref>[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]</ref>:<blockquote>''Chapter: If one buys a slave woman, can he then take her along with him in a journey without her completing her waiting period?''</blockquote>Under this heading, Imam Bukhari writes:
{{Quote|1=[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]|2=ولم ير الحسن بأسا أن يقبلها أو يباشرها. وقال ابن عمر ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ إذا وهبت الوليدة التي توطأ أو بيعت أو عتقت فليستبرأ رحمها بحيضة، ولا تستبرأ العذراء. وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج.

Translation:

Hasan Basri finds nothing objectionable in kissing a woman or to having sex with her. And Ibn Umar said that such a slave woman who is given as a present, or who is sold, or who is made free, but sex had been done with her before that, then she had to undergo a waiting period. '''And Atta said if a slave woman had become pregnant (from the earlier owner/husband), then still pleasure could be derived from the whole of her body, except for her vagina.'''}}
The sorrow and pain of such women are recorded in Tabari:
{{Quote|1=[https://books.google.de/books?id=4A-4ZC4l0dMC&pg=PA122&lpg=PA122&dq=she+commanded+that+Safiyyah+should+be+kept+behind+him+and+that+the+Messenger+of+God+had+chosen+her+for+himself&source=bl&ots=pHDBKo-6Bv&sig=W8sWDq8ZJ4nLwFZpsA1obfYZJ48&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwizjuC41L7bAhVHXRQKHSEhD7EQ6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q=she%20commanded%20that%20Safiyyah%20should%20be%20kept%20behind%20him%20and%20that%20the%20Messenger%20of%20God%20had%20chosen%20her%20for%20himself&f=false History of Tabari, Volume 8, Page 112]|2=Ibn Ishaq said: After the Messenger of God conquered al-Qamus, Safiyyah bint Huyayy was brought to him, and another woman with her. Bilal (a companion), who was the one who brought them, led them past some of the slain Jews. When the woman who was with Safiyyah saw them, she cried out, struck her face, and poured dust on her head. When the Messenger of God saw her, he said, "Take this she-devil away from me!" ... The Messenger of God said to Bilal, when he saw the Jewish woman doing what he saw her do, "Are you devoid of mercy, Bilal, that you take two women past their slain men?"}}

The clear disregard for the well-being of women presents a conundrum for modern day advocates of these Islamic laws and traditions. On one hand, Islamic law advocates claim that a Muslim woman is not allowed to be wed during 3 periods/months long 'Iddah while she is mentally under stress after the divorce. Yet on the flip side of the coin, by endorsing a tradition with such endorsements of sexual slavery, they ignore any such mental stress for the prisoner women and girls. Far away from the subject of divorce, even after killing all the men of their family, Muslim men are allowed their use sex objects the very same night that their slavery begins. They are provided with no 'waiting period' to come out of their mental stress.

Contrary to Islam, even the laws of the Jewish Bible allowed the prisoner women to mourn their relatives for one complete month, during which men were not allowed to take any other sexual services from them.

{{Quote|1=[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2021&version=NIV Bible, Deuteronomy, Chap 21]|2=יכִּֽי־תֵצֵ֥א לַמִּלְחָמָ֖ה עַל־אֹֽיְבֶ֑יךָ וּנְתָנ֞וֹ יְהֹוָ֧ה אֱלֹהֶ֛יךָ בְּיָדֶ֖ךָ וְשָׁבִ֥יתָ שִׁבְיֽוֹ:

יאוְרָאִ֨יתָ֙ בַּשִּׁבְיָ֔ה אֵ֖שֶׁת יְפַת־תֹּ֑אַר וְחָֽשַׁקְתָּ֣ בָ֔הּ וְלָֽקַחְתָּ֥ לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

יבוַֽהֲבֵאתָ֖הּ אֶל־תּ֣וֹךְ בֵּיתֶ֑ךָ וְגִלְּחָה֙ אֶת־רֹאשָׁ֔הּ וְעָֽשְׂתָ֖ה אֶת־צִפָּֽרְנֶֽיהָ:

יגוְהֵסִ֩ירָה֩ אֶת־שִׂמְלַ֨ת שִׁבְיָ֜הּ מֵֽעָלֶ֗יהָ וְיָֽשְׁבָה֙ בְּבֵיתֶ֔ךָ וּבָֽכְתָ֛ה אֶת־אָבִ֥יהָ וְאֶת־אִמָּ֖הּ יֶ֣רַח יָמִ֑ים וְאַ֨חַר כֵּ֜ן תָּב֤וֹא אֵלֶ֨יהָ֙ וּבְעַלְתָּ֔הּ וְהָֽיְתָ֥ה לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

ידוְהָיָ֞ה אִם־לֹ֧א חָפַ֣צְתָּ בָּ֗הּ וְשִׁלַּחְתָּהּ֙ לְנַפְשָׁ֔הּ וּמָכֹ֥ר לֹֽא־תִמְכְּרֶ֖נָּה בַּכָּ֑סֶף לֹֽא־תִתְעַמֵּ֣ר בָּ֔הּ תַּ֖חַת אֲשֶׁ֥ר עִנִּיתָֽהּ:

'''Marrying a Captive Woman'''

(10) When you go to war against your enemies and the Lord your God delivers them into your hands and you take captives,

(11) if you notice among the captives a beautiful woman and are attracted to her, you may take her as your wife.

(12) Bring her into your home and have her shave her head, trim her nails

(13) and put aside the clothes she was wearing when captured. '''After she has lived in your house and mourned her father and mother for a full month''', then you may go to her and be her husband and she shall be your wife.

(14) If you are not pleased with her, let her go wherever she wishes. You must not sell her or treat her as a slave, since you have dishonored her.}}

In creating these new rulings around taking the sexual pleasure of female sex slaves, Islamic law rejected the law of the Bible in this case, and more closely followed the laws of the pagan Arab society of the time of Muhammad, as it benefitted the Muslims financially and they were free to seek sexual pleasures through the prisoner women the same night.

==References==
{{reflist}}

'Iddah (Female Menstrual Waiting Period)

2022-03-24T19:08:55Z

Vixen: /* Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Bidah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in one sitting): */

In Islamic [[Sharia]], '<nowiki/>''iddah'' or '''iddat'' (Arabic: العدة‎; ''period (of waiting)''), also spelled ''iddah'', ''idda'', or ''iddat'', is the period a woman must observe after the death of her husband or after a divorce, during which she has to face numbers of restrictions<ref name="Esposito2004">{{cite book | editor = John L. Esposito | date = 21 October 2004 | title = The Oxford Dictionary of Islam | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 131 | isbn = 978-0-19-975726-8 | oclc = 286438886 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=E324pQEEQQcC}}</ref>.

The 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby)
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. (On paper; in actuality she would not get the attention, love, or support and emotional help from any man for 6 menstrual cycles. The first 3 menstrual cycles are the process of Divorce, during which time she cannot not leave the husband's house, and her husband cannot touch her. And after the divorce, again she has to endure another "waiting period" of 3 more menstrual cycles with many restrictions. She practically has to stay under these strict restrictions for about 6 months).

Muslim scholars defend these restrictions upon the women in 'Iddah. They claim that rulings of 'Iddah could neither be abolished, nor could they be changed as the rulings of the [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)| Islamic Sharia]] are based upon wisdom, justice and the best interests of the women, and they protect the women against the gender oppression and misogyny, while the man made laws of the modern Western world lead to the sexual exploitation of the women<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/39286 Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website: Is it correct to think that fatwas may vary according to time and place?] </ref><ref>[https://yaqeeninstitute.org/read/paper/women-in-islamic-law-examining-five-prevalent-myths Women in Islamic Law: Examining Five Prevalent Myths]</ref>. Yet in point of fact women are forced to unilaterally face these restrictions, which make their life difficult, while the husbands don't have to face any restriction. The basis of these restrictions, the need to be sure of fatherhood, has been rendered obsolete by modern science. In addition, these restrictions are not found anywhere in the bible or Judeo-Christian tradition. Their antecedents seem rather to be pre-Islamic Arab culture (which is known as "Time of Ignorance (i.e. jāhiliyyah)"<ref>[https://www.al-islam.org/man-and-ignorance/what-does-jahiliyah-mean What does Jahiliyah mean?]</ref>.
==The different lengths of the waiting periods and their reasons==
The length of 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A prisoner/slave woman''': The waiting period is becoming free from the blood of the first menstrual cycle<ref name=":3">[https://web.archive.org/web/20201219104233/https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book33.html 'Idda, Istibra' and Maintenance]</ref>. The reason is to determine the PARENTAGE of the child. Islam considers first menstrual cycle as enough to determine if a woman is pregnant or not.
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. The reason is to give time to the couple to solve their dispute during this period<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0">[https://brill.com/view/book/9789047426202/Bej.9789004172739.i-227_018.xml Reason for the waiting period]</ref>.
*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days. The reason is to give time to the woman to MOURN the death of her husband<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0" />.
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby). The reason is to prevent that another man (as 2nd husband) could "water" the fetus from the previous husband<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://quranx.com/Hadith/AbuDawud/DarusSalam/Hadith-2158/ Sunnan Abu Dawud, Hadith 2158]</ref>.

==Restrictions upon the woman during her 'Iddah:==

Islamic 'Iddah not only prohibits the women from remarriage with another man, but it also puts other restrictions upon them.

===First Restriction: She has to undergo the 'Iddah even without any 'maintenance' money===
According to the traditional rulings of Shari'ah, after the death and divorce of a woman's husband she is not entitled to any support from his family or estate. As the Dar-ul-Ifta says:{{Quote|[https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Dar-ul-Ifta]|The '''maintenance and providing of shelter for a woman observing the Iddat of Death are not the responsibility of her in-laws. She also does not have the right to take her maintenance out of the Estate of her deceased husband.'''}}A woman has no choice but to compulsorily undergo the 'Iddah of period of 4 months and 10 days (or up to 9 months in case of pregnancy), yet she has no right for maintenance money from the estate of her husband for this long period of time, and this in traditional cultures where women often rely upon men for their sustenance. In such cultures this stricture would be a huge financial burden upon the women, who often did not and do not even have any source of income.

===Second Restriction: She has to stay in the house of her ex-Husband during the entirety of the ‘Iddah===
According to the ruling of traditional Islamic Sharia'h, if a woman's husband dies then she is allowed to stay ''only'' in the house of her husband during this whole period of 'Iddah. She is not allowed to spend this time of 'Iddah in any other place (like house of her parents or any other family members).<ref>Fatwas Website Islamqa.Org. [https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ Laws of Iddat].</ref><ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/10670/what-a-recently-widowed-woman-is-not-allowed-to-do Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website]</ref> Sunan Abu Dawud bears witness to this custom, and further clarifies that her need for financial support is not to be taken into consideration:
====The woman has to stay in the husband’s house, even if it doesn’t belong to her husband, or even if he hasn’t left any maintenance money for the wife====
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2293|hasan}}|Furay'ah said that she came to the Messenger of Allah and asked him whether she could return to her people, Banu Khidrah, for her husband went out seeking his slaves who ran away. When they met him at al-Qudum, they murdered him.

So I asked the Messenger of Allah: "Should I return to my people, '''for he did not leave any dwelling house of his own and maintenance for me'''?

She said: The Messenger of Allah replied: Yes. She said: I came out, and when I was in the apartment or in the mosque, he called for me, or he commanded (someone to call me) and, therefore, I was called.

He said: what did you say? So I repeated my story which I had already mentioned about my husband.

'''Thereupon he said: Stay in your house till the term (of four months and 10 days) lapses.'''

She said: So I passed my waiting period in it (her house) for four months and ten days. When Uthman ibn Affan became caliph, he sent for me and asked me about that; so I informed him, '''and he followed it and decided cases accordingly'''.}}

Although this clearly serves the purpose of insuring that the next man who marries her does not inherit a son from the previous marriage or another man she had relations with during her 'Iddah, the wellbeing of the woman here is not considered at all; her need to either work to support herself or be with her own family for succor and support is not taken into account at all, and neither is her freedom of movement and intention.

===Third Restriction: The Woman should not leave the house even for daily walks, or visit the relatives or attend any social gathering===
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20211014113704/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45453/visiting-relatives-in-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]|'''Question''': Is a woman allowed to visit family members like her parents or sisters if she is observing iddat and use the excuse that she will be with her family so she doesn’t see the problem?
'''Answer''': A woman who has been divorced is not allowed to leave the confines of her home during the iddat for whatever reason, '''be it to visit friends or relatives or to attend the funeral of even her parents'''.}}
Many Islamic fatawa (religious rulings) decree that Muslim women observing their 'iddah must not leave their (husband's) house even for a walk and certainly not for any type of social gathering ([https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114224/https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/349861/woman-in-iddah-may-go-out-for-need Fatwa 1], [https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114300/https://idealwoman.org/2021/can-a-woman-go-out-for-a-walk-during-iddat/ Fatwa 2]). Although this makes sense from the perspective of insuring that her next husband does not inherit the baby of a man she had relations with during her 'iddah and that any pregnancy which comes about in the 'iddah can only be the work of her husband, it completely disregards her human rights. No consideration is given for the women's freedom of movement, freedom of choice, social or relationship needs.

===Fourth Restriction: The woman should not even use collyrium/kohl on her eyes even for eye disease, since it beautifies her===
Although a woman is allowed to take medical care during her ‘iddah, still she should not use collyrium/kohl as a cure even against any eye disease, since this substance can be used as a form of makeup to beautifie her.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari||68|81|in-book}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said, "No."}}

===Fifth Restriction: Women are not allowed to use good clothes, jewelry, perfume, Henna and to comb their hair or to oil it===
Women observing their 'Iddah are not allowed to wear good clothes, or jewelry, or use perfume or Henna. Even combing their hair and applying the oil to it is forbidden<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]</ref>. Washing the face with aloe is also forbidden.
{{Quote|[https://sunnah.com/mishkat:3333 Mishkat al-Masabih 3333]|Umm Salama said: God’s Messenger came to visit me when Abu Salama died, and I had put the juice of aloes on myself. He asked me what it was, and I told him it was only the juice of aloes and contained no perfume, so he said, “It gives the face a glow, so apply it only at night and remove it in the daytime, and do not comb yourself with scent or henna, for it is a dye.” I asked God’s Messenger what I should use when combing myself, and he told me to use lote-tree leaves and smear my head copiously with them. Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani declared this Hadith to be FAIR (حسن) (link).}}Although these strictures again work to keep the woman from having any intercourse or attracting any male attention during her 'iddah by keeping herself (relatively) unattractive, these laws once again completely disregard the happiness and freedom of the woman to whom they are applied. They also seem excessively harsh, as if she is truly keeping herself confined to her house the question arises as to who would see her with all of this makeup on even if she did apply it.

==Pre-Islamic Influences on the Concept of ‘Iddah==
According to the following hadith, the concept of 'iddah was taken from pre-Islamic Arabian culture:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||5336|darussalam}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said,''' "No." Then Allah's Messenger added, "It is just a matter of four months and ten days. In the Pre-Islamic Period of ignorance a widow among you should throw a globe of dung when one year has elapsed (i.e. she had to stay in ‘Iddah for the whole one year)." '''}}Apparently women even at the time the hadith was created were complaining of the burdens of the 'iddah, but the hadith admonishes them that they ought to be thankful for Islam, since in the jahiliyyah (the pre-islamic time of "ignorance" before the coming of Islam in the Arab peninsula) the 'iddah lasted a whole year. That there were complaints, though, can be seen from the existence of the hadith in the first place, so even in the time of this hadith women were not happy with them; by comparison, modern secular culture imposes no such restrictions on women at all.

==Waiting period for the captive/slave-women==
The waiting period of captive/slave-women is as follows:

*If she is a virgin girl, then no waiting period is necessary, and the Muslim owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
*If she's married and has a husband, then the waiting period is to become free of the first menstrual blood. Even if this blood stopped the first night after the capture/purchase, the owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
{{Quote|{{Abudawud|11|2153}}|(Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said): ... it is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the Last Day to have intercourse with a captive woman till she is free from a menstrual course (i.e. her first menstrual blood).}}
Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd (who is also knows as younger Imam Malik), writes in his Fiqh book Risalah:
{{Quote|[http://web.archive.org/web/20160117184347/http://www.dhspriory.org/kenny/RISALA.htm Risalah by Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd]|واستبراء الامة في انتقال الملك حيضة انتقل الملك ببيع أو هبة أو سبي أو غير ذلك. ومن هي في حيازته قدحاضت عنده ثم إنه اشتراها فلا استبراء عليها إن لم تكن تخرج.
The istibrā' (waiting) period for a slave concubine who changes ownership is one menstruation. Ownership may change by selling, giving away, capture, or any other way. If the woman menstruates after being taken possession of in advance by her new owner, and then he buys her, she does not have to go through a period of istibrā' (i.e. waiting period).}}
Even if the first menstrual blood stops the first night after becoming captive/purchase, the Muslim owner is allowed to have sex with her the same night.

Saffiyyah (a Jewish captive woman) became free of her blood the next night after her father, brother and husband were killed in the war by Muslims. Thus Muhammad had sex with her the next night
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||4211|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:

We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, (then) the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet (ﷺ) selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba, (which is 14 miles away from Khaibar)' Safiya became clean from her menses then Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) married her.}}

==Criticism of the Islamic 'Iddah==

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a widow===
Some Islamic du'aah, shaykhs, and ulemaa' argue that the reason for the 4 month and 10 days long 'iddah of a widow is to ''''mourn'''<nowiki/>' the death of the husband.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Reason for 4 months 10 days long Iddah of a widow [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/88684/rights-of-a-deceased-husband-on-his-wife]</ref> Yet it should be noted that there is no obligation of any “mourning” upon a man if the wife dies. There is a clear a double standard vis-a-vis the same situation involving a man and a woman, as the husband is totally free to marry a new wife the same night, without any waiting period in name of "mourning." He's also totally free to have sex with his other wives and dozens of slave girls the same night as his divorce, and there is no restriction upon him in name of "mourning."

Moreover, the 'iddah is even incumbent upon the widow in cases where she has never seen her husband after the marriage, and in cases where the marriage has not been consummated, and even if she is a minor child, or even if the marriage was abusive <ref>Widow has to observe 'Iddah even if she never saw the husband after the marriage, or even if she is a small child. [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/145179/the-waiting-period-of-an-old-woman-after-the-death-of-her-husband]</ref>. ''In all such cases, a widow has no emotional connection with the deceased husband, but still she has to undergo the restrictions of 'Iddah in name of mourning''. As such, feminist critics of the institution of the 'iddah have decried it as misogynist.

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a pregnant woman===
According to the Quran, the 'iddah of a pregnant woman is till the birth of a child ([https://quranx.com/65.4 Quran 65:4]).

Muhammad in the hadith of Sunan Abu Dawud justifies the practice in this manner:
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2158|darussalam}}|رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ يَوْمَ حُنَيْنٍ قَالَ ‏"‏ لاَ يَحِلُّ لاِمْرِئٍ يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ أَنْ يَسْقِيَ مَاءَهُ زَرْعَ غَيْرِهِ ‏"

The Messenger of Allah said: It is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the last day '''to water what another has sown with his water (meaning intercourse with a woman who is pregnant from her previous husband).'''}}
This prohibition seems to imply some impurification of the fetus by the seed of the second man, but scientifically once the woman has been impregnated this is impossible, the DNA of the baby will not be affected by any other semen in the woman's body. This hadith thus seems to present an unscientific view of human gestation. Moreover, the man is under all circumstances able to take sexual pleasure from any other wife or sex slave that he possess immediately after the end of his marital bond, but it is only the woman who is not allowed to fulfil her natural need to have love and sex from any man.

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that a pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband till the delivery====
A pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|If a woman is pregnant and her husband divorces her, she will have to remain in that house until she delivers her child.}}
This ruling is criticized while a woman is alone in the house of her ex-husband, and she has to observe Purdah (Hijab) from him too<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Staying in the house of ex-husband, but also doing Purdah (Hijab) from him.] </ref>. Living under one roof with the ex-husband is a cause of mental torture for a woman.

As compared to the house of ex-husband, she could find a lot of love in house of her parents or relatives and live freely there and deliver the child in the comfort of her family.

===Criticism of 'Iddah in case of divorce===
There are 2 procedures of giving the Triple Talaq in traditional Sunni Islam<ref name=":1">[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/2373/giving-talaaq-divorce-three-times-at-once-is-bidah 3 Talaqs in one sitting and the Quranic way of giving divorce]</ref><ref name=":2">[https://tripakshalitigation.com/types-of-talaq-under-muslim-law/ Types of Talaqs under the Muslim Law]</ref>:

*Either the husband may pronounce the 3 Talaqs (repeating the word for "divorce" in Arabic, "talaq talaq talaq") in one sitting (known as Talaq al-Bidah).
*Or husband gives each divorce after one menstrual cycle without touching her (known as Talaq al-Sunnah). This means, the process of 3 Talaqs takes 3 menstrual cycles.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Bidah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in one sitting):====
In the first case of triple Talaqs in one sitting, a woman has to go the restrictions of 'Iddah for 3 menstrual cycles before remarrying another man. But this ruling is criticized, while the parentage of the child could be determined only after the first menstrual cycle (as in case of the captive/slave woman). Therefore, logically the 'Iddah should be only one menstrual cycle long if this idea were to be followed to its logical conclusion<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20220113121219/https://atheism-vs-islam.com/index.php/women/94-iddah-i-e-waiting-period-is-illogical-unnecessary-oppressive-injustice-against-the-women Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles in case of 3 Talaqs in one sitting]</ref>. There is no chance of reconciliation between the couple after the 3 Talaqs.

Moreover, it is also claimed that in the present modern era, it is not necessary to wait even for one menstrual cycle, as the pregnancy could be determined right away through the medical tests.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Sunnah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in 3 different sittings)====
In case of Talaq al-Sunnah, '''the process of divorce''' itself takes the time of 3 menstrual cycles, during which husband is not allowed to touch the woman<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />. Therefore, this process of divorce (which is 3 menstrual cycles long) is itself enough to make sure if the woman is pregnant or not (as the husband has not touched her during this period).

Yet according to the traditional Sunni Islam, a woman has to undergo 3 more menstrual cycles of 'Iddah (i.e. The whole process of Divorce + ‘Iddah lasts for at least 6 menstrual cycles for a divorced woman).
{{Quote|[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/12667/the-iddah-of-a-woman-divorced-by-talaaq The ‘iddah of a woman divorced by talaaq]|If the woman is not pregnant and she menstruates (is of child-bearing age), then her ‘iddah is three complete menstrual cycles after the divorce, i.e., her period comes then she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure. That is three complete menstrual cycles, regardless of whether the time between them is long or short. Based on this, if he divorces her and she is breastfeeding and does not menstruate until two years later, then she remains in ‘iddah until she has had three menstrual cycles, so she may stay in this state for two years or more. The point is that she should go through three complete menstrual cycles whether the time involved is long or short, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And divorced women shall wait (as regards their marriage) for three menstrual periods”

[al-Baqarah 2:228]}}

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that in case of Divorce too, woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband during the period of 'Iddah====
Not only does the widow have to compulsorily stay in the house of her deceased husband during 'Iddah, but in case of divorce too, the woman is forced by these laws stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|When the husband divorces his wife, she will have to spend her Iddat in the matrimonial home. She must not leave the house during the day nor at night, nor can she make nikah with anyone else ... This rule will apply irrespective of whether the man issued one two or three divorces, and irrespective of whether he issued a talaaqul baa-in (irrevocable divorce) or a talaaq-ur-raj’ee (revocable Talaaq). The same rule will apply in all cases ... If she is observing her ‘Iddat in the same house wherein the man who issued a talaaqul baain to her is also living, she will have to observe strict Purdah (Hijab) with him.}}
The critics of this ruling point out that after the irrevocable triple talaq (either in one sitting or three different sittings), no reconciliation is possible (except that she marries another man and he also divorces her), which begs the question of why an 'iddah is even necessary in today's world with genetic parental testing.

===Implantation Bleeding Despite Being pregnant===
Islamic du'aah and shaikhs claim that the Islamic 'Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles is correct, while some women have implantation bleeding despite being pregnant, and it is difficult for a woman to differentiate between the periods and the [https://www.healthline.com/health/how-long-does-spotting-last#implantation-spotting implantation bleeding]. Yet despite this rule, traditional Islamic law itself stipulates an 'Iddah of a prisoner/slave woman as only one menstrual cycle, in contradiction to this idea. If parentage were the main issue, the status of the woman (free or slave) should not matter. Also the 'Iddah of a free Muslim woman in the case of [[Khul']] is only one period.<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/5163/does-iddah-apply-in-the-case-of-khula 'Iddah in Khul' is one menstrual period]</ref> Even Muhammad himself slept with [[Safiyah]] the same night when her first menstrual blood stopped, after he had murdered her previous husband. Note that Safiyyah was not a slave, but a free woman when Muhammad took her as a wife: {{Quote|{{Muslim|16|99}}|He (the Holy Prophet) then granted Saffiyyah emancipation and married her. Thabit said to him: Abu Hamza, how much dower did he (the Holy Prophet) give to her? He said: He granted her freedom and then married her. On the way Umm Sulaim embellished her and then sent her to him (the Holy Prophet) at night.}}{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||2893|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik: We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba,' '''Safiya became clean from her (first) menses then Allah's Apostle took her into his bed.'''}}

There is no Sahih Hadith of the prophet in which he ever mentions the 'Iddah of 3 periods due to any implantation bleeding. Muhammad adopted the practice of 'Iddah from his native Arabian culture. It is in response to modern conceptions of biology and ideals about women's rights that these arguments about parentage have been formulated. But Muslims will fail, as contradictions in Islam will then occur (like Muslims having sex with prisoner/slave women and while Muhammad had himself sex with Safiyyah after only the first menstrual cycle. They are not based on the actual source material but rather on a desire to make the source material acceptable to a modern audience.

===Why no waiting period in name of "mourning" for the captive/slave women?===
In spite of the aforementioned claims of concern for the well-being of women, according to traditional [[Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence)]] Muslim men are allowed to derive sexual pleasures from the virgin girls taken as war booty during Jihad without giving them any 'waiting period' to mourn their dead family members. As far as the non-virgin slaves taken as war booty are concerned, if already have husbands, then vaginal coitus is not allowed till they become free of their first menstrual period, but the Muslim Mujhaahiduun (i.e. warriors) are allowed to undress them the same night and to take all kinds of other sexual pleasures and sexual favors from them aside from vaginal penetration.
{{Quote|1=[http://web.archive.org/save/http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfrom=4080&idto=4081&bk_no=52&ID=1404&idfrom=4523&idto=5022&bookid=18&startno=425 Imam Ibn Hajar al-Asqallani, in his book Fath-ul-Bari]|2=وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج

Translation:

Atta said: ‘There is no harm to drive sexual pleasure from the body of the pregnant slave/(or prisoner) woman except from vagina’}}
According to Islamic Scholars, the Fiqh (Jurisprudence) of Imam Bukhari lies in the “Headings of Chapters” of his Book. And Imam Bukhari gave this heading in his book Sahih Bukhari<ref>[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]</ref>:<blockquote>''Chapter: If one buys a slave woman, can he then take her along with him in a journey without her completing her waiting period?''</blockquote>Under this heading, Imam Bukhari writes:
{{Quote|1=[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]|2=ولم ير الحسن بأسا أن يقبلها أو يباشرها. وقال ابن عمر ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ إذا وهبت الوليدة التي توطأ أو بيعت أو عتقت فليستبرأ رحمها بحيضة، ولا تستبرأ العذراء. وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج.

Translation:

Hasan Basri finds nothing objectionable in kissing a woman or to having sex with her. And Ibn Umar said that such a slave woman who is given as a present, or who is sold, or who is made free, but sex had been done with her before that, then she had to undergo a waiting period. '''And Atta said if a slave woman had become pregnant (from the earlier owner/husband), then still pleasure could be derived from the whole of her body, except for her vagina.'''}}
The sorrow and pain of such women are recorded in Tabari:
{{Quote|1=[https://books.google.de/books?id=4A-4ZC4l0dMC&pg=PA122&lpg=PA122&dq=she+commanded+that+Safiyyah+should+be+kept+behind+him+and+that+the+Messenger+of+God+had+chosen+her+for+himself&source=bl&ots=pHDBKo-6Bv&sig=W8sWDq8ZJ4nLwFZpsA1obfYZJ48&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwizjuC41L7bAhVHXRQKHSEhD7EQ6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q=she%20commanded%20that%20Safiyyah%20should%20be%20kept%20behind%20him%20and%20that%20the%20Messenger%20of%20God%20had%20chosen%20her%20for%20himself&f=false History of Tabari, Volume 8, Page 112]|2=Ibn Ishaq said: After the Messenger of God conquered al-Qamus, Safiyyah bint Huyayy was brought to him, and another woman with her. Bilal (a companion), who was the one who brought them, led them past some of the slain Jews. When the woman who was with Safiyyah saw them, she cried out, struck her face, and poured dust on her head. When the Messenger of God saw her, he said, "Take this she-devil away from me!" ... The Messenger of God said to Bilal, when he saw the Jewish woman doing what he saw her do, "Are you devoid of mercy, Bilal, that you take two women past their slain men?"}}

The clear disregard for the well-being of women presents a conundrum for modern day advocates of these Islamic laws and traditions. On one hand, Islamic law advocates claim that a Muslim woman is not allowed to be wed during 3 periods/months long 'Iddah while she is mentally under stress after the divorce. Yet on the flip side of the coin, by endorsing a tradition with such endorsements of sexual slavery, they ignore any such mental stress for the prisoner women and girls. Far away from the subject of divorce, even after killing all the men of their family, Muslim men are allowed their use sex objects the very same night that their slavery begins. They are provided with no 'waiting period' to come out of their mental stress.

Contrary to Islam, even the laws of the Jewish Bible allowed the prisoner women to mourn their relatives for one complete month, during which men were not allowed to take any other sexual services from them.

{{Quote|1=[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2021&version=NIV Bible, Deuteronomy, Chap 21]|2=יכִּֽי־תֵצֵ֥א לַמִּלְחָמָ֖ה עַל־אֹֽיְבֶ֑יךָ וּנְתָנ֞וֹ יְהֹוָ֧ה אֱלֹהֶ֛יךָ בְּיָדֶ֖ךָ וְשָׁבִ֥יתָ שִׁבְיֽוֹ:

יאוְרָאִ֨יתָ֙ בַּשִּׁבְיָ֔ה אֵ֖שֶׁת יְפַת־תֹּ֑אַר וְחָֽשַׁקְתָּ֣ בָ֔הּ וְלָֽקַחְתָּ֥ לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

יבוַֽהֲבֵאתָ֖הּ אֶל־תּ֣וֹךְ בֵּיתֶ֑ךָ וְגִלְּחָה֙ אֶת־רֹאשָׁ֔הּ וְעָֽשְׂתָ֖ה אֶת־צִפָּֽרְנֶֽיהָ:

יגוְהֵסִ֩ירָה֩ אֶת־שִׂמְלַ֨ת שִׁבְיָ֜הּ מֵֽעָלֶ֗יהָ וְיָֽשְׁבָה֙ בְּבֵיתֶ֔ךָ וּבָֽכְתָ֛ה אֶת־אָבִ֥יהָ וְאֶת־אִמָּ֖הּ יֶ֣רַח יָמִ֑ים וְאַ֨חַר כֵּ֜ן תָּב֤וֹא אֵלֶ֨יהָ֙ וּבְעַלְתָּ֔הּ וְהָֽיְתָ֥ה לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

ידוְהָיָ֞ה אִם־לֹ֧א חָפַ֣צְתָּ בָּ֗הּ וְשִׁלַּחְתָּהּ֙ לְנַפְשָׁ֔הּ וּמָכֹ֥ר לֹֽא־תִמְכְּרֶ֖נָּה בַּכָּ֑סֶף לֹֽא־תִתְעַמֵּ֣ר בָּ֔הּ תַּ֖חַת אֲשֶׁ֥ר עִנִּיתָֽהּ:

'''Marrying a Captive Woman'''

(10) When you go to war against your enemies and the Lord your God delivers them into your hands and you take captives,

(11) if you notice among the captives a beautiful woman and are attracted to her, you may take her as your wife.

(12) Bring her into your home and have her shave her head, trim her nails

(13) and put aside the clothes she was wearing when captured. '''After she has lived in your house and mourned her father and mother for a full month''', then you may go to her and be her husband and she shall be your wife.

(14) If you are not pleased with her, let her go wherever she wishes. You must not sell her or treat her as a slave, since you have dishonored her.}}

In creating these new rulings around taking the sexual pleasure of female sex slaves, Islamic law rejected the law of the Bible in this case, and more closely followed the laws of the pagan Arab society of the time of Muhammad, as it benefitted the Muslims financially and they were free to seek sexual pleasures through the prisoner women the same night.

==References==
{{reflist}}

'Iddah (Female Menstrual Waiting Period)

2022-03-21T20:06:45Z

Vixen: /* Waiting period for the captive/slave-women */

In Islamic [[Sharia]], '<nowiki/>''iddah'' or '''iddat'' (Arabic: العدة‎; ''period (of waiting)''), also spelled ''iddah'', ''idda'', or ''iddat'', is the period a woman must observe after the death of her husband or after a divorce, during which she has to face numbers of restrictions<ref name="Esposito2004">{{cite book | editor = John L. Esposito | date = 21 October 2004 | title = The Oxford Dictionary of Islam | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 131 | isbn = 978-0-19-975726-8 | oclc = 286438886 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=E324pQEEQQcC}}</ref>.

The 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby)
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. (On paper; in actuality she would not get the attention, love, or support and emotional help from any man for 6 menstrual cycles. The first 3 menstrual cycles are the process of Divorce, during which time she cannot not leave the husband's house, and her husband cannot touch her. And after the divorce, again she has to endure another "waiting period" of 3 more menstrual cycles with many restrictions. She practically has to stay under these strict restrictions for about 6 months).

Muslim scholars defend these restrictions upon the women in 'Iddah. They claim that rulings of 'Iddah could neither be abolished, nor could they be changed as the rulings of the [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)| Islamic Sharia]] are based upon wisdom, justice and the best interests of the women, and they protect the women against the gender oppression and misogyny, while the man made laws of the modern Western world lead to the sexual exploitation of the women<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/39286 Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website: Is it correct to think that fatwas may vary according to time and place?] </ref><ref>[https://yaqeeninstitute.org/read/paper/women-in-islamic-law-examining-five-prevalent-myths Women in Islamic Law: Examining Five Prevalent Myths]</ref>. Yet in point of fact women are forced to unilaterally face these restrictions, which make their life difficult, while the husbands don't have to face any restriction. The basis of these restrictions, the need to be sure of fatherhood, has been rendered obsolete by modern science. In addition, these restrictions are not found anywhere in the bible or Judeo-Christian tradition. Their antecedents seem rather to be pre-Islamic Arab culture (which is known as "Time of Ignorance (i.e. jāhiliyyah)"<ref>[https://www.al-islam.org/man-and-ignorance/what-does-jahiliyah-mean What does Jahiliyah mean?]</ref>.
==The different lengths of the waiting periods and their reasons==
The length of 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A prisoner/slave woman''': The waiting period is becoming free from the blood of the first menstrual cycle<ref name=":3">[https://web.archive.org/web/20201219104233/https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book33.html 'Idda, Istibra' and Maintenance]</ref>. The reason is to determine the PARENTAGE of the child. Islam considers first menstrual cycle as enough to determine if a woman is pregnant or not.
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. The reason is to give time to the couple to solve their dispute during this period<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0">[https://brill.com/view/book/9789047426202/Bej.9789004172739.i-227_018.xml Reason for the waiting period]</ref>.
*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days. The reason is to give time to the woman to MOURN the death of her husband<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0" />.
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby). The reason is to prevent that another man (as 2nd husband) could "water" the fetus from the previous husband<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://quranx.com/Hadith/AbuDawud/DarusSalam/Hadith-2158/ Sunnan Abu Dawud, Hadith 2158]</ref>.

==Restrictions upon the woman during her 'Iddah:==

Islamic 'Iddah not only prohibits the women from remarriage with another man, but it also puts other restrictions upon them.

===First Restriction: She has to undergo the 'Iddah even without any 'maintenance' money===
According to the traditional rulings of Shari'ah, after the death and divorce of a woman's husband she is not entitled to any support from his family or estate. As the Dar-ul-Ifta says:{{Quote|[https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Dar-ul-Ifta]|The '''maintenance and providing of shelter for a woman observing the Iddat of Death are not the responsibility of her in-laws. She also does not have the right to take her maintenance out of the Estate of her deceased husband.'''}}A woman has no choice but to compulsorily undergo the 'Iddah of period of 4 months and 10 days (or up to 9 months in case of pregnancy), yet she has no right for maintenance money from the estate of her husband for this long period of time, and this in traditional cultures where women often rely upon men for their sustenance. In such cultures this stricture would be a huge financial burden upon the women, who often did not and do not even have any source of income.

===Second Restriction: She has to stay in the house of her ex-Husband during the entirety of the ‘Iddah===
According to the ruling of traditional Islamic Sharia'h, if a woman's husband dies then she is allowed to stay ''only'' in the house of her husband during this whole period of 'Iddah. She is not allowed to spend this time of 'Iddah in any other place (like house of her parents or any other family members).<ref>Fatwas Website Islamqa.Org. [https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ Laws of Iddat].</ref><ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/10670/what-a-recently-widowed-woman-is-not-allowed-to-do Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website]</ref> Sunan Abu Dawud bears witness to this custom, and further clarifies that her need for financial support is not to be taken into consideration:
====The woman has to stay in the husband’s house, even if it doesn’t belong to her husband, or even if he hasn’t left any maintenance money for the wife====
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2293|hasan}}|Furay'ah said that she came to the Messenger of Allah and asked him whether she could return to her people, Banu Khidrah, for her husband went out seeking his slaves who ran away. When they met him at al-Qudum, they murdered him.

So I asked the Messenger of Allah: "Should I return to my people, '''for he did not leave any dwelling house of his own and maintenance for me'''?

She said: The Messenger of Allah replied: Yes. She said: I came out, and when I was in the apartment or in the mosque, he called for me, or he commanded (someone to call me) and, therefore, I was called.

He said: what did you say? So I repeated my story which I had already mentioned about my husband.

'''Thereupon he said: Stay in your house till the term (of four months and 10 days) lapses.'''

She said: So I passed my waiting period in it (her house) for four months and ten days. When Uthman ibn Affan became caliph, he sent for me and asked me about that; so I informed him, '''and he followed it and decided cases accordingly'''.}}

Although this clearly serves the purpose of insuring that the next man who marries her does not inherit a son from the previous marriage or another man she had relations with during her 'Iddah, the wellbeing of the woman here is not considered at all; her need to either work to support herself or be with her own family for succor and support is not taken into account at all, and neither is her freedom of movement and intention.

===Third Restriction: The Woman should not leave the house even for daily walks, or visit the relatives or attend any social gathering===
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20211014113704/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45453/visiting-relatives-in-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]|'''Question''': Is a woman allowed to visit family members like her parents or sisters if she is observing iddat and use the excuse that she will be with her family so she doesn’t see the problem?
'''Answer''': A woman who has been divorced is not allowed to leave the confines of her home during the iddat for whatever reason, '''be it to visit friends or relatives or to attend the funeral of even her parents'''.}}
Many Islamic fatawa (religious rulings) decree that Muslim women observing their 'iddah must not leave their (husband's) house even for a walk and certainly not for any type of social gathering ([https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114224/https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/349861/woman-in-iddah-may-go-out-for-need Fatwa 1], [https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114300/https://idealwoman.org/2021/can-a-woman-go-out-for-a-walk-during-iddat/ Fatwa 2]). Although this makes sense from the perspective of insuring that her next husband does not inherit the baby of a man she had relations with during her 'iddah and that any pregnancy which comes about in the 'iddah can only be the work of her husband, it completely disregards her human rights. No consideration is given for the women's freedom of movement, freedom of choice, social or relationship needs.

===Fourth Restriction: The woman should not even use collyrium/kohl on her eyes even for eye disease, since it beautifies her===
Although a woman is allowed to take medical care during her ‘iddah, still she should not use collyrium/kohl as a cure even against any eye disease, since this substance can be used as a form of makeup to beautifie her.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari||68|81|in-book}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said, "No."}}

===Fifth Restriction: Women are not allowed to use good clothes, jewelry, perfume, Henna and to comb their hair or to oil it===
Women observing their 'Iddah are not allowed to wear good clothes, or jewelry, or use perfume or Henna. Even combing their hair and applying the oil to it is forbidden<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]</ref>. Washing the face with aloe is also forbidden.
{{Quote|[https://sunnah.com/mishkat:3333 Mishkat al-Masabih 3333]|Umm Salama said: God’s Messenger came to visit me when Abu Salama died, and I had put the juice of aloes on myself. He asked me what it was, and I told him it was only the juice of aloes and contained no perfume, so he said, “It gives the face a glow, so apply it only at night and remove it in the daytime, and do not comb yourself with scent or henna, for it is a dye.” I asked God’s Messenger what I should use when combing myself, and he told me to use lote-tree leaves and smear my head copiously with them. Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani declared this Hadith to be FAIR (حسن) (link).}}Although these strictures again work to keep the woman from having any intercourse or attracting any male attention during her 'iddah by keeping herself (relatively) unattractive, these laws once again completely disregard the happiness and freedom of the woman to whom they are applied. They also seem excessively harsh, as if she is truly keeping herself confined to her house the question arises as to who would see her with all of this makeup on even if she did apply it.

==Pre-Islamic Influences on the Concept of ‘Iddah==
According to the following hadith, the concept of 'iddah was taken from pre-Islamic Arabian culture:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||5336|darussalam}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said,''' "No." Then Allah's Messenger added, "It is just a matter of four months and ten days. In the Pre-Islamic Period of ignorance a widow among you should throw a globe of dung when one year has elapsed (i.e. she had to stay in ‘Iddah for the whole one year)." '''}}Apparently women even at the time the hadith was created were complaining of the burdens of the 'iddah, but the hadith admonishes them that they ought to be thankful for Islam, since in the jahiliyyah (the pre-islamic time of "ignorance" before the coming of Islam in the Arab peninsula) the 'iddah lasted a whole year. That there were complaints, though, can be seen from the existence of the hadith in the first place, so even in the time of this hadith women were not happy with them; by comparison, modern secular culture imposes no such restrictions on women at all.

==Waiting period for the captive/slave-women==
The waiting period of captive/slave-women is as follows:

*If she is a virgin girl, then no waiting period is necessary, and the Muslim owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
*If she's married and has a husband, then the waiting period is to become free of the first menstrual blood. Even if this blood stopped the first night after the capture/purchase, the owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
{{Quote|{{Abudawud|11|2153}}|(Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said): ... it is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the Last Day to have intercourse with a captive woman till she is free from a menstrual course (i.e. her first menstrual blood).}}
Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd (who is also knows as younger Imam Malik), writes in his Fiqh book Risalah:
{{Quote|[http://web.archive.org/web/20160117184347/http://www.dhspriory.org/kenny/RISALA.htm Risalah by Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd]|واستبراء الامة في انتقال الملك حيضة انتقل الملك ببيع أو هبة أو سبي أو غير ذلك. ومن هي في حيازته قدحاضت عنده ثم إنه اشتراها فلا استبراء عليها إن لم تكن تخرج.
The istibrā' (waiting) period for a slave concubine who changes ownership is one menstruation. Ownership may change by selling, giving away, capture, or any other way. If the woman menstruates after being taken possession of in advance by her new owner, and then he buys her, she does not have to go through a period of istibrā' (i.e. waiting period).}}
Even if the first menstrual blood stops the first night after becoming captive/purchase, the Muslim owner is allowed to have sex with her the same night.

Saffiyyah (a Jewish captive woman) became free of her blood the next night after her father, brother and husband were killed in the war by Muslims. Thus Muhammad had sex with her the next night
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||4211|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:

We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, (then) the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet (ﷺ) selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba, (which is 14 miles away from Khaibar)' Safiya became clean from her menses then Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) married her.}}

==Criticism of the Islamic 'Iddah==

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a widow===
Some Islamic du'aah, shaykhs, and ulemaa' argue that the reason for the 4 month and 10 days long 'iddah of a widow is to ''''mourn'''<nowiki/>' the death of the husband.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Reason for 4 months 10 days long Iddah of a widow [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/88684/rights-of-a-deceased-husband-on-his-wife]</ref> Yet it should be noted that there is no obligation of any “mourning” upon a man if the wife dies. There is a clear a double standard vis-a-vis the same situation involving a man and a woman, as the husband is totally free to marry a new wife the same night, without any waiting period in name of "mourning." He's also totally free to have sex with his other wives and dozens of slave girls the same night as his divorce, and there is no restriction upon him in name of "mourning."

Moreover, the 'iddah is even incumbent upon the widow in cases where she has never seen her husband after the marriage, and in cases where the marriage has not been consummated, and even if she is a minor child, or even if the marriage was abusive <ref>Widow has to observe 'Iddah even if she never saw the husband after the marriage, or even if she is a small child. [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/145179/the-waiting-period-of-an-old-woman-after-the-death-of-her-husband]</ref>. ''In all such cases, a widow has no emotional connection with the deceased husband, but still she has to undergo the restrictions of 'Iddah in name of mourning''. As such, feminist critics of the institution of the 'iddah have decried it as misogynist.

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a pregnant woman===
According to the Quran, the 'iddah of a pregnant woman is till the birth of a child ([https://quranx.com/65.4 Quran 65:4]).

Muhammad in the hadith of Sunan Abu Dawud justifies the practice in this manner:
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2158|darussalam}}|رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ يَوْمَ حُنَيْنٍ قَالَ ‏"‏ لاَ يَحِلُّ لاِمْرِئٍ يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ أَنْ يَسْقِيَ مَاءَهُ زَرْعَ غَيْرِهِ ‏"

The Messenger of Allah said: It is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the last day '''to water what another has sown with his water (meaning intercourse with a woman who is pregnant from her previous husband).'''}}
This prohibition seems to imply some impurification of the fetus by the seed of the second man, but scientifically once the woman has been impregnated this is impossible, the DNA of the baby will not be affected by any other semen in the woman's body. This hadith thus seems to present an unscientific view of human gestation. Moreover, the man is under all circumstances able to take sexual pleasure from any other wife or sex slave that he possess immediately after the end of his marital bond, but it is only the woman who is not allowed to fulfil her natural need to have love and sex from any man.

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that a pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband till the delivery====
A pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|If a woman is pregnant and her husband divorces her, she will have to remain in that house until she delivers her child.}}
This ruling is criticized while a woman is alone in the house of her ex-husband, and she has to observe Purdah (Hijab) from him too<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Staying in the house of ex-husband, but also doing Purdah (Hijab) from him.] </ref>. Living under one roof with the ex-husband is a cause of mental torture for a woman.

As compared to the house of ex-husband, she could find a lot of love in house of her parents or relatives and live freely there and deliver the child in the comfort of her family.

===Criticism of 'Iddah in case of divorce===
There are 2 procedures of giving the Triple Talaq in traditional Sunni Islam<ref name=":1">[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/2373/giving-talaaq-divorce-three-times-at-once-is-bidah 3 Talaqs in one sitting and the Quranic way of giving divorce]</ref><ref name=":2">[https://tripakshalitigation.com/types-of-talaq-under-muslim-law/ Types of Talaqs under the Muslim Law]</ref>:

*Either the husband may pronounce the 3 Talaqs (repeating the word for "divorce" in Arabic, "talaq talaq talaq") in one sitting (known as Talaq al-Bidah).
*Or husband gives each divorce after one menstrual cycle without touching her (known as Talaq al-Sunnah). This means, the process of 3 Talaqs takes 3 menstrual cycles.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Bidah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in one sitting):====
In the first case of triple Talaqs in one sitting, a woman has to go the restrictions of 'Iddah for 3 menstrual cycles before remarrying another man. But this ruling is criticized, while the parentage of the child could be determined only after the first menstrual cycle (as in case of the captive/slave woman). Therefore, logically the 'Iddah should be only one menstrual cycle long if this idea where to be followed to its logical conclusion<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20220113121219/https://atheism-vs-islam.com/index.php/women/94-iddah-i-e-waiting-period-is-illogical-unnecessary-oppressive-injustice-against-the-women Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles in case of 3 Talaqs in one sitting]</ref>. There is no chance of reconciliation between the couple after the 3 Talaqs.

Moreover, it is also claimed that in the present modern era, it is not necessary to wait even for one menstrual cycle, as the pregnancy could be determined right away through the medical tests.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Sunnah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in 3 different sittings)====
In case of Talaq al-Sunnah, '''the process of divorce''' itself takes the time of 3 menstrual cycles, during which husband is not allowed to touch the woman<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />. Therefore, this process of divorce (which is 3 menstrual cycles long) is itself enough to make sure if the woman is pregnant or not (as the husband has not touched her during this period).

Yet according to the traditional Sunni Islam, a woman has to undergo 3 more menstrual cycles of 'Iddah (i.e. The whole process of Divorce + ‘Iddah lasts for at least 6 menstrual cycles for a divorced woman).
{{Quote|[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/12667/the-iddah-of-a-woman-divorced-by-talaaq The ‘iddah of a woman divorced by talaaq]|If the woman is not pregnant and she menstruates (is of child-bearing age), then her ‘iddah is three complete menstrual cycles after the divorce, i.e., her period comes then she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure. That is three complete menstrual cycles, regardless of whether the time between them is long or short. Based on this, if he divorces her and she is breastfeeding and does not menstruate until two years later, then she remains in ‘iddah until she has had three menstrual cycles, so she may stay in this state for two years or more. The point is that she should go through three complete menstrual cycles whether the time involved is long or short, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And divorced women shall wait (as regards their marriage) for three menstrual periods”

[al-Baqarah 2:228]}}

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that in case of Divorce too, woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband during the period of 'Iddah====
Not only does the widow have to compulsorily stay in the house of her deceased husband during 'Iddah, but in case of divorce too, the woman is forced by these laws stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|When the husband divorces his wife, she will have to spend her Iddat in the matrimonial home. She must not leave the house during the day nor at night, nor can she make nikah with anyone else ... This rule will apply irrespective of whether the man issued one two or three divorces, and irrespective of whether he issued a talaaqul baa-in (irrevocable divorce) or a talaaq-ur-raj’ee (revocable Talaaq). The same rule will apply in all cases ... If she is observing her ‘Iddat in the same house wherein the man who issued a talaaqul baain to her is also living, she will have to observe strict Purdah (Hijab) with him.}}
The critics of this ruling point out that after the irrevocable triple talaq (either in one sitting or three different sittings), no reconciliation is possible (except that she marries another man and he also divorces her), which begs the question of why an 'iddah is even necessary in today's world with genetic parental testing.

===Implantation Bleeding Despite Being pregnant===
Islamic du'aah and shaikhs claim that the Islamic 'Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles is correct, while some women have implantation bleeding despite being pregnant, and it is difficult for a woman to differentiate between the periods and the [https://www.healthline.com/health/how-long-does-spotting-last#implantation-spotting implantation bleeding]. Yet despite this rule, traditional Islamic law itself stipulates an 'Iddah of a prisoner/slave woman as only one menstrual cycle, in contradiction to this idea. If parentage were the main issue, the status of the woman (free or slave) should not matter. Also the 'Iddah of a free Muslim woman in the case of [[Khul']] is only one period.<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/5163/does-iddah-apply-in-the-case-of-khula 'Iddah in Khul' is one menstrual period]</ref> Even Muhammad himself slept with [[Safiyah]] the same night when her first menstrual blood stopped, after he had murdered her previous husband. Note that Safiyyah was not a slave, but a free woman when Muhammad took her as a wife: {{Quote|{{Muslim|16|99}}|He (the Holy Prophet) then granted Saffiyyah emancipation and married her. Thabit said to him: Abu Hamza, how much dower did he (the Holy Prophet) give to her? He said: He granted her freedom and then married her. On the way Umm Sulaim embellished her and then sent her to him (the Holy Prophet) at night.}}{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||2893|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik: We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba,' '''Safiya became clean from her (first) menses then Allah's Apostle took her into his bed.'''}}

There is no Sahih Hadith of the prophet in which he ever mentions the 'Iddah of 3 periods due to any implantation bleeding. Muhammad adopted the practice of 'Iddah from his native Arabian culture. It is in response to modern conceptions of biology and ideals about women's rights that these arguments about parentage have been formulated. But Muslims will fail, as contradictions in Islam will then occur (like Muslims having sex with prisoner/slave women and while Muhammad had himself sex with Safiyyah after only the first menstrual cycle. They are not based on the actual source material but rather on a desire to make the source material acceptable to a modern audience.

===Why no waiting period in name of "mourning" for the captive/slave women?===
In spite of the aforementioned claims of concern for the well-being of women, according to traditional [[Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence)]] Muslim men are allowed to derive sexual pleasures from the virgin girls taken as war booty during Jihad without giving them any 'waiting period' to mourn their dead family members. As far as the non-virgin slaves taken as war booty are concerned, if already have husbands, then vaginal coitus is not allowed till they become free of their first menstrual period, but the Muslim Mujhaahiduun (i.e. warriors) are allowed to undress them the same night and to take all kinds of other sexual pleasures and sexual favors from them aside from vaginal penetration.
{{Quote|1=[http://web.archive.org/save/http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfrom=4080&idto=4081&bk_no=52&ID=1404&idfrom=4523&idto=5022&bookid=18&startno=425 Imam Ibn Hajar al-Asqallani, in his book Fath-ul-Bari]|2=وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج

Translation:

Atta said: ‘There is no harm to drive sexual pleasure from the body of the pregnant slave/(or prisoner) woman except from vagina’}}
According to Islamic Scholars, the Fiqh (Jurisprudence) of Imam Bukhari lies in the “Headings of Chapters” of his Book. And Imam Bukhari gave this heading in his book Sahih Bukhari<ref>[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]</ref>:<blockquote>''Chapter: If one buys a slave woman, can he then take her along with him in a journey without her completing her waiting period?''</blockquote>Under this heading, Imam Bukhari writes:
{{Quote|1=[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]|2=ولم ير الحسن بأسا أن يقبلها أو يباشرها. وقال ابن عمر ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ إذا وهبت الوليدة التي توطأ أو بيعت أو عتقت فليستبرأ رحمها بحيضة، ولا تستبرأ العذراء. وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج.

Translation:

Hasan Basri finds nothing objectionable in kissing a woman or to having sex with her. And Ibn Umar said that such a slave woman who is given as a present, or who is sold, or who is made free, but sex had been done with her before that, then she had to undergo a waiting period. '''And Atta said if a slave woman had become pregnant (from the earlier owner/husband), then still pleasure could be derived from the whole of her body, except for her vagina.'''}}
The sorrow and pain of such women are recorded in Tabari:
{{Quote|1=[https://books.google.de/books?id=4A-4ZC4l0dMC&pg=PA122&lpg=PA122&dq=she+commanded+that+Safiyyah+should+be+kept+behind+him+and+that+the+Messenger+of+God+had+chosen+her+for+himself&source=bl&ots=pHDBKo-6Bv&sig=W8sWDq8ZJ4nLwFZpsA1obfYZJ48&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwizjuC41L7bAhVHXRQKHSEhD7EQ6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q=she%20commanded%20that%20Safiyyah%20should%20be%20kept%20behind%20him%20and%20that%20the%20Messenger%20of%20God%20had%20chosen%20her%20for%20himself&f=false History of Tabari, Volume 8, Page 112]|2=Ibn Ishaq said: After the Messenger of God conquered al-Qamus, Safiyyah bint Huyayy was brought to him, and another woman with her. Bilal (a companion), who was the one who brought them, led them past some of the slain Jews. When the woman who was with Safiyyah saw them, she cried out, struck her face, and poured dust on her head. When the Messenger of God saw her, he said, "Take this she-devil away from me!" ... The Messenger of God said to Bilal, when he saw the Jewish woman doing what he saw her do, "Are you devoid of mercy, Bilal, that you take two women past their slain men?"}}

The clear disregard for the well-being of women presents a conundrum for modern day advocates of these Islamic laws and traditions. On one hand, Islamic law advocates claim that a Muslim woman is not allowed to be wed during 3 periods/months long 'Iddah while she is mentally under stress after the divorce. Yet on the flip side of the coin, by endorsing a tradition with such endorsements of sexual slavery, they ignore any such mental stress for the prisoner women and girls. Far away from the subject of divorce, even after killing all the men of their family, Muslim men are allowed their use sex objects the very same night that their slavery begins. They are provided with no 'waiting period' to come out of their mental stress.

Contrary to Islam, even the laws of the Jewish Bible allowed the prisoner women to mourn their relatives for one complete month, during which men were not allowed to take any other sexual services from them.

{{Quote|1=[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2021&version=NIV Bible, Deuteronomy, Chap 21]|2=יכִּֽי־תֵצֵ֥א לַמִּלְחָמָ֖ה עַל־אֹֽיְבֶ֑יךָ וּנְתָנ֞וֹ יְהֹוָ֧ה אֱלֹהֶ֛יךָ בְּיָדֶ֖ךָ וְשָׁבִ֥יתָ שִׁבְיֽוֹ:

יאוְרָאִ֨יתָ֙ בַּשִּׁבְיָ֔ה אֵ֖שֶׁת יְפַת־תֹּ֑אַר וְחָֽשַׁקְתָּ֣ בָ֔הּ וְלָֽקַחְתָּ֥ לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

יבוַֽהֲבֵאתָ֖הּ אֶל־תּ֣וֹךְ בֵּיתֶ֑ךָ וְגִלְּחָה֙ אֶת־רֹאשָׁ֔הּ וְעָֽשְׂתָ֖ה אֶת־צִפָּֽרְנֶֽיהָ:

יגוְהֵסִ֩ירָה֩ אֶת־שִׂמְלַ֨ת שִׁבְיָ֜הּ מֵֽעָלֶ֗יהָ וְיָֽשְׁבָה֙ בְּבֵיתֶ֔ךָ וּבָֽכְתָ֛ה אֶת־אָבִ֥יהָ וְאֶת־אִמָּ֖הּ יֶ֣רַח יָמִ֑ים וְאַ֨חַר כֵּ֜ן תָּב֤וֹא אֵלֶ֨יהָ֙ וּבְעַלְתָּ֔הּ וְהָֽיְתָ֥ה לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

ידוְהָיָ֞ה אִם־לֹ֧א חָפַ֣צְתָּ בָּ֗הּ וְשִׁלַּחְתָּהּ֙ לְנַפְשָׁ֔הּ וּמָכֹ֥ר לֹֽא־תִמְכְּרֶ֖נָּה בַּכָּ֑סֶף לֹֽא־תִתְעַמֵּ֣ר בָּ֔הּ תַּ֖חַת אֲשֶׁ֥ר עִנִּיתָֽהּ:

'''Marrying a Captive Woman'''

(10) When you go to war against your enemies and the Lord your God delivers them into your hands and you take captives,

(11) if you notice among the captives a beautiful woman and are attracted to her, you may take her as your wife.

(12) Bring her into your home and have her shave her head, trim her nails

(13) and put aside the clothes she was wearing when captured. '''After she has lived in your house and mourned her father and mother for a full month''', then you may go to her and be her husband and she shall be your wife.

(14) If you are not pleased with her, let her go wherever she wishes. You must not sell her or treat her as a slave, since you have dishonored her.}}

In creating these new rulings around taking the sexual pleasure of female sex slaves, Islamic law rejected the law of the Bible in this case, and more closely followed the laws of the pagan Arab society of the time of Muhammad, as it benefitted the Muslims financially and they were free to seek sexual pleasures through the prisoner women the same night.

==References==
{{reflist}}

'Iddah (Female Menstrual Waiting Period)

2022-03-18T14:20:40Z

Vixen: /* Second Restriction: She has to stay in the house of her ex-Husband during the entirety of the ‘Iddah */

In Islamic [[Sharia]], '<nowiki/>''iddah'' or '''iddat'' (Arabic: العدة‎; ''period (of waiting)''), also spelled ''iddah'', ''idda'', or ''iddat'', is the period a woman must observe after the death of her husband or after a divorce, during which she has to face numbers of restrictions<ref name="Esposito2004">{{cite book | editor = John L. Esposito | date = 21 October 2004 | title = The Oxford Dictionary of Islam | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 131 | isbn = 978-0-19-975726-8 | oclc = 286438886 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=E324pQEEQQcC}}</ref>.

The 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby)
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. (On paper; in actuality she would not get the attention, love, or support and emotional help from any man for 6 menstrual cycles. The first 3 menstrual cycles are the process of Divorce, during which time she cannot not leave the husband's house, and her husband cannot touch her. And after the divorce, again she has to endure another "waiting period" of 3 more menstrual cycles with many restrictions. She practically has to stay under these strict restrictions for about 6 months).

Muslim scholars defend these restrictions upon the women in 'Iddah. They claim that rulings of 'Iddah could neither be abolished, nor could they be changed as the rulings of the [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)| Islamic Sharia]] are based upon wisdom, justice and the best interests of the women, and they protect the women against the gender oppression and misogyny, while the man made laws of the modern Western world lead to the sexual exploitation of the women<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/39286 Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website: Is it correct to think that fatwas may vary according to time and place?] </ref><ref>[https://yaqeeninstitute.org/read/paper/women-in-islamic-law-examining-five-prevalent-myths Women in Islamic Law: Examining Five Prevalent Myths]</ref>. Yet in point of fact women are forced to unilaterally face these restrictions, which make their life difficult, while the husbands don't have to face any restriction. The basis of these restrictions, the need to be sure of fatherhood, has been rendered obsolete by modern science. In addition, these restrictions are not found anywhere in the bible or Judeo-Christian tradition. Their antecedents seem rather to be pre-Islamic Arab culture (which is known as "Time of Ignorance (i.e. jāhiliyyah)"<ref>[https://www.al-islam.org/man-and-ignorance/what-does-jahiliyah-mean What does Jahiliyah mean?]</ref>.
==The different lengths of the waiting periods and their reasons==
The length of 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A prisoner/slave woman''': The waiting period is becoming free from the blood of the first menstrual cycle<ref name=":3">[https://web.archive.org/web/20201219104233/https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book33.html 'Idda, Istibra' and Maintenance]</ref>. The reason is to determine the PARENTAGE of the child. Islam considers first menstrual cycle as enough to determine if a woman is pregnant or not.
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. The reason is to give time to the couple to solve their dispute during this period<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0">[https://brill.com/view/book/9789047426202/Bej.9789004172739.i-227_018.xml Reason for the waiting period]</ref>.
*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days. The reason is to give time to the woman to MOURN the death of her husband<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0" />.
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby). The reason is to prevent that another man (as 2nd husband) could "water" the fetus from the previous husband<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://quranx.com/Hadith/AbuDawud/DarusSalam/Hadith-2158/ Sunnan Abu Dawud, Hadith 2158]</ref>.

==Restrictions upon the woman during her 'Iddah:==

Islamic 'Iddah not only prohibits the women from remarriage with another man, but it also puts other restrictions upon them.

===First Restriction: She has to undergo the 'Iddah even without any 'maintenance' money===
According to the traditional rulings of Shari'ah, after the death and divorce of a woman's husband she is not entitled to any support from his family or estate. As the Dar-ul-Ifta says:{{Quote|[https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Dar-ul-Ifta]|The '''maintenance and providing of shelter for a woman observing the Iddat of Death are not the responsibility of her in-laws. She also does not have the right to take her maintenance out of the Estate of her deceased husband.'''}}A woman has no choice but to compulsorily undergo the 'Iddah of period of 4 months and 10 days (or up to 9 months in case of pregnancy), yet she has no right for maintenance money from the estate of her husband for this long period of time, and this in traditional cultures where women often rely upon men for their sustenance. In such cultures this stricture would be a huge financial burden upon the women, who often did not and do not even have any source of income.

===Second Restriction: She has to stay in the house of her ex-Husband during the entirety of the ‘Iddah===
According to the ruling of traditional Islamic Sharia'h, if a woman's husband dies then she is allowed to stay ''only'' in the house of her husband during this whole period of 'Iddah. She is not allowed to spend this time of 'Iddah in any other place (like house of her parents or any other family members).<ref>Fatwas Website Islamqa.Org. [https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ Laws of Iddat].</ref><ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/10670/what-a-recently-widowed-woman-is-not-allowed-to-do Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website]</ref> Sunan Abu Dawud bears witness to this custom, and further clarifies that her need for financial support is not to be taken into consideration:
====The woman has to stay in the husband’s house, even if it doesn’t belong to her husband, or even if he hasn’t left any maintenance money for the wife====
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2293|hasan}}|Furay'ah said that she came to the Messenger of Allah and asked him whether she could return to her people, Banu Khidrah, for her husband went out seeking his slaves who ran away. When they met him at al-Qudum, they murdered him.

So I asked the Messenger of Allah: "Should I return to my people, '''for he did not leave any dwelling house of his own and maintenance for me'''?

She said: The Messenger of Allah replied: Yes. She said: I came out, and when I was in the apartment or in the mosque, he called for me, or he commanded (someone to call me) and, therefore, I was called.

He said: what did you say? So I repeated my story which I had already mentioned about my husband.

'''Thereupon he said: Stay in your house till the term (of four months and 10 days) lapses.'''

She said: So I passed my waiting period in it (her house) for four months and ten days. When Uthman ibn Affan became caliph, he sent for me and asked me about that; so I informed him, '''and he followed it and decided cases accordingly'''.}}

Although this clearly serves the purpose of insuring that the next man who marries her does not inherit a son from the previous marriage or another man she had relations with during her 'Iddah, the wellbeing of the woman here is not considered at all; her need to either work to support herself or be with her own family for succor and support is not taken into account at all, and neither is her freedom of movement and intention.

