Why Did the Prophet (PBUH) Marry Several Women?
ما سبب زواجه ﷺ من هذا العدد الكبير من النساء؟
Marriage with more than one woman was accepted prior to Islam without restrictions or conditions. It was narrated in the books of the Old Testament: David, peace be upon him, had one hundred wives, and Solomon, peace be upon him, had seven hundred wives, and three hundred bondwomen.
Islam invalidated marrying more than four wives. Unlike the Islamic period, during the pre-Islamic period one was allowed to marry more than four women. The Prophet, peace be upon him, asked those who had embraced Islam and had more than four wives, “Choose four of them and divorce the rest of them,” so he would do that.
Note: The earlier published Arabic spoke of a man who embraced Islam with four wives; it should be more than four, as in the hadith of Ghaylan ibn Salamah, who embraced Islam with ten wives and was told to keep four (Jami at-Tirmidhi 1128), so it was corrected.
The condition that must be met in polygamy is fairness among one’s wives. If this is not fulfilled, then the husband does not have the right to marry a second wife. The Almighty said: “But if you are afraid you will fail to maintain justice, then ˹content yourselves with˺ one or those ˹bondwomen˺ in your possession. This way you are less likely to commit injustice.” [An-Nisa: 4-3] This is how Islam deals with this issue.
The Prophet, peace be upon him, is an exception from these rulings for several reasons, including the following:
First: Educational: which is related to conveying Allah’s Message; the wife is the closest person to her husband, she knows him best, and she can ask him about everything on her mind. As for the husband, he reveals to his wife, and he is frank with her in many matters, especially those that are embarrassing to talk about to other people. Thus, the profound wisdom behind marrying many wives by the Prophet, peace be upon him, is to convey his public and private sayings, conditions, and actions which are Sunnah. His wives used to ask him about what seemed embarrassing to other people to ask, and they used to convey to the Ummah what he said. This is exactly what happened, and whoever reads the books of Sunnah will notice the proofs mentioned in them.
Second: Social: His marriage to more than four wives gave him the opportunity to strengthen his connection with many people of Quraysh, and that gathered hearts around him, and those hearts were filled with faith, reverence and glory towards him. He, peace be upon him, married women from Quraysh, two of whom were the daughters of his two ministers: Abu Bakr and Umar, may Allah be pleased with them.
Third: Political: This overlaps and intersects with the previous reasoning. His marriage to more than four women allowed him to bring together a good number of the leaders’ daughters, which gave him a high status among the families of those women, as it is a tradition that when man got married to a woman, her tribe became his kinship, and naturally they would support and protect him. Obviously, that was in the interest of the Da’wah.
Fourth: The wisdom of showing the perfection of his morals. Allah the Almighty describes him, “And you are truly ˹a man˺ of outstanding character.” [Al-Qalam: 68-4]. The proof is that although his wives belong to different tribes, they were not at the same age, and their characteristics differ from one another, they all praised his kind treatment to them. Also, none of them ever complained of his treatment of her. His kind treatment taught the Ummah a very important lesson, which is that the good and bad marital life has to do with the morals of the husband not the wife. The Prophet also taught us how the husband should give each of his wives her rights and treat her according to what befits her and her situation with complete justice among the wives.
What the devils of mankind and the jinn have whispered - to some Muslims or others - that the Prophet, peace be upon him, married this number of wives for lustful motives only, is invalidated by the following:
The only virgin woman he, peace be upon him married, was Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, while the rest of his wives were all previously married.
His first marriage was not to a woman who was close to his age, but rather he was more than fifteen years younger than her, and so whoever marries for a lustful purpose never does that.
Every marriage of the Prophet, peace be upon him, was for a certain purpose that took place on the ground of reality. For example, one of the effects of his marriage to Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, was keeping by heart his Sunnah and his actions in his household, due to her young age. Furthermore, she was the wife who narrated the most from him, peace be upon him, and indeed one of those who narrated the most reports about the Messenger of Allah.
