Surah Al-Ahzaab (33) — Ayah 50

O Prophet! We have made lawful to you your wives for whom you have paid their dowries, and those whom your right hand possesses from what Allah has given you as spoils of war. And the daughters of your paternal uncles and aunts, and the daughters of your maternal uncles and aunts who emigrated with you. And any believing woman who offers herself to the Prophet, if the Prophet wishes to marry her—this is only for you [79], and not for the other believers. We know what We have enjoined upon them concerning their wives and those whom their right hands possess—so that there may be no difficulty for you. And Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

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The Special Permission for You to Have More Than Four Wives and Its Reason:

This is actually an answer to an objection. Sayyidah Zainab bint Jahsh, whom youﷺ married by Allah’s command or whose marriage took place in the seven heavens, was your fifth wife. Before her, four wives—Sayyidah Aishaؓ bint Abi Bakr, Sayyidah Sawda bint Zam‘aؓ, Sayyidah Hafsaؓ bint Umar, and Sayyidah Umm Salamaؓ—were already present. And for ordinary believers, it was not permissible to have more than four wives. According to this verse, Allah Almighty exempted you from this general rule. This objection certainly came from the disbelievers, but even Muslims could have thought about it. Therefore, in this verse, Allah Almighty clarified that the law allowing up to four wives for ordinary believers is also Our law. And whatever tasks We wish to assign to the Prophet and the responsibilities that fall upon him, on that basis, We alone are the ones to make exceptions for the Prophet in this general law. Also, according to this verse, Allah granted youﷺ permission to marry three more types of women. The first type: those women who came into your possession as spoils of war. The second: the daughters of your paternal uncles, paternal aunts, maternal uncles, and maternal aunts who had migrated to Madinah. Sayyidah Zainab bint Jahsh was such a woman. The third type: those women who present themselves to you for marriage, and if a woman who offers herself pleases youﷺ, her dowry will be nothing. There will be no need for witnesses nor the consent of her guardian. The mere act of the woman offering herself will be considered a marriage. In this regard, consider the following two hadiths.

Which Women Can Become the Prophet’sﷺ Wives?

1. Umm Haniؓ (daughter of Abu Talib and your paternal cousin) says that youﷺ proposed marriage to me, but I excused myself (saying that I have small, crying children). You accepted my excuse. Then, when this verse was revealed, I said to youﷺ that I am not even lawful for you because I did not migrate and was among those who accepted Islam after the conquest of Makkah. [ترمذي كتاب التفسير]

Sayyidah Aisha’s Commentary:

2. Sayyidah Aishaؓ says that I felt jealous of those women who would offer themselves to the Noble Prophetﷺ. I would say, “What is this matter that a woman offers herself?” Then, when Allah Almighty revealed this verse, I said (to youﷺ): “I see that whatever you desire, your Lord immediately commands accordingly.” [بخاري۔ كتاب التفسير]

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The Distinctive Features of the Prophets:

This concession may relate to the immediate context or to the entire subject. If related to the immediate context, it would mean that if a woman offers herself to you, you will not have to give her a dowry, nor are witnesses or the guardian’s permission required. If connected to the entire subject, it would mean that the permission to have more than four wives is exclusive to youﷺ and not for other Muslims. Since the Prophet’s responsibilities are greater than those of ordinary Muslims, and his honor and dignity are also greater, there are several rulings and instructions in the Shariah that are distinct from those for ordinary Muslims. These are also of two types. One type consists of matters that are specific to all prophets, which we can call the “Distinctive Features of the Prophets,” and they are as follows:

1. The dream of a prophet is also revelation. For example, the Messenger of Allahﷺ saw in a dream before the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah that he was performing Umrah. [48: 27]
Or Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ saw in a dream that he was sacrificing Sayyiduna Ismailؑ. [37: 102]

2. The inheritance of the prophets is not distributed among heirs; rather, it is charity. As narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairahؓ, the Messenger of Allahﷺ said: “We (the prophets) have no heirs. Whatever we leave behind is charity.” [مسلم۔ کتاب الجہاد و السیر۔ باب حکم الفئی]
And in another narration from Abu Hurairahؓ, the Messenger of Allahﷺ said: “My heirs cannot distribute even a single dinar. After the expenses of my wives and the wages of my worker, whatever I leave is charity.” [مسلم۔ حواله ايضاً]

3. The bodies of the prophets are not consumed by the earth. Aws bin Aws narrates that the Messenger of Allahﷺ said: “The best day among your days is Friday. On this day Adam was created, on this day he died, on this day the trumpet will be blown, and on this day will be the blast. So send abundant blessings upon me on this day, for your blessings are presented to me.” The Companions asked: “O Messenger of Allahﷺ! How will our blessings be presented to you when your bones will have decayed?” Youﷺ said: “Allah Almighty has forbidden the earth to consume the bodies of the prophets.” [ابو داؤد۔ نسائی۔ ابن ماجہ۔ دارمی۔ بیہقی فی دعوات الکبیر۔ بحوالہ مشکوٰۃ۔ کتاب الصلوٰۃ۔ باب الجمعۃ۔ فصل ثانی]
This does not mean that the earth consumes the bodies of all others. Rather, it means that the bodies of the prophets are never consumed, and among the Ummah, there may also be such people whom the earth does not consume for a long time. However, the general rule is that the earth consumes dead bodies.

