magics gifs,entertenment: [Yaadein_Meri] The wisdom behind the Prophet’s marrying more than four wives (www.islamqa.com)

Sunday 2 June 2013

[Yaadein_Meri] The wisdom behind the Prophet’s marrying more than four wives (www.islamqa.com)

1. The wisdom behind the Prophet's marrying more than four wives

Why did the Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) marry a number of women?

Praise be to Allah.

Allah's wisdom is great, and part of His wisdom is that He has permitted men, in previous divine laws and in the sharee'ah of our Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), to marry more than one wife. Plural marriage was not something done only by our Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). Ya'qoob (peace be upon him) had two wives. Sulaymaan ibn Dawood (peace be upon him) had one hundred less one wives; he went around to all of them in a single night, hoping that Allah would bless each one of them with a boy who would fight for the sake of Allah.

This is not something that is limited to Islam and it is not contrary to reason or the natural inclinations of man; rather it is what wisdom dictates. Women are more numerous than men, according to what is indicated by ongoing statistics, and a man may have the strength that prompts him to marry more than one woman so as to fulfil his desires in permissible ways, instead of fulfilling them in haraam ways or suppressing them. A woman may fall ill or there may be reasons that prevent her from engaging in intercourse, such as menses and nifaas (post-partum bleeding); this prevents a man from fulfilling his desire with her, so he needs to have another wife with whom he can fulfil his desires instead of suppressing them or committing immoral actions. So plural marriage is permissible and is justifiable in terms of reason, natural human inclinations and laws. It is something that was done by the earlier Prophets and in some cases it may be dictated by necessity or need. So it should come as no surprise that this was done by our Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). And there are other reasons for his having several wives, which have been discussed by the scholars. These include the following:

· Strengthening the ties between him and some tribes, in the hope that this would make Islam stronger and help to spread it, because ties of marriage increase the bonds of friendship, love and brotherhood.

· Taking care of some widows and compensating them with something better than what they had lost, because this would bring peace of mind and consolation at times of calamity. It also set a precedent for the ummah of how to show kindness to those whose husbands were killed in jihad and so on.

· Hoping to increase the numbers of offspring, which is in accordance with human inclinations, increasing the numbers of the ummah and supporting it with those who it is hoped will support and spread the religion.

· Increasing the number of female teachers who would convey to the ummah what they had learned from the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and what they knew of his private life.

The motive for him having more than one wife was not mere desire, because it is proven that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) did not marry any virgin or young woman apart from 'Aa'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her). The rest of his wives were previously married women. If he had been controlled by his desires and that is what had motivated him to have many wives, he would have chosen young virgins in order to fulfil his desires, especially after he migrated and began to engage in jihad, and the Islamic state was established and the Muslims grew stronger and more numerous, in addition to the fact that every family would have welcomed ties through marriage with him. But he did not do that; rather he married for noble and sublime reasons, which are clear to anyone who studies the circumstances of his marriage to each of his wives.

Moreover, if he had been a man driven by desires, that would have been known from his life during the days when he was young and strong, at which time he had only one wife, Khadeejah bint Khuwaylid, who was older than him. (If he had been a man driven by desires), he would also have been known to show favouritism and be unfair in dividing his time among his wives, who varied in their ages and degree of beauty. But he is known only to have been completely chaste and honourable in his conduct, both in his youth and when he grew older, which is indicative of his complete decency and sublime character, and his upright nature in all his affairs. In fact he was well-known for that even among his enemies.

And Allah is the source of strength. May Allah send blessings and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions. End quote.

Standing Committee for Academic Research and Issuing Fatwas

Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez ibn 'Abdullah ibn Baaz, Shaykh 'Abd ar-Razzaaq 'Afeefi, Shaykh 'Abdullah ibn Qa'ood, Shaykh 'Abdullah ibn Ghadyaan

Fataawa al-Lajanah ad-Daa'imah, 19/171-173

2. Wife's Prayers When Visiting Husband Living in Another State

http://islamqa.info/en/ref/130010

If a husband and wife are living in different states because of their work and study situation, and the wife visits her husband for a few days from time to time, does she have to put the prayers together and shorten them, as in the case of the traveller, or is her husband's house regarded as her house?

Praise be to Allah

If her usual place of residence is in her state, and she is only visiting her husband for a few days, then her husband's house is not regarded as her home; rather it is like any other place to which she may travel, if the distance between the two states is the distance at which shortening prayers becomes permissible, which is approximately 80 km. So she should shorten her prayers during this trip, but if she has decided to stay with her husband for more than four days, she should offer the prayers in full from the time she enters his state, because in that case she comes under the same ruling as one who is a resident. But if she intends to stay for four days or less, then she should shorten her prayers.

When it is permissible to shorten the prayers it is also permissible to put prayers together. It is also permissible to put prayers together for other reasons, such as illness or difficulty (in offering each prayer at its time).

But there is a difference between shortening prayers and putting prayers together. Shortening prayers is a confirmed Sunnah (Sunnah mu'akkadah) for travellers that should not be neglected. As for putting prayers together, it is permissible, so the traveller may put prayers together or he may offer each prayer at its particular time.

Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked: I live in al-Qaseem, but sometimes I go to Riyadh to visit my family; I have a room there and I stay with them for two or three days. Can I shorten my prayers if I pray on my own? Do I come under the ruling on travellers?

He replied: Yes, you come under the ruling on travellers, because your place of residence is al-Qaseem, and when you visit your family it is the visit of a traveller. Hence the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) shortened his prayer in Makkah, although he had previously been a resident of that city and he had houses there. But when he migrated, Madinah became his place of residence. So if you go to visit your family, you are a traveller.

End quote from Liqa' al-Baab al-Maftooh, 58/23

He was also asked: If a person travels and leaves his family, and he has the intention of not returning to his homeland, and he stays in a city that is far away from their city, with the intention of settling there, then he goes back to his family for a visit, should he regard himself as a traveller or not?

He replied: If a person leaves his original home with the intention of settling in a different city, then when he goes back to his original home he is a traveller, so long as he still has his original intention (of settling in the second city). The evidence for that is that the original home of the Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) was Makkah, but when he conquered Makkah he shortened his prayers, and during the Farewell Pilgrimage he shortened his prayers.

Questioner: Does this apply even if his wife and children are in the first city?

Shaykh: Yes, even if his wife and children are there.

End quote from Liqa' al-Baab al-Maftooh, 82/23

For more information please see the answer to question no. 121637

And Allah knows best.

Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid

Islam Q&A

The Prophet (sallallahu alaihiwasallam) said that seeking knowledge is a way to Paradise. He (sallallahu alaihiwasallam) said: "Whoever follows a path in the pursuit of knowledge, Allah will make a path to Paradise easy for him." (Narrated by: Al-Bukhari)