'Ā'ishatu bint Abūbakar Siddiq, the Mother of the Faithful

Ā'ishatu bint Abūbakar Siddiq (RA) the mother of the faithful was born around the conversation of Sayyidina Hamza ibn Abdulmuţallab, or the sending down of chapter 74, Al-Mudaththir of the holy Qur'an. She died 17th of Ramadan 58 A.H.
Khadījah bint Huwaylid bin Asad died 11th Ramadan, three years before the Hijra leaving behind four daughters. Barely 6 months after her death Abi Tālib the guardian of the holy apostle and his protector but also died. Muhammad Rasūlullāh was left with no one to console him and look after him. He fled to Ţa'īf but to be toned. The Sahābas felt sorrow and desired that if he married, he would be relieved of a lot of domestic worry. The call of his great mission made incessant demands on his time and he could not cope with the responsibilities of domestic life and the day-to-day requirements of his household.  Khawlah bin Hakim, the wife of 'Uthman b. Muzum proposed the name of Sawdah bint Zama'ah bin Qays an early convert to Islam and that of 'Ā'isha bin Abūbakar to the. The husband of Sawdah Sakran b.'Amr died immediately on their return from Abyssinia, leaving a child named Abdurrahman.
When the matter was communicated to the holy apostle, he approved of the suggestion and sent Khawlah to Zama'a, the father of Sawdah. A meeting was then arranged between the holy apostle and Zama'ah who gladly gave his consent to the marriage. Sawdah was informed of her father's proposal to which she gave consent. The marriage was certainly an act of expediency as well as that of compassion. At the age of fifty years, she was well groomed and experienced to look after the children of the holy apostle, and help the holy apostle on his domestic needs.
Meanwhile, 'Aisha bin Abūbakar was betrothed with Jubayr ibn Muţ'im. His families were then polytheist despite the fact his father al-Muţ'im was a participant in the annulling of the Quraysh boycott. When the proposal was sent to Muţ'im he was reluctant to accept it, because he apprehended wholesale conversion of his family as a sequel to matrimonial alliance with a staunch supporter of the holy apostle.  Abūbakar Siddiq initially objected to the proposal for he considered the holy apostle as brother-in-faith that prohibits marriage according to their custom. The holy apostle then explained that only marriage with a real brother is prohibited.  This gave way for the solemnizing the marriage with the holy apostle in the month of Shawwal. The taboo and traditional myth about the inauspiciousness of this month for nuptial cerebrations was thus buried forever.
The marriage of 'Ā'isha to the holy apostle should not be regarded in the manner it is regarded today. The second migration had taken place and even if it had not taken place the holy apostle would have no one to marry. In the first place it is not correct to regard his marriage with her as a binding Sunna. This was an act done before migration. It has been unanimously agreed that any act of the holy apostle before the Hijra is not to be considered as Sunna. Secondly, we do not know the exact age the Quraysh married their daughters according to their custom. Zaynab the first daughter of the holy apostle was born 10 years before Prophethood. She was married to Abu 'Āsin bin Rabī'a, at an unknown date after Prophethood. She had two issues with him. She joined the holy apostle in Madina after the battle of Badr. She died at the age of 31, eighth year of the Hijra. If Ali bin Abi Tālib married her daughter Umamata after the death of Fatima, and that her mother was then 29 years old and Ali then 33 years, she might have married Ali at a late age, probably about 20-23 years. The holy apostle married his daughter Fatimah to Ali bin Abi Tālib at the age of about 18 years.  Zaynab bint Jahsh because of her headstrong and sturdy independence married Zayd at the age of 30 years.  They were all classified as 'batulu or uzrā'a, 'bikra', i.e. virgins.' Bikra is applied to the lady who had one delivery at any given age. 30 years of age was the usual age at which the females Children of Israel got married to their 40 years old males. Muhammad Rasūlullāh married Khadījah at 25 years while she was 40 years. The dynamics of the Sunna of Allah and that of the holy apostle therefore exhibits a range of 18-30 years for females 'batulus' and for males 25-40 years. Maria Qibtiyah a Copt was married to the holy apostle at a young age. She delivered Ibrahim around the 8th year after Hijra. He died barely two years later. The age at which the holy apostle married the rest of his wives varied from 25-51 years. This made his marriage very unique. This was confirmed by holy Qur'an chapter 33:50. Therefore, it is not expected of a believer to say something about the marriage of the holy apostle.
The marriage of the holy apostle to 'Ā'isha bin Abūbakar Siddiq was unique in many ways. There was the social aspect especially on how to bring up a female child and educate her. The holy apostle's female children ware all married before the Hijra and except Fatima all died before the conquest of Makka. His marriage with 'Ā'isha should be looked upon as standing in the position of his female child. The fact that the holy apostle never adopted a female child indicated their paucity among his cousins and uncles. I will discuss just three important aspects of the marriage to cover a week's column:
Education. Khadījah died around the 10th year after the beginning of revelation. We have nothing to learn from her. The holy apostle married Sawdah soon after at the age of 51 years. Her capacity to comprehend on issues and relate them to events and memorize them was certainly low. Assuming that 'Ā'isha was married at the age of 9 years that is the year when females begin their menstruation (monthly uterine bleeding indicating maturity which as an integral part of Islam binding on one).  Therefore, Ā'isha was the first lady to embrace Islam at the very moment she became matured. She became the first lady to practice and establish the Sunna on the purification of the body. Therefore right from the word go, females had a full grasp of the cleanliness of the body and how to perform the prayer. This again threw more light on the equality in their devotion with males. Today, most children begin their primary schools at the age of 9 years to graduate at 22 or 23 years after receiving education for 13 years. 'Ā'isha spent around 13 years learning the Sunna. She was the tutor for females and took over expounding the Sunna after the death of 'Uthman ibn Affān in Madina. The purported 2210 Ahādith reported from her was definitely an underestimation.  
