Biographical information on Muhammad and his companions are recorded in hadiths and sira. Hadiths were initially narrated orally before being collected and compiled by Hadith scholars.^[14] In Islam, hadiths are regarded as fundamental sources second only to the Quran.^[15] However, the historical reliability of both hadith and sira has been a topic of debate among some academic circles.^[16][17][18]

Aisha was born in Mecca c. 613–614.^[19][20] She was the daughter of Abu Bakr and Umm Ruman, two of Muhammad's most trusted companions.^[7] No sources offer much more information about Aisha's childhood years.^[21][22]

Marriage to Muhammad edit

Muhammad said that he had twice seen Aisha in his dreams, being carried in a silk cloth by an angel who told him that she would be his wife. Muhammad believed that if the dreams were from God, he would make them come true.^[23][24] Following the death of his first wife, Khadija bint Khuwaylid, his aunt Khawlah bint Hakim suggested that he marry Aisha.^[25][26] Aisha's father Abu Bakr was at first unsure about marrying his daughter to Muhammad; he thought they were brothers. Muhammad clarified that they were merely brothers in religion, and it was legal for him to marry Aisha.^[27][26] Aisha's engagement to Jubayr ibn Mut'im, a boy close to her age, was then annulled.^[28][26] Orientalist W. Montgomery Watt suggests that Muhammad hoped to strengthen his ties with Abu Bakr;^[13] the strengthening of ties commonly served as a basis for marriage in Arabian culture.^[29]

All extant hadiths agree that Aisha was married to Muhammad in Mecca but the marriage was consummated only in the month of Shawwal after his hijrah to Medina (April 623).^[30] Some classical sources have Aisha speak of the marriage to have been executed in Medina itself without referencing to any delay.^[30]

Age at marriage and consummation edit

Islamic sources of the classical era list Aisha's age at the time of her marriage as six or seven and nine or ten at its consummation. In a hadith from Sahih al-Bukhari, Aisha recollects having been married at six years of age.^[31] Ibn Sa'd's biography holds her age at the time of marriage as between six and seven, and gives her age at consummation to be nine while Ibn Hisham's biography of Muhammad suggests she may have been ten years old at consummation.^[32] Al-Tabari notes Aisha to have stayed with her parents after the marriage and consummated the relationship at nine years of age since she was young and sexually immature at the time of marriage; however, elsewhere Tabari appears to suggest that she was born during the Jahiliyyah (before 610 C.E), which would translate to an age of about twelve or more at marriage.^[33][34]

In Islamic literature, the young age of her marriage did not draw any significant discourse; nonetheless, Spellberg and Ali find the very mention of her age to be atypical of early Muslim biographers, and hypothesize a connotation to her virginity and, more than that, religious purity.^[32][35][b] Her age did not interest later Muslim scholars either, and went unremarked-upon even by medieval and early-modern Christian polemicists.^[36] Early Orientalist writers, even in their condescending approach towards Muhammad and Islam, were primarily concerned with Muhammad's embrace of polygamy and the ethics of marrying for political causes;^[37] the few, who discussed Aisha's age chose to explain the age-gap — without any condemnation — by citing the contemporary understanding of the Orient as a hot place, that promulgated sexually deviant practices.^[38]

Beginning late nineteenth century, with the East and its alleged immoralities subject to increasing opprobrium,^[c] the colonizing powers sought to regulate the age of consent. As such efforts ran into conflicts with local forms of Sharia, Aisha's age at marriage — and the involved Prophetic precedent — became the predominant explanation in explaining the backwardness of Muslim societies and their reticence to reforms.^[40] In response, some Muslims^[d] chose to align themselves with the projects of modernization and re-calculated her age — using deft stratagems of omission and commission — to fix it at early adolescence, but conservatives rejected such revisionist readings since they flew in the face of ʻilm al-ḥadīth.^[41]

From mid-20th century, amidst growing concerns of Islamic extremism, as Muslim societies and Islam itself came under renewed scrutiny, pointed criticisms of Aisha's young age at marriage began to be abundant; this has since prompted many^[e] Muslim scholars to contextualize the traditionally accepted age of Aisha with renewed vigor emphasizing on cultural relativism, anachronism, the political dimensions of the marriage, Aisha's non-ordinary physique etc.^[43][f] Since the late-twentieth century, polemicists have used Aisha's age to accuse Muhammad of pedophilia and to explain a reported higher prevalence of child marriage in Muslim societies.^[45]

