rebuttal to islam sikhism mohammads adopted sons wife

8/8/2019 Rebuttal to Islam Sikhism Mohammads Adopted Sons Wife

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www.SikhingTruth.com

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Prophet

Mohammad'sAdopted Sons Wife



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1 Contents Page

1 Contents Page.............................................................................................................. 22 Introduction................................................................................................................. 3

3 The life of Prophet Mohammad.................................................................................. 3

4 Islam-Sikhism website wrote: Background summary: ............................................... 3

4.1 SikhingTruth response: Background Rebuttal.................................................... 35 Prophet Mohammads Wives Zainab Bint Jahsh..................................................... 4

5.1 Islam-Sikhism website wrote: Background to Zainab........................................ 4

5.2 SikhingTruth response (in summary): ................................................................ 4

5.3 SikhingTruth response (in detail): ...................................................................... 4

5.3.1 Historical background................................................................................. 4

5.3.2 Critical Orientalist Version:........................................................................ 6

5.3.3 Apologetics views:...................................................................................... 75.3.4 Comments: .................................................................................................. 7

6 SikhingTruth response: Summary regarding the lifestyle of Prophet Muhammad .... 8


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2 IntroductionSikhism respects all religions and supports the concept of "Sarbat da Bhalla" whichmeans "Good for All". Sikhs do not have any ill will towards any community, as all

human beings are sons and daughters of one God.

See the brotherhood of all mankind as the highest order of Yogis; conquer your own

mind, and conquer the world. (Shri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, Page 6)

Our aim with publishing this document is only to highlight the truth and as Sikhs we

respect all Muslims who choose to follow an Islamic lifestyle without the hatred,judgementand superiority complex.

3 The life of Prophet MohammadThis essay focuses on Islam and some of the incorrect statements that Muslims often

make to give Islam a more human image. We go through this section in the standardstatement and answer format.

Sikhism respects all religions and supports the concept of "Sarbat da Bhalla" which

means "Good for All". Sikhs do not have any ill will towards any community, as all

human beings are sons and daughters of one God.

See the brotherhood of all mankind as the highest order of Yogis; conquer your own

mind, and conquer the world. (Shri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, Page 6)

Our aim with publishing this document is only to highlight the truth and as Sikhs we

respect all Muslims who choose to follow an Islamic lifestyle without the hatred,

judgement and superiority complex.

4 Islam-Sikhism website wrote: Background summary:He (Mohammad) had eleven wives and he left nine of them behind when he died (peace

be upon him). Those nine were: 'Aa'ishah, Hafsah, Zaynab bint Jahsh, Umm Salamah,Safiyyah, Umm Habeebah, Maymoonah, Sawdah and Juwayriyyah. The first of his wives

to follow him after he died was Zaynab bint Jahsh in 20 (After Hijri) and the last of them

to die was Umm Salamah in 62 (After Hijri) during the caliphate of Yazeed

4.1 SikhingTruth response: Background RebuttalThe above is an incorrect account of the Prophet Muhammads wives as firstly it does not

mention that Muhammad had a concubine. So insha'Allaah, we will aim to simply present

the truth about the life of Prophet Muhammad and the Islamic scriptures.


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5 Prophet Mohammads Wives Zainab Bint Jahsh5.1 Islam-Sikhism website wrote: Background to Zainab

7. Zaynab bint Jahsh Zaynab had been married to Zayd bin Thabit. Zayd was

Muhammad's (peace be upon him) slave before the advent of Islaam. Muhammad (peace

be upon him) appeared to set a precedent that slaves should be freed and should carry no

stigma from their past. Zaynab married Zayd; but, by the will of Allaah, the marriage

turned out to be one of incompatibility and did not last long. The Prophet again extended

his hand in marriage to her. The Qur'an offers an additional explanation for the

marriage. Two of the prevalent customs in the society were to banish "wives" into limbo

by declaring them to be their husband's "mothers," (the practice was called Zihar), and

to declare foster children as one's natural children. The Prophet's marriage to Zaynab,who was divorced from Zayd, abolished the latter practice. Zaynab was known for her

extraordinary piety and righteousness. She was in her late middle age when she married

the Prophet.