4. Choice before death. Sayyidah Aishaؓ says: I used to hear that no prophet dies until he is given the choice between this world and the Hereafter. Then I heard the Messenger of Allahﷺ during his final illness. Youﷺ was affected by a fit and said: “O Allah! With those upon whom You have bestowed favor…” until the end of the verse. At that moment, I understood that you had been given the choice. [بخاری۔ کتاب المغازی۔ باب مرض النبیﷺ ووفاتہ]

5. Every prophet is shown his place in Paradise before death. Sayyidah Aishaؓ says: When the Messenger of Allahﷺ was healthy, he used to say that no prophet dies until he is shown his place in Paradise, then he is given the choice to remain alive or choose the Hereafter. [بخاري۔ حواله ايضاً]

6. Sayyiduna Anas bin Malikؓ, while narrating the story of the Mi‘raj, says: After that, you saw those angels on the second night, just as you used to see with your heart, and the eyes of the Messenger of Allahﷺ would sleep, but his heart would not sleep, and this is the case with all prophets: their eyes sleep, but their hearts do not. [بخاری۔ کتاب المناقب۔ باب کان النبیﷺ تنام عینہ ولا ینام قلبہ۔ ۔]

7. The prophet is buried at the very place where he passes away. After the Prophet’sﷺ demise, the matter of where to bury you was discussed, and the decision was made according to this command, and you were buried in Sayyidah Aisha’sؓ house. And with further investigation, more such matters can be added.

The Distinctive Features of the Prophetﷺ:

The second type is those in which the rulings for the Messenger of Allahﷺ are different from those for his Ummah. Such matters can be called “Distinctive Features of the Prophetﷺ,” and they are as follows:

1. For an ordinary member of the Ummah, a maximum of four wives is permissible, whereas you were given special permission to have more than four wives, as mentioned at the beginning of this note.

2. You were not obligated to pay dowry or maintenance to your wives. For details, see note 80 of this Surah.

3. The restriction regarding the turn of wives was also lifted from you. For details, see note 81 of this Surah.

4. The Tahajjud prayer was obligatory for you, whereas for the Ummah, it is a confirmed Sunnah. For details, see notes 98 and 99 of Surah Bani Isra’il.

The Prohibition of Continuous Fasting (Wisāl):

5. You yourself observed continuous fasting (wisāl), but you forbade the Ummah from it. Sayyidah Aishaؓ says that the Messenger of Allahﷺ forbade the Companions from continuous fasting, out of mercy for them (i.e., fasting day after day without breaking the fast in between). The Companions said: “O Messenger of Allahﷺ! You do wisāl.” Youﷺ said: “My situation is not like yours. My Lord feeds and gives me drink.” [مسلم۔ كتاب الصيام۔ باب النهي عن الوصال ، بخاري۔ كتاب التمني۔ باب مايجوز من اللَّو۔۔۔]

The Ruling Regarding the Use of Odorous Things:

6. The ruling regarding garlic or odorous things. Jabir bin Abdullahؓ says that the Messenger of Allahﷺ said: “Whoever eats garlic or onions (raw), let him keep away from us,” or he said, “let him keep away from our mosque and sit in his house (as long as the odor remains in his mouth).” Jabirؓ also said that at Badr, a dish containing some vegetables was brought before youﷺ. You sensed an odor in it. You asked about it, and people told you that it contained such-and-such vegetables. (Youﷺ did not eat it and) said: “Take it to such-and-such Companion (Abu Ayyub Ansari) who stays with me.” When Abu Ayyub Ansari saw this, he also disliked eating it. Youﷺ said to him: “You eat it, for I converse with those (angels) with whom you do not.” [بخاری۔ کتاب الاعتصام۔ باب الاحکام التی تعرف بالدلائل۔ ۔]

7. Regarding charity, you commanded the Ummah: “The best charity is that which is given from surplus wealth,” meaning that after giving charity, a person should not become needy himself. [بخاری۔ کتاب النفقات۔ باب وجوب النفقۃ علی الاہل والعیال]
But you yourself would take on debt and give charity, to the extent that even zakat, which was obligatory upon you, never became due for you to pay.