===Third Restriction: The Woman should not leave the house even for daily walks, or visit the relatives or attend any social gathering===
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20211014113704/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45453/visiting-relatives-in-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]|'''Question''': Is a woman allowed to visit family members like her parents or sisters if she is observing iddat and use the excuse that she will be with her family so she doesn’t see the problem?
'''Answer''': A woman who has been divorced is not allowed to leave the confines of her home during the iddat for whatever reason, '''be it to visit friends or relatives or to attend the funeral of even her parents'''.}}
Many Islamic fatawa (religious rulings) decree that Muslim women observing their 'iddah must not leave their (husband's) house even for a walk and certainly not for any type of social gathering ([https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114224/https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/349861/woman-in-iddah-may-go-out-for-need Fatwa 1], [https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114300/https://idealwoman.org/2021/can-a-woman-go-out-for-a-walk-during-iddat/ Fatwa 2]). Although this makes sense from the perspective of insuring that her next husband does not inherit the baby of a man she had relations with during her 'iddah and that any pregnancy which comes about in the 'iddah can only be the work of her husband, it completely disregards her human rights. No consideration is given for the women's freedom of movement, freedom of choice, social or relationship needs.

===Fourth Restriction: The woman should not even use collyrium/kohl on her eyes even for eye disease, since it beautifies her===
Although a woman is allowed to take medical care during her ‘iddah, still she should not use collyrium/kohl as a cure even against any eye disease, since this substance can be used as a form of makeup to beautifie her.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari||68|81|in-book}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said, "No."}}

===Fifth Restriction: Women are not allowed to use good clothes, jewelry, perfume, Henna and to comb their hair or to oil it===
Women observing their 'Iddah are not allowed to wear good clothes, or jewelry, or use perfume or Henna. Even combing their hair and applying the oil to it is forbidden<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]</ref>. Washing the face with aloe is also forbidden.
{{Quote|[https://sunnah.com/mishkat:3333 Mishkat al-Masabih 3333]|Umm Salama said: God’s Messenger came to visit me when Abu Salama died, and I had put the juice of aloes on myself. He asked me what it was, and I told him it was only the juice of aloes and contained no perfume, so he said, “It gives the face a glow, so apply it only at night and remove it in the daytime, and do not comb yourself with scent or henna, for it is a dye.” I asked God’s Messenger what I should use when combing myself, and he told me to use lote-tree leaves and smear my head copiously with them. Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani declared this Hadith to be FAIR (حسن) (link).}}Although these strictures again work to keep the woman from having any intercourse or attracting any male attention during her 'iddah by keeping herself (relatively) unattractive, these laws once again completely disregard the happiness and freedom of the woman to whom they are applied. They also seem excessively harsh, as if she is truly keeping herself confined to her house the question arises as to who would see her with all of this makeup on even if she did apply it.

==Pre-Islamic Influences on the Concept of ‘Iddah==
According to the following hadith, the concept of 'iddah was taken from pre-Islamic Arabian culture:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||5336|darussalam}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said,''' "No." Then Allah's Messenger added, "It is just a matter of four months and ten days. In the Pre-Islamic Period of ignorance a widow among you should throw a globe of dung when one year has elapsed (i.e. she had to stay in ‘Iddah for the whole one year)." '''}}Apparently women even at the time the hadith was created were complaining of the burdens of the 'iddah, but the hadith admonishes them that they ought to be thankful for Islam, since in the jahiliyyah (the pre-islamic time of "ignorance" before the coming of Islam in the Arab peninsula) the 'iddah lasted a whole year. That there were complaints, though, can be seen from the existence of the hadith in the first place, so even in the time of this hadith women were not happy with them; by comparison, modern secular culture imposes no such restrictions on women at all.

==Waiting period for the captive/slave-women==
The waiting period of captive/slave-women is as follows:

*If she is a virgin girl, then no waiting period is necessary, and the Muslim owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
*If she's married and has a husband, then the waiting period is to become free of the first menstrual blood. Even if this blood stopped the first night after the capture/purchase, the owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
{{Quote|{{Abudawud|12|113}}|(Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said): ... it is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the Last Day to have intercourse with a captive woman till she is free from a menstrual course (i.e. her first menstrual blood).}}
Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd (who is also knows as younger Imam Malik), writes in his Fiqh book Risalah:
{{Quote|[http://web.archive.org/web/20160117184347/http://www.dhspriory.org/kenny/RISALA.htm Risalah by Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd]|واستبراء الامة في انتقال الملك حيضة انتقل الملك ببيع أو هبة أو سبي أو غير ذلك. ومن هي في حيازته قدحاضت عنده ثم إنه اشتراها فلا استبراء عليها إن لم تكن تخرج.
The istibrā' (waiting) period for a slave concubine who changes ownership is one menstruation. Ownership may change by selling, giving away, capture, or any other way. If the woman menstruates after being taken possession of in advance by her new owner, and then he buys her, she does not have to go through a period of istibrā' (i.e. waiting period).}}
Even if the first menstrual blood stops the first night after becoming captive/purchase, the Muslim owner is allowed to have sex with her the same night.

Saffiyyah (a Jewish captive woman) became free of her blood the next night after her father, brother and husband were killed in the war by Muslims. Thus Muhammad had sex with her the next night
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||4211|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:

We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, (then) the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet (ﷺ) selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba, (which is 14 miles away from Khaibar)' Safiya became clean from her menses then Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) married her.}}

==Criticism of the Islamic 'Iddah==

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a widow===
Some Islamic du'aah, shaykhs, and ulemaa' argue that the reason for the 4 month and 10 days long 'iddah of a widow is to ''''mourn'''<nowiki/>' the death of the husband.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Reason for 4 months 10 days long Iddah of a widow [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/88684/rights-of-a-deceased-husband-on-his-wife]</ref> Yet it should be noted that there is no obligation of any “mourning” upon a man if the wife dies. There is a clear a double standard vis-a-vis the same situation involving a man and a woman, as the husband is totally free to marry a new wife the same night, without any waiting period in name of "mourning." He's also totally free to have sex with his other wives and dozens of slave girls the same night as his divorce, and there is no restriction upon him in name of "mourning."

Moreover, the 'iddah is even incumbent upon the widow in cases where she has never seen her husband after the marriage, and in cases where the marriage has not been consummated, and even if she is a minor child, or even if the marriage was abusive <ref>Widow has to observe 'Iddah even if she never saw the husband after the marriage, or even if she is a small child. [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/145179/the-waiting-period-of-an-old-woman-after-the-death-of-her-husband]</ref>. ''In all such cases, a widow has no emotional connection with the deceased husband, but still she has to undergo the restrictions of 'Iddah in name of mourning''. As such, feminist critics of the institution of the 'iddah have decried it as misogynist.

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a pregnant woman===
According to the Quran, the 'iddah of a pregnant woman is till the birth of a child ([https://quranx.com/65.4 Quran 65:4]).

Muhammad in the hadith of Sunan Abu Dawud justifies the practice in this manner:
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2158|darussalam}}|رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ يَوْمَ حُنَيْنٍ قَالَ ‏"‏ لاَ يَحِلُّ لاِمْرِئٍ يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ أَنْ يَسْقِيَ مَاءَهُ زَرْعَ غَيْرِهِ ‏"

The Messenger of Allah said: It is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the last day '''to water what another has sown with his water (meaning intercourse with a woman who is pregnant from her previous husband).'''}}
This prohibition seems to imply some impurification of the fetus by the seed of the second man, but scientifically once the woman has been impregnated this is impossible, the DNA of the baby will not be affected by any other semen in the woman's body. This hadith thus seems to present an unscientific view of human gestation. Moreover, the man is under all circumstances able to take sexual pleasure from any other wife or sex slave that he possess immediately after the end of his marital bond, but it is only the woman who is not allowed to fulfil her natural need to have love and sex from any man.

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that a pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband till the delivery====
A pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|If a woman is pregnant and her husband divorces her, she will have to remain in that house until she delivers her child.}}
This ruling is criticized while a woman is alone in the house of her ex-husband, and she has to observe Purdah (Hijab) from him too<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Staying in the house of ex-husband, but also doing Purdah (Hijab) from him.] </ref>. Living under one roof with the ex-husband is a cause of mental torture for a woman.

As compared to the house of ex-husband, she could find a lot of love in house of her parents or relatives and live freely there and deliver the child in the comfort of her family.

===Criticism of 'Iddah in case of divorce===
There are 2 procedures of giving the Triple Talaq in traditional Sunni Islam<ref name=":1">[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/2373/giving-talaaq-divorce-three-times-at-once-is-bidah 3 Talaqs in one sitting and the Quranic way of giving divorce]</ref><ref name=":2">[https://tripakshalitigation.com/types-of-talaq-under-muslim-law/ Types of Talaqs under the Muslim Law]</ref>:

*Either the husband may pronounce the 3 Talaqs (repeating the word for "divorce" in Arabic, "talaq talaq talaq") in one sitting (known as Talaq al-Bidah).
*Or husband gives each divorce after one menstrual cycle without touching her (known as Talaq al-Sunnah). This means, the process of 3 Talaqs takes 3 menstrual cycles.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Bidah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in one sitting):====
In the first case of triple Talaqs in one sitting, a woman has to go the restrictions of 'Iddah for 3 menstrual cycles before remarrying another man. But this ruling is criticized, while the parentage of the child could be determined only after the first menstrual cycle (as in case of the captive/slave woman). Therefore, logically the 'Iddah should be only one menstrual cycle long if this idea where to be followed to its logical conclusion<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20220113121219/https://atheism-vs-islam.com/index.php/women/94-iddah-i-e-waiting-period-is-illogical-unnecessary-oppressive-injustice-against-the-women Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles in case of 3 Talaqs in one sitting]</ref>. There is no chance of reconciliation between the couple after the 3 Talaqs.

Moreover, it is also claimed that in the present modern era, it is not necessary to wait even for one menstrual cycle, as the pregnancy could be determined right away through the medical tests.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Sunnah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in 3 different sittings)====
In case of Talaq al-Sunnah, '''the process of divorce''' itself takes the time of 3 menstrual cycles, during which husband is not allowed to touch the woman<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />. Therefore, this process of divorce (which is 3 menstrual cycles long) is itself enough to make sure if the woman is pregnant or not (as the husband has not touched her during this period).

Yet according to the traditional Sunni Islam, a woman has to undergo 3 more menstrual cycles of 'Iddah (i.e. The whole process of Divorce + ‘Iddah lasts for at least 6 menstrual cycles for a divorced woman).
{{Quote|[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/12667/the-iddah-of-a-woman-divorced-by-talaaq The ‘iddah of a woman divorced by talaaq]|If the woman is not pregnant and she menstruates (is of child-bearing age), then her ‘iddah is three complete menstrual cycles after the divorce, i.e., her period comes then she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure. That is three complete menstrual cycles, regardless of whether the time between them is long or short. Based on this, if he divorces her and she is breastfeeding and does not menstruate until two years later, then she remains in ‘iddah until she has had three menstrual cycles, so she may stay in this state for two years or more. The point is that she should go through three complete menstrual cycles whether the time involved is long or short, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And divorced women shall wait (as regards their marriage) for three menstrual periods”

[al-Baqarah 2:228]}}

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that in case of Divorce too, woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband during the period of 'Iddah====
Not only does the widow have to compulsorily stay in the house of her deceased husband during 'Iddah, but in case of divorce too, the woman is forced by these laws stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|When the husband divorces his wife, she will have to spend her Iddat in the matrimonial home. She must not leave the house during the day nor at night, nor can she make nikah with anyone else ... This rule will apply irrespective of whether the man issued one two or three divorces, and irrespective of whether he issued a talaaqul baa-in (irrevocable divorce) or a talaaq-ur-raj’ee (revocable Talaaq). The same rule will apply in all cases ... If she is observing her ‘Iddat in the same house wherein the man who issued a talaaqul baain to her is also living, she will have to observe strict Purdah (Hijab) with him.}}
The critics of this ruling point out that after the irrevocable triple talaq (either in one sitting or three different sittings), no reconciliation is possible (except that she marries another man and he also divorces her), which begs the question of why an 'iddah is even necessary in today's world with genetic parental testing.

===Implantation Bleeding Despite Being pregnant===
Islamic du'aah and shaikhs claim that the Islamic 'Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles is correct, while some women have implantation bleeding despite being pregnant, and it is difficult for a woman to differentiate between the periods and the [https://www.healthline.com/health/how-long-does-spotting-last#implantation-spotting implantation bleeding]. Yet despite this rule, traditional Islamic law itself stipulates an 'Iddah of a prisoner/slave woman as only one menstrual cycle, in contradiction to this idea. If parentage were the main issue, the status of the woman (free or slave) should not matter. Also the 'Iddah of a free Muslim woman in the case of [[Khul']] is only one period.<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/5163/does-iddah-apply-in-the-case-of-khula 'Iddah in Khul' is one menstrual period]</ref> Even Muhammad himself slept with [[Safiyah]] the same night when her first menstrual blood stopped, after he had murdered her previous husband. Note that Safiyyah was not a slave, but a free woman when Muhammad took her as a wife: {{Quote|{{Muslim|16|99}}|He (the Holy Prophet) then granted Saffiyyah emancipation and married her. Thabit said to him: Abu Hamza, how much dower did he (the Holy Prophet) give to her? He said: He granted her freedom and then married her. On the way Umm Sulaim embellished her and then sent her to him (the Holy Prophet) at night.}}{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||2893|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik: We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba,' '''Safiya became clean from her (first) menses then Allah's Apostle took her into his bed.'''}}

There is no Sahih Hadith of the prophet in which he ever mentions the 'Iddah of 3 periods due to any implantation bleeding. Muhammad adopted the practice of 'Iddah from his native Arabian culture. It is in response to modern conceptions of biology and ideals about women's rights that these arguments about parentage have been formulated. But Muslims will fail, as contradictions in Islam will then occur (like Muslims having sex with prisoner/slave women and while Muhammad had himself sex with Safiyyah after only the first menstrual cycle. They are not based on the actual source material but rather on a desire to make the source material acceptable to a modern audience.

===Why no waiting period in name of "mourning" for the captive/slave women?===
In spite of the aforementioned claims of concern for the well-being of women, according to traditional [[Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence)]] Muslim men are allowed to derive sexual pleasures from the virgin girls taken as war booty during Jihad without giving them any 'waiting period' to mourn their dead family members. As far as the non-virgin slaves taken as war booty are concerned, if already have husbands, then vaginal coitus is not allowed till they become free of their first menstrual period, but the Muslim Mujhaahiduun (i.e. warriors) are allowed to undress them the same night and to take all kinds of other sexual pleasures and sexual favors from them aside from vaginal penetration.
{{Quote|1=[http://web.archive.org/save/http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfrom=4080&idto=4081&bk_no=52&ID=1404&idfrom=4523&idto=5022&bookid=18&startno=425 Imam Ibn Hajar al-Asqallani, in his book Fath-ul-Bari]|2=وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج

Translation:

Atta said: ‘There is no harm to drive sexual pleasure from the body of the pregnant slave/(or prisoner) woman except from vagina’}}
According to Islamic Scholars, the Fiqh (Jurisprudence) of Imam Bukhari lies in the “Headings of Chapters” of his Book. And Imam Bukhari gave this heading in his book Sahih Bukhari<ref>[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]</ref>:<blockquote>''Chapter: If one buys a slave woman, can he then take her along with him in a journey without her completing her waiting period?''</blockquote>Under this heading, Imam Bukhari writes:
{{Quote|1=[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]|2=ولم ير الحسن بأسا أن يقبلها أو يباشرها. وقال ابن عمر ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ إذا وهبت الوليدة التي توطأ أو بيعت أو عتقت فليستبرأ رحمها بحيضة، ولا تستبرأ العذراء. وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج.

Translation:

Hasan Basri finds nothing objectionable in kissing a woman or to having sex with her. And Ibn Umar said that such a slave woman who is given as a present, or who is sold, or who is made free, but sex had been done with her before that, then she had to undergo a waiting period. '''And Atta said if a slave woman had become pregnant (from the earlier owner/husband), then still pleasure could be derived from the whole of her body, except for her vagina.'''}}
The sorrow and pain of such women are recorded in Tabari:
{{Quote|1=[https://books.google.de/books?id=4A-4ZC4l0dMC&pg=PA122&lpg=PA122&dq=she+commanded+that+Safiyyah+should+be+kept+behind+him+and+that+the+Messenger+of+God+had+chosen+her+for+himself&source=bl&ots=pHDBKo-6Bv&sig=W8sWDq8ZJ4nLwFZpsA1obfYZJ48&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwizjuC41L7bAhVHXRQKHSEhD7EQ6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q=she%20commanded%20that%20Safiyyah%20should%20be%20kept%20behind%20him%20and%20that%20the%20Messenger%20of%20God%20had%20chosen%20her%20for%20himself&f=false History of Tabari, Volume 8, Page 112]|2=Ibn Ishaq said: After the Messenger of God conquered al-Qamus, Safiyyah bint Huyayy was brought to him, and another woman with her. Bilal (a companion), who was the one who brought them, led them past some of the slain Jews. When the woman who was with Safiyyah saw them, she cried out, struck her face, and poured dust on her head. When the Messenger of God saw her, he said, "Take this she-devil away from me!" ... The Messenger of God said to Bilal, when he saw the Jewish woman doing what he saw her do, "Are you devoid of mercy, Bilal, that you take two women past their slain men?"}}

The clear disregard for the well-being of women presents a conundrum for modern day advocates of these Islamic laws and traditions. On one hand, Islamic law advocates claim that a Muslim woman is not allowed to be wed during 3 periods/months long 'Iddah while she is mentally under stress after the divorce. Yet on the flip side of the coin, by endorsing a tradition with such endorsements of sexual slavery, they ignore any such mental stress for the prisoner women and girls. Far away from the subject of divorce, even after killing all the men of their family, Muslim men are allowed their use sex objects the very same night that their slavery begins. They are provided with no 'waiting period' to come out of their mental stress.

Contrary to Islam, even the laws of the Jewish Bible allowed the prisoner women to mourn their relatives for one complete month, during which men were not allowed to take any other sexual services from them.

{{Quote|1=[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2021&version=NIV Bible, Deuteronomy, Chap 21]|2=יכִּֽי־תֵצֵ֥א לַמִּלְחָמָ֖ה עַל־אֹֽיְבֶ֑יךָ וּנְתָנ֞וֹ יְהֹוָ֧ה אֱלֹהֶ֛יךָ בְּיָדֶ֖ךָ וְשָׁבִ֥יתָ שִׁבְיֽוֹ:

יאוְרָאִ֨יתָ֙ בַּשִּׁבְיָ֔ה אֵ֖שֶׁת יְפַת־תֹּ֑אַר וְחָֽשַׁקְתָּ֣ בָ֔הּ וְלָֽקַחְתָּ֥ לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

יבוַֽהֲבֵאתָ֖הּ אֶל־תּ֣וֹךְ בֵּיתֶ֑ךָ וְגִלְּחָה֙ אֶת־רֹאשָׁ֔הּ וְעָֽשְׂתָ֖ה אֶת־צִפָּֽרְנֶֽיהָ:

יגוְהֵסִ֩ירָה֩ אֶת־שִׂמְלַ֨ת שִׁבְיָ֜הּ מֵֽעָלֶ֗יהָ וְיָֽשְׁבָה֙ בְּבֵיתֶ֔ךָ וּבָֽכְתָ֛ה אֶת־אָבִ֥יהָ וְאֶת־אִמָּ֖הּ יֶ֣רַח יָמִ֑ים וְאַ֨חַר כֵּ֜ן תָּב֤וֹא אֵלֶ֨יהָ֙ וּבְעַלְתָּ֔הּ וְהָֽיְתָ֥ה לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

ידוְהָיָ֞ה אִם־לֹ֧א חָפַ֣צְתָּ בָּ֗הּ וְשִׁלַּחְתָּהּ֙ לְנַפְשָׁ֔הּ וּמָכֹ֥ר לֹֽא־תִמְכְּרֶ֖נָּה בַּכָּ֑סֶף לֹֽא־תִתְעַמֵּ֣ר בָּ֔הּ תַּ֖חַת אֲשֶׁ֥ר עִנִּיתָֽהּ:

'''Marrying a Captive Woman'''

(10) When you go to war against your enemies and the Lord your God delivers them into your hands and you take captives,

(11) if you notice among the captives a beautiful woman and are attracted to her, you may take her as your wife.

(12) Bring her into your home and have her shave her head, trim her nails

(13) and put aside the clothes she was wearing when captured. '''After she has lived in your house and mourned her father and mother for a full month''', then you may go to her and be her husband and she shall be your wife.

(14) If you are not pleased with her, let her go wherever she wishes. You must not sell her or treat her as a slave, since you have dishonored her.}}

In creating these new rulings around taking the sexual pleasure of female sex slaves, Islamic law rejected the law of the Bible in this case, and more closely followed the laws of the pagan Arab society of the time of Muhammad, as it benefitted the Muslims financially and they were free to seek sexual pleasures through the prisoner women the same night.

==References==
{{reflist}}

'Iddah (Female Menstrual Waiting Period)

2022-03-16T19:02:49Z

Vixen: /* Restrictions upon the women during her 'Iddah: */

In Islamic [[Sharia]], '<nowiki/>''iddah'' or '''iddat'' (Arabic: العدة‎; ''period (of waiting)''), also spelled ''iddah'', ''idda'', or ''iddat'', is the period a woman must observe after the death of her husband or after a divorce, during which she has to face numbers of restrictions<ref name="Esposito2004">{{cite book | editor = John L. Esposito | date = 21 October 2004 | title = The Oxford Dictionary of Islam | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 131 | isbn = 978-0-19-975726-8 | oclc = 286438886 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=E324pQEEQQcC}}</ref>.

The 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby)
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. (On paper; in actuality she would not get the attention, love, or support and emotional help from any man for 6 menstrual cycles. The first 3 menstrual cycles are the process of Divorce, during which time she cannot not leave the husband's house, and her husband cannot touch her. And after the divorce, again she has to endure another "waiting period" of 3 more menstrual cycles with many restrictions. She practically has to stay under these strict restrictions for about 6 months).

Muslim scholars defend these restrictions upon the women in 'Iddah. They claim that rulings of 'Iddah could neither be abolished, nor could they be changed as the rulings of the [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)| Islamic Sharia]] are based upon wisdom, justice and the best interests of the women, and they protect the women against the gender oppression and misogyny, while the man made laws of the modern Western world lead to the sexual exploitation of the women<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/39286 Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website: Is it correct to think that fatwas may vary according to time and place?] </ref><ref>[https://yaqeeninstitute.org/read/paper/women-in-islamic-law-examining-five-prevalent-myths Women in Islamic Law: Examining Five Prevalent Myths]</ref>. Yet in point of fact women are forced to unilaterally face these restrictions, which make their life difficult, while the husbands don't have to face any restriction. The basis of these restrictions, the need to be sure of fatherhood, has been rendered obsolete by modern science. In addition, these restrictions are not found anywhere in the bible or Judeo-Christian tradition. Their antecedents seem rather to be pre-Islamic Arab culture (which is known as "Time of Ignorance (i.e. jāhiliyyah)"<ref>[https://www.al-islam.org/man-and-ignorance/what-does-jahiliyah-mean What does Jahiliyah mean?]</ref>.
==The different lengths of the waiting periods and their reasons==
The length of 'iddah (waiting period) of different kind of women in Islam varies depending on her status:

*'''A prisoner/slave woman''': The waiting period is becoming free from the blood of the first menstrual cycle<ref name=":3">[https://web.archive.org/web/20201219104233/https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/book33.html 'Idda, Istibra' and Maintenance]</ref>. The reason is to determine the PARENTAGE of the child. Islam considers first menstrual cycle as enough to determine if a woman is pregnant or not.
*'''A divorced woman''': The waiting period is 3 menstrual cycles. The reason is to give time to the couple to solve their dispute during this period<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0">[https://brill.com/view/book/9789047426202/Bej.9789004172739.i-227_018.xml Reason for the waiting period]</ref>.
*'''A widowed woman''': The waiting period is 4 months and 10 days. The reason is to give time to the woman to MOURN the death of her husband<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":0" />.
*'''A pregnant woman''': The waiting period is up to 9 months (till the birth of the baby). The reason is to prevent that another man (as 2nd husband) could "water" the fetus from the previous husband<ref name=":3" /><ref>[https://quranx.com/Hadith/AbuDawud/DarusSalam/Hadith-2158/ Sunnan Abu Dawud, Hadith 2158]</ref>.

==Restrictions upon the woman during her 'Iddah:==

Islamic 'Iddah not only prohibits the women from remarriage with another man, but it also puts other restrictions upon them.

===First Restriction: She has to undergo the 'Iddah even without any 'maintenance' money===
According to the traditional rulings of Shari'ah, after the death and divorce of a woman's husband she is not entitled to any support from his family or estate. As the Dar-ul-Ifta says:{{Quote|[https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Dar-ul-Ifta]|The '''maintenance and providing of shelter for a woman observing the Iddat of Death are not the responsibility of her in-laws. She also does not have the right to take her maintenance out of the Estate of her deceased husband.'''}}A woman has no choice but to compulsorily undergo the 'Iddah of period of 4 months and 10 days (or up to 9 months in case of pregnancy), yet she has no right for maintenance money from the estate of her husband for this long period of time, and this in traditional cultures where women often rely upon men for their sustenance. In such cultures this stricture would be a huge financial burden upon the women, who often did not and do not even have any source of income in such cultures.

===Second Restriction: She has to stay in the house of her ex-Husband during the entirety of the ‘Iddah===
According to the ruling of traditional Islamic Sharia'h, if a woman's husband dies then she is allowed to stay ''only'' in the house of her husband during this whole period of 'Iddah. She is not allowed to spend this time of 'Iddah in any other place (like house of her parents or any other family members).<ref>Fatwas Website Islamqa.Org. [https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ Laws of Iddat].</ref><ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/10670/what-a-recently-widowed-woman-is-not-allowed-to-do Islam Question Answer Fatwa Website]</ref> Sunan Abu Dawud bears witness to this custom, and further clarifies that her need for financial support is not to be taken into consideration:
====The woman has to stay in the husband’s house, even if it doesn’t belong to her husband, or even if he hasn’t left any maintenance money for the wife====
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2293|hasan}}|Furay'ah said that she came to the Messenger of Allah and asked him whether she could return to her people, Banu Khidrah, for her husband went out seeking his slaves who ran away. When they met him at al-Qudum, they murdered him.

So I asked the Messenger of Allah: "Should I return to my people, '''for he did not leave any dwelling house of his own and maintenance for me'''?

She said: The Messenger of Allah replied: Yes. She said: I came out, and when I was in the apartment or in the mosque, he called for me, or he commanded (someone to call me) and, therefore, I was called.

He said: what did you say? So I repeated my story which I had already mentioned about my husband.

'''Thereupon he said: Stay in your house till the term (of four months and 10 days) lapses.'''

She said: So I passed my waiting period in it (her house) for four months and ten days. When Uthman ibn Affan became caliph, he sent for me and asked me about that; so I informed him, '''and he followed it and decided cases accordingly'''.}}

Although this clearly serves the purpose of insuring that the next man who marries her does not inherit a son from the previous marriage or another man she had relations with during her 'Iddah, the wellbeing of the woman here is not considered at all; her need to either work to support herself or be with her own family for succor and support is not taken into account at all, and neither is her freedom of movement and intention.

===Third Restriction: The Woman should not leave the house even for daily walks, or visit the relatives or attend any social gathering===
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20211014113704/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45453/visiting-relatives-in-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]|'''Question''': Is a woman allowed to visit family members like her parents or sisters if she is observing iddat and use the excuse that she will be with her family so she doesn’t see the problem?
'''Answer''': A woman who has been divorced is not allowed to leave the confines of her home during the iddat for whatever reason, '''be it to visit friends or relatives or to attend the funeral of even her parents'''.}}
Many Islamic fatawa (religious rulings) decree that Muslim women observing their 'iddah must not leave their (husband's) house even for a walk and certainly not for any type of social gathering ([https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114224/https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/349861/woman-in-iddah-may-go-out-for-need Fatwa 1], [https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114300/https://idealwoman.org/2021/can-a-woman-go-out-for-a-walk-during-iddat/ Fatwa 2]). Although this makes sense from the perspective of insuring that her next husband does not inherit the baby of a man she had relations with during her 'iddah and that any pregnancy which comes about in the 'iddah can only be the work of her husband, it completely disregards her human rights. No consideration is given for the women's freedom of movement, freedom of choice, social or relationship needs.

===Fourth Restriction: The woman should not even use collyrium/kohl on her eyes even for eye disease, since it beautifies her===
Although a woman is allowed to take medical care during her ‘iddah, still she should not use collyrium/kohl as a cure even against any eye disease, since this substance can be used as a form of makeup to beautifie her.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari||68|81|in-book}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said, "No."}}

===Fifth Restriction: Women are not allowed to use good clothes, jewelry, perfume, Henna and to comb their hair or to oil it===
Women observing their 'Iddah are not allowed to wear good clothes, or jewelry, or use perfume or Henna. Even combing their hair and applying the oil to it is forbidden<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20211028112250/https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askmufti/45291/laws-of-the-iddat/ IslamQA Fatwa Website]</ref>. Washing the face with aloe is also forbidden.
{{Quote|[https://sunnah.com/mishkat:3333 Mishkat al-Masabih 3333]|Umm Salama said: God’s Messenger came to visit me when Abu Salama died, and I had put the juice of aloes on myself. He asked me what it was, and I told him it was only the juice of aloes and contained no perfume, so he said, “It gives the face a glow, so apply it only at night and remove it in the daytime, and do not comb yourself with scent or henna, for it is a dye.” I asked God’s Messenger what I should use when combing myself, and he told me to use lote-tree leaves and smear my head copiously with them. Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani declared this Hadith to be FAIR (حسن) (link).}}Although these strictures again work to keep the woman from having any intercourse or attracting any male attention during her 'iddah by keeping herself (relatively) unattractive, these laws once again completely disregard the happiness and freedom of the woman to whom they are applied. They also seem excessively harsh, as if she is truly keeping herself confined to her house the question arises as to who would see her with all of this makeup on even if she did apply it.

==Pre-Islamic Influences on the Concept of ‘Iddah==
According to the following hadith, the concept of 'iddah was taken from pre-Islamic Arabian culture:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||5336|darussalam}}|Um Salama said that a woman came to Allah's Messenger and said, "O Allah's Messenger ! The husband of my daughter has died and she is suffering from an eye disease. Can she apply collyrium/kohl to her eye?" Allah's Messenger replied, "No," twice or thrice. (Every time she repeated her question) he said,''' "No." Then Allah's Messenger added, "It is just a matter of four months and ten days. In the Pre-Islamic Period of ignorance a widow among you should throw a globe of dung when one year has elapsed (i.e. she had to stay in ‘Iddah for the whole one year)." '''}}Apparently women even at the time the hadith was created were complaining of the burdens of the 'iddah, but the hadith admonishes them that they ought to be thankful for Islam, since in the jahiliyyah (the pre-islamic time of "ignorance" before the coming of Islam in the Arab peninsula) the 'iddah lasted a whole year. That there were complaints, though, can be seen from the existence of the hadith in the first place, so even in the time of this hadith women were not happy with them; by comparison, modern secular culture imposes no such restrictions on women at all.

==Waiting period for the captive/slave-women==
The waiting period of captive/slave-women is as follows:

*If she is a virgin girl, then no waiting period is necessary, and the Muslim owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
*If she's married and has a husband, then the waiting period is to become free of the first menstrual blood. Even if this blood stopped the first night after the capture/purchase, the owner is allowed to force her to provide him the sexual services the same night.
{{Quote|{{Abudawud|12|113}}|(Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said): ... it is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the Last Day to have intercourse with a captive woman till she is free from a menstrual course (i.e. her first menstrual blood).}}
Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd (who is also knows as younger Imam Malik), writes in his Fiqh book Risalah:
{{Quote|[http://web.archive.org/web/20160117184347/http://www.dhspriory.org/kenny/RISALA.htm Risalah by Imam Abdullah Ibn Abi Zayd]|واستبراء الامة في انتقال الملك حيضة انتقل الملك ببيع أو هبة أو سبي أو غير ذلك. ومن هي في حيازته قدحاضت عنده ثم إنه اشتراها فلا استبراء عليها إن لم تكن تخرج.
The istibrā' (waiting) period for a slave concubine who changes ownership is one menstruation. Ownership may change by selling, giving away, capture, or any other way. If the woman menstruates after being taken possession of in advance by her new owner, and then he buys her, she does not have to go through a period of istibrā' (i.e. waiting period).}}
Even if the first menstrual blood stops the first night after becoming captive/purchase, the Muslim owner is allowed to have sex with her the same night.

Saffiyyah (a Jewish captive woman) became free of her blood the next night after her father, brother and husband were killed in the war by Muslims. Thus Muhammad had sex with her the next night
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||4211|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:

We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, (then) the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet (ﷺ) selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba, (which is 14 miles away from Khaibar)' Safiya became clean from her menses then Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) married her.}}

==Criticism of the Islamic 'Iddah==

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a widow===
Some Islamic du'aah, shaykhs, and ulemaa' argue that the reason for the 4 month and 10 days long 'iddah of a widow is to ''''mourn'''<nowiki/>' the death of the husband.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Reason for 4 months 10 days long Iddah of a widow [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/88684/rights-of-a-deceased-husband-on-his-wife]</ref> Yet it should be noted that there is no obligation of any “mourning” upon a man if the wife dies. There is a clear a double standard vis-a-vis the same situation involving a man and a woman, as the husband is totally free to marry a new wife the same night, without any waiting period in name of "mourning." He's also totally free to have sex with his other wives and dozens of slave girls the same night as his divorce, and there is no restriction upon him in name of "mourning."

Moreover, the 'iddah is even incumbent upon the widow in cases where she has never seen her husband after the marriage, and in cases where the marriage has not been consummated, and even if she is a minor child, or even if the marriage was abusive <ref>Widow has to observe 'Iddah even if she never saw the husband after the marriage, or even if she is a small child. [https://www.islamweb.net/en/fatwa/145179/the-waiting-period-of-an-old-woman-after-the-death-of-her-husband]</ref>. ''In all such cases, a widow has no emotional connection with the deceased husband, but still she has to undergo the restrictions of 'Iddah in name of mourning''. As such, feminist critics of the institution of the 'iddah have decried it as misogynist.

===Criticism of the 'Iddah of a pregnant woman===
According to the Quran, the 'iddah of a pregnant woman is till the birth of a child ([https://quranx.com/65.4 Quran 65:4]).

Muhammad in the hadith of Sunan Abu Dawud justifies the practice in this manner:
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||2158|darussalam}}|رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ يَوْمَ حُنَيْنٍ قَالَ ‏"‏ لاَ يَحِلُّ لاِمْرِئٍ يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ أَنْ يَسْقِيَ مَاءَهُ زَرْعَ غَيْرِهِ ‏"

The Messenger of Allah said: It is not lawful for a man who believes in Allah and the last day '''to water what another has sown with his water (meaning intercourse with a woman who is pregnant from her previous husband).'''}}
This prohibition seems to imply some impurification of the fetus by the seed of the second man, but scientifically once the woman has been impregnated this is impossible, the DNA of the baby will not be affected by any other semen in the woman's body. This hadith thus seems to present an unscientific view of human gestation. Moreover, the man is under all circumstances able to take sexual pleasure from any other wife or sex slave that he possess immediately after the end of his marital bond, but it is only the woman who is not allowed to fulfil her natural need to have love and sex from any man.

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that a pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband till the delivery====
A pregnant woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|If a woman is pregnant and her husband divorces her, she will have to remain in that house until she delivers her child.}}
This ruling is criticized while a woman is alone in the house of her ex-husband, and she has to observe Purdah (Hijab) from him too<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Staying in the house of ex-husband, but also doing Purdah (Hijab) from him.] </ref>. Living under one roof with the ex-husband is a cause of mental torture for a woman.

As compared to the house of ex-husband, she could find a lot of love in house of her parents or relatives and live freely there and deliver the child in the comfort of her family.

===Criticism of 'Iddah in case of divorce===
There are 2 procedures of giving the Triple Talaq in traditional Sunni Islam<ref name=":1">[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/2373/giving-talaaq-divorce-three-times-at-once-is-bidah 3 Talaqs in one sitting and the Quranic way of giving divorce]</ref><ref name=":2">[https://tripakshalitigation.com/types-of-talaq-under-muslim-law/ Types of Talaqs under the Muslim Law]</ref>:

*Either the husband may pronounce the 3 Talaqs (repeating the word for "divorce" in Arabic, "talaq talaq talaq") in one sitting (known as Talaq al-Bidah).
*Or husband gives each divorce after one menstrual cycle without touching her (known as Talaq al-Sunnah). This means, the process of 3 Talaqs takes 3 menstrual cycles.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Bidah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in one sitting):====
In the first case of triple Talaqs in one sitting, a woman has to go the restrictions of 'Iddah for 3 menstrual cycles before remarrying another man. But this ruling is criticized, while the parentage of the child could be determined only after the first menstrual cycle (as in case of the captive/slave woman). Therefore, logically the 'Iddah should be only one menstrual cycle long if this idea where to be followed to its logical conclusion<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20220113121219/https://atheism-vs-islam.com/index.php/women/94-iddah-i-e-waiting-period-is-illogical-unnecessary-oppressive-injustice-against-the-women Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles in case of 3 Talaqs in one sitting]</ref>. There is no chance of reconciliation between the couple after the 3 Talaqs.

Moreover, it is also claimed that in the present modern era, it is not necessary to wait even for one menstrual cycle, as the pregnancy could be determined right away through the medical tests.

====Criticism of the 'Iddah in case of Talaq al-Sunnah (i.e. Triple Talaqs in 3 different sittings)====
In case of Talaq al-Sunnah, '''the process of divorce''' itself takes the time of 3 menstrual cycles, during which husband is not allowed to touch the woman<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />. Therefore, this process of divorce (which is 3 menstrual cycles long) is itself enough to make sure if the woman is pregnant or not (as the husband has not touched her during this period).

Yet according to the traditional Sunni Islam, a woman has to undergo 3 more menstrual cycles of 'Iddah (i.e. The whole process of Divorce + ‘Iddah lasts for at least 6 menstrual cycles for a divorced woman).
{{Quote|[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/12667/the-iddah-of-a-woman-divorced-by-talaaq The ‘iddah of a woman divorced by talaaq]|If the woman is not pregnant and she menstruates (is of child-bearing age), then her ‘iddah is three complete menstrual cycles after the divorce, i.e., her period comes then she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure, then her period comes again and she becomes pure. That is three complete menstrual cycles, regardless of whether the time between them is long or short. Based on this, if he divorces her and she is breastfeeding and does not menstruate until two years later, then she remains in ‘iddah until she has had three menstrual cycles, so she may stay in this state for two years or more. The point is that she should go through three complete menstrual cycles whether the time involved is long or short, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And divorced women shall wait (as regards their marriage) for three menstrual periods”

[al-Baqarah 2:228]}}

====Criticism of the Islamic Ruling that in case of Divorce too, woman has to stay in the house of her ex-husband during the period of 'Iddah====
Not only does the widow have to compulsorily stay in the house of her deceased husband during 'Iddah, but in case of divorce too, the woman is forced by these laws stay in the house of her ex-husband:
{{Quote|[https://web.archive.org/web/20210512143740/https://daruliftaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/rules_of_iddat-1.pdf Rules of Iddat]|When the husband divorces his wife, she will have to spend her Iddat in the matrimonial home. She must not leave the house during the day nor at night, nor can she make nikah with anyone else ... This rule will apply irrespective of whether the man issued one two or three divorces, and irrespective of whether he issued a talaaqul baa-in (irrevocable divorce) or a talaaq-ur-raj’ee (revocable Talaaq). The same rule will apply in all cases ... If she is observing her ‘Iddat in the same house wherein the man who issued a talaaqul baain to her is also living, she will have to observe strict Purdah (Hijab) with him.}}
The critics of this ruling point out that after the irrevocable triple talaq (either in one sitting or three different sittings), no reconciliation is possible (except that she marries another man and he also divorces her), which begs the question of why an 'iddah is even necessary in today's world with genetic parental testing.

===Implantation Bleeding Despite Being pregnant===
Islamic du'aah and shaikhs claim that the Islamic 'Iddah of 3 menstrual cycles is correct, while some women have implantation bleeding despite being pregnant, and it is difficult for a woman to differentiate between the periods and the [https://www.healthline.com/health/how-long-does-spotting-last#implantation-spotting implantation bleeding]. Yet despite this rule, traditional Islamic law itself stipulates an 'Iddah of a prisoner/slave woman as only one menstrual cycle, in contradiction to this idea. If parentage were the main issue, the status of the woman (free or slave) should not matter. Also the 'Iddah of a free Muslim woman in the case of [[Khul']] is only one period.<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/5163/does-iddah-apply-in-the-case-of-khula 'Iddah in Khul' is one menstrual period]</ref> Even Muhammad himself slept with [[Safiyah]] the same night when her first menstrual blood stopped, after he had murdered her previous husband. Note that Safiyyah was not a slave, but a free woman when Muhammad took her as a wife: {{Quote|{{Muslim|16|99}}|He (the Holy Prophet) then granted Saffiyyah emancipation and married her. Thabit said to him: Abu Hamza, how much dower did he (the Holy Prophet) give to her? He said: He granted her freedom and then married her. On the way Umm Sulaim embellished her and then sent her to him (the Holy Prophet) at night.}}{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||2893|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik: We arrived at Khaibar, and when Allah helped His Apostle to open the fort, the beauty of Safiya bint Huyai bin Akhtaq whose husband had been killed while she was a bride, was mentioned to Allah's Apostle. The Prophet selected her for himself, and set out with her, and when we reached a place called Sidd-as-Sahba,' '''Safiya became clean from her (first) menses then Allah's Apostle took her into his bed.'''}}

There is no Sahih Hadith of the prophet in which he ever mentions the 'Iddah of 3 periods due to any implantation bleeding. Muhammad adopted the practice of 'Iddah from his native Arabian culture. It is in response to modern conceptions of biology and ideals about women's rights that these arguments about parentage have been formulated. But Muslims will fail, as contradictions in Islam will then occur (like Muslims having sex with prisoner/slave women and while Muhammad had himself sex with Safiyyah after only the first menstrual cycle. They are not based on the actual source material but rather on a desire to make the source material acceptable to a modern audience.

===Why no waiting period in name of "mourning" for the captive/slave women?===
In spite of the aforementioned claims of concern for the well-being of women, according to traditional [[Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence)]] Muslim men are allowed to derive sexual pleasures from the virgin girls taken as war booty during Jihad without giving them any 'waiting period' to mourn their dead family members. As far as the non-virgin slaves taken as war booty are concerned, if already have husbands, then vaginal coitus is not allowed till they become free of their first menstrual period, but the Muslim Mujhaahiduun (i.e. warriors) are allowed to undress them the same night and to take all kinds of other sexual pleasures and sexual favors from them aside from vaginal penetration.
{{Quote|1=[http://web.archive.org/save/http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfrom=4080&idto=4081&bk_no=52&ID=1404&idfrom=4523&idto=5022&bookid=18&startno=425 Imam Ibn Hajar al-Asqallani, in his book Fath-ul-Bari]|2=وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج

Translation:

Atta said: ‘There is no harm to drive sexual pleasure from the body of the pregnant slave/(or prisoner) woman except from vagina’}}
According to Islamic Scholars, the Fiqh (Jurisprudence) of Imam Bukhari lies in the “Headings of Chapters” of his Book. And Imam Bukhari gave this heading in his book Sahih Bukhari<ref>[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]</ref>:<blockquote>''Chapter: If one buys a slave woman, can he then take her along with him in a journey without her completing her waiting period?''</blockquote>Under this heading, Imam Bukhari writes:
{{Quote|1=[https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&ID=4081&bk_no=52&flag=1 Sahih Bukhari]|2=ولم ير الحسن بأسا أن يقبلها أو يباشرها. وقال ابن عمر ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ إذا وهبت الوليدة التي توطأ أو بيعت أو عتقت فليستبرأ رحمها بحيضة، ولا تستبرأ العذراء. وقال عطاء لا بأس أن يصيب من جاريته الحامل ما دون الفرج.

Translation:

Hasan Basri finds nothing objectionable in kissing a woman or to having sex with her. And Ibn Umar said that such a slave woman who is given as a present, or who is sold, or who is made free, but sex had been done with her before that, then she had to undergo a waiting period. '''And Atta said if a slave woman had become pregnant (from the earlier owner/husband), then still pleasure could be derived from the whole of her body, except for her vagina.'''}}
The sorrow and pain of such women are recorded in Tabari:
{{Quote|1=[https://books.google.de/books?id=4A-4ZC4l0dMC&pg=PA122&lpg=PA122&dq=she+commanded+that+Safiyyah+should+be+kept+behind+him+and+that+the+Messenger+of+God+had+chosen+her+for+himself&source=bl&ots=pHDBKo-6Bv&sig=W8sWDq8ZJ4nLwFZpsA1obfYZJ48&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwizjuC41L7bAhVHXRQKHSEhD7EQ6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q=she%20commanded%20that%20Safiyyah%20should%20be%20kept%20behind%20him%20and%20that%20the%20Messenger%20of%20God%20had%20chosen%20her%20for%20himself&f=false History of Tabari, Volume 8, Page 112]|2=Ibn Ishaq said: After the Messenger of God conquered al-Qamus, Safiyyah bint Huyayy was brought to him, and another woman with her. Bilal (a companion), who was the one who brought them, led them past some of the slain Jews. When the woman who was with Safiyyah saw them, she cried out, struck her face, and poured dust on her head. When the Messenger of God saw her, he said, "Take this she-devil away from me!" ... The Messenger of God said to Bilal, when he saw the Jewish woman doing what he saw her do, "Are you devoid of mercy, Bilal, that you take two women past their slain men?"}}

The clear disregard for the well-being of women presents a conundrum for modern day advocates of these Islamic laws and traditions. On one hand, Islamic law advocates claim that a Muslim woman is not allowed to be wed during 3 periods/months long 'Iddah while she is mentally under stress after the divorce. Yet on the flip side of the coin, by endorsing a tradition with such endorsements of sexual slavery, they ignore any such mental stress for the prisoner women and girls. Far away from the subject of divorce, even after killing all the men of their family, Muslim men are allowed their use sex objects the very same night that their slavery begins. They are provided with no 'waiting period' to come out of their mental stress.

Contrary to Islam, even the laws of the Jewish Bible allowed the prisoner women to mourn their relatives for one complete month, during which men were not allowed to take any other sexual services from them.

{{Quote|1=[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2021&version=NIV Bible, Deuteronomy, Chap 21]|2=יכִּֽי־תֵצֵ֥א לַמִּלְחָמָ֖ה עַל־אֹֽיְבֶ֑יךָ וּנְתָנ֞וֹ יְהֹוָ֧ה אֱלֹהֶ֛יךָ בְּיָדֶ֖ךָ וְשָׁבִ֥יתָ שִׁבְיֽוֹ:

יאוְרָאִ֨יתָ֙ בַּשִּׁבְיָ֔ה אֵ֖שֶׁת יְפַת־תֹּ֑אַר וְחָֽשַׁקְתָּ֣ בָ֔הּ וְלָֽקַחְתָּ֥ לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

יבוַֽהֲבֵאתָ֖הּ אֶל־תּ֣וֹךְ בֵּיתֶ֑ךָ וְגִלְּחָה֙ אֶת־רֹאשָׁ֔הּ וְעָֽשְׂתָ֖ה אֶת־צִפָּֽרְנֶֽיהָ:

יגוְהֵסִ֩ירָה֩ אֶת־שִׂמְלַ֨ת שִׁבְיָ֜הּ מֵֽעָלֶ֗יהָ וְיָֽשְׁבָה֙ בְּבֵיתֶ֔ךָ וּבָֽכְתָ֛ה אֶת־אָבִ֥יהָ וְאֶת־אִמָּ֖הּ יֶ֣רַח יָמִ֑ים וְאַ֨חַר כֵּ֜ן תָּב֤וֹא אֵלֶ֨יהָ֙ וּבְעַלְתָּ֔הּ וְהָֽיְתָ֥ה לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה:

ידוְהָיָ֞ה אִם־לֹ֧א חָפַ֣צְתָּ בָּ֗הּ וְשִׁלַּחְתָּהּ֙ לְנַפְשָׁ֔הּ וּמָכֹ֥ר לֹֽא־תִמְכְּרֶ֖נָּה בַּכָּ֑סֶף לֹֽא־תִתְעַמֵּ֣ר בָּ֔הּ תַּ֖חַת אֲשֶׁ֥ר עִנִּיתָֽהּ:

'''Marrying a Captive Woman'''

(10) When you go to war against your enemies and the Lord your God delivers them into your hands and you take captives,

(11) if you notice among the captives a beautiful woman and are attracted to her, you may take her as your wife.

(12) Bring her into your home and have her shave her head, trim her nails

(13) and put aside the clothes she was wearing when captured. '''After she has lived in your house and mourned her father and mother for a full month''', then you may go to her and be her husband and she shall be your wife.

(14) If you are not pleased with her, let her go wherever she wishes. You must not sell her or treat her as a slave, since you have dishonored her.}}

In creating these new rulings around taking the sexual pleasure of female sex slaves, Islamic law rejected the law of the Bible in this case, and more closely followed the laws of the pagan Arab society of the time of Muhammad, as it benefitted the Muslims financially and they were free to seek sexual pleasures through the prisoner women the same night.

==References==
{{reflist}}

Black Stone

2022-03-05T22:11:09Z

Vixen: /* Hadith */

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[[File:Blackstone.jpg|thumb|"''Its softness and moisture were such that the sinner would never remove his mouth from it, which phenomenon made the Prophet declare it to be the covenant of Allah on earth.''" - Ibn Jubayr|alt=|296x296px]]The '''Black Stone''' (ٱلْحَجَرُ ٱلْأَسْوَد‎, ''al-Hajr al-Aswad'') is a rock that was embedded into the east-facing corner of the [[Ka'bah]], which is located in [[Mecca]] and is the "house of God" towards which Muslims pray five times a day. According to historians, the Black Stone was one of many baetyls employed to [[Pagan Architecture and Art in Islamic Law|idolatrous]] ends by [[Pagan Origins of Islam|pre-Islamic Arab pagans]], who used the Ka'bah as a pagan shrine in which were housed some 360 idols. The hadith tradition agrees that the stone was already part of the Ka'bah before [[Muhammad ibn Abdullah|Muhammad]] was born during the time of the pagan Arabs. The hadith tradition, however, asserts that the stone descended from heaven along with Adam and Eve and was incorporated into the structure of the Ka'bah when it was supposedly built by the prophet [[Ibrahim (Abraham)|Ibrahim]] and his son [[Isma'il]].<ref>Sheikh Ahmad Kutty - [http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar/FatwaE/FatwaE&cid=1119503543250 The Black Stone: History & Significance] - Islam Online, January 8, 2003</ref> Muhammad was said to have reset the stone into the Ka'bah when the Ka'bah had been destroyed and rebuilt by the Meccans prior to Muhammad's proclamation of prophethood.

During the ''[[Hajj]]'' pilgrimage, while circumambulating the Ka'bah (''tawaf''), Muslims are instructed by scripture to kiss, touch, or at least point to the black stone if possible in order to secure blessings. In addition to the wear from this practice by hundreds of millions of pilgrims, the Black Stone has been victim to the structural fate of the Ka'bah, which, throughout history, has been demolished, bombarded and reconstructed several times. At one point, the Black Stone was struck by a stone launched from a catapult and smashed to pieces.<ref>Hırka-i Saadet Dairesi; Hilmi Aydın(2004) - [http://search.barnesandnoble.com/books/product.aspx?isbn=9781932099720 The sacred trusts: Pavilion of the Sacred Relics, Topkapı Palace Museum, Istanbul] - Tughra Books, ISBN 9781932099720</ref> On other occasions, the Black Stone is reported to have been defiled with excrement, robbed by the Qarmatians, and otherwise deliberately abused.<ref>Burton, Richard Francis (1856) - [http://www.archive.org/details/personalnarrati03burtgoog Personal narrative of a pilgrimage to El-Madinah and Meccah] - G. P. Putnam & Co., p. 394</ref><ref>Francis E. Peters (1994) - [http://search.barnesandnoble.com/books/product.aspx?isbn=9780691032672 Mecca: a literary history of the Muslim Holy Land] - Princeton University Press, pp. 125–126, ISBN 9780691032672</ref><ref>Cyril Glasse - [http://search.barnesandnoble.com/books/product.aspx?isbn=0759101906 New Encyclopedia of Islam: A Revised Edition of the Concise Encyclopedia of Islam (p. 245)] - Rowman Altamira, 2001, ISBN 0759101906</ref><ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/68328/Black-Stone-of-Mecca Black Stone of Mecca] - Encyclopædia Britannica, 2007</ref>

Beyond the assertions of the Saudi government, the continued existence of the original Black Stone, its origins, and the historicity of whatever is currently remains contained in the silver protrusion on the side of the Ka'bah have not been independently verified.<ref>{{Citation|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Meteorite/oiTNCgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=Wabar+meteorite+craters+black+stone&pg=PT68&printsec=frontcover|title=Meteorite: Nature and Culture|publisher=Reaktion Books|year=2015|author=Maria Golia|isbn=978-1780235479}}</ref> Nonetheless, the Natural Museum of History in the United Kingdom has suggested that the stone is likely a pseudometeorite, or a terrestrial rock mistaken for a meteorite, that was first sacralized by the pagan Arabs.<ref>{{Citation|author1=Monica M. Grady|author2=A.L. Graham|title=Catalogue of meteorites: with special reference to those represented in the collection of the Natural History Museum, London|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2000|page=263|isbn=978-0-521-66303-8}}</ref> There is likewise no historical evidence to suggest that Ibrahim and Isma'il were responsible for the construction of the Ka'bah or, therefore, the original placement of the Black Stone.
==As a baetyl of the pagan Arabs==
Most historians consider the Black Stone to be an Arabian baetyl from pre-Islamic times. The Encyclopedia Britannica defines 'baetyl' as "In Greek religion, a sacred stone or pillar. The word ''baetylus'' is of Semitic origin (-bethel). Numerous holy, or fetish, stones existed in antiquity, generally attached to the cult of some particular god and looked upon as his abiding place or symbol".<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/48659/baetylus Baetylus]

Encyclopædia Britannica, 2009</ref> The Encyclopedia continues:

{{Quote|1=[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/31651/Arabian-religion/68311/Sanctuaries-cultic-objects-and-religious-practices-and-institutions Sanctuaries, cultic objects, and religious practices and institutions] Arabian religion, Encyclopædia Britannica, 2009|2=The sanctuaries, sometimes carved in the rock on high places, consisted of a ḥaram, a sacred open-air enclosure, accessible only to unarmed and ritually clean people in ritual clothes. There the baetyl, '''a “raised stone,”''' or a statue of the god, was worshiped. The Nabataeans originally represented their gods as baetyls on a podium, but later they gave them a human appearance.}}

According to [[Ibn Ishaq]], one of the earliest biographers of Muhammad, the Black Stone was important to the Arabian polytheists prior to Muhammad's prophethood. In a famous tale from the [[sira]], Muhammad was requested by the Quraysh to help mediate on how the Black Stone was to be restored to the Ka'bah as it was being reconstructed.

{{Quote|1=Tafsir of ibn Kathir on Surat al-Baqarah (Surah 2) Ayah (verse) 126|2=قَالَ ابْنُ إِسْحَاقَ: ثُمَّ إِنَّ الْقَبَائِلَ مِنْ قُرَيْشٍ جَمَعت الْحِجَارَةَ لِبِنَائِهَا، كُلُّ قَبِيلَةٍ تَجْمَعُ عَلَى حِدَةٍ، ثُمَّ بَنَوْهَا، حَتَّى بَلَغَ الْبُنْيَانُ مَوْضِعَ الرُّكْنِ -يَعْنِي الْحَجَرَ الْأَسْوَدَ -فَاخْتَصَمُوا فِيهِ، كُلُّ قَبِيلَةٍ تُرِيدُ أَنْ تَرْفَعَهُ إِلَى مَوْضِعِهِ دُونَ الْأُخْرَى، حَتَّى تَحَاوَرُوا وَتَخَالَفُوا، وَأَعَدُّوا لِلْقِتَالِ. فَقَرَّبَتْ بَنُو عَبْدِ الدَّارِ جَفْنَةً مَمْلُوءَةً دَمًا، ثُمَّ تَعَاقَدُوا هُمْ وَبَنُو عَدِيِّ بْنِ كَعْبِ بْنِ لُؤَيٍّ عَلَى الْمَوْتِ، وَأَدْخَلُوا أَيْدِيَهُمْ فِي ذَلِكَ الدَّمِ فِي تِلْكَ الْجَفْنَةِ، فَسُمُّوا: لعَقَة الدَّمِ. فَمَكَثَتْ قُرَيْشٌ عَلَى ذَلِكَ أَرْبَعَ لَيَالٍ أَوْ خَمْسًا. ثُمَّ إِنَّهُمُ اجْتَمَعُوا فِي الْمَسْجِدِ فَتَشَاوَرُوا وَتَنَاصَفُوا.
فَزَعَمَ بَعْضُ أَهْلِ الرِّوَايَةِ: أَنَّ أَبَا أُمِّيَّةَ بْنَ الْمُغِيرَةِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُمَر بْنِ مَخْزُومٍ -وكان عامئذ أسن قُرَيْشٍ كُلِّهِمْ -قَالَ(١١٠) : يَا مَعْشَرَ قُرَيْشٍ، اجْعَلُوا بَيْنَكُمْ فِيمَا تَخْتَلِفُونَ فِيهِ أَوَّلَ مَنْ يَدْخُلُ مِنْ بَابِ هَذَا الْمَسْجِدِ، يَقْضِي بَيْنَكُمْ، فِيهِ. فَفَعَلُوا، فَكَانَ أَوَّلُ دَاخِلٍ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ. فَلَمَّا رَأَوْهُ قَالُوا: هَذَا الْأَمِينُ رَضِينَا، هَذَا مُحَمَّدٌ، فَلَمَّا انْتَهَى إِلَيْهِمْ وَأَخْبَرُوهُ الْخَبَرَ، قَالَ [رَسُولُ اللَّهِ](١١١) ﷺ: "هَلُمَّ إليَّ ثَوْبًا" فَأُتِي بِهِ، فَأَخَذَ الرُّكْنَ -يَعْنِي الْحَجَرَ الْأَسْوَدَ-فَوَضَعَهُ فِيهِ بِيَدِهِ، ثُمَّ قَالَ: "لِتَأْخُذْ كُلُّ قَبِيلَةٍ بِنَاحِيَةٍ مِنَ الثَّوْبِ"، ثُمَّ [قَالَ](١١٢) : "ارْفَعُوهُ جَمِيعًا". فَفَعَلُوا، حَتَّى إِذَا بَلَغُوا بِهِ مَوْضِعَهُ، وَضَعَهُ هُوَ بِيَدِهِ ﷺ، ثُمَّ بَنَى عَلَيْهِ.
وَكَانَتْ قُرَيْشٌ تُسَمِّي رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَنْزِلَ عَلَيْهِ الْوَحْيُ: الْأَمِينُ.

Ibn Ishaq said, "The tribes of Quraysh collected stones to rebuild the House, each tribe collecting on their own. They started rebuilding it, until the rebuilding of the Ka`bah reached the point where the Black Stone was to be placed in its designated site. A dispute erupted between the various tribes of Quraysh, each seeking the honor of placing the Black Stone for their own tribe. The dispute almost led to violence between the leaders of Quraysh in the area of the Sacred House. Banu `Abd Ad-Dar and Banu `Adi bin Ka`b bin Lu'ay, gave their mutual pledge to fight until death. However, five or four days later, Abu Umayyah bin Al-Mughirah bin `Abdullah bin `Amr bin Makhzum, the oldest man from Quraysh then intervened at the right moment. Abu Umayyah suggested that Quraysh should appoint the first man to enter the House from its entrance to be a mediator between them. They agreed.

The Messenger - Muhammad - was the first person to enter the House. When the various leaders of Quraysh realized who the first one was, they all proclaimed, `This is Al-Amin (the Honest one). We all accept him; This is Muhammad.' When the Prophet reached the area where the leaders were gathering and they informed him about their dispute, he asked them to bring a garment and place it on the ground. He placed the Black Stone on it. He then requested that each of the leaders of Quraysh hold the garment from one side and all participate in lifting the Black Stone, moving it to its designated area. Next, the Prophet carried the Black Stone by himself and placed it in its designated position and built around it. The Quraysh used to call the Messenger of Allah `Al-Amin' even before the revelation came to him."}}

===Other baetyls of the pagan Arabs===

The black stone was not the only important stone in Arabia. Historians have pointed out how other Arabian centers were host to their own Ka'bahs, often having their own divine stones of various colors.

{{Quote|1=Gustave Edmund Von Grunebaum's ''Classical Islam: A History, 600 A.D. to 1258 A.D.'' (pg 24)|2=Ghaiman had a red stone and the Ka'ba of al-'Abalat (near Tabala) had a white stone.}}

==The Black Stone of Eloh==
Ancient writers Herodian and Cassius Dio mention a temple in Syrian city of Emesa (today known as Hims or Homs). A local Semitic god named ''Eloh'' (meaning Lord) was worshipped there. He was known to Romans and Greeks as Heliogabalus, a corrupted garbling of ''Eloh Gabal'' (Lord of Mountain, one of Eloh’s titles). Eloh was associated with sun and thus identified with Roman god Sol and Greek Helios.

In the temple one of the holiest relics of antiquity, the Black Stone, was kept. It was believed to come from outside earth (possibly a meteorite) and to be a manifestation of Eloh himself. Faithful from the entire Roman orient made pilgrimage to the stone. They brought valuable gifts and offerings. The followers of Eloh obeyed ritualistic rules. For instance, they were required to be circumcised and were not allowed to eat pork.

This cult was one of many thousands in the ancient Mediterranean and would likely have been forgotten were it not for a certain dramatic and favorable occurrence. In 218 AD, a young priest of that temple and a Roman citizen--Varius Avitus Bassus--was prompted by his power-hungry family to usurp the throne of Rome by claiming to be an illegitimate son of the murdered emperor Caracalla (who ruled 211-217). Successful in his usurpation, Varius Avitus Bassus ruled for four years and was thereafter remembered by his nickname–also the name of his god–Elagabalus.

Elagabalus was generally considered to have been an exceptionally perverted ruler. He was reported to have prostituted himself in the imperial palace and had numerous wives and husbands at the same time. He was widely known as an unapologetic masochist, allowing everyone to beat him. Many of Elagabalus's attributed his debauchery and lack of decorum to what they considered to be the corrupting influence of the cult of the deity Eloh.

The young emperor brought his famous Black Stone to Rome. He wanted to make the worship of Eloh either supreme or the only religion of the Roman Empire. This caused uproar among Romans. Every year in summer a procession foreign and unknown to locals was held. The Black Stone was placed on a chariot with reins attached to it (suggesting that the god himself was coaching). The emperor would walk afoot near the chariot. Senators, notable citizens, parade of soldiers, musicians and exotic animals followed.

After four years of rule which disturbed many Romans, Elogabalus was murdered by soldiers. His body was thrown to river Tiber. <ref>Poczet Cesarzy Rzymskich (In English: Roman Emperors), by Aleksander Krawczuk</ref>
<center>
<gallery>
File:Golden coin of Elagabalus.jpg|Golden coin of Elagabalus
File:Elagabalus-era coin.jpg|Another Elagabalus-era coin depicting the Black Stone.
File:Black Stone on a chariot.jpg| Coin struck by Elogabalus. On the reverse the Black Stone on a chariot.
File:Paphian Stone of Aphrodite.jpg|Another black stone: Aniconic Black stone once venerated at the Temple of Aphrodite, near Paphos, Cyprus
</gallery>
</center>

==Hadith==

{{Quote|1=[http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar/FatwaE/FatwaE&cid=1119503543250 The Black Stone: History & Significance] Islam Online, Fatwa Bank, January 8, 2003|2=1. Ibn `Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: '''“The Black Stone came down from Jannah (Paradise).”''' (At-Tirmidhi, Sunan, hadith no. 877, and classified as authentic hadith by Sheikh Al-Albaani in his book Sahih At-Tirmidthi, hadith no. 695 )

2. Ibn `Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) also narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “When '''the Black Stone came down from Paradise''', it was whiter than milk, but '''the sins of the sons of Adam made it black'''.” (At-Tirmidhi, Sunan)

3. Ibn `Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) further related that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “By Allah, Allah will bring it forth on the Day of Judgment, and it will have two eyes with which it will see and a tongue with which it will speak, and '''it will testify in favor of those who touched it in sincerity'''.” (At-Tirmidhi, Sunan)

4. Ibn `Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) quoted the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) as saying: '''“Touching them both (the Black Stone and Ar-Rukn Al-Yamani) is an expiation for one’s sins.”''' (At-Tirmidhi, Sunan, hadith no. 959. This hadith is classified as hasan by At-Tirmidhi and as Sahih by Al-Hakim (1/664), and Adh-Dhahabi agreed with him.)

