Introduction

All praise belongs to Allah. We praise Him, seek help from Him, seek His pardon, and seek His protection from the evil of ourselves and our evil deeds. Whoever Allah guides will have none to misguide him and whoever He misguides will have none to guide him. I testify that there is no deity save Allah—He is alone with no partner—and I testify that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ وَلَا تَمُوْتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنتُمْ مُّسْلِمُوْنَ

O believers! Be mindful of Allah in the way He deserves, and do not die except [in a state] of full submission [to Him].^[1]

يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اتَّقُوْا رَبَّكُمُ الَّذِيْ خَلَقَكُمْ مِّنْ نَّفْسٍ وَاحِدَةٍ وَخَلَقَ مِنْهَا زَوْجَهَا وَبَثَّ مِنْهُمَا رِجَالًا كَثِيْرًا وَنِسَاءً وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ الَّذِيْ تَسَاءَلُوْنَ بِهِ وَالْأَرْحَامَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ عَلَيْكُمْ رَقِيْبًا

O humanity! Be mindful of your Lord Who created you from a single soul, and from it He created its mate, and through both He spread countless men and women. And be mindful of Allah—in Whose Name you appeal to one another—and [honour] family ties. Surely Allah is ever Watchful over you.^[2]

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَقُوْلُوْا قَوْلًا سَدِيْدًا يُصْلِحْ لَكُمْ أَعْمَالَكُمْ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوْبَكُمْ وَمَنْ يُطِعِ اللَّهَ وَرَسُوْلَهُ فَقَدْ فَازَ فَوْزًا عَظِيْمًا

O believers! Be mindful of Allah and say what is right. He will bless your deeds for you and forgive your sins. And whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger, has truly achieved a great triumph.^[3]

From the perfection of the Rabb subhanahu wa ta ‘ala is His uniqueness and oneness in creating and commanding:

أَلَا لَهُ الْخَلْقُ وَالْأَمْرُ تَبَارَكَ اللَّهُ رَبُّ الْعَالَمِيْنَ

The creation and the command belong to Him [alone]. Blessed is Allah, Lord of all worlds.^[4]

Just as Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala is unparalleled and unequalled in creating and commanding, He is alone in selecting and choosing. He subhanahu wa ta ‘ala declares:

وَرَبُّكَ يَخْلُقُ مَا يَشَاءُ وَيَخْتَارُ مَا كَانَ لَهُمُ الْخِيَرَةُ سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ وَتَعَالىٰ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُوْنَ

Your Lord creates and chooses whatever He wills, the choice is not theirs. Glorified and Exalted is Allah above what they associate [with Him].^[5]

He conferred preference to some individuals over others, some beings over others, some places over others, and some time frames over others. He created the Gardens and selected al Firdaws. He created the angels and selected Jibril, Mika’il, and Israfil. He created humans and selected the believers. He further selected the Prophets from the believers. From the Prophets, He selected the Rusul (Messengers). And from the Rusul, He selected the Ulu al ‘Azm (those with high determination). The two bosom friends [viz. Muhammad and Ibrahim] were then singled out from the Ulu al ‘Azm and finally, from the two bosom friends, He selected Muhammad—may Allah send salutations and peace upon him and upon them all. He created the earth and chose Makkah. He created days, months, and years and chose the month of Ramadan as the most famous month, the Day of Jumu’ah from the days of the week, the Day of Sacrifice from the days of the year, the Night of Qadr from the nights, the Hour of Jumu’ah from the hours, and the ten days of Dhu al Hijjah as well as the [last] ten days of Ramadan from the tens.

و إذا تأملت أحوال هذا الخلق رأيت هذا الاختيار و التخصيص فيه دالا على ربوبيته تعالى و وحدانيته و كمال حكمته و علمه و قدرته و أنه الله الذي لا إله إلا هو فلا شريك له يخلق كخلقه و يختار كاختياره و يدبر كتدبيره فهذا الاختيار و التدبير و التخصيص المشهود أثره في هذا العالم من أعظم آيات ربوبيته و أكبر شواهد وحدانيته و صفات كماله و صدق رسله

When you ponder and contemplate deeply over the affairs of this creation, you would realise that this selection and specification is an indication to Allah’s subhanahu wa ta ‘ala divinity and oneness; the perfection of His wisdom, knowledge, and power; and that there is no deity besides Him. He has no partner who can create like He creates or select like He selects or manage as He manages. This selection, management, and specification—the effects of which are witnessed in this world are from the greatest signs of His divinity, the strongest evidence of His oneness and absolute perfect qualities, and the truthfulness of His Messengers.^[6]

From the completion of Allah’s selection in support of His special bondsman and Prophet, Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is the selection of his Companions, his Ahlul Bayt, and his wives. Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala made his Companions the best of companions, his Ahlul Bayt the best of households, and his wives the best of wives. They were the cream of women, in knowledge and action, adherence and emulation, external features and character, in addition to lineage and ancestry. They obtained, coupled with the privilege of Companionship, the privilege of being the spouses of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.

