Ages of Muhammads Wives at Marriage: Difference between revisions

Ages of Muhammads Wives at Marriage (view source)

Revision as of 02:00, 16 April 2013

673 bytes added , 16 April 2013

→‎How Old was Amrah?

[checked revision]

1234567

Editors, Reviewers

1,399

edits

@@ Line 469: / Line 469: @@
 The following episode must have occurred after the family of Abbas emigrated to Medina, which was after Muhammad’s return from the conquest of Mecca in late March 630.<ref>{{Tabari|39|p. 202}}.</ref>
-{{Quote|{{Muslim|5|2347}}|Abdulmuttalib ibn Rabi'a narrated … [Fadl ibn Abbas and I] spoke: “Messenger of Allah, you are the best of humanity and the best to cement the ties of blood-relations. We have reached the marriageable age…”}}
+{{Quote|{{Muslim|5|2347}}|Abdulmuttalib ibn Rabi'a narrated. … [Al-Fadl ibn Abbas and I] spoke: “Messenger of Allah, you are the best of humanity and the best to cement the ties of blood-relations. '''We have reached the marriageable age.''' We have come so that you may appoint us as tax-collectors, and we would pay you just as The Thins [''apparently slang for “tax-collectors”''] pay you, and receive our share as others receive it [so that we can earn our living and afford to marry].” ... [Muhammad said]: “It is not suitable for Muhammad's family to collect tax ... Call to me Mahmiyah (and he was the treasurer) and Nawfal ibn Harith ibn Abdulmuttalib.” They both came to him, and he said to Mahmiyah: “Marry your daughter to this young man (Al-Fadl),” and he married her to him. And he said to Nawfal ibn Harith: “Marry your daughter to this young man (Abdulmuttalib),” and he married her to me. He said to Mahmiyah: “Pay the dower on behalf of both of them out of the treasury.”}}
-The young cousins had to remind Muhammad that they had reached puberty, so they must have been quite recently pubescent. This suggests that Al-Fadl was born in 615, plus or minus a year. The story goes on to describe how Muhammad granted their request and arranged marriages for them – that same day!
+It is not clear whether these marriages were long-standing betrothals that the young men wanted to consummate or whether Muhammad match-made on the spot. The point here is that the young cousins had to remind Muhammad that they had reached puberty, so they must have been quite recently pubescent. This suggests that Al-Fadl was born in 615, plus or minus a year. Mahmiyah ibn Jazi did not take his family on his emigration to Abyssinia,<ref>Guillaume/Ishaq 148, 527.</ref> so his daughter must have been conceived in Mecca before 615. Her age is not known beyond this; we can only guess that she was paired off with Al-Fadl (her cousin) because they were roughly the same age, i.e., about 15.
-{{Quote|{{Muslim|5|2347}}.|[Muhammad] said to Mahmiyah: “Marry your daughter to this young man,” (i.e. Al-Fadl ibn Abbas) and he married her to him.}}
-Mahmiyah ibn Jazi did not take his family on his emigration to Abyssinia,<ref>Guillaume/Ishaq 148, 527.</ref> so his daughter must have been conceived in Mecca before 615. Her age is not known beyond this; we can only guess that Muhammad paired her off with Al-Fadl (her cousin) because they were roughly the same age, i.e., about 15.
 Later Al-Fadl married Amrah bint Yazid. It is safe to say that he married her willingly. Amrah was of no political importance, and Al-Fadl was extremely susceptible to pretty girls.<ref>See {{Bukhari|8|74|247}}.</ref> So it is highly unlikely that Amrah was older than Al-Fadl (or that she was plain). She would have been the same age as her bridegroom or a little younger. However, Al-Fadl subsequently divorced Amrah, and she was afterwards married to Muhammad.