''(The aforementioned hadiths were quoted from a fatwa by the prominent Saudi scholar Sheikh Muhammad Salih Al-Munajjid, www.islam-qa.com)''}}

{{Quote|1=[http://www.livingislam.org/fiqhi/fiqha_e54.html Problematic hadiths and various questions] Shaykh Gibril Fouad Haddad, Living Islam, April 11, 2000|2='''"The Black Stone is the right hand of Allah Most High."''' Ibn Qutayba in Ta' wil Mukhtalif al-Hadith (1972 ed. p. 215=1995 ed. p. 198, 262) said that it was a saying of Ibn 'Abbas and relates a saying of 'A'isha that '''the Black Stone is the depository of the covenant of human souls with Allah on the Day of Promise''' (alastu bi rabbikum). He interprets the Black Stone as representing the place where one declares one's pledge of fidelity to the Sovereign. Ibn Hajar in Fath al-Bari (1959 ed. 3:463 #1520) cites al-Khattabi's and al-Muhibb al-Tabari's similar interpretations. Al-Qurtubi said in al-Asna fi Sharh Asma' Allah al-Husna (2:90-91): "It means that '''the Black Stone has the standing (manzila) of the Right Hand of Allah.''' metaphorically speaking."}}

{{Quote|1={{Bukhari|2|26|667}}, See also: {{Bukhari|2|26|657}} and {{Muslim|7|2912}}|2=Narrated 'Abis bin Rabia: 'Umar came near the Black Stone and kissed it and said "No doubt, I know that you are a stone and can neither benefit anyone nor harm anyone. Had I not seen Allah's Apostle kissing you I would not have kissed you."}}

{{Quote|1={{Muslim|7|2916}}|2=Suwaid b. Ghafala reported: I saw Umar (Allah be pleased with him) kissing the Stone and clinging to it and saying: I saw Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) having great love for you. This hadith has been narrated on the authority of Sufyin with the same chain of transmitters (and the words are):" That he ('Umar) said: But I saw Abu'l-Qasim (way peace be upon him) having great love for you." And he did not mention about clinging to it.}}

==External Links==

*[http://www.indigogroup.co.uk/edge/blstone.htm The Black Stone - the Omphalos of the Goddess]

==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Paganism]]
[[Category:Ritual]]
[[Category:Relics]]
[[Category:Pre-Islamic Arabia]]
[[Category:Sacred history]]
[[Category:Heaven]]
[[Category:Sirah]]

Maria the Copt (Mariyah Al-Qibtiyyah)

2022-02-25T11:21:20Z

Vixen: /* Influence on Islamic Law and Society */

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[[File:Maria Al Qibtiyya.png|220px|right|thumb|Islamic seal of Mariyah as a "mother of the believers"]]
Mary the Copt (Arabic: مارية القبطية Mariyah Al-Qibtiyah‎), also known as Maria Qubtiyya, was one of the concubines/sex slaves of the prophet Muhammad. Although she is considered an "umm al-mu'minin" أم ألمؤمنين she was never actually the wife of the prophet according to the accepted historical sources by orthodox Sunni Islam.<ref>{{Cite web| title = Maria, the Copt: Prophet Muhammad's Wife or Concubine? {{!}} ICRAA.org| author = | work = ICRAA.org| date = | access-date = 18 November 2021| url = https://www.icraa.org/maria-copt-muhammad-wife-concubine/| quote = }}</ref><ref name="seek_WasM">{{Cite web| title = Was Mariya al-Qibtiyya Ever a Wife of the Prophet Muhammad? - SeekersHub Answers| author = | work = SeekersHub Answers| date = | access-date = 3 March 2016| url = https://seekersguidance.org/answers/general-counsel/was-mariya-al-qibtiyya-ever-a-wife-of-the-prophet-muhammad/| quote = }}</ref> According to the [[sira]] she was sent to Muhammad as a gift from the Christian Patriarch of Egypt. According to the [[hadith]] and the [[sirah]] her beauty and Muhammad's lust for her incited the jealousy of Muhammad's wives, in particular Hafsa and [[Aisha]]. The jealousy they had of her and Muhammad's response was actually the [[Asbab al-Nuzul (Revelational Circumstances of the Quran)|cause]] of the "revelation" of several Qur'an verses according to the tradition. Although she converted to Islam and bore the prophet a son who later died, she remained a slave of the prophet until he died, according to most of the traditional scholars. The traditional sources compare her concubinage to that of Hajar to Ibrahim, and the son that Mariyah bore was named Ibrahim. According to classical Islamic sources, had her son Ibrahim lived, he too would have been a prophet.

==Life Before Muhammad==

Not much is known of Mariyah's life before she was gifted to the prophet as a sex slave. According to the traditional sources, she was the son of a certain Sham'un from the town of Hafn in the region of Ansina. According to the traditional sources, she was gifted to Muhammad with her sister Shirin; but since the shari'ah prohibits a man having concurrent sexual relations with a woman and her sister, Muhammad was forced to choose between the two, and chose Mariyah for her exceeding beauty, while giving her sister to the poet Hassan bin Thabit <ref name="Powers2011_1">{{cite book | author = David Powers | date = 15 March 2011 | title = Muhammad Is Not the Father of Any of Your Men: The Making of the Last Prophet | publisher = University of Pennsylvania Press | pages = 56| isbn = 978-0-8122-2149-7 | oclc = 1037937026 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=OUxWN1VBnBEC}}</ref>.

==Gifting to Muhammad and Conversion to Islam==
According to the traditional sources, after the treaty of Hudaybiya, the prophet Muhammad sent letters to the heads of various Middle Eastern powers inviting them to convert to Islam. One of these letters went to a certain Al-Muqauqis, who is not immediately identifiable with any historical person but seems to be the Melkite Patriarch Cyril of Egypt.<ref name="Brill1954">{{cite book | date = 1954 |Öhrnberg, Kaj| title = The Encyclopaedia of Islam: Khe-Naz. Vol. 5-7 | publisher = Brill | pages = 511| isbn = 978-90-04-08112-3 | oclc = 1000117476 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=d5kQzQEACAAJ}}</ref> He did not, apparently, accept the [[Dawah|call]] to Islam but in response sent Mariyah and her sister Shirin as sex slaves to Muhammad. That a Christian patriarch in Egypt would send Christian girls as sex slaves to this strange, obscure, and previously unknown heretic in Arabia was a question that apparently never arose on any side; there is no confirmation of any part of this story in contemporary Muslim or non-Muslim accounts from the 7th century, and the narrative itself only appears in Muslim sirah, tafsir and hadith literature written over a hundred years after the fact. On the way to Medina, she converted to Islam. When she and her sister arrived in Medina, since Muhammad could not have concurrent sexual relations with both sisters as per Islamic law, Muhammad chose Mariyah for her exceeding beauty. The prophet did not wed her, but rather kept her as his jaariyah (جارية) or surriyah (سرية), that is his sex slave. The prophet was very stricken with her gave her a house in the upper portion of Medina, which purportedly still exists to this day.<ref name="BRILL1990">{{cite book | author = BRILL | date = 1990 |F. Buhl| title = The Encyclopedia of Islam, Volume 6, Fascicules 114a: Preliminary Matter and Binder | publisher = BRILL | pages =575 | isbn = 978-90-04-09358-4 | oclc = 753138826 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=hYlytQEACAAJ}}</ref>

==Scandal with Muhammad's Wives and Quranic Revelation==

According to multiple tafsir and hadith traditions, the first 6 ayyaat (verses) of surat-at-tahriim (surah 66) were revealed to Muhammad in regards to a sexual scandal within his household. According to the traditional reading, the verses admonish Muhammad's wives and command him to fulfill his desires as Allah has allowed to him:

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|66|1|6}}|
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّبِىُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَآ أَحَلَّ ٱللَّهُ لَكَ ۖ تَبْتَغِى مَرْضَاتَ أَزْوَٰجِكَ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
قَدْ فَرَضَ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمْ تَحِلَّةَ أَيْمَٰنِكُمْ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ مَوْلَىٰكُمْ ۖ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَلِيمُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ
وَإِذْ أَسَرَّ ٱلنَّبِىُّ إِلَىٰ بَعْضِ أَزْوَٰجِهِۦ حَدِيثًا فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَتْ بِهِۦ وَأَظْهَرَهُ ٱللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ عَرَّفَ بَعْضَهُۥ وَأَعْرَضَ عَنۢ بَعْضٍ ۖ فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَهَا بِهِۦ قَالَتْ مَنْ أَنۢبَأَكَ هَٰذَا ۖ قَالَ نَبَّأَنِىَ ٱلْعَلِيمُ ٱلْخَبِيرُ
إِن تَتُوبَآ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ فَقَدْ صَغَتْ قُلُوبُكُمَا ۖ وَإِن تَظَٰهَرَا عَلَيْهِ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ هُوَ مَوْلَىٰهُ وَجِبْرِيلُ وَصَٰلِحُ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ ۖ وَٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةُ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ ظَهِيرٌ
عَسَىٰ رَبُّهُۥٓ إِن طَلَّقَكُنَّ أَن يُبْدِلَهُۥٓ أَزْوَٰجًا خَيْرًا مِّنكُنَّ مُسْلِمَٰتٍ مُّؤْمِنَٰتٍ قَٰنِتَٰتٍ تَٰٓئِبَٰتٍ عَٰبِدَٰتٍ سَٰٓئِحَٰتٍ ثَيِّبَٰتٍ وَأَبْكَارًا
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ قُوٓا۟ أَنفُسَكُمْ وَأَهْلِيكُمْ نَارًا وَقُودُهَا ٱلنَّاسُ وَٱلْحِجَارَةُ عَلَيْهَا مَلَٰٓئِكَةٌ غِلَاظٌ شِدَادٌ لَّا يَعْصُونَ ٱللَّهَ مَآ أَمَرَهُمْ وَيَفْعَلُونَ مَا يُؤْمَرُونَ

O Prophet, why do you prohibit [yourself from] what Allah has made lawful for you, seeking the approval of your wives? And Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.
Allah has already ordained for you [Muslims] the dissolution of your oaths. And Allah is your protector, and He is the Knowing, the Wise.
And [remember] when the Prophet confided to one of his wives a statement; and when she informed [another] of it and Allah showed it to him, he made known part of it and ignored a part. And when he informed her about it, she said, "Who told you this?" He said, "I was informed by the Knowing, the Acquainted."
If you two [wives] repent to Allah, [it is best], for your hearts have deviated. But if you cooperate against him - then indeed Allah is his protector, and Gabriel and the righteous of the believers and the angels, moreover, are [his] assistants.
Perhaps his Lord, if he divorced you [all], would substitute for him wives better than you - submitting [to Allah], believing, devoutly obedient, repentant, worshipping, and traveling - [ones] previously married and virgins.
O you who have believed, protect yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is people and stones, over which are [appointed] angels, harsh and severe; they do not disobey Allah in what He commands them but do what they are commanded.}}

The entire scandal of Muhammad sleeping with Maria is explained in the tafsir of al-Jalalayn on surah 66 (at-tahrim) verse 1-3:

{{Quote|Tafsir of Al-Jalalayn on Qur'an 66:1-3|
يا أيّها النَّبِيّ لِمَ تُحَرِّم ما أحَلَّ اللَّه لَك﴾ مِن أمَتك مارِيَة القِبْطِيَّة لَمّا واقَعَها فِي بَيْت حَفْصَة وكانَتْ غائِبَة فَجاءَتْ وشَقَّ عَلَيْها كَوْن ذَلِكَ فِي بَيْتها وعَلى فِراشها حَيْثُ قُلْت: هِيَ حَرام عَلَيَّ ﴿تَبْتَغِي﴾ بِتَحْرِيمِها ﴿مَرْضاة أزْواجك﴾ أيْ رِضاهُنَّ ﴿واللَّه غَفُور رَحِيم﴾ غَفَرَ لَك هَذا التَّحْرِيم﴿
قَدۡ فَرَضَ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمۡ تَحِلَّةَ أَیۡمَـٰنِكُمۡۚ وَٱللَّهُ مَوۡلَىٰكُمۡۖ وَهُوَ ٱلۡعَلِیمُ ٱلۡحَكِیمُ﴾ [التحريم ٢]﴿
قَدْ فَرَضَ اللَّه﴾ شَرَعَ ﴿لَكُمْ تَحِلَّة أيْمانكُمْ﴾ تَحْلِيلها بِالكَفّارَةِ المَذْكُورَة فِي سُورَة "المائِدَة" ومِن الأَيْمان تَحْرِيم الأَمَة وهَلْ كَفَّرَ ﷺ ؟ قالَ مُقاتِل: أعْتَقَ رَقَبَة فِي تَحْرِيم مارِيَة وقالَ الحَسَن: لَمْ يُكَفِّر لِأَنَّهُ ﷺ مَغْفُور لَهُ ﴿واللَّه مَوْلاكُمْ﴾ ناصِركُمْ﴿
وَإِذۡ أَسَرَّ ٱلنَّبِیُّ إِلَىٰ بَعۡضِ أَزۡوَ ٰ⁠جِهِۦ حَدِیثࣰا فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَتۡ بِهِۦ وَأَظۡهَرَهُ ٱللَّهُ عَلَیۡهِ عَرَّفَ بَعۡضَهُۥ وَأَعۡرَضَ عَنۢ بَعۡضࣲۖ فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَهَا بِهِۦ قَالَتۡ مَنۡ أَنۢبَأَكَ هَـٰذَاۖ قَالَ نَبَّأَنِیَ ٱلۡعَلِیمُ ٱلۡخَبِیرُ﴾ [التحريم ٣]﴿
و﴾ اذْكُرْ ﴿إذْ أسَرَّ النَّبِيّ إلى بَعْض أزْواجه﴾ هِيَ حَفْصَة ﴿حَدِيثًا﴾ هُوَ تَحْرِيم مارِيَة وقالَ لَها لا تُفْشِيه ﴿فَلَمّا نَبَّأَتْ بِهِ﴾ عائِشَة ظَنًّا مِنها أنْ لا حَرَج فِي ذَلِكَ ﴿وأَظْهَرَهُ اللَّه﴾ أطْلَعَهُ ﴿عَلَيْهِ﴾ عَلى المُنَبَّأ بِهِ ﴿عَرَّفَ بَعْضه﴾ لِحَفْصَةَ ﴿وأَعْرَضَ عَنْ بَعْض﴾ تَكَرُّمًا مِنهُ ﴿فَلَمّا نَبَّأَها بِهِ قالَتْ مَن أنْبَأَك هَذا قالَ نَبَّأَنِي العَلِيم الخَبِير﴾ أيْ اللَّه

"O Prophet! Why do you prohibit what God has made lawful for you, in terms of your Coptic handmaiden Māriya"— when he lay with her in the house of Hafsa, who had been away, but who upon returning [and finding out] became upset by the fact that this had taken place in her own house and on her own bed — by saying, ‘She is unlawful for me!’, seeking, by making her unlawful [for you], to please your wives? And God is Forgiving, Merciful, having forgiven you this prohibition.
"Allah has already ordained for you [Muslims] the dissolution of your oaths. And Allah is your protector, and He is the Knowing, the Wise."
Verily God has prescribed, He has made lawful, for you [when necessary] the absolution of your oaths, to absolve them by expiation, as mentioned in the sūrat al-Mā’ida [Q. 5:89] and the forbidding of [sexual relations with] a handmaiden counts as an oath, so did the Prophet (s) expiate? Muqātil [b. Sulaymān] said, ‘He set free a slave [in expiation] for his prohibition of Māriya’; whereas al-Hasan [al-Basrī] said, ‘He never expiated, because the Prophet (s) has been forgiven [all errors]’. And God is your Protector, your Helper, and He is the Knower, the Wise.
"And [remember] when the Prophet confided to one of his wives a statement; and when she informed [another] of it and Allah showed it to him, he made known part of it and ignored a part. And when he informed her about it, she said, 'Who told you this?' He said, 'I was informed by the Knowing, the Acquainted.'"
And, mention, when the Prophet confided to one of his wives, namely, Hafsa, a certain matter, which was his prohibition of Māriya, telling her: ‘Do not reveal it!’; but when she divulged it, to ‘Ā’isha, reckoning there to be no blame in [doing] such a thing, and God apprised him, He informed him, of it, of what had been divulged, he announced part of it, to Hafsa, and passed over part, out of graciousness on his part. So when he told her about it, she said, ‘Who told you this?’ He said, ‘I was told by the Knower, the Aware’, namely, God. And, mention, when the Prophet confided to one of his wives, namely, Hafsa, a certain matter, which was his prohibition of Māriya, telling her: ‘Do not reveal it!’; but when she divulged it, to ‘Ā’isha, reckoning there to be no blame in [doing] such a thing, and God apprised him, He informed him, of it, of what had been divulged, he announced part of it, to Hafsa, and passed over part, out of graciousness on his part. So when he told her about it, she said, ‘Who told you this?’ He said, ‘I was told by the Knower, the Aware’, namely, God.}}

As the above tafsir lays out, according to the story preserved over many hadith and tafsir traditions Muhammad was caught in flagrante delicto having sexual relations with Maria in the house of Hafsa. Muhammad told Hafsah he would not do this again and begged her not to tell Aishah, but she disobeyed his wish and told her anyway. Allah sent down Qur'an 66:1 in order to chastise Muhammad for forbidding himself Mariyah. Not satisfied with having allowed Muhammad to have sex with their servant in Hafsah's house, Allah further chastised his wives and threatend them with hell fire for disobeying them:

{{Quote|Tafsir Al-Jalalayn on Qur'an 66:4-5|﴿إنْ تَتُوبا﴾ أيْ حَفْصَة وعائِشَة ﴿إلى اللَّه فَقَدْ صَغَتْ قُلُوبكُما﴾ مالَتْ إلى تَحْرِيم مارِيَة أيْ سَرَّكُما ذَلِكَ مَعَ كَراهَة النَّبِيّ ﷺ لَهُ وذَلِكَ ذَنْب وجَواب الشَّرْط مَحْذُوف أيْ تَقَبُّلًا وأَطْلَقَ قُلُوب عَلى قَلْبَيْنِ ولَمْ يُعَبِّر بِهِ لِاسْتِثْقالِ الجَمْع بَيْن تَثْنِيَتَيْنِ فِيما هُوَ كالكَلِمَةِ الواحِدَة ﴿وإنْ تَظاهَرا﴾ بِإدْغامِ التّاء الثّانِيَة فِي الأَصْل فِي الظّاء وفِي قِراءَة بِدُونِها تَتَعاوَنا ﴿عَلَيْهِ﴾ أيْ النَّبِيّ فِيما يَكْرَههُ ﴿فَإنَّ اللَّه هُوَ﴾ فَصْل ﴿مَوْلاهُ﴾ ناصِره ﴿وجِبْرِيل وصالِح المُؤْمِنِينَ﴾ أبُو بَكْر وعُمَر رَضِيَ اللَّه عَنْهُما مَعْطُوف عَلى مَحَلّ اسْم إنْ فَيَكُونُونَ ناصِرِيهِ ﴿والمَلائِكَة بَعْد ذَلِكَ﴾ بَعْد نَصْر اللَّه والمَذْكُورِينَ ﴿ظَهِير﴾ ظُهَراء أعْوان لَهُ فِي نَصْره عَلَيْكُما
﴿عَسَىٰ رَبُّهُۥۤ إِن طَلَّقَكُنَّ أَن یُبۡدِلَهُۥۤ أَزۡوَ ٰ⁠جًا خَیۡرࣰا مِّنكُنَّ مُسۡلِمَـٰتࣲ مُّؤۡمِنَـٰتࣲ قَـٰنِتَـٰتࣲ تَـٰۤىِٕبَـٰتٍ عَـٰبِدَ ٰ⁠تࣲ سَـٰۤىِٕحَـٰتࣲ ثَیِّبَـٰتࣲ وَأَبۡكَارࣰا﴾ [التحريم ٥]
﴿عَسى رَبّه إنْ طَلَّقَكُنَّ﴾ أيْ طَلَّقَ النَّبِيّ أزْواجه ﴿أنْ يُبَدِّلهُ﴾ بِالتَّشْدِيدِ والتَّخْفِيف ﴿أزْواجًا خَيْرًا مِنكُنَّ﴾ خَبَر عَسى والجُمْلَة جَواب الشَّرْط ولَمْ يَقَع التَّبْدِيل لِعَدَمِ وُقُوع الشَّرْط ﴿مُسْلِمات﴾ مُقِرّات بِالإسْلامِ ﴿مُؤْمِنات﴾ مُخْلِصات ﴿قانِتات﴾ مُطِيعات ﴿تائِبات عابِدات سائِحات﴾ صائِمات أوْ مُهاجِرات

"If you two [wives] repent to Allah, [it is best], for your hearts have deviated. But if you cooperate against him - then indeed Allah is his protector, and Gabriel and the righteous of the believers and the angels, moreover, are [his] assistants."
If the two of you, namely, Hafsa and ‘Ā’isha, repent to God … for your hearts were certainly inclined, towards the prohibition of Māriya, that is to say, your keeping this secret despite [knowing] the Prophet’s (s) dislike of it, which is itself a sin (the response to the conditional [‘if the two of you repent to God’] has been omitted, to be understood as, ‘it will be accepted of both of you’; the use of [the plural] qulūb, ‘hearts’, instead of [the dual] qalbayn, ‘both [your] hearts’, is on account of the cumbersomeness of putting two duals together in what is effectively the same word); and if you support one another (tazzāharā: the original second tā’ [of tatazāharā] has been assimilated with the zā’; a variant reading has it without [this assimilation, tazāharā]) against him, that is, the Prophet, in what he is averse to, then [know that] God, He (huwa, [a pronoun] for separation) is indeed his Protector, His supporter, and Gabriel, and the righteous among the believers, Abū Bakr and ‘Umar, may God be pleased with both of them (wa-Jibrīlu wa-sālihu’l-mu’minīna is a supplement to the [syntactical] locus of the subject of inna [sc. ‘God’]), who will [also] be his supporters, and the angels furthermore, further to the support of God and those mentioned, are his supporters, assistants of his, in supporting him [to prevail] over both of you.
"Perhaps his Lord, if he divorced you [all], would substitute for him wives better than you - submitting [to Allah], believing, devoutly obedient, repentant, worshipping, and traveling - [ones] previously married and virgins."
It may be that, if he divorces you, that is, [if] the Prophet divorces his wives, his Lord will give him in [your] stead (read yubaddilahu or yubdilahu) wives better than you (azwājan khayran minkunna is the predicate of ‘asā, ‘it may be’, the sentence being the response to the conditional) — the replacement [of his wives by God] never took place because the condition [of his divorcing them] never arose — women submissive [to God], affirming Islam, believing, faithful, obedient, penitent, devout, given to fasting — or given to emigrating [in God’s way] — previously married and virgins.}}

Ibn Kathir also recounts how Qur'an 66:1-6 were revealed to Muhammad by Allah because, in response to Hafsa and Aisha's complaints about Muhammad sleeping with Mariyah, Muhammad cut himself off sexually from Mariyah:
{{Quote|Tafsir of ibn Kathir on Qur'an 66:1-3| أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ كَانَتْ لَهُ أَمَةٌ يَطَؤُهَا، فَلَمْ تَزَلْ بِهِ عَائِشَةُ وَحَفْصَةُ حَتَّى حَرَّمها، فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ، عَزَّ وَجَلَّ: ﴿يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَا أَحَلَّ اللَّهُ لَكَ﴾ ؟ إِلَى آخِرِ الْآيَةِ(١) .
وَقَالَ ابْنُ جَرِيرٍ...: أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَصَابَ أُمَّ إِبْرَاهِيمَ فِي بَيْتِ بَعْضِ نِسَائِهِ، فَقَالَتْ: أَيْ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، فِي بَيْتِي وَعَلَى فِرَاشِي؟! فَجَعَلَهَا عَلَيْهِ حَرَامًا فَقَالَتْ: أيْ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، كَيْفَ يَحْرُم عَلَيْكَ الْحَلَالُ؟ فَحَلَفَ لَهَا بِاللَّهِ لَا يُصِيبُهَا. فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ: ﴿يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَا أَحَلَّ اللَّهُ لَكَ﴾ ؟

The messenger of Allah, peace and prayer of Allah be upon him, was having sexual relations with a female slave which he had, but Aisha and Hafsa would not cease to bother him about it until he forbid himself to continue it, until Allah praised and glorious brought down a verse saying "O prophet, why do you forbid to yourself what Allah has allowed" until the end of the verse. Ibn Jarir said...The messenger of Allah, peace and prayer of Allah be upon him had sex with Um Ibrahim (Mariyah Al-Qibtiyah) in the house of some of his women. Then she (Hafsah?) said "Hey messenger of Allah! In my house and upon my bed?!" Then the prophet made it forbidden (for him to have sex with her). Then she said "Hey messenger of Allah, how will you forbid what is allowed to you?" Then he swore not to have sex with her. Then Allah revealed "Oh prophet why do you forbid what Allah has made allowable to you?"}}The slave in this case is usually said to be Mariyah. In response, according to the tradition, Allah sent down surat-at-tahreem, the surah of making things off limits. Hafsa was highly aggrieved by this and told [[Aisha]] who also rebuked the prophet for his sexual appetite and cruelty to Hafsa. {{Quote|{{Al Nasai|26|4|36|3411}}|أَخْبَرَنِي إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ يُونُسَ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ، حَرَمِيٌّ - هُوَ لَقَبُهُ - قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبِي قَالَ، حَدَّثَنَا حَمَّادُ بْنُ سَلَمَةَ، عَنْ ثَابِتٍ، عَنْ أَنَسٍ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم كَانَتْ لَهُ أَمَةٌ يَطَؤُهَا فَلَمْ تَزَلْ بِهِ عَائِشَةُ وَحَفْصَةُ حَتَّى حَرَّمَهَا عَلَى نَفْسِهِ فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ ‏{‏ يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَا أَحَلَّ اللَّهُ لَكَ ‏}‏ إِلَى آخِرِ الآيَةِ ‏.‏

It was narrated from Anas, that the Messenger of Allah had a female slave with whom he had intercourse, but 'Aishah and Hafsah would not leave him alone until he said that she was forbidden for him. Then Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, revealed:

"O Prophet! Why do you forbid (for yourself) that which Allah has allowed to you.' until the end of the Verse.}}

As the Encyclopedia of Islam states, other narratives exist around these verses, but considering how bad the original narrative looks for Muhammad it is unlikely that the any of the alternatives were the most primordial narrative; rather, the above narrative would appear to be the oldest, and the others were later fabrications meant to protect the reputation of the prophet<ref name="Brill">{{cite book | title = The Encyclopaedia of Islam: Mahk-Mid | publisher = Brill | pages = 575 | oclc = 399624 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=9lbIwAEACAAJ}}</ref>.

==Scandal of Maria's Accused Fornication With Her Cousin and His Execution==
After the death of [[Khadijah bint Khuwaylid|Khadijah]], Muhammad took about 16 (+/-) wives and concubines for himself, but none of them bore him any children. Maria, though, bore him a baby boy shortly after she was given in concubinage to Muhammad; since none of the prophet's other partners bore him any children, a rumor spread that it was actually Maria's male cousin Mabur, who had also been given as a slave to the prophet, who had impregnated Maria. When Muhammad heard those rumors, he ordered the killing of of Mabur without any court trial, which would have been required by [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)]] in a similar case with any other person, and since this was fornication between two unmarried slaves the penalty should have been 50 lashes, not death.
{{Quote|{{Muslim|37|6676}}|Anas reported that a person (a coptic slave whose name was "Mabur" and he was the cousin of Maria al-Qibtiyya) was charged with fornication with the slavegirl of Allah's Messenger (i.e. Maria al-Qibtiyya). Thereupon Allah's Messenger said to 'Ali: Go and strike his neck. 'Ali came to him and he found him in a well making his body cool. 'Ali said to him: Come out, and as he took hold of his hand and brought him out, he found that his sexual organ had been cut. Hadrat 'Ali refrained from striking his neck. He came to Allah's Apostle and said: Allah's Messenger, he has not even the sexual organ with him}}{{Quote|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20211010105134/https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&flag=1&bk_no=74&ID=6740 Al-Mustadrak 'ala al-Sahihayn (Arabic: المستدرك على الصحيحين) by Imam Hakim]|2=«عن عايشة قالت : اهديت مارية إلى رسول اللّه ومعها ابن عم لها . قالت : فوقع عليها وقعة فاستمرت حاملا . قالت : فعز لها عند ابن عمها . قالت : فقال اهل الافك والزور : «من حاجته إلى الولد ادعى ولد غيره» وكانت امّه قليلة اللبن فابتاعت له ضائنة لبون فكان يغذى بلبنها فحسن عليه لحمه . قالت عايشة : فدخل به علىّ النبى صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم ذات يوم فقال : «كيف ترين»؟ فقلت : من غذى بلحم الضأن يحسن لحمه . قال : «ولا الشبه» قالت : فحملنى ما يحمل النساء من الغيرة أن قلت : ما أرى شبها . قالت : وبلغ رسول اللّه ما يقول الناس فقال لعلى ... ». Aisha said: " Maria" was presented to the prophet of Islam (as a slave woman) and her cousin (a coptic male slave) was with her. After a while Maria became pregnant. Upon that, the people started slandering that since he [the prophet of Islam] needed child, he related the son of that slave-man to himself. Since Maria, as a mother didn’t have enough breast milk, they fed him by sheep 's milk that’s why he (the son Ibrahim) was fat. 'Aisha said: Once the prophet brought him to me and asked what I thought about him, I replied, "everyone fed by sheep 's milk will get fat." The holy prophet said doesn’t he look like me? '''Aisha said, "I jealously said "No" ." and then the prophet heard of the untrue accusations of people to toward Maria. Upon that the prophet sent Ali to kill her cousin ...'''}}
Yet Muhammad persisted in his jealousy, and the angel Jibreel had to come down and confirm him that Ibrahim was indeed his child:
{{Quote|[http://al-hakawati.net/Books/BookDetails/7518/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D8%B2%D8%A1-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AE%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%B3--%D9%85%D8%A7-%D8%A3%D8%B5%D8%A7%D8%A8-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B3%D9%84%D9%85%D9%8A%D9%86-%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B5%D9%8A%D8%A8%D8%A9-%D8%A8%D9%88%D9%81%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%87-%D8%B5%D9%84%D9%89-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%84%D9%87-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%8A%D9%87-%D9%88%D8%B3%D9%84%D9%85 Al-Badaya wa Al-Nahaya by Ibn Kathir]|عن أنس قال‏:‏ لما ولدت مارية إبراهيم كاد أن يقع في النَّبيّ صلَّى الله عليه وسلَّم منه شيء حتَّى نزل جبريل عليه السلام فقال‏:‏ ‏(‏‏(‏السلام عليك يا أبا إبراهيم‏)‏‏)‏‏. Anas said, when Ibrahim was born to Maria, then Muhammad became doubtful if Ibrahim was really his son or not. Upon that angel Jibrael came to him and said: Peace be upon you, O the Father of Ibrahim (i.e. confirmed to him that Ibrahim was indeed his son).}}
In addition to extra-juridically killing Mabur in contravention of [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)]], the slander against Maria would be considered قذف or slander in an Islamic shari'ah court and theoretically should have been punished with lashing, as was done in the [[Incident of Ifk.|Incident of Ifk]] with A'ishah. The case thus presents interesting examples of the prophet contravening what would later be codified as Islamic law.

==Son She Birthed to the Prophet==

According to the sirah and hadith, Mariyah is an umm-walad أم ولد of the prophet, that is to say she bore him a male child. The son she bore him was named Ibrahim, after the prophet. The child died very young, within a year and a half of his birth, and the prophet is said to have shed tears over his death. According to the traditional sources he died during an eclipse, which combined with the fact that he died only 5 months before his father would put his death on the 10th of Shawwal 10 AH or the 27th of January 623 CE <ref name="Powers2011_2">{{cite book | author = David Powers | date = 15 March 2011 | title = Muhammad Is Not the Father of Any of Your Men: The Making of the Last Prophet | publisher = University of Pennsylvania Press | pages = 56| isbn = 978-0-8122-2149-7 | oclc = 1037937026 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=OUxWN1VBnBEC}}</ref>. Multiple ahadith tell that he would have been a prophet had he grown to adulthood. The hadith also speak of his death being necessary due to Muhammad being خاتم النبيين"khaatam al-nabiyyin'" or the "seal of the prophets<ref name="Powers2011_3">ibid, 57</ref>." This is also in line with the famous Quranic verse surat-al-ahzab (surah 33) verse 40:

{{Quote|{{Quran|33|40}}|
مَّا كَانَ مُحَمَّدٌ أَبَآ أَحَدٍ مِّن رِّجَالِكُمْ وَلَٰكِن رَّسُولَ ٱللَّهِ وَخَاتَمَ ٱلنَّبِيِّۦنَ ۗ وَكَانَ ٱللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَىْءٍ عَلِيمًا

Muhammad is not the father of [any] one of your men, but [he is] the Messenger of Allah and last of the prophets. And ever is Allah, of all things, Knowing.}}

As such, according to this verse, Ibrahim could not have lived since Muhammad is not the father of any of the men of the believers.

==Influence on Islamic Law and Society==

The use of Mariyah sexually by the prophet, like every aspect of the prophet's life, provides an example for later Muslims and the religious justification for the sexual exploitation of slave women by Muslim men <ref name="GordonHain2017_1">{{cite book | editor1 = Matthew Gordon | editor2 = Kathryn A. Hain | date = 2017 | title = Concubines and Courtesans: Women and Slavery in Islamic History | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 327| isbn = 978-0-19-062218-3 | oclc = 1014474115 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=F3QzDwAAQBAJ}}</ref>. Her sexual exploitation by Muhammad was in continuity with the practice of the pagan Arabs and was continued by later Islamic empires and movements<ref name="Bosworth1989">{{cite book | author = Clifford Edmund Bosworth | date = 1 January 1989 | title = The Encyclopedia of Islam, Volume 6, Fascicules 107-108 | publisher = Brill Archive | pages = 575| isbn = 978-90-04-09082-8 | oclc = 60063572 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=tPsUAAAAIAAJ}}</ref>, up to the very current day with the ISIS terrorist organization taking Yazidi girls in Iraq as sex slaves on the prophetic model. Since Mariyah also bore Muhammad a son, and was this an umm-walad أم ولد or mother of a boy for the prophet, her story was integral to later Islamic discourse about the place of the sons of slave women in Islamic societies (although the classical jurists of the 4 traditional Sunni madhabs do not usually invoke her example as a "proof text")<ref name="GordonHain2017_2">{{cite book | editor1 = Matthew Gordon | editor2 = Kathryn A. Hain | date = 2017 | title = Concubines and Courtesans: Women and Slavery in Islamic History | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 225| isbn = 978-0-19-062218-3 | oclc = 1014474115 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=F3QzDwAAQBAJ}}</ref>. Since the raiding for sexual slaves formed a large part of the wealth-building enterprise undertaken by later Islamic caliphates and empires such as the Umayyads, Abbasids and many others the number of children born to slave women quickly proliferated in Islamic society. There were so many children of concubines in Islamic society that several contenders for the throne of the caliphate ended up being the children of slave women. The rightly guided-caliphs and the early Umayyads were all free-born Arab men, but in 740 Zayd bin Ali made an unsuccessful bid for the caliphate, and he was the child of a slave woman. His opponent used his lineage as the son of a sex slave to mock and belittle him, claiming that his birth to an un-free woman disqualified him from the throne<ref name="GordonHain2017">ibid, 238</ref>. Yet by 744, Yazid III became the first caliph born of a slave mother; thereafter, the next 3 Umayyad caliphs and most of the Abbasids caliphs were the sons of concubines. Zayd bin Ali in his arguments for why the son of a slave woman such as himself should be eligible for caliph made great reference to Isma'il and Hajar. Hajar's biography bears many resemblances to Mariyah's; both were from Egypt, both were the concubines of prophets, both suffered the jealousy of the rightful wife(wives) of the prophet, both bore sons for the prophet, with the name of the son of Mariyah being the name of the husband of Hajar. Later caliphs and other sons of concubines would invoke the legacy of Mariyah and her son Ibrahim, who might have been another prophet, to justify their place in Islamic society<ref>Ibid, 230</ref>.

As Mariyah was an umm-walad of the prophet, and as the concept took on greater importance in Islamic society as the children of concubines, the example of Mariyah was used in Islamic discourse to discuss the rights, privileges and duties of an umm-walad and her offspring in Islamic societies. Although the umm-walad is elevated above the rank of the normal slave, she is still a slave. The husband has the right to avail himself of her sexually whenever he wants<ref name="Scribner1982">{{cite book | date = 1982 | title = Dictionary of the Middle Ages: Cabala-Crimea. Vol. 3 | publisher = Scribner | pages = 527| isbn = 978-0-684-16760-2 | oclc = 929425948 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=FSN2tAEACAAJ}}</ref>, as Muhammad continued to with Mariyah (and as Allah instructed him to do). There was some discussion in Islamic sources such as ibn Kathir as to whether the umm-walad must be freed <ref name="BosworthDonzel1998_1">{{cite book | editor1 = C. E. Bosworth | editor2 = E. Van Donzel | author1 = Hamilton Alexander Rosskeen Gibb | author2 = International Union of Academies | date = 1998 | title = The Encyclopaedia of Islam: Volume X Fascicule 163-164 | publisher = BRILL | pages = 857| isbn = 978-90-04-11056-4 | oclc = 164878157 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Lc8OOQAACAAJ}}</ref>. There were ahadith to the affect that Muhammad freed Mariyah after she bore him Ibrahim; the conclusion of Islamic law is that this may or may not have happened but if it did this was done out of Muhammad's special love for Mariyah and is not applicable to slave women who bear children in general. The son of an umm-walad, though, was taken to be a free man, as Ibrahim would certainly have been free had he survived to adulthood<ref name="BosworthDonzel1998_2">ibid, 857</ref>. The umm-walad can also not be sold from her master or separated from her son. The prophetic example of Muhammad and Mariyah provides an example of the umm-walad in the biography of the prophet himself, and the exalted status of their son would prove a powerful rhetorical tool in the disputes over the places of the offspring of umm-walads in Islamic societies.

==Historicity==

As noted above, the story of Mariyah is deeply reflective of the story of Abraham (Ibrahim)'s concubine Hagar (Hajar) in the Bible. Like Hajar she is Egyptian, and the tradition associates a number of sayings of the prophet to Muhammad that the Muslims should treat the Copts of Egypt well based on the prophet's love of Mariyah; similar hadith traditions exist about Hajar. Like Hajar Mariyah provided a son to the otherwise son-less Muhammad. The fact that Muhammad had so many wives but so few children in an age when it was considered a sign of god's favor for a man to have many children must have caused suspicion to arise--which is likely why the Qur'an verse above specifically mentions Muhammad by name, which is unusual in the Qur'an, and states that he is not the father of any of the men of the believers (which has led to the theory that the verse itself is perhaps an interpolation into the text after the death of the prophet). Like Hajar Mariyah became a devout believer in the message of her prophet, and like Hajar Mariyah aroused the jealousy of the prophet's household due to her youth and her fertility in bearing a son for the prophet. These parallels, as well as the convenient connection of her to some otherwise hard-to-explain verses in the Qur'an, have led some scholars to conclude that Mariyah either never existed or her story was embellished beyond recognition by elements lifted wholesale from the Hajar narrative<ref name="GordonHain2017_4">{{cite book | editor1 = Matthew Gordon | editor2 = Kathryn A. Hain | date = 2017 | title = Concubines and Courtesans: Women and Slavery in Islamic History | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 228| isbn = 978-0-19-062218-3 | oclc = 1014474115 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=F3QzDwAAQBAJ}}</ref>. The constant pairing of Hajar and Mariyah in later Muslim debates about the concept of "umm-walad" in Islamic law underscore the close connection between these two figures.

In addition to the biblical connections to Hajar, the tradition closely associated Muhammad with Ibrahim. In the sirah of Ibn Hisham/Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad is said to remark upon meeting Ibrahim that he is the person that most resembles himself<ref>{{Cite web| title = When Ibrahim (AS) Met Muhammad (SAW) {{!}} About Islam| author = | work = About Islam| date = | access-date = 24 November 2021| url = https://aboutislam.net/multimedia/videos/when-ibrahim-as-met-muhammad-saw/| quote = }}</ref>. In giving birth to "Ibrahim" Mariyah brings the entire circle around full in respect to the connection of her narrative to that of Ibrahim and Hajar. Even her name has antecedents--in the Shahnahmah (the epic poem describing the lives of the pre-Islamic shahs of Iran) the emperor Maurice (582-602 CE) gave his daughter Mariyah in marriage to the Persian shah Khusraw Parviz (590-628 CE). He ended up leaving her, though, for the love of his youth, Shirin. The royal antecedent for Mariyah is fitting, considering how at the time of the compilation of the Islamic narratives of the sirah and the hadith Muslim claimants to the throne of the caliph were claiming royal lineage through their slave mothers and citing the example of Mariyah<ref name="Öhrnberg1984">{{cite book | author = Kaj Öhrnberg | date = 1984 | title = Mariya Al-qibtiyya Unveiled | publisher = Finnish Oriental Society | pages = 298 | oclc = 28522109 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=s_ZSwQEACAAJ}}</ref>. In addition to all of the above, the death of young Ibrahim serves to underscore the status of Muhammad as "khaatim al-nabiyyin" خاتم النبيين or the "seal of the prophets.<ref name="Powers2011_5">{{cite book | author = David Powers | date = 15 March 2011 | title = Muhammad Is Not the Father of Any of Your Men: The Making of the Last Prophet | publisher = University of Pennsylvania Press | pages = 57| isbn = 978-0-8122-2149-7 | oclc = 1037937026 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=OUxWN1VBnBEC}}</ref>" Considering the literary and biblical allusions, it is quite likely that Mariyah in fact either never existed<ref name="Öhrnberg1984_2">{{cite book | author = Kaj Öhrnberg | date = 1984 | title = Mariya Al-qibtiyya Unveiled | publisher = Finnish Oriental Society | pages = 302 | oclc = 28522109 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=s_ZSwQEACAAJ}}</ref> or that the major details of her story were literary embellishments meant to strengthen the connection of Muhammad to Ibrahim, provide a link with Muhammad to the people of Egypt, justify the norms around the "umm-walad" in the Islamic shari'ah, underline the doctrine of the seal of the prophets and reinforce the idea that Muhammad "Is not the father of any of your men."

==References==
<references />

Maria the Copt (Mariyah Al-Qibtiyyah)

2022-02-15T18:28:04Z

Vixen: /* Scandal of Maria's Accused Fornication With Her Cousin and His Execution */

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[[File:Maria Al Qibtiyya.png|220px|right|thumb|Islamic seal of Mariyah as a "mother of the believers"]]
Mary the Copt (Arabic: مارية القبطية Mariyah Al-Qibtiyah‎), also known as Maria Qubtiyya, was one of the concubines/sex slaves of the prophet Muhammad. Although she is considered an "umm al-mu'minin" أم ألمؤمنين she was never actually the wife of the prophet according to the accepted historical sources by orthodox Sunni Islam.<ref>{{Cite web| title = Maria, the Copt: Prophet Muhammad's Wife or Concubine? {{!}} ICRAA.org| author = | work = ICRAA.org| date = | access-date = 18 November 2021| url = https://www.icraa.org/maria-copt-muhammad-wife-concubine/| quote = }}</ref><ref name="seek_WasM">{{Cite web| title = Was Mariya al-Qibtiyya Ever a Wife of the Prophet Muhammad? - SeekersHub Answers| author = | work = SeekersHub Answers| date = | access-date = 3 March 2016| url = https://seekersguidance.org/answers/general-counsel/was-mariya-al-qibtiyya-ever-a-wife-of-the-prophet-muhammad/| quote = }}</ref> According to the [[sira]] she was sent to Muhammad as a gift from the Christian Patriarch of Egypt. According to the [[hadith]] and the [[sirah]] her beauty and Muhammad's lust for her incited the jealousy of Muhammad's wives, in particular Hafsa and [[Aisha]]. The jealousy they had of her and Muhammad's response was actually the [[Asbab al-Nuzul (Revelational Circumstances of the Quran)|cause]] of the "revelation" of several Qur'an verses according to the tradition. Although she converted to Islam and bore the prophet a son who later died, she remained a slave of the prophet until he died, according to most of the traditional scholars. The traditional sources compare her concubinage to that of Hajar to Ibrahim, and the son that Mariyah bore was named Ibrahim. According to classical Islamic sources, had her son Ibrahim lived, he too would have been a prophet.

==Life Before Muhammad==

Not much is known of Mariyah's life before she was gifted to the prophet as a sex slave. According to the traditional sources, she was the son of a certain Sham'un from the town of Hafn in the region of Ansina. According to the traditional sources, she was gifted to Muhammad with her sister Shirin; but since the shari'ah prohibits a man having concurrent sexual relations with a woman and her sister, Muhammad was forced to choose between the two, and chose Mariyah for her exceeding beauty, while giving her sister to the poet Hassan bin Thabit <ref name="Powers2011_1">{{cite book | author = David Powers | date = 15 March 2011 | title = Muhammad Is Not the Father of Any of Your Men: The Making of the Last Prophet | publisher = University of Pennsylvania Press | pages = 56| isbn = 978-0-8122-2149-7 | oclc = 1037937026 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=OUxWN1VBnBEC}}</ref>.

==Gifting to Muhammad and Conversion to Islam==
According to the traditional sources, after the treaty of Hudaybiya, the prophet Muhammad sent letters to the heads of various Middle Eastern powers inviting them to convert to Islam. One of these letters went to a certain Al-Muqauqis, who is not immediately identifiable with any historical person but seems to be the Melkite Patriarch Cyril of Egypt.<ref name="Brill1954">{{cite book | date = 1954 |Öhrnberg, Kaj| title = The Encyclopaedia of Islam: Khe-Naz. Vol. 5-7 | publisher = Brill | pages = 511| isbn = 978-90-04-08112-3 | oclc = 1000117476 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=d5kQzQEACAAJ}}</ref> He did not, apparently, accept the [[Dawah|call]] to Islam but in response sent Mariyah and her sister Shirin as sex slaves to Muhammad. That a Christian patriarch in Egypt would send Christian girls as sex slaves to this strange, obscure, and previously unknown heretic in Arabia was a question that apparently never arose on any side; there is no confirmation of any part of this story in contemporary Muslim or non-Muslim accounts from the 7th century, and the narrative itself only appears in Muslim sirah, tafsir and hadith literature written over a hundred years after the fact. On the way to Medina, she converted to Islam. When she and her sister arrived in Medina, since Muhammad could not have concurrent sexual relations with both sisters as per Islamic law, Muhammad chose Mariyah for her exceeding beauty. The prophet did not wed her, but rather kept her as his jaariyah (جارية) or surriyah (سرية), that is his sex slave. The prophet was very stricken with her gave her a house in the upper portion of Medina, which purportedly still exists to this day.<ref name="BRILL1990">{{cite book | author = BRILL | date = 1990 |F. Buhl| title = The Encyclopedia of Islam, Volume 6, Fascicules 114a: Preliminary Matter and Binder | publisher = BRILL | pages =575 | isbn = 978-90-04-09358-4 | oclc = 753138826 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=hYlytQEACAAJ}}</ref>

==Scandal with Muhammad's Wives and Quranic Revelation==

According to multiple tafsir and hadith traditions, the first 6 ayyaat (verses) of surat-at-tahriim (surah 66) were revealed to Muhammad in regards to a sexual scandal within his household. According to the traditional reading, the verses admonish Muhammad's wives and command him to fulfill his desires as Allah has allowed to him:

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|66|1|6}}|
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّبِىُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَآ أَحَلَّ ٱللَّهُ لَكَ ۖ تَبْتَغِى مَرْضَاتَ أَزْوَٰجِكَ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
قَدْ فَرَضَ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمْ تَحِلَّةَ أَيْمَٰنِكُمْ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ مَوْلَىٰكُمْ ۖ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَلِيمُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ
وَإِذْ أَسَرَّ ٱلنَّبِىُّ إِلَىٰ بَعْضِ أَزْوَٰجِهِۦ حَدِيثًا فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَتْ بِهِۦ وَأَظْهَرَهُ ٱللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ عَرَّفَ بَعْضَهُۥ وَأَعْرَضَ عَنۢ بَعْضٍ ۖ فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَهَا بِهِۦ قَالَتْ مَنْ أَنۢبَأَكَ هَٰذَا ۖ قَالَ نَبَّأَنِىَ ٱلْعَلِيمُ ٱلْخَبِيرُ
إِن تَتُوبَآ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ فَقَدْ صَغَتْ قُلُوبُكُمَا ۖ وَإِن تَظَٰهَرَا عَلَيْهِ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ هُوَ مَوْلَىٰهُ وَجِبْرِيلُ وَصَٰلِحُ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ ۖ وَٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةُ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ ظَهِيرٌ
عَسَىٰ رَبُّهُۥٓ إِن طَلَّقَكُنَّ أَن يُبْدِلَهُۥٓ أَزْوَٰجًا خَيْرًا مِّنكُنَّ مُسْلِمَٰتٍ مُّؤْمِنَٰتٍ قَٰنِتَٰتٍ تَٰٓئِبَٰتٍ عَٰبِدَٰتٍ سَٰٓئِحَٰتٍ ثَيِّبَٰتٍ وَأَبْكَارًا
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ قُوٓا۟ أَنفُسَكُمْ وَأَهْلِيكُمْ نَارًا وَقُودُهَا ٱلنَّاسُ وَٱلْحِجَارَةُ عَلَيْهَا مَلَٰٓئِكَةٌ غِلَاظٌ شِدَادٌ لَّا يَعْصُونَ ٱللَّهَ مَآ أَمَرَهُمْ وَيَفْعَلُونَ مَا يُؤْمَرُونَ

O Prophet, why do you prohibit [yourself from] what Allah has made lawful for you, seeking the approval of your wives? And Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.
Allah has already ordained for you [Muslims] the dissolution of your oaths. And Allah is your protector, and He is the Knowing, the Wise.
And [remember] when the Prophet confided to one of his wives a statement; and when she informed [another] of it and Allah showed it to him, he made known part of it and ignored a part. And when he informed her about it, she said, "Who told you this?" He said, "I was informed by the Knowing, the Acquainted."
If you two [wives] repent to Allah, [it is best], for your hearts have deviated. But if you cooperate against him - then indeed Allah is his protector, and Gabriel and the righteous of the believers and the angels, moreover, are [his] assistants.
Perhaps his Lord, if he divorced you [all], would substitute for him wives better than you - submitting [to Allah], believing, devoutly obedient, repentant, worshipping, and traveling - [ones] previously married and virgins.
O you who have believed, protect yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is people and stones, over which are [appointed] angels, harsh and severe; they do not disobey Allah in what He commands them but do what they are commanded.}}

The entire scandal of Muhammad sleeping with Maria is explained in the tafsir of al-Jalalayn on surah 66 (at-tahrim) verse 1-3:

{{Quote|Tafsir of Al-Jalalayn on Qur'an 66:1-3|
يا أيّها النَّبِيّ لِمَ تُحَرِّم ما أحَلَّ اللَّه لَك﴾ مِن أمَتك مارِيَة القِبْطِيَّة لَمّا واقَعَها فِي بَيْت حَفْصَة وكانَتْ غائِبَة فَجاءَتْ وشَقَّ عَلَيْها كَوْن ذَلِكَ فِي بَيْتها وعَلى فِراشها حَيْثُ قُلْت: هِيَ حَرام عَلَيَّ ﴿تَبْتَغِي﴾ بِتَحْرِيمِها ﴿مَرْضاة أزْواجك﴾ أيْ رِضاهُنَّ ﴿واللَّه غَفُور رَحِيم﴾ غَفَرَ لَك هَذا التَّحْرِيم﴿
قَدۡ فَرَضَ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمۡ تَحِلَّةَ أَیۡمَـٰنِكُمۡۚ وَٱللَّهُ مَوۡلَىٰكُمۡۖ وَهُوَ ٱلۡعَلِیمُ ٱلۡحَكِیمُ﴾ [التحريم ٢]﴿
قَدْ فَرَضَ اللَّه﴾ شَرَعَ ﴿لَكُمْ تَحِلَّة أيْمانكُمْ﴾ تَحْلِيلها بِالكَفّارَةِ المَذْكُورَة فِي سُورَة "المائِدَة" ومِن الأَيْمان تَحْرِيم الأَمَة وهَلْ كَفَّرَ ﷺ ؟ قالَ مُقاتِل: أعْتَقَ رَقَبَة فِي تَحْرِيم مارِيَة وقالَ الحَسَن: لَمْ يُكَفِّر لِأَنَّهُ ﷺ مَغْفُور لَهُ ﴿واللَّه مَوْلاكُمْ﴾ ناصِركُمْ﴿
وَإِذۡ أَسَرَّ ٱلنَّبِیُّ إِلَىٰ بَعۡضِ أَزۡوَ ٰ⁠جِهِۦ حَدِیثࣰا فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَتۡ بِهِۦ وَأَظۡهَرَهُ ٱللَّهُ عَلَیۡهِ عَرَّفَ بَعۡضَهُۥ وَأَعۡرَضَ عَنۢ بَعۡضࣲۖ فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَهَا بِهِۦ قَالَتۡ مَنۡ أَنۢبَأَكَ هَـٰذَاۖ قَالَ نَبَّأَنِیَ ٱلۡعَلِیمُ ٱلۡخَبِیرُ﴾ [التحريم ٣]﴿
و﴾ اذْكُرْ ﴿إذْ أسَرَّ النَّبِيّ إلى بَعْض أزْواجه﴾ هِيَ حَفْصَة ﴿حَدِيثًا﴾ هُوَ تَحْرِيم مارِيَة وقالَ لَها لا تُفْشِيه ﴿فَلَمّا نَبَّأَتْ بِهِ﴾ عائِشَة ظَنًّا مِنها أنْ لا حَرَج فِي ذَلِكَ ﴿وأَظْهَرَهُ اللَّه﴾ أطْلَعَهُ ﴿عَلَيْهِ﴾ عَلى المُنَبَّأ بِهِ ﴿عَرَّفَ بَعْضه﴾ لِحَفْصَةَ ﴿وأَعْرَضَ عَنْ بَعْض﴾ تَكَرُّمًا مِنهُ ﴿فَلَمّا نَبَّأَها بِهِ قالَتْ مَن أنْبَأَك هَذا قالَ نَبَّأَنِي العَلِيم الخَبِير﴾ أيْ اللَّه

"O Prophet! Why do you prohibit what God has made lawful for you, in terms of your Coptic handmaiden Māriya"— when he lay with her in the house of Hafsa, who had been away, but who upon returning [and finding out] became upset by the fact that this had taken place in her own house and on her own bed — by saying, ‘She is unlawful for me!’, seeking, by making her unlawful [for you], to please your wives? And God is Forgiving, Merciful, having forgiven you this prohibition.
"Allah has already ordained for you [Muslims] the dissolution of your oaths. And Allah is your protector, and He is the Knowing, the Wise."
Verily God has prescribed, He has made lawful, for you [when necessary] the absolution of your oaths, to absolve them by expiation, as mentioned in the sūrat al-Mā’ida [Q. 5:89] and the forbidding of [sexual relations with] a handmaiden counts as an oath, so did the Prophet (s) expiate? Muqātil [b. Sulaymān] said, ‘He set free a slave [in expiation] for his prohibition of Māriya’; whereas al-Hasan [al-Basrī] said, ‘He never expiated, because the Prophet (s) has been forgiven [all errors]’. And God is your Protector, your Helper, and He is the Knower, the Wise.
"And [remember] when the Prophet confided to one of his wives a statement; and when she informed [another] of it and Allah showed it to him, he made known part of it and ignored a part. And when he informed her about it, she said, 'Who told you this?' He said, 'I was informed by the Knowing, the Acquainted.'"
And, mention, when the Prophet confided to one of his wives, namely, Hafsa, a certain matter, which was his prohibition of Māriya, telling her: ‘Do not reveal it!’; but when she divulged it, to ‘Ā’isha, reckoning there to be no blame in [doing] such a thing, and God apprised him, He informed him, of it, of what had been divulged, he announced part of it, to Hafsa, and passed over part, out of graciousness on his part. So when he told her about it, she said, ‘Who told you this?’ He said, ‘I was told by the Knower, the Aware’, namely, God. And, mention, when the Prophet confided to one of his wives, namely, Hafsa, a certain matter, which was his prohibition of Māriya, telling her: ‘Do not reveal it!’; but when she divulged it, to ‘Ā’isha, reckoning there to be no blame in [doing] such a thing, and God apprised him, He informed him, of it, of what had been divulged, he announced part of it, to Hafsa, and passed over part, out of graciousness on his part. So when he told her about it, she said, ‘Who told you this?’ He said, ‘I was told by the Knower, the Aware’, namely, God.}}

As the above tafsir lays out, according to the story preserved over many hadith and tafsir traditions Muhammad was caught in flagrante delicto having sexual relations with Maria in the house of Hafsa. Muhammad told Hafsah he would not do this again and begged her not to tell Aishah, but she disobeyed his wish and told her anyway. Allah sent down Qur'an 66:1 in order to chastise Muhammad for forbidding himself Mariyah. Not satisfied with having allowed Muhammad to have sex with their servant in Hafsah's house, Allah further chastised his wives and threatend them with hell fire for disobeying them:

{{Quote|Tafsir Al-Jalalayn on Qur'an 66:4-5|﴿إنْ تَتُوبا﴾ أيْ حَفْصَة وعائِشَة ﴿إلى اللَّه فَقَدْ صَغَتْ قُلُوبكُما﴾ مالَتْ إلى تَحْرِيم مارِيَة أيْ سَرَّكُما ذَلِكَ مَعَ كَراهَة النَّبِيّ ﷺ لَهُ وذَلِكَ ذَنْب وجَواب الشَّرْط مَحْذُوف أيْ تَقَبُّلًا وأَطْلَقَ قُلُوب عَلى قَلْبَيْنِ ولَمْ يُعَبِّر بِهِ لِاسْتِثْقالِ الجَمْع بَيْن تَثْنِيَتَيْنِ فِيما هُوَ كالكَلِمَةِ الواحِدَة ﴿وإنْ تَظاهَرا﴾ بِإدْغامِ التّاء الثّانِيَة فِي الأَصْل فِي الظّاء وفِي قِراءَة بِدُونِها تَتَعاوَنا ﴿عَلَيْهِ﴾ أيْ النَّبِيّ فِيما يَكْرَههُ ﴿فَإنَّ اللَّه هُوَ﴾ فَصْل ﴿مَوْلاهُ﴾ ناصِره ﴿وجِبْرِيل وصالِح المُؤْمِنِينَ﴾ أبُو بَكْر وعُمَر رَضِيَ اللَّه عَنْهُما مَعْطُوف عَلى مَحَلّ اسْم إنْ فَيَكُونُونَ ناصِرِيهِ ﴿والمَلائِكَة بَعْد ذَلِكَ﴾ بَعْد نَصْر اللَّه والمَذْكُورِينَ ﴿ظَهِير﴾ ظُهَراء أعْوان لَهُ فِي نَصْره عَلَيْكُما
﴿عَسَىٰ رَبُّهُۥۤ إِن طَلَّقَكُنَّ أَن یُبۡدِلَهُۥۤ أَزۡوَ ٰ⁠جًا خَیۡرࣰا مِّنكُنَّ مُسۡلِمَـٰتࣲ مُّؤۡمِنَـٰتࣲ قَـٰنِتَـٰتࣲ تَـٰۤىِٕبَـٰتٍ عَـٰبِدَ ٰ⁠تࣲ سَـٰۤىِٕحَـٰتࣲ ثَیِّبَـٰتࣲ وَأَبۡكَارࣰا﴾ [التحريم ٥]
﴿عَسى رَبّه إنْ طَلَّقَكُنَّ﴾ أيْ طَلَّقَ النَّبِيّ أزْواجه ﴿أنْ يُبَدِّلهُ﴾ بِالتَّشْدِيدِ والتَّخْفِيف ﴿أزْواجًا خَيْرًا مِنكُنَّ﴾ خَبَر عَسى والجُمْلَة جَواب الشَّرْط ولَمْ يَقَع التَّبْدِيل لِعَدَمِ وُقُوع الشَّرْط ﴿مُسْلِمات﴾ مُقِرّات بِالإسْلامِ ﴿مُؤْمِنات﴾ مُخْلِصات ﴿قانِتات﴾ مُطِيعات ﴿تائِبات عابِدات سائِحات﴾ صائِمات أوْ مُهاجِرات

"If you two [wives] repent to Allah, [it is best], for your hearts have deviated. But if you cooperate against him - then indeed Allah is his protector, and Gabriel and the righteous of the believers and the angels, moreover, are [his] assistants."
If the two of you, namely, Hafsa and ‘Ā’isha, repent to God … for your hearts were certainly inclined, towards the prohibition of Māriya, that is to say, your keeping this secret despite [knowing] the Prophet’s (s) dislike of it, which is itself a sin (the response to the conditional [‘if the two of you repent to God’] has been omitted, to be understood as, ‘it will be accepted of both of you’; the use of [the plural] qulūb, ‘hearts’, instead of [the dual] qalbayn, ‘both [your] hearts’, is on account of the cumbersomeness of putting two duals together in what is effectively the same word); and if you support one another (tazzāharā: the original second tā’ [of tatazāharā] has been assimilated with the zā’; a variant reading has it without [this assimilation, tazāharā]) against him, that is, the Prophet, in what he is averse to, then [know that] God, He (huwa, [a pronoun] for separation) is indeed his Protector, His supporter, and Gabriel, and the righteous among the believers, Abū Bakr and ‘Umar, may God be pleased with both of them (wa-Jibrīlu wa-sālihu’l-mu’minīna is a supplement to the [syntactical] locus of the subject of inna [sc. ‘God’]), who will [also] be his supporters, and the angels furthermore, further to the support of God and those mentioned, are his supporters, assistants of his, in supporting him [to prevail] over both of you.
"Perhaps his Lord, if he divorced you [all], would substitute for him wives better than you - submitting [to Allah], believing, devoutly obedient, repentant, worshipping, and traveling - [ones] previously married and virgins."
It may be that, if he divorces you, that is, [if] the Prophet divorces his wives, his Lord will give him in [your] stead (read yubaddilahu or yubdilahu) wives better than you (azwājan khayran minkunna is the predicate of ‘asā, ‘it may be’, the sentence being the response to the conditional) — the replacement [of his wives by God] never took place because the condition [of his divorcing them] never arose — women submissive [to God], affirming Islam, believing, faithful, obedient, penitent, devout, given to fasting — or given to emigrating [in God’s way] — previously married and virgins.}}

Ibn Kathir also recounts how Qur'an 66:1-6 were revealed to Muhammad by Allah because, in response to Hafsa and Aisha's complaints about Muhammad sleeping with Mariyah, Muhammad cut himself off sexually from Mariyah:
{{Quote|Tafsir of ibn Kathir on Qur'an 66:1-3| أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ كَانَتْ لَهُ أَمَةٌ يَطَؤُهَا، فَلَمْ تَزَلْ بِهِ عَائِشَةُ وَحَفْصَةُ حَتَّى حَرَّمها، فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ، عَزَّ وَجَلَّ: ﴿يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَا أَحَلَّ اللَّهُ لَكَ﴾ ؟ إِلَى آخِرِ الْآيَةِ(١) .
وَقَالَ ابْنُ جَرِيرٍ...: أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَصَابَ أُمَّ إِبْرَاهِيمَ فِي بَيْتِ بَعْضِ نِسَائِهِ، فَقَالَتْ: أَيْ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، فِي بَيْتِي وَعَلَى فِرَاشِي؟! فَجَعَلَهَا عَلَيْهِ حَرَامًا فَقَالَتْ: أيْ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، كَيْفَ يَحْرُم عَلَيْكَ الْحَلَالُ؟ فَحَلَفَ لَهَا بِاللَّهِ لَا يُصِيبُهَا. فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ: ﴿يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَا أَحَلَّ اللَّهُ لَكَ﴾ ؟

The messenger of Allah, peace and prayer of Allah be upon him, was having sexual relations with a female slave which he had, but Aisha and Hafsa would not cease to bother him about it until he forbid himself to continue it, until Allah praised and glorious brought down a verse saying "O prophet, why do you forbid to yourself what Allah has allowed" until the end of the verse. Ibn Jarir said...The messenger of Allah, peace and prayer of Allah be upon him had sex with Um Ibrahim (Mariyah Al-Qibtiyah) in the house of some of his women. Then she (Hafsah?) said "Hey messenger of Allah! In my house and upon my bed?!" Then the prophet made it forbidden (for him to have sex with her). Then she said "Hey messenger of Allah, how will you forbid what is allowed to you?" Then he swore not to have sex with her. Then Allah revealed "Oh prophet why do you forbid what Allah has made allowable to you?"}}The slave in this case is usually said to be Mariyah. In response, according to the tradition, Allah sent down surat-at-tahreem, the surah of making things off limits. Hafsa was highly aggrieved by this and told [[Aisha]] who also rebuked the prophet for his sexual appetite and cruelty to Hafsa. {{Quote|{{Al Nasai|26|4|36|3411}}|أَخْبَرَنِي إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ يُونُسَ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ، حَرَمِيٌّ - هُوَ لَقَبُهُ - قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبِي قَالَ، حَدَّثَنَا حَمَّادُ بْنُ سَلَمَةَ، عَنْ ثَابِتٍ، عَنْ أَنَسٍ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم كَانَتْ لَهُ أَمَةٌ يَطَؤُهَا فَلَمْ تَزَلْ بِهِ عَائِشَةُ وَحَفْصَةُ حَتَّى حَرَّمَهَا عَلَى نَفْسِهِ فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ ‏{‏ يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَا أَحَلَّ اللَّهُ لَكَ ‏}‏ إِلَى آخِرِ الآيَةِ ‏.‏

It was narrated from Anas, that the Messenger of Allah had a female slave with whom he had intercourse, but 'Aishah and Hafsah would not leave him alone until he said that she was forbidden for him. Then Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, revealed:

"O Prophet! Why do you forbid (for yourself) that which Allah has allowed to you.' until the end of the Verse.}}

As the Encyclopedia of Islam states, other narratives exist around these verses, but considering how bad the original narrative looks for Muhammad it is unlikely that the any of the alternatives were the most primordial narrative; rather, the above narrative would appear to be the oldest, and the others were later fabrications meant to protect the reputation of the prophet<ref name="Brill">{{cite book | title = The Encyclopaedia of Islam: Mahk-Mid | publisher = Brill | pages = 575 | oclc = 399624 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=9lbIwAEACAAJ}}</ref>.