Despite the lofty status and grand position they occupied—may Allah be pleased with them—they did not sit back and avoid striving for this Din. Rather, they supported the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam in his unfavourable as well as favourable moments. They observed patience with him in leading a life filled with hardships and discomfort, they tolerated misfortunes and maltreatment, and they lightened his burden of persecutions in the path of inviting towards Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala.

Each individual among them was a luminous lantern, a magnificent model, and a sincere teacher in her home. They neither desired the world in lieu of their teaching nor desired wealth in recompense of disseminating the legacy of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. How could that ever be, when they are the very ones in whose homes categorical Qur’anic verses were revealed? They were the practical implementors of these teachings. They observed these teachings under the supervision and administration of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, who guided them aright, educated them, and assigned them as teachers for the women of that era and spiritual instructors for the female generations to come. They, thus, became, truly, majors of change of the women of that era, in fact of even their men. May Allah be pleased with them.

When the scholar desires to discuss any one of the spouses of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, it is compulsory for him to lower his shoulder for her, since she is his mother, and soften his speech in her favour, listing the virtues mentioned about her. Among the rights of our Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam upon us is for us to honour him and appreciate him in respect of his wives. This is from the requirements of Allah’s subhanahu wa ta ‘ala statement:

لِّتُؤْمِنُوْا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُوْلِهِ وَتُعَزِّرُوْهُ وَتُوَقِّرُوْهُ وَتُسَبِّحُوْهُ بُكْرَةً وَأَصِيْلًا

So that you[people] may believe in God and His Messenger, support Him, honour Him, and praise Him morning and evening.^[7]

Why Aisha?

A question comes to mind: why has Sayyidah Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anha been singled out here for listing of her virtues and emphasising her status, and not the other wives of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam?

Al Ajurri has presented and answered this question:

فإن قال قائل فلم صار الشيوخ يذكرون فضائل عائشة دون سائر أزواج النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم ممن كان بعدها أعني بعد خديجة و بعد عائشة رضي الله عنهما قيل له لما أن حسدها قوم من المنافقين على عهد رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فرموها بما قد برأها الله تعالى منه و أنزل فيه القرآن و أكذب فيه من رماها بباطله فسر الله الكريم به رسوله صلى الله عليه وسلم و أقر به أعين المؤمنين و أسخن به أعين المنافقين عند ذلك عني العلماء بذكر فضائلها رضي الله عنها زوجة النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم في الدنيا و الآخرة

If someone objects: “Why have the scholars started mentioning the virtues of Aisha, not the other wives of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam who were after her, i.e. after Khadijah and after Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anhuma.”

He will be told: “When a group of hypocrites harboured jealousy for her during the lifetime of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and slandered her, Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala declared her innocence and revealed [verses of] the Qur’an in this regard and labelled the one who slandered her a liar. In this manner, Allah the Benevolent brought solace and joy to [the heart of] His Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, comforted the eyes of the believers, and burnt the eyes of the hypocrites. Considering this, the scholars have given special attention to enumerating her virtues radiya Llahu ‘anha, the consort of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam in this world and the Hereafter.”^[8]

It is possible to answer this question with another question which reveals the conspiracy: Why has Sayyidah Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anha become the target of the hypocrites and the biased Rawafid? Why do they point their arrows at her and slander her with all sorts of falsehoods? Why are they prejudiced against her with so much hateful intolerance?