5.2 SikhingTruth response (in summary):The above description as posted by our Muslim colleagues seems to miss the point that

Muhammad married the wife of his inherited son in law. The below presents the correct

and full facts regarding the marriage of Zainab Bint Jahsh to Prophet Muhammad.

5.3 SikhingTruth response (in detail):

5.3.1 Historical background

Islam prohibits adopting children. Adoption in the technical sense is not allowed in

Muslim Shariah law. This is because Allah does not like this gesture of adopting orphan

children. Muhammad Rushed Ridha states, "Allah prohibited adoption in Islam and

annulled all the judgments pertaining to adoption. The most important one of which was

the prohibition of the wife of the adopted son to the fostering father as though he is the

natural father. So Allah commanded his prophet to marry Zainab Bint Jahsh in order to

abolish pagan custom (Fatawa al-Imam)." Al-sabuni states, "As to Zainab Bint Jahsh, the

Messenger of Allah married for no higher wisdom than to abolish the heresy of adoption(A-sabuni)."

There is no real rational reason why Allah could dislike such noble deeds and this is a

divine law that may not even be known by the majority of Muslims. The prohibition ofthis noble custom among human being shall be explained later in the essay.

Pre-Islamic Arab Custom: Adoption of orphan/helpless child was a very popular andmoral practice amongst pre-Islamic Arabs. By adopting orphan/helpless child, they used

to consider an adopted child as their own. And they used to pass onto them the adopter's


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genealogy and name, his investment of them with all the rights of the legitimate son

including that of inheritance and the prohibition of marriage on grounds of consanguinity.

Post-Islamic Custom: The all-wise legislator of Islam willed to undo the above mentionedArab practice of adopting children. The divine legislator willed to give the adopted son

only the right of a client and co-religionist. For that reason a verse was revealed: "God

did not make your adopted son as your own sons. To declare them so is your empty

claim. God's word is righteous and constitutes true guidance. (Q.33: 4)." It follows from

this revelation that the adopter may marry the ex-wife of his adopted son and vice-versa.Thus Muhammad married Zainab in order to provide a good example of what the All-wise legislator was seeking to establish by way of rights and privileges for adoption. In

this regard God further said:"After a term of married life with her husband, We permitted

you to marry her so that it may hence be legitimate and morally blameless for a believer

to marry the wife of his adopted son provided that wife has already been divorced. That

is God's commandment which must be fulfilled (Q.33: 37)."

Who, among the Arabs, could implement this noble legislation and thereby openly

repudiate the ancient traditions? The truth is, however, that Muhammad was the exemplarof obedience to God; his life was the implementation of that which he was entrusted to

convey to mankind. His life constitutes the highest ideal, the perfect example, and the

concrete instance of his Lord's command (M.H. Haykal, page-296-297).

Muhammad's marriage to Zainab, who was the wife of his adopted son, led to many

accusations against Muhammad. The dissimulators said, "Muhammad prohibits the wives

of the son while he himself marries the wife of his son Zaid." These incidents are not in

harmony with the ethics and conventions that Muhammad introduced to mankind, asMuslims claim. Abdullah Ibn Umar narrated:"We have always called him [namely Zaid]

Zaid Ibn Muhammad." Abdullah Ibn Umar said, "We only called him Zaid Ibn

Muhammad till the verse "Muhammad is not the father of any of your men' was

revealed."

Historical views: There are many conflicting stories about this scandalous happening and

all these stories are based on Sahih Hadiths and Muslim biographies and books. It isworthwhile to quote here what Ibn Sa`d and al-Tabari said concerning this story:

Muhammad Ibn Yahya Ibn Hayyan narrated, "The Messenger of God came to Zaid Ibn

Haritha's house seeking him. Perhaps the Messenger of God missed him at that time, that

is why he said, 'Where is Zaid?' He went to his house seeking him and, when he did not

find him, Zainab Bint Jahsh stood up to [meet] him in a housedress, but the Messenger of

God turned away from her. She said, 'He is not here, Messenger of God, so please come

in; my father and mother are your ransom.' The Messenger of God refused to come in.