==Scandal of Maria's Accused Fornication With Her Cousin and His Execution==
After the death of [[Khadijah bint Khuwaylid|Khadijah]], Muhammad took about 16 (+/-) wives and concubines for himself, but none of them bore him any children. Maria, though, bore him a baby boy shortly after she was given in concubinage to Muhammad; since none of the prophet's other partners bore him any children, a rumor spread that it was actually Maria's male cousin Mabur, who had also been given as a slave to the prophet, who had impregnated Maria. When Muhammad heard those rumors, he ordered the killing of of Mabur without any court trial, which would have been required by [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)]] in a similar case with any other person, and since this was fornication between two unmarried slaves the penalty should have been 50 lashes, not death.
{{Quote|{{Muslim|37|6676}}|Anas reported that a person (a coptic slave whose name was "Mabur" and he was the cousin of Maria al-Qibtiyya) was charged with fornication with the slavegirl of Allah's Messenger (i.e. Maria al-Qibtiyya). Thereupon Allah's Messenger said to 'Ali: Go and strike his neck. 'Ali came to him and he found him in a well making his body cool. 'Ali said to him: Come out, and as he took hold of his hand and brought him out, he found that his sexual organ had been cut. Hadrat 'Ali refrained from striking his neck. He came to Allah's Apostle and said: Allah's Messenger, he has not even the sexual organ with him}}{{Quote|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20211010105134/https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&flag=1&bk_no=74&ID=6740 Al-Mustadrak 'ala al-Sahihayn (Arabic: المستدرك على الصحيحين) by Imam Hakim]|2=«عن عايشة قالت : اهديت مارية إلى رسول اللّه ومعها ابن عم لها . قالت : فوقع عليها وقعة فاستمرت حاملا . قالت : فعز لها عند ابن عمها . قالت : فقال اهل الافك والزور : «من حاجته إلى الولد ادعى ولد غيره» وكانت امّه قليلة اللبن فابتاعت له ضائنة لبون فكان يغذى بلبنها فحسن عليه لحمه . قالت عايشة : فدخل به علىّ النبى صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم ذات يوم فقال : «كيف ترين»؟ فقلت : من غذى بلحم الضأن يحسن لحمه . قال : «ولا الشبه» قالت : فحملنى ما يحمل النساء من الغيرة أن قلت : ما أرى شبها . قالت : وبلغ رسول اللّه ما يقول الناس فقال لعلى ... ». Aisha said: " Maria" was presented to the prophet of Islam (as a slave woman) and her cousin (a coptic male slave) was with her. After a while Maria became pregnant. Upon that, the people started slandering that since he [the prophet of Islam] needed child, he related the son of that slave-man to himself. Since Maria, as a mother didn’t have enough breast milk, they fed him by sheep 's milk that’s why he (the son Ibrahim) was fat. 'Aisha said: Once the prophet brought him to me and asked what I thought about him, I replied, "everyone fed by sheep 's milk will get fat." The holy prophet said doesn’t he look like me? '''Aisha said, "I jealously said "No" ." and then the prophet heard of the untrue accusations of people to toward Maria. Upon that the prophet sent Ali to kill her cousin ...'''}}
Yet Muhammad persisted in his jealousy, and the angel Jibreel had to come down and confirm him that Ibrahim was indeed his child:
{{Quote|[http://al-hakawati.net/Books/BookDetails/7518/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D8%B2%D8%A1-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AE%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%B3--%D9%85%D8%A7-%D8%A3%D8%B5%D8%A7%D8%A8-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B3%D9%84%D9%85%D9%8A%D9%86-%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B5%D9%8A%D8%A8%D8%A9-%D8%A8%D9%88%D9%81%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%87-%D8%B5%D9%84%D9%89-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%84%D9%87-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%8A%D9%87-%D9%88%D8%B3%D9%84%D9%85 Al-Badaya wa Al-Nahaya by Ibn Kathir]|عن أنس قال‏:‏ لما ولدت مارية إبراهيم كاد أن يقع في النَّبيّ صلَّى الله عليه وسلَّم منه شيء حتَّى نزل جبريل عليه السلام فقال‏:‏ ‏(‏‏(‏السلام عليك يا أبا إبراهيم‏)‏‏)‏‏. Anas said, when Ibrahim was born to Maria, then Muhammad became doubtful if Ibrahim was really his son or not. Upon that angel Jibrael came to him and said: Peace be upon you, O the Father of Ibrahim (i.e. confirmed to him that Ibrahim was indeed his son).}}
In addition to extra-juridically killing Mabur in contravention of [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)]], the slander against Maria would be considered قذف or slander in an Islamic shari'ah court and theoretically should have been punished with lashing, as was done in the [[Incident of Ifk.|Incident of Ifk]] with A'ishah. The case thus presents interesting examples of the prophet contravening what would later be codified as Islamic law.

==Son She Birthed to the Prophet==

According to the sirah and hadith, Mariyah is an umm-walad أم ولد of the prophet, that is to say she bore him a male child. The son she bore him was named Ibrahim, after the prophet. The child died very young, within a year and a half of his birth, and the prophet is said to have shed tears over his death. According to the traditional sources he died during an eclipse, which combined with the fact that he died only 5 months before his father would put his death on the 10th of Shawwal 10 AH or the 27th of January 623 CE <ref name="Powers2011_2">{{cite book | author = David Powers | date = 15 March 2011 | title = Muhammad Is Not the Father of Any of Your Men: The Making of the Last Prophet | publisher = University of Pennsylvania Press | pages = 56| isbn = 978-0-8122-2149-7 | oclc = 1037937026 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=OUxWN1VBnBEC}}</ref>. Multiple ahadith tell that he would have been a prophet had he grown to adulthood. The hadith also speak of his death being necessary due to Muhammad being خاتم النبيين"khaatam al-nabiyyin'" or the "seal of the prophets<ref name="Powers2011_3">ibid, 57</ref>." This is also in line with the famous Quranic verse surat-al-ahzab (surah 33) verse 40:

{{Quote|{{Quran|33|40}}|
مَّا كَانَ مُحَمَّدٌ أَبَآ أَحَدٍ مِّن رِّجَالِكُمْ وَلَٰكِن رَّسُولَ ٱللَّهِ وَخَاتَمَ ٱلنَّبِيِّۦنَ ۗ وَكَانَ ٱللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَىْءٍ عَلِيمًا

Muhammad is not the father of [any] one of your men, but [he is] the Messenger of Allah and last of the prophets. And ever is Allah, of all things, Knowing.}}

As such, according to this verse, Ibrahim could not have lived since Muhammad is not the father of any of the men of the believers.

==Influence on Islamic Law and Society==

The use of Mariyah sexually by the prophet, like every aspect of the prophet's life, provides an example for later Muslims and the religious justification for the sexual exploitation of slave women by Muslim men <ref name="GordonHain2017_1">{{cite book | editor1 = Matthew Gordon | editor2 = Kathryn A. Hain | date = 2017 | title = Concubines and Courtesans: Women and Slavery in Islamic History | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 327| isbn = 978-0-19-062218-3 | oclc = 1014474115 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=F3QzDwAAQBAJ}}</ref>. Her sexual exploitation by Muhammad was in continuity with the practice of the pagan Arabs and was continued by later Islamic empires and movements<ref name="Bosworth1989">{{cite book | author = Clifford Edmund Bosworth | date = 1 January 1989 | title = The Encyclopedia of Islam, Volume 6, Fascicules 107-108 | publisher = Brill Archive | pages = 575| isbn = 978-90-04-09082-8 | oclc = 60063572 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=tPsUAAAAIAAJ}}</ref>, up to the very current day with the ISIS terrorist organization taking Yazidi girls in Iraq as sex slaves on the prophetic model. Since Mariyah also bore Muhammad a son, and was this an umm-walad أم ولد or mother of a boy for the prophet, her story was integral to later Islamic discourse about the place of the sons of slave women in Islamic societies (although the classical jurists of the 4 traditional Sunni madhabs do not usually invoke her example as a "proof text")<ref name="GordonHain2017_2">{{cite book | editor1 = Matthew Gordon | editor2 = Kathryn A. Hain | date = 2017 | title = Concubines and Courtesans: Women and Slavery in Islamic History | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 225| isbn = 978-0-19-062218-3 | oclc = 1014474115 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=F3QzDwAAQBAJ}}</ref>. Since the raiding for sexual slaves formed a large part of the wealth-building enterprise undertaken by later Islamic caliphates and empires such as the Umayyads, Abbasids and many others the number of children born to slave women quickly proliferated in Islamic society. There were so many children of concubines in Islamic society that several contenders for the throne of the caliphate ended up being the children of slave women. The rightly guided-caliphs and the early Umayyads were all free-born Arab men, but in 740 Zayd bin Ali made an unsuccessful bid for the caliphate, and he was the mother of a slave women. His opponent used his lineage as the son of a sex slave to mock and belittle him, claiming that his birth to an un-free woman disqualified him from the throne<ref name="GordonHain2017">ibid, 238</ref>. Yet by 744, Yazid III became the first caliph born of a slave mother; thereafter, the next 3 Umayyad caliphs and most of the Abbasids caliphs were the sons of concubines. Zayd bin Ali in his arguments for why the son of a slave woman such as himself should be eligible for caliph made great reference to Isma'il and Hajar. Hajar's biography bears many resemblances to Mariyah's; both were from Egypt, both were the concubines of prophets, both suffered the jealousy of the rightful wife(wives) of the prophet, both bore sons for the prophet, with the name of the son of Mariyah being the name of the husband of Hajar. Later caliphs and other sons of concubines would invoke the legacy of Mariyah and her son Ibrahim, who might have been another prophet, to justify their place in Islamic society<ref>Ibid, 230</ref>.

As Mariyah was an umm-walad of the prophet, and as the concept took on greater importance in Islamic society as the children of concubines, the example of Mariyah was used in Islamic discourse to discuss the rights, privileges and duties of an umm-walad and her offspring in Islamic societies. Although the umm-walad is elevated above the rank of the normal slave, she is still a slave. The husband has the right to avail himself of her sexually whenever he wants<ref name="Scribner1982">{{cite book | date = 1982 | title = Dictionary of the Middle Ages: Cabala-Crimea. Vol. 3 | publisher = Scribner | pages = 527| isbn = 978-0-684-16760-2 | oclc = 929425948 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=FSN2tAEACAAJ}}</ref>, as Muhammad continued to with Mariyah (and as Allah instructed him to do). There was some discussion in Islamic sources such as ibn Kathir as to whether the umm-walad must be freed <ref name="BosworthDonzel1998_1">{{cite book | editor1 = C. E. Bosworth | editor2 = E. Van Donzel | author1 = Hamilton Alexander Rosskeen Gibb | author2 = International Union of Academies | date = 1998 | title = The Encyclopaedia of Islam: Volume X Fascicule 163-164 | publisher = BRILL | pages = 857| isbn = 978-90-04-11056-4 | oclc = 164878157 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Lc8OOQAACAAJ}}</ref>. There were ahadith to the affect that Muhammad freed Mariyah after she bore him Ibrahim; the conclusion of Islamic law is that this may or may not have happened but if it did this was done out of Muhammad's special love for Mariyah and is not applicable to slave women who bear children in general. The son of an umm-walad, though, was taken to be a free man, as Ibrahim would certainly have been free had he survived to adulthood<ref name="BosworthDonzel1998_2">ibid, 857</ref>. The umm-walad can also not be sold from her master or separated from her son. The prophetic example of Muhammad and Mariyah provides an example of the umm-walad in the biography of the prophet himself, and the exalted status of their son would prove a powerful rhetorical tool in the disputes over the places of the offspring of umm-walads in Islamic societies.

==Historicity==

As noted above, the story of Mariyah is deeply reflective of the story of Abraham (Ibrahim)'s concubine Hagar (Hajar) in the Bible. Like Hajar she is Egyptian, and the tradition associates a number of sayings of the prophet to Muhammad that the Muslims should treat the Copts of Egypt well based on the prophet's love of Mariyah; similar hadith traditions exist about Hajar. Like Hajar Mariyah provided a son to the otherwise son-less Muhammad. The fact that Muhammad had so many wives but so few children in an age when it was considered a sign of god's favor for a man to have many children must have caused suspicion to arise--which is likely why the Qur'an verse above specifically mentions Muhammad by name, which is unusual in the Qur'an, and states that he is not the father of any of the men of the believers (which has led to the theory that the verse itself is perhaps an interpolation into the text after the death of the prophet). Like Hajar Mariyah became a devout believer in the message of her prophet, and like Hajar Mariyah aroused the jealousy of the prophet's household due to her youth and her fertility in bearing a son for the prophet. These parallels, as well as the convenient connection of her to some otherwise hard-to-explain verses in the Qur'an, have led some scholars to conclude that Mariyah either never existed or her story was embellished beyond recognition by elements lifted wholesale from the Hajar narrative<ref name="GordonHain2017_4">{{cite book | editor1 = Matthew Gordon | editor2 = Kathryn A. Hain | date = 2017 | title = Concubines and Courtesans: Women and Slavery in Islamic History | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 228| isbn = 978-0-19-062218-3 | oclc = 1014474115 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=F3QzDwAAQBAJ}}</ref>. The constant pairing of Hajar and Mariyah in later Muslim debates about the concept of "umm-walad" in Islamic law underscore the close connection between these two figures.

In addition to the biblical connections to Hajar, the tradition closely associated Muhammad with Ibrahim. In the sirah of Ibn Hisham/Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad is said to remark upon meeting Ibrahim that he is the person that most resembles himself<ref>{{Cite web| title = When Ibrahim (AS) Met Muhammad (SAW) {{!}} About Islam| author = | work = About Islam| date = | access-date = 24 November 2021| url = https://aboutislam.net/multimedia/videos/when-ibrahim-as-met-muhammad-saw/| quote = }}</ref>. In giving birth to "Ibrahim" Mariyah brings the entire circle around full in respect to the connection of her narrative to that of Ibrahim and Hajar. Even her name has antecedents--in the Shahnahmah (the epic poem describing the lives of the pre-Islamic shahs of Iran) the emperor Maurice (582-602 CE) gave his daughter Mariyah in marriage to the Persian shah Khusraw Parviz (590-628 CE). He ended up leaving her, though, for the love of his youth, Shirin. The royal antecedent for Mariyah is fitting, considering how at the time of the compilation of the Islamic narratives of the sirah and the hadith Muslim claimants to the throne of the caliph were claiming royal lineage through their slave mothers and citing the example of Mariyah<ref name="Öhrnberg1984">{{cite book | author = Kaj Öhrnberg | date = 1984 | title = Mariya Al-qibtiyya Unveiled | publisher = Finnish Oriental Society | pages = 298 | oclc = 28522109 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=s_ZSwQEACAAJ}}</ref>. In addition to all of the above, the death of young Ibrahim serves to underscore the status of Muhammad as "khaatim al-nabiyyin" خاتم النبيين or the "seal of the prophets.<ref name="Powers2011_5">{{cite book | author = David Powers | date = 15 March 2011 | title = Muhammad Is Not the Father of Any of Your Men: The Making of the Last Prophet | publisher = University of Pennsylvania Press | pages = 57| isbn = 978-0-8122-2149-7 | oclc = 1037937026 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=OUxWN1VBnBEC}}</ref>" Considering the literary and biblical allusions, it is quite likely that Mariyah in fact either never existed<ref name="Öhrnberg1984_2">{{cite book | author = Kaj Öhrnberg | date = 1984 | title = Mariya Al-qibtiyya Unveiled | publisher = Finnish Oriental Society | pages = 302 | oclc = 28522109 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=s_ZSwQEACAAJ}}</ref> or that the major details of her story were literary embellishments meant to strengthen the connection of Muhammad to Ibrahim, provide a link with Muhammad to the people of Egypt, justify the norms around the "umm-walad" in the Islamic shari'ah, underline the doctrine of the seal of the prophets and reinforce the idea that Muhammad "Is not the father of any of your men."

==References==
<references />

Maria the Copt (Mariyah Al-Qibtiyyah)

2022-02-11T16:58:02Z

Vixen: /* Scandal with Muhammad's Wives and Quranic Revelation */

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[[File:Maria Al Qibtiyya.png|220px|right|thumb|Islamic seal of Mariyah as a "mother of the believers"]]
Mary the Copt (Arabic: مارية القبطية Mariyah Al-Qibtiyah‎), also known as Maria Qubtiyya, was one of the concubines/sex slaves of the prophet Muhammad. Although she is considered an "umm al-mu'minin" أم ألمؤمنين she was never actually the wife of the prophet according to the accepted historical sources by orthodox Sunni Islam.<ref>{{Cite web| title = Maria, the Copt: Prophet Muhammad's Wife or Concubine? {{!}} ICRAA.org| author = | work = ICRAA.org| date = | access-date = 18 November 2021| url = https://www.icraa.org/maria-copt-muhammad-wife-concubine/| quote = }}</ref><ref name="seek_WasM">{{Cite web| title = Was Mariya al-Qibtiyya Ever a Wife of the Prophet Muhammad? - SeekersHub Answers| author = | work = SeekersHub Answers| date = | access-date = 3 March 2016| url = https://seekersguidance.org/answers/general-counsel/was-mariya-al-qibtiyya-ever-a-wife-of-the-prophet-muhammad/| quote = }}</ref> According to the [[sira]] she was sent to Muhammad as a gift from the Christian Patriarch of Egypt. According to the [[hadith]] and the [[sirah]] her beauty and Muhammad's lust for her incited the jealousy of Muhammad's wives, in particular Hafsa and [[Aisha]]. The jealousy they had of her and Muhammad's response was actually the [[Asbab al-Nuzul (Revelational Circumstances of the Quran)|cause]] of the "revelation" of several Qur'an verses according to the tradition. Although she converted to Islam and bore the prophet a son who later died, she remained a slave of the prophet until he died, according to most of the traditional scholars. The traditional sources compare her concubinage to that of Hajar to Ibrahim, and the son that Mariyah bore was named Ibrahim. According to classical Islamic sources, had her son Ibrahim lived, he too would have been a prophet.

==Life Before Muhammad==

Not much is known of Mariyah's life before she was gifted to the prophet as a sex slave. According to the traditional sources, she was the son of a certain Sham'un from the town of Hafn in the region of Ansina. According to the traditional sources, she was gifted to Muhammad with her sister Shirin; but since the shari'ah prohibits a man having concurrent sexual relations with a woman and her sister, Muhammad was forced to choose between the two, and chose Mariyah for her exceeding beauty, while giving her sister to the poet Hassan bin Thabit <ref name="Powers2011_1">{{cite book | author = David Powers | date = 15 March 2011 | title = Muhammad Is Not the Father of Any of Your Men: The Making of the Last Prophet | publisher = University of Pennsylvania Press | pages = 56| isbn = 978-0-8122-2149-7 | oclc = 1037937026 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=OUxWN1VBnBEC}}</ref>.

==Gifting to Muhammad and Conversion to Islam==
According to the traditional sources, after the treaty of Hudaybiya, the prophet Muhammad sent letters to the heads of various Middle Eastern powers inviting them to convert to Islam. One of these letters went to a certain Al-Muqauqis, who is not immediately identifiable with any historical person but seems to be the Melkite Patriarch Cyril of Egypt.<ref name="Brill1954">{{cite book | date = 1954 |Öhrnberg, Kaj| title = The Encyclopaedia of Islam: Khe-Naz. Vol. 5-7 | publisher = Brill | pages = 511| isbn = 978-90-04-08112-3 | oclc = 1000117476 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=d5kQzQEACAAJ}}</ref> He did not, apparently, accept the [[Dawah|call]] to Islam but in response sent Mariyah and her sister Shirin as sex slaves to Muhammad. That a Christian patriarch in Egypt would send Christian girls as sex slaves to this strange, obscure, and previously unknown heretic in Arabia was a question that apparently never arose on any side; there is no confirmation of any part of this story in contemporary Muslim or non-Muslim accounts from the 7th century, and the narrative itself only appears in Muslim sirah, tafsir and hadith literature written over a hundred years after the fact. On the way to Medina, she converted to Islam. When she and her sister arrived in Medina, since Muhammad could not have concurrent sexual relations with both sisters as per Islamic law, Muhammad chose Mariyah for her exceeding beauty. The prophet did not wed her, but rather kept her as his jaariyah (جارية) or surriyah (سرية), that is his sex slave. The prophet was very stricken with her gave her a house in the upper portion of Medina, which purportedly still exists to this day.<ref name="BRILL1990">{{cite book | author = BRILL | date = 1990 |F. Buhl| title = The Encyclopedia of Islam, Volume 6, Fascicules 114a: Preliminary Matter and Binder | publisher = BRILL | pages =575 | isbn = 978-90-04-09358-4 | oclc = 753138826 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=hYlytQEACAAJ}}</ref>

==Scandal with Muhammad's Wives and Quranic Revelation==

According to multiple tafsir and hadith traditions, the first 6 ayyaat (verses) of surat-at-tahriim (surah 66) were revealed to Muhammad in regards to a sexual scandal within his household. According to the traditional reading, the verses admonish Muhammad's wives and command him to fulfill his desires as Allah has allowed to him:

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|66|1|6}}|
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّبِىُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَآ أَحَلَّ ٱللَّهُ لَكَ ۖ تَبْتَغِى مَرْضَاتَ أَزْوَٰجِكَ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
قَدْ فَرَضَ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمْ تَحِلَّةَ أَيْمَٰنِكُمْ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ مَوْلَىٰكُمْ ۖ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَلِيمُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ
وَإِذْ أَسَرَّ ٱلنَّبِىُّ إِلَىٰ بَعْضِ أَزْوَٰجِهِۦ حَدِيثًا فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَتْ بِهِۦ وَأَظْهَرَهُ ٱللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ عَرَّفَ بَعْضَهُۥ وَأَعْرَضَ عَنۢ بَعْضٍ ۖ فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَهَا بِهِۦ قَالَتْ مَنْ أَنۢبَأَكَ هَٰذَا ۖ قَالَ نَبَّأَنِىَ ٱلْعَلِيمُ ٱلْخَبِيرُ
إِن تَتُوبَآ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ فَقَدْ صَغَتْ قُلُوبُكُمَا ۖ وَإِن تَظَٰهَرَا عَلَيْهِ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ هُوَ مَوْلَىٰهُ وَجِبْرِيلُ وَصَٰلِحُ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ ۖ وَٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةُ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ ظَهِيرٌ
عَسَىٰ رَبُّهُۥٓ إِن طَلَّقَكُنَّ أَن يُبْدِلَهُۥٓ أَزْوَٰجًا خَيْرًا مِّنكُنَّ مُسْلِمَٰتٍ مُّؤْمِنَٰتٍ قَٰنِتَٰتٍ تَٰٓئِبَٰتٍ عَٰبِدَٰتٍ سَٰٓئِحَٰتٍ ثَيِّبَٰتٍ وَأَبْكَارًا
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ قُوٓا۟ أَنفُسَكُمْ وَأَهْلِيكُمْ نَارًا وَقُودُهَا ٱلنَّاسُ وَٱلْحِجَارَةُ عَلَيْهَا مَلَٰٓئِكَةٌ غِلَاظٌ شِدَادٌ لَّا يَعْصُونَ ٱللَّهَ مَآ أَمَرَهُمْ وَيَفْعَلُونَ مَا يُؤْمَرُونَ

O Prophet, why do you prohibit [yourself from] what Allah has made lawful for you, seeking the approval of your wives? And Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.
Allah has already ordained for you [Muslims] the dissolution of your oaths. And Allah is your protector, and He is the Knowing, the Wise.
And [remember] when the Prophet confided to one of his wives a statement; and when she informed [another] of it and Allah showed it to him, he made known part of it and ignored a part. And when he informed her about it, she said, "Who told you this?" He said, "I was informed by the Knowing, the Acquainted."
If you two [wives] repent to Allah, [it is best], for your hearts have deviated. But if you cooperate against him - then indeed Allah is his protector, and Gabriel and the righteous of the believers and the angels, moreover, are [his] assistants.
Perhaps his Lord, if he divorced you [all], would substitute for him wives better than you - submitting [to Allah], believing, devoutly obedient, repentant, worshipping, and traveling - [ones] previously married and virgins.
O you who have believed, protect yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is people and stones, over which are [appointed] angels, harsh and severe; they do not disobey Allah in what He commands them but do what they are commanded.}}

The entire scandal of Muhammad sleeping with Maria is explained in the tafsir of al-Jalalayn on surah 66 (at-tahrim) verse 1-3:

{{Quote|Tafsir of Al-Jalalayn on Qur'an 66:1-3|
يا أيّها النَّبِيّ لِمَ تُحَرِّم ما أحَلَّ اللَّه لَك﴾ مِن أمَتك مارِيَة القِبْطِيَّة لَمّا واقَعَها فِي بَيْت حَفْصَة وكانَتْ غائِبَة فَجاءَتْ وشَقَّ عَلَيْها كَوْن ذَلِكَ فِي بَيْتها وعَلى فِراشها حَيْثُ قُلْت: هِيَ حَرام عَلَيَّ ﴿تَبْتَغِي﴾ بِتَحْرِيمِها ﴿مَرْضاة أزْواجك﴾ أيْ رِضاهُنَّ ﴿واللَّه غَفُور رَحِيم﴾ غَفَرَ لَك هَذا التَّحْرِيم﴿
قَدۡ فَرَضَ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمۡ تَحِلَّةَ أَیۡمَـٰنِكُمۡۚ وَٱللَّهُ مَوۡلَىٰكُمۡۖ وَهُوَ ٱلۡعَلِیمُ ٱلۡحَكِیمُ﴾ [التحريم ٢]﴿
قَدْ فَرَضَ اللَّه﴾ شَرَعَ ﴿لَكُمْ تَحِلَّة أيْمانكُمْ﴾ تَحْلِيلها بِالكَفّارَةِ المَذْكُورَة فِي سُورَة "المائِدَة" ومِن الأَيْمان تَحْرِيم الأَمَة وهَلْ كَفَّرَ ﷺ ؟ قالَ مُقاتِل: أعْتَقَ رَقَبَة فِي تَحْرِيم مارِيَة وقالَ الحَسَن: لَمْ يُكَفِّر لِأَنَّهُ ﷺ مَغْفُور لَهُ ﴿واللَّه مَوْلاكُمْ﴾ ناصِركُمْ﴿
وَإِذۡ أَسَرَّ ٱلنَّبِیُّ إِلَىٰ بَعۡضِ أَزۡوَ ٰ⁠جِهِۦ حَدِیثࣰا فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَتۡ بِهِۦ وَأَظۡهَرَهُ ٱللَّهُ عَلَیۡهِ عَرَّفَ بَعۡضَهُۥ وَأَعۡرَضَ عَنۢ بَعۡضࣲۖ فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَهَا بِهِۦ قَالَتۡ مَنۡ أَنۢبَأَكَ هَـٰذَاۖ قَالَ نَبَّأَنِیَ ٱلۡعَلِیمُ ٱلۡخَبِیرُ﴾ [التحريم ٣]﴿
و﴾ اذْكُرْ ﴿إذْ أسَرَّ النَّبِيّ إلى بَعْض أزْواجه﴾ هِيَ حَفْصَة ﴿حَدِيثًا﴾ هُوَ تَحْرِيم مارِيَة وقالَ لَها لا تُفْشِيه ﴿فَلَمّا نَبَّأَتْ بِهِ﴾ عائِشَة ظَنًّا مِنها أنْ لا حَرَج فِي ذَلِكَ ﴿وأَظْهَرَهُ اللَّه﴾ أطْلَعَهُ ﴿عَلَيْهِ﴾ عَلى المُنَبَّأ بِهِ ﴿عَرَّفَ بَعْضه﴾ لِحَفْصَةَ ﴿وأَعْرَضَ عَنْ بَعْض﴾ تَكَرُّمًا مِنهُ ﴿فَلَمّا نَبَّأَها بِهِ قالَتْ مَن أنْبَأَك هَذا قالَ نَبَّأَنِي العَلِيم الخَبِير﴾ أيْ اللَّه

"O Prophet! Why do you prohibit what God has made lawful for you, in terms of your Coptic handmaiden Māriya"— when he lay with her in the house of Hafsa, who had been away, but who upon returning [and finding out] became upset by the fact that this had taken place in her own house and on her own bed — by saying, ‘She is unlawful for me!’, seeking, by making her unlawful [for you], to please your wives? And God is Forgiving, Merciful, having forgiven you this prohibition.
"Allah has already ordained for you [Muslims] the dissolution of your oaths. And Allah is your protector, and He is the Knowing, the Wise."
Verily God has prescribed, He has made lawful, for you [when necessary] the absolution of your oaths, to absolve them by expiation, as mentioned in the sūrat al-Mā’ida [Q. 5:89] and the forbidding of [sexual relations with] a handmaiden counts as an oath, so did the Prophet (s) expiate? Muqātil [b. Sulaymān] said, ‘He set free a slave [in expiation] for his prohibition of Māriya’; whereas al-Hasan [al-Basrī] said, ‘He never expiated, because the Prophet (s) has been forgiven [all errors]’. And God is your Protector, your Helper, and He is the Knower, the Wise.
"And [remember] when the Prophet confided to one of his wives a statement; and when she informed [another] of it and Allah showed it to him, he made known part of it and ignored a part. And when he informed her about it, she said, 'Who told you this?' He said, 'I was informed by the Knowing, the Acquainted.'"
And, mention, when the Prophet confided to one of his wives, namely, Hafsa, a certain matter, which was his prohibition of Māriya, telling her: ‘Do not reveal it!’; but when she divulged it, to ‘Ā’isha, reckoning there to be no blame in [doing] such a thing, and God apprised him, He informed him, of it, of what had been divulged, he announced part of it, to Hafsa, and passed over part, out of graciousness on his part. So when he told her about it, she said, ‘Who told you this?’ He said, ‘I was told by the Knower, the Aware’, namely, God. And, mention, when the Prophet confided to one of his wives, namely, Hafsa, a certain matter, which was his prohibition of Māriya, telling her: ‘Do not reveal it!’; but when she divulged it, to ‘Ā’isha, reckoning there to be no blame in [doing] such a thing, and God apprised him, He informed him, of it, of what had been divulged, he announced part of it, to Hafsa, and passed over part, out of graciousness on his part. So when he told her about it, she said, ‘Who told you this?’ He said, ‘I was told by the Knower, the Aware’, namely, God.}}

As the above tafsir lays out, according to the story preserved over many hadith and tafsir traditions Muhammad was caught in flagrante delicto having sexual relations with Maria in the house of Hafsa. Muhammad told Hafsah he would not do this again and begged her not to tell Aishah, but she disobeyed his wish and told her anyway. Allah sent down Qur'an 66:1 in order to chastise Muhammad for forbidding himself Mariyah. Not satisfied with having allowed Muhammad to have sex with their servant in Hafsah's house, Allah further chastised his wives and threatend them with hell fire for disobeying them:

{{Quote|Tafsir Al-Jalalayn on Qur'an 66:4-5|﴿إنْ تَتُوبا﴾ أيْ حَفْصَة وعائِشَة ﴿إلى اللَّه فَقَدْ صَغَتْ قُلُوبكُما﴾ مالَتْ إلى تَحْرِيم مارِيَة أيْ سَرَّكُما ذَلِكَ مَعَ كَراهَة النَّبِيّ ﷺ لَهُ وذَلِكَ ذَنْب وجَواب الشَّرْط مَحْذُوف أيْ تَقَبُّلًا وأَطْلَقَ قُلُوب عَلى قَلْبَيْنِ ولَمْ يُعَبِّر بِهِ لِاسْتِثْقالِ الجَمْع بَيْن تَثْنِيَتَيْنِ فِيما هُوَ كالكَلِمَةِ الواحِدَة ﴿وإنْ تَظاهَرا﴾ بِإدْغامِ التّاء الثّانِيَة فِي الأَصْل فِي الظّاء وفِي قِراءَة بِدُونِها تَتَعاوَنا ﴿عَلَيْهِ﴾ أيْ النَّبِيّ فِيما يَكْرَههُ ﴿فَإنَّ اللَّه هُوَ﴾ فَصْل ﴿مَوْلاهُ﴾ ناصِره ﴿وجِبْرِيل وصالِح المُؤْمِنِينَ﴾ أبُو بَكْر وعُمَر رَضِيَ اللَّه عَنْهُما مَعْطُوف عَلى مَحَلّ اسْم إنْ فَيَكُونُونَ ناصِرِيهِ ﴿والمَلائِكَة بَعْد ذَلِكَ﴾ بَعْد نَصْر اللَّه والمَذْكُورِينَ ﴿ظَهِير﴾ ظُهَراء أعْوان لَهُ فِي نَصْره عَلَيْكُما
﴿عَسَىٰ رَبُّهُۥۤ إِن طَلَّقَكُنَّ أَن یُبۡدِلَهُۥۤ أَزۡوَ ٰ⁠جًا خَیۡرࣰا مِّنكُنَّ مُسۡلِمَـٰتࣲ مُّؤۡمِنَـٰتࣲ قَـٰنِتَـٰتࣲ تَـٰۤىِٕبَـٰتٍ عَـٰبِدَ ٰ⁠تࣲ سَـٰۤىِٕحَـٰتࣲ ثَیِّبَـٰتࣲ وَأَبۡكَارࣰا﴾ [التحريم ٥]
﴿عَسى رَبّه إنْ طَلَّقَكُنَّ﴾ أيْ طَلَّقَ النَّبِيّ أزْواجه ﴿أنْ يُبَدِّلهُ﴾ بِالتَّشْدِيدِ والتَّخْفِيف ﴿أزْواجًا خَيْرًا مِنكُنَّ﴾ خَبَر عَسى والجُمْلَة جَواب الشَّرْط ولَمْ يَقَع التَّبْدِيل لِعَدَمِ وُقُوع الشَّرْط ﴿مُسْلِمات﴾ مُقِرّات بِالإسْلامِ ﴿مُؤْمِنات﴾ مُخْلِصات ﴿قانِتات﴾ مُطِيعات ﴿تائِبات عابِدات سائِحات﴾ صائِمات أوْ مُهاجِرات

"If you two [wives] repent to Allah, [it is best], for your hearts have deviated. But if you cooperate against him - then indeed Allah is his protector, and Gabriel and the righteous of the believers and the angels, moreover, are [his] assistants."
If the two of you, namely, Hafsa and ‘Ā’isha, repent to God … for your hearts were certainly inclined, towards the prohibition of Māriya, that is to say, your keeping this secret despite [knowing] the Prophet’s (s) dislike of it, which is itself a sin (the response to the conditional [‘if the two of you repent to God’] has been omitted, to be understood as, ‘it will be accepted of both of you’; the use of [the plural] qulūb, ‘hearts’, instead of [the dual] qalbayn, ‘both [your] hearts’, is on account of the cumbersomeness of putting two duals together in what is effectively the same word); and if you support one another (tazzāharā: the original second tā’ [of tatazāharā] has been assimilated with the zā’; a variant reading has it without [this assimilation, tazāharā]) against him, that is, the Prophet, in what he is averse to, then [know that] God, He (huwa, [a pronoun] for separation) is indeed his Protector, His supporter, and Gabriel, and the righteous among the believers, Abū Bakr and ‘Umar, may God be pleased with both of them (wa-Jibrīlu wa-sālihu’l-mu’minīna is a supplement to the [syntactical] locus of the subject of inna [sc. ‘God’]), who will [also] be his supporters, and the angels furthermore, further to the support of God and those mentioned, are his supporters, assistants of his, in supporting him [to prevail] over both of you.
"Perhaps his Lord, if he divorced you [all], would substitute for him wives better than you - submitting [to Allah], believing, devoutly obedient, repentant, worshipping, and traveling - [ones] previously married and virgins."
It may be that, if he divorces you, that is, [if] the Prophet divorces his wives, his Lord will give him in [your] stead (read yubaddilahu or yubdilahu) wives better than you (azwājan khayran minkunna is the predicate of ‘asā, ‘it may be’, the sentence being the response to the conditional) — the replacement [of his wives by God] never took place because the condition [of his divorcing them] never arose — women submissive [to God], affirming Islam, believing, faithful, obedient, penitent, devout, given to fasting — or given to emigrating [in God’s way] — previously married and virgins.}}

Ibn Kathir also recounts how Qur'an 66:1-6 were revealed to Muhammad by Allah because, in response to Hafsa and Aisha's complaints about Muhammad sleeping with Mariyah, Muhammad cut himself off sexually from Mariyah:
{{Quote|Tafsir of ibn Kathir on Qur'an 66:1-3| أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ كَانَتْ لَهُ أَمَةٌ يَطَؤُهَا، فَلَمْ تَزَلْ بِهِ عَائِشَةُ وَحَفْصَةُ حَتَّى حَرَّمها، فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ، عَزَّ وَجَلَّ: ﴿يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَا أَحَلَّ اللَّهُ لَكَ﴾ ؟ إِلَى آخِرِ الْآيَةِ(١) .
وَقَالَ ابْنُ جَرِيرٍ...: أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ أَصَابَ أُمَّ إِبْرَاهِيمَ فِي بَيْتِ بَعْضِ نِسَائِهِ، فَقَالَتْ: أَيْ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، فِي بَيْتِي وَعَلَى فِرَاشِي؟! فَجَعَلَهَا عَلَيْهِ حَرَامًا فَقَالَتْ: أيْ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، كَيْفَ يَحْرُم عَلَيْكَ الْحَلَالُ؟ فَحَلَفَ لَهَا بِاللَّهِ لَا يُصِيبُهَا. فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ: ﴿يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَا أَحَلَّ اللَّهُ لَكَ﴾ ؟

The messenger of Allah, peace and prayer of Allah be upon him, was having sexual relations with a female slave which he had, but Aisha and Hafsa would not cease to bother him about it until he forbid himself to continue it, until Allah praised and glorious brought down a verse saying "O prophet, why do you forbid to yourself what Allah has allowed" until the end of the verse. Ibn Jarir said...The messenger of Allah, peace and prayer of Allah be upon him had sex with Um Ibrahim (Mariyah Al-Qibtiyah) in the house of some of his women. Then she (Hafsah?) said "Hey messenger of Allah! In my house and upon my bed?!" Then the prophet made it forbidden (for him to have sex with her). Then she said "Hey messenger of Allah, how will you forbid what is allowed to you?" Then he swore not to have sex with her. Then Allah revealed "Oh prophet why do you forbid what Allah has made allowable to you?"}}The slave in this case is usually said to be Mariyah. In response, according to the tradition, Allah sent down surat-at-tahreem, the surah of making things off limits. Hafsa was highly aggrieved by this and told [[Aisha]] who also rebuked the prophet for his sexual appetite and cruelty to Hafsa. {{Quote|{{Al Nasai|26|4|36|3411}}|أَخْبَرَنِي إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ يُونُسَ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ، حَرَمِيٌّ - هُوَ لَقَبُهُ - قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبِي قَالَ، حَدَّثَنَا حَمَّادُ بْنُ سَلَمَةَ، عَنْ ثَابِتٍ، عَنْ أَنَسٍ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم كَانَتْ لَهُ أَمَةٌ يَطَؤُهَا فَلَمْ تَزَلْ بِهِ عَائِشَةُ وَحَفْصَةُ حَتَّى حَرَّمَهَا عَلَى نَفْسِهِ فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ ‏{‏ يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَا أَحَلَّ اللَّهُ لَكَ ‏}‏ إِلَى آخِرِ الآيَةِ ‏.‏

It was narrated from Anas, that the Messenger of Allah had a female slave with whom he had intercourse, but 'Aishah and Hafsah would not leave him alone until he said that she was forbidden for him. Then Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, revealed:

"O Prophet! Why do you forbid (for yourself) that which Allah has allowed to you.' until the end of the Verse.}}

As the Encyclopedia of Islam states, other narratives exist around these verses, but considering how bad the original narrative looks for Muhammad it is unlikely that the any of the alternatives were the most primordial narrative; rather, the above narrative would appear to be the oldest, and the others were later fabrications meant to protect the reputation of the prophet<ref name="Brill">{{cite book | title = The Encyclopaedia of Islam: Mahk-Mid | publisher = Brill | pages = 575 | oclc = 399624 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=9lbIwAEACAAJ}}</ref>.

==Scandal of Maria's Accused Fornication With Her Cousin and His Execution==
After the death of [[Khadijah bint Khuwaylid|Khadijah]], Muhammad took about 16 (+/-) wives and concubines for himself, but none of them bore him any children. Maria, though, bore him a baby boy shortly after she was given in concubinage to Muhammad; since none of the prophet's other partners bore him any children, a rumor spread that it was actually Maria's male cousin Mabur, who had also been given as a slave to the prophet, who had impregnated Maria. When Muhammad heard those rumors, he ordered the killing of of Mabur without any court trial, which would have been required by [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)]] in a similar case with any other person, and since this was fornication between two unmarried slaves the penalty should have been 50 lashes, not death.
{{Quote|{{Muslim|50|68}}|Anas reported that a person (a coptic slave whose name was "Mabur" and he was the cousin of Maria al-Qibtiyya) was charged with fornication with the slavegirl of Allah's Messenger (i.e. Maria al-Qibtiyya). Thereupon Allah's Messenger said to 'Ali: Go and strike his neck. 'Ali came to him and he found him in a well making his body cool. 'Ali said to him: Come out, and as he took hold of his hand and brought him out, he found that his sexual organ had been cut. Hadrat 'Ali refrained from striking his neck. He came to Allah's Apostle and said: Allah's Messenger, he has not even the sexual organ with him}}{{Quote|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20211010105134/https://islamweb.net/ar/library/index.php?page=bookcontents&flag=1&bk_no=74&ID=6740 Al-Mustadrak 'ala al-Sahihayn (Arabic: المستدرك على الصحيحين) by Imam Hakim]|2=«عن عايشة قالت : اهديت مارية إلى رسول اللّه ومعها ابن عم لها . قالت : فوقع عليها وقعة فاستمرت حاملا . قالت : فعز لها عند ابن عمها . قالت : فقال اهل الافك والزور : «من حاجته إلى الولد ادعى ولد غيره» وكانت امّه قليلة اللبن فابتاعت له ضائنة لبون فكان يغذى بلبنها فحسن عليه لحمه . قالت عايشة : فدخل به علىّ النبى صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم ذات يوم فقال : «كيف ترين»؟ فقلت : من غذى بلحم الضأن يحسن لحمه . قال : «ولا الشبه» قالت : فحملنى ما يحمل النساء من الغيرة أن قلت : ما أرى شبها . قالت : وبلغ رسول اللّه ما يقول الناس فقال لعلى ... ». Aisha said: " Maria" was presented to the prophet of Islam (as a slave woman) and her cousin (a coptic male slave) was with her. After a while Maria became pregnant. Upon that, the people started slandering that since he [the prophet of Islam] needed child, he related the son of that slave-man to himself. Since Maria, as a mother didn’t have enough breast milk, they fed him by sheep 's milk that’s why he (the son Ibrahim) was fat. 'Aisha said: Once the prophet brought him to me and asked what I thought about him, I replied, "everyone fed by sheep 's milk will get fat." The holy prophet said doesn’t he look like me? '''Aisha said, "I jealously said "No" ." and then the prophet heard of the untrue accusations of people to toward Maria. Upon that the prophet sent Ali to kill her cousin ...'''}}
Yet Muhammad persisted in his jealousy, and the angel Jibreel had to come down and confirm him that Ibrahim was indeed his child:
{{Quote|[http://al-hakawati.net/Books/BookDetails/7518/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D8%B2%D8%A1-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AE%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%B3--%D9%85%D8%A7-%D8%A3%D8%B5%D8%A7%D8%A8-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B3%D9%84%D9%85%D9%8A%D9%86-%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B5%D9%8A%D8%A8%D8%A9-%D8%A8%D9%88%D9%81%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%87-%D8%B5%D9%84%D9%89-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%84%D9%87-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%8A%D9%87-%D9%88%D8%B3%D9%84%D9%85 Al-Badaya wa Al-Nahaya by Ibn Kathir]|عن أنس قال‏:‏ لما ولدت مارية إبراهيم كاد أن يقع في النَّبيّ صلَّى الله عليه وسلَّم منه شيء حتَّى نزل جبريل عليه السلام فقال‏:‏ ‏(‏‏(‏السلام عليك يا أبا إبراهيم‏)‏‏)‏‏. Anas said, when Ibrahim was born to Maria, then Muhammad became doubtful if Ibrahim was really his son or not. Upon that angel Jibrael came to him and said: Peace be upon you, O the Father of Ibrahim (i.e. confirmed to him that Ibrahim was indeed his son).}}
In addition to extra-juridically killing Mabur in contravention of [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)]], the slander against Maria would be considered قذف or slander in an Islamic shari'ah court and theoretically should have been punished with lashing, as was done in the [[Incident of Ifk.|Incident of Ifk]] with A'ishah. The case thus presents interesting examples of the prophet contravening what would later be codified as Islamic law.

==Son She Birthed to the Prophet==

According to the sirah and hadith, Mariyah is an umm-walad أم ولد of the prophet, that is to say she bore him a male child. The son she bore him was named Ibrahim, after the prophet. The child died very young, within a year and a half of his birth, and the prophet is said to have shed tears over his death. According to the traditional sources he died during an eclipse, which combined with the fact that he died only 5 months before his father would put his death on the 10th of Shawwal 10 AH or the 27th of January 623 CE <ref name="Powers2011_2">{{cite book | author = David Powers | date = 15 March 2011 | title = Muhammad Is Not the Father of Any of Your Men: The Making of the Last Prophet | publisher = University of Pennsylvania Press | pages = 56| isbn = 978-0-8122-2149-7 | oclc = 1037937026 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=OUxWN1VBnBEC}}</ref>. Multiple ahadith tell that he would have been a prophet had he grown to adulthood. The hadith also speak of his death being necessary due to Muhammad being خاتم النبيين"khaatam al-nabiyyin'" or the "seal of the prophets<ref name="Powers2011_3">ibid, 57</ref>." This is also in line with the famous Quranic verse surat-al-ahzab (surah 33) verse 40:

{{Quote|{{Quran|33|40}}|
مَّا كَانَ مُحَمَّدٌ أَبَآ أَحَدٍ مِّن رِّجَالِكُمْ وَلَٰكِن رَّسُولَ ٱللَّهِ وَخَاتَمَ ٱلنَّبِيِّۦنَ ۗ وَكَانَ ٱللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَىْءٍ عَلِيمًا

Muhammad is not the father of [any] one of your men, but [he is] the Messenger of Allah and last of the prophets. And ever is Allah, of all things, Knowing.}}

As such, according to this verse, Ibrahim could not have lived since Muhammad is not the father of any of the men of the believers.

==Influence on Islamic Law and Society==

The use of Mariyah sexually by the prophet, like every aspect of the prophet's life, provides an example for later Muslims and the religious justification for the sexual exploitation of slave women by Muslim men <ref name="GordonHain2017_1">{{cite book | editor1 = Matthew Gordon | editor2 = Kathryn A. Hain | date = 2017 | title = Concubines and Courtesans: Women and Slavery in Islamic History | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 327| isbn = 978-0-19-062218-3 | oclc = 1014474115 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=F3QzDwAAQBAJ}}</ref>. Her sexual exploitation by Muhammad was in continuity with the practice of the pagan Arabs and was continued by later Islamic empires and movements<ref name="Bosworth1989">{{cite book | author = Clifford Edmund Bosworth | date = 1 January 1989 | title = The Encyclopedia of Islam, Volume 6, Fascicules 107-108 | publisher = Brill Archive | pages = 575| isbn = 978-90-04-09082-8 | oclc = 60063572 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=tPsUAAAAIAAJ}}</ref>, up to the very current day with the ISIS terrorist organization taking Yazidi girls in Iraq as sex slaves on the prophetic model. Since Mariyah also bore Muhammad a son, and was this an umm-walad أم ولد or mother of a boy for the prophet, her story was integral to later Islamic discourse about the place of the sons of slave women in Islamic societies (although the classical jurists of the 4 traditional Sunni madhabs do not usually invoke her example as a "proof text")<ref name="GordonHain2017_2">{{cite book | editor1 = Matthew Gordon | editor2 = Kathryn A. Hain | date = 2017 | title = Concubines and Courtesans: Women and Slavery in Islamic History | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 225| isbn = 978-0-19-062218-3 | oclc = 1014474115 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=F3QzDwAAQBAJ}}</ref>. Since the raiding for sexual slaves formed a large part of the wealth-building enterprise undertaken by later Islamic caliphates and empires such as the Umayyads, Abbasids and many others the number of children born to slave women quickly proliferated in Islamic society. There were so many children of concubines in Islamic society that several contenders for the throne of the caliphate ended up being the children of slave women. The rightly guided-caliphs and the early Umayyads were all free-born Arab men, but in 740 Zayd bin Ali made an unsuccessful bid for the caliphate, and he was the mother of a slave women. His opponent used his lineage as the son of a sex slave to mock and belittle him, claiming that his birth to an un-free woman disqualified him from the throne<ref name="GordonHain2017">ibid, 238</ref>. Yet by 744, Yazid III became the first caliph born of a slave mother; thereafter, the next 3 Umayyad caliphs and most of the Abbasids caliphs were the sons of concubines. Zayd bin Ali in his arguments for why the son of a slave woman such as himself should be eligible for caliph made great reference to Isma'il and Hajar. Hajar's biography bears many resemblances to Mariyah's; both were from Egypt, both were the concubines of prophets, both suffered the jealousy of the rightful wife(wives) of the prophet, both bore sons for the prophet, with the name of the son of Mariyah being the name of the husband of Hajar. Later caliphs and other sons of concubines would invoke the legacy of Mariyah and her son Ibrahim, who might have been another prophet, to justify their place in Islamic society<ref>Ibid, 230</ref>.

As Mariyah was an umm-walad of the prophet, and as the concept took on greater importance in Islamic society as the children of concubines, the example of Mariyah was used in Islamic discourse to discuss the rights, privileges and duties of an umm-walad and her offspring in Islamic societies. Although the umm-walad is elevated above the rank of the normal slave, she is still a slave. The husband has the right to avail himself of her sexually whenever he wants<ref name="Scribner1982">{{cite book | date = 1982 | title = Dictionary of the Middle Ages: Cabala-Crimea. Vol. 3 | publisher = Scribner | pages = 527| isbn = 978-0-684-16760-2 | oclc = 929425948 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=FSN2tAEACAAJ}}</ref>, as Muhammad continued to with Mariyah (and as Allah instructed him to do). There was some discussion in Islamic sources such as ibn Kathir as to whether the umm-walad must be freed <ref name="BosworthDonzel1998_1">{{cite book | editor1 = C. E. Bosworth | editor2 = E. Van Donzel | author1 = Hamilton Alexander Rosskeen Gibb | author2 = International Union of Academies | date = 1998 | title = The Encyclopaedia of Islam: Volume X Fascicule 163-164 | publisher = BRILL | pages = 857| isbn = 978-90-04-11056-4 | oclc = 164878157 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Lc8OOQAACAAJ}}</ref>. There were ahadith to the affect that Muhammad freed Mariyah after she bore him Ibrahim; the conclusion of Islamic law is that this may or may not have happened but if it did this was done out of Muhammad's special love for Mariyah and is not applicable to slave women who bear children in general. The son of an umm-walad, though, was taken to be a free man, as Ibrahim would certainly have been free had he survived to adulthood<ref name="BosworthDonzel1998_2">ibid, 857</ref>. The umm-walad can also not be sold from her master or separated from her son. The prophetic example of Muhammad and Mariyah provides an example of the umm-walad in the biography of the prophet himself, and the exalted status of their son would prove a powerful rhetorical tool in the disputes over the places of the offspring of umm-walads in Islamic societies.

==Historicity==

As noted above, the story of Mariyah is deeply reflective of the story of Abraham (Ibrahim)'s concubine Hagar (Hajar) in the Bible. Like Hajar she is Egyptian, and the tradition associates a number of sayings of the prophet to Muhammad that the Muslims should treat the Copts of Egypt well based on the prophet's love of Mariyah; similar hadith traditions exist about Hajar. Like Hajar Mariyah provided a son to the otherwise son-less Muhammad. The fact that Muhammad had so many wives but so few children in an age when it was considered a sign of god's favor for a man to have many children must have caused suspicion to arise--which is likely why the Qur'an verse above specifically mentions Muhammad by name, which is unusual in the Qur'an, and states that he is not the father of any of the men of the believers (which has led to the theory that the verse itself is perhaps an interpolation into the text after the death of the prophet). Like Hajar Mariyah became a devout believer in the message of her prophet, and like Hajar Mariyah aroused the jealousy of the prophet's household due to her youth and her fertility in bearing a son for the prophet. These parallels, as well as the convenient connection of her to some otherwise hard-to-explain verses in the Qur'an, have led some scholars to conclude that Mariyah either never existed or her story was embellished beyond recognition by elements lifted wholesale from the Hajar narrative<ref name="GordonHain2017_4">{{cite book | editor1 = Matthew Gordon | editor2 = Kathryn A. Hain | date = 2017 | title = Concubines and Courtesans: Women and Slavery in Islamic History | publisher = Oxford University Press | pages = 228| isbn = 978-0-19-062218-3 | oclc = 1014474115 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=F3QzDwAAQBAJ}}</ref>. The constant pairing of Hajar and Mariyah in later Muslim debates about the concept of "umm-walad" in Islamic law underscore the close connection between these two figures.

In addition to the biblical connections to Hajar, the tradition closely associated Muhammad with Ibrahim. In the sirah of Ibn Hisham/Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad is said to remark upon meeting Ibrahim that he is the person that most resembles himself<ref>{{Cite web| title = When Ibrahim (AS) Met Muhammad (SAW) {{!}} About Islam| author = | work = About Islam| date = | access-date = 24 November 2021| url = https://aboutislam.net/multimedia/videos/when-ibrahim-as-met-muhammad-saw/| quote = }}</ref>. In giving birth to "Ibrahim" Mariyah brings the entire circle around full in respect to the connection of her narrative to that of Ibrahim and Hajar. Even her name has antecedents--in the Shahnahmah (the epic poem describing the lives of the pre-Islamic shahs of Iran) the emperor Maurice (582-602 CE) gave his daughter Mariyah in marriage to the Persian shah Khusraw Parviz (590-628 CE). He ended up leaving her, though, for the love of his youth, Shirin. The royal antecedent for Mariyah is fitting, considering how at the time of the compilation of the Islamic narratives of the sirah and the hadith Muslim claimants to the throne of the caliph were claiming royal lineage through their slave mothers and citing the example of Mariyah<ref name="Öhrnberg1984">{{cite book | author = Kaj Öhrnberg | date = 1984 | title = Mariya Al-qibtiyya Unveiled | publisher = Finnish Oriental Society | pages = 298 | oclc = 28522109 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=s_ZSwQEACAAJ}}</ref>. In addition to all of the above, the death of young Ibrahim serves to underscore the status of Muhammad as "khaatim al-nabiyyin" خاتم النبيين or the "seal of the prophets.<ref name="Powers2011_5">{{cite book | author = David Powers | date = 15 March 2011 | title = Muhammad Is Not the Father of Any of Your Men: The Making of the Last Prophet | publisher = University of Pennsylvania Press | pages = 57| isbn = 978-0-8122-2149-7 | oclc = 1037937026 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=OUxWN1VBnBEC}}</ref>" Considering the literary and biblical allusions, it is quite likely that Mariyah in fact either never existed<ref name="Öhrnberg1984_2">{{cite book | author = Kaj Öhrnberg | date = 1984 | title = Mariya Al-qibtiyya Unveiled | publisher = Finnish Oriental Society | pages = 302 | oclc = 28522109 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=s_ZSwQEACAAJ}}</ref> or that the major details of her story were literary embellishments meant to strengthen the connection of Muhammad to Ibrahim, provide a link with Muhammad to the people of Egypt, justify the norms around the "umm-walad" in the Islamic shari'ah, underline the doctrine of the seal of the prophets and reinforce the idea that Muhammad "Is not the father of any of your men."

==References==
<references />

Aisha's Age

2022-02-01T07:16:26Z

Vixen: /* Age of Asma */

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[[File:Muhammad and Aisha freeing chief's daughter.jpg|thumb|332x332px|Mohammed and his wife Aisha freeing the daughter of a tribal chief. From the Siyer-i Nebi]]
'''Aisha''' (''‘Ā’ishah'', c. 613/614 –c. 678)<ref name="Siddiqui">Al-Nasa'i 1997, p. 108</ref> or عائشة, (also transliterated as '''A'ishah''', '''Aisyah''', '''Ayesha''', '''A'isha''', '''Aishat''', or '''Aishah''') was married to [[Muhammad]] at the age of 6 or 7, and the marriage was consummated by Muhammad, then 53, at the age of 9 or 10 according to numerous [[sahih]] [[Hadith|hadiths]].<ref>Narrated Hisham's father:
Khadija died three years before the Prophet (ﷺ) departed to Medina. He stayed there for two years or so and then he married `Aisha when she was a girl of six years of age, and he consumed that marriage when she was nine years old. {{Bukhari|5|58|236}}</ref><ref>Narrated 'Aisha: that the Prophet married her when she was six years old and he consummated his marriage when she was nine years old, and then she remained with him for nine years (i.e., till his death). {{Bukhari|7|62|64}}</ref><ref>'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) married me when I was six years old, and I was admitted to his house when I was nine years old. {{Muslim|8|3310}}</ref><ref>Aisha said, "The Apostle of Allah married me when I was seven years old." (The narrator Sulaiman said: "Or six years.") {{Abudawud||2116|hasan}}</ref><ref>Most sources suggest age at consummation as nine, and one that it may have been age 10; See: Denise Spellberg (1996), ''Politics, Gender, and the Islamic Past: The Legacy of 'A'isha Bint Abi Bakr'', Columbia University Press, <nowiki>ISBN 978-0231079990</nowiki>, pp. 39–40;</ref> Due to concerns about [[:Category:Child Marriage|child marriage]] this topic is of heavy interest in the [[Apologists|apologetic]] literature and public discourse.

Marriage at a young age was not unheard of in Arabia at the time, and Aisha's marriage to Muhammad may have had a political connotation, as her father Abu Baker was an influential man in the community.<ref>Afsaruddin, Asma (2014). "ʿĀʾisha bt. Abī Bakr". In Fleet, Kate; Krämer, Gudrun; Matringe, Denis; Nawas, John; Rowson, Everett. ''[http://referenceworks.brillonline.com/browse/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2 Encyclopaedia of Islam]'' (3 ed.). Brill Online. Retrieved 2015-01-11</ref> Abu Bakr, on his part, may have sought to further the bond of kinship between Muhammad and himself by joining their families together in marriage via Aisha. Egyptian-American Islamic scholar, Leila Ahmed, notes that Aisha's betrothal and marriage to Muhammad are presented as ordinary in Islamic literature, and may indicate that it was not unusual for children to be married to their elders in that era.<ref>Ahmed, Leila (1992). ''Women and Gender in Islam: Historical Roots of a Modern Debate''. Yale University Press. p. 51-54. <nowiki>ISBN 978-0300055832</nowiki>.</ref>

==Authenticity==
In the Quran, a rule concerning marriage to those who have not yet reached menstruation appears in Chapter 65 "Al Talaq" verse 4.<ref>And those who no longer expect menstruation among your women - if you doubt, then their period is three months, and [also for] those who have not menstruated. And for those who are pregnant, their term is until they give birth. And whoever fears Allah - He will make for him of his matter ease. {{Quran|65|4}}</ref> The [[tafsir]] (exegesis) of al-Jalalayn is one of the most respected commentaries on the Quran.<ref>Tafsir al-Jalalayn is one of the most significant tafsirs for the study of the Qur’an. Composed by the two “Jalals” -- Jalal al-Din al-Mahalli (d. 864 ah / 1459 ce) and his pupil Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti (d. 911 ah / 1505 ce), Tafsir al-Jalalayn is generally regarded as one of the most easily accessible works of Qur’anic exegesis because of its simple style and one volume length. For the first time ever Tafsir al-Jalalayn is competently translated into an unabridged highly accurate and readable annotated English translation by Doctor. Feras Hamza.

[https://www.altafsir.com/Al-Jalalayn.asp altafsir.com]</ref> In the Jalalayn exegesis for this verse it describes "those you have yet to menstruate" as "those who have not yet menstruated, because of their young age, their [waiting] period shall [also] be three months."<ref>And as for those of your women who read allā’ī or allā’i in both instances no longer expect to menstruate if you have any doubts about their waiting period their prescribed waiting period shall be three months and also for those who have not yet menstruated because of their young age their period shall also be three months — both cases apply to other than those whose spouses have died; for these latter their period is prescribed in the verse they shall wait by themselves for four months and ten days Q. 2234. And those who are pregnant their term the conclusion of their prescribed waiting period if divorced or if their spouses be dead shall be when they deliver. And whoever fears God He will make matters ease for him in this world and in the Hereafter.

[https://altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=1&tTafsirNo=74&tSoraNo=65&tAyahNo=4&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=2 Tafsir al-Jalalayn, trans. Feras Hamza Quran 65:4]</ref>

In the modern era, Aisha's age at marriage has been a source of controversy and debate. Some Muslims have attempted to revise the previously-accepted timeline of her life.<ref name=":3">Ali, Kecia. ''Sexual Ethics and Islam: Feminist Reflections on Qur'an, Hadith and Jurisprudence''. OneWorld. p. 173-186. <nowiki>ISBN 978-1780743813</nowiki>.</ref> All biographical information on Muhammad and his companions was first recorded over a century after his death,<ref>Kadri, Sadakat (2012). ''Heaven on Earth''. Farrar, Straus, Giroux. p. 30.</ref> but the hadith and [[scripture]] provide records of early Islam through allegedly "unbroken chain of witnesses". Various hadiths stating that Aisha was either nine or ten at the time of her consummation come from collections with sahih status, meaning they are regarded as reputable by the majority of Muslims. Some other traditional sources also mention Aisha's age. The ''sira'' of [[Ibn Ishaq]] edited by Ibn Hisham states that she was nine or ten years old at the consummation. The historian al-Tabari also states that she was nine.<ref>When the Prophet married Aisha she very young and not yet ready for consummation.

[https://wikiislam.net/wiki/The_History_of_al-Tabari Al-Tabari, Vol. 9, p. 128]</ref><ref name=":2">According to Abd al-Hamid b. Bayan al-Sukkari - Muhammad b. Yazid - Ismai'il (that is Ibn Abi Khalid) - Abd al-Rahman b. Abi al- Dahhak - a man from Quraysh - Abd al-Rahman b. Muhammad: "Abd Allah b. Safwan together with another person came to Aishah and Aishah said (to the latter), "O so and so, have you heard what Hafsah has been saying?" He said, "Yes, o Mother of the Faithful." Abd Allah b. Safwan asked her, "What is that?" She replied, "There are nine special features in me that have not been in any woman, except for what God bestowed on Maryam bt. Imran. By God, I do not say this to exalt myself over any of my companions." "What are these?" he asked. She replied, "The angel brought down my likeness; '''the Messenger of God married me when I was seven; my marriage was consummated when I was nine; he married me when I was a virgin,'''no other man having shared me with him; inspiration came to him when he and I were in a single blanket; I was one of the dearest people to him, a verse of the Qur’an was revealed concerning me when the community was almost destroyed; I saw Gabriel when none of his other wives saw him; and he was taken (that is, died) in his house when there was nobody with him but the angel and myself."
According to Abu Ja‘far (Al-Tabari): The Messenger of God married her, so it is said, in Shawwal, and consummated his marriage to her in a later year, also in Shawwal.
Al-Tabari, Vol. 7, pp. 6-7</ref>

==Association with child marriage==
[[File:Child Marriage.jpg|thumb|Child bride with her infant daughter]]
No age limits have been fixed by Islam for marriage according to Persian Professor at the University of Cambridge, Reuben Levy, and "quite young children may be legally married".<ref name=":5">Levy p.106</ref> The girl may not live with the husband however until she is fit for marital sexual relations.<ref name=":5" /> The [[Jurisprudence|Hanafi]] school of jurisprudence of Islamic ''fiqh'' maintains that a wife must not be taken to her husband's house until she reaches the condition of fitness for sexual relations.

In Islamic legal terminology, ''Baligh'' refers to a person who has reached maturity, puberty or adulthood and has full responsibility under Islamic law. Legal theorists assign different ages and criteria for reaching this state for both males and females.<ref>John Esposito, "The Oxford Dictionary of Islam", p.35, Oxford University Press 2004</ref> In marriage ''baligh'' is related to the Arabic legal expression, ''hatta tutiqa'l-rijal'', which means that the wedding may not take place until the girl is physically fit to engage in sexual intercourse. Some Hanafi scholars hold the opinion that sexual intercourse may take place before puberty, as long as it's not injurious to one's health.<ref>Public » Askimam"

[http://askimam.org/ ''www.askimam.org''.]</ref> In comparison, ''baligh'' or ''balaghat'' concerns the reaching of sexual maturity which becomes manifest by the menses. The age related to these two concepts can, but need not necessarily, coincide. Only after a separate condition called ''rushd'', or intellectual maturity to handle one's own property, is reached can a girl receive her bridewealth.<ref>Masud, M et. al. "Islamic Legal Interpretation, Muftis and Their Fatwas" p.136, Harvard University Press, 1996</ref>
==Relevant quotations==

Much further hadith evidence is collated in [https://wikiislam.net/wiki/Qur%27an,_Hadith_and_Scholars:Aisha#Aisha.27s_Age_at_Consummation_and_Marriage Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars: Aisha].