The answer to this is that criticising Sayyidah Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anha is criticising the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala states:

وَالطَّيِّبَاتُ لِلطَّيِّبِيْنَ وَالطَّيِّبُوْنَ لِلطَّيِّبَاتِ أُولٰئِكَ مُبَرَّءُوْنَ مِمَّا يَقُوْلُوْنَ لَهُمْ مَّغْفِرَةٌ وَرِزْقٌ كَرِيْمٌ

Good women are for good men and good men are for good women. The good are innocent of what has been said against them; they will have forgiveness and a generous provision.^[9]

Sheikh ‘Abdur Rahman al Sa’di rahimahu Llah[10] writes in the commentary of this verse:

فهذه كلمة عامة و حصر لا يخرج منه شيء من أعظم مفرداته أن الأنبياء خصوصا أولي العزم منهم خصوصا سيدهم محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم الذي هو أفضل الطيبين من الخلق على الإطلاق لا يناسبهم إلا كل طيب من النساء فالقدح في عائشة رضي الله عنها بهذا الأمر قدح في النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم و هو المقصود بهذا الإفك من قصد المنافقين فمجرد كونها زوجة للرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم يعلم أنها لا تكون إلا طيبة طاهرة من هذا الأمر القبيح فكيف وهي هي صديقة النساء و أفضلهن و أعلمهن و أطيبهن حبيبة رسول رب العالمين

This is a blanket statement and a confinement from which nothing escapes. From the greatest of His expressions is that only good women are appropriate for the Prophets—particularly the Ulu al ‘Azm among them and more specifically their leader, Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, who is the most superior of the good and noble men unrestrictedly. Therefore, slandering Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anha of adultery is defamation of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam who is the hypocrites’ ultimate object by this slander. Simply being the wife of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam affirms that she can only be pure and chaste from this loathsome action. What must be the case when she is who she is! The Siddiqah of all women, the most superior of them, the most knowledgeable of them, the purest of them, and the beloved of the Messenger of the Lord of the universe.^[11]

The pious predecessors have unravelled this sinister scheme. Accordingly, Imam Malik rahimahu Llah said regarding those who curse the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum:

إنما هؤلاء أقوام أرادوا القدح في النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فلم يمكنهم ذلك فقدحوا في أصحابه حتى يقال رجل سوء ولو كان رجلا صالحا لكان أصحابه صالحين

These are such persons who intended to disparage the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam but were unable to. They, thus, resorted to disparaging his Companions so that he may be called an evil man. [People will declare:] Had he been a righteous man, his Companions would have been righteous.^[12]

What may be said about his Companions may be said even more so about his wife.

Similarly, disparaging Sayyidah Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anha is disparaging the Shari’ah. Sayyidah Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anha has retained much of the Sunnah of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam to the extent that she became among the most prolific narrators of ahadith among the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum. Add to this the extended life Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala favoured her with after the demise of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam; she lived for almost 50 years after the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. People benefitted from her knowledge and reported abundant ahadith from her. Hafiz Ibn Hajar says:

قد حفظت عنه شيئا كثيرا و عاشت بعده قريبا من خمسين سنة فأكثر الناس الأخذ عنها و نقلوا عنها من الأحكام و الآداب شيئا كثيرا حتى قيل إن ربع الأحكام الشرعية منقول عنها رضي الله عنها

She memorised plenty ahadith from him and lived after him for close to fifty years. People reported in great abundance from her and transmitted from her numerous rulings and etiquette to the extent that it is said: a fourth of Shar’i rulings are transmitted from her radiya Llahu ‘anha.^[13]

The easiest way of disparaging this Din is criticising its sources and transmitters, especially the wife of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam who reports what others do not. Due to this, Abu Zur’ah announces:

إذا رأيت الرجل ينتقص أحدا من أصحاب رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فاعلم أنه زنديق و ذلك أن الرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم عندنا حق و القرآن حق و إنما أدى إلينا هذا القرآن و السنن أصحاب رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم و إنما يريدون أن يجرحوا شهودنا ليبطلوا الكتاب و السنة و الجرح بهم أولى و هم زنادقة

When you see a man disparaging any of the Companions of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, then realise he is a heretic. This is because we believe firmly that the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam is true and the Qur’an is true. Only and only the Companions of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam transmitted the Qur’an and Sunnah practices to us. They (those who disparage the Sahabah) only seek to declare our witnesses unreliable so that they may abolish the Book and Sunnah. Declaring them (those who disparage the Sahabah) unreliable is more befitting and they are heretics.^[14]

Ibn Taymiyyah explains:

لكن عائشة صحبته في آخر النبوة و كمال الدين فحصل لها من العلم و الإيمان ما لم يحصل لمن لم يدرك إلا أول زمن النبوة فكانت أفضل بهذه الزيادة فإن الأمة انتفعت بها أكثر مما انتفعت بغيرها و بلغت من العلم و السنة ما لم يبلغه غيرها