His marriage to Juwayriyyah bint al-Harith served the Islam of her people, Banu al-Mustaliq.
His marriage to Hafsah bint Umar, may Allah be pleased with them, is an honor for Umar, the powerful companion who was the Prophet’s minister, peace be upon him.
His marriage, peace be upon him, to Zaynab bint Jahsh, may Allah be pleased with her, was for a legislative purpose, which is canceling adoption and canceling every ruling that is on adoption, including allowing the wife of the adopted son to get married to the adopting father.
If the purpose of marrying that number of wives was for lust - as some orientalists claim - the Prophet, peace be upon him, would not have fulfilled the lust for having a sexual intercourse and neglected the lust for filling the stomach with whatever it yearns for, because the starting point of lusts is the same, which is fulfilling whatever the ownself longs for. However, no fire was lit in his houses, peace be upon him, to cook food for two months at a time (three new moons) - as narrated by Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her.
Note: The earlier published Arabic said three months; Sahih al-Bukhari (2567) reports from Aisha three new moons in two months, so it was corrected.
If the purpose was for lust, he would not cling to the aforementioned ones and leave the desires of having expensive outfits, dwelling in a luxurious house, and the like, but he did not have a luxurious palace, expensive clothes, and so on.
جاء الإسلام والزواج بأكثر من واحدة مقبول معمول به، بلا قيد ولا شرط، وقد روي في أسفار العهد القديم: أن داود-عليه السلام- كان له مائة امرأة، وسليمان-عليه السلام- كان عنده سبعمائة امرأة، وثلاثمائة سرية.
الإسلام أبطل الزواج بأكثر من أربع نسوة، ومن أسلم وتحته أكثر من أربع نسوة فإن النبي ﷺ يقول له: “اختر منهن أربعًا وطلق سائرهن” فلا يبقى في ذمته أكثر من أربع نسوة لا يزيد-بخلاف ما كان عليه الحال قبل الإسلام-.
ملاحظة: جاء في النص المنشور سابقا: (ومن أسلم وتحته أربعة نسوة)، والصواب: أكثر من أربع، كما في حديث غيلان بن سلمة الذي أسلم وله عشر نسوة فأمره النبي ﷺ أن يتخير أربعا منهن (جامع الترمذي 1128)، فصُحح.
الشرط الذي لابد من توفره في التعدد هو العدل بين نسائه، فإن لم يحصل فليس للرجل الزواج بامرأة ثانية، قال تعالى: “فَإِنْ خِفْتُمْ أَلاَّ تَعْدِلُواْ فَوَاحِدَةً أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَانُكُمْ ذَلِكَ أَدْنَى أَلاَّ تَعُولُواْ”، هذا ما جاء به الإسلام.
استثني النبي ﷺ من هذه الأحكام لحكم عديدة نذكر منها ما يلي:
أولاً: حكمة تعليمية: وهي المتعلقة بتبليغ رسالة الله؛ لأن الزوجة ألصق الناس بزوجها، وأعلمهم بحاله، وأجرؤهم على سؤاله، والزوج أيضاً أبوح لزوجته، وأكثر مصارحة لها في أمور كثيرة، وخاصة فيما يستحيا عادة من ذكره، فكان من الحكمة البالغة أن تكثر زوجات النبي ﷺ لينقلن الخاص والعام من أقواله وأحواله وأفعاله التشريعية، ويسألنه عما لا يجرؤ غيرهن على أن يسأله عنه، ثم يبلغن ذلك للأمة، وقد حصل ذلك بالفعل، ومن تصفح دواوين السنة رأى أكبر شاهد على ذلك.
ثانياً: حكمة اجتماعية: وبيان ذلك أن زواجه بأكثر من أربع أتاح له الفرصة لتوثيق صلته ببطون قريش العديدة، مما جعل القلوب تلتف حوله، في إيمان وإكبار وإجلال فقد تزوج نسوة من قريش منهن بنتا وزيريه: أبي بكر وعمر.