Relationship with Muhammad edit

In most Muslim traditions, Khadija bint Khuwaylid is described as Muhammad's most beloved and favored wife; Sunni tradition places Aisha as second only to Khadija.^{[46][47][48][49][50]} There are several hadiths, or stories or sayings of Muhammad, that support this belief. One relates that when a companion asked Muhammad, "who is the person you love most in the world?" he responded, "Aisha."^[51] Others relate that Muhammad built Aisha's apartment so that her door opened directly into the mosque,^[52][53] and that she was the only woman with whom Muhammad received revelations.^[54][55] They bathed in the same water and he prayed while she lay stretched out in front of him.^[56]

Various traditions reveal the mutual affection between Muhammad and Aisha. He would often just sit and watch her and her friends play with dolls, and on occasion, he would even join them.^[57][58][59] "Aisha must have felt reasonably equal to and unawed by this prophet of God, for his announcement of a revelation permitting him to enter into marriages disallowed other men drew from her the retort, 'It seems to me your Lord hastens to satisfy your desire!'"^[60] Furthermore, Muhammad and Aisha had a strong intellectual relationship.^[61] Muhammad valued her keen memory and intelligence and so instructed his companions to draw some of their religious practices from her.^[62][63]

Accusation of adultery edit

When Muhammad and his followers carried out a raid on the Banu Mustaliq tribe, he brought along Aisha, who was 13 years old at the time. She was carried in a closed litter on the back of a camel. Aisha recounted that when the raiding party was resting at night on the way home to Medina from the successful operation, she went out to relieve herself. After doing so and returning to her litter, she realized that her necklace was missing, so she traced her way back to look for it. By the time she found it, the convoy had already left, thinking she was in the litter. Assuming that they would notice her absence and return to look for her, Aisha decided to stay where she was.^[64][65]

Aisha related that Safwan ibn Muattal, a young Muslim from the raiding party, had lagged behind for some reason. On his solo return journey to Medina, he came across Aisha sleeping on the ground by herself.^[66][67] He addressed her, let her ride on his camel while he guided it, and escorted her home to Medina. It was not until the morning that Muhammad's convoy realized that Aisha was not in her litter.^[66] And later, when they were taking a break from the hot midday sun, Aisha and Safwan ran into them.^[68][67] A rumor then emerged that Aisha had committed adultery with Safwan. Moreover, it was said that she had conversed with him several times before. This rumor of adultery, if true, could lead to Aisha being stoned to death.^[66][69]

Upon their arrival in Medina, Aisha fell ill and sensed that Muhammad was uncharacteristically cold toward her. She only learned of the rumor some three weeks later when Umm Mistah told her on their way back from defecating in an open field at night, as was customary for Muslim women at that time. Aisha subsequently went to her mother, asking what the people were talking about, and she replied, "Daughter, be at peace, for I swear by God that no beautiful woman is married to a man who has other wives, but that these other wives would find fault with her." So Aisha cried all night long.^[70][71][67]

Muhammad, despite his fondness for Aisha, was unsure of her innocence. He asked Usama ibn Zayd and Ali for their opinions. Usama vouched for Aisha's innocence,^[70][72] but Ali said, "Women abound; you can easily find a substitute. Ask her slave; she might reveal the truth." When the slave girl arrived, Ali beat her severely and said, "Mind you tell the apostle the truth."^{[73][74][75][72]} But her answer was that she knew only good things about Aisha, with the single exception that when Aisha was entrusted with watching over a dough, she dozed off and allowed a sheep to eat it.^[75][74]

Muhammad later visited Aisha at her parents' house and advised her to confess if she had sinned, as God was merciful towards those who seek repentance.^[76][74] It had been more than a month since Aisha had returned alone with Safwan.^[77] Despite Muhammad's advice, Aisha refused to apologize as it would indicate guilt. She told Muhammad that she could find no better parallel for her current situation than that of Joseph's father, who had endured disbelief despite telling the truth and had no other choice but to remain patient. Shortly thereafter, Muhammad experienced a trance and received verses (Quran 24:11–15) that confirmed Aisha's innocence.^[76][74][78]