8. If you or your family performed a good deed, you would receive double the reward, and for disobedience, double the punishment is established from the Quran. Even fever would afflict you with double intensity. Abdullah bin Mas‘udؓ says: I went to you. Your body was burning with fever. I said: “O Messenger of Allah! You have a very severe fever.” You said: “I am afflicted with fever as severely as two men among you combined.” I said: “Will you also receive double the reward?” You said: “Yes!” Then you said: “When a person suffers any pain or illness, Allah removes his sins as a tree sheds its leaves in autumn.” [بخاری۔ کتاب المرضیٰ۔ باب وضع الید علی المریض]

9. After your demise, no one can marry your wives, because they are the mothers of the believers, and this honor is exclusive to yourﷺ wives; no member of the Ummah can share in this honor. Is the purpose of marriage only the fulfillment of sexual desire or the attainment of offspring? Here, it is necessary to remove a misconception. It is commonly thought that the purpose of marriage is lust or to have as many children as possible. This view is correct to some extent, but it is based on extreme narrow-mindedness. We say “to some extent” because the real purpose of marriage in Shariah is to keep society pure from immorality and indecency. That is why Shariah emphasizes that after puberty, no man or woman should remain unmarried. If a spouse dies or a husband divorces, it is recommended for each to remarry. (See the note on verse 32 of Surah Nur.) Even though after youth, a person’s desire decreases considerably, and if offspring are born, it is considered by Allah’s power alone. Having children in old age is not a usual matter. However, we can say that the attainment of offspring is a fruit of the real purpose, i.e., the purity of society, which sometimes occurs and sometimes does not. Often, it happens that despite both spouses being mature and apparently healthy, they never have children throughout their lives. And we call considering only the attainment of offspring as narrow-mindedness because many other objectives and benefits can be achieved through marriage. For example, another purpose of marriage is to maintain and increase kinship ties among close relatives. A third purpose is the establishment and enhancement of religious brotherhood. A fourth purpose is the attainment of various religious, political, and economic benefits, and sometimes such objectives become even more important than having children. Just look at the life of the Messenger of Allahﷺ: how many marriages did youﷺ contract? At what age? With what kind of women? And for what purposes? The truth will become clear that the purpose of marriage is not merely the fulfillment of sexual desires or the attainment of offspring, but higher objectives can also be achieved through it.

How Many Marriages Did You Contract and for What Purposes?

Yourﷺ first marriage was at the age of 25 to Sayyidah Khadijahؓ, who was forty years old at the time and had been divorced twice before. She passed away in the 10th year of Prophethood when the Messenger of Allahﷺ was fifty years old. Except for Sayyiduna Ibrahim, all yourﷺ children were born from Sayyidah Khadijahؓ. That is, youﷺ spent your entire youth with only one wife, Sayyidah Khadijahؓ. After her, youﷺ married Sayyidah Sawda bint Zam‘aؓ, who was an elderly, heavy-set, and divorced woman, and the purpose of this marriage was the upbringing of your children, because due to the responsibilities of Prophethood, youﷺ could not pay attention to their upbringing. You married the daughters of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiqؓ and Sayyiduna Umarؓ so that these two elders would be your companions and ministers in this world and the Hereafter, and to further increase love and harmony in relations. It should also be noted that among all your wives, only Sayyidah Aishaؓ was a virgin whom youﷺ married; all the rest were either divorced or widowed. Then, one of your responsibilities was to abolish the tribal, ignorant system and its prejudices and establish the Islamic system, and to end previous hostilities. Youﷺ married Sayyidah Umm Salama, who belonged to the family of Abu Jahl and Khalid bin Walidؓ. Sayyidah Umm Habibahؓ was the daughter of Abu Sufyan. These marriages greatly diminished the enmity of those families. Sayyidah Safiyyahؓ, Sayyidah Juwayriyyahؓ, and Rayhanaؓ belonged to Jewish families. When you freed them and married them, the hostile activities of the Jews cooled down, because according to Arab traditions, a person’s son-in-law was considered the son-in-law of the entire tribe, and to fight or be hostile to him was considered a great disgrace. Another purpose of your Prophethood was to eradicate ignorant customs. Youﷺ married Sayyidah Zainab bint Jahsh for this very purpose. Then, marrying women from every family and age group had the important purpose of religious education. There are many aspects of Shariah rulings that only women can explain to other women, or only wives can inform the Ummah about their husband’s qualities and private life. Among your wives, some were jurists, to the extent that even great Companionsؓ would come to them for legal questions. These were the objectives for which Allah did not impose the restriction on the number of wives upon youﷺ and declared that the restriction on the number of wives should not become a cause of hardship or hindrance for you in fulfilling your mission.

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You Were Not Obligated to Pay Dowry or Maintenance:

Ordinary Muslims are obligated to pay dowry to their wives and also to provide maintenance. Even if a woman offers herself, the dowry is not waived. And the Prophet was not obligated to provide maintenance to his wives in the same way as ordinary Muslims. Rather, whatever and however much the Prophet gave or could give to his wives, they were to remain patient and grateful, as has already been explained in detail in the incident of Ila’.