ثالثاً: حكمة سياسية: وهذه تتداخل وتتقاطع في بعض الحالات مع التي قبلها، فقد أتاح له زواجه بأكثر من أربع أن جمع عنده عدداً لا بأس به من بنات القادة، مما جعل له مكانة عند أهالي تلك النساء، إذ من العادة أن الرجل إذا تزوج من قبيلة أو بطن صار بينه وبين تلك القبيلة أو البطن قرابة بالمصاهرة، وذلك بطبيعته يدعوهم لنصرته وحمايته، ولا يخفى ما في ذلك من مصلحة الدعوة.
رابعاً: حكمة إظهار كمال خلقه كما وصفه ربه جل جلاله، حيث قال في شأنه: “وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلَى خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍ”، وبيان ذلك أن تلك النسوة ينتسبن إلى قبائل مختلفة، وأعمار متباينة، وطبائع متغايرة ومع ذلك فهن يتفقن على حسن معاملته لهن، ولم تشتك إحداهن يومًا من سوء عشرته، وذلك ليعلم الأمة درسًا في غاية الأهمية وهو أن حسن العشرة وسوئها لا يتعلق بالمرأة التي يعاشرها الزوج، وإنما بأخلاق الزوج نفسه، وفي ذات الوقت يعلمنا ﷺ كيف يعطي كل واحدة منهن حقها ويعاملها حسب ما يليق بها، ويتناسب مع حالها، مع تحقيق كمال العدل بينهن.
ما قد توسوس به شياطين الإنس والجن- لبعض المسلمين أو غيرهم-من أن النبي ﷺ تزوج بهذا العدد لدافع شهواني فقط، فإن هذا يبطل بما يلي:
أنه ﷺ لم يتزوج من النساء بكرًا إلا عائشة-رضي الله عنها- وباقي النسوة كلهن سبق لهن الزواج.
أول زواجه لم يكن من امرأة تقاربه في عمره، بل تكبره بأكثر من خمس عشرة سنة، ومن يتزوج لغرض شهواني لا يصنع مثل ذلك.
كل زيجة تزوجها النبي ﷺ كان لها مصلحة مترتبة عليها، وحاصلة على أرض الواقع، فمثلا من آثار زواجه من عائشة-رضي الله عنها-حفظها لسنته وأفعاله في بيته-لأن صغر السن مؤثر في ذلك-، وقد كانت أكثر زوجات النبي ﷺ رواية عنه، بل من المكثرين من رواية الأخبار عن رسول الله ﷺ.
كما أن زواجه من جويرية بنت الحارث حقق مصلحة في إسلام قومها بني المصطلق،
وزواجه من حفصة بنت عمر فيه إكرام لعمر الصاحب القوي الذي كان وزيرا للنبي ﷺ.
وزواجه ﷺ من زينب بنت جحش-رضي الله عنها- كان لغرض تشريعي هو إلغاء التبني وإلغاء كل حكم ترتب على التبني ومنه حل زوجة الابن المتبنى للأب المتبني.
لو كان الغرض شهوانيًّا-كما يزعم بعض المستشرقين- لم يكن ليقضي شهوة الفرج وينسى شهوة البطن،-لأن منطلق الشهوات واحد وهو حظوظ النفس- فبيته ﷺ لم يكن يوقد فيه نار لطهي الطعام مدة شهرين متتاليين (ثلاثة أهلّة)-كما تروي ذلك عائشة رضي الله عنها-،
ملاحظة: جاء في النص المنشور سابقا: (لمدة ثلاثة أشهر)، والذي في صحيح البخاري (2567) عن عائشة: ثلاثة أهلة في شهرين، فصُحح.
ولم يكن ليتعلق بالشهوات المشار إليها ويترك شهوات اللباس والمسكن ونحوه، ولم يكن عنده قصر فاره ولا لباس فاخر ولا غير ذلك.