Hafsa affair edit

To prevent jealousy among his wives, Muhammad took turns spending nights with each of them in different dwellings. On the night designated for Hafsa bint Umar, while she was away visiting her father, Muhammad engaged in a sexual act in her bed with Mariya, a Coptic slave given to him as a gift. When Hafsa unexpectedly returned and witnessed the incident, she became furious. Fearing potential unrest in his harem, Muhammad swiftly moved to pacify her, vowing to never touch Mariya again and asking Hafsa to keep the matter confidential. Despite his efforts, Hafsa confided in Aisha, and it was not long before the news reached all his wives, leading to widespread discontent within his harem.^{[79][80][81][82]}

Angered by this turn of events, Muhammad received a new divine revelation (Quran 66:1–5), rebuking Aisha and Hafsa, and warning all his wives that God might replace them with better women. It also cancelled Muhammad's earlier vow not to touch Mariya again.^[83][84] Consequently, Muhammad stopped visiting all his wives for a month for their punishment, and spent the whole time with Mariya only.^[79][80][81] Later, after 29 days had passed, Muhammad visited Aisha first, but she said, "You pledged not to come to us for one month, but tonight only makes 29 nights; I have been keeping count." Muhammad replied, "But there are 29 days in this month!" And the month did have 29 days.^[85][80]

Nevertheless, certain hadiths present an alternate account regarding the revelation of these verses. According to this narrative, Muhammad enjoyed some honey at Zaynab bint Jahsh's home, leading Aisha and Hafsa to claim his breath smelled. Consequently, Muhammad pledged to abstain from the honey. The revealed verses nullified this vow, asserting that his action was permissible.^[84][86] This alternative story, however, fails to explain the part of the verses where Muhammad treated the matter as confidential, which was then disclosed by Hafsa.^[84][83] Some scholars dismiss this alternative story as a fabrication aimed at undermining the previously more commonly known and less edifying version.^{[83][84][87][88]}

Death of Muhammad edit

Aisha remained Muhammad's favorite wife throughout his life. When he became ill and suspected that he was probably going to die, he began to ask his wives whose apartment he was to stay in next. They eventually figured out that he was trying to determine when he was due with Aisha, and they then allowed him to retire there. He remained in Aisha's apartment until his death, and his last breath was taken as he lay in the arms of Aisha, his second most beloved wife.^{[89][90][91][92][93]}

Aisha's importance to revitalizing the Arab tradition and leadership among the Arab women highlights her magnitude within Islam.^[94] Aisha became involved in the politics of early Islam and the first three caliphate reigns: Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, and ‘Uthman. During a time in Islam when women were not expected or wanted, to contribute outside the household, Aisha delivered public speeches, became directly involved in a war and even battles, and helped both men and women to understand the practices of Muhammad.^{[46][additional citation(s) needed]}

Role during caliphate edit

Role during first and second caliphates edit

After Muhammad's death in 632, Abu Bakr was appointed as the first caliph. This matter of succession to Muhammad is extremely controversial to the Shia who believe that Ali had been appointed by Muhammad to lead while Sunni maintain that the public elected Abu Bakr.^[95] Abu Bakr had two advantages in achieving his new role: his long personal friendship with Muhammad and his role as a father-in-law. As caliph, Abu Bakr was the first to set guidelines for the new position of authority.^[96]

Aisha garnered more special privileges in the Islamic community for being known as both a wife of Muhammad and the daughter of the first caliph. Being the daughter of Abu Bakr tied Aisha to honorable titles earned from her father's strong dedication to Islam. For example, she was given the title of al-siddiqa bint al-Siddiq, meaning 'the truthful woman, daughter of the truthful man',^[97] a reference to Abu Bakr's support of the Isra and Mi'raj.^[98]

In 634 Abu Bakr fell sick and was unable to recover. Before his death, he appointed ‘Umar, one of his chief advisers, as the second caliph.^[97] Throughout ‘Umar's time in power Aisha continued to play the role of a consultant in political matters.^[97]