Psychological trauma.
1. The Slander of 'Ā'ishatu bin Abūbakar Siddiq. This took place during the return of holy apostle to Madina after the expedition of Banū al-Musţalaq in 6 A.H.  I often become lifeless and cry whenever I read about this incident. I begin to imagine the anguish of this beautiful young mother of the faithful and that of her parents. As for the holy apostle, I do not usually mind because he had already got his front incisor broken during the battle of Uhud. Hamza was killed also. He was also addressed by Allah, “Not for you (O Muhammad but for Allah) is the decision; whether He turns in mercy to (pardon) them or punish them, verily, they are wrong-doers.” The holy apostle was accustomed to casting lots for his wives whenever he was going for an expedition. This time the lot fell on 'Ā'isha.  At that time, the widowed wives of the holy apostle were Hafsa whom he married after the battle of Badr probably about 20 years old, Zaynab bint Khuzayma 30 years old, Umm Salamah with 4 children about 22 years, Zaynab bin Jahsh 35 years old.  They did not accompany the holy apostle in this expedition. I do not intend to go into the details of what happened but only to sketchily mention that at one of the halts, 'Ā'isha went to relieve the needs of nature, and when she came back she discovered that she had dropped her necklace. She went back to search for it, but by the time she came back, the army had moved off. Her camel drivers thought she had already mounted her litter and so they moved with the army. She thus became stranded. Safwan b al-Mu'attal al Salami an Ansāri, who had earlier dropped from the main body of the army, was able to recognize her. He made her mount his camel and took the camel's halter and went quickly in search of the army. They overtook the caravan at about noon. When it became known that 'Ā'isha had been left behind, 'Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salūl cried out loudly, “By God, she could not have remained chaste. Look, there comes the wife of your Prophet openly on the camel led by the person with whom she passed the night.” News spread quickly in Madina of this slander. Narrating her anguish she said:- “Rumors about this slander went on spreading in the city of Madina for about a month, which caused great distress and anguish to the holy apostle. I cried due to helplessness and my parents were sick with mental agony. At last one day the holy apostle visited us and he sat near me, which he had not done since the slander has started. Feeling that something decisive was going to happen that day, my parents sat near me. The holy apostle opened up saying “'Ā'isha, I have heard this and this about you: if you are innocent, I expect that Allah will declare your innocence. But if you have committed a sin, you should offer repentance and ask Allah's forgiveness; for when a servant of Allah confesses his guilt and repents, Allah forgives him.' Hearing these words tears dried in my eyes. Then I looked upon to my father expecting that he would reply the holy apostle, but he said, 'Daughter, I do not know what I should say.' Then I turned to my mother, but she also did not know what to say.” At last I said, 'You have all heard something about me and believed it. Now if I say that I am innocent –and Allah is my witness – you will not believe me, and if I confess something which I never did – and Allah knows that I never did - you will believe me.' At that time I tried to call to memory the name of Prophet Jacob but could not recall it. Therefore in view of the predicament that I was placed in, I said, 'I cannot but repeat the words which the father of Prophet Joseph spoke: fa sabrun jamīl; I will bear this patiently with good grace.' Saying this I laid down and turned to the other side……But in the meantime suddenly, the state of Revelation appeared on the holy apostle, when pearl-like drops of perspiration use to gather on his face even in severe winter. We all held our breath and sat silent. As for me I was fearless, but my parents seemed to be struck with fear; they did not know what the Divine Revelation would be. When the Revelation was over, the holy apostle seemed to be very pleased. Overjoyed with happiness the first words he spoke were: “Congratulations, 'Ā'isha, Allah has sent down proof of your innocence and then recited the 10 verses of An-Nūr 11-22. At this my mother said to me, 'Get up and thank the holy apostle,' I said, 'I shall neither thank him nor you two, but thank Allah, Who has sent down my absolution. You did not even care so much to contradict the charge against me.' It is not possible to give the full text of this incident but only to briefly draw the attention of the reader on what Allah expects from of a believer.
2. The death of the holy apostle and its aftermath. The holy apostle died when the mother of the faithful was barely 19 years old.  In holy Qur'an chapter 33:6 and 53, Allah Decrees, “And his wives are their (believers) mothers (as regards respect and marriage) and nor that you should ever marry his wives after him (his death). Hadrat 'Ā'isha bin Abūbakar Zawj Muhammad Rasūlullāh lived for 48 years without ever smiling to a man. This shows the chastity expected of females and not just the mere wearing of niqāb or veil.
Leadership. When the mother of faithful heard what was going on between Mu'āwiya and 'Āli bin Abī Ţālib she hurriedly went to Iraq to settle their dispute. She was the only mother who could do so on account of not only her position but according to custom of the Arabs. She was close in relation to the two contending groups. In addition she was able to silence and brought an end to the mutiny of the 800 strong Syrian troops that revolted against 'Āli ibn Abī Ţālib. The Women Sahābas of the holy apostle because of their training and education on the Sunna played the most important role in sociology.
 
(To be continued next week)