Timing of the Marriage Between the Prophet ﷺ and Sayyidah Zaynab (رضي الله عنها)❖ Question:
Some individuals claim that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ married Sayyidah Zaynab (رضي الله عنها) during her waiting period (ʿiddah). Is this claim correct?
❖ Answer by Shaykh ʿAbd al-Wakīl Nāṣir (حفظه الله):
This claim is incorrect, as a clear and authentic narration in Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim establishes that the marriage occurred after the completion of Sayyidah Zaynab's ʿiddah.
❖ Text of the Ḥadīth:
Sayyidunā Anas ibn Mālik (رضي الله عنه) reported:
“When the ʿiddah of Ḥaḍrat Zaynab (رضي الله عنها) ended, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to Zayd (رضي الله عنه): Mention her to me in terms of marriage.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 2814)
This clear narration is a definitive proof that the marriage of the Prophet ﷺ to Sayyidah Zaynab (رضي الله عنها) took place only after her waiting period was complete.
Furthermore, the narration also mentions that revelation (waḥy) concerning the marriage was sent down after the ʿiddah had ended.
Had the marriage occurred during the ʿiddah, there would have been no need to wait for divine revelation.
❖ Conclusion:
The claim that the Prophet ﷺ married Sayyidah Zaynab (رضي الله عنها) during her ʿiddah is false and baseless.
The authentic hadiths confirm that the marriage took place only after the completion of the ʿiddah.
وَالله أعلم بالصواب