Role during the third caliphate edit

After ‘Umar died, ‘Uthmān was chosen to be the third caliph. He wanted to promote the interests of the Umayyads. Aisha had little involvement with ‘Uthmān for the first couple years, but eventually, she found a way into the politics of his reign. She eventually grew to despise ‘Uthmān, and many are unsure of what specifically triggered her eventual opposition towards him. A prominent opposition that arose towards him was when ‘Uthmān mistreated ‘Ammar ibn Yasir (companion of Muhammad) by beating him. Aisha became enraged and spoke out publicly, saying, "How soon indeed you have forgotten the practice (sunnah) of your prophet and these, his hairs, a shirt, and sandal have not yet perished!".^[99]

As time continued issues of antipathy towards ‘Uthmān continued to arise. Another instance of opposition arose when the people came to Aisha after Uthmān ignored the rightful punishment for Walid ibn Uqbah (Uthmān's brother). Aisha and Uthmān argued with each other, Uthmān eventually commented on why Aisha had come and how she was "ordered to stay at home".^[100] Arising from this comment, was the question of whether Aisha and for that matter women, still could be involved in public affairs. The Muslim community became split: "some sided with Uthmān, but others demanded to know who indeed had a better right than Aisha in such matters".^[100]

The caliphate took a turn for the worse when Egypt was governed by Abdullah ibn Saad. Abbott reports that Muhammad ibn Abi Hudhayfa of Egypt, an opponent of ‘Uthmān, forged letters in the Mothers of the Believers' names to the conspirators against ‘Uthmān. The people cut off ‘Uthmān's water and food supply. When Aisha realized the behavior of the crowd, Abbott notes, Aisha could not believe the crowd "would offer such indignities to a widow of Muhammad".^[101] This refers to when Safiyya bint Huyayy (one of Muhammad's wives) tried to help ‘Uthmān and was taken by the crowd. Malik al-Ashtar then approached her about killing Uthmān and the letter, and she claimed she would never want to "command the shedding of the blood of the Muslims and the killing of their Imām";^[101] she also claimed she did not write the letters.^[102] The city continued to oppose ‘Uthmān, but as for Aisha, her journey to Mecca was approaching. With the journey to Mecca approaching at this time, she wanted to rid herself of the situation. ‘Uthmān heard of her not wanting to hurt him, and he asked her to stay because she influenced the people, but this did not persuade Aisha, and she continued on her journey.^[6]

First Fitna edit

In 656, Uthman house was put under siege by about 1000 rebels. Eventually the rebels broke into the house and murdered Uthman, provoking the First Fitna.^[103] After killing Uthman, the rebels asked Ali to be the new caliph, although Ali was not involved in the murder of Uthman according to many reports.^[104][105] Ali reportedly initially refused the caliphate, agreeing to rule only after his followers persisted.

When Ali could not execute those merely accused of Uthman's murder, Aisha delivered a fiery speech against him for not avenging the death of Uthman. The first to respond to Aisha was Abdullah ibn Aamar al-Hadhrami, the governor of Mecca during the reign of Uthman, and prominent members of the Banu Umayya. With the funds from the "Yemeni Treasury" Aisha set out on a campaign against the Rashidun Caliphate of Ali.^{[citation needed]}

Aisha, along with an army including al-Zubayr ibn al-Awwam and Talha ibn Ubayd Allah, confronted Ali's army, demanding the prosecution of Uthman's killers who had mingled with his army outside the city of Basra. When her forces captured Basra she ordered the execution of 600 Muslims and 40 others, including Hakim ibn Jabala, who were put to death in the Grand Mosque of Basra.^[106][107] Aisha's forces are also known to have tortured and imprisoned Uthman ibn Hunaif a Sahabi and the governor of Basra appointed by Ali.^{[citation needed]}

Ali rallied supporters and fought Aisha's forces near Basra in 656. The battle is known as the Battle of the Camel, after the fact that Aisha directed her forces from a howdah on the back of a large camel. Aisha's forces were defeated and an estimated 10,000 Muslims were killed in the battle,^[108] considered the first engagement where Muslims fought Muslims.^[109]