{{Quote|1={{Quran|65|4}}|2=And those who no longer expect menstruation among your women - if you doubt, then their period is three months, '''and [also for] those who have not menstruated.''' And for those who are pregnant, their term is until they give birth. And whoever fears Allah - He will make for him of his matter ease.}}
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|5|58|236}}|Narrated Hisham's father: Khadija died three years before the Prophet departed to Medina. He stayed there for two years or so and then '''he married 'Aisha when she was a girl of six years of age, and he consumed that marriage when she was nine years old.'''}}
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|62|64}}|Narrated 'Aisha: that '''the Prophet married her when she was six years old and he consummated his marriage when she was nine years old''', and then she remained with him for nine years (i.e., till his death).}}
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|8|73|151}}|Narrated 'Aisha: I used to play with the dolls in the presence of the Prophet, and my girl friends also used to play with me. When Allah's Apostle used to enter (my dwelling place) they used to hide themselves, but the Prophet would call them to join and play with me. (The playing with the dolls and similar images is forbidden, but it was allowed for 'Aisha at that time, as she was a little girl, not yet reached the age of puberty.) (Fateh-al-Bari page 143, Vol.13)}}
{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3310}}|'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: '''Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) married me when I was six years old, and I was admitted to his house when I was nine years old.''''}}
{{Quote|{{Muslim|8|3311}}|'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) married her when she was seven years old, and he was taken to his house as a bride when she was nine, ''and her dolls were with her;'' and when he (the Holy Prophet) died she was eighteen years old.}}
{{Quote|{{Abu Dawud||2116|hasan}}|Aisha said, "The Apostle of Allah married me when I was seven years old." (The narrator Sulaiman said: "Or six years."). "He had intercourse with me when I was 9 years old.}}
{{Quote|{{Tabari|7|pp. 6-7}}|According to Abd al-Hamid b. Bayan al-Sukkari - Muhammad b. Yazid - Ismai'il (that is Ibn Abi Khalid) - Abd al-Rahman b. Abi al- Dahhak - a man from Quraysh - Abd al-Rahman b. Muhammad: "Abd Allah b. Safwan together with another person came to Aishah and Aishah said (to the latter), "O so and so, have you heard what Hafsah has been saying?" He said, "Yes, o Mother of the Faithful." Abd Allah b. Safwan asked her, "What is that?" She replied, "There are nine special features in me that have not been in any woman, except for what God bestowed on Maryam bt. Imran. By God, I do not say this to exalt myself over any of my companions." "What are these?" he asked. She replied, "The angel brought down my likeness; '''the Messenger of God married me when I was seven; my marriage was consummated when I was nine; he married me when I was a virgin,'''no other man having shared me with him; inspiration came to him when he and I were in a single blanket; I was one of the dearest people to him, a verse of the Qur’an was revealed concerning me when the community was almost destroyed; I saw Gabriel when none of his other wives saw him; and he was taken (that is, died) in his house when there was nobody with him but the angel and myself." According to Abu Ja‘far (Al-Tabari): The Messenger of God married her, so it is said, in Shawwal, and consummated his marriage to her in a later year, also in Shawwal.}}

==Apologetic history==

The majority of scholars today agree that Aisha was 9 when her marriage to Prophet Muhammad was consummated. This has been the mainstream Muslim understanding throughout Islam's 1,400 year history.<ref>Hashmi, Tariq Mahmood (2 April 2015). [http://www.al-mawrid.org/index.php/questions/view/role-importance-and-authenticity-of-the-hadith "Role, Importance And Authenticity Of The Hadith"]. ''Mawrid.org''. Retrieved 28 March 2018.</ref> The first recorded objection raised to Aisha's age was by Maulana Muhammad Ali who lived from 1874 to 1951.<ref name="Zahid Aziz" /> However, he is not considered credible to the [[Sunni]] sect since he belonged to the [[Ahmadiyya]] sect whose beliefs drastically differ from mainstream Islam. The Ahmadiyya and their writings are also heavily focused on missionary work.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8711026.stm Who are the Ahmadi? - BBC News]</ref>

Adding to Ali's objections, there is Habib Ur Rahman Siddiqui Kandhalvi (1924-1991) who in his Urdu booklet, "Tehqiq e umar e Siddiqah e Ka'inat" (English trans. 1997), laments that he is "tired of defending this tradition" that is "laughed" at and "ridiculed" by English-educated individuals he meets in Karachi who claim it is against "sagacity and prudence" and "preferred English society to Islam over this", and he readily admits his "aim is to produce an answer to the enemies of Islam who spatter mud at the pious body of the Generous Prophet".<ref>All Habib Ur Rahman Siddiqui Kandhalvi quotations are taken from the Preface of the 2007 English translation of his Urdu booklet, "''Tehqiq e umar e Siddiqah e Ka'inat''", translated by Nigar Erfaney and published by Al-Rahman Publishing Trust under the title, "''Age of Aisha (The Truthful Women, May Allah Send His Blessings)''"</ref> A posthumous [[fatwa]] was issued against him in November 2004, labelling him a "Munkir-e-Hadith" (hadith rejector) and a "Kafir" (infidel) on the basis of being a rejector of hadith.<ref>The original fatwa and the English translation branding Habib Ur Rahman Siddiqui Kandhalvi's beliefs outside of Islam, thus making him a 'kafir', can be viewed here: [{{Reference archive|1=http://marifah.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=3036|2=2012-09-24}} Fatwa's on hadith rejectors?]</ref>

Deriving arguments from both Habib Ur Rahman and Muhammad Ali, [[Gibril Haddad|Moiz Amjad]] (who refers to himself as "The Learner") is the most recent reference to online apologetic. Moiz admits to having lifted his arguments from them, summarizing and presenting them in response to a Muslim asking him how he can respond to critical Christians.<ref name="Amjad">See: "[http://www.islamawareness.net/FAQ/what_was_ayesha.html What was Ayesha's (ra) Age at the Time of Her Marriage?]", by Moiz Amjad.</ref> With Moiz's restructured response the arguments originating from the Ahmadiyya in the 1920s and 1930s finally achieved a little popularity among a few orthodox Muslims. However, this popularity seems to be strictly limited to articles or arguments on the Internet and not between contemporary sheikhs and scholars.

In July 2005, [[Gibril Haddad|Shaykh Dr. Gibril Haddad]] responded to Moiz Amjad's polemics with, "Our Mother A'isha's Age At The Time Of Her Marriage to The Prophet."<ref name="Haddad">Shaykh Gibril F Haddad - [http://qa.sunnipath.com/issue_view.asp?HD=7&ID=4604&CATE=1 Our Mother A'isha's Age At The Time Of Her Marriage to The Prophet] - Sunni Path, Question ID:4604, July 3, 2005 [http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fqa.sunnipath.com%2Fissue_view.asp%3FHD%3D7%26ID%3D4604%26CATE%3D1&date=2011-05-05 archive 1] [http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/showthread.php?2925-Our-Mother-Aisha-s-Age-at-the-Time-of-Her-Marriage-to-the-Prophet-saw&date=2011-05-04 archive 2]</ref> Shaykh Haddad was listed amongst the inaugural "500 most influential Muslims in the world"<ref name="The 500">Edited by Prof. John Esposito and Prof. Ibrahim Kalin - [http://thebook.org/books_pdf/500Muslims_2009.pdf The 500 Most Influential Muslims in the World (P. 94)] - The royal islamic strategic studies centre, 2009</ref> and is considered a Muslim scholar and muhaddith (hadith expert).<ref name="The 500" /> Haddad included many facts that are easily verifiable for those who have access to the hadith and sira literature. For example, his analysis highlighted the fact that many of the arguments were based solely on faulty assumptions taken from hadiths completely unrelated to Aisha's age, or were misrepresenting the sources that were being cited (i.e. hadiths actually in support the idea that Aisha was 9). His reply has not yet been answered by Moiz Amjad.

However, Haddad's response did not stop Amjad's arguments from being rehashed by apologists on the Internet with the same missionary and apologetic focus. Other transmitters of these arguments include, but are not limited to; T.O Shavanas,<ref>T.O Shanavas - [http://www.irfi.org/articles/articles_151_200/ayesha_age_the_myth_of__a_prover.htm AYESHA’s AGE: THE MYTH OF A PROVERBIAL WEDDING EXPOSED] - Islamic Research Foundation International, Inc.</ref> “Imam” Chaudhry (word-for-word plagiarism of Amjad's work),<ref>Imam Chaudhry - [{{Reference archive|1=http://islamicsupremecouncil.com/ayesha.htm|2=2011-05-01}} What Was The Age of Ummul Mo'mineen Ayesha (May Allah be pleased with her) When She Married To Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him)?] - Islamic Supreme Council of Canada</ref> Zahid Aziz,<ref name="Zahid Aziz">Zahid Aziz - [http://www.muslim.org/islam/aisha-age.php Age of Aisha (ra) at time of marriage] - Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha`at Islam Lahore Inc. U.S.A.</ref> Nilofar Ahmed,<ref>Nilofar Ahmed - [{{Reference archive|1=http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/17/of-aishas-age-at-marriage.html|2=2012-02-17}} Of Aisha’s age at marriage] - Dawn, February 17, 2012</ref> and David Liepert.<ref>Dr. David Liepert - [{{Reference archive|1=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-david-liepert/islamic-pedophelia_b_814332.html|2=2012-09-21}} Rejecting the Myth of Sanctioned Child Marriage in Islam] - The Huffington Post, January 29, 2011</ref>

==Modern revisionary perspectives==

Some Muslim authors have eschewed the traditionally-accepted ahadith and attempted to calculate Aisha's age based on details found in other ahadith and some biographies, though Kecia Ali labels these attempts as "revisionist".<ref name=":3" />

===Not enough narrators===

This claim objects that there is only one narrator, Hisham ibn `urwah, and that although it is a sahih (authentic hadith) he alone is not enough to consider the hadith reliable. However, many of the chains of narration for these hadiths<ref>[[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Aisha#Aisha.27s Age at Consummation and Marriage|Quran, Hadith, and Scholars on Aisha's Age at Consummation and Marriage]]</ref> do not involve Hisham (for example, Sahih Muslim 8:3311<ref>'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) married her when she was seven years old, and he was taken to his house as a bride when she was nine, and her dolls were with her; and when he (the Holy Prophet) died she was eighteen years old. {{Muslim|8|3311}}</ref>), and in any case, there is no requirement in Islam for multiple narrations. Even a single sahih hadith is sufficient to establish Islamic laws and practices.

Shaykh Haddad also refutes the claim that most of these narrations are reported only by Hisham: "Try more than eleven authorities among the Tabi`in that reported it directly from `A'isha, not counting the other major Companions that reported the same, nor other major Successors that reported it from other than `A'isha."<ref name="Haddad" />

Details of some of these other chains of narration that do not include Hisham ibn 'Urwah ibn az-Zubayr can be found in the first half of an [https://islamqa.info/en/124483 article by the IslamQA] website.

===Locality of narrations===

A related claim is that Hisham's hadith is not narrated by Medinans, despite him living there for most of his life. However, Shaykh Haddad responds with examples of Medinans reporting the narration:

{{Quote|<ref name="Haddad" />|Al-Zuhri also reports it from `Urwa, from `A'isha; so does `Abd Allah ibn Dhakwan, both major Madanis. So is the Tabi`i Yahya al-Lakhmi who reports it from her in the Musnad and in Ibn Sa`d's Tabaqat. So is Abu Ishaq Sa`d ibn Ibrahim who reports it from Imam al-Qasim ibn Muhammad, one of the Seven Imams of Madina, from `A'isha. All the narratives of this event have been reported. In addition to the above four Madinese Tabi`in narrators, Sufyan ibn `Uyayna from Khurasan and `Abd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Yahya from Tabarayya in Palestine both report it.}}

===Revelation time of surah al-Qamar===

This arguments uses the Sahih Bukhari hadith in which Aisha explains she was a young girl when Surah (chapter) al-Qamar of the Quran was revealed.<ref>Narrated Yusuf bin Mahik:
I was in the house of `Aisha, the mother of the Believers. She said, "This revelation: "Nay, but the Hour is their appointed time (for their full recompense); and the Hour will be more previous and most bitter." (54.46) was revealed to Muhammad at Mecca while I was a playfull little girl."

{{Bukhari|6|60|399}}</ref> With the rough estimation that this chapter was revealed nine years before hijrah (c. 622) some conclude that this makes Aisha older than other hadiths claim.

However, the precise date of the revelation of Surah al-Qamar is unknown. Ibn Hajar, Maududi, and other traditionalists said it was revealed 5 years before Hijrah (BH).<ref>The incident of the ''shaqq-al-Qamar'' (splitting of the moon) that has been mentioned in it, determines its period of revelation precisely. The traditionists and commentators are agreed that this incident took place at Mina in Makkah about five years before the Holy Prophet's ''hijrah'' to Madinah.
Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi - Tafhim al-Qur'an - The Meaning of the Qur'an</ref> Zahid Aziz said it was revealed before 6 BH.<ref>''The Moon,''the fifty-fourth chapter, was revealed, she was a girl playing about and remembered certain verses then revealed. Now the fifty-fourth chapter was undoubtedly revealed before the sixth year of the Call.
Zahid Aziz</ref> Alternatively there is no reputable source that claims this chapter came about 9 BH.

Shaykh Haddad confirms this as he argues that the traditional estimate of the revelation of Surah al-Qamar is consistent with Aisha’s age being nine years.

{{Quote|<ref name="Haddad" />|The hadith Masters, Sira historians, and Qur'anic commentators agree that the splitting of the moon took place about five years before the Holy Prophet's (upon him blessings and peace) Hijra to Madina. Thus it is confirmed that our Mother `Aisha was born between seven and eight years before the Hijra and the words that she was a jariya or little girl five years before the Hijra match the fact that her age at the time Surat al-Qamar was revealed was around 2 or 3. A two year old is not an infant. A two year old is able to run around, which is what jariya means. As for "the comments of the experts" they concur on 6 or 7 as the age of marriage and 9 as the age of cohabitation.}}

===Battle of Badr and Uhud===

This apologetic argument aims to make the claim that Aisha was at the Battles of Badr and Uhud, and that since standard practice at the time disallowed anyone under 15 from joining the battlefield, she could not have been younger than this.

However, there are no sources that can be found mentioning Aisha's participation in the Battle of Badr. A few hadiths highlight Aisha's involvement in the Battle of Uhud, but only to the extent that she was not involved in the battlefield and merely carrying water skins to the combatants.<ref>Narrated Anas: On the day (of the battle) of Uhad when (some) people retreated and left the Prophet, I saw 'Aisha bint Abu Bakr and Um Sulaim, with their robes tucked up so that the bangles around their ankles were visible hurrying with their water skins (in another narration it is said, "carrying the water skins on their backs"). Then they would pour the water in the mouths of the people, and return to fill the water skins again and came back again to pour water in the mouths of the people. {{Bukhari|4|52|131}}</ref> Women and young children were allowed to perform such functions during battles.<ref>The women and young children went on the battlefield after the battle and gave water to the wounded Muslims and finished off the enemy wounded.

al-Tabari vol.12 p.127,146.</ref>

Shaykh Haddad responds to this apologetic argument:

{{Quote|<ref name="Haddad" />|First, the prohibition applied to combatants. It applied neither to non-combatant boys nor to non-combatant girls and women. Second, `A'isha did not participate in Badr at all but bade farewell to the combatants as they were leaving Madina, as narrated by Muslim in his Sahih. On the day of Uhud (year 3), Anas, at the time only twelve or thirteen years old, reports seeing an eleven-year old `A'isha and his mother Umm Sulaym having tied up their dresses and carrying water skins back and forth to the combatants, as narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim.}}

===Age of Asma===
One [[Sahih#Da'if|da'if]] (weak) hadith narrated from al-Zinad and recorded in the works of some medieval scholars, including al-Dhahabi,<ref>al-Dhahabi. "Siyar a`lam al-nubala'". IslamWeb. Retrieved 3 September 2018. <q>قال عبد الرحمن بن أبي الزناد : كانت أسماء أكبر من عائشة بعشر" (Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi al-Zunad said: Asma was older than Aisha by ten years.)</q></ref> states that Aisha's older sister Asma was ten years older than her. This has been combined with information about Asma's age at the time of her death and used to suggest that Aisha was over thirteen at the time of her marriage.

Shaykh Haddad and the IslamQA website both independently criticise this approach as relying on a single narrator, who most scholars regard as weak, and note that a hadith by a more reliable chain from the same narrator gives a broader range for the age difference between the sisters.<ref name="Haddad" /><ref>Fatwa 124483 - [https://islamqa.info/en/answers/124483/ IslamQA.info]</ref> Both also note that al-Dhahabi too gave the vaguer opinion that Asma was "ten or more" years older than Aisha.

===Tabari's account of Abu Bakr's children and wives===
This account uses [[Tabari|al-Tabari's]] exegesis to argue that Aisha was born in the pre-islamic period, and thus could not have been less than 14 tears old.<ref>All four of his [i.e. Abu Bakr's] children were born of his two wives - the names of whom we have already mentioned - during the pre-Islamic period.

Tarikh al-umam wa al-mamloo'k, Al-Tabari, Vol. 4, Pg. 50, Arabic, Dar al-fikr, Beirut, 1979</ref>

However, al-Tabari's own account reports at least five times that Aisha was around 6-7 years old during marriage and the marriage was consummated 3 years later.<ref>The angel brought down my likeness; the Messenger of God married me when I was seven; my marriage was consummated when I was nine; he married me when I was a virgin, no other man having shared me with him

[[The History of al-Tabari|Al-Tabari,]] [[The History of al-Tabari#Volume VII: The Foundation of the Community|Vol. 7, p. 7]]</ref><ref>I was then brought [in] while the Messenger of God was sitting on a bed in our house. [My mother] made me sit on his lap... Then the men and women got up and left. The Messenger of God consummated his marriage with me in my house when I was nine years old. Neither a camel nor a sheep was slaughtered on behalf of me.

[[The History of al-Tabari|Al-Tabari,]] [[The History of al-Tabari#Volume IX: The Last Years of the Prophet|Vol. 9, p. 131]]</ref><ref>The Messenger of God saw 'A'ishah twice-[first when] it was said to him that she was his wife (she was six years old at that time), and later [when] he consummated his marriage with her after coming to Medina when she was nine years old.

[[The History of al-Tabari|Al-Tabari,]] [[The History of al-Tabari#Volume IX: The Last Years of the Prophet|Vol. 9, p. 131]]</ref><ref>[The Prophet] married her three years before the Emigration, when she was seven years old, and consummated the marriage when she was nine years old, after he had emigrated to Medina in Shawwil. She was eighteen years old when he died.

[[The History of al-Tabari|Al-Tabari,]] [[The History of al-Tabari#Volume IX: The Last Years of the Prophet|Vol. 9, p. 131]]</ref><ref>The Prophet married Aishah in Shawwal in the tenth year after the [beginning of his] prophethood, three years before Emigration. He consummated the marriage in Shawwal, eight months after Emigration. On the day he consummated the marriage with her she was nine years old.

[[The History of al-Tabari|Al-Tabari,]] [[The History of al-Tabari#Volume XXXIX: Biographies of the Prophet.27s Companions and Their Successors|Vol. 39, pp. 171-173]]</ref>

Furthermore, Shaykh Gibril Haddad says that the initial passage mentioned is misinterpreted, stating "Al-Tabari nowhere reports that 'Abu Bakr's four children were all born in Jahiliyya' but only that Abu Bakr married both their mothers in Jahiliyya, Qutayla bint Sa`d and Umm Ruman, who bore him four children in all, two each, `A'isha being the daughter of Umm Ruman."<ref name="Haddad" />

===Time of Umar's conversion to Islam===

This argument draws on [[Sira|al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah]] (Biography of the Prophet) to claim that since Ayesha converted to Islam before Umar she could not have been born during the first year of Islam.<ref>According to Ibn Hisham, Ayesha (ra) was the 20th or the 21st person to enter into the folds of Islam. While `umar ibn al-khattab was the 41st.

Al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah, Ibn Hisham, Vol. 1, Pg. 227 - 234, Arabic, Maktabah al-Riyadh al-hadithah, Al-Riyadh</ref>

However, even if the claim Aisha converted to Islam before Umar were true it, does not mean this took place during the first year of Islam, since Umar converted in 617 AD, about 4 years after Aisha’s birth in 613 AD.<ref name="Siddiqui" /> Furthermore Aisha never accounted converting to islam as hadiths show she never remembered a time before when her family wasn't Muslim.<ref>Narrated 'Aisha: (the wife of the Prophet) '''I never remembered my parents believing in any religion other than the true religion (i.e. Islam)''', and (I don't remember) a single day passing without our being visited by Allah’s Apostle in the morning and in the evening."
{{Bukhari|5|58|245}}</ref>

Besides disputing the claim that Ibn Hisham reported that Aisha accepted Islam quite some time before `umar ibn al-Khattab, Shaykh Haddad also casts doubt on the claim stating:

{{Quote|<ref name="Haddad" />|Nowhere does Ibn Hisham say this. Rather, Ibn Hisham lists `A'isha among 'those that accepted Islam because of Abu Bakr.' This does not mean that she embraced Islam during the first year of Islam. Nor does it mean that she necessarily embraced Islam before `Umar (year 6) although she was born the previous year (year 7 before the Hijra) although it is understood she will automatically follow her father's choice even before the age of reason.}}

===Tabari's account of Abu Bakr's migration to Habshah===
This argument claims that al-Tabari states that when Abu Bakr was planning to migrate to Abyssinia (Ethiopia), he spoke to Mut`am, with whose son, Jabayr, Aisha was engaged. This migration occured eight years before hijrah, at which time Aisha had only just been born if she consumated her marriage to Muhammad at the age of 9 or 10.

Proponents of this claim admit they have no primary source, which originated in Kandhalvi's Urdu booklet.<ref name="Amjad" /> Shayk Haddad responds that "there is no mention of emigration in Tabari's account of Abu Bakr's discussion with Mut`im" and "there had been only some preliminary talk, not a formal arrangement".<ref name="Haddad" />

===The meaning of ''bikr''===
This argument cites a hadith in Ibn Hanbal's Musnad saying that Khaulah suggested Aisha to Muhammad as a virgin (bikr) he could marry. The claim is that bikr would not be used for a young girl.<ref>Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Vol 6, Pg 210, Arabic, Dar Ihya al-turath al-`arabi, Beirut, cited by Moiz Amjad [http://www.islamawareness.net/FAQ/what_was_ayesha.html What was Ayesha's (ra) Age at the Time of Her Marriage?]</ref>

However, there are multiple sahih hadith narrations of a highly relevant conversation between Muhammad and Jabir in which bikr (virgin) is clearly compatible with jariyah (young girl).

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|5|59|382}}|Narrated Jabir: "Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said to me, "Have you got married O Jabir?" I replied, "Yes." He asked "What, a virgin [bikr] or a matron [thayyib]?" I replied, "Not a virgin but a matron." He said, "Why did you not marry a young girl [jariyah] who would have fondled with you?}}

Shaykh Haddad says regarding the claim, "This is ignorant nonsense, bikr means a virgin girl, a girl who has never been married even if her age is 0 and there is no unclarity here whatsoever.".<ref name="Haddad" />

===Fatima's age difference===
This claim is that according to ibn Hajar, Fatima was five years older than Aisha and Muhammad was 35 years old when Fatima was born. Therefore, based on this claim, Aisha must have been a teenager at the time her marriage was consummated.

However, the proponent of this claim<ref name="Amjad" /> has combined and selectively quoted conflicting sources. Shaykh Haddad responds:

{{Quote|<ref name="Haddad" />|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. The latter version matches the established dates.}}

===Hadith saying Aisha had reached puberty===
This argument is based off a mistranslated hadith, Sahih Bukhari 1:8:465, which reinterprets to the idea that Aisha had seen her parents follow islam since the age of puberty, and not a day passed by without Muhammad visiting them.
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|8|465}}|Narrated `Aisha:
(the wife of the Prophet) I had seen my parents following Islam since I attained the age of puberty. Not a day passed but the Prophet (ﷺ) visited us, both in the mornings and evenings[...]}}

However, the word أَعْقِلْ means thoughts or reasoning, but the translator, Muhsin Khan, has used the word 'puberty'. The meaning rather is simply that 'Aisha was aware that her parents were following Islam. A literal translation would be "I was not aware of my parents other than that the two of them both acknowledged the religion". The exact same Arabic phrase is translated correctly in another hadith by the same translator.<ref>Narrated Aisha:
(wife of the Prophet) Since I reached the age when I could remember things, I have seen my parents worshipping according to the right faith of Islam. Not a single day passed but Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) visited us both in the morning and in the evening... {{Bukhari|3|37|494}}</ref>

===Hadith in which Aisha mensturated===
This argument is also based off a mistranslated hadith, Sunan Abu Dawud 4915 (Ahmad Hasan numbering; 4933 Dar-us-Salam).
{{Quote|{{Abudawud||4915|hasan}}|Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin:

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) married me when I was seven or six. When we came to Medina, some women came. according to Bishr's version: Umm Ruman came to me when I was swinging. They took me, made me prepared and decorated me. I was then brought to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and he took up cohabitation with me when I was nine. She halted me at the door, and I burst into laughter. Abu Dawud said: That is to say: I menstruated, and I was brought in a house, and there were some women of the Ansari in it. They said: With good luck and blessing. The tradition of one of them has been included in the other.
}}

Ahmad Hasan mistranslates Abu Dawud's comment as "That is to say: I menstruated". Aisha's phrase "I burst into laughter" is fa-qultu heeh heeh (فَقُلْتُ هِيهْ هِيهْ), "And I said heh, heh". The Dar-us-Salam English-Arabic edition of Sunan Abu Dawud translated by Nasiruddin al-Khattab (Hadith 4933) renders Aisha's words here: "She made me stand at the door and I started to breathe deeply".

Abu Dawud's comment is ay tanaffasat (أَىْ تَنَفَّسَتْ), which is "That is to say 'I breathed'". The verb nun-fa-sin is used here in Arabic form V with the ta prefix and shadda (doubled) middle letter, which Lane's Lexicon says means "breathed". Form I can mean menstruated, but that is not the form used in the hadith.<ref>nun-fa-sin - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/25_n/208_nfs.html Lane's Lexicon]</ref>

==See Also==

*[[Child Marriage in Islamic Law]]
*[[She's too young]] (Fatima)

{{Template:Translation-links-english|[[Aišin věk konzumace|Czech]]}}

==External Links==

*[http://www.sunnipath.com/about/shaykhgibrilhaddad.aspx Shaykh Gibril Haddad] ''- Biography of Shaykh Gibril Fouad Haddad at SunniPath, The online Islamic Academy''
*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Responses/Learner/index.htm Responses to "The Learner" (Moiz Amjad) and others] - ''Collection of Answering Islam articles''

==Acknowledgments==
{{refbegin}}
This article is greatly indebted to the following:
*Dr. Shaykh Gibril Fouad Haddad, scholar and muhaddith (hadith expert), for [{{Reference archive|1=http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/showthread.php?2925-Our-Mother-Aisha-s-Age-at-the-Time-of-Her-Marriage-to-the-Prophet-saw|2=2011-05-04}} Our Mother A'isha's Age At The Time Of Her Marriage to The Prophet]
*The Muslimhope website, for [http://www.muslimhope.com/aishanine.htm A’isha: Mohammed’s Nine-Year Old Wife]
{{refend}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Muhammad]]
[[Category:Muhammad's wives and concubines]]
[[Category:Women]]
[[Category:Aisha]]
[[Category:Child Marriage]]
[[Category:Marriage]]
[[Category:Fiqh]]

Cosmology of the Quran

2022-01-05T12:20:45Z

Vixen: /* The throne ('arsh) of Allah */

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[[File:Ancient-Cosmology.jpg|right|thumb]]

'''The Qur'anic universe''' comprises "the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them". Many verses expand on the various elements of this scheme, without going into great detail. Overall, a picture emerges of a flat earth (and perhaps seven of these), above which are seven heavenly firmaments of uncertain shape (commonly assumed to be domed; more recently some historians have argued that the Qur'anic heavens are flat) and held up by invisible pillars. Lamps adorn the lowest of these heavens. The sun and moon circulate in them in a partly ambiguous manner. Allah resides in heaven above the creation, sitting on a throne. Academic work has situated this picture within the context of earlier Mesopotamian and Biblical cosmological concepts, while noting its own distinctive identity.

Relatively few modern academics have made dedicated attempts to piece together the cosmography of the Quran, in whole or in part. The most comprehensive such survey has been conducted by Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri of Tehran University in 2016 (which can be read for free using a jstor.org monthly free article allowance).<ref>{{citation |last1=Tabatabaʾi |first1=Mohammad A. |last2=Mirsadri |first2=Saida |date=2016 |title=The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24811784 |journal=Arabica |volume=63 |issue=3/4 |pages=201-234}} also available on [https://www.academia.edu/23427168/The_Quranic_Cosmology_as_an_Identity_in_Itself academia.edu]</ref> They note that the new movement in the field commenced with Kevin van Bladel's work regarding individual elements of the picture in the context of the journeys of Dhu'l Qarnayn<ref name="vanBladelLegend">Van Bladel, Kevin, “The Alexander legend in the Qur‘an 18:83-102″, In The Qur’ān in Its Historical Context, Ed. Gabriel Said Reynolds, New York: Routledge, 2007</ref> and the heavenly cords (asbab) by which he traversed the world, and which, for example, Pharaoh attempted to reach by building a tower<ref name="vanBladelCords">{{citation|last1=van Bladel |first1=Kevin |date=2007 |title=Heavenly cords and prophetic authority in the Qur’an and its Late Antique context |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40379198 |journal=Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies |volume=70 |issue=2 |pages=223-246 |doi= |access-date=25 April 2021}}</ref>.

By taking the Quranic descriptions in their own right and in the context of the more ancient cosmologies of Babylon and the Bible, but without appeal to later works of tafsir or hadith, which show the influence of Hellenistic (Greek) ideas acquired by the Muslims after the advent of Islam, Tabataba'i and Mirsadri argue that in various ways the Quranic cosmology has its own distinctive characteristics as well as inherited concepts, just as it interacts with the ideologies of its environment, taking some things and rejecting others. Their observations in particular are regularly cited in this article.

==Cosmology of the Quran==

===The heavens and the Earth===

Any accounting of the cosmology of the Qur'an must begin with the fact that the Islamic universe is extremely simple. It consists entirely of three components: "the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them" (see for example {{Quran|50|38}}), the latter of which contains such things as clouds ({{Quran|2|164}}) and birds ({{Quran|24|41}}). More often, just the heavens and earth are shorthand for the entirety of creation.

{{Quote|{{Quran|31|26}}|To Allah belong all things in heaven and earth: verily Allah is He (that is) free of all wants, worthy of all praise.}}

There is no indication of any of the other features of the universe that modern peoples take for granted. There is no concept of solar systems, of galaxies, or of “space.” There is no hint that the earth is a planet like the other planets visible from it, or that stars are other suns, just very far away. Qur'anic cosmology is primarily limited to that which is visible to the naked eye, and where it goes beyond this, [[Scientific Errors in the Quran|invariably strays]] from what has been learned by scientific investigation.

The fundamental status of the “heavens and the earth” as the two main components of [[creation]] is emphasized repeatedly in the Qur'an, and it is the “separation” of the two that stands as the initial creative act of [[Allah]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|30}}|Do not the Unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of creation), before we clove them asunder? We made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe?}}

Additionally, the Qur'an is clear that when Allah created the heavens and the earth, the earth came first.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|41|9|end=12|style=ref}}|Say (O Muhammad, unto the idolaters): Disbelieve ye verily in Him Who created the earth in two Days, and ascribe ye unto Him rivals? He (and none else) is the Lord of the Worlds. He placed therein firm hills rising above it, and blessed it and measured therein its sustenance in four Days, alike for (all) who ask; Then turned He to the heaven when it was smoke, and said unto it and unto the earth: Come both of you, willingly or loth. They said: We come, obedient. Then He ordained them seven heavens in two Days and inspired in each heaven its mandate; and We decked the nether heaven with lamps, and rendered it inviolable. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Knower.}}

And

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}|He it is Who created for you all that is in the earth. Then turned He to the heaven, and fashioned it as seven heavens. And He is knower of all things.}}

===The Earth and its waters===

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri note that the Qur'an "takes for granted" the flatness of the earth, a common motif among the scientifically naive people at that time, while it has "not even one hint of a spherical earth"<ref>Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 211</ref> Meanwhile, certain Christian scholars of the 6th century influenced by the ancient Greeks, in dispute with their counterparts in the east, believed in its sphericity, as noted by van Bladel<ref>Van Bladel, Kevin, ''Heavenly cords and prophetic authority in the Qur’an and its Late Antique context'' pp. 224-226</ref>). Damien Janos in another paper on Qur'anic cosmography has similarly noted that while the exact shape of its boundaries are not described, "what is clear is that the Qurʾān and the early Muslim tradition do not uphold the conception of a spherical earth and a spherical universe. This was a view that later prevailed in the learned circles of Muslim society as a result of the infiltration of Ptolemaic astronomy".<ref>{{citation |last1=Janos |first1=Damien |date=2012 |title=Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective: some notes on the formation of a religious wordview |journal=Religion |volume=42 |issue=2 |pages=215-231}} See pp. 217-218</ref>

Repeatedly, the Qur'an uses various Arabic terms that convey a flat earth, spread out like a carpet. For a much more comprehensive complilation of verses, see [[Islamic Views on the Shape of the Earth]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|15|19}}|And the earth We have spread out (like a carpet); set thereon mountains firm and immovable; and produced therein all kinds of things in due balance.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|71|19}}|And Allah has made the earth for you as a carpet (spread out), }}

In fact, at one point the Qur'an even emphasizes how much flatter the earth would be were it not for the mountains that disrupt the view.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|47}}|One Day We shall remove the mountains, and thou wilt see the earth as a level stretch, and We shall gather them, all together, nor shall We leave out any one of them.}}

As Tabataba'i and Mirsadri note<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 211</ref>, the mountains are heavy masses described as pegs to [[The Quran and Mountains|prevent the earth from shaking]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|15}}|And He has set up on the earth mountains standing firm, lest it should shake with you; and rivers and roads; that ye may guide yourselves;}}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|78|6|7}}|Have We not made the earth as a wide expanse, And the mountains as pegs?}}

One unclear facet of Islamic cosmology is that the Qur'an likens the creation of the earth to the seven heavens:

{{Quote|{{Quran|65|12}}|Allah it is who hath created seven heavens, and of the earth the like thereof. The commandment cometh down among them slowly, that ye may know that Allah is Able to do all things, and that Allah surroundeth all things in knowledge..}}

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri observe that the plural for the earth (al ard) is never used in the Quran, though most Muslim commentators interpreted this verse to mean seven earths. Instead, they consider the verse to be likening the earth to the heavens in shape and extent (i.e. a flat expanse) as part of a broader argument in their paper that the Qur'an describes a set of seven flat, stacked heavens (see below).<ref>Ibid. pp. 211 and 221</ref>

In the hadiths, the idea of seven earths, one above the other is already apparent.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|10|3923}}|Sa'id b. Zaid reported:

I heard Allah's Apostle say: He who took a span of earth wrongly '''would be made to wear around his neck''' seven earths on the Day of Resurrection.}}

Janos notes that Sumerian incantations dated to the 1st millenium BCE mention both the seven heavens and seven earths (citing Wayne Horowitz, who translated them as "the heavens are seven, the earths are seven").<ref>Janos, ''Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective'' p. 221</ref> Tabataba'i and Mirsadri similarly note from Horowitz that this tradition was popular in the near east in first millenia BCE and CE, though also that only the seven heavens, but not seven earths found their way into the Hebrew literature.<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 209</ref>

While contrasting the Biblical view of fresh and salty waters with the two seas of certain Qur'anic verses (fresh and salty - see for example {{Quran|25|53}} and the quest of Moses to find their junction in {{Quran|18|60}}), they note another difference to the Biblical and Mesopotamian cosmologies, which is that the Qur'an does not mention an ocean encircling the flat disk of the earth.<ref>Ibid. pp. 213-214</ref>

The two seas are very much on the surface of the earth.
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|18|19|24}}|He hath loosed the two seas. They meet. There is a barrier between them. They encroach not (one upon the other). Which is it, of the favours of your Lord, that ye deny? There cometh forth from both of them the pearl and coral-stone. His are the ships displayed upon the sea, like banners.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|60}}|And [mention] when Moses said to his servant, "I will not cease [traveling] until I reach the junction of the two seas or continue for a long period."}}

===The seven heavens and their denizens===
====The shape of the heavens====
[[File:QuranicCosmographyTabatabaiMirsadri.jpg|right|thumb|175px|Illustration of Qur'anic cosmography based on the analysis of Tabataba'i and Mirsadri. Their own copyrighted illustration is available in their paper<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' pp. 217</ref> The shape of the heavens in the Qur'an is uncertain.]]

While many classical Muslim scholars, and modern academics (due to their interpretation of other ancient cosmologies) tend to assume that the Qur'anic heavens are domed, Tabataba'i and Mirsadri observe that there is no indication in the Qur'an that they touch the earth's boundaries. The sun and moon are placed in the heavens ({{Quran|71|16}} and {{Quran|78|13}}), the lowest of which are adorned with lamps {{Quran|41|12}}. Janos discusses verses {{Quran|21|30}} and {{Quran|36|40}} in which the sun and moon (as well as night and day) move in a "falak" (an ambiguous term that may have meant a circuitous course/sphere/hemisphere - see [[Geocentrism and the Quran]]), but notes that this was not considered semantically identical with the samawat, or heavens, and they were not necessarily conceived as having the same shape.<ref>Janos, ''Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective'' pp. 223-229</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}|It is He Who hath created for you all things that are on earth; Moreover His design comprehended the heavens, for He gave order and perfection to the seven firmaments; and of all things He hath perfect knowledge.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|41|12}}|So He completed them as seven firmaments in two Days, and He assigned to each heaven its duty and command.}}

The following is a summary of the arguments Tabataba'i and Mirsadri employ to argue that the Qur'anic heavens are flat:<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' pp. 218-234</ref>

*They interpret {{Quran|51|47}} ("We have built the heaven with might, and We it is Who make the vast extent (thereof).") to mean that the heavens are continually expanded, which favours a flat expanse rather than a dome (it could be added in that case that the next verse about spreading the earth, with the same grammatical form, too fits this view). They also consider that verses mentioning invisible pillars (see below) favour a flat, roof like firmament.
*Verses in which the seven heavens are likened to the earth (their interpretation of {{Quran|67|12}} mentioned above), including in terms of their width e.g. {{Quran|57|21}} "a Garden whereof the breadth is as the breadth of the heavens and the earth".
*These heavens are arranged in layers ({{Quran|67|3}}, {{Quran|71|15}}), which more obviously suggests flatness, and this word tibiqan is similar to the Babylonian tubuqati, suggesting that seven superimposed flat heavens is a belief they have in common.
*While interest in the heavens (as opposed to their contents) is largely absent from pre-Islamic poetry, the poems of Umayya ibn Abī al‐Ṣalt (d. 5 / 626) likened the heavens to seven floors one above another, and the carpet shaped earth to the uplifted heaven ("And [he] shaped the earth as a carpet then he ordained it, [the area] under the firmament [are] just like those he uplifted").
*Despite the obvious potential use of tents as an analogy for the heavens, the Qur'an does not do so. Mountains act as pegs to stabilise the earth rather than hold down a heavenly tent canopy.
*The notion of a flat sky was common in ancient Mesopotamia and the near east (as also noted by Janos, citing Horowitz<ref>Janos, ''Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective'' pp. 216-217</ref>) though some scholars instead say that the universal belief of the scientifically naive peoples of the world was that it was dome shaped. Those who suppose that the pre-Islamic Arabs had a dome shaped conception due to their tent dwellings ignore the evidence that Mecca was an urban environment with flat roofs.
*They argue that the Qur'an's ideological antipathy to the Bedouins would have extended to their use of tents for pagan practices, and for this reason may have rejected any possible existing analogies with the heavens.

They note that Janos too favours a flat heavens interpretation. For him, it was enough that the Qur'anic firmament is likened to a bināʾ (structure) or saqf (roof) ({{Quran|2|22}}, {{Quran|21|32}}, {{Quran|40|64}}); They note that the word saqf originally seems to have referred to flat roofs, including in the Qur'an {{Quran|16|26}}, {{Quran|43|33}}; and arranged in layers as mentioned above - they agree with him on the strength of this latter point, though he is also open to the dome-shaped view based on tafsir sources rather than any internal evidence, while van Bladel relies mainly on pre-Qur'anic sources for his discussion of whether the Qur'anic heavens are a dome, tent or roof.<ref name="vanBladelCords" />

Further evidence that they do not mention is found in {{Quran|21|104}} and {{Quran|39|67}}, which state that the heavens will be rolled up/folded up come the day of judgement.

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|104}}|The Day when We shall roll up the heavens as a recorder rolleth up a written scroll. }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|39|67}}|No just estimate have they made of Allah, such as is due to Him: On the Day of Judgment the whole of the earth will be but His handful, and the heavens will be rolled up in His right hand: Glory to Him! High is He above the Partners they attribute to Him!}}

On the other hand, the moon, and probably the sun, are within the seven heavens according to {{Quran-range|71|15|16}}, which may lend support to [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth#Flat_Earth_in_tafsirs|the assumption shared by some of Muhammad's companions]] and [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth#Classical_perspectives|various classical scholars]] that the heavens are domed, given that these celestial bodies, as well as the night and day, are said to float in a falak (see above). This verse is mentioned by Tabataba'i and Mirsadri without comment on the potential difficulty.<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' pp. 215</ref> In van Bladel's analysis of the Qur'anic cosmography, the sky has gates<ref name="vanBladelCords" />, which perhaps offers a solution (in the Syriac Alexander legend, the sun passes through gates, but in a dome rather than flat sky<ref name="vanBladelLegend" />).

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|15|16}}|See ye not how Allah has created the seven heavens one above another, And made the moon a light in their midst, and made the sun as a (Glorious) Lamp?}}

====Solid firmaments and invisible pillars====

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri notice that, as with other ancient cosmologies, the Qur'anic sky/heaven is a solid object.<ref>Ibid. p. 209</ref> Unlike with the heavenly pillars in the Bible, the Qur'anic heavens are raised up by invisible pillars<ref>Ibid. pp. 216 and 220</ref> (see also {{Quran|31|10}}; Ibn Kathir in his tafsir notes two views on what is a somewhat ambiguous phrasing, as though the author was hedging his bets: "'there are pillars, but you cannot see them,' according to Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Al-Hasan, Qatadah, and several other scholars. Iyas bin Mu`awiyah said, 'The heaven is like a dome over the earth, meaning, without pillars.'"<ref>[http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Ar-Rad/Clarifying-Allahs-Perfect-Abi--- (English) Tafsir of Ibn Kathir for verse 13:2] [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=13&tAyahNo=2&tDisplay=yes&Page=2&Size=1&LanguageId=1 (Arabic) Tafsir of Ibn Kathir for verse 13:2]</ref>).

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|2}}|It is Allah who erected the heavens without pillars that you [can] see; [...]}}

They note that various verses describe the heavens as a structure or edifice with no fissures, though fragments of it may fall on the earth.

{{Quote|{{Quran|67|3}}|Who hath created seven heavens in harmony. Thou (Muhammad) canst see no fault in the Beneficent One's creation; then look again: Canst thou see any rifts?}}

And the fact that the sky/heaven is solid is shown by the concept of pieces falling and potentially injuring residents of the earth.

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|9}}|See they not what is before them and behind them, of the sky and the earth? If We wished, We could cause the earth to swallow them up, or cause a piece of the sky to fall upon them. Verily in this is a Sign for every devotee that turns to Allah (in repentance).}}

These heavens are described as strong.

{{Quote|{{Quran|78|12}}|And We have built above you seven strong (heavens)}}

In fact, they are so substantial that it is even conceivable to climb up onto them using a ladder.

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|35}}|If their spurning is hard on thy mind, yet if thou wert able to seek a tunnel in the ground or a ladder to the skies and bring them a sign,- (what good?).}}

It is a guarded roof (presumably a reference to shooting stars chasing devils in other verses):

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|32}}|And We made the sky a protected ceiling, but they, from its signs, are turning away.}}

To further expound on the nature of the seven heavens, the [[hadith]] are helpful. Here we learn the distances between each heaven, as well as what is on the other side of the furthermost.

{{Quote|{{Abu Dawud|40|4705}}|Narrated Al-Abbas ibn AbdulMuttalib: I was sitting in al-Batha with a company among whom the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) was sitting, when a cloud passed above them. The Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) looked at it and said: What do you call this?

They said: Sahab.

He said: And muzn? They said: And muzn. He said: And anan? They said: And anan. AbuDawud said: I am not quite confident about the word anan. He asked: Do you know the distance between Heaven and Earth? They replied: We do not know. He then said: The distance between them is seventy-one, seventy-two, or seventy-three years. The heaven which is above it is at a similar distance (going on till he counted seven heavens). Above the seventh heaven there is a sea, the distance between whose surface and bottom is like that between one heaven and the next. Above that there are eight mountain goats the distance between whose hoofs and haunches is like the distance between one heaven and the next. Then Allah, the Blessed and the Exalted, is above that.}}

Ignoring the giant mountain goats which are never mentioned in the Qur'an itself, the outermost heaven lies beneath a sea that is as deep as the distances between adjacent heavens. That Allah’s “throne” is above such waters is mentioned in the Qur'an as well as the hadith.

{{Quote|{{Quran|11|7}}|He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in six Days - and His Throne was over the waters - that He might try you, which of you is best in conduct. But if thou wert to say to them, "Ye shall indeed be raised up after death", the Unbelievers would be sure to say, "This is nothing but obvious sorcery!"}}

There are however no mentions of galaxies, quasars, galaxy clusters or empty space. Simply water, a throne, and Allah himself.

Additional details concerning the individual heavens are found in the accounts of Muhammad’s “night journey.” Rather than quoting at length, readers are referred to {{Bukhari|9|93|608}} for the long version. But here are the key points.

Each of the seven heavens is populated by multiple angels and a few other folks as well. These heavens are entered through doors in the solid domes, each with an angelic guard and each populated by a resident prophet. For example, immediately above the dome of the first heaven is where Muhammad met Adam, and discovered (in the absence of true geographic knowledge) the sources of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. The second heaven is the home of the Prophet Idris. Aaron is in the fourth heaven, Abraham the sixth, and Moses the seventh.

===The stars, the sun, and the moon===

The stars are inside the closest heaven, as the Qur'an is quite explicit on this point.

{{Quote|{{Quran|37|6}}|We have indeed decked the lower heaven with beauty (in) the stars.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|41|12}}|So He completed them as seven firmaments in two Days, and He assigned to each heaven its duty and command. And We adorned the lower heaven with lights, and (provided it) with guard. Such is the Decree of (Him) the Exalted in Might, Full of Knowledge.}}

The sun and moon are a bit more ambiguous, as all we know is that they are in the heavens, and not explicitly inside the lowest of them.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|15|16}}|See ye not how Allah hath created seven heavens in harmony, And hath made the moon a light therein, and made the sun a lamp?}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|2}}|Allah is He Who raised the heavens without any pillars that ye can see; is firmly established on the throne (of authority); He has subjected the sun and the moon (to his Law)! Each one runs (its course) for a term appointed. He doth regulate all affairs, explaining the signs in detail, that ye may believe with certainty in the meeting with your Lord.}}

These two lights, as well as the night and day float in a circuitous course/sphere/hemisphere (a falak).

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|33}}|It is He Who created the Night and the Day, and the sun and the moon: all (the celestial bodies) swim along, each in its rounded course.}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|36|40}}|It is not permitted to the Sun to catch up the Moon, nor can the Night outstrip the Day: Each (just) swims along in (its own) orbit (according to Law).}}

And at the end of their daily paths across the sky, the sun (and presumably also the moon and stars) pass through the earth’s flat surface near the far Western edge using openings filled with water.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|86}}|Until, when he reached the setting of the sun, he found it set in a spring of murky water: Near it he found a People: We said: "O Zul-qarnain! (thou hast authority,) either to punish them, or to treat them with kindness."}}

Once out of view of the humans that populate the top of the earthly disc, their motion stops, and they rest for the night in particular resting places.

{{Quote|{{Quran|36|38}}|And the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise.}}

At some point during the night, however (and here again turning to the hadith for details) the sun must negotiate its return the next day with a direct appeal for Allah’s permission.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|1|297}}|It is narrated on the authority of Abu Dharr that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) one day said:

Do you know where the sun goes? They replied: Allah and His Apostle know best. He (the Holy Prophet) observed: Verily it (the sun) glides till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it falls prostrate and remains there until it is asked: Rise up and go to the place whence you came, and it goes back and continues '''emerging out from its rising place''' and then glides till it reaches '''its place of rest''' under the Throne and falls prostrate and remains in that state until it is asked: Rise up and return to the place whence you came, and it returns and emerges out from it rising place and the it glides (in such a normal way) that the people do not discern anything ( unusual in it) till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it would be said to it: Rise up and '''emerge out from the place of your setting''', and it will rise from the place of its setting. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said. Do you know when it would happen? It would happen at the time when faith will not benefit one who has not previously believed or has derived no good from the faith.}}

The hadith also occurs in {{Bukhari|4|54|421}} (note that Khan inaccurately translates maghribiki here as "the west" instead of "your setting place") where it is presented as the interpretation of {{Quran|36|38}} quoted above.

With permission to rise received, the sun passes back through the flat earth near its Eastern edge to commence the next day. While no “muddy pools” are specifically mentioned for the sunrise, the description of people living nearby the exit point mirrors the description of the [[Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring - Part One|place where the sun set]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|90}}|Until, when he came to the rising of the sun, he found it rising on a people for whom We had provided no covering protection against the sun.}}

===Solar and lunar eclipses===

The Qur'an demonstrates no understanding whatsoever of eclipses. Perhaps this is understandable. The hadith claim that Muhammad only experienced one solar eclipse during his lifetime, an experience which frightened him into a spectacular act of piety. But the Qur'an only makes a single reference to eclipses, and that is a lunar eclipse that will take place at the end of the world.

In fact, the Qur'an actually makes a statement that would conceivably make eclipses impossible.

{{Quote|{{Quran|36|40}}|It is not permitted to the Sun to catch up the Moon, nor can the Night outstrip the Day: Each (just) swims along in (its own) orbit (according to Law).}}

For a solar eclipse to occur however, the sun and the moon actually must (from the perspective of the earth) "catch up" to each other in their "orbits." But since the moon itself is not visible at that time, the authors of the Qur'an never noticed this.

But then, when discussing the end of time the Qur'an assumes that a lunar eclipse (which can only occur when the sun and moon are on opposite sides of the earth) can occur at the same time that the sun and moon finally do “catch up” to each other.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|75|6|end=9|style=ref}}|He asketh: “When will be this Day of Resurrection?” But when sight is confounded And the moon is eclipsed And sun and moon are united,}}

The “uniting” of the sun and the moon not only demonstrates a singular instance when they do “catch up” with each other, but suggests that its author assumed the common perception that the sun and moon are of comparable size and distance.

===The stars, planets, and meteors===

It is not obvious from the [[Mistranslations of Islamic Scripture (English)|translations]] of the Qur'an that the authors of the Qur'an actually distinguished between stars and planets, as the same word is often translated to mean either. But as ancient peoples generally knew that planets were different from ordinary stars (they moved) it is a safe assumption that the earliest Muslims were equally aware.

But the mistaken (if understandable) belief that stars are very small nearby objects is not merely reflected in the placement of them inside the nearest heaven. As with most other ancient people, the authors of the Qur'an believed that meteors literally were “falling stars.” [[Mistranslations_of_Islamic_Scripture_(English)#.2867:5.29_Shooting_stars|Verse 67:5]] tells us they are weapons against devils and jinn.

{{Quote|{{Quran|67|5}}|And we have, (from of old), adorned the lowest heaven with Lamps, and We have made such (Lamps) (as) missiles to drive away the Evil Ones, and have prepared for them the Penalty of the Blazing Fire.}}

This appears to be part of the protective role of the heavens.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|72|8|9}}|And we have sought [to reach] the heaven but found it filled with powerful guards and burning flames. And we used to sit therein in positions for hearing, but whoever listens now will find a burning flame lying in wait for him.}}

===The throne (''<nowiki/>'arsh'') of Allah===

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri note that Allah seems to reside in the Qur'anic heaven, while his footstool (kursi) extends over the heavens and earth and his throne (arshi) is carried by angels ({{Quran|39|75}} and {{Quran|40|7}}). This is very much similar to the Judeo-Christian view.<ref>Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' pp. 208-210</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|67|16|17}}|Have ye taken security from Him Who is in the heaven that He will not cause the earth to swallow you when lo! it is convulsed? Or have ye taken security from Him Who is in the heaven that He will not let loose on you a hurricane? But ye shall know the manner of My warning.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|255}}|[...] His Throne doth extend over the heavens and the earth [...]}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|40|7}}|Those who bear the Throne, and all who are round about it, hymn the praises of their Lord [...]}}

===The locations of Heaven and Hell===

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri observe that for the Qur'an, there is almost no reference to what is beneath the earth, except as no more than a geographic location. There is no concept of an underworld, unlike Mesopotamian mythologies, as well as those of Egypt and Greece.<ref>Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 212</ref>

The Qur'an repeatedly described [[Jannah (Paradise)]] as comprising "Gardens from beneath which the rivers flow". Though not reflected in English translations, in every instance the definite article is used i.e. "the rivers". This is also noted by Tommaso Tesei, who has detailed how "sources confirm that during late antiquity it was widely held that paradise was a physical place situated on the other side of the ocean encircling the Earth. In accordance with this concept, it was generally assumed that the rivers flowing from paradise passed under this ocean to reach the inhabited part of the world." A notion of four rivers following a subterranean course from paradise into the inhabited world also occurs in contemporary near eastern and Syriac sources.<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. [https://www.academia.edu/12761000/_Some_Cosmological_Notions_from_Late_Antiquity_in_Q_18_60_65_The_Quran_in_Light_of_Its_Cultural_Context_._Journal_of_the_American_Oriental_Society_135.1_2015_19-32 Some Cosmological Notions from Late Antiquity in Q 18:60–65: The Quran in Light of Its Cultural Context.] Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. 135, no. 1, American Oriental Society, 2015, pp. 19–32, https://doi.org/10.7817/jameroriesoci.135.1.19.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|5|85}}|So Allah rewarded them for what they said with gardens [in Paradise] beneath which rivers flow, wherein they abide eternally. And that is the reward of doers of good.}}

The concept also appears in numerous sahih hadiths about Muhammad's night journey which mention the Nile and Euphrates, for example:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|69|514}}|The Prophet (ﷺ) added:

I was raised to the Lote Tree and saw four rivers, two of which were coming out and two going in. Those which were coming out were the Nile and the Euphrates, and those which were going in were two rivers in paradise. Then I was given three bowls, one containing milk, and another containing honey, and a third containing wine. I took the bowl containing milk and drank it. It was said to me, "You and your followers will be on the right path (of Islam)."
}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|93|608}}|[...]The Prophet (ﷺ) met Adam over the nearest Heaven. Gabriel said to the Prophet, "He is your father; greet him." The Prophet (ﷺ) greeted him and Adam returned his greeting and said, "Welcome, O my Son! O what a good son you are!" Behold, he saw two flowing rivers, while he was in the nearest sky. He asked, "What are these two rivers, O Gabriel?" Gabriel said, "These are the sources of the Nile and the Euphrates."[...]}}

Later Islamic cosmology takes a perfectly prosaic position in terms of Paradise and [[Hell]], and places them firmly within the cosmos that consists of the heavens and the earth. This is discussed with many narrations in an article on the Islamqa.info website.<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-is-paradise-and-where-is-hell Where is Paradise and where is Hell?] - IslamQA.info</ref> The description of Muhammad’s “night journey” shows each of the seven heavens already populated with the departed prophets in Paradise. This is consistent with the Qur'anic description of the size of Paradise.

{{Quote|{{Quran|3|133}}|Be quick in the race for forgiveness from your Lord, and for a Garden whose width is that (of the whole) of the heavens and of the earth, prepared for the righteous,-}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|21}}|Be ye foremost (in seeking) Forgiveness from your Lord, and a Garden (of Bliss), the width whereof is as the width of heaven and earth, prepared for those who believe in Allah and His messengers: that is the Grace of Allah, which He bestows on whom he pleases: and Allah is the Lord of Grace abounding.}}

If the heavens (to include the seventh and largest) are already populated with denizens of Paradise, the width of Paradise would be precisely that of heaven and earth.

And since Paradise is on the other side of the first heaven, it might seem reasonable that Hell is at the level of the lowest earth, as appears in hadith. This is consistent with Qur'anic descriptions of hell as being a completely enclosed place.

{{Quote|{{Quran|7|41}}|For them there is Hell, as a couch (below) and folds and folds of covering above: such is Our requital of those who do wrong.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|49}}|Among them is (many) a man who says: "Grant me exemption and draw me not into trial." Have they not fallen into trial already? and indeed Hell surrounds the Unbelievers (on all sides).}}

The direction of hell on the day of judgement or from the perspective of those in paradise at least, when it is mentioned, is invariably “down.”

{{Quote|{{Quran|52|13}}|That Day shall they be thrust down to the Fire of Hell, irresistibly.}}

And in yet another reference, an observer is directed to “look down” in order to witness a denizen of hell.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|37|54|end=55|style=ref}}|(A voice) said: "Would ye like to look down?"
He looked down and saw him in the midst of the Fire.}}

And so, we have the Islamic Universe in completion.

==See also==

[[ru:Коранический_взгляд_на_Вселенную]]

*[[Cosmology]]

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Cosmology]]
[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Qur'an]]

Cosmology of the Quran

2022-01-05T12:04:16Z

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'''The Qur'anic universe''' comprises "the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them". Many verses expand on the various elements of this scheme, without going into great detail. Overall, a picture emerges of a flat earth (and perhaps seven of these), above which are seven heavenly firmaments of uncertain shape (commonly assumed to be domed; more recently some historians have argued that the Qur'anic heavens are flat) and held up by invisible pillars. Lamps adorn the lowest of these heavens. The sun and moon circulate in them in a partly ambiguous manner. Allah resides in heaven above the creation, sitting on a throne. Academic work has situated this picture within the context of earlier Mesopotamian and Biblical cosmological concepts, while noting its own distinctive identity.

Relatively few modern academics have made dedicated attempts to piece together the cosmography of the Quran, in whole or in part. The most comprehensive such survey has been conducted by Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri of Tehran University in 2016 (which can be read for free using a jstor.org monthly free article allowance).<ref>{{citation |last1=Tabatabaʾi |first1=Mohammad A. |last2=Mirsadri |first2=Saida |date=2016 |title=The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24811784 |journal=Arabica |volume=63 |issue=3/4 |pages=201-234}} also available on [https://www.academia.edu/23427168/The_Quranic_Cosmology_as_an_Identity_in_Itself academia.edu]</ref> They note that the new movement in the field commenced with Kevin van Bladel's work regarding individual elements of the picture in the context of the journeys of Dhu'l Qarnayn<ref name="vanBladelLegend">Van Bladel, Kevin, “The Alexander legend in the Qur‘an 18:83-102″, In The Qur’ān in Its Historical Context, Ed. Gabriel Said Reynolds, New York: Routledge, 2007</ref> and the heavenly cords (asbab) by which he traversed the world, and which, for example, Pharaoh attempted to reach by building a tower<ref name="vanBladelCords">{{citation|last1=van Bladel |first1=Kevin |date=2007 |title=Heavenly cords and prophetic authority in the Qur’an and its Late Antique context |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40379198 |journal=Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies |volume=70 |issue=2 |pages=223-246 |doi= |access-date=25 April 2021}}</ref>.

By taking the Quranic descriptions in their own right and in the context of the more ancient cosmologies of Babylon and the Bible, but without appeal to later works of tafsir or hadith, which show the influence of Hellenistic (Greek) ideas acquired by the Muslims after the advent of Islam, Tabataba'i and Mirsadri argue that in various ways the Quranic cosmology has its own distinctive characteristics as well as inherited concepts, just as it interacts with the ideologies of its environment, taking some things and rejecting others. Their observations in particular are regularly cited in this article.

==Cosmology of the Quran==

===The heavens and the Earth===

Any accounting of the cosmology of the Qur'an must begin with the fact that the Islamic universe is extremely simple. It consists entirely of three components: "the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them" (see for example {{Quran|50|38}}), the latter of which contains such things as clouds ({{Quran|2|164}}) and birds ({{Quran|24|41}}). More often, just the heavens and earth are shorthand for the entirety of creation.

{{Quote|{{Quran|31|26}}|To Allah belong all things in heaven and earth: verily Allah is He (that is) free of all wants, worthy of all praise.}}

There is no indication of any of the other features of the universe that modern peoples take for granted. There is no concept of solar systems, of galaxies, or of “space.” There is no hint that the earth is a planet like the other planets visible from it, or that stars are other suns, just very far away. Qur'anic cosmology is primarily limited to that which is visible to the naked eye, and where it goes beyond this, [[Scientific Errors in the Quran|invariably strays]] from what has been learned by scientific investigation.

The fundamental status of the “heavens and the earth” as the two main components of [[creation]] is emphasized repeatedly in the Qur'an, and it is the “separation” of the two that stands as the initial creative act of [[Allah]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|30}}|Do not the Unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of creation), before we clove them asunder? We made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe?}}

Additionally, the Qur'an is clear that when Allah created the heavens and the earth, the earth came first.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|41|9|end=12|style=ref}}|Say (O Muhammad, unto the idolaters): Disbelieve ye verily in Him Who created the earth in two Days, and ascribe ye unto Him rivals? He (and none else) is the Lord of the Worlds. He placed therein firm hills rising above it, and blessed it and measured therein its sustenance in four Days, alike for (all) who ask; Then turned He to the heaven when it was smoke, and said unto it and unto the earth: Come both of you, willingly or loth. They said: We come, obedient. Then He ordained them seven heavens in two Days and inspired in each heaven its mandate; and We decked the nether heaven with lamps, and rendered it inviolable. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Knower.}}

And

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}|He it is Who created for you all that is in the earth. Then turned He to the heaven, and fashioned it as seven heavens. And He is knower of all things.}}

===The Earth and its waters===

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri note that the Qur'an "takes for granted" the flatness of the earth, a common motif among the scientifically naive people at that time, while it has "not even one hint of a spherical earth"<ref>Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 211</ref> Meanwhile, certain Christian scholars of the 6th century influenced by the ancient Greeks, in dispute with their counterparts in the east, believed in its sphericity, as noted by van Bladel<ref>Van Bladel, Kevin, ''Heavenly cords and prophetic authority in the Qur’an and its Late Antique context'' pp. 224-226</ref>). Damien Janos in another paper on Qur'anic cosmography has similarly noted that while the exact shape of its boundaries are not described, "what is clear is that the Qurʾān and the early Muslim tradition do not uphold the conception of a spherical earth and a spherical universe. This was a view that later prevailed in the learned circles of Muslim society as a result of the infiltration of Ptolemaic astronomy".<ref>{{citation |last1=Janos |first1=Damien |date=2012 |title=Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective: some notes on the formation of a religious wordview |journal=Religion |volume=42 |issue=2 |pages=215-231}} See pp. 217-218</ref>

Repeatedly, the Qur'an uses various Arabic terms that convey a flat earth, spread out like a carpet. For a much more comprehensive complilation of verses, see [[Islamic Views on the Shape of the Earth]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|15|19}}|And the earth We have spread out (like a carpet); set thereon mountains firm and immovable; and produced therein all kinds of things in due balance.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|71|19}}|And Allah has made the earth for you as a carpet (spread out), }}

In fact, at one point the Qur'an even emphasizes how much flatter the earth would be were it not for the mountains that disrupt the view.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|47}}|One Day We shall remove the mountains, and thou wilt see the earth as a level stretch, and We shall gather them, all together, nor shall We leave out any one of them.}}

As Tabataba'i and Mirsadri note<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 211</ref>, the mountains are heavy masses described as pegs to [[The Quran and Mountains|prevent the earth from shaking]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|15}}|And He has set up on the earth mountains standing firm, lest it should shake with you; and rivers and roads; that ye may guide yourselves;}}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|78|6|7}}|Have We not made the earth as a wide expanse, And the mountains as pegs?}}

One unclear facet of Islamic cosmology is that the Qur'an likens the creation of the earth to the seven heavens:

{{Quote|{{Quran|65|12}}|Allah it is who hath created seven heavens, and of the earth the like thereof. The commandment cometh down among them slowly, that ye may know that Allah is Able to do all things, and that Allah surroundeth all things in knowledge..}}

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri observe that the plural for the earth (al ard) is never used in the Quran, though most Muslim commentators interpreted this verse to mean seven earths. Instead, they consider the verse to be likening the earth to the heavens in shape and extent (i.e. a flat expanse) as part of a broader argument in their paper that the Qur'an describes a set of seven flat, stacked heavens (see below).<ref>Ibid. pp. 211 and 221</ref>

In the hadiths, the idea of seven earths, one above the other is already apparent.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|10|3923}}|Sa'id b. Zaid reported:

I heard Allah's Apostle say: He who took a span of earth wrongly '''would be made to wear around his neck''' seven earths on the Day of Resurrection.}}

Janos notes that Sumerian incantations dated to the 1st millenium BCE mention both the seven heavens and seven earths (citing Wayne Horowitz, who translated them as "the heavens are seven, the earths are seven").<ref>Janos, ''Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective'' p. 221</ref> Tabataba'i and Mirsadri similarly note from Horowitz that this tradition was popular in the near east in first millenia BCE and CE, though also that only the seven heavens, but not seven earths found their way into the Hebrew literature.<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 209</ref>

While contrasting the Biblical view of fresh and salty waters with the two seas of certain Qur'anic verses (fresh and salty - see for example {{Quran|25|53}} and the quest of Moses to find their junction in {{Quran|18|60}}), they note another difference to the Biblical and Mesopotamian cosmologies, which is that the Qur'an does not mention an ocean encircling the flat disk of the earth.<ref>Ibid. pp. 213-214</ref>

The two seas are very much on the surface of the earth.
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|18|19|24}}|He hath loosed the two seas. They meet. There is a barrier between them. They encroach not (one upon the other). Which is it, of the favours of your Lord, that ye deny? There cometh forth from both of them the pearl and coral-stone. His are the ships displayed upon the sea, like banners.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|60}}|And [mention] when Moses said to his servant, "I will not cease [traveling] until I reach the junction of the two seas or continue for a long period."}}

===The seven heavens and their denizens===
====The shape of the heavens====
[[File:QuranicCosmographyTabatabaiMirsadri.jpg|right|thumb|175px|Illustration of Qur'anic cosmography based on the analysis of Tabataba'i and Mirsadri. Their own copyrighted illustration is available in their paper<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' pp. 217</ref> The shape of the heavens in the Qur'an is uncertain.]]