Zainab had hurried to dress herself when she heard that the Messenger of God was at her

door, so she leapt in a hurry, and the Messenger of God liked her when she did that. The

heart of the Prophet was filled with admiration for her He went away muttering

something that was hardly understandable but for this sentence: 'Praise be to God who

disposes the hearts.' When Zaid came back home, she told him that the Messenger of God

came. Zaid asked, 'You asked him to come in, didn't you?' She replied, 'I bade him to, but


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he refused.' He said, 'Have you heard [him say] anything?' She answered, 'When he had

turned away, I heard him say something that I could hardly understand. I heard him say,

"Praise be to God who disposes the hearts." ' Zaid went out to the Messenger of God and

said, 'O Messenger of God, I learned that you came to my house. Did you come in? O

Messenger of God, my father and mother are your ransom. Perhaps you liked Zainab. I

can leave her.' The Messenger of God said, 'Hold on to your wife.' Zaid said, 'O

Messenger of God, I will leave her.' The Messenger of God said, 'Keep your wife.' So

when Zaid left her, she finished her legal period after she had isolated herself from Zaid.

While the Messenger of God was sitting and talking with `Aisha, he was taken in a

trance, and when it lifted, he smiled and said, 'Who will go to Zainab to tell her that God

wedded her to me from heaven?' The Messenger of God recited; 'Thus you told someone

whom God had favoured and whom you yourself have favoured: "Hold on to your wife." '

`Aisha said, 'I heard much about her beauty and, moreover, about how God wedded her

from heaven, and I said, "For sure she will boast over this with us." ' Salama, the slave of

the Messenger of God, hurried to tell her about that. She gave her some silver jewellerythat she was wearing."

More help from Allah: So, this charge that the dissimulators, among others, leveled

against Muhammad necessitated the revelation of more Qur'anic verses:

(Sura al-Ahzab Q.33: 40): "Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but [he is]

God's Messenger and the Seal of the Prophets. God is Aware of everything!"

(Sura al-Ahzab Q.33: 37): "We married her off to you so that there would be no

objection for believers in respect to their adopted sons' wives once they have

accomplished their purpose with them. God's command must be done!"

In the verse (33:37) there is stated a particular purpose for this revelation and action of

Muhammad. It is not for himself, but it is for the future of the Muslim community. It is so

that in future there may not be a problem if anybody (father-in-law) wants to marry the

divorced wife of an adopted son.We permitted you to marry her so that it may hence be

legitimate and morally blameless for a believer to marry the wife of his adopted son.

Without adoption, there cannot be any adopted son either. Therefore, the explicitly statedreason for the revelation of this verse does not exist. Muhammad himself dissolved the

original adoption of Zaid when the above revelation came. Also, it is a mystery why in

the world, any father-in law will need to marry his adopted son's wife.

5.3.2 Critical Orientalist Version:

Muhammad fell in love with Zainab, daughter of Jahsh, while she was the wife of Zaydbin Harithah, his own adopted son. Once, when he passed by the house of Zayd in the

latter's absence, he was met by Zainab wearing clothes which exposed her beauty.

Muhammad's heart was inflamed. It is reported that when his eyes fell upon her, heexclaimed, "Praise be to God who changes the hearts of men" and he repeated this

expression at the time of his departure from her home. Zainab heard him say this and

noticed desire in his eye. Zainab proudly reported this happening to her husband. Zayd

immediately went to see the Prophet and offered to divorce his wife. Muhammad


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answered, "Hold to your wife and fear God." Thereafter, Zainab was no longer a docile

wife and Zayd had to divorce her. Prophet Muhammad married Zainab Bint Jahsh whowas his daughter-in-law. That was definitely taboo in pre-Islamic Arabia, and the Prophet

of Islam lifted this taboo in order to satisfy his own lust and fulfill his own desire. Theyalso relate that when Muhammad saw her she was half-naked, that her fine black hair was

covering half of her body, and that every curve of her body was full of desire and

passion. Others relate that when Muhammad opened the door of the house of Zayd the

breeze played with the curtains of the room of Zainab, thus permitting Muhammad to

catch a glimpse of her stretched out on her mattress in a nightgown.