After 110 days of the conflict, Ali met Aisha with reconciliation. He sent her back to Medina under military escort headed by her brother Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr, one of Ali's commanders. She subsequently retired to Medina with no more interference with the affairs of the state. She was also awarded a pension by Ali.^[110]

Although she retired to Medina, her forsaken efforts against the Rashidun Caliphate of Ali did not end the First Fitna.^[111]

Contributions to Islam and influence edit

After 25 years of a monogamous relationship with his first wife, Khadija bint Khuwaylid, Muhammad participated in nine years of polygyny, marrying at least nine further wives. Muhammad's subsequent marriages were depicted purely as political matches rather than unions of sexual indulgence. In particular, Muhammad's unions with Aisha and Hafsa bint Umar associated him with two of the most significant leaders of the early Muslim community, Aisha's and Hafsa's fathers, Abu Bakr and ‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb, respectively.^[112]

Aisha's marriage has given her significance among many within Islamic culture, becoming known as the most learned woman of her time. Being Muhammad's favorite wife after the late Khadija, Aisha occupied an important position in his life.^[94] When Muhammad married Aisha in her youth, she was accessible "...to the values needed to lead and influence the sisterhood of Muslim women."^[113] After the death of Muhammad, Aisha was discovered to be a renowned source of hadiths, due to her qualities of intelligence and memory.^[94] Aisha conveyed ideas expressing Muhammad's practice (sunnah). She expressed herself as a role model to women, which can also be seen within some traditions attributed to her. The traditions regarding Aisha habitually opposed ideas unfavorable to women in efforts to elicit social change.^[114]

According to Reza Aslan:^[115]

The so-called Muslim women's movement is predicated on the idea that Muslim men, not Islam, have been responsible for the suppression of women's rights. For this reason, Muslim feminists throughout the world are advocating a return to the society Muhammad originally envisioned for his followers. Despite differences in culture, nationalities, and beliefs, these women believe that the lesson to be learned from Muhammad in Medina is that Islam is above all an egalitarian religion. Their Medina is a society in which Muhammad designated women like Umm Waraqa as spiritual guides for the Ummah; in which the Prophet himself was sometimes publicly rebuked by his wives; in which women prayed and fought alongside the men; in which women like Aisha and Umm Salamah acted not only as religious but also as political—and on at least one occasion military—leaders; and in which the call to gather for prayer, bellowed from the rooftop of Muhammad's house, brought men and women together to kneel side by side and be blessed as a single undivided community.

Her intellectual contributions regarding the verbal texts of Islam were in time transcribed into written form, becoming the official history of Islam.^[116] After the death of Muhammad, Aisha was regarded as the most reliable source in the teachings of hadith.^[113] Aisha's authentication of Muhammad's ways of prayer and his recitation of the Qur'an allowed for the development of knowledge of his sunnah of praying and reading verses of the Quran.^[46]

Political influence edit

Spellberg argues that Aisha's political influence helped promote her father, Abu Bakr, to the caliphate after Muhammad's death.^[8]

After the defeat at the Battle of the Camel, Aisha retreated to Medina and became a teacher.^[8] Upon her arrival in Medina, Aisha retired from her public role in politics. Her discontinuation of public politics did not stop her political influence completely. Privately, Aisha continued influencing those intertwined in the Islamic political sphere. Among the Islamic community, she was known as an intelligent woman who debated law with male companions.^[117] Aisha was also considered to be the embodiment of proper rituals while partaking in the pilgrimage to Mecca, a journey she made with several groups of women. For the last two years of her life, Aisha spent much of her time telling the stories of Muhammad, hoping to correct false passages that had become influential in formulating Islamic law. Due to this, Aisha's political influence continues to impact Muslims.^[8]

Aisha died at her home in Medina on 17 Ramadan 58 AH (16 July 678).^[g] She was 67 years old.^[119] Abu Hurayra led her funeral prayer after the tahajjud (night) prayer, and she was buried at al-Baqi cemetery.^[120]

• List of people related to Quranic verses
• Muhammad's wives
• The Jewel of Medina (fictional work based loosely on Aisha's existence)

Notes edit

Citations edit

Sources edit