Polygyny is the marital
practice of a man marrying more than one woman at the same time. Differs from
polygamy where either a man or woman can have multiple spouses. Polygyny is
thus restricted to men.
Scriptural evidence
indicates that polygyny, though not extremely common, was neither particularly
unusual among the ancient Hebrews, and without doubt not prohibited or
discouraged. The Bible documents approximately forty polygynists, including the
Prophets Abraham, Moses, Jacob, Esau, and David pbut. The Torah (the first five
books of the Old Testament) does specifically discuss polygyny in other cases
too—for example in the practice of levirate marriage, wherein a man was
required to marry and support his deceased brother's widow:
If brothers are living
together and one of them dies without a son, his widow must not marry outside
the family. Her husband's brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the
duty of a brother-in-law to her. The first son she bears shall carry on the
name of the dead brother so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel.
[NIV, Deuteronomy 25:5-6]
Today, Judaism has
forbidden polygamy as a result of a rabbinic ban declared in the 11thcentury. Some Jewish sects
though—Sephardic and Mizrahic—discontinued polygyny only more recently, as a
result of immigration to countries where it was forbidden. The State of Israel
has outlawed polygynous marriages, but existing polygynous families who
emigrated from nations where this practice is legal are exempted from this
law.
Christians on the other hand
have historically prohibited polygyny. St. Augustine, for example, discussed
the polygyny found in the Old Testament
in The Good of Marriage, saying that though it “was lawful among the
ancient fathers; whether it be lawful now also, I would not hastily pronounce.”
St. Augustine did not pass judgment on the Biblical patriarchs, but he also did
not permit polygyny based upon their example referring instead to the common
practice of modern society in his time. He wrote, “Now indeed in our time, and
in keeping with Roman custom, it is no longer allowed to take another wife, so
as to have more than one wife living.”
At the same time though,
Christian reformers who came later seeking to remodel Christian doctrine, based
solely on the Bible, have sometimes, if only temporarily, accepted polygamy as
a Biblical practice. For example, in a letter to the Saxon Chancellor Gregor
Brück, the Protestant father Martin Luther stated that he could not “forbid a
person to marry several wives, for it does not contradict Scripture.” Luther, M. (1972). Luther's
Works: Letters II. Edited by Jaroslav Jan Pelikan et al., Missouri:
Concordia Pub. House
In most western societies
today, many have commented that although polygyny may be prohibited, the end
result of a man having more than one female partner is alive and well. The only
difference is that only one of these women will have the security and rights of
a wife, whereas the others, be they mistresses or girlfriends, may be “dumped”
at any moment without any rights or concern for their future. (Bartlett, N. (2015, Feb
19). Adultery: Which countries are most unfaithful? Retrieved from:
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/adulterycountries-most-unfaithful-5188791)
In Islam, polygyny is
permissible, but not required. God says in the Quran:
And if you fear that you
shall not be able to deal justly with the orphan girls then marry other women
of your choice, two or three or four; but if you fear that you shall not be
able to deal justly (with them), then only one ... That is nearer to prevent
you from doing injustice. {4:3}
Accordingly, a man is
allowed to be married to up to four wives at one time, provided that he meets
two conditions. The first is that he must be equitable and fair between the
wives,
… But if you fear that you
shall not be able to deal justly (with them), then only one. {4:3}
Thus, if a man is afraid
that he will not be able to treat his wives justly if he marries more than one,
then it is forbidden for him to marry more than one. What is meant by fairness
here is that he should treat his wives equally in terms of financial
expenditures: clothing, food, and time spent with each.
As regards being equitable
in terms of love, he is not accountable for that, because he has no control
over his heart. This is what is mentioned in the verse,
You will never be able to
do perfect justice between wives, even if it is your desire. {4:129}
Ibn Kathir reports in his
exegesis of the Quran regarding the meaning of this passage: “O people! You
will never be able to be perfectly just between wives in every respect. Even
when one divides the nights justly between wives, there will still be various
degrees concerning love, desire and sexual intimacy,’ as Ibn `Abbas, `Ubaydah
As-Salmani, Mujahid, Al-Hasan AlBasri and Ad-Dahhak bin Muzahim stated. Imam
Ahmad and the collectors of the Sunan recorded that `A'ishah said, ‘The
Messenger of Allah used to treat his wives equally and proclaim, ‘O Allah! This
is my division in what I own, so do not blame me for what You own and I do not
own,’ referring to his heart.” [Tafseer ibn Kathir]
The second essential
requirement is the financial and physical ability to get married in the first
place. This is evidenced in the following verse:
And let those who find not
the financial means for marriage keep themselves chaste, until God enriches them