While many classical Muslim scholars, and modern academics (due to their interpretation of other ancient cosmologies) tend to assume that the Qur'anic heavens are domed, Tabataba'i and Mirsadri observe that there is no indication in the Qur'an that they touch the earth's boundaries. The sun and moon are placed in the heavens ({{Quran|71|16}} and {{Quran|78|13}}), the lowest of which are adorned with lamps {{Quran|41|12}}. Janos discusses verses {{Quran|21|30}} and {{Quran|36|40}} in which the sun and moon (as well as night and day) move in a "falak" (an ambiguous term that may have meant a circuitous course/sphere/hemisphere - see [[Geocentrism and the Quran]]), but notes that this was not considered semantically identical with the samawat, or heavens, and they were not necessarily conceived as having the same shape.<ref>Janos, ''Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective'' pp. 223-229</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}|It is He Who hath created for you all things that are on earth; Moreover His design comprehended the heavens, for He gave order and perfection to the seven firmaments; and of all things He hath perfect knowledge.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|41|12}}|So He completed them as seven firmaments in two Days, and He assigned to each heaven its duty and command.}}

The following is a summary of the arguments Tabataba'i and Mirsadri employ to argue that the Qur'anic heavens are flat:<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' pp. 218-234</ref>

*They interpret {{Quran|51|47}} ("We have built the heaven with might, and We it is Who make the vast extent (thereof).") to mean that the heavens are continually expanded, which favours a flat expanse rather than a dome (it could be added in that case that the next verse about spreading the earth, with the same grammatical form, too fits this view). They also consider that verses mentioning invisible pillars (see below) favour a flat, roof like firmament.
*Verses in which the seven heavens are likened to the earth (their interpretation of {{Quran|67|12}} mentioned above), including in terms of their width e.g. {{Quran|57|21}} "a Garden whereof the breadth is as the breadth of the heavens and the earth".
*These heavens are arranged in layers ({{Quran|67|3}}, {{Quran|71|15}}), which more obviously suggests flatness, and this word tibiqan is similar to the Babylonian tubuqati, suggesting that seven superimposed flat heavens is a belief they have in common.
*While interest in the heavens (as opposed to their contents) is largely absent from pre-Islamic poetry, the poems of Umayya ibn Abī al‐Ṣalt (d. 5 / 626) likened the heavens to seven floors one above another, and the carpet shaped earth to the uplifted heaven ("And [he] shaped the earth as a carpet then he ordained it, [the area] under the firmament [are] just like those he uplifted").
*Despite the obvious potential use of tents as an analogy for the heavens, the Qur'an does not do so. Mountains act as pegs to stabilise the earth rather than hold down a heavenly tent canopy.
*The notion of a flat sky was common in ancient Mesopotamia and the near east (as also noted by Janos, citing Horowitz<ref>Janos, ''Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective'' pp. 216-217</ref>) though some scholars instead say that the universal belief of the scientifically naive peoples of the world was that it was dome shaped. Those who suppose that the pre-Islamic Arabs had a dome shaped conception due to their tent dwellings ignore the evidence that Mecca was an urban environment with flat roofs.
*They argue that the Qur'an's ideological antipathy to the Bedouins would have extended to their use of tents for pagan practices, and for this reason may have rejected any possible existing analogies with the heavens.

They note that Janos too favours a flat heavens interpretation. For him, it was enough that the Qur'anic firmament is likened to a bināʾ (structure) or saqf (roof) ({{Quran|2|22}}, {{Quran|21|32}}, {{Quran|40|64}}); They note that the word saqf originally seems to have referred to flat roofs, including in the Qur'an {{Quran|16|26}}, {{Quran|43|33}}; and arranged in layers as mentioned above - they agree with him on the strength of this latter point, though he is also open to the dome-shaped view based on tafsir sources rather than any internal evidence, while van Bladel relies mainly on pre-Qur'anic sources for his discussion of whether the Qur'anic heavens are a dome, tent or roof.<ref name="vanBladelCords" />

Further evidence that they do not mention is found in {{Quran|21|104}} and {{Quran|39|67}}, which state that the heavens will be rolled up/folded up come the day of judgement.

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|104}}|The Day when We shall roll up the heavens as a recorder rolleth up a written scroll. }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|39|67}}|No just estimate have they made of Allah, such as is due to Him: On the Day of Judgment the whole of the earth will be but His handful, and the heavens will be rolled up in His right hand: Glory to Him! High is He above the Partners they attribute to Him!}}

On the other hand, the moon, and probably the sun, are within the seven heavens according to {{Quran-range|71|15|16}}, which may lend support to [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth#Flat_Earth_in_tafsirs|the assumption shared by some of Muhammad's companions]] and [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth#Classical_perspectives|various classical scholars]] that the heavens are domed, given that these celestial bodies, as well as the night and day, are said to float in a falak (see above). This verse is mentioned by Tabataba'i and Mirsadri without comment on the potential difficulty.<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' pp. 215</ref> In van Bladel's analysis of the Qur'anic cosmography, the sky has gates<ref name="vanBladelCords" />, which perhaps offers a solution (in the Syriac Alexander legend, the sun passes through gates, but in a dome rather than flat sky<ref name="vanBladelLegend" />).

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|15|16}}|See ye not how Allah has created the seven heavens one above another, And made the moon a light in their midst, and made the sun as a (Glorious) Lamp?}}

====Solid firmaments and invisible pillars====

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri notice that, as with other ancient cosmologies, the Qur'anic sky/heaven is a solid object.<ref>Ibid. p. 209</ref> Unlike with the heavenly pillars in the Bible, the Qur'anic heavens are raised up by invisible pillars<ref>Ibid. pp. 216 and 220</ref> (see also {{Quran|31|10}}; Ibn Kathir in his tafsir notes two views on what is a somewhat ambiguous phrasing, as though the author was hedging his bets: "'there are pillars, but you cannot see them,' according to Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Al-Hasan, Qatadah, and several other scholars. Iyas bin Mu`awiyah said, 'The heaven is like a dome over the earth, meaning, without pillars.'"<ref>[http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Ar-Rad/Clarifying-Allahs-Perfect-Abi--- (English) Tafsir of Ibn Kathir for verse 13:2] [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=13&tAyahNo=2&tDisplay=yes&Page=2&Size=1&LanguageId=1 (Arabic) Tafsir of Ibn Kathir for verse 13:2]</ref>).

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|2}}|It is Allah who erected the heavens without pillars that you [can] see; [...]}}

They note that various verses describe the heavens as a structure or edifice with no fissures, though fragments of it may fall on the earth.

{{Quote|{{Quran|67|3}}|Who hath created seven heavens in harmony. Thou (Muhammad) canst see no fault in the Beneficent One's creation; then look again: Canst thou see any rifts?}}

And the fact that the sky/heaven is solid is shown by the concept of pieces falling and potentially injuring residents of the earth.

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|9}}|See they not what is before them and behind them, of the sky and the earth? If We wished, We could cause the earth to swallow them up, or cause a piece of the sky to fall upon them. Verily in this is a Sign for every devotee that turns to Allah (in repentance).}}

These heavens are described as strong.

{{Quote|{{Quran|78|12}}|And We have built above you seven strong (heavens)}}

In fact, they are so substantial that it is even conceivable to climb up onto them using a ladder.

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|35}}|If their spurning is hard on thy mind, yet if thou wert able to seek a tunnel in the ground or a ladder to the skies and bring them a sign,- (what good?).}}

It is a guarded roof (presumably a reference to shooting stars chasing devils in other verses):

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|32}}|And We made the sky a protected ceiling, but they, from its signs, are turning away.}}

To further expound on the nature of the seven heavens, the [[hadith]] are helpful. Here we learn the distances between each heaven, as well as what is on the other side of the furthermost.

{{Quote|{{Abu Dawud|40|4705}}|Narrated Al-Abbas ibn AbdulMuttalib: I was sitting in al-Batha with a company among whom the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) was sitting, when a cloud passed above them. The Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) looked at it and said: What do you call this?

They said: Sahab.

He said: And muzn? They said: And muzn. He said: And anan? They said: And anan. AbuDawud said: I am not quite confident about the word anan. He asked: Do you know the distance between Heaven and Earth? They replied: We do not know. He then said: The distance between them is seventy-one, seventy-two, or seventy-three years. The heaven which is above it is at a similar distance (going on till he counted seven heavens). Above the seventh heaven there is a sea, the distance between whose surface and bottom is like that between one heaven and the next. Above that there are eight mountain goats the distance between whose hoofs and haunches is like the distance between one heaven and the next. Then Allah, the Blessed and the Exalted, is above that.}}

Ignoring the giant mountain goats which are never mentioned in the Qur'an itself, the outermost heaven lies beneath a sea that is as deep as the distances between adjacent heavens. That Allah’s “throne” is above such waters is mentioned in the Qur'an as well as the hadith.

{{Quote|{{Quran|11|7}}|He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in six Days - and His Throne was over the waters - that He might try you, which of you is best in conduct. But if thou wert to say to them, "Ye shall indeed be raised up after death", the Unbelievers would be sure to say, "This is nothing but obvious sorcery!"}}

There are however no mentions of galaxies, quasars, galaxy clusters or empty space. Simply water, a throne, and Allah himself.

Additional details concerning the individual heavens are found in the accounts of Muhammad’s “night journey.” Rather than quoting at length, readers are referred to {{Bukhari|9|93|608}} for the long version. But here are the key points.

Each of the seven heavens is populated by multiple angels and a few other folks as well. These heavens are entered through doors in the solid domes, each with an angelic guard and each populated by a resident prophet. For example, immediately above the dome of the first heaven is where Muhammad met Adam, and discovered (in the absence of true geographic knowledge) the sources of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. The second heaven is the home of the Prophet Idris. Aaron is in the fourth heaven, Abraham the sixth, and Moses the seventh.

===The stars, the sun, and the moon===

The stars are inside the closest heaven, as the Qur'an is quite explicit on this point.

{{Quote|{{Quran|37|6}}|We have indeed decked the lower heaven with beauty (in) the stars.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|41|12}}|So He completed them as seven firmaments in two Days, and He assigned to each heaven its duty and command. And We adorned the lower heaven with lights, and (provided it) with guard. Such is the Decree of (Him) the Exalted in Might, Full of Knowledge.}}

The sun and moon are a bit more ambiguous, as all we know is that they are in the heavens, and not explicitly inside the lowest of them.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|15|16}}|See ye not how Allah hath created seven heavens in harmony, And hath made the moon a light therein, and made the sun a lamp?}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|2}}|Allah is He Who raised the heavens without any pillars that ye can see; is firmly established on the throne (of authority); He has subjected the sun and the moon (to his Law)! Each one runs (its course) for a term appointed. He doth regulate all affairs, explaining the signs in detail, that ye may believe with certainty in the meeting with your Lord.}}

These two lights, as well as the night and day float in a circuitous course/sphere/hemisphere (a falak).

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|33}}|It is He Who created the Night and the Day, and the sun and the moon: all (the celestial bodies) swim along, each in its rounded course.}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|36|40}}|It is not permitted to the Sun to catch up the Moon, nor can the Night outstrip the Day: Each (just) swims along in (its own) orbit (according to Law).}}

And at the end of their daily paths across the sky, the sun (and presumably also the moon and stars) pass through the earth’s flat surface near the far Western edge using openings filled with water.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|86}}|Until, when he reached the setting of the sun, he found it set in a spring of murky water: Near it he found a People: We said: "O Zul-qarnain! (thou hast authority,) either to punish them, or to treat them with kindness."}}

Once out of view of the humans that populate the top of the earthly disc, their motion stops, and they rest for the night in particular resting places.

{{Quote|{{Quran|36|38}}|And the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise.}}

At some point during the night, however (and here again turning to the hadith for details) the sun must negotiate its return the next day with a direct appeal for Allah’s permission.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|1|297}}|It is narrated on the authority of Abu Dharr that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) one day said:

Do you know where the sun goes? They replied: Allah and His Apostle know best. He (the Holy Prophet) observed: Verily it (the sun) glides till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it falls prostrate and remains there until it is asked: Rise up and go to the place whence you came, and it goes back and continues '''emerging out from its rising place''' and then glides till it reaches '''its place of rest''' under the Throne and falls prostrate and remains in that state until it is asked: Rise up and return to the place whence you came, and it returns and emerges out from it rising place and the it glides (in such a normal way) that the people do not discern anything ( unusual in it) till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it would be said to it: Rise up and '''emerge out from the place of your setting''', and it will rise from the place of its setting. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said. Do you know when it would happen? It would happen at the time when faith will not benefit one who has not previously believed or has derived no good from the faith.}}

The hadith also occurs in {{Bukhari|4|54|421}} (note that Khan inaccurately translates maghribiki here as "the west" instead of "your setting place") where it is presented as the interpretation of {{Quran|36|38}} quoted above.

With permission to rise received, the sun passes back through the flat earth near its Eastern edge to commence the next day. While no “muddy pools” are specifically mentioned for the sunrise, the description of people living nearby the exit point mirrors the description of the [[Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring - Part One|place where the sun set]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|90}}|Until, when he came to the rising of the sun, he found it rising on a people for whom We had provided no covering protection against the sun.}}

===Solar and lunar eclipses===

The Qur'an demonstrates no understanding whatsoever of eclipses. Perhaps this is understandable. The hadith claim that Muhammad only experienced one solar eclipse during his lifetime, an experience which frightened him into a spectacular act of piety. But the Qur'an only makes a single reference to eclipses, and that is a lunar eclipse that will take place at the end of the world.

In fact, the Qur'an actually makes a statement that would conceivably make eclipses impossible.

{{Quote|{{Quran|36|40}}|It is not permitted to the Sun to catch up the Moon, nor can the Night outstrip the Day: Each (just) swims along in (its own) orbit (according to Law).}}

For a solar eclipse to occur however, the sun and the moon actually must (from the perspective of the earth) "catch up" to each other in their "orbits." But since the moon itself is not visible at that time, the authors of the Qur'an never noticed this.

But then, when discussing the end of time the Qur'an assumes that a lunar eclipse (which can only occur when the sun and moon are on opposite sides of the earth) can occur at the same time that the sun and moon finally do “catch up” to each other.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|75|6|end=9|style=ref}}|He asketh: “When will be this Day of Resurrection?” But when sight is confounded And the moon is eclipsed And sun and moon are united,}}

The “uniting” of the sun and the moon not only demonstrates a singular instance when they do “catch up” with each other, but suggests that its author assumed the common perception that the sun and moon are of comparable size and distance.

===The stars, planets, and meteors===

It is not obvious from the [[Mistranslations of Islamic Scripture (English)|translations]] of the Qur'an that the authors of the Qur'an actually distinguished between stars and planets, as the same word is often translated to mean either. But as ancient peoples generally knew that planets were different from ordinary stars (they moved) it is a safe assumption that the earliest Muslims were equally aware.

But the mistaken (if understandable) belief that stars are very small nearby objects is not merely reflected in the placement of them inside the nearest heaven. As with most other ancient people, the authors of the Qur'an believed that meteors literally were “falling stars.” [[Mistranslations_of_Islamic_Scripture_(English)#.2867:5.29_Shooting_stars|Verse 67:5]] tells us they are weapons against devils and jinn.

{{Quote|{{Quran|67|5}}|And we have, (from of old), adorned the lowest heaven with Lamps, and We have made such (Lamps) (as) missiles to drive away the Evil Ones, and have prepared for them the Penalty of the Blazing Fire.}}

This appears to be part of the protective role of the heavens.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|72|8|9}}|And we have sought [to reach] the heaven but found it filled with powerful guards and burning flames. And we used to sit therein in positions for hearing, but whoever listens now will find a burning flame lying in wait for him.}}

===The throne (''<nowiki/>'arsh'') of Allah===

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri note that Allah seems to reside in the Qur'anic heaven, while his footstool (kursi) extends over the heavens and earth and his throne (arshi) is carried by angels ({{Quran|39|75}} and {{Quran|40|7}}). This is very much similar to the Judeo-Christian view.<ref>Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' pp. 208-210</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|67|16-17}}|Have ye taken security from Him Who is in the heaven that He will not cause the earth to swallow you when lo! it is convulsed? Or have ye taken security from Him Who is in the heaven that He will not let loose on you a hurricane? But ye shall know the manner of My warning.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|255}}|[...] His Throne doth extend over the heavens and the earth [...]}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|40|7}}|Those who bear the Throne, and all who are round about it, hymn the praises of their Lord [...]}}

===The locations of Heaven and Hell===

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri observe that for the Qur'an, there is almost no reference to what is beneath the earth, except as no more than a geographic location. There is no concept of an underworld, unlike Mesopotamian mythologies, as well as those of Egypt and Greece.<ref>Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 212</ref>

The Qur'an repeatedly described [[Jannah (Paradise)]] as comprising "Gardens from beneath which the rivers flow". Though not reflected in English translations, in every instance the definite article is used i.e. "the rivers". This is also noted by Tommaso Tesei, who has detailed how "sources confirm that during late antiquity it was widely held that paradise was a physical place situated on the other side of the ocean encircling the Earth. In accordance with this concept, it was generally assumed that the rivers flowing from paradise passed under this ocean to reach the inhabited part of the world." A notion of four rivers following a subterranean course from paradise into the inhabited world also occurs in contemporary near eastern and Syriac sources.<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. [https://www.academia.edu/12761000/_Some_Cosmological_Notions_from_Late_Antiquity_in_Q_18_60_65_The_Quran_in_Light_of_Its_Cultural_Context_._Journal_of_the_American_Oriental_Society_135.1_2015_19-32 Some Cosmological Notions from Late Antiquity in Q 18:60–65: The Quran in Light of Its Cultural Context.] Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. 135, no. 1, American Oriental Society, 2015, pp. 19–32, https://doi.org/10.7817/jameroriesoci.135.1.19.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|5|85}}|So Allah rewarded them for what they said with gardens [in Paradise] beneath which rivers flow, wherein they abide eternally. And that is the reward of doers of good.}}

The concept also appears in numerous sahih hadiths about Muhammad's night journey which mention the Nile and Euphrates, for example:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|69|514}}|The Prophet (ﷺ) added:

I was raised to the Lote Tree and saw four rivers, two of which were coming out and two going in. Those which were coming out were the Nile and the Euphrates, and those which were going in were two rivers in paradise. Then I was given three bowls, one containing milk, and another containing honey, and a third containing wine. I took the bowl containing milk and drank it. It was said to me, "You and your followers will be on the right path (of Islam)."
}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|93|608}}|[...]The Prophet (ﷺ) met Adam over the nearest Heaven. Gabriel said to the Prophet, "He is your father; greet him." The Prophet (ﷺ) greeted him and Adam returned his greeting and said, "Welcome, O my Son! O what a good son you are!" Behold, he saw two flowing rivers, while he was in the nearest sky. He asked, "What are these two rivers, O Gabriel?" Gabriel said, "These are the sources of the Nile and the Euphrates."[...]}}

Later Islamic cosmology takes a perfectly prosaic position in terms of Paradise and [[Hell]], and places them firmly within the cosmos that consists of the heavens and the earth. This is discussed with many narrations in an article on the Islamqa.info website.<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-is-paradise-and-where-is-hell Where is Paradise and where is Hell?] - IslamQA.info</ref> The description of Muhammad’s “night journey” shows each of the seven heavens already populated with the departed prophets in Paradise. This is consistent with the Qur'anic description of the size of Paradise.

{{Quote|{{Quran|3|133}}|Be quick in the race for forgiveness from your Lord, and for a Garden whose width is that (of the whole) of the heavens and of the earth, prepared for the righteous,-}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|21}}|Be ye foremost (in seeking) Forgiveness from your Lord, and a Garden (of Bliss), the width whereof is as the width of heaven and earth, prepared for those who believe in Allah and His messengers: that is the Grace of Allah, which He bestows on whom he pleases: and Allah is the Lord of Grace abounding.}}

If the heavens (to include the seventh and largest) are already populated with denizens of Paradise, the width of Paradise would be precisely that of heaven and earth.

And since Paradise is on the other side of the first heaven, it might seem reasonable that Hell is at the level of the lowest earth, as appears in hadith. This is consistent with Qur'anic descriptions of hell as being a completely enclosed place.

{{Quote|{{Quran|7|41}}|For them there is Hell, as a couch (below) and folds and folds of covering above: such is Our requital of those who do wrong.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|49}}|Among them is (many) a man who says: "Grant me exemption and draw me not into trial." Have they not fallen into trial already? and indeed Hell surrounds the Unbelievers (on all sides).}}

The direction of hell on the day of judgement or from the perspective of those in paradise at least, when it is mentioned, is invariably “down.”

{{Quote|{{Quran|52|13}}|That Day shall they be thrust down to the Fire of Hell, irresistibly.}}

And in yet another reference, an observer is directed to “look down” in order to witness a denizen of hell.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|37|54|end=55|style=ref}}|(A voice) said: "Would ye like to look down?"
He looked down and saw him in the midst of the Fire.}}

And so, we have the Islamic Universe in completion.

==See also==

[[ru:Коранический_взгляд_на_Вселенную]]

*[[Cosmology]]

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Cosmology]]
[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Qur'an]]

Cosmology of the Quran

2022-01-04T22:19:27Z

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'''The Qur'anic universe''' comprises "the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them". Many verses expand on the various elements of this scheme, without going into great detail. Overall, a picture emerges of a flat earth (and perhaps seven of these), above which are seven heavenly firmaments of uncertain shape (commonly assumed to be domed; more recently some historians have argued that the Qur'anic heavens are flat) and held up by invisible pillars. Lamps adorn the lowest of these heavens. The sun and moon circulate in them in a partly ambiguous manner. Allah resides in heaven above the creation, sitting on a throne. Academic work has situated this picture within the context of earlier Mesopotamian and Biblical cosmological concepts, while noting its own distinctive identity.

Relatively few modern academics have made dedicated attempts to piece together the cosmography of the Quran, in whole or in part. The most comprehensive such survey has been conducted by Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri of Tehran University in 2016 (which can be read for free using a jstor.org monthly free article allowance).<ref>{{citation |last1=Tabatabaʾi |first1=Mohammad A. |last2=Mirsadri |first2=Saida |date=2016 |title=The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24811784 |journal=Arabica |volume=63 |issue=3/4 |pages=201-234}} also available on [https://www.academia.edu/23427168/The_Quranic_Cosmology_as_an_Identity_in_Itself academia.edu]</ref> They note that the new movement in the field commenced with Kevin van Bladel's work regarding individual elements of the picture in the context of the journeys of Dhu'l Qarnayn<ref name="vanBladelLegend">Van Bladel, Kevin, “The Alexander legend in the Qur‘an 18:83-102″, In The Qur’ān in Its Historical Context, Ed. Gabriel Said Reynolds, New York: Routledge, 2007</ref> and the heavenly cords (asbab) by which he traversed the world, and which, for example, Pharaoh attempted to reach by building a tower<ref name="vanBladelCords">{{citation|last1=van Bladel |first1=Kevin |date=2007 |title=Heavenly cords and prophetic authority in the Qur’an and its Late Antique context |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40379198 |journal=Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies |volume=70 |issue=2 |pages=223-246 |doi= |access-date=25 April 2021}}</ref>.

By taking the Quranic descriptions in their own right and in the context of the more ancient cosmologies of Babylon and the Bible, but without appeal to later works of tafsir or hadith, which show the influence of Hellenistic (Greek) ideas acquired by the Muslims after the advent of Islam, Tabataba'i and Mirsadri argue that in various ways the Quranic cosmology has its own distinctive characteristics as well as inherited concepts, just as it interacts with the ideologies of its environment, taking some things and rejecting others. Their observations in particular are regularly cited in this article.

==Cosmology of the Quran==

===The heavens and the Earth===

Any accounting of the cosmology of the Qur'an must begin with the fact that the Islamic universe is extremely simple. It consists entirely of three components: "the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them" (see for example {{Quran|50|38}}), the latter of which contains such things as clouds ({{Quran|2|164}}) and birds ({{Quran|24|41}}). More often, just the heavens and earth are shorthand for the entirety of creation.

{{Quote|{{Quran|31|26}}|To Allah belong all things in heaven and earth: verily Allah is He (that is) free of all wants, worthy of all praise.}}

There is no indication of any of the other features of the universe that modern peoples take for granted. There is no concept of solar systems, of galaxies, or of “space.” There is no hint that the earth is a planet like the other planets visible from it, or that stars are other suns, just very far away. Qur'anic cosmology is primarily limited to that which is visible to the naked eye, and where it goes beyond this, [[Scientific Errors in the Quran|invariably strays]] from what has been learned by scientific investigation.

The fundamental status of the “heavens and the earth” as the two main components of [[creation]] is emphasized repeatedly in the Qur'an, and it is the “separation” of the two that stands as the initial creative act of [[Allah]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|30}}|Do not the Unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of creation), before we clove them asunder? We made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe?}}

Additionally, the Qur'an is clear that when Allah created the heavens and the earth, the earth came first.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|41|9|end=12|style=ref}}|Say (O Muhammad, unto the idolaters): Disbelieve ye verily in Him Who created the earth in two Days, and ascribe ye unto Him rivals? He (and none else) is the Lord of the Worlds. He placed therein firm hills rising above it, and blessed it and measured therein its sustenance in four Days, alike for (all) who ask; Then turned He to the heaven when it was smoke, and said unto it and unto the earth: Come both of you, willingly or loth. They said: We come, obedient. Then He ordained them seven heavens in two Days and inspired in each heaven its mandate; and We decked the nether heaven with lamps, and rendered it inviolable. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Knower.}}

And

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}|He it is Who created for you all that is in the earth. Then turned He to the heaven, and fashioned it as seven heavens. And He is knower of all things.}}

===The Earth and its waters===

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri note that the Qur'an "takes for granted" the flatness of the earth, a common motif among the scientifically naive people at that time, while it has "not even one hint of a spherical earth"<ref>Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 211</ref> Meanwhile, certain Christian scholars of the 6th century influenced by the ancient Greeks, in dispute with their counterparts in the east, believed in its sphericity, as noted by van Bladel<ref>Van Bladel, Kevin, ''Heavenly cords and prophetic authority in the Qur’an and its Late Antique context'' pp. 224-226</ref>). Damien Janos in another paper on Qur'anic cosmography has similarly noted that while the exact shape of its boundaries are not described, "what is clear is that the Qurʾān and the early Muslim tradition do not uphold the conception of a spherical earth and a spherical universe. This was a view that later prevailed in the learned circles of Muslim society as a result of the infiltration of Ptolemaic astronomy".<ref>{{citation |last1=Janos |first1=Damien |date=2012 |title=Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective: some notes on the formation of a religious wordview |journal=Religion |volume=42 |issue=2 |pages=215-231}} See pp. 217-218</ref>

Repeatedly, the Qur'an uses various Arabic terms that convey a flat earth, spread out like a carpet. For a much more comprehensive complilation of verses, see [[Islamic Views on the Shape of the Earth]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|15|19}}|And the earth We have spread out (like a carpet); set thereon mountains firm and immovable; and produced therein all kinds of things in due balance.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|71|19}}|And Allah has made the earth for you as a carpet (spread out), }}

In fact, at one point the Qur'an even emphasizes how much flatter the earth would be were it not for the mountains that disrupt the view.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|47}}|One Day We shall remove the mountains, and thou wilt see the earth as a level stretch, and We shall gather them, all together, nor shall We leave out any one of them.}}

As Tabataba'i and Mirsadri note<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 211</ref>, the mountains are heavy masses described as pegs to [[The Quran and Mountains|prevent the earth from shaking]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|16|15}}|And He has set up on the earth mountains standing firm, lest it should shake with you; and rivers and roads; that ye may guide yourselves;}}

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|78|6|7}}|Have We not made the earth as a wide expanse, And the mountains as pegs?}}

One unclear facet of Islamic cosmology is that the Qur'an likens the creation of the earth to the seven heavens:

{{Quote|{{Quran|65|12}}|Allah it is who hath created seven heavens, and of the earth the like thereof. The commandment cometh down among them slowly, that ye may know that Allah is Able to do all things, and that Allah surroundeth all things in knowledge..}}

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri observe that the plural for the earth (al ard) is never used in the Quran, though most Muslim commentators interpreted this verse to mean seven earths. Instead, they consider the verse to be likening the earth to the heavens in shape and extent (i.e. a flat expanse) as part of a broader argument in their paper that the Qur'an describes a set of seven flat, stacked heavens (see below).<ref>Ibid. pp. 211 and 221</ref>

In the hadiths, the idea of seven earths, one above the other is already apparent.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|10|3923}}|Sa'id b. Zaid reported:

I heard Allah's Apostle say: He who took a span of earth wrongly '''would be made to wear around his neck''' seven earths on the Day of Resurrection.}}

Janos notes that Sumerian incantations dated to the 1st millenium BCE mention both the seven heavens and seven earths (citing Wayne Horowitz, who translated them as "the heavens are seven, the earths are seven").<ref>Janos, ''Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective'' p. 221</ref> Tabataba'i and Mirsadri similarly note from Horowitz that this tradition was popular in the near east in first millenia BCE and CE, though also that only the seven heavens, but not seven earths found their way into the Hebrew literature.<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 209</ref>

While contrasting the Biblical view of fresh and salty waters with the two seas of certain Qur'anic verses (fresh and salty - see for example {{Quran|25|53}} and the quest of Moses to find their junction in {{Quran|18|60}}), they note another difference to the Biblical and Mesopotamian cosmologies, which is that the Qur'an does not mention an ocean encircling the flat disk of the earth.<ref>Ibid. pp. 213-214</ref>

The two seas are very much on the surface of the earth.
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|18|19|24}}|He hath loosed the two seas. They meet. There is a barrier between them. They encroach not (one upon the other). Which is it, of the favours of your Lord, that ye deny? There cometh forth from both of them the pearl and coral-stone. His are the ships displayed upon the sea, like banners.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|60}}|And [mention] when Moses said to his servant, "I will not cease [traveling] until I reach the junction of the two seas or continue for a long period."}}

===The seven heavens and their denizens===
====The shape of the heavens====
[[File:QuranicCosmographyTabatabaiMirsadri.jpg|right|thumb|175px|Illustration of Qur'anic cosmography based on the analysis of Tabataba'i and Mirsadri. Their own copyrighted illustration is available in their paper<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' pp. 217</ref> The shape of the heavens in the Qur'an is uncertain.]]

While many classical Muslim scholars, and modern academics (due to their interpretation of other ancient cosmologies) tend to assume that the Qur'anic heavens are domed, Tabataba'i and Mirsadri observe that there is no indication in the Qur'an that they touch the earth's boundaries. The sun and moon are placed in the heavens ({{Quran|71|16}} and {{Quran|78|13}}), the lowest of which are adorned with lamps {{Quran|41|12}}. Janos discusses verses {{Quran|21|30}} and {{Quran|36|40}} in which the sun and moon (as well as night and day) move in a "falak" (an ambiguous term that may have meant a circuitous course/sphere/hemisphere - see [[Geocentrism and the Quran]]), but notes that this was not considered semantically identical with the samawat, or heavens, and they were not necessarily conceived as having the same shape.<ref>Janos, ''Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective'' pp. 223-229</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}|It is He Who hath created for you all things that are on earth; Moreover His design comprehended the heavens, for He gave order and perfection to the seven firmaments; and of all things He hath perfect knowledge.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|41|12}}|So He completed them as seven firmaments in two Days, and He assigned to each heaven its duty and command.}}

The following is a summary of the arguments Tabataba'i and Mirsadri employ to argue that the Qur'anic heavens are flat:<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' pp. 218-234</ref>

*They interpret {{Quran|51|47}} ("We have built the heaven with might, and We it is Who make the vast extent (thereof).") to mean that the heavens are continually expanded, which favours a flat expanse rather than a dome (it could be added in that case that the next verse about spreading the earth, with the same grammatical form, too fits this view). They also consider that verses mentioning invisible pillars (see below) favour a flat, roof like firmament.
*Verses in which the seven heavens are likened to the earth (their interpretation of {{Quran|67|12}} mentioned above), including in terms of their width e.g. {{Quran|57|21}} "a Garden whereof the breadth is as the breadth of the heavens and the earth".
*These heavens are arranged in layers ({{Quran|67|3}}, {{Quran|71|15}}), which more obviously suggests flatness, and this word tibiqan is similar to the Babylonian tubuqati, suggesting that seven superimposed flat heavens is a belief they have in common.
*While interest in the heavens (as opposed to their contents) is largely absent from pre-Islamic poetry, the poems of Umayya ibn Abī al‐Ṣalt (d. 5 / 626) likened the heavens to seven floors one above another, and the carpet shaped earth to the uplifted heaven ("And [he] shaped the earth as a carpet then he ordained it, [the area] under the firmament [are] just like those he uplifted").
*Despite the obvious potential use of tents as an analogy for the heavens, the Qur'an does not do so. Mountains act as pegs to stabilise the earth rather than hold down a heavenly tent canopy.
*The notion of a flat sky was common in ancient Mesopotamia and the near east (as also noted by Janos, citing Horowitz<ref>Janos, ''Qurʾānic cosmography in its historical perspective'' pp. 216-217</ref>) though some scholars instead say that the universal belief of the scientifically naive peoples of the world was that it was dome shaped. Those who suppose that the pre-Islamic Arabs had a dome shaped conception due to their tent dwellings ignore the evidence that Mecca was an urban environment with flat roofs.
*They argue that the Qur'an's ideological antipathy to the Bedouins would have extended to their use of tents for pagan practices, and for this reason may have rejected any possible existing analogies with the heavens.

They note that Janos too favours a flat heavens interpretation. For him, it was enough that the Qur'anic firmament is likened to a bināʾ (structure) or saqf (roof) ({{Quran|2|22}}, {{Quran|21|32}}, {{Quran|40|64}}); They note that the word saqf originally seems to have referred to flat roofs, including in the Qur'an {{Quran|16|26}}, {{Quran|43|33}}; and arranged in layers as mentioned above - they agree with him on the strength of this latter point, though he is also open to the dome-shaped view based on tafsir sources rather than any internal evidence, while van Bladel relies mainly on pre-Qur'anic sources for his discussion of whether the Qur'anic heavens are a dome, tent or roof.<ref name="vanBladelCords" />

Further evidence that they do not mention is found in {{Quran|21|104}} and {{Quran|39|67}}, which state that the heavens will be rolled up/folded up come the day of judgement.

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|104}}|The Day when We shall roll up the heavens as a recorder rolleth up a written scroll. }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|39|67}}|No just estimate have they made of Allah, such as is due to Him: On the Day of Judgment the whole of the earth will be but His handful, and the heavens will be rolled up in His right hand: Glory to Him! High is He above the Partners they attribute to Him!}}

On the other hand, the moon, and probably the sun, are within the seven heavens according to {{Quran-range|71|15|16}}, which may lend support to [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth#Flat_Earth_in_tafsirs|the assumption shared by some of Muhammad's companions]] and [[Islamic_Views_on_the_Shape_of_the_Earth#Classical_perspectives|various classical scholars]] that the heavens are domed, given that these celestial bodies, as well as the night and day, are said to float in a falak (see above). This verse is mentioned by Tabataba'i and Mirsadri without comment on the potential difficulty.<ref>Tabataba'i and Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' pp. 215</ref> In van Bladel's analysis of the Qur'anic cosmography, the sky has gates<ref name="vanBladelCords" />, which perhaps offers a solution (in the Syriac Alexander legend, the sun passes through gates, but in a dome rather than flat sky<ref name="vanBladelLegend" />).

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|15|16}}|See ye not how Allah has created the seven heavens one above another, And made the moon a light in their midst, and made the sun as a (Glorious) Lamp?}}

====Solid firmaments and invisible pillars====

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri notice that, as with other ancient cosmologies, the Qur'anic sky/heaven is a solid object.<ref>Ibid. p. 209</ref> Unlike with the heavenly pillars in the Bible, the Qur'anic heavens are raised up by invisible pillars<ref>Ibid. pp. 216 and 220</ref> (see also {{Quran|31|10}}; Ibn Kathir in his tafsir notes two views on what is a somewhat ambiguous phrasing, as though the author was hedging his bets: "'there are pillars, but you cannot see them,' according to Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Al-Hasan, Qatadah, and several other scholars. Iyas bin Mu`awiyah said, 'The heaven is like a dome over the earth, meaning, without pillars.'"<ref>[http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Ar-Rad/Clarifying-Allahs-Perfect-Abi--- (English) Tafsir of Ibn Kathir for verse 13:2] [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=13&tAyahNo=2&tDisplay=yes&Page=2&Size=1&LanguageId=1 (Arabic) Tafsir of Ibn Kathir for verse 13:2]</ref>).

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|2}}|It is Allah who erected the heavens without pillars that you [can] see; [...]}}

They note that various verses describe the heavens as a structure or edifice with no fissures, though fragments of it may fall on the earth.

{{Quote|{{Quran|67|3}}|Who hath created seven heavens in harmony. Thou (Muhammad) canst see no fault in the Beneficent One's creation; then look again: Canst thou see any rifts?}}

And the fact that the sky/heaven is solid is shown by the concept of pieces falling and potentially injuring residents of the earth.

{{Quote|{{Quran|34|9}}|See they not what is before them and behind them, of the sky and the earth? If We wished, We could cause the earth to swallow them up, or cause a piece of the sky to fall upon them. Verily in this is a Sign for every devotee that turns to Allah (in repentance).}}

These heavens are described as strong.

{{Quote|{{Quran|78|12}}|And We have built above you seven strong (heavens)}}

In fact, they are so substantial that it is even conceivable to climb up onto them using a ladder.

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|35}}|If their spurning is hard on thy mind, yet if thou wert able to seek a tunnel in the ground or a ladder to the skies and bring them a sign,- (what good?).}}

It is a guarded roof (presumably a reference to shooting stars chasing devils in other verses):

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|32}}|And We made the sky a protected ceiling, but they, from its signs, are turning away.}}

To further expound on the nature of the seven heavens, the [[hadith]] are helpful. Here we learn the distances between each heaven, as well as what is on the other side of the furthermost.

{{Quote|{{Abu Dawud|40|4705}}|Narrated Al-Abbas ibn AbdulMuttalib: I was sitting in al-Batha with a company among whom the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) was sitting, when a cloud passed above them. The Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) looked at it and said: What do you call this?

They said: Sahab.

He said: And muzn? They said: And muzn. He said: And anan? They said: And anan. AbuDawud said: I am not quite confident about the word anan. He asked: Do you know the distance between Heaven and Earth? They replied: We do not know. He then said: The distance between them is seventy-one, seventy-two, or seventy-three years. The heaven which is above it is at a similar distance (going on till he counted seven heavens). Above the seventh heaven there is a sea, the distance between whose surface and bottom is like that between one heaven and the next. Above that there are eight mountain goats the distance between whose hoofs and haunches is like the distance between one heaven and the next. Then Allah, the Blessed and the Exalted, is above that.}}

Ignoring the giant mountain goats which are never mentioned in the Qur'an itself, the outermost heaven lies beneath a sea that is as deep as the distances between adjacent heavens. That Allah’s “throne” is above such waters is mentioned in the Qur'an as well as the hadith.

{{Quote|{{Quran|11|7}}|He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in six Days - and His Throne was over the waters - that He might try you, which of you is best in conduct. But if thou wert to say to them, "Ye shall indeed be raised up after death", the Unbelievers would be sure to say, "This is nothing but obvious sorcery!"}}

There are however no mentions of galaxies, quasars, galaxy clusters or empty space. Simply water, a throne, and Allah himself.

Additional details concerning the individual heavens are found in the accounts of Muhammad’s “night journey.” Rather than quoting at length, readers are referred to {{Bukhari|9|93|608}} for the long version. But here are the key points.

Each of the seven heavens is populated by multiple angels and a few other folks as well. These heavens are entered through doors in the solid domes, each with an angelic guard and each populated by a resident prophet. For example, immediately above the dome of the first heaven is where Muhammad met Adam, and discovered (in the absence of true geographic knowledge) the sources of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. The second heaven is the home of the Prophet Idris. Aaron is in the fourth heaven, Abraham the sixth, and Moses the seventh.

===The stars, the sun, and the moon===

The stars are inside the closest heaven, as the Qur'an is quite explicit on this point.

{{Quote|{{Quran|37|6}}|We have indeed decked the lower heaven with beauty (in) the stars.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|41|12}}|So He completed them as seven firmaments in two Days, and He assigned to each heaven its duty and command. And We adorned the lower heaven with lights, and (provided it) with guard. Such is the Decree of (Him) the Exalted in Might, Full of Knowledge.}}

The sun and moon are a bit more ambiguous, as all we know is that they are in the heavens, and not explicitly inside the lowest of them.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|71|15|16}}|See ye not how Allah hath created seven heavens in harmony, And hath made the moon a light therein, and made the sun a lamp?}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|13|2}}|Allah is He Who raised the heavens without any pillars that ye can see; is firmly established on the throne (of authority); He has subjected the sun and the moon (to his Law)! Each one runs (its course) for a term appointed. He doth regulate all affairs, explaining the signs in detail, that ye may believe with certainty in the meeting with your Lord.}}

These two lights, as well as the night and day float in a circuitous course/sphere/hemisphere (a falak).

{{Quote|{{Quran|21|33}}|It is He Who created the Night and the Day, and the sun and the moon: all (the celestial bodies) swim along, each in its rounded course.}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|36|40}}|It is not permitted to the Sun to catch up the Moon, nor can the Night outstrip the Day: Each (just) swims along in (its own) orbit (according to Law).}}

And at the end of their daily paths across the sky, the sun (and presumably also the moon and stars) pass through the earth’s flat surface near the far Western edge using openings filled with water.

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|86}}|Until, when he reached the setting of the sun, he found it set in a spring of murky water: Near it he found a People: We said: "O Zul-qarnain! (thou hast authority,) either to punish them, or to treat them with kindness."}}

Once out of view of the humans that populate the top of the earthly disc, their motion stops, and they rest for the night in particular resting places.

{{Quote|{{Quran|36|38}}|And the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise.}}

At some point during the night, however (and here again turning to the hadith for details) the sun must negotiate its return the next day with a direct appeal for Allah’s permission.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|1|297}}|It is narrated on the authority of Abu Dharr that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) one day said:

Do you know where the sun goes? They replied: Allah and His Apostle know best. He (the Holy Prophet) observed: Verily it (the sun) glides till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it falls prostrate and remains there until it is asked: Rise up and go to the place whence you came, and it goes back and continues '''emerging out from its rising place''' and then glides till it reaches '''its place of rest''' under the Throne and falls prostrate and remains in that state until it is asked: Rise up and return to the place whence you came, and it returns and emerges out from it rising place and the it glides (in such a normal way) that the people do not discern anything ( unusual in it) till it reaches its resting place under the Throne. Then it would be said to it: Rise up and '''emerge out from the place of your setting''', and it will rise from the place of its setting. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said. Do you know when it would happen? It would happen at the time when faith will not benefit one who has not previously believed or has derived no good from the faith.}}

The hadith also occurs in {{Bukhari|4|54|421}} (note that Khan inaccurately translates maghribiki here as "the west" instead of "your setting place") where it is presented as the interpretation of {{Quran|36|38}} quoted above.

With permission to rise received, the sun passes back through the flat earth near its Eastern edge to commence the next day. While no “muddy pools” are specifically mentioned for the sunrise, the description of people living nearby the exit point mirrors the description of the [[Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring - Part One|place where the sun set]].

{{Quote|{{Quran|18|90}}|Until, when he came to the rising of the sun, he found it rising on a people for whom We had provided no covering protection against the sun.}}

===Solar and lunar eclipses===

The Qur'an demonstrates no understanding whatsoever of eclipses. Perhaps this is understandable. The hadith claim that Muhammad only experienced one solar eclipse during his lifetime, an experience which frightened him into a spectacular act of piety. But the Qur'an only makes a single reference to eclipses, and that is a lunar eclipse that will take place at the end of the world.

In fact, the Qur'an actually makes a statement that would conceivably make eclipses impossible.

{{Quote|{{Quran|36|40}}|It is not permitted to the Sun to catch up the Moon, nor can the Night outstrip the Day: Each (just) swims along in (its own) orbit (according to Law).}}

For a solar eclipse to occur however, the sun and the moon actually must (from the perspective of the earth) "catch up" to each other in their "orbits." But since the moon itself is not visible at that time, the authors of the Qur'an never noticed this.

But then, when discussing the end of time the Qur'an assumes that a lunar eclipse (which can only occur when the sun and moon are on opposite sides of the earth) can occur at the same time that the sun and moon finally do “catch up” to each other.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|75|6|end=9|style=ref}}|He asketh: “When will be this Day of Resurrection?” But when sight is confounded And the moon is eclipsed And sun and moon are united,}}

The “uniting” of the sun and the moon not only demonstrate a singular instance when they do “catch up” with each other, but suggests that its author assumed the common perception that the sun and moon are of comparable size and distance.

===The stars, planets, and meteors===

It is not obvious from the [[Mistranslations of Islamic Scripture (English)|translations]] of the Qur'an that the authors of the Qur'an actually distinguished between stars and planets, as the same word is often translated to mean either. But as ancient peoples generally knew that planets were different from ordinary stars (they moved) it is a safe assumption that the earliest Muslims were equally aware.

But the mistaken (if understandable) belief that stars are very small nearby objects is not merely reflected in the placement of them inside the nearest heaven. As with most other ancient people, the authors of the Qur'an believed that meteors literally were “falling stars.” [[Mistranslations_of_Islamic_Scripture_(English)#.2867:5.29_Shooting_stars|Verse 67:5]] tells us they are weapons against devils and jinn.

{{Quote|{{Quran|67|5}}|And we have, (from of old), adorned the lowest heaven with Lamps, and We have made such (Lamps) (as) missiles to drive away the Evil Ones, and have prepared for them the Penalty of the Blazing Fire.}}

This appears to be part of the protective role of the heavens.

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|72|8|9}}|And we have sought [to reach] the heaven but found it filled with powerful guards and burning flames. And we used to sit therein in positions for hearing, but whoever listens now will find a burning flame lying in wait for him.}}

===The throne (''<nowiki/>'arsh'') of Allah===

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri note that Allah seems to reside in the Qur'anic heaven, while his footstool (kursi) extends over the heavens and earth and his throne (arshi) is carried by angels ({{Quran|39|75}} and {{Quran|40|7}}). This is very much similar to the Judeo-Christian view.<ref>Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' pp. 208-210</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran-range|67|16-17}}|Have ye taken security from Him Who is in the heaven that He will not cause the earth to swallow you when lo! it is convulsed? Or have ye taken security from Him Who is in the heaven that He will not let loose on you a hurricane? But ye shall know the manner of My warning.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|2|255}}|[...] His Throne doth extend over the heavens and the earth [...]}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|40|7}}|Those who bear the Throne, and all who are round about it, hymn the praises of their Lord [...]}}

===The locations of Heaven and Hell===

Tabataba'i and Mirsadri observe that for the Qur'an, there is almost no reference to what is beneath the earth, except as no more than a geographic location. There is no concept of an underworld, unlike Mesopotamian mythologies, as well as those of Egypt and Greece.<ref>Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 212</ref>

The Qur'an repeatedly described [[Jannah (Paradise)]] as comprising "Gardens from beneath which the rivers flow". Though not reflected in English translations, in every instance the definite article is used i.e. "the rivers". This is also noted by Tommaso Tesei, who has detailed how "sources confirm that during late antiquity it was widely held that paradise was a physical place situated on the other side of the ocean encircling the Earth. In accordance with this concept, it was generally assumed that the rivers flowing from paradise passed under this ocean to reach the inhabited part of the world." A notion of four rivers following a subterranean course from paradise into the inhabited world also occurs in contemporary near eastern and Syriac sources.<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. [https://www.academia.edu/12761000/_Some_Cosmological_Notions_from_Late_Antiquity_in_Q_18_60_65_The_Quran_in_Light_of_Its_Cultural_Context_._Journal_of_the_American_Oriental_Society_135.1_2015_19-32 Some Cosmological Notions from Late Antiquity in Q 18:60–65: The Quran in Light of Its Cultural Context.] Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. 135, no. 1, American Oriental Society, 2015, pp. 19–32, https://doi.org/10.7817/jameroriesoci.135.1.19.</ref>

{{Quote|{{Quran|5|85}}|So Allah rewarded them for what they said with gardens [in Paradise] beneath which rivers flow, wherein they abide eternally. And that is the reward of doers of good.}}

The concept also appears in numerous sahih hadiths about Muhammad's night journey which mention the Nile and Euphrates, for example:

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|69|514}}|The Prophet (ﷺ) added:

I was raised to the Lote Tree and saw four rivers, two of which were coming out and two going in. Those which were coming out were the Nile and the Euphrates, and those which were going in were two rivers in paradise. Then I was given three bowls, one containing milk, and another containing honey, and a third containing wine. I took the bowl containing milk and drank it. It was said to me, "You and your followers will be on the right path (of Islam)."
}}

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|9|93|608}}|[...]The Prophet (ﷺ) met Adam over the nearest Heaven. Gabriel said to the Prophet, "He is your father; greet him." The Prophet (ﷺ) greeted him and Adam returned his greeting and said, "Welcome, O my Son! O what a good son you are!" Behold, he saw two flowing rivers, while he was in the nearest sky. He asked, "What are these two rivers, O Gabriel?" Gabriel said, "These are the sources of the Nile and the Euphrates."[...]}}

Later Islamic cosmology takes a perfectly prosaic position in terms of Paradise and [[Hell]], and places them firmly within the cosmos that consists of the heavens and the earth. This is discussed with many narrations in an article on the Islamqa.info website.<ref>[https://islamqa.info/en/answers/215011/where-is-paradise-and-where-is-hell Where is Paradise and where is Hell?] - IslamQA.info</ref> The description of Muhammad’s “night journey” shows each of the seven heavens already populated with the departed prophets in Paradise. This is consistent with the Qur'anic description of the size of Paradise.

{{Quote|{{Quran|3|133}}|Be quick in the race for forgiveness from your Lord, and for a Garden whose width is that (of the whole) of the heavens and of the earth, prepared for the righteous,-}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|57|21}}|Be ye foremost (in seeking) Forgiveness from your Lord, and a Garden (of Bliss), the width whereof is as the width of heaven and earth, prepared for those who believe in Allah and His messengers: that is the Grace of Allah, which He bestows on whom he pleases: and Allah is the Lord of Grace abounding.}}

If the heavens (to include the seventh and largest) are already populated with denizens of Paradise, the width of Paradise would be precisely that of heaven and earth.

And since Paradise is on the other side of the first heaven, it might seem reasonable that Hell is at the level of the lowest earth, as appears in hadith. This is consistent with Qur'anic descriptions of hell as being a completely enclosed place.

{{Quote|{{Quran|7|41}}|For them there is Hell, as a couch (below) and folds and folds of covering above: such is Our requital of those who do wrong.}}

{{Quote|{{Quran|9|49}}|Among them is (many) a man who says: "Grant me exemption and draw me not into trial." Have they not fallen into trial already? and indeed Hell surrounds the Unbelievers (on all sides).}}

The direction of hell on the day of judgement or from the perspective of those in paradise at least, when it is mentioned, is invariably “down.”

{{Quote|{{Quran|52|13}}|That Day shall they be thrust down to the Fire of Hell, irresistibly.}}

And in yet another reference, an observer is directed to “look down” in order to witness a denizen of hell.

{{Quote|{{cite quran|37|54|end=55|style=ref}}|(A voice) said: "Would ye like to look down?"
He looked down and saw him in the midst of the Fire.}}

And so, we have the Islamic Universe in completion.

==See also==

[[ru:Коранический_взгляд_на_Вселенную]]

*[[Cosmology]]

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Cosmology]]
[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Qur'an]]

Child Marriage in Islamic Law

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{{QualityScore|Lead=4|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=4|References=3}}[[File:Child marriage.jpg|thumb|Ghulan Haider, 11, married Faiz Mohammed, age 40. She hoped to become a teacher but was forced to quit her classes upon engagement. Image from the ''New York Times Magazine''.]]'''Child marriage''' '''and''' '''sexual activity between adults and children''' are sanctioned by [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)|Islamic law]] and were practiced by [[Muhammad]] and his [[Sahabah|companions]]. As is the case within all contexts where sexual activity ''is'' ''permitted'' in Islam - namely, [[marriage]] and [[slavery]] - [[Islam and Women|female]] [[Rape in Islamic Law|consent is not required]] and the category of "rape" does not exist (even while the category of "rape" exists outside these contexts). The only restriction on sexual activity with children of any age within the contexts of marriage and slavery is that the child should not come to severe physical harm as a consequence of the encounter ("mental anguish", as such, is not considered, and consent is regardless irrelevant). Consequently, men are advised to avoid vaginal penetration with their child wives and female slaves if they are too small to endure such activity, although other forms of sexual activity with such children are permitted. "[[Thighing]]", explicitly discussed by Islamic jurists, is one such variety of alternative sexual activity that men may engage in with their child wives and female slaves if they are too small to endure penetration.
==In scripture==
===Child marriage in the Quran===
{{Main|Child Marriage in the Qur'an}}The Qur'an permits child marriage. Verse 4 of Surah 64 provides guidelines regarding divorce a wife who has not yet menstruated. This verse refers to the ''Iddat'' (العدة‎), which is a waiting period a female must observe before she can remarry. According to this verse, the stipulated waiting period for a divorced girl who has not yet menstruated is three months.{{Quote|{{Quran|65|4}}|And (as for) those of your women who have despaired of menstruation, if you have a doubt, their prescribed time shall be three months, '''and of those too who have not had their courses'''; and (as for) the pregnant women, their prescribed time is that they lay down their burden; and whoever is careful of (his duty to) Allah He will make easy for him his affair.}}
===Muhammad's marriage to Aisha===
{{Main|Aisha's Age|3=Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Aisha}}[[Aisha]] (''‘Ā’ishah'', c. 613/614 –c. 678)<ref name="Siddiqui2">Al-Nasa'i 1997, p. 108</ref> or عائشة, (also transliterated as A'ishah, Aisyah, Ayesha, A'isha, Aishat, or Aishah) was married to [[Muhammad]] at the age of 6 or 7, and the marriage was consummated by Muhammad, then 53, at the age of 9 or 10 according to numerous [[sahih]] [[Hadith|hadiths]].<ref>Narrated Hisham's father: Khadija died three years before the Prophet (ﷺ) departed to Medina. He stayed there for two years or so and then he married `Aisha when she was a girl of six years of age, and he consumed that marriage when she was nine years old. {{Bukhari|5|58|236}}</ref><ref>Narrated 'Aisha: that the Prophet married her when she was six years old and he consummated his marriage when she was nine years old, and then she remained with him for nine years (i.e., till his death). {{Bukhari|7|62|64}}</ref><ref>'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) married me when I was six years old, and I was admitted to his house when I was nine years old. {{Muslim|8|3310}}</ref><ref>Aisha said, "The Apostle of Allah married me when I was seven years old." (The narrator Sulaiman said: "Or six years.") {{Abudawud||2116|hasan}}</ref><ref>Most sources suggest age at consummation as nine, and one that it may have been age 10; See: Denise Spellberg (1996), ''Politics, Gender, and the Islamic Past: The Legacy of 'A'isha Bint Abi Bakr'', Columbia University Press, <nowiki>ISBN 978-0231079990</nowiki>, pp. 39–40;</ref> Due to concerns about [[child marriage]] this topic is of heavy interest in modern [[Apologists|apologetic]] literature and public discourse.

Marriage at a young age was not unheard of in Arabia at the time, and Aisha's marriage to Muhammad may have had a political connotation, as her father Abu Baker was an influential man in the community.<ref>Afsaruddin, Asma (2014). "ʿĀʾisha bt. Abī Bakr". In Fleet, Kate; Krämer, Gudrun; Matringe, Denis; Nawas, John; Rowson, Everett. ''[http://referenceworks.brillonline.com/browse/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2 Encyclopaedia of Islam]'' (3 ed.). Brill Online. Retrieved 2015-01-11</ref> Abu Bakr, on his part, may have sought to further the bond of kinship between Muhammad and himself by joining their families together in marriage via Aisha. Egyptian-American Islamic scholar, Leila Ahmed, notes that Aisha's betrothal and marriage to Muhammad are presented as ordinary in Islamic literature, and may indicate that it was not unusual for children to be married to their elders in that era.<ref>Ahmed, Leila (1992). ''Women and Gender in Islam: Historical Roots of a Modern Debate''. Yale University Press. p. 51-54. <nowiki>ISBN 978-0300055832</nowiki>.</ref>
====Revisionary disputations on her age====
{{Main|Aisha's Age}}The age of Aisha was not disputed by earlier scholars but a surge of some modern Islamic scholars have made attempts to advance the idea that Aisha was older than nine lunar years at time of the consummation of her marriage to Prophet Muhammad. Sahih hadiths of Aisha's own testimonies are taken to be mistaken, and indirect sources and disputed dating techniques are used to calculate different ages. These diverse techniques have led to several conflicting ages to be proposed for Aisha at the time of consummation, including 12, 14, 15, 17, 18 and 21 years of age.

These revisionary perspectives can be broadly categorized into five categories, including those that: (1) discredit Hisham ibn Urwah and the Iraqi narrators, (2) use non-sahih information to overturn otherwise sahih hadiths, (3) use indirect evidences in preference of direct testimonies, or (4) use ‘loose' dating and aging in preference to specific dates and statements of age. These revisionary approaches are, however, generally not accepted by mainstream Islamic establishments.
====Revisionary disputations on the word "consummate"====
{{Main|The Meaning of Consummate}}In a hadith in [[Sahih Bukhari]], Aisha says that she was married to Muhammad at the age of six and that Muhammad consummated the marriage when she reached the age of nine. The implications of this and similar hadiths have recently been contested by some modern Islamic scholars who attempt to advance the idea that the verbiage used in this hadiths does not in fact refer to sexual consummation. While such a reading has no historical/linguistic or traditional precedent, it has nonetheless achieved some popularity. However, these re-readings, like those re-readings which attempt to advance a different age for Aisha, have generally not been accepted by mainstream Islamic establishments.

The terms used in the hadiths are ''udkhilath'' and ''bana biha'', and these words do not permit any meaning other than "engaged in sexual intercourse with her" in the contexts where they are used. Crucial to the facilitation of asexual re-readings of these passages are tendentious English translations (particularly those of Dr. Muhsin Khan) as well as a general and perhaps understandable unwillingness to admit that Muhammad could have slept with or [[Rape in Islamic Law|raped]] a nine year old.
===Child Marriage and Muhammad's Companions===
{{Main|Child Marriage and Muhammad's Companions|She's too young}}Due to the commonplace nature of child marriage in the 7th century (both inside and outside of Arabia), many of [[Sahabah|Muhammad's companions (sahabah)]] also engaged in child marriage. Most notable among these were [[Umar ibn Al-Khattab|Umar b. al-Khattab]] (the second [[Rashidun Caliphs|"rightly guided caliph]]"), who married Umm Kulthum when she was between 10-12 (although some sources report she was just 5<ref>"'Umar asked 'Ali for the hand of his daughter, Umm Kulthum in marriage. 'Ali replied that <nowiki>'''</nowiki>she has not yet attained the age (of maturity)<nowiki>'''</nowiki>. 'Umar replied, 'By Allah, this is not true. You do not want her to marry me. If she is underage, send her to me'. Thus 'Ali gave his daughter Umm Kulthum a dress and asked her to go to 'Umar and tell him that her father wants to know what this dress is for. When she came to Umar and gave him the message, he grabbed her hand and forcibly pulled her towards him. 'Umm Kulthum asked him to leave her hand, which Umar did and said, 'You are a very mannered lady with great morals. Go and tell your father that you are very pretty and you are not what he said of you'. With that 'Ali married Umm Kulthum to 'Umar." Tarikh Khamees, Volume 2, p. 384 ('Dhikr Umm Kalthum') and Zakhair Al-Aqba, p. 168</ref>), and [[Ali ibn Abi Talib|Ali b. Abi Talib]] (Muhammad's cousin and the fourth "rightly guided caliph"), who [[She's too young|married Fatima]] (Muhammad's daughter) at the age of 9.
==In the Muslim world today==
===Child Marriage in the Muslim World===
{{Main|Child Marriage in the Muslim World}}Due to the legality of child marriage in Islamic law, child marriages are still permitted and practiced in many Islamic countries - and where the practice is prohibited by civil law, such marriages are sometimes carried out by independent Imams who allege to be loyal to the Sharia alone. In these countries, child marriages are especially common among rural populations where girls well below the age of puberty may be wed by their guardians to older men to various ends, including the preservation of the family and girls' 'honor'.