5.3.3 Apologetics views:

Muhammad Husain Haikal, for one, in the course of "refuting" the claims of V. Vacca in

the Encyclopaedia of Islam regarding Zainab, speaks about a "glorious deed" of

Muhammad, which the orientalists and missionaries have turned into a romance. He says,"As to Zainab Bint Jahsh, who has been wrapped up by orientalists and missionaries in an

imaginary picture of romance and infatuation, true history judges that [Muhammad's act

with] her was one of the glorious deeds of Muhammad. Being the perfect example of

faith, he applied to her the Hadith that says, 'Man's faith is not made perfect till he loves

for his brother what he loves for himself'.

Apologists conclude that it is one of the truly great facets of Muhammad's personality. It

proves beyond question that Muhammad was the perfect exemplar of his own legislation,especially of such laws as were intended to replace the tradition and customs of pre-

Islamic Arabia. He was the exemplar of the new system that God revealed through him asa mercy and guidance to mankind.

On the other hand, Arab custom and tradition demanded that the adopted son inherit from

his adopted father, like the latter's legitimate children. And since this custom too was the

object of Muhammad's attack, his choice of Zayd as the spear point of the first reform,

would actually make of him -- if he were prepared to give up the inheritance to whichArabian custom gave him title -- the spearhead of another Islamic legislation prohibiting

inheritance to any but the blood heirs and relatives of the deceased. This indeed furnished

the revelation: "No believer, whether man or woman, has the freedom to choose

otherwise than as God and His Prophet have resolved in any given case. To do so is to

disobey God and His Prophet, to err and fall into manifest misguidance (Q.33: 37)

5.3.4 Comments:

There is a considerable moral problem with such a self-serving revelation. It is quite clear

that Prophet Muhammad was attracted to Zainab before Zaid divorced her and it might

well have been the true reason for the divorce itself. And Qur'anic verses do make clearthat there was something going on before Zaid divorced Zainab. The entire melodrama:

Zaid's divorce of Zainab, Muhammad's marriage with Zainab and subsequent revelations

of several Qur'anic Ayats from Allah to purify this scandalous happening is something to

ponder very seriously. There is more in this strange story. That this action is immoral and


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this revelation/justification of it self-serving and not fitting for a true word of God is an

important aspect, but not a contradiction within the Quran - even though contradicting thetrue character of God, who is moral purity. Prohibiting adoption is no way a moral action.

Prohibitions of alcohol drinking, smoking, gambling, sorceries, killing, etc., could be amoral action. But why was there prohibition of adoption?

To summarize, the logical difficulty is that Allah causes a scandal and then sends Gabriel

to officially justify the scandalous action of Prophet Muhammad with Qur'anic

revelations is morally incorrect and too much of a coincidence.

Some after thoughts: Prophet Muhammad cannot get away from the culpability of this

salacious behavior of his with Zainab. If he had this forthrightness in his mind, he wouldhave vigorously fought with his conscience and not allow this marriage to go through.

But the reality was quite the opposite. He had surrendered to his passion and thus had

marred his "unblemished" character.

If all the Muslims in the present-day world follow Muhammad's inglorious example,seduce their daughter-in-law, and then cause a divorce and then to add insult to the injury

marry her, what would happen then? Just think of the consequences. In a more

enlightened society if a man does what Muhammad did with Zainab he would be looked

at as a lascivious character.

6 SikhingTruth response: Summary regarding the

lifestyle of Prophet Muhammad The Prophet married the wife of his adopted son in law Zainab Bint Jahsh by making

adoption haram (illegal). Many Muslims are shocked to discover that Islam considersadoption haram.

rebuttal to islam sikhism mohammads adopted sons wife

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