1. Historical Context: Monogamy in the Prime of Youth | سياق شبابه: الوفاء لخديجة طيلة ربع قرن
He was married to Khadijah (may Allah be pleased with her) alone until she died; Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said that the Prophet ﷺ did not marry anyone else while Khadijah was alive (Sahih Muslim 2436), and Ibn Hisham gives his age at that marriage as twenty-five. His other marriages came after her death.
لم يتزوج النبي ﷺ على خديجة حتى ماتت كما قالت عائشة (صحيح مسلم 2436)، وكان عمره حين تزوجها خمسا وعشرين سنة كما قال ابن هشام، ثم كان تعدد زواجه بعد وفاتها.
2. Humanitarian and Compassionate Wisdom | البعد الإنساني: إيواء الأرامل ورعاية المستضعفات
Several of his wives (may Allah be pleased with them) had lost their husbands: Sawdah bint Zam'ah, whose husband al-Sakran ibn Amr died in Mecca, as Ibn Kathir reports; Hafsah, whose husband Khunays ibn Hudhafah, a veteran of Badr, died in Medina (Sahih al-Bukhari 4005); and Umm Salamah after Abu Salamah's death, whose account of the proposal is in the Scholarly Insight below.
كان عدد من زوجاته قد فقدن أزواجهن: سودة بنت زمعة التي مات زوجها السكران بن عمرو بمكة كما ذكر ابن كثير، وحفصة التي تأيمت من خنيس بن حذافة وكان قد شهد بدرا (صحيح البخاري 4005)، وأم سلمة بعد وفاة أبي سلمة.
3. Political Reconciliation and Tribal Alliances | البعد السياسي: تأليف القلوب والمصاهرة لإنهاء الحروب
Aisha said of Juwayriyyah bint al-Harith (may Allah be pleased with her): "We never saw a woman more blessed for her people than her: because of her a hundred households of Banu al-Mustaliq were freed" (Sunan Abi Dawud 3931, graded hasan by al-Albani).
قالت عائشة في جويرية بنت الحارث: «فما رأينا امرأة كانت أعظم بركة على قومها منها، أعتق في سببها مائة أهل بيت من بني المصطلق» (سنن أبي داود 3931، حسنه الألباني).
4. Legislative Reform and Educational Legacy | البعد التشريعي والتعليمي: نقل أحكام الشريعة للأمة
His marriage to Zaynab bint Jahsh (may Allah be pleased with her) came by Allah's command, "so that there would be no blame on the believers for marrying the ex-wives of their adopted sons" (33:37). The verse addressed to his wives, telling them to remember the revelations and wisdom recited in their homes (33:34), points to the knowledge the Mothers of the Believers carried to the community.
وَاذْكُرْنَ مَا يُتْلَىٰ فِي بُيُوتِكُنَّ مِنْ آيَاتِ اللَّـهِ وَالْحِكْمَةِ (سورة الأحزاب: 34)
جاء زواجه من زينب بنت جحش بأمر الله: (لِكَيْ لَا يَكُونَ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ حَرَجٌ فِي أَزْوَاجِ أَدْعِيَائِهِمْ)، وقوله تعالى لنسائه: (وَاذْكُرْنَ مَا يُتْلَىٰ فِي بُيُوتِكُنَّ مِنْ آيَاتِ اللَّهِ وَالْحِكْمَةِ) يشير إلى العلم الذي نقلته أمهات المؤمنين.
Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
Was Prophet Muhammad married to multiple wives during his youth?
No. He was married to Khadijah alone until her death (Sahih Muslim 2436).
What was the legislative reason for the Prophet marrying Zaynab bint Jahsh?
To practically abolish the pre-Islamic taboo that forbade marrying the former wife of an adopted son.
How did marrying Juwayriyyah benefit her tribe Banu al-Mustaliq?
Because of her a hundred households of Banu al-Mustaliq were freed (Sunan Abi Dawud 3931).
What role did the Mothers of the Believers play in Islamic education?
They served as authoritative teachers, conveying the Prophet's domestic conduct, private worship, and family ethics.