Islamic child marriages are most common Pakistan and Afghanistan, followed by countries in the Middle East and Bangladesh.<ref>[http://www.americamagazine.org/content/article.cfm?article_id=1631 America Magazine: Child Marriage in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Andrew Bushell; March 11, 2002]</ref><ref>[http://www.americansforunfpa.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=630 Americans For UNFPA: Virtual Slavery: The Practice of “Compensation Marriages” by Net Community of AfUNFPA; last retrieved Monday, 08 December 2008]</ref> This practice may also be prevalent to a lesser extent amongst other Muslim communities, and has even been observed among the Muslim populations of non-Muslim countries, such as the United Kingdom<ref name="Ten-fold rise in forced marriages in just four years2">[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1196955/Ten-fold-rise-forced-marriages-just-years.html Ten-fold rise in forced marriages in just four years] - The Daily Mail July 2, 2009</ref> and the United States.<ref>Christine Vendel - [http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/1557578.html?pageNum=2&mi_pluck_action=page_nav#Comments_Container Man charged with statutory rape in ‘marriage’ to 14-year-old girl] - The Kansas City Star, November 8, 2009</ref>

In countries including Yemen, Bangladesh, Iran, and Northern Nigeria, attempts at reforming laws and banning child marriages have been opposed and stopped on the grounds that such a ban would be un-Islamic.<ref name="TONOV2820082">{{cite web|url= http://www.wunrn.com/news/2008/11_08/11_24_08/112408_nigeria.htm|title= Nigeria Child Brides-Broken Lives |publisher= Times Online|author= |date= November 28, 2008|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wunrn.com%2Fnews%2F2008%2F11_08%2F11_24_08%2F112408_nigeria.htm&date=2013-06-15|deadurl=no}}</ref><ref name="TNTJuly2120132">{{cite web |url= http://thenigeriatoday.net/i-could-marry-off-my-six-year-old-daughter-if-i-so-wished-senator-ahmed-yerima-replies-critics/|title= I Could Marry Off My Six Year Old Daughter If I So Wished, Senator Ahmed Yerima Replies Critics|publisher= The Nigeria Today|author= |date= July 21, 2013|archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fthenigeriatoday.net%2Fi-could-marry-off-my-six-year-old-daughter-if-i-so-wished-senator-ahmed-yerima-replies-critics%2F&date=2013-07-22|deadurl=no}}</ref><ref name="Weekly Blitz2">[http://www.weeklyblitz.net/1386/islamist-leader-threatens-of-waging-jihad Islamist leader threatens of waging Jihad] - Weekly Blitz, April 20, 2011</ref><ref name="MESSAGE2">Yessir - [{{Reference archive|1=http://www.abigmessage.com/child-marriage-death-of-13-year-old-bride-after-wedding.html|2=2011-10-25}} Child Marriage - Death Of 13 Year Old Bride After Wedding] - A BIG MESSAGE, April 10, 2010</ref><ref name="IRIN2">[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=88589|2=2011-10-25}} YEMEN: Deep divisions over child brides] - IRIN, March 28, 2010</ref> Malaysia has even passed new laws which explicitly allow for the practice of child marriages among Muslims on religious grounds.<ref name="World News Australia2">[{{Reference archive|1=http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/outcry-over-malaysian-child-marriages-20100804-11fey.html|2=2011-10-25}} Outcry over Malaysian child marriages] - Sydney Morning Herald, August 4, 2010</ref>
==Relevant quotations==
{{Main|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Child Marriage}}
===Quran and tafsir===
{{Quote|1={{Quran|65|4}}|2=And those who no longer expect menstruation among your women - if you doubt, then their period is three months, '''and [also for] those who have not menstruated.''' And for those who are pregnant, their term is until they give birth. And whoever fears Allah - He will make for him of his matter ease.}}{{quote |1=[http://www.tafsir.com/default.asp?sid=65&tid=54196 Exegesis on (Qur'an 65:4)] Tafsir Ibn Kathir |2= The `Iddah of Those in Menopause and Those Who do not have Menses Allah the Exalted clarifies the waiting period of the woman in menopause. And that is the one whose menstruation has stopped due to her older age. Her `Iddah is three months instead of the three monthly cycles for those who menstruate, which is based upon the Ayah in (Surat) Al-Baqarah. [see 2:228] '''The same for the young, who have not reached the years of menstruation.''' Their `Iddah is three months like those in menopause. This is the meaning of His saying.}}{{Quote|1=[http://altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=74&tSoraNo=65&tAyahNo=4&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0 Qur'an 65:4] Tafsir al-Jalalayn|2= And [as for] those of your women who (read allā'ī or allā'i in both instances) no longer expect to menstruate, if you have any doubts, about their waiting period, their prescribed [waiting] period shall be three months, and [also for] '''those who have not yet menstruated, because of their young age, their period shall [also] be three months''' - both cases apply to other than those whose spouses have died; for these [latter] their period is prescribed in the verse: they shall wait by themselves for four months and ten [days] [Q. 2:234]. And those who are pregnant, their term, the conclusion of their prescribed [waiting] period if divorced or if their spouses be dead, shall be when they deliver. And whoever fears God, He will make matters ease for him, in this world and in the Hereafter.}}
===Hadiths===
{{Quote|1={{Bukhari|5|58|236}}|2=Narrated Hisham's father: Khadija died three years before the Prophet departed to Medina. He stayed there for two years or so and then '''he married 'Aisha when she was a girl of six years of age, and he consumed that marriage when she was nine years old.'''}}{{Quote|1={{Bukhari|7|62|64}}|2=Narrated 'Aisha: that '''the Prophet married her when she was six years old and he consummated his marriage when she was nine years old''', and then she remained with him for nine years (i.e., till his death).}}
==See also==

*[[Aisha's Age]]

*[[Rape in Islamic Law]]

*[[She's too young]]

==External links==

*[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.sex-in-islam.com/amar.khan/Pedophilia-in-Islam.htm|2=2011-06-01}} A Complete Guide to Pedophilia in Islam]

*[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5541006|2=2011-06-01}} Photo Op: Child Brides in Afghanistan]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
[[Category:Criticism of Islam]]
[[Category:Women]]
[[Category:Marriage]]
[[Category:Shariah (Islamic Law)]]
[[Category:Human rights]]
[[Category:Health]]

Wife Beating in Islamic Law

2021-11-09T17:43:25Z

Vixen: /* Additional attempts at moderating severe beatings */

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[[File:A scene from submission.jpg|right|thumb|278px|A scene from Submission, a film about domestic violence in Islam, by Theo van Gogh.]]
Wife-beating is instructed by the the Qur'an and the Hadiths, and has been an accepted part of Islam law since its inception. {{Quran|4|34}} states that men are in charge of women and that husbands may, among other things, beat their wives if they fear disobedience. Although prophet Muhammad suggested that men not beat their wives too harshly, he at the same time provided tacit approval of wife beating by not scolding Muslims for beating their wives, referred to women who spoke-out against abuse as "not the best among you", forbade Muslims from questioning men who beat their wives, allowed others to hit his wives (his wives are known as "the Mothers of believers"), reaffirmed the command of wife-beating in his farewell sermon, and himself struck one of his wives in the chest. In addition to Muhammad's actions, three of the four Rightly-Guided Caliphs are also reported to have beaten women. Because of its many endorsements within Islamic scripture, wife-beating is permitted by the majority of Muslim scholars and leaders. This has led to domestic violence being permitted under law in several Islamic states or being largely ignored by the authorities.

==Islamic scriptures and wife-beating==
{{Main|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Wife Beating}}

===Wife-beating in the Qur'an===
====(4:34) 'Beat them'====
{{Quran|4|34}} Instructs men to beat their wives if they fear disobedience. The word 'beat' in the Arabic is ''daraba.''<ref>daraba - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume5/00000062.pdf Lane's lexicon] Book I page 1777</ref> Although a small number of modern Islamic scholars, apologists, and activists have argued that the word ''daraba'' in the verse does not mean 'beat', the overwhelming majority stand with the Islamic tradition and the unimpeachable linguistic case that is made in agreeing that 'beating' is what the verse instructs. No Arabic dictionary or serious scholar has dissented from this consensus.

Relied-upon Islamic translations of the verse present the word as having this meaning.

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|34}}|

'''Yusuf Ali translation:''' Men are the protectors and maintainers of women, because Allah has given the one more (strength) than the other, and because they support them from their means. Therefore the righteous women are devoutly obedient, and guard in (the husband's) absence what Allah would have them guard. As to those women on whose part ye fear disloyalty and ill-conduct, admonish them (first), (Next), refuse to share their beds, (And last) '''beat them''' (lightly); but if they return to obedience, seek not against them Means (of annoyance): For Allah is Most High, great (above you all).

'''Pickthall translation:''' Men are in charge of women, because Allah hath made the one of them to excel the other, and because they spend of their property (for the support of women). So good women are the obedient, guarding in secret that which Allah hath guarded. As for those from whom ye fear rebellion, admonish them and banish them to beds apart, and '''scourge them'''. Then if they obey you, seek not a way against them. Lo! Allah is ever High, Exalted, Great.

'''Shakir translation:''' Men are the maintainers of women because Allah has made some of them to excel others and because they spend out of their property; the good women are therefore obedient, guarding the unseen as Allah has guarded; and (as to) those on whose part you fear desertion, admonish them, and leave them alone in the sleeping-places and '''beat them'''; then if they obey you, do not seek a way against them; surely Allah is High, Great. )}}

{{Quran|4|34}} commands wife-beating for misconduct as well as the husband's 'fear' of such behavior. The verse provides two other disciplinary methods and implies (but does not state explicitly) that if these do not work then the husband ought to beat his wife. The verse also states that men have authority over women, and that women are to be obedient for this reason, thus establishing an authoritarian structure with the husband as head of the wife. The reason given for this is that Allah created men superior to women in some respects and because men are maintainers of women.{{quote|Qur'an 4:34|ٱلرِّجَالُ قَوَّٰمُونَ عَلَى ٱلنِّسَآءِ بِمَا فَضَّلَ ٱللَّهُ بَعْضَهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ وَبِمَآ أَنفَقُوا۟ مِنْ أَمْوَٰلِهِمْ فَٱلصَّٰلِحَٰتُ قَٰنِتَٰتٌ حَٰفِظَٰتٌ لِّلْغَيْبِ بِمَا حَفِظَ ٱللَّهُ وَٱلَّٰتِى تَخَافُونَ نُشُوزَهُنَّ فَعِظُوهُنَّ وَٱهْجُرُوهُنَّ فِى ٱلْمَضَاجِعِ '''وَٱضْرِبُوهُنَّ''' فَإِنْ أَطَعْنَكُمْ فَلَا تَبْغُوا۟ عَلَيْهِنَّ سَبِيلًا إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ عَلِيًّا كَبِيرًا

'''Transliteration:''' ''Alrrijalu qawwamoona AAala alnnisai bima faddala Allahu baAAdahum AAala baAAdin wabima anfaqoo min amwalihim faalssalihatu qanitatun hafithatun lilghaybi bima hafitha Allahu waallatee takhafoona nushoozahunna faAAithoohunna waohjuroohunna fee almadajiAAi waidriboohunna fain ataAAnakum fala tabghoo AAalayhinna sabeelan inna Allaha kana AAaliyyan kabeeran''

'''Word-by-word:''' ٱلرِّجَالُ (''ar-rijaalu'', 'men') قَوَّٰمُونَ (''qawwaamoona'', 'maintainers') عَلَى (''ala'', 'over') ٱلنِّسَآءِ (''al-nisaa'', 'women') [...] فَعِظُوهُنَّ (''fa'', 'then'; ''ithoo'', 'admonish'; ''hunna'', 'them') وَٱهْجُرُوهُنَّ (''wa'', 'and'; ''hjuroo'', 'forsake'; ''hunna'', 'them') فِى (''fi'', 'in') ٱلْمَضَاجِعِ (''al-madaji'i'', 'beds') وَٱضْرِبُوهُنَّ (''wa'', 'and'; ''driboo'', 'beat'; ''hunna'', 'them') فَإِنْ (''fa'', 'then'; ''in'', 'if') أَطَعْنَكُمْ (''ata'na'', 'they obey'; ''kum'', 'you') [...]}}

The root of the word وَٱضْرِبُوهُنَّ (''wa-driboo-hunna'') is ضرب (''d-r-b''). The letter ٱ (''alif waslah'') [[Arabic_letters_and_diacritics#Special_alif_diacritics|is not pronounced]] here, but if the word lacked the و (''-wa'', meaning 'and') prefix and was at the beginning of a passage, it would be read as ''i'', making the word ''idriboohunna'' (ٱضْرِبُوهُنَّ). Many other verses in the Quran employ verbiage derived from the same root, such as {{Quran|2|60}}, which reads '...strike (ٱضْرِب, ''drib'') the rock with your staff...', {{Quran|2|73}}, which reads '"...strike it (ٱضْرِبُوهُ, ''driboo-hu'') with a part of the cow...", and {{Quran|8|12}}, which reads '...so strike (فَٱضْرِبُوا۟, ''fa-driboo'') on their necks...'. Other examples are also present.

The word "lightly" does not appear in the original Arabic version, but is added in some translations.

====(38:44) Job beats his wife====
{{Quran|38|44}} states that the prophet Job (''Ayyub'') was commanded by Allah to beat his wife using a bundle of grass, twigs, or rushes (''dighthan''<ref>dad-ghayn-tha [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume5/00000078.pdf Lane's Lexicon] Book I page 1793</ref>).

{{Quote|{{Quran|38|44}}|[We said], "And take in your hand a bunch [of grass] '''and strike with it''' and do not break your oath." Indeed, We found him patient, an excellent servant. Indeed, he was one repeatedly turning back [to Allah].}}

Classical tafsirs such as Ibn Kathir's give the story behind the verse. The lesson to be learned is that it is better to beat your wife in a relatively unpainful, albeit humiliating way than to break an earlier oath where one promised to beat their wife (as had the prophet Job in this story).

{{Quote|1=[http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1952&Itemid=94 Ayyub] Tafsir Ibn Kathir|2=Ayyub, peace be upon him, got angry with his wife and was upset about something she had done, so he swore an oath that if Allah healed him, he would '''strike her with one hundred blows.''' When Allah healed him, how could her service, mercy, compassion and kindness be repaid with a beating So Allah showed him a way out, which was to take a bundle of thin grass, with one hundred stems, '''and hit her with it once'''. Thus he fulfilled his oath and avoided breaking his vow.}}

===Wife-beating in the hadiths===

====Muhammad striking women and tampering of the hadith English translations====
While some modern voices have denied that the Qur'an instructs wife-beating, alleging that {{Quran|4|34}} has been misinterpreted, those who admit the Islamic tradition have noted that there exist in the hadiths numerous examples, from a variety of hadith narrators and collectors, of Muhammad ordaining wife-beating and confirming the original meaning of the verse found in the Quran. There are, for instance, multiple hadiths in which Muhammad's companions beat or strike women (sometimes in his presence), as well as some, albeit conflicting evidence narrated from his wife, Aisha, regarding whether Muhammad himself used physical force against the women in his life. The best examples, perhaps, of hadiths permitting wife-beating are those in which Muhammad explicitly attempts to ''moderate'' wife-beating while nonetheless permitting it, as these have frequently been cited by dissenting modern voices and apologists themselves.

In one account found in the hadith collections, including the authoritative [[Sahih Muslim|''Sahih Muslim'']], [[Muhammad]] causes his wife [[Aisha]] physical pain by striking her in the chest. The Arabic word translated "He struck me" (فَلَهَدَنِي) is ''lahada'' , which means 'he pushed violently' or 'he struck her chest'<ref>lahada [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000204.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2676</ref>, and the word translated caused me pain (أَوْجَعَتْنِي) is awja'a meaning 'He, or it, pained him; or caused him pain, or aching'<ref>awja'a - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/045_wjE.html Lane's Lexicon]</ref>. It is important to note that the popular hadith website Sunnah.com, drastically altered this phrase from the original translations they used for the Sahih Muslim and Sunan al-Nasa'i collections, presumably to present Muhammad and Islam in a more positive light, changing it in both cases to "He gave me a nudge on the chest which I felt" - for this reason, the words provided here have been restored to the original translation of Siddique. These are what the translations say:

'''Sahih Muslim Book 4, 2127''' (Abdul Hamid Siddiqui; Sunnah.com's source translation):
He said, Was it the darkness (of your shadow) that I saw in front of me? I said, Yes. He struck me in the chest which caused me pain, and then said, Did you think that Allah and His Apostle would deal unjustly with you?

'''Sahih Muslim 974b''' (Dar-us-Salam edition translated by Nasiruddin al-Khattab, Vol. 2 p.506):
He said: "so you were the person that I saw in front of me?" I said: "Yes." He gave me a painful shove on the chest, then he said: "Did you think that Allah and His Messenger would be unjust to you?"

'''Sunan al-Nasa'i 2039''' (Dar-us-Salam edition, Vol. 3, p.127, translated by Nasiruddin al-Khattab; Sunnah.com's source translation which they altered in the same way as they did for Sahih Muslim):
He said: 'So you were the black shape that I saw in front of me?' I said, 'Yes.' He struck me on the chest, which caused we pain, then he said: 'Did you think Allah and His Messenger would deal unjustly with you?'

{{Quote|{{Muslim|4|2127}}|Muhammad b. Qais said (to the people): Should I not narrate to you (a hadith of the Holy Prophet) on my authority and on the authority of my mother? We thought that he meant the mother who had given him birth. He (Muhammad b. Qais) then reported that it was 'A'isha who had narrated this: Should I not narrate to you about myself and about the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him)? We said: Yes. She said: When it was my turn for Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) to spend the night with me, he turned his side, put on his mantle and took off his shoes and placed them near his feet, and spread the corner of his shawl on his bed and then lay down till he thought that I had gone to sleep. He took hold of his mantle slowly and put on the shoes slowly, and opened the door and went out and then closed it lightly. I covered my head, put on my veil and tightened my waist wrapper, and then went out following his steps till he reached Baqi'. He stood there and he stood for a long time. He then lifted his hands three times, and then returned and I also returned. He hastened his steps and I also hastened my steps. He ran and I too ran. He came (to the house) and I also came (to the house). I, however, preceded him and I entered (the house), and as I lay down in the bed, he (the Holy Prophet) entered the (house), and said: Why is it, O 'A'isha, that you are out of breath? I said: There is nothing. He said: Tell me or the Subtle and the Aware would inform me. I said: Messenger of Allah, may my father and mother be ransom for you, and then I told him (the whole story). He said: Was it the darkness (of your shadow) that I saw in front of me? I said: Yes. '''He struck me on the chest which caused me pain,''' and then said: Did you think that Allah and His Apostle would deal unjustly with you? She said: Whatsoever the people conceal, Allah will know it. He said: Gabriel came to me when you saw me. He called me and he concealed it from you. I responded to his call, but I too concealed it from you (for he did not come to you), as you were not fully dressed. I thought that you had gone to sleep, and I did not like to awaken you, fearing that you may be frightened. He (Gabriel) said: Your Lord has commanded you to go to the inhabitants of Baqi' (to those lying in the graves) and beg pardon for them. I said: Messenger of Allah, how should I pray for them (How should I beg forgiveness for them)? He said: Say, Peace be upon the inhabitants of this city (graveyard) from among the Believers and the Muslims, and may Allah have mercy on those who have gone ahead of us, and those who come later on, and we shall, God willing, join you.}}

By contrast, there exists a hadith in [[Sunan Abu Dawud|''Sunan Abu Dawud'']] which reports Aisha saying that Muhammad never hit (''daraba'') a woman. While it is not at all uncommon to find contradictions in the hadith literature, Aisha here may have either generously or inadvertently disregarded the time when Muhammad pushed / struck her painfully in the chest, as reported in the Sahih Muslim hadith above, assuming both are authentic (as Islamic scholars hold them to be).

{{Quote|1=[http://sunnah.com/abudawud/43/14 AbuDawud 42:4768]|2=`A’isha said: the Messenger of Allah (saws) never struck a servant or a woman.
 Grade: Sahih (Al-Albani)}}

====Muhammad's companions striking women====
Multiple hadiths in the authoritative ''[[Sahih Bukhari]]'' report that Abu Bakr (the first Rightly-Guided [[Caliph]] of Islam and Muhammad's best friend) also struck (his daughter) Aisha violently with his fist.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|8|82|828}}, See also: {{Bukhari|1|7|330}} and {{Bukhari|6|60|132}}|Narrated Aisha: Abu Bakr came to towards me and '''struck me violently with his fist''' and said, "You have detained the people because of your necklace." But I remained motionless as if I was dead lest I should awake Allah's Apostle although '''that hit was very painful.'''}}

In another hadith found in ''Sahih Muslim'', Abu Bakr informs Muhammad that he slapped [[Khadijah|Khadijah’s]] daughter, and Muhammad responds by laughing and tells Abu Bakr his wives are asking him for more money. Abu Bakr and Umar (the second Rightly-Guided Caliph of Islam and Muhammad's other best friend) respond by slapping [[Muhammad's Marriages|Muhammad's wives]], Hafsa and (for the third time) Aisha.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|9|3506}}|Jabir b. 'Abdullah (Allah be pleased with them) reported:
Abu Bakr (Allah be pleased with him) came and sought permission to see Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him). He found people sitting at his door and none amongst them had been granted permission, but it was granted to Abu Bakr and he went in. Then came 'Umar and he sought permission and it was granted to him, and he found Allah's Apostle (peace be upon him) sitting sad and silent with his wives around him. He (Hadrat 'Umar) said: I would say something which would make the Prophet (peace be upon him) laugh, so he said: Messenger of Allah, I wish you had seen (the treatment meted out to) the daughter of Khadija when you asked me some money, and '''I got up and slapped her on her neck. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) laughed''' and said: They are around me as you see, asking for extra money. Abu Bakr (Allah be pleased with him) then got up '''went to 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) and slapped her on the neck''', and 'Umar '''stood up before Hafsa and slapped''' her saying: You ask Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) which he does not possess. They said: By Allah, we do not ask Allah's Messenger peace be upon him) for anything he does not possess. Then he withdrew from them for a month or for twenty-nine days. Then this verse was revealed to him:" Prophet: Say to thy wives... for a mighty reward" (xxxiii. 28). He then went first to 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) and said: I want to propound something to you, 'A'isha, but wish no hasty reply before you consult your parents. She said: Messenger of Allah, what is that? He (the Holy Prophet) recited to her the verse, whereupon she said: Is it about you that I should consult my parents, Messenger of Allah? Nay, I choose Allah, His Messenger, and the Last Abode; but I ask you not to tell any of your wives what I have said He replied: Not one of them will ask me without my informing her. God did not send me to be harsh, or cause harm, but He has sent me to teach and make things easy.}}

In yet another hadith, Ali (the fourth Rightly-Guided Caliph of Islam as well as Muhammad's cousin, foster-son, and son-in-law) gives a [[Slavery|slave-girl]] a violent beating in front of Muhammad.

{{Quote|Ibn Ishaq: p 496|As for Ali he said “Women are plentiful, and you can easily change one for another. Ask the slave girl; she will tell you the truth.” So the Apostle called Burayra to ask her and Ali got up and gave her a violent beating, saying, ‘Tell the Apostle the truth.’”}}

One account found in the hadiths reports Muhammad giving a decree instructing men to not beat their wives, but the hadiths reporting this also record Muhammad immediately changing his mind once Umar (the 2nd rightly guided Caliph) informs him that some of the women have become emboldened towards their husbands. Then, when some women complain about getting beaten, he makes only a mild remark about their husbands instead of moving to protect the women.

{{Quote|{{Abu Dawud|11|2141}}|Iyas ibn Abdullah ibn AbuDhubab reported the Apostle of Allah as saying: Do not beat Allah's handmaidens, but when Umar came to the Apostle of Allah and said: Women have become emboldened towards their husbands, '''he (the Prophet) gave permission to beat them.''' Then many women came round the family of the Apostle of Allah complaining against their husbands. So the Apostle of Allah said: Many women have gone round Muhammad's family complaining against their husbands. They are not the best among you.}}

In another hadith, Umar instructs a man to beat his wife after she tries to prevent him from having intercourse with his slave girl.
{{Quote|{{Muwatta|30||13}}|Yahya related to me from Malik that Abdullah ibn Dinar said, "A man came to Abdullah ibn Umar when I was with him at the place where judgments were given and asked him about the suckling of an older person. Abdullah ibn Umar replied, 'A man came to Umar ibn al-Khattab and said, 'I have a slave-girl and I used to have intercourse with her. My wife went to her and suckled her. When I went to the girl, my wife told me to watch out, because she had suckled her!' '''Umar told him to beat his wife and to go to his slave-girl because kinship by suckling was only by the suckling of the young.'''' "}}

A hadith graded ''hasan'' (the 2nd highest level of authenticity according to traditional scholars of hadith, below ''sahih'') quotes Muhammad saying that a man should not be asked why he beats his wife:

{{Quote|1=[http://sunnah.com/urn/1263050 Sunan Ibn Majah 3:9:1986]|2=It was narrated that Ash'ath bin Qais said:
"I was a guest (at the home) of 'Umar one night, and in the middle of the night he went and hit his wife, and I separated them. When he went to bed he said to me: 'O Ash'ath, learn from me something that I heard from the Messenger of Allah" '''A man should not be asked why he beats his wife''', and do not go to sleep until you have prayed the Witr."' And I forgot the third thing."}}

In yet another hadith, a woman complains to Muhammad about her husband and shows him where he has beaten and bruised her. Muhammad listens to the husband’s side of the story and concludes the reason why his wife is complaining is because he cannot sexually satisfy her and that she wants to go back to her ex-husband, although the report only indicates that the woman was complaining of physical abuse (also evidenced by the 'green' color of her skin). Rather than scolding her husband for beating her, Muhammad says she cannot [[Marriage|re-marry]] her ex-husband unless she has [[Reproduction|sexual intercourse]] with her present husband first.

In the same hadith, Aisha also states that she has not seen any woman suffering as much as 'the believing women'. This apparent meaning of this is that according to Aisha, Muhammad's wife, Muslim women were suffering more than their [[Pagan Origins of Islam|pagan]] and Abrahamic counterparts.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|72|715}}|Narrated Ikrima: 'Rifaa divorced his wife whereupon Abdur-Rahman married her. Aisha said that the lady came wearing a green veil and complained to her (Aisha) and showed her a '''green spot on her skin caused by beating.''' It was the habit of ladies to support each other, so when Allah's messenger came, Aisha said, '''"I have not seen any woman suffering as much as the believing women. Look! Her skin is greener than her clothes'''! When Abdur-Rahman heard that his wife had gone to the prophet, he came with his two sons from another wife. She said, "By Allah! I have done no wrong to him, but he is impotent and is as useless to me as this," holding and showing the fringe of her garment. Abdur-Rahman said, "By Allah, O Allah's messenger! She has told a lie. I am very strong and can satisfy her, but she is disobedient and wants to go back to Rifaa." Allah's messenger said to her, "If that is your intention, then know that it is unlawful for you to remarry Rifaa unless Abdur-Rahman has had sexual intercourse with you." The prophet saw two boys with Abdur-Rahman and asked (him), "Are these your sons?" On that Abdur-Rahman said, "Yes." The prophet said, "You claim what you claim (that he is impotent)? But by Allah, these boys resemble him as a crow resembles a crow."}}

In the authentic version of his [[Farewell Sermon|''Farewell Sermon'']], Muhammad compares women to domestic [[animals]] and once more tells men to beat their wives, but 'not severely'.

{{Quote|{{Tabari|9|pp. 112-113}}|"Now then, O people, you have a right over your wives and they have a right over you. You have [the right] that they should not cause anyone of whom you dislike to tread on your beds; and that they should not commit any open indecency. If they do, then Allah permits you to shut them in separate rooms and '''to beat them, but not severely'''. If they abstain from [evil], they have the right to their food and clothing in accordance with the custom. Treat women well, for they are [like] domestic animals with you and do not possess anything for themselves. You have taken them only as a trust from Allah, and you have made the enjoyment of their persons lawful by the word of Allah, so understand and listen to my words, O people.}}

In other versions of the farewell sermon the same comments about beating are reported, such as in the following version from a hadith in ''Sunan Abu Dawud'' (graded Sahih by the famous modern scholar of hadith al-Albani). Here, as in the Qur'an, Muslim men are instructed to beat their wives, although some hadiths nuance this by adding 'not severely':

{{Quote|1=[https://sunnah.com/abudawud/11/185 Sunan Abu Dawud 10:1900]|2=Fear Allaah regarding women for you have got them under Allah’s security and have the right to intercourse with them by Allaah’s word. It is a duty from you on them not to allow anyone whom you dislike to lie on your beds but if they do '''beat them, but not severely.''' You are responsible for providing them with food and clothing in a fitting manner.}}

The caveat, "but not severely", appears also in the other narrations of the farewell sermon in other hadith collections, although English translations in some cases have [[Mistranslations of Islamic Scripture (English)|mistranslated]] the same Arabic phrase.

Altogether, the hadith report that (1) 'A'isha did not consider Muhammad himself to have ever hit a woman, although on one occasion he painfully pushed / struck her in the chest, (2) Muhammad at first forbade the beating of Muslim women, but was persuaded to allow it when Umar warned that the men were losing control of their wives, (3) Muhammad allowed some of his prominent companions to hit women and slap his own wives (the very women whom all Muslims adore and refer to as "the Mother of believers", (4) Muhammad merely makes a mild remark about other men when their wives complain about beatings (describing those that do so to the point of complaint as 'not the best among you'), (5) Muhammad forbade Muslims from questioning men who beat their wives, (6) three of the four Rightly-Guided Caliphs beat women, and (7) Muhammad reaffirms the Qur'anic command of wife-beating in his parting sermon, albeit "without severity". It is clear that wife-beating has been an accepted part of Islam since its inception. While Muhammad had some reservations about the beating of women, he repeatedly indulged men who physically disciplined women, including in his presence, and was ultimately persuaded to prescribe it as a divinely-instructed punishment for certain types of misconduct on the part of women.

====Additional attempts at moderating severe beatings====

According to a number of reports found in the hadiths, Muhammad was concerned that his companions were beating their wives too severely. These hadiths record his efforts to control the severity of the beatings being conducted.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|8|73|68}}|Narrated `Abdullah bin Zam`a:
The Prophet (peace be upon him) forbade laughing at a person who passes wind, and said, "How does anyone of you beat his wife as he beats the stallion camel and then he may embrace (sleep with) her?" And Hisham said, "As he beats his slave"}}

In one hadith, Muhammad advises a recently divorced woman against marrying a companion of his who he knows to be 'very harsh with women'.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|9|3527}}|Fatima bint Qais (Allah be pleased with her) reported:
My husband Abu 'Amr b. Hafs b. al-Mughira sent 'Ayyish b. Abu Rabi'a to me with a divorce, and he also sent through him five si's of dates and five si's of barley. I said: Is there no maintenance allowance for me but only this, and I cannot even spend my 'Idda period in your house? He said: No. She said: I dressed myself and came to Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him). He said: How many pronouncements of divorce have been made for you? I said: Three. He said what he ('Ayyish b. Abu Rabi'a) had stated was true. There is no maintenance allowance for you. Spend 'Idda period in the house of your cousin, Ibn Umm Maktum. He is blind and you can put off your garment in his presence. And when you have spent your Idda period, you inform me. She said: Mu'awiya and Abu'l-Jahm (Allah be pleased with them) were among those who had given me the proposal of marriage. Thereupon Allah's Apostle (peace be upon him) said: Mu'awiya is destitute and in poor condition and Abu'l-Jahm is very harsh with women (or he beats women, or like that), you should take Usama b. Zaid (as your husband).}}

In another hadith, Muhammad instructs that a person should not beat their wife's face.

{{Quote|1=[http://sunnah.com/abudawud/12/97 AbuDawud 11:2137]|2=Narrated Mu'awiyah al-Qushayri: Mu'awiyah asked: Messenger of Allah, what is the right of the wife of one of us over him? He replied: That you should give her food when you eat, clothe her when you clothe yourself, do not strike her on the face, do not revile her or separate yourself from her except in the house.

Abu Dawud said: The meaning of "do not revile her" is, as you say: "May Allah revile you".}}

Another version of the same hadith is worded more generally, saying, "do not beat them". If this version is a more accurate reflection of what Muhammad said, it is likely that it occurred in the temporary period in which Muhammad forbade beating (see {{Abu Dawud|11|2141}}, quoted above), as later sources concur on Muhammad's instruction and permission of wife-beating.

{{Quote|1=[http://sunnah.com/abudawud/12/99 AbuDawud 11:2139]|2=Narrated Mu'awiyah al-Qushayri:
I went to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and asked him: What do you say (command) about our wives? He replied: Give them food what you have for yourself, and clothe them by which you clothe yourself, and do not beat them, and do not revile them}}

A lengthy hadith in Sunan Abu Dawud includes an instruction to beat one's wives, but not severely, if they allow anyone whom the husband dislikes to lie on their beds (these being were usually rolled out on the floor in Bedouin tents). In Arabic, 'beat them, but not severely' is ''fa-idribuhunna darban ghayra mubarrihin'', which literally translates to mean 'beat them, a beating without violence/severity/sharpness/vehemence<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000219.pdf Lane's Lexicon] Book I page 182</ref>'. The instruction here is nearly akin to that found in Muhammad's farewell sermon (quoted above) and includes the following:

{{Quote|1=[http://sunnah.com/abudawud/11/185 AbuDawud 10:1900]|2=Fear Allaah regarding women for you have got them under Allah’s security and have the right to intercourse with them by Allaah’s word. It is a duty from you on them not to allow anyone whom you dislike to lie on your beds but if they do beat them, but not severely.}}

A shorter version of the Farewell Sermon can also be found in ''Sunan Ibn Majah''. The Arabic words here translated 'and hit them, but without causing injury or leaving a mark' are the same as those found in the ''Abu Dawud'' hadith as well as al-Tabari's version of the farewell sermon (quoted above), with the literal translation being, again, 'beat them, a beating without severity'.

{{Quote|{{Ibn Majah||3|9|1851}}|Then he said: 'I enjoin good treatment of women, for they are prisoners with you, and you have no right to treat them otherwise, unless they commit clear indecency. If they do that, then forsake them in their beds and hit them, but without causing injury or leaving a mark.}}

Similarly, the versions of the farewell sermon found in {{Al Tirmidhi||5|44|3087}}, translated as 'and beat them with a beating that is not painful', and {{Al Tirmidhi||2|10|1163}}, translated as 'and beat them with a beating that is not harmful, consist of the same Arabic words as quoted above and found in other versions of the sermon.

The ''[[tafsir]]'', or exegesis, of al-Tabari (d. 923, roughly 200 years after [[Muhammad's Death|Muhammad's death]]) for verse {{Quran|4|34}} appears to be the earliest record of the idea that wife beating should be done with a ''miswak''/''siwaak'' (a small stick-like item used as a toothbrush).<ref>[http://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=1&tSoraNo=4&tAyahNo=34&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 al-tafsir.com] Tabari's tafsir for 4:34</ref> These do not appear in the main ''sahih'' hadith collections, but have been of abiding interest nonetheless.

{{Quote|1=[https://tafsir.app/tabari/4/34 al-Tabari 4:34]|2=I said to Ibn ‘Abbaas, what is a non-severe beating? He said, Hitting with a siwaak and the like.}}
In Arabic, the phrase 'non-severe beating' is ''darban ghayra mubarrihin''. This is the same phrasing and set of words found in the ''Abu Dawud'' hadith and in the various versions of Muhammad's farewell sermon. In his tafsir, al-Tabari also quotes Qatada clarifying that the phrase means ''ghayr sha'in'' (that is, 'without being disgraceful/outrageous/obscene/indecent').<ref>[https://tafsir.app/tabari/4/34 al-Tabari 4:34]</ref> This is in sharp contrast with the translation/interpretation employed in Islamic evangelical discourse, which construes ''darban ghayra mubarrihin'' as a more absolute prohibition, in some instances translating it as 'a light tap that leaves no mark' - a translation that, as a heavily metaphorical interpretation, has no linguistic merit.

Putting together, the hadiths suggest that Muhammad condemned those who beat their wives as severely as they beat their slaves. It is also evident that, at least for some time, Muhammad forbade wife-beating altogether. It is also evident that Muhammad then reverted from this position to permitting wife-beating, albeit this time around while encouraging his male companions not to beat their wives as severely as they beat their slaves. This final position is also found reiterated in the various versions of his final sermon reported found in the hadith literature.

Tabari, a source Islamic scholars view as being considerably less reliable than the sahih hadiths, also reports that Ibn Abbas - an individual famous for having resisted the Rashidun Caliph's attempts at [[Textual History of the Qur'an|standardizing the Quran]] - narrated that Muhammad at some point instructed that Men should only beat their wives with the twig-like device known as a ''miswaak''. Many doubt the reliability of this report, which appears to contradict the overall message of the hadith literature, but it is equally possible that Muhammad at some point actually endorsed this view, only to finally adopt the position indicated in the farewell sermon.

Critics have also noted what they describe as the sheer absurdity of the qualification found in the report and suggest that it could hardly be that God would leave out such an important qualification from the verse which, read in isolation, simply instructs men to beat their wives. To do so, critics suggest, would be a serious lack of judgement on God's part. Critics have also ridiculed the absurdity of the practice itself - what is the purpose, they ask, of tapping one's wife with a twig? And why would ''this'' prove effective if admonition of one's wife and abandoning her in bed had proven ineffective - surely tapping someone with a twig cannot be more compelling than either of these measures? Such a practice, critics conclude, is, at worst, a humiliating and patronizing symbolic gesture (having no place in polite society), or, at best, a fiction generated in the minds of later Muslims (that is, 7th, 8th, or 9th century Muslims attributing this idea, retroactively, back to Ibn Abbas) who were having a hard time reconciling the conflicting imperatives of an early Islamic tradition which at once taught Muslims to be kind to one another - and to beat their wives.

==Early and modern Islamic authorities on wife-beating==

Classical Muslim scholars have written abundant [[Tafsir|commentary]] and jurisprudential material regarding {{Quran|4|34}} and instruction to beat wives. A few of these classical sources are quoted below, alongside some modern authorities. It is important to note that a number of Islamic modernists (a small sub-group of modern Islamic scholars in general) [[Wife Beating in Islamic Law#The objections of Islamic modernists|have advocated]] an interpretation of {{Quran|4|34}} that militates against traditional understanding and takes the beating instructed to be purely 'symbolic' in nature. The influence of these few, albeit vocal, modernists has resulted in some recent English translations of the Quran opting to replace the word ''daraba'', which is found in the Arabic text and which means 'beat', with alternative words that more readily evoke the modernist interpretation.

{{Quote|1=[http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=672] Tafsir of Ibn Kathir for Qur'an 4:34|2=(beat them) means, if advice and ignoring her in the bed do not produce the desired results, you are allowed to discipline the wife, without severe beating. Muslim recorded that Jabir said that during the Farewell Hajj, the Prophet said;
(Fear Allah regarding women, for they are your assistants. You have the right on them that they do not allow any person whom you dislike to step on your mat. However, if they do that, you are allowed to discipline them lightly. They have a right on you that you provide them with their provision and clothes, in a reasonable manner.) Ibn `Abbas and several others said that the Ayah refers to a beating that is not violent. Al-Hasan Al-Basri said that it means, a beating that is not severe.}}

{{Quote|[http://answering-islam.org/Silas/wife-beating.htm Al-Nawawi] Reliance of the Traveller|"When a husband notices signs of rebelliousness in his wife (nushuz), whether in words, as when she answers him coldly when she used to do so politely, or he asks her to come to bed and she refuses, contrary to her usual habit; or whether in acts, as when he finds her averse to him when she was previously kind and cheerful), he warns her in words (without keeping from her or hitting her, for it may be that she has an excuse. The warning could be to tell her, "fear Allah concerning the rights you owe to me," or it could be to explain that rebelliousness nullifies his obligation to support her and give her a turn amongst other wives, or it could be to inform her, "Your obeying me is religiously obligatory"). If she commits rebelliousness, he keeps from sleeping (and having sex) with her without words, and '''may hit her''', but not in a way that injures her, meaning he may not (bruise her), break bones, wound her, or cause blood to flow. (It is unlawful to strike another’s face.) He may hit her whether she is rebellious only once or whether more than once, though a weaker opinion holds that he may hot hit her unless there is repeated rebelliousness."

If the wife does not fulfill one of the above-mentioned obligations, she is termed "rebellious" (nashiz), and the husband takes the following steps to correct matters:

(a) admonition and advice, by explaining the unlawfulness of rebellion, its harmful effect on married life, and by listening to her viewpoint on the matter;

(b) if admonition is ineffectual, he keeps from her by not sleeping in bed with her, by which both learn the degree to which they need each other;

(c) if keeping from her is ineffectual, '''it is permissible for him to hit her''' if he believes that hitting her will bring her back to the right path, though if he does not think so, it is not permissible. His hitting her may not be in a way that injures her, and is his last recourse to save the family.

(d) if the disagreement does not end after all this, each partner chooses an arbitrator to solve the dispute by settlement, or divorce.}}

{{Quote|1=[http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=archives&Area=sd&ID=SP222909 Egyptian Cleric Galal Al-Khatib Explains Wife-Beating in Islam] MEMRI: Special Dispatch, No. 2229, February 5, 2009|2=How should the beatings go? Maybe a light slap on her shoulder, or maybe a not-so-light pinch, or a kind of gentle shove. He should make her feel that he wants to reform her, and let her know that he is displeased with her. It is like saying: None of the measures that work with sensitive people work with you. A word would be enough for any wife with lofty morals, but with you, words do not help. 

Then he attempts a new direction, appealing to her femininity and emotions, by making her feel that he doesn't want her or love her. When this doesn't work, he says to her: With you, '''I have reached a stage which is only appropriate for inhumane people - the stage of beating'''. 

Beating is one of the punishments of religious law. What kind of people are beaten? Virgin adulterers, both men and women, are beaten as a means of discipline. Who else is beaten? A person who committed an offense and was sentenced by the judge to beatings. Who else is beaten? Someone who committed a crime. By beating his wife, the husband is saying: You've committed a grave sin that merits beatings."}}

{{Quote|[http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4048.htm Dr. Ahmad Al-Tayyeb, President of Al-Azhar University and former Mufti of Egypt] MEMRI: Special Dispatch No.2868, March 19, 2010|With regard to wife beating... In a nutshell, it appeared as part of a program to reform the wife. [According to the Koran], first 'admonish them,' [then] 'sleep in separate beds, and beat them.'...This method appeared as part of the treatment of a rebellious wife. I am faced with two options – either the family will be destroyed by divorce, or I can use means that may bring my wife, the mother of my children, back to her senses. The first means is admonishment...The second means of treatment is 'sleeping in separate beds.' Why? Because this targets the honor... A lot could be said about this. The strength of a woman lies in her ability to seduce the man. The man is strong and can do whatever he wants, but the woman has a weapon of her own. This weapon can be targeted. Many women will come back to their senses, when they realize that this is what's involved...By Allah, even if only one woman out of a million can be reformed by light beatings... '''It's not really beating, it's more like punching'''... It's like shoving or poking her. That's what it is.}}

{{Quote|[http://www.islamqa.com/en/ref/10680/rights%20husband%20wife What are the rights of the husband and what are the rights of the wife?] Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid, Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 10680|Discipline. The husband has the right to discipline his wife if she disobeys him in something good, not if she disobeys him in something sinful, because '''Allaah has enjoined disciplining women by forsaking them in bed and by hitting them, when they do not obey'''.

The Hanafis mentioned four situations in which a husband is permitted to discipline his wife by hitting her. These are: not adorning herself when he wants her to; not responding when he calls her to bed and she is taahirah (pure, i.e., not menstruating); not praying; and going out of the house without his permission.}}

==Domestic violence in the Islamic World==
While it is not necessarily the case that the Quran's instruction for men to beat their wives is responsible for the endemic occurrence of domestic violence in Muslim-majority countries (given that such practices are also endorsed in the scriptures revered by the religious populations of societies where domestic violence is not nearly as widespread), a degree of causal connection between the relevant scriptural commandments and the rates of domestic violence observed is strongly suggested by the virtually universal adoption of traditional literalism among Islamic clerics as well as the usually higher-than-average overall religiosity of Muslim societies.

;Afghanistan

{{Quote||'''Nearly 90 percent of Afghan women suffer from domestic abuse''', according to the United Nations Development Fund for Women. Despite that, there are less than a dozen shelters like this one in Afghanistan, usually run by non-governmental organizations.

Abusers are rarely prosecuted or convicted, and most women are afraid to say anything. "Their mothers are beaten by their fathers. They're beaten by their fathers, by their brothers. It's a way of life," said Manizha Naderi, director of WAW.<ref>Atia Abawi - [http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/09/23/afghanistan.women.abuse/index.html Afghan women hiding for their lives] - CNN, September 24, 2009</ref>}}

;Iran

{{Quote||Statistics in Iran show that '''66% of Iranian women, at the beginning of the marriage have been at least physically abused once'''. Some forms of physical abuse that occur include: biting, bondage, imprisonment in their own home, scratching, hair pulling, and even starving.<ref>Maryam Nayeb-Yazdi - [http://www.iranian.com/BTW/2006/February/Yazdi/index.html The violence that may never end] - Iranian.com, February 15, 2006</ref>}}

;Iraq

{{Quote||A recent report by the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) '''registered 139 cases of violence against women''' in the northern region of Kurdistan in the second half of 2008 alone. '''It said 163 women were killed as a result of domestic violence''' in Kurdistan in 2009. Experts suggest '''the number is less than 5 percent of the real estimates'''.<ref>Afif Sarhan - [http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_C&pagename=Zone-English-News/NWELayout&cid=1242759335091&utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss Iraq’s Domestic Violence Plight] - Islam Online, May 31, 2009
</ref>}}

;Jordan

{{Quote||'''91% of university students''' polled by the Jordanian Human Right Center approve of wife beating.

An earlier study by another organization found out that a majority of WOMEN also supports the right of a husband to beat the wife<ref>[http://www.360east.com/?p=429 All together now: YES for wife beatings!] - 360 East, May 7, 2006</ref>}}

{{Quote||According to the [National Family Council] report: 83% of Jordanian women approve of wife beating if the woman cheats on her husband 60% approve of wife beating in cases where the wife burns a meal she's cooking 52% approve of wife beating in case where she's refused to follow the husband’s orders<ref>Natasha Tynes - [http://web.archive.org/web/20051028032921/http://www.natashatynes.org/mental_mayhem/2005/04/disturbing_repo.html Disturbing report on wife beating in Jordan] - Mental Mayhem, April 10, 2005</ref>}}

;Pakistan

{{Quote||A study published in June 2006 in the Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association, based on interviews with 300 women admitted to hospital for childbirth, said '''80 percent reported being subjected to some kind of abuse within marriage'''. At times, the violence inflicted on women takes on truly horrendous forms. The Islamabad-based Progressive Women's Association (PWA), headed by Shahnaz Bukhari, believes '''up to 4,000 women are burnt each year''', almost always by husbands or in-laws, often as “punishment” for minor “offences” or for failure to bring in a sufficient dowry.

The PWA said it had collected details of nearly 8,000 such victims from March 1994 to March 2007, from three hospitals in the Rawalpindi-Islamabad area alone.<ref>[http://www.stopvaw.org/PAKISTAN_Domestic_violence_endemic_but_awareness_slowly_rising.html PAKISTAN: Domestic violence endemic, but awareness slowly rising] - The Advocates, March 11, 2008</ref>}}

{{Quote||The number of incidents of '''violence against women increased by 13 per cent in 2009''', says a report by the Aurat Foundation set to be released on Wednesday.

The report states that 8,548 incidents of violence against women were reported in 2009 compared to 7,571 incidents reported in 2008. Of these, 5,722 were reported to have occurred in Punjab, followed by 1,762 in Sindh, 655 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and 237 in Balochistan. Similarly, 172 cases of violence against women were reported in Islamabad, the report said.<ref>[http://tribune.com.pk/story/24478/violence-against-women-rises-by-13/ Violence against women rises by 13% Violence against women rises by 13%] - The Express Tribune, June 29, 2010.</ref>}}

;Palestinian Authority area

{{Quote||Launched in January 1999, the [Women's Empowerment] project first established a research team, trained by Dr Abdo, which in turn began training community leaders on gender-based research methods. They have used these skills to interview a representative sample of 120 women from refugee camps, villages, and cities in the Gaza Strip to determine the incidence of gender-based violence. The preliminary results are alarming: '''half of the women interviewed to date have been victims of violence'''.

"Violence against women in Gaza basically means domestic violence," says research consultant Aitemad Muhanna. "Women are beaten by their husbands, beaten by their fathers, and even beaten by their brothers." Women are beaten for not fulfilling traditional roles — such as cooking, cleaning, or tending to their appearance — to a husband's satisfaction. Other abuses include harsh insults, sexual abuse among family, and marital rape.<ref>Doug Alexander - [http://www.idrc.ca/en/ev-5311-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html Addressing Violence Against Palestinian Women] - The International Development Research Centre, June 23, 2000</ref>}}

;Qatar

{{Quote||One in three wives in Qatar suffer physical or psychological violence from the side of their husband<ref name="ANSFeb232012">[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.ansamed.info/ansamed/en/news/sections/generalnews/2012/02/23/visualizza_new.html_103332042.html|2=2012-03-14}} Qatar: divorce peak caused by women, survey] - ANSAmed, February 23, 2012</ref>}}

;Turkey

{{Quote||London-based Refugee Workers Association Woman’s Group (GIK-DER) revealed disturbing news last week [in November, 2006] that '''up to 80% Turkish and Kurdish women are victims of domestic violence and sexual harassment.''' At the same time 70% of Turkish and Kurdish husbands cheat on their wives.<ref>http://www.toplumpostasi.net/index.php/cat/9/news/9633/PageName/English</ref>}}

{{Quote||According to a government study titled “Research on Domestic Violence against Women in Turkey,” '''41.9 percent of Turkish women are subjected to physical and sexual violence'''. Women at a “low-income level” are assaulted at a rate of 49.9 percent, while the number for higher-income women is still high, at 28.7 percent. . . . 
Altogether, 33.7 percent of women said they considered suicide as a solution to their problems.<ref>[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=women-murder-victims-increase-snowballing-in-turkey-2011-02-20|2=2011-02-24}} Murder a fact of life for women in Turkey] - Hurriyet Daily News, February 20, 2011</ref>}}

{{Quote||According to a report by UN Women released in early July of last year [2011], '''Turkey tops Europe and the US in the number of incidences of violence against women'''. Official statistics reveal that four out of 10 women in Turkey are beaten by their husbands.<ref>Yonca Poyraz Doğan - [{{Reference archive|1=http://www.todayszaman.com/news-273005-womens-groups-outraged-by-cabinets-drastic-changes-to-violence-bill-draft.html|2=2012-03-03}} Women's groups outraged by Cabinet's drastic changes to violence bill draft] - Today's Zaman, March 1, 2012</ref>}}

;South Mediterranean Region

{{Quote||Violence against women in the home is the main emergency needed to be tackled by the Mediterranean's southern shores. '''The phenomenon affects between 40% and 75% of married women''', who suffer mainly at the hands of their husbands. This is the glaring figure contained in a study carried out by the Euromed Gender Equality Programme (EGEP), which has been presented at a conference held in Brussels. The 'Programme to enhance quality between men and women in the Euromed Region', which is financed by the European Union as part of neighbourhood policy, focussed on nine partner countries between 2008 and 2011: '''Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestinian Territories, Syria and Tunisia'''.<ref>[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.ansamed.info/en/news/ME.XEF96737.html|2=2011-05-11}} Mediterranean: EU Study, Domestic Violence Between 40%, 75%] - ANSAmed, May 9, 2011</ref>}}

==Responses from Muslim women==

Some Muslim women have spoken out against domestic violence. Below, some prominent instances of this are quoted. In spite of such protestations, many Islamic authorities and western commentators refuse the idea that Islamic scriptures could, even in part, be responsible.

{{Quote|[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3667349.stm Beaten Saudi Woman Speaks out] BBC News, April 30, 2004|My husband first tried to strangle me until I fell unconscious, then he tried to smash my face. Every violent man will be able to see the suffering that he causes and every woman afraid of falling into a similar situation will be able to avoid what happened to me Later he took me to the hospital while I was still unconscious and dropped me off at the gate. He didn't give them my name, my family's telephone number or anything about me. When my mother finally arrived, the doctor told her I had only a 3% chance of survival. The reason why he beat me up was very trivial, we had an argument in which we exchanged no more than four sentences. He had no reason for attacking me this way, but it wasn't the first time he was violent, although he had never been that violent before.

''Encouraging victims''

I kept silent until now because I didn't want to see my family being torn apart. I thought that maybe if I was patient enough I could make him change. Now that I've made my story public, I'm scared. I've almost been through death, so I guess it's pretty normal that I now fear for my life and for my children's lives. I decided to have my picture published so that it would be a lesson for others, for every man and every woman. I'm just hoping that the judge will be fair to me and that my husband receives a punishment equal to what he did to me.

''No more, no less''

Every violent man will be able to see the suffering that he causes and every woman who is afraid of falling into a similar situation will be able to avoid what happened to me. Some people have called me a heroine for doing so, but I don't know why. Maybe people have appreciated that I dared to talk about a taboo subject so that others don't face the same thing. In my opinion it isn't about being heroic, but about talking about what happens in reality. However uncomfortable it is, it's better to talk about reality than to pretend that nothing bad is ever happening. I believe I've encouraged other victims of domestic violence to follow suit. I'm now campaigning with a human rights organisation which has received many letters and I have also received personally many letters of support from women saying that they will fight back.}}

{{Quote|[http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/09/24/cnnheroes.robina.niaz/index.html Her 'duty' is Helping Muslim Women Heal After The Abuse] CNN Heroes, September 25, 2009|Toward the end of her marriage, Rabia Iqbal said she feared for her life. Iqbal was born in New York to parents who had immigrated to the United States from the tribal areas of Pakistan. She had a strict Muslim upbringing and when she was 16, her parents arranged her marriage to a 38-year-old man. She claims her husband turned violent during their 10 years of marriage. When she finally left him, she did not know where to turn. Going home wasn't an option, she said.

"My parents ... made clear that they would disown me," Iqbal said. "My father even said ... 'You're lucky you live in America because if you lived back home, you would have been dead by now.' "

She was hiding out in her office at work when a friend put her in touch with Robina Niaz, whose organization, Turning Point for Women and Families, helps female Muslim abuse victims.

"It was such a relief ... to speak about things that ... I thought no one would understand," said Iqbal, who has received counseling from Niaz for more than two years and calls Niaz her "savior." "Robina understood the cultural nuances ... the religious issues," Iqbal said. "There's a lot of denial," she said. "It makes it much harder for the victims of abuse to speak out."

When Niaz launched her organization in 2004, it was the first resource of its kind in New York City. Today, her one-woman campaign has expanded into a multifaceted endeavor that is raising awareness about family violence and providing direct services to women in need. Niaz's mission began after a difficult period in her own life. Born and raised in Pakistan, she had earned a master's degree in psychology and had a successful career in international affairs and marketing when she moved to the United States to marry in 1990.

"It was a disastrous marriage," she said.

As Niaz struggled to navigate the American legal system during her divorce, she said she appreciated how lucky she was to speak English and have an education. She realized that many immigrant women without those advantages might be more likely to stay in marriages because they didn't know how to make the system work for them.

"If this is how difficult it is for me, then what must other immigrant women go through?" she remembered thinking.

After volunteering with South Asian victims of domestic violence, Niaz, who speaks five languages, got a job using those skills to advocate for immigrant women affected by family violence.

But Niaz's focus changed on September 11, 2001. "I was no longer a Pakistani-American ... I looked at myself as a Muslim."

Niaz said the backlash many Muslims experienced after the terror attacks made abuse victims more afraid to seek help; they feared being shunned for bringing negative attention to their community.

"Women who were caught in abusive marriages were trapped even more," recalled Niaz.

In 2004, Niaz used her savings to start Turning Point for Women and Families. Today, her work focuses on three main areas: providing direct services to abused women, raising awareness through outreach, and educating young women -- an effort she hopes will empower future generations to speak out against abuse. Crisis intervention services are a critical element of Niaz's efforts. Through weekly counseling sessions, she and her team provide emotional support to the women while helping them with practical issues, such as finding homeless shelters, matrimonial lawyers, filing police reports or assisting with immigration issues. Niaz has helped more than 200 Muslim women. While most of Turning Point's clients are immigrants, the group helps women from every background. While Niaz has support from many people in New York's Muslim community, she acknowledges that not everyone appreciates her efforts. She keeps her office address confidential and takes precautions to ensure her safety.

"There have been threats ... but that comes with this work," she said. "I know that God is protecting me because I'm doing the right thing."}}

One Muslim woman who has spoken about this type of domestic violence is ''The Daily Beast''’s Asra Q. Nomani, author of ''Standing Alone: An American Woman's Struggle for the Soul of Islam'', who describes the widespread denial in Muslim-majority societies of wife-beating in the Qur'an as the "4:34 dance".

{{Quote|[http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-09-08/get-over-the-quran-burning/ Get Over the Quran Burning] Asra Q. Nomani, The Daily Beast, September 8, 2010|Look at one literal reading of the 34th verse of the fourth chapter of the Quran, An-Nisa, or Women. "[A]nd (as to) those on whose part you fear desertion, admonish them and leave them alone in the sleeping-places and beat them," reads one widely accepted translation. Based on a literal reading, Saudi scholar Abdul Rahman al-Sheha concludes that when dealing with a “disobedient wife,” a Muslim man has a number of options. First, he should remind her of “the importance of following the instructions of the husband in Islam.” If that doesn't work, he can “leave the wife's bed.” Finally, he may “beat” her, though it must be without “hurting, breaking a bone, leaving blue or black marks on the body and avoiding hitting the face, at any cost.”

Such appalling recommendations occur because we haven't yet universally drawn a line in the sand, as Muslims, and said that this verse may have been progressive for the seventh century when women were supposedly beaten indiscriminately, but it isn't compatible with the modern day, if read literally. Instead, we do something called the "4:34 dance," suggesting that the light beating be the result of everything from hitting a woman with noodles (yes, you read that right) to a traditional toothbrush, called a “miswak,” from the root of a plant.}}

==The objections of Islamic modernists==

Though they constitute a very small minority, many Islamic modernists have protested against the Islamic tradition and its understanding of the Islamic scriptures which straightforwardly appear to instruct men to beat their wives. While these modernists have had extremely limited influence in the Muslim world, they have frequently been embraced by Western media outlets as possible enactors of religious reform in Islam. Serious, mostly non-Muslim scholars of Islam have been similarly heartened by such voices but remain highly skeptical of those modernists who attempt to 're-write' the past by denying the Islamic tradition's historical embrace of some sort of physical domestic discipline against women. Moreover, to many in the Muslim world, this attempt at 'modernizing Islam' appears to be a sort of contemptible moral concession to the west, analogous, even, to holding the door wide open for enemies with ambitions of 'intellectual colonialism'. As the 2021 edition of the widely acclaimed ''Muslim 500'' puts it, "Islamic modernism remains popularly an object of derision and ridicule, and is scorned by traditional Muslims and fundamentalists alike".<ref>{{Citation|title=The Muslim 500|edition=2021 Edition|publisher=The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre|location=Amman, Jordan|page=59|chapter=IIIC. Islamic Modernism|url=https://themuslim500.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/TheMuslim500-2021_Edition-low_res_20201028.pdf|editor1=S. Abdallah Schleifer|editor2=Tarek Algawhary|editor3=Aftab Ahmed}}{{Quote|[https://themuslim500.com/about-us/ The Muslim 500: About Us]|The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre (MABDA المركز الملكي للبحوث والدراسات الإسلامية) is an independent research entity affiliated with the Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought. '''The Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought is an international Islamic non-governmental, independent institute''' headquartered in Amman, the capital of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.}}</ref>

===Pamela K. Taylor===

====References to Quranic verses====
{{Main|Wife Beating in the Qur'an}}Pamela K. Taylor is the co-founder of Muslims for Progressive Values, former director of the Islamic Writers Alliance, and a strong supporter of the female Imam movement. On the Faith Panelist Blog, she writes:

{{Quote|[http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/panelists/pamela_k_taylor/2009/02/aasiya_hassan_domestic_violenc.html Aasiya Zubair Hassan, Domestic Violence and Islam] Pamela K. Taylor, The Washington Post, February 27, 2009|The brutal and gruesome murder of Aasiya Zubair Hassan has prompted a great deal of soul searching in the Muslim community. National organizations, the local community, imams, Muslim social workers, activists and writers have all agonized over how the community did not do enough to protect Aasiya, despite evidence that her husband, the man charged with killing her, was known to be violent. They have called for imams to preach against domestic violence as against the standards of Islam, and for communities to stand in solidarity with Muslim women who complain of abuse, rather than counseling patience or questioning if there is anything they might have done to cause the abuse, or that they could change in order to avert future abuse. 
To be sure, domestic violence is indeed against the teachings of Islam, and murder of family members is especially repugnant. The Qur'an teaches that men should remain with their wives in kindness, or separate from their wives with kindness, and specifically that they should not stay with their wives in order to do harm to them (2:229, 2:231). It offers a vision of spousal equality when it prescribes a decision making process within the family of mutual consultation (2:233), and labels both husband and wife with the term "zauj" (4:1 and others) and describes them as protecting garments for one another (2:187).}}

The relevant portion of {{Quran|2|229}} reads as follows: "The divorce (is) twice. Then to retain in a reasonable manner or to release (her) with kindness." The relevant portion of {{Quran|2|231}} reads: "And when you divorce the women and they reach their (waiting) term, then retain them in a fair manner or release them in a fair manner. And (do) not retain them (to) hurt so that you transgress." Both of these verses speak of men 'retaining' their women, denoting possession and one-sided agency. {{Quran|2|233}} speaks of the gender-specific roles that men and women must play in raising a child - a far cry from gender equality. The Arabic word ''zauj'' simply means spouse. {{Quran|2|187}}, while equal in its application of the 'garment' metaphor to both genders, is also a stand out example of how the Quran conceives of itself as primarily addressed to men, and not both genders equally - it opens with the following: "Allowed unto you, on the night of fasts, is consorting with your women."

Taylor states that 'domestic violence is indeed against the teachings of Islam'. This statement does not withstand historical scrutiny, as attested by 14 centuries of Islamic legal thought, all of which endorses wife-beating. It is equally unacceptable as a description of Islamic scripture, a representative sampling of which has been quoted in the above portion of the present article. In light of these observations, it is perhaps unsurprising that Taylor's work as an activist has been consistently ridiculed by the broader Islamic community.

====References to hadiths====
{{Quote|[http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/panelists/pamela_k_taylor/2009/02/aasiya_hassan_domestic_violenc.html Aasiya Zubair Hassan, Domestic Violence and Islam] Pamela K. Taylor, The Washington Post, February 27, 2009|Physical and/or emotional abuse has no place in this vision of marriage. Indeed, when women came to the Prophet complaining of their husband's treatment, the Prophet admonished the men saying that those who treated their families poorly were not among the best of men. Mu'awiyah al-Qushayri, one of the companions of the Prophet, reports "I went to the Apostle of Allah and asked him, 'What do you say about our wives?' He replied, 'Feed them with the food you eat, clothe them as you clothe yourself, and do not beat them, and do not revile them." (Sunan Abu-Dawud, Book 11, the Book of Marriage, Number 2139)}}

The hadiths cited by Taylor doubtless exist and, discussed above in present article, make it clear that Muhammad made attempts to moderate the severity of the beatings being undertaken by his companions and, for a brief period, even prohibited these beatings outright. Notably, Taylor does not mention that, in the very same hadith she quotes, Muhammad at first forbids wife beating, but then changes his mind on the advice of Umar (see {{Abu Dawud|11|2141}}). Later, in the same hadith, when some women complain as a result, he makes the remark about the men who beat them quoted by Taylor. That the hadith Taylor chose to cite as evidence that domestic violence is 'indeed against the teachings of Islam' is also the same hadith which marks Muhammad's transition to the final position he took at the behest of Umar which once again legalized domestic violence - a strange decision on Taylor's part.

====Contestation of the word ''daraba''====
{{Main|Wife Beating in the Qur'an}}{{Quote|[http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/panelists/pamela_k_taylor/2009/02/aasiya_hassan_domestic_violenc.html Aasiya Zubair Hassan, Domestic Violence and Islam] Pamela K. Taylor, The Washington Post, February 27, 2009|The fulcrum of this patriarchal interpretation is verse 4:34. Translations vary wildly, ranging from those defining men the the defenders of women to those who render it as men being in charge of women. (The Arabic word, qawamun, comes from a root which means to stand up, thus men are called to stand up for women.) The verse goes on to say that devout women protect that which Allah would have them protect in their husbands absences. Again, the interpretations vary wildly -- from those who read it quite literally, describing pious women as devoted to Allah, to those who take it mean women should be devoutly obedient to their husbands. It continues, saying that if men fear "nushuz" (understood variously as openly rebellion, adultery, spiritual negligence, or wifely disobedience), they should admonish their wives and then separate from them in sleeping arrangements. And then the third phase -- the word used is "daraba."

Daraba is used for many, many things in the Qur'an, from sexual intercourse to parting company, from metaphorically striking a parable to physically striking a person or thing. The vast majority of commentators, have understood the meaning of 4:34 to mean hitting. Modern interpreters such as Ahmed Ali and Laleh Bakhtiar, have made a case that this interpretation is wrong.

Bakhtiar's argument is particularly strong.}}

Taylor cites Laleh Bakhtiar, an Islamic modernist who argues that Islam does not instruct violence against women and that the word ''daraba'' in {{Quran|4|34}} means 'to send away'. Bakhtiar's influence has generally been confined to the Western academy (outside of Islamic studies departments) and has, alongside Taylor's work, been all but comprehensively ridiculed by the wider Islamic world. Her decision to translate {{Quran|4|34}} to suit her modernist interpretation in her English translation of the Quran triggered immense controversy, and many Islamic scholars issued statements denouncing what they described as her 'alteration' of scripture, resulting in the Islamic Society of North America banning the sale of her work in Islamic bookstores in Canada.

Taylor describes Bakhtiar's argument as 'particularly strong'. While this may be Taylor's view, no serious scholar has endorsed Bakhtiar's interpretation (see [[Wife Beating in the Qur'an]]).

====Muhammad never hit a woman====
{{Quote|[http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/panelists/pamela_k_taylor/2009/02/aasiya_hassan_domestic_violenc.html Aasiya Zubair Hassan, Domestic Violence and Islam] Pamela K. Taylor, The Washington Post, February 27, 2009|She described her approach to this verse in a lecture I attended two years ago. She told the audience that she went to many, many scholars and asked them, "Did the Prophet ever hit his wives?" To which all them replied, "No, he never hit his wives." This is directly supported by a hadith narrated by his wife Aishah, who reported "The Messenger of Allah never struck a servant of his with his hand, nor did he ever hit a woman. He never hit anything with his hand, except for when he was fighting a battle in the cause of Allah." Bakhtiar then asked the scholars, "And the Prophet always obeyed Allah, correct?" To which the answer was an emphatic "Yes, the Prophet was the embodiment of the Qur'an."

"Then, how," she asked, "do you explain that when he had problems with his wives, he admonished them, he refrained from sleeping with them for a month, but he never went to the third step and hit them? Was he being disobedient to Allah, or have we misunderstood verse 4:34?" To which, she says, the scholars had no answer.

Her answer is that we have misunderstood 4:34, and that we have to look at what the Prophet actually did after that month's separation -- which was to offer his wives the choice of divorcing him or remaining with him while resolving to avoid the behaviors he found so objectionable. While, she translates "daraba" as "to go away from them," (which is the most common usage of the term in the Qur'an), it seems that it might be better rendered as "to strike a bargain with them."}}

While second-hand anecdote presented by Taylor may well be true, there are several hadith accounts (quoted and discussed above in the present article) which directly contradict Aisha's report about Muhammad never striking a servant or woman - interestingly, the hadiths which record Muhammad striking women, including Aisha herself, and allowing his companions to do the same are found in more reliable hadith collections (that is, ''Sahih Muslim'' and ''Sahih'' ''Bukhari'') than the collection in which the hadith from Aisha quoted by Taylor is found (''Sunan Abu Dawud''). It is also probable that Islamic scholars would reject the idea that Muhammad ever struck his wives, as this would perhaps undermine his theological status as the ''Insan al-Kamil'' (lit. 'the perfect man') - this, however, amounts to theological dissonance rather than a historically-sound objection.

Taylor also suggests that the usage of the word ''daraba'' in {{Quran|4|34}} can plausibly be read to mean 'separate from them' or even 'strike a bargain with them'. She presents in evidence of this suggestion that the word ''daraba'' is most often used throughout the Quran in the former sense. This particular claim does not withstand scrutiny, as the word is [[Wife Beating in the Qur'an|most often used in the Quran to mean 'strike']]. Countless traditional Islamic scholars and linguistic authorities - one of whom, it should be mentioned, Taylor is not - have shown such readings, time and again, [[Wife Beating in the Qur'an|to be bereft of linguistic merit]].
==External Links==

*[http://www.hotpeachpages.net/index.html International inventory of domestic violence services] ''- Global list of abuse hotlines, shelters, refuges, crisis centers and women's organizations, with domestic violence information in over 80 languages''
*[http:///www.answering-islam.org/Silas/wife-beating.htm Wife Beating in Islam] ''- by Silas''
*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Arlandson/beating.htm Domestic violence in Islam: The Quran on wife-beating] ''- by James Arlandson''
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20130601213750/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/LE25Ak01.html Wife-beating, sharia, and Western law] ''- Asia Times''

===National decrees===

*[http://www.haaretz.com/news/saudi-judge-says-it-s-okay-for-men-to-beat-their-wives-1.275823 Saudi Judge Says it's Ok for Men to Beat Their Wives]
*[http://gatesofvienna.blogspot.com/2010/03/its-in-koran.html Algeria: Prison for Violent Husbands is Against Koran, Mufti]
*[http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/oct/18/wife-beating-uae-sharia-law-court Wife-beating allowed under sharia law, UAE court rules] - ''The Guardian notes this article later had to be 'Removed for legal reasons'''

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Women]]
[[Category:Honor violence]]
[[Category:Marriage]]
[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Shariah (Islamic Law)]]
[[Category:Child Marriage]]
[[Category:Criticism of Islam]]
[[Category:Apologetics]]

Wife Beating in Islamic Law

2021-11-08T19:06:00Z

Vixen: /* Wife-beating in the hadiths */

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[[File:A scene from submission.jpg|right|thumb|278px|A scene from Submission, a film about domestic violence in Islam, by Theo van Gogh.]]
Wife-beating is instructed by the the Qur'an and the Hadiths, and has been an accepted part of Islam law since its inception. {{Quran|4|34}} states that men are in charge of women and that husbands may, among other things, beat their wives if they fear disobedience. Although prophet Muhammad suggested that men not beat their wives too harshly, he at the same time provided tacit approval of wife beating by not scolding Muslims for beating their wives, referred to women who spoke-out against abuse as "not the best among you", forbade Muslims from questioning men who beat their wives, allowed others to hit his wives (his wives are known as "the Mothers of believers"), reaffirmed the command of wife-beating in his farewell sermon, and himself struck one of his wives in the chest. In addition to Muhammad's actions, three of the four Rightly-Guided Caliphs are also reported to have beaten women. Because of its many endorsements within Islamic scripture, wife-beating is permitted by the majority of Muslim scholars and leaders. This has led to domestic violence being permitted under law in several Islamic states or being largely ignored by the authorities.

==Islamic scriptures and wife-beating==
{{Main|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Wife Beating}}

===Wife-beating in the Qur'an===
====(4:34) 'Beat them'====
{{Quran|4|34}} Instructs men to beat their wives if they fear disobedience. The word 'beat' in the Arabic is ''daraba.''<ref>daraba - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume5/00000062.pdf Lane's lexicon] Book I page 1777</ref> Although a small number of modern Islamic scholars, apologists, and activists have argued that the word ''daraba'' in the verse does not mean 'beat', the overwhelming majority stand with the Islamic tradition and the unimpeachable linguistic case that is made in agreeing that 'beating' is what the verse instructs. No Arabic dictionary or serious scholar has dissented from this consensus.

Relied-upon Islamic translations of the verse present the word as having this meaning.

{{Quote|{{Quran|4|34}}|

'''Yusuf Ali translation:''' Men are the protectors and maintainers of women, because Allah has given the one more (strength) than the other, and because they support them from their means. Therefore the righteous women are devoutly obedient, and guard in (the husband's) absence what Allah would have them guard. As to those women on whose part ye fear disloyalty and ill-conduct, admonish them (first), (Next), refuse to share their beds, (And last) '''beat them''' (lightly); but if they return to obedience, seek not against them Means (of annoyance): For Allah is Most High, great (above you all).

'''Pickthall translation:''' Men are in charge of women, because Allah hath made the one of them to excel the other, and because they spend of their property (for the support of women). So good women are the obedient, guarding in secret that which Allah hath guarded. As for those from whom ye fear rebellion, admonish them and banish them to beds apart, and '''scourge them'''. Then if they obey you, seek not a way against them. Lo! Allah is ever High, Exalted, Great.

'''Shakir translation:''' Men are the maintainers of women because Allah has made some of them to excel others and because they spend out of their property; the good women are therefore obedient, guarding the unseen as Allah has guarded; and (as to) those on whose part you fear desertion, admonish them, and leave them alone in the sleeping-places and '''beat them'''; then if they obey you, do not seek a way against them; surely Allah is High, Great. )}}

{{Quran|4|34}} commands wife-beating for misconduct as well as the husband's 'fear' of such behavior. The verse provides two other disciplinary methods and implies (but does not state explicitly) that if these do not work then the husband ought to beat his wife. The verse also states that men have authority over women, and that women are to be obedient for this reason, thus establishing an authoritarian structure with the husband as head of the wife. The reason given for this is that Allah created men superior to women in some respects and because men are maintainers of women.{{quote|Qur'an 4:34|ٱلرِّجَالُ قَوَّٰمُونَ عَلَى ٱلنِّسَآءِ بِمَا فَضَّلَ ٱللَّهُ بَعْضَهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ وَبِمَآ أَنفَقُوا۟ مِنْ أَمْوَٰلِهِمْ فَٱلصَّٰلِحَٰتُ قَٰنِتَٰتٌ حَٰفِظَٰتٌ لِّلْغَيْبِ بِمَا حَفِظَ ٱللَّهُ وَٱلَّٰتِى تَخَافُونَ نُشُوزَهُنَّ فَعِظُوهُنَّ وَٱهْجُرُوهُنَّ فِى ٱلْمَضَاجِعِ '''وَٱضْرِبُوهُنَّ''' فَإِنْ أَطَعْنَكُمْ فَلَا تَبْغُوا۟ عَلَيْهِنَّ سَبِيلًا إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ عَلِيًّا كَبِيرًا

'''Transliteration:''' ''Alrrijalu qawwamoona AAala alnnisai bima faddala Allahu baAAdahum AAala baAAdin wabima anfaqoo min amwalihim faalssalihatu qanitatun hafithatun lilghaybi bima hafitha Allahu waallatee takhafoona nushoozahunna faAAithoohunna waohjuroohunna fee almadajiAAi waidriboohunna fain ataAAnakum fala tabghoo AAalayhinna sabeelan inna Allaha kana AAaliyyan kabeeran''

'''Word-by-word:''' ٱلرِّجَالُ (''ar-rijaalu'', 'men') قَوَّٰمُونَ (''qawwaamoona'', 'maintainers') عَلَى (''ala'', 'over') ٱلنِّسَآءِ (''al-nisaa'', 'women') [...] فَعِظُوهُنَّ (''fa'', 'then'; ''ithoo'', 'admonish'; ''hunna'', 'them') وَٱهْجُرُوهُنَّ (''wa'', 'and'; ''hjuroo'', 'forsake'; ''hunna'', 'them') فِى (''fi'', 'in') ٱلْمَضَاجِعِ (''al-madaji'i'', 'beds') وَٱضْرِبُوهُنَّ (''wa'', 'and'; ''driboo'', 'beat'; ''hunna'', 'them') فَإِنْ (''fa'', 'then'; ''in'', 'if') أَطَعْنَكُمْ (''ata'na'', 'they obey'; ''kum'', 'you') [...]}}

The root of the word وَٱضْرِبُوهُنَّ (''wa-driboo-hunna'') is ضرب (''d-r-b''). The letter ٱ (''alif waslah'') [[Arabic_letters_and_diacritics#Special_alif_diacritics|is not pronounced]] here, but if the word lacked the و (''-wa'', meaning 'and') prefix and was at the beginning of a passage, it would be read as ''i'', making the word ''idriboohunna'' (ٱضْرِبُوهُنَّ). Many other verses in the Quran employ verbiage derived from the same root, such as {{Quran|2|60}}, which reads '...strike (ٱضْرِب, ''drib'') the rock with your staff...', {{Quran|2|73}}, which reads '"...strike it (ٱضْرِبُوهُ, ''driboo-hu'') with a part of the cow...", and {{Quran|8|12}}, which reads '...so strike (فَٱضْرِبُوا۟, ''fa-driboo'') on their necks...'. Other examples are also present.

The word "lightly" does not appear in the original Arabic version, but is added in some translations.

====(38:44) Job beats his wife====
{{Quran|38|44}} states that the prophet Job (''Ayyub'') was commanded by Allah to beat his wife using a bundle of grass, twigs, or rushes (''dighthan''<ref>dad-ghayn-tha [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume5/00000078.pdf Lane's Lexicon] Book I page 1793</ref>).

{{Quote|{{Quran|38|44}}|[We said], "And take in your hand a bunch [of grass] '''and strike with it''' and do not break your oath." Indeed, We found him patient, an excellent servant. Indeed, he was one repeatedly turning back [to Allah].}}

Classical tafsirs such as Ibn Kathir's give the story behind the verse. The lesson to be learned is that it is better to beat your wife in a relatively unpainful, albeit humiliating way than to break an earlier oath where one promised to beat their wife (as had the prophet Job in this story).

{{Quote|1=[http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1952&Itemid=94 Ayyub] Tafsir Ibn Kathir|2=Ayyub, peace be upon him, got angry with his wife and was upset about something she had done, so he swore an oath that if Allah healed him, he would '''strike her with one hundred blows.''' When Allah healed him, how could her service, mercy, compassion and kindness be repaid with a beating So Allah showed him a way out, which was to take a bundle of thin grass, with one hundred stems, '''and hit her with it once'''. Thus he fulfilled his oath and avoided breaking his vow.}}

===Wife-beating in the hadiths===

====Muhammad striking women and tampering of the hadith English translations====
While some modern voices have denied that the Qur'an instructs wife-beating, alleging that {{Quran|4|34}} has been misinterpreted, those who admit the Islamic tradition have noted that there exist in the hadiths numerous examples, from a variety of hadith narrators and collectors, of Muhammad ordaining wife-beating and confirming the original meaning of the verse found in the Quran. There are, for instance, multiple hadiths in which Muhammad's companions beat or strike women (sometimes in his presence), as well as some, albeit conflicting evidence narrated from his wife, Aisha, regarding whether Muhammad himself used physical force against the women in his life. The best examples, perhaps, of hadiths permitting wife-beating are those in which Muhammad explicitly attempts to ''moderate'' wife-beating while nonetheless permitting it, as these have frequently been cited by dissenting modern voices and apologists themselves.

In one account found in the hadith collections, including the authoritative [[Sahih Muslim|''Sahih Muslim'']], [[Muhammad]] causes his wife [[Aisha]] physical pain by striking her in the chest. The Arabic word translated "He struck me" (فَلَهَدَنِي) is ''lahada'' , which means 'he pushed violently' or 'he struck her chest'<ref>lahada [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000204.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2676</ref>, and the word translated caused me pain (أَوْجَعَتْنِي) is awja'a meaning 'He, or it, pained him; or caused him pain, or aching'<ref>awja'a - [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/27_w/045_wjE.html Lane's Lexicon]</ref>. It is important to note that the popular hadith website Sunnah.com, drastically altered this phrase from the original translations they used for the Sahih Muslim and Sunan al-Nasa'i collections, presumably to present Muhammad and Islam in a more positive light, changing it in both cases to "He gave me a nudge on the chest which I felt" - for this reason, the words provided here have been restored to the original translation of Siddique. These are what the translations say:

'''Sahih Muslim Book 4, 2127''' (Abdul Hamid Siddiqui; Sunnah.com's source translation):
He said, Was it the darkness (of your shadow) that I saw in front of me? I said, Yes. He struck me in the chest which caused me pain, and then said, Did you think that Allah and His Apostle would deal unjustly with you?

'''Sahih Muslim 974b''' (Dar-us-Salam edition translated by Nasiruddin al-Khattab, Vol. 2 p.506):
He said: "so you were the person that I saw in front of me?" I said: "Yes." He gave me a painful shove on the chest, then he said: "Did you think that Allah and His Messenger would be unjust to you?"

'''Sunan al-Nasa'i 2039''' (Dar-us-Salam edition, Vol. 3, p.127, translated by Nasiruddin al-Khattab; Sunnah.com's source translation which they altered in the same way as they did for Sahih Muslim):
He said: 'So you were the black shape that I saw in front of me?' I said, 'Yes.' He struck me on the chest, which caused we pain, then he said: 'Did you think Allah and His Messenger would deal unjustly with you?'

{{Quote|{{Muslim|4|2127}}|Muhammad b. Qais said (to the people): Should I not narrate to you (a hadith of the Holy Prophet) on my authority and on the authority of my mother? We thought that he meant the mother who had given him birth. He (Muhammad b. Qais) then reported that it was 'A'isha who had narrated this: Should I not narrate to you about myself and about the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him)? We said: Yes. She said: When it was my turn for Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) to spend the night with me, he turned his side, put on his mantle and took off his shoes and placed them near his feet, and spread the corner of his shawl on his bed and then lay down till he thought that I had gone to sleep. He took hold of his mantle slowly and put on the shoes slowly, and opened the door and went out and then closed it lightly. I covered my head, put on my veil and tightened my waist wrapper, and then went out following his steps till he reached Baqi'. He stood there and he stood for a long time. He then lifted his hands three times, and then returned and I also returned. He hastened his steps and I also hastened my steps. He ran and I too ran. He came (to the house) and I also came (to the house). I, however, preceded him and I entered (the house), and as I lay down in the bed, he (the Holy Prophet) entered the (house), and said: Why is it, O 'A'isha, that you are out of breath? I said: There is nothing. He said: Tell me or the Subtle and the Aware would inform me. I said: Messenger of Allah, may my father and mother be ransom for you, and then I told him (the whole story). He said: Was it the darkness (of your shadow) that I saw in front of me? I said: Yes. '''He struck me on the chest which caused me pain,''' and then said: Did you think that Allah and His Apostle would deal unjustly with you? She said: Whatsoever the people conceal, Allah will know it. He said: Gabriel came to me when you saw me. He called me and he concealed it from you. I responded to his call, but I too concealed it from you (for he did not come to you), as you were not fully dressed. I thought that you had gone to sleep, and I did not like to awaken you, fearing that you may be frightened. He (Gabriel) said: Your Lord has commanded you to go to the inhabitants of Baqi' (to those lying in the graves) and beg pardon for them. I said: Messenger of Allah, how should I pray for them (How should I beg forgiveness for them)? He said: Say, Peace be upon the inhabitants of this city (graveyard) from among the Believers and the Muslims, and may Allah have mercy on those who have gone ahead of us, and those who come later on, and we shall, God willing, join you.}}

By contrast, there exists a hadith in [[Sunan Abu Dawud|''Sunan Abu Dawud'']] which reports Aisha saying that Muhammad never hit (''daraba'') a woman. While it is not at all uncommon to find contradictions in the hadith literature, Aisha here may have either generously or inadvertently disregarded the time when Muhammad pushed / struck her painfully in the chest, as reported in the Sahih Muslim hadith above, assuming both are authentic (as Islamic scholars hold them to be).

{{Quote|1=[http://sunnah.com/abudawud/43/14 AbuDawud 42:4768]|2=`A’isha said: the Messenger of Allah (saws) never struck a servant or a woman.
 Grade: Sahih (Al-Albani)}}

====Muhammad's companions striking women====
Multiple hadiths in the authoritative ''[[Sahih Bukhari]]'' report that Abu Bakr (the first Rightly-Guided [[Caliph]] of Islam and Muhammad's best friend) also struck (his daughter) Aisha violently with his fist.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|8|82|828}}, See also: {{Bukhari|1|7|330}} and {{Bukhari|6|60|132}}|Narrated Aisha: Abu Bakr came to towards me and '''struck me violently with his fist''' and said, "You have detained the people because of your necklace." But I remained motionless as if I was dead lest I should awake Allah's Apostle although '''that hit was very painful.'''}}

In another hadith found in ''Sahih Muslim'', Abu Bakr informs Muhammad that he slapped [[Khadijah|Khadijah’s]] daughter, and Muhammad responds by laughing and tells Abu Bakr his wives are asking him for more money. Abu Bakr and Umar (the second Rightly-Guided Caliph of Islam and Muhammad's other best friend) respond by slapping [[Muhammad's Marriages|Muhammad's wives]], Hafsa and (for the third time) Aisha.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|9|3506}}|Jabir b. 'Abdullah (Allah be pleased with them) reported:
Abu Bakr (Allah be pleased with him) came and sought permission to see Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him). He found people sitting at his door and none amongst them had been granted permission, but it was granted to Abu Bakr and he went in. Then came 'Umar and he sought permission and it was granted to him, and he found Allah's Apostle (peace be upon him) sitting sad and silent with his wives around him. He (Hadrat 'Umar) said: I would say something which would make the Prophet (peace be upon him) laugh, so he said: Messenger of Allah, I wish you had seen (the treatment meted out to) the daughter of Khadija when you asked me some money, and '''I got up and slapped her on her neck. Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) laughed''' and said: They are around me as you see, asking for extra money. Abu Bakr (Allah be pleased with him) then got up '''went to 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) and slapped her on the neck''', and 'Umar '''stood up before Hafsa and slapped''' her saying: You ask Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) which he does not possess. They said: By Allah, we do not ask Allah's Messenger peace be upon him) for anything he does not possess. Then he withdrew from them for a month or for twenty-nine days. Then this verse was revealed to him:" Prophet: Say to thy wives... for a mighty reward" (xxxiii. 28). He then went first to 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) and said: I want to propound something to you, 'A'isha, but wish no hasty reply before you consult your parents. She said: Messenger of Allah, what is that? He (the Holy Prophet) recited to her the verse, whereupon she said: Is it about you that I should consult my parents, Messenger of Allah? Nay, I choose Allah, His Messenger, and the Last Abode; but I ask you not to tell any of your wives what I have said He replied: Not one of them will ask me without my informing her. God did not send me to be harsh, or cause harm, but He has sent me to teach and make things easy.}}

In yet another hadith, Ali (the fourth Rightly-Guided Caliph of Islam as well as Muhammad's cousin, foster-son, and son-in-law) gives a [[Slavery|slave-girl]] a violent beating in front of Muhammad.

{{Quote|Ibn Ishaq: p 496|As for Ali he said “Women are plentiful, and you can easily change one for another. Ask the slave girl; she will tell you the truth.” So the Apostle called Burayra to ask her and Ali got up and gave her a violent beating, saying, ‘Tell the Apostle the truth.’”}}

One account found in the hadiths reports Muhammad giving a decree instructing men to not beat their wives, but the hadiths reporting this also record Muhammad immediately changing his mind once Umar (the 2nd rightly guided Caliph) informs him that some of the women have become emboldened towards their husbands. Then, when some women complain about getting beaten, he makes only a mild remark about their husbands instead of moving to protect the women.

{{Quote|{{Abu Dawud|11|2141}}|Iyas ibn Abdullah ibn AbuDhubab reported the Apostle of Allah as saying: Do not beat Allah's handmaidens, but when Umar came to the Apostle of Allah and said: Women have become emboldened towards their husbands, '''he (the Prophet) gave permission to beat them.''' Then many women came round the family of the Apostle of Allah complaining against their husbands. So the Apostle of Allah said: Many women have gone round Muhammad's family complaining against their husbands. They are not the best among you.}}

In another hadith, Umar instructs a man to beat his wife after she tries to prevent him from having intercourse with his slave girl.
{{Quote|{{Muwatta|30||13}}|Yahya related to me from Malik that Abdullah ibn Dinar said, "A man came to Abdullah ibn Umar when I was with him at the place where judgments were given and asked him about the suckling of an older person. Abdullah ibn Umar replied, 'A man came to Umar ibn al-Khattab and said, 'I have a slave-girl and I used to have intercourse with her. My wife went to her and suckled her. When I went to the girl, my wife told me to watch out, because she had suckled her!' '''Umar told him to beat his wife and to go to his slave-girl because kinship by suckling was only by the suckling of the young.'''' "}}

A hadith graded ''hasan'' (the 2nd highest level of authenticity according to traditional scholars of hadith, below ''sahih'') quotes Muhammad saying that a man should not be asked why he beats his wife:

{{Quote|1=[http://sunnah.com/urn/1263050 Sunan Ibn Majah 3:9:1986]|2=It was narrated that Ash'ath bin Qais said:
"I was a guest (at the home) of 'Umar one night, and in the middle of the night he went and hit his wife, and I separated them. When he went to bed he said to me: 'O Ash'ath, learn from me something that I heard from the Messenger of Allah" '''A man should not be asked why he beats his wife''', and do not go to sleep until you have prayed the Witr."' And I forgot the third thing."}}

In yet another hadith, a woman complains to Muhammad about her husband and shows him where he has beaten and bruised her. Muhammad listens to the husband’s side of the story and concludes the reason why his wife is complaining is because he cannot sexually satisfy her and that she wants to go back to her ex-husband, although the report only indicates that the woman was complaining of physical abuse (also evidenced by the 'green' color of her skin). Rather than scolding her husband for beating her, Muhammad says she cannot [[Marriage|re-marry]] her ex-husband unless she has [[Reproduction|sexual intercourse]] with her present husband first.

In the same hadith, Aisha also states that she has not seen any woman suffering as much as 'the believing women'. This apparent meaning of this is that according to Aisha, Muhammad's wife, Muslim women were suffering more than their [[Pagan Origins of Islam|pagan]] and Abrahamic counterparts.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|7|72|715}}|Narrated Ikrima: 'Rifaa divorced his wife whereupon Abdur-Rahman married her. Aisha said that the lady came wearing a green veil and complained to her (Aisha) and showed her a '''green spot on her skin caused by beating.''' It was the habit of ladies to support each other, so when Allah's messenger came, Aisha said, '''"I have not seen any woman suffering as much as the believing women. Look! Her skin is greener than her clothes'''! When Abdur-Rahman heard that his wife had gone to the prophet, he came with his two sons from another wife. She said, "By Allah! I have done no wrong to him, but he is impotent and is as useless to me as this," holding and showing the fringe of her garment. Abdur-Rahman said, "By Allah, O Allah's messenger! She has told a lie. I am very strong and can satisfy her, but she is disobedient and wants to go back to Rifaa." Allah's messenger said to her, "If that is your intention, then know that it is unlawful for you to remarry Rifaa unless Abdur-Rahman has had sexual intercourse with you." The prophet saw two boys with Abdur-Rahman and asked (him), "Are these your sons?" On that Abdur-Rahman said, "Yes." The prophet said, "You claim what you claim (that he is impotent)? But by Allah, these boys resemble him as a crow resembles a crow."}}

In the authentic version of his [[Farewell Sermon|''Farewell Sermon'']], Muhammad compares women to domestic [[animals]] and once more tells men to beat their wives, but 'not severely'.

{{Quote|{{Tabari|9|pp. 112-113}}|"Now then, O people, you have a right over your wives and they have a right over you. You have [the right] that they should not cause anyone of whom you dislike to tread on your beds; and that they should not commit any open indecency. If they do, then Allah permits you to shut them in separate rooms and '''to beat them, but not severely'''. If they abstain from [evil], they have the right to their food and clothing in accordance with the custom. Treat women well, for they are [like] domestic animals with you and do not possess anything for themselves. You have taken them only as a trust from Allah, and you have made the enjoyment of their persons lawful by the word of Allah, so understand and listen to my words, O people.}}

In other versions of the farewell sermon the same comments about beating are reported, such as in the following version from a hadith in ''Sunan Abu Dawud'' (graded Sahih by the famous modern scholar of hadith al-Albani). Here, as in the Qur'an, Muslim men are instructed to beat their wives, although some hadiths nuance this by adding 'not severely':

{{Quote|1=[https://sunnah.com/abudawud/11/185 Sunan Abu Dawud 10:1900]|2=Fear Allaah regarding women for you have got them under Allah’s security and have the right to intercourse with them by Allaah’s word. It is a duty from you on them not to allow anyone whom you dislike to lie on your beds but if they do '''beat them, but not severely.''' You are responsible for providing them with food and clothing in a fitting manner.}}

The caveat, "but not severely", appears also in the other narrations of the farewell sermon in other hadith collections, although English translations in some cases have [[Mistranslations of Islamic Scripture (English)|mistranslated]] the same Arabic phrase.

Altogether, the hadith report that (1) 'A'isha did not consider Muhammad himself to have ever hit a woman, although on one occasion he painfully pushed / struck her in the chest, (2) Muhammad at first forbade the beating of Muslim women, but was persuaded to allow it when Umar warned that the men were losing control of their wives, (3) Muhammad allowed some of his prominent companions to hit women and slap his own wives (the very women whom all Muslims adore and refer to as "the Mother of believers", (4) Muhammad merely makes a mild remark about other men when their wives complain about beatings (describing those that do so to the point of complaint as 'not the best among you'), (5) Muhammad forbade Muslims from questioning men who beat their wives, (6) three of the four Rightly-Guided Caliphs beat women, and (7) Muhammad reaffirms the Qur'anic command of wife-beating in his parting sermon, albeit "without severity". It is clear that wife-beating has been an accepted part of Islam since its inception. While Muhammad had some reservations about the beating of women, he repeatedly indulged men who physically disciplined women, including in his presence, and was ultimately persuaded to prescribe it as a divinely-instructed punishment for certain types of misconduct on the part of women.

====Additional attempts at moderating severe beatings====

According to a number of reports found in the hadiths, Muhammad was concerned that his companions were beating their wives too severely. These hadiths record his efforts to control the severity of the beatings being conducted.

{{Quote|{{Bukhari|8|73|68}}|Narrated `Abdullah bin Zam`a:
The Prophet (peace be upon him) forbade laughing at a person who passes wind, and said, "How does anyone of you beat his wife as he beats the stallion camel and then he may embrace (sleep with) her?" And Hisham said, "As he beats his slave"}}

In one hadith, Muhammad advises a recently divorced woman against marrying a companions of his who he knows to be 'very harsh with women'.

{{Quote|{{Muslim|9|3527}}|Fatima bint Qais (Allah be pleased with her) reported:
My husband Abu 'Amr b. Hafs b. al-Mughira sent 'Ayyish b. Abu Rabi'a to me with a divorce, and he also sent through him five si's of dates and five si's of barley. I said: Is there no maintenance allowance for me but only this, and I cannot even spend my 'Idda period in your house? He said: No. She said: I dressed myself and came to Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him). He said: How many pronouncements of divorce have been made for you? I said: Three. He said what he ('Ayyish b. Abu Rabi'a) had stated was true. There is no maintenance allowance for you. Spend 'Idda period in the house of your cousin, Ibn Umm Maktum. He is blind and you can put off your garment in his presence. And when you have spent your Idda period, you inform me. She said: Mu'awiya and Abu'l-Jahm (Allah be pleased with them) were among those who had given me the proposal of marriage. Thereupon Allah's Apostle (peace be upon him) said: Mu'awiya is destitute and in poor condition and Abu'l-Jahm is very harsh with women (or he beats women, or like that), you should take Usama b. Zaid (as your husband).}}

In another hadith, Muhammad instructs that a person should not beat their wife's face.

{{Quote|1=[http://sunnah.com/abudawud/12/97 AbuDawud 11:2137]|2=Narrated Mu'awiyah al-Qushayri: Mu'awiyah asked: Messenger of Allah, what is the right of the wife of one of us over him? He replied: That you should give her food when you eat, clothe her when you clothe yourself, do not strike her on the face, do not revile her or separate yourself from her except in the house.

Abu Dawud said: The meaning of "do not revile her" is, as you say: "May Allah revile you".}}

Another version of the same hadith is worded more generally, saying, "do not beat them". If this version is a more accurate reflection of what Muhammad said, it is likely that it occurred in the temporary period in which Muhammad forbade beating (see {{Abu Dawud|11|2141}}, quoted above), as later sources concur on Muhammad's instruction and permission of wife-beating.

{{Quote|1=[http://sunnah.com/abudawud/12/99 AbuDawud 11:2139]|2=Narrated Mu'awiyah al-Qushayri:
I went to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and asked him: What do you say (command) about our wives? He replied: Give them food what you have for yourself, and clothe them by which you clothe yourself, and do not beat them, and do not revile them}}

A lengthy hadith in Sunan Abu Dawud includes an instruction to beat one's wives, but not severely, if they allow anyone whom the husband dislikes to lie on their beds (these being were usually rolled out on the floor in Bedouin tents). In Arabic, 'beat them, but not severely' is ''fa-idribuhunna darban ghayra mubarrihin'', which literally translates to mean 'beat them, a beating without violence/severity/sharpness/vehemence<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000219.pdf Lane's Lexicon] Book I page 182</ref>'. The instruction here is nearly akin to that found in Muhammad's farewell sermon (quoted above) and includes the following:

{{Quote|1=[http://sunnah.com/abudawud/11/185 AbuDawud 10:1900]|2=Fear Allaah regarding women for you have got them under Allah’s security and have the right to intercourse with them by Allaah’s word. It is a duty from you on them not to allow anyone whom you dislike to lie on your beds but if they do beat them, but not severely.}}

A shorter version of the Farewell Sermon can also be found in ''Sunan Ibn Majah''. The Arabic words here translated 'and hit them, but without causing injury or leaving a mark' are the same as those found in the ''Abu Dawud'' hadith as well as al-Tabari's version of the farewell sermon (quoted above), with the literal translation being, again, 'beat them, a beating without severity'.

{{Quote|{{Ibn Majah||3|9|1851}}|Then he said: 'I enjoin good treatment of women, for they are prisoners with you, and you have no right to treat them otherwise, unless they commit clear indecency. If they do that, then forsake them in their beds and hit them, but without causing injury or leaving a mark.}}

Similarly, the versions of the farewell sermon found in {{Al Tirmidhi||5|44|3087}}, translated as 'and beat them with a beating that is not painful', and {{Al Tirmidhi||2|10|1163}}, translated as 'and beat them with a beating that is not harmful, consist of the same Arabic words as quoted above and found in other versions of the sermon.

The ''[[tafsir]]'', or exegesis, of al-Tabari (d. 923, roughly 200 years after [[Muhammad's Death|Muhammad's death]]) for verse {{Quran|4|34}} appears to be the earliest record of the idea that wife beating should be done with a ''miswak''/''siwaak'' (a small stick-like item used as a toothbrush).<ref>[http://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=1&tSoraNo=4&tAyahNo=34&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 al-tafsir.com] Tabari's tafsir for 4:34</ref> These do not appear in the main ''sahih'' hadith collections, but have been of abiding interest nonetheless.

{{Quote|1=[https://tafsir.app/tabari/4/34 al-Tabari 4:34]|2=I said to Ibn ‘Abbaas, what is a non-severe beating? He said, Hitting with a siwaak and the like.}}
In Arabic, the phrase 'non-severe beating' is ''darban ghayra mubarrihin''. This is the same phrasing and set of words found in the ''Abu Dawud'' hadith and in the various versions of Muhammad's farewell sermon. In his tafsir, al-Tabari also quotes Qatada clarifying that the phrase means ''ghayr sha'in'' (that is, 'without being disgraceful/outrageous/obscene/indecent').<ref>[https://tafsir.app/tabari/4/34 al-Tabari 4:34]</ref> This is in sharp contrast with the translation/interpretation employed in Islamic evangelical discourse, which construes ''darban ghayra mubarrihin'' as a more absolute prohibition, in some instances translating it as 'a light tap that leaves no mark' - a translation that, as a heavily metaphorical interpretation, has no linguistic merit.

Putting together, the hadiths suggest that Muhammad condemned those who beat their wives as severely as they beat their slaves. It is also evident that, at least for some time, Muhammad forbade wife-beating altogether. It is also evident that Muhammad then reverted from this position to permitting wife-beating, albeit this time around while encouraging his male companions not to beat their wives as severely as they beat their slaves. This final position is also found reiterated in the various versions of his final sermon reported found in the hadith literature.

Tabari, a source Islamic scholars view as being considerably less reliable than the sahih hadiths, also reports that Ibn Abbas - an individual famous for having resisted the Rashidun Caliph's attempts at [[Textual History of the Qur'an|standardizing the Quran]] - narrated that Muhammad at some point instructed that Men should only beat their wives with the twig-like device known as a ''miswaak''. Many doubt the reliability of this report, which appears to contradict the overall message of the hadith literature, but it is equally possible that Muhammad at some point actually endorsed this view, only to finally adopt the position indicated in the farewell sermon.

Critics have also noted what they describe as the sheer absurdity of the qualification found in the report and suggest that it could hardly be that God would leave out such an important qualification from the verse which, read in isolation, simply instructs men to beat their wives. To do so, critics suggest, would be a serious lack of judgement on God's part. Critics have also ridiculed the absurdity of the practice itself - what is the purpose, they ask, of tapping one's wife with a twig? And why would ''this'' prove effective if admonition of one's wife and abandoning her in bed had proven ineffective - surely tapping someone with a twig cannot be more compelling than either of these measures? Such a practice, critics conclude, is, at worst, a humiliating and patronizing symbolic gesture (having no place in polite society), or, at best, a fiction generated in the minds of later Muslims (that is, 7th, 8th, or 9th century Muslims attributing this idea, retroactively, back to Ibn Abbas) who were having a hard time reconciling the conflicting imperatives of an early Islamic tradition which at once taught Muslims to be kind to one another - and to beat their wives.

==Early and modern Islamic authorities on wife-beating==

Classical Muslim scholars have written abundant [[Tafsir|commentary]] and jurisprudential material regarding {{Quran|4|34}} and instruction to beat wives. A few of these classical sources are quoted below, alongside some modern authorities. It is important to note that a number of Islamic modernists (a small sub-group of modern Islamic scholars in general) [[Wife Beating in Islamic Law#The objections of Islamic modernists|have advocated]] an interpretation of {{Quran|4|34}} that militates against traditional understanding and takes the beating instructed to be purely 'symbolic' in nature. The influence of these few, albeit vocal, modernists has resulted in some recent English translations of the Quran opting to replace the word ''daraba'', which is found in the Arabic text and which means 'beat', with alternative words that more readily evoke the modernist interpretation.

{{Quote|1=[http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=672] Tafsir of Ibn Kathir for Qur'an 4:34|2=(beat them) means, if advice and ignoring her in the bed do not produce the desired results, you are allowed to discipline the wife, without severe beating. Muslim recorded that Jabir said that during the Farewell Hajj, the Prophet said;
(Fear Allah regarding women, for they are your assistants. You have the right on them that they do not allow any person whom you dislike to step on your mat. However, if they do that, you are allowed to discipline them lightly. They have a right on you that you provide them with their provision and clothes, in a reasonable manner.) Ibn `Abbas and several others said that the Ayah refers to a beating that is not violent. Al-Hasan Al-Basri said that it means, a beating that is not severe.}}

{{Quote|[http://answering-islam.org/Silas/wife-beating.htm Al-Nawawi] Reliance of the Traveller|"When a husband notices signs of rebelliousness in his wife (nushuz), whether in words, as when she answers him coldly when she used to do so politely, or he asks her to come to bed and she refuses, contrary to her usual habit; or whether in acts, as when he finds her averse to him when she was previously kind and cheerful), he warns her in words (without keeping from her or hitting her, for it may be that she has an excuse. The warning could be to tell her, "fear Allah concerning the rights you owe to me," or it could be to explain that rebelliousness nullifies his obligation to support her and give her a turn amongst other wives, or it could be to inform her, "Your obeying me is religiously obligatory"). If she commits rebelliousness, he keeps from sleeping (and having sex) with her without words, and '''may hit her''', but not in a way that injures her, meaning he may not (bruise her), break bones, wound her, or cause blood to flow. (It is unlawful to strike another’s face.) He may hit her whether she is rebellious only once or whether more than once, though a weaker opinion holds that he may hot hit her unless there is repeated rebelliousness."

If the wife does not fulfill one of the above-mentioned obligations, she is termed "rebellious" (nashiz), and the husband takes the following steps to correct matters:

(a) admonition and advice, by explaining the unlawfulness of rebellion, its harmful effect on married life, and by listening to her viewpoint on the matter;

(b) if admonition is ineffectual, he keeps from her by not sleeping in bed with her, by which both learn the degree to which they need each other;

(c) if keeping from her is ineffectual, '''it is permissible for him to hit her''' if he believes that hitting her will bring her back to the right path, though if he does not think so, it is not permissible. His hitting her may not be in a way that injures her, and is his last recourse to save the family.

(d) if the disagreement does not end after all this, each partner chooses an arbitrator to solve the dispute by settlement, or divorce.}}

{{Quote|1=[http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=archives&Area=sd&ID=SP222909 Egyptian Cleric Galal Al-Khatib Explains Wife-Beating in Islam] MEMRI: Special Dispatch, No. 2229, February 5, 2009|2=How should the beatings go? Maybe a light slap on her shoulder, or maybe a not-so-light pinch, or a kind of gentle shove. He should make her feel that he wants to reform her, and let her know that he is displeased with her. It is like saying: None of the measures that work with sensitive people work with you. A word would be enough for any wife with lofty morals, but with you, words do not help. 

Then he attempts a new direction, appealing to her femininity and emotions, by making her feel that he doesn't want her or love her. When this doesn't work, he says to her: With you, '''I have reached a stage which is only appropriate for inhumane people - the stage of beating'''. 

Beating is one of the punishments of religious law. What kind of people are beaten? Virgin adulterers, both men and women, are beaten as a means of discipline. Who else is beaten? A person who committed an offense and was sentenced by the judge to beatings. Who else is beaten? Someone who committed a crime. By beating his wife, the husband is saying: You've committed a grave sin that merits beatings."}}

{{Quote|[http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4048.htm Dr. Ahmad Al-Tayyeb, President of Al-Azhar University and former Mufti of Egypt] MEMRI: Special Dispatch No.2868, March 19, 2010|With regard to wife beating... In a nutshell, it appeared as part of a program to reform the wife. [According to the Koran], first 'admonish them,' [then] 'sleep in separate beds, and beat them.'...This method appeared as part of the treatment of a rebellious wife. I am faced with two options – either the family will be destroyed by divorce, or I can use means that may bring my wife, the mother of my children, back to her senses. The first means is admonishment...The second means of treatment is 'sleeping in separate beds.' Why? Because this targets the honor... A lot could be said about this. The strength of a woman lies in her ability to seduce the man. The man is strong and can do whatever he wants, but the woman has a weapon of her own. This weapon can be targeted. Many women will come back to their senses, when they realize that this is what's involved...By Allah, even if only one woman out of a million can be reformed by light beatings... '''It's not really beating, it's more like punching'''... It's like shoving or poking her. That's what it is.}}

{{Quote|[http://www.islamqa.com/en/ref/10680/rights%20husband%20wife What are the rights of the husband and what are the rights of the wife?] Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid, Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 10680|Discipline. The husband has the right to discipline his wife if she disobeys him in something good, not if she disobeys him in something sinful, because '''Allaah has enjoined disciplining women by forsaking them in bed and by hitting them, when they do not obey'''.

The Hanafis mentioned four situations in which a husband is permitted to discipline his wife by hitting her. These are: not adorning herself when he wants her to; not responding when he calls her to bed and she is taahirah (pure, i.e., not menstruating); not praying; and going out of the house without his permission.}}

==Domestic violence in the Islamic World==
While it is not necessarily the case that the Quran's instruction for men to beat their wives is responsible for the endemic occurrence of domestic violence in Muslim-majority countries (given that such practices are also endorsed in the scriptures revered by the religious populations of societies where domestic violence is not nearly as widespread), a degree of causal connection between the relevant scriptural commandments and the rates of domestic violence observed is strongly suggested by the virtually universal adoption of traditional literalism among Islamic clerics as well as the usually higher-than-average overall religiosity of Muslim societies.

;Afghanistan

{{Quote||'''Nearly 90 percent of Afghan women suffer from domestic abuse''', according to the United Nations Development Fund for Women. Despite that, there are less than a dozen shelters like this one in Afghanistan, usually run by non-governmental organizations.

Abusers are rarely prosecuted or convicted, and most women are afraid to say anything. "Their mothers are beaten by their fathers. They're beaten by their fathers, by their brothers. It's a way of life," said Manizha Naderi, director of WAW.<ref>Atia Abawi - [http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/09/23/afghanistan.women.abuse/index.html Afghan women hiding for their lives] - CNN, September 24, 2009</ref>}}

;Iran

{{Quote||Statistics in Iran show that '''66% of Iranian women, at the beginning of the marriage have been at least physically abused once'''. Some forms of physical abuse that occur include: biting, bondage, imprisonment in their own home, scratching, hair pulling, and even starving.<ref>Maryam Nayeb-Yazdi - [http://www.iranian.com/BTW/2006/February/Yazdi/index.html The violence that may never end] - Iranian.com, February 15, 2006</ref>}}

;Iraq

{{Quote||A recent report by the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) '''registered 139 cases of violence against women''' in the northern region of Kurdistan in the second half of 2008 alone. '''It said 163 women were killed as a result of domestic violence''' in Kurdistan in 2009. Experts suggest '''the number is less than 5 percent of the real estimates'''.<ref>Afif Sarhan - [http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_C&pagename=Zone-English-News/NWELayout&cid=1242759335091&utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss Iraq’s Domestic Violence Plight] - Islam Online, May 31, 2009
</ref>}}

;Jordan

{{Quote||'''91% of university students''' polled by the Jordanian Human Right Center approve of wife beating.

An earlier study by another organization found out that a majority of WOMEN also supports the right of a husband to beat the wife<ref>[http://www.360east.com/?p=429 All together now: YES for wife beatings!] - 360 East, May 7, 2006</ref>}}

{{Quote||According to the [National Family Council] report: 83% of Jordanian women approve of wife beating if the woman cheats on her husband 60% approve of wife beating in cases where the wife burns a meal she's cooking 52% approve of wife beating in case where she's refused to follow the husband’s orders<ref>Natasha Tynes - [http://web.archive.org/web/20051028032921/http://www.natashatynes.org/mental_mayhem/2005/04/disturbing_repo.html Disturbing report on wife beating in Jordan] - Mental Mayhem, April 10, 2005</ref>}}

;Pakistan

{{Quote||A study published in June 2006 in the Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association, based on interviews with 300 women admitted to hospital for childbirth, said '''80 percent reported being subjected to some kind of abuse within marriage'''. At times, the violence inflicted on women takes on truly horrendous forms. The Islamabad-based Progressive Women's Association (PWA), headed by Shahnaz Bukhari, believes '''up to 4,000 women are burnt each year''', almost always by husbands or in-laws, often as “punishment” for minor “offences” or for failure to bring in a sufficient dowry.

The PWA said it had collected details of nearly 8,000 such victims from March 1994 to March 2007, from three hospitals in the Rawalpindi-Islamabad area alone.<ref>[http://www.stopvaw.org/PAKISTAN_Domestic_violence_endemic_but_awareness_slowly_rising.html PAKISTAN: Domestic violence endemic, but awareness slowly rising] - The Advocates, March 11, 2008</ref>}}

{{Quote||The number of incidents of '''violence against women increased by 13 per cent in 2009''', says a report by the Aurat Foundation set to be released on Wednesday.

The report states that 8,548 incidents of violence against women were reported in 2009 compared to 7,571 incidents reported in 2008. Of these, 5,722 were reported to have occurred in Punjab, followed by 1,762 in Sindh, 655 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and 237 in Balochistan. Similarly, 172 cases of violence against women were reported in Islamabad, the report said.<ref>[http://tribune.com.pk/story/24478/violence-against-women-rises-by-13/ Violence against women rises by 13% Violence against women rises by 13%] - The Express Tribune, June 29, 2010.</ref>}}

;Palestinian Authority area

{{Quote||Launched in January 1999, the [Women's Empowerment] project first established a research team, trained by Dr Abdo, which in turn began training community leaders on gender-based research methods. They have used these skills to interview a representative sample of 120 women from refugee camps, villages, and cities in the Gaza Strip to determine the incidence of gender-based violence. The preliminary results are alarming: '''half of the women interviewed to date have been victims of violence'''.

"Violence against women in Gaza basically means domestic violence," says research consultant Aitemad Muhanna. "Women are beaten by their husbands, beaten by their fathers, and even beaten by their brothers." Women are beaten for not fulfilling traditional roles — such as cooking, cleaning, or tending to their appearance — to a husband's satisfaction. Other abuses include harsh insults, sexual abuse among family, and marital rape.<ref>Doug Alexander - [http://www.idrc.ca/en/ev-5311-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html Addressing Violence Against Palestinian Women] - The International Development Research Centre, June 23, 2000</ref>}}

;Qatar

{{Quote||One in three wives in Qatar suffer physical or psychological violence from the side of their husband<ref name="ANSFeb232012">[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.ansamed.info/ansamed/en/news/sections/generalnews/2012/02/23/visualizza_new.html_103332042.html|2=2012-03-14}} Qatar: divorce peak caused by women, survey] - ANSAmed, February 23, 2012</ref>}}

;Turkey

{{Quote||London-based Refugee Workers Association Woman’s Group (GIK-DER) revealed disturbing news last week [in November, 2006] that '''up to 80% Turkish and Kurdish women are victims of domestic violence and sexual harassment.''' At the same time 70% of Turkish and Kurdish husbands cheat on their wives.<ref>http://www.toplumpostasi.net/index.php/cat/9/news/9633/PageName/English</ref>}}

{{Quote||According to a government study titled “Research on Domestic Violence against Women in Turkey,” '''41.9 percent of Turkish women are subjected to physical and sexual violence'''. Women at a “low-income level” are assaulted at a rate of 49.9 percent, while the number for higher-income women is still high, at 28.7 percent. . . . 
Altogether, 33.7 percent of women said they considered suicide as a solution to their problems.<ref>[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=women-murder-victims-increase-snowballing-in-turkey-2011-02-20|2=2011-02-24}} Murder a fact of life for women in Turkey] - Hurriyet Daily News, February 20, 2011</ref>}}

{{Quote||According to a report by UN Women released in early July of last year [2011], '''Turkey tops Europe and the US in the number of incidences of violence against women'''. Official statistics reveal that four out of 10 women in Turkey are beaten by their husbands.<ref>Yonca Poyraz Doğan - [{{Reference archive|1=http://www.todayszaman.com/news-273005-womens-groups-outraged-by-cabinets-drastic-changes-to-violence-bill-draft.html|2=2012-03-03}} Women's groups outraged by Cabinet's drastic changes to violence bill draft] - Today's Zaman, March 1, 2012</ref>}}

;South Mediterranean Region

{{Quote||Violence against women in the home is the main emergency needed to be tackled by the Mediterranean's southern shores. '''The phenomenon affects between 40% and 75% of married women''', who suffer mainly at the hands of their husbands. This is the glaring figure contained in a study carried out by the Euromed Gender Equality Programme (EGEP), which has been presented at a conference held in Brussels. The 'Programme to enhance quality between men and women in the Euromed Region', which is financed by the European Union as part of neighbourhood policy, focussed on nine partner countries between 2008 and 2011: '''Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestinian Territories, Syria and Tunisia'''.<ref>[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.ansamed.info/en/news/ME.XEF96737.html|2=2011-05-11}} Mediterranean: EU Study, Domestic Violence Between 40%, 75%] - ANSAmed, May 9, 2011</ref>}}

==Responses from Muslim women==

Some Muslim women have spoken out against domestic violence. Below, some prominent instances of this are quoted. In spite of such protestations, many Islamic authorities and western commentators refuse the idea that Islamic scriptures could, even in part, be responsible.

{{Quote|[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3667349.stm Beaten Saudi Woman Speaks out] BBC News, April 30, 2004|My husband first tried to strangle me until I fell unconscious, then he tried to smash my face. Every violent man will be able to see the suffering that he causes and every woman afraid of falling into a similar situation will be able to avoid what happened to me Later he took me to the hospital while I was still unconscious and dropped me off at the gate. He didn't give them my name, my family's telephone number or anything about me. When my mother finally arrived, the doctor told her I had only a 3% chance of survival. The reason why he beat me up was very trivial, we had an argument in which we exchanged no more than four sentences. He had no reason for attacking me this way, but it wasn't the first time he was violent, although he had never been that violent before.

''Encouraging victims''

I kept silent until now because I didn't want to see my family being torn apart. I thought that maybe if I was patient enough I could make him change. Now that I've made my story public, I'm scared. I've almost been through death, so I guess it's pretty normal that I now fear for my life and for my children's lives. I decided to have my picture published so that it would be a lesson for others, for every man and every woman. I'm just hoping that the judge will be fair to me and that my husband receives a punishment equal to what he did to me.

''No more, no less''

Every violent man will be able to see the suffering that he causes and every woman who is afraid of falling into a similar situation will be able to avoid what happened to me. Some people have called me a heroine for doing so, but I don't know why. Maybe people have appreciated that I dared to talk about a taboo subject so that others don't face the same thing. In my opinion it isn't about being heroic, but about talking about what happens in reality. However uncomfortable it is, it's better to talk about reality than to pretend that nothing bad is ever happening. I believe I've encouraged other victims of domestic violence to follow suit. I'm now campaigning with a human rights organisation which has received many letters and I have also received personally many letters of support from women saying that they will fight back.}}

{{Quote|[http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/09/24/cnnheroes.robina.niaz/index.html Her 'duty' is Helping Muslim Women Heal After The Abuse] CNN Heroes, September 25, 2009|Toward the end of her marriage, Rabia Iqbal said she feared for her life. Iqbal was born in New York to parents who had immigrated to the United States from the tribal areas of Pakistan. She had a strict Muslim upbringing and when she was 16, her parents arranged her marriage to a 38-year-old man. She claims her husband turned violent during their 10 years of marriage. When she finally left him, she did not know where to turn. Going home wasn't an option, she said.

"My parents ... made clear that they would disown me," Iqbal said. "My father even said ... 'You're lucky you live in America because if you lived back home, you would have been dead by now.' "

She was hiding out in her office at work when a friend put her in touch with Robina Niaz, whose organization, Turning Point for Women and Families, helps female Muslim abuse victims.

"It was such a relief ... to speak about things that ... I thought no one would understand," said Iqbal, who has received counseling from Niaz for more than two years and calls Niaz her "savior." "Robina understood the cultural nuances ... the religious issues," Iqbal said. "There's a lot of denial," she said. "It makes it much harder for the victims of abuse to speak out."

When Niaz launched her organization in 2004, it was the first resource of its kind in New York City. Today, her one-woman campaign has expanded into a multifaceted endeavor that is raising awareness about family violence and providing direct services to women in need. Niaz's mission began after a difficult period in her own life. Born and raised in Pakistan, she had earned a master's degree in psychology and had a successful career in international affairs and marketing when she moved to the United States to marry in 1990.

"It was a disastrous marriage," she said.

As Niaz struggled to navigate the American legal system during her divorce, she said she appreciated how lucky she was to speak English and have an education. She realized that many immigrant women without those advantages might be more likely to stay in marriages because they didn't know how to make the system work for them.

"If this is how difficult it is for me, then what must other immigrant women go through?" she remembered thinking.

After volunteering with South Asian victims of domestic violence, Niaz, who speaks five languages, got a job using those skills to advocate for immigrant women affected by family violence.

But Niaz's focus changed on September 11, 2001. "I was no longer a Pakistani-American ... I looked at myself as a Muslim."

Niaz said the backlash many Muslims experienced after the terror attacks made abuse victims more afraid to seek help; they feared being shunned for bringing negative attention to their community.

"Women who were caught in abusive marriages were trapped even more," recalled Niaz.

In 2004, Niaz used her savings to start Turning Point for Women and Families. Today, her work focuses on three main areas: providing direct services to abused women, raising awareness through outreach, and educating young women -- an effort she hopes will empower future generations to speak out against abuse. Crisis intervention services are a critical element of Niaz's efforts. Through weekly counseling sessions, she and her team provide emotional support to the women while helping them with practical issues, such as finding homeless shelters, matrimonial lawyers, filing police reports or assisting with immigration issues. Niaz has helped more than 200 Muslim women. While most of Turning Point's clients are immigrants, the group helps women from every background. While Niaz has support from many people in New York's Muslim community, she acknowledges that not everyone appreciates her efforts. She keeps her office address confidential and takes precautions to ensure her safety.

"There have been threats ... but that comes with this work," she said. "I know that God is protecting me because I'm doing the right thing."}}

One Muslim woman who has spoken about this type of domestic violence is ''The Daily Beast''’s Asra Q. Nomani, author of ''Standing Alone: An American Woman's Struggle for the Soul of Islam'', who describes the widespread denial in Muslim-majority societies of wife-beating in the Qur'an as the "4:34 dance".

{{Quote|[http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-09-08/get-over-the-quran-burning/ Get Over the Quran Burning] Asra Q. Nomani, The Daily Beast, September 8, 2010|Look at one literal reading of the 34th verse of the fourth chapter of the Quran, An-Nisa, or Women. "[A]nd (as to) those on whose part you fear desertion, admonish them and leave them alone in the sleeping-places and beat them," reads one widely accepted translation. Based on a literal reading, Saudi scholar Abdul Rahman al-Sheha concludes that when dealing with a “disobedient wife,” a Muslim man has a number of options. First, he should remind her of “the importance of following the instructions of the husband in Islam.” If that doesn't work, he can “leave the wife's bed.” Finally, he may “beat” her, though it must be without “hurting, breaking a bone, leaving blue or black marks on the body and avoiding hitting the face, at any cost.”

Such appalling recommendations occur because we haven't yet universally drawn a line in the sand, as Muslims, and said that this verse may have been progressive for the seventh century when women were supposedly beaten indiscriminately, but it isn't compatible with the modern day, if read literally. Instead, we do something called the "4:34 dance," suggesting that the light beating be the result of everything from hitting a woman with noodles (yes, you read that right) to a traditional toothbrush, called a “miswak,” from the root of a plant.}}

==The objections of Islamic modernists==

Though they constitute a very small minority, many Islamic modernists have protested against the Islamic tradition and its understanding of the Islamic scriptures which straightforwardly appear to instruct men to beat their wives. While these modernists have had extremely limited influence in the Muslim world, they have frequently been embraced by Western media outlets as possible enactors of religious reform in Islam. Serious, mostly non-Muslim scholars of Islam have been similarly heartened by such voices but remain highly skeptical of those modernists who attempt to 're-write' the past by denying the Islamic tradition's historical embrace of some sort of physical domestic discipline against women. Moreover, to many in the Muslim world, this attempt at 'modernizing Islam' appears to be a sort of contemptible moral concession to the west, analogous, even, to holding the door wide open for enemies with ambitions of 'intellectual colonialism'. As the 2021 edition of the widely acclaimed ''Muslim 500'' puts it, "Islamic modernism remains popularly an object of derision and ridicule, and is scorned by traditional Muslims and fundamentalists alike".<ref>{{Citation|title=The Muslim 500|edition=2021 Edition|publisher=The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre|location=Amman, Jordan|page=59|chapter=IIIC. Islamic Modernism|url=https://themuslim500.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/TheMuslim500-2021_Edition-low_res_20201028.pdf|editor1=S. Abdallah Schleifer|editor2=Tarek Algawhary|editor3=Aftab Ahmed}}{{Quote|[https://themuslim500.com/about-us/ The Muslim 500: About Us]|The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre (MABDA المركز الملكي للبحوث والدراسات الإسلامية) is an independent research entity affiliated with the Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought. '''The Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought is an international Islamic non-governmental, independent institute''' headquartered in Amman, the capital of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.}}</ref>

===Pamela K. Taylor===

====References to Quranic verses====
{{Main|Wife Beating in the Qur'an}}Pamela K. Taylor is the co-founder of Muslims for Progressive Values, former director of the Islamic Writers Alliance, and a strong supporter of the female Imam movement. On the Faith Panelist Blog, she writes:

{{Quote|[http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/panelists/pamela_k_taylor/2009/02/aasiya_hassan_domestic_violenc.html Aasiya Zubair Hassan, Domestic Violence and Islam] Pamela K. Taylor, The Washington Post, February 27, 2009|The brutal and gruesome murder of Aasiya Zubair Hassan has prompted a great deal of soul searching in the Muslim community. National organizations, the local community, imams, Muslim social workers, activists and writers have all agonized over how the community did not do enough to protect Aasiya, despite evidence that her husband, the man charged with killing her, was known to be violent. They have called for imams to preach against domestic violence as against the standards of Islam, and for communities to stand in solidarity with Muslim women who complain of abuse, rather than counseling patience or questioning if there is anything they might have done to cause the abuse, or that they could change in order to avert future abuse. 
To be sure, domestic violence is indeed against the teachings of Islam, and murder of family members is especially repugnant. The Qur'an teaches that men should remain with their wives in kindness, or separate from their wives with kindness, and specifically that they should not stay with their wives in order to do harm to them (2:229, 2:231). It offers a vision of spousal equality when it prescribes a decision making process within the family of mutual consultation (2:233), and labels both husband and wife with the term "zauj" (4:1 and others) and describes them as protecting garments for one another (2:187).}}

The relevant portion of {{Quran|2|229}} reads as follows: "The divorce (is) twice. Then to retain in a reasonable manner or to release (her) with kindness." The relevant portion of {{Quran|2|231}} reads: "And when you divorce the women and they reach their (waiting) term, then retain them in a fair manner or release them in a fair manner. And (do) not retain them (to) hurt so that you transgress." Both of these verses speak of men 'retaining' their women, denoting possession and one-sided agency. {{Quran|2|233}} speaks of the gender-specific roles that men and women must play in raising a child - a far cry from gender equality. The Arabic word ''zauj'' simply means spouse. {{Quran|2|187}}, while equal in its application of the 'garment' metaphor to both genders, is also a stand out example of how the Quran conceives of itself as primarily addressed to men, and not both genders equally - it opens with the following: "Allowed unto you, on the night of fasts, is consorting with your women."

Taylor states that 'domestic violence is indeed against the teachings of Islam'. This statement does not withstand historical scrutiny, as attested by 14 centuries of Islamic legal thought, all of which endorses wife-beating. It is equally unacceptable as a description of Islamic scripture, a representative sampling of which has been quoted in the above portion of the present article. In light of these observations, it is perhaps unsurprising that Taylor's work as an activist has been consistently ridiculed by the broader Islamic community.

====References to hadiths====
{{Quote|[http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/panelists/pamela_k_taylor/2009/02/aasiya_hassan_domestic_violenc.html Aasiya Zubair Hassan, Domestic Violence and Islam] Pamela K. Taylor, The Washington Post, February 27, 2009|Physical and/or emotional abuse has no place in this vision of marriage. Indeed, when women came to the Prophet complaining of their husband's treatment, the Prophet admonished the men saying that those who treated their families poorly were not among the best of men. Mu'awiyah al-Qushayri, one of the companions of the Prophet, reports "I went to the Apostle of Allah and asked him, 'What do you say about our wives?' He replied, 'Feed them with the food you eat, clothe them as you clothe yourself, and do not beat them, and do not revile them." (Sunan Abu-Dawud, Book 11, the Book of Marriage, Number 2139)}}

The hadiths cited by Taylor doubtless exist and, discussed above in present article, make it clear that Muhammad made attempts to moderate the severity of the beatings being undertaken by his companions and, for a brief period, even prohibited these beatings outright. Notably, Taylor does not mention that, in the very same hadith she quotes, Muhammad at first forbids wife beating, but then changes his mind on the advice of Umar (see {{Abu Dawud|11|2141}}). Later, in the same hadith, when some women complain as a result, he makes the remark about the men who beat them quoted by Taylor. That the hadith Taylor chose to cite as evidence that domestic violence is 'indeed against the teachings of Islam' is also the same hadith which marks Muhammad's transition to the final position he took at the behest of Umar which once again legalized domestic violence - a strange decision on Taylor's part.

====Contestation of the word ''daraba''====
{{Main|Wife Beating in the Qur'an}}{{Quote|[http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/panelists/pamela_k_taylor/2009/02/aasiya_hassan_domestic_violenc.html Aasiya Zubair Hassan, Domestic Violence and Islam] Pamela K. Taylor, The Washington Post, February 27, 2009|The fulcrum of this patriarchal interpretation is verse 4:34. Translations vary wildly, ranging from those defining men the the defenders of women to those who render it as men being in charge of women. (The Arabic word, qawamun, comes from a root which means to stand up, thus men are called to stand up for women.) The verse goes on to say that devout women protect that which Allah would have them protect in their husbands absences. Again, the interpretations vary wildly -- from those who read it quite literally, describing pious women as devoted to Allah, to those who take it mean women should be devoutly obedient to their husbands. It continues, saying that if men fear "nushuz" (understood variously as openly rebellion, adultery, spiritual negligence, or wifely disobedience), they should admonish their wives and then separate from them in sleeping arrangements. And then the third phase -- the word used is "daraba."

Daraba is used for many, many things in the Qur'an, from sexual intercourse to parting company, from metaphorically striking a parable to physically striking a person or thing. The vast majority of commentators, have understood the meaning of 4:34 to mean hitting. Modern interpreters such as Ahmed Ali and Laleh Bakhtiar, have made a case that this interpretation is wrong.

Bakhtiar's argument is particularly strong.}}

Taylor cites Laleh Bakhtiar, an Islamic modernist who argues that Islam does not instruct violence against women and that the word ''daraba'' in {{Quran|4|34}} means 'to send away'. Bakhtiar's influence has generally been confined to the Western academy (outside of Islamic studies departments) and has, alongside Taylor's work, been all but comprehensively ridiculed by the wider Islamic world. Her decision to translate {{Quran|4|34}} to suit her modernist interpretation in her English translation of the Quran triggered immense controversy, and many Islamic scholars issued statements denouncing what they described as her 'alteration' of scripture, resulting in the Islamic Society of North America banning the sale of her work in Islamic bookstores in Canada.

Taylor describes Bakhtiar's argument as 'particularly strong'. While this may be Taylor's view, no serious scholar has endorsed Bakhtiar's interpretation (see [[Wife Beating in the Qur'an]]).

====Muhammad never hit a woman====
{{Quote|[http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/panelists/pamela_k_taylor/2009/02/aasiya_hassan_domestic_violenc.html Aasiya Zubair Hassan, Domestic Violence and Islam] Pamela K. Taylor, The Washington Post, February 27, 2009|She described her approach to this verse in a lecture I attended two years ago. She told the audience that she went to many, many scholars and asked them, "Did the Prophet ever hit his wives?" To which all them replied, "No, he never hit his wives." This is directly supported by a hadith narrated by his wife Aishah, who reported "The Messenger of Allah never struck a servant of his with his hand, nor did he ever hit a woman. He never hit anything with his hand, except for when he was fighting a battle in the cause of Allah." Bakhtiar then asked the scholars, "And the Prophet always obeyed Allah, correct?" To which the answer was an emphatic "Yes, the Prophet was the embodiment of the Qur'an."

"Then, how," she asked, "do you explain that when he had problems with his wives, he admonished them, he refrained from sleeping with them for a month, but he never went to the third step and hit them? Was he being disobedient to Allah, or have we misunderstood verse 4:34?" To which, she says, the scholars had no answer.

Her answer is that we have misunderstood 4:34, and that we have to look at what the Prophet actually did after that month's separation -- which was to offer his wives the choice of divorcing him or remaining with him while resolving to avoid the behaviors he found so objectionable. While, she translates "daraba" as "to go away from them," (which is the most common usage of the term in the Qur'an), it seems that it might be better rendered as "to strike a bargain with them."}}

While second-hand anecdote presented by Taylor may well be true, there are several hadith accounts (quoted and discussed above in the present article) which directly contradict Aisha's report about Muhammad never striking a servant or woman - interestingly, the hadiths which record Muhammad striking women, including Aisha herself, and allowing his companions to do the same are found in more reliable hadith collections (that is, ''Sahih Muslim'' and ''Sahih'' ''Bukhari'') than the collection in which the hadith from Aisha quoted by Taylor is found (''Sunan Abu Dawud''). It is also probable that Islamic scholars would reject the idea that Muhammad ever struck his wives, as this would perhaps undermine his theological status as the ''Insan al-Kamil'' (lit. 'the perfect man') - this, however, amounts to theological dissonance rather than a historically-sound objection.

Taylor also suggests that the usage of the word ''daraba'' in {{Quran|4|34}} can plausibly be read to mean 'separate from them' or even 'strike a bargain with them'. She presents in evidence of this suggestion that the word ''daraba'' is most often used throughout the Quran in the former sense. This particular claim does not withstand scrutiny, as the word is [[Wife Beating in the Qur'an|most often used in the Quran to mean 'strike']]. Countless traditional Islamic scholars and linguistic authorities - one of whom, it should be mentioned, Taylor is not - have shown such readings, time and again, [[Wife Beating in the Qur'an|to be bereft of linguistic merit]].
==External Links==

*[http://www.hotpeachpages.net/index.html International inventory of domestic violence services] ''- Global list of abuse hotlines, shelters, refuges, crisis centers and women's organizations, with domestic violence information in over 80 languages''
*[http:///www.answering-islam.org/Silas/wife-beating.htm Wife Beating in Islam] ''- by Silas''
*[http://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Arlandson/beating.htm Domestic violence in Islam: The Quran on wife-beating] ''- by James Arlandson''
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20130601213750/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/LE25Ak01.html Wife-beating, sharia, and Western law] ''- Asia Times''

===National decrees===

*[http://www.haaretz.com/news/saudi-judge-says-it-s-okay-for-men-to-beat-their-wives-1.275823 Saudi Judge Says it's Ok for Men to Beat Their Wives]
*[http://gatesofvienna.blogspot.com/2010/03/its-in-koran.html Algeria: Prison for Violent Husbands is Against Koran, Mufti]
*[http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/oct/18/wife-beating-uae-sharia-law-court Wife-beating allowed under sharia law, UAE court rules] - ''The Guardian notes this article later had to be 'Removed for legal reasons'''

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Women]]
[[Category:Honor violence]]
[[Category:Marriage]]
[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Shariah (Islamic Law)]]
[[Category:Child Marriage]]
[[Category:Criticism of Islam]]
[[Category:Apologetics]]