On the other hand, Aisha remained in his company at the end of Nubuwwah and the completion of Din; hence, she obtained such knowledge and faith not obtained by the one who only lived in the early stages of Nubuwwah. Therefore, she is superior owing to this addition. The Ummah benefitted from her more than they benefitted from others besides her and she conveyed to the Ummah knowledge and aspects of the Sunnah which others did not convey.^[15]

Likewise, defamation of Sayyidah Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anha is condemnation of Sayyidina Abu Bakr radiya Llahu ‘anhu, the most superior of the Ummah after the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, his Companion, and his Khalifah. No wonder the hypocrites and their followers among the Rawafid aim at Umm al Mu’minin radiya Llahu ‘anha.

How regretful! Their aversion and antipathy for the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam has led them to a degenerated state where their love never agrees with his love and their pleasure never agrees with his pleasure. They hate those whom he loves and are upset with whom he is pleased with: his Companions, supporters, and wives—may Allah’s pleasure be upon them. In fact, the matter has reached its lowest ebb in disparaging Umm al Mu’minin Sayyidah Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anha, either due to ignorance of her status, following concealed passion in the soul, misconceptions which have covered the heart and blinded the person from seeing the truth, or due to other reasons:

عِلْمُهَا عِنْدَ رَبِّيْ فِيْ كِتَابٍ لَّا يَضِلُّ رَبِّيْ وَلَا يَنسَى

My Lord alone has knowledge of them, all in a record; my Lord does not err or forget.^[16]

فهي الشهادة لي بأني كامل

وإذا أتتك مذمتي من ناقص

Someone flawed criticism of me reaching you is in itself testimony in my favour that I am flawless.

The situation has demanded publicising her lofty position by acquainting the ignorant and equipping the partisans with her virtues and portraying her lofty status in the eyes of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Coupled with this, debunking the misconceptions of those who failed in their research or intended to defame her and belittle her worth, as well as exposing the fabrications of the fabricators—despite the revelation from the Heavens. Likewise, deflating the arguments of those who chorused the criticism of the biased and the interpretation of the ignorant. Her faultfinders conveniently ignored Allah’s immense grace upon her and His selection of her being an intimate friend and confidant of the pure and benevolent Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Has it slipped their minds that she lived with him while revelation descended and she listened to his heart-rending recitation under one roof? All this while his household passed the mornings and evenings in their garden. The name Ahlul Bayt (the household of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) encompassed them all.

NEXT⇒ Chapter 1 – Introduction to Umm al Mu’minin Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anha

[1] Surah Al ‘Imran: 102.

[2] Surah al Nisa’: 1.

[3] Surah al Ahzab: 70, 71.

[4] Surah al A’raf: 54.

[5] Surah al Qasas: 68.

[6] Ibn al Qayyim: Zad al Ma’ad, vol. 1 pg. 42.

[7] Surah al Fath: 9.

[8] Al Shari’ah, vol. 5 pg. 2394.

[9] Surah al Nur: 26.

[10] He is ‘Abdur Rahman al Sa’di ibn Nasir ibn ‘Abdullah al Sa’di. The ‘Allamah (very learned), the Godfearing, the Ascetic. He was born in 1307 A.H. He is from the Hambali scholars. He was the leading authority of the scholars and president of education in the Qassim Province [of Saudi Arabia]. Taysir al Karim al Rahman and al Qawa’id al Hisan are some of his books. He passed away in 1376 A.H. ‘Abdur Rahman Al Sheikh: Mashahir ‘Ulama’ Najd; al Zarkali: al A’lam, vol. 3 pg. 340.

[11] Taysir al Karim al Rahman fi Tafsir Kalam al Mannan, pg. 352.

[12] Ibn Taymiyyah: al Sarim al Maslul ‘ala Shatim al Rasul, pg. 580.

[13] Ibn Hajar: Fath al Bari, vol. 7 pg. 107.

[14] Al Khatib al Baghdadi: al Kifayah, pg. 49; Ibn ‘Asakir: Tarikh Dimashq, vol. 38 pg. 32.

[15] Ibn Taymiyyah: Minhaj al Sunnah al Nabawiyyah, vol. 4 pg. 301 – 304; Ibn Taymiyyah: Majmu’ al Fatawa, vol. 4 pg. 393.

[16] Surah Taha: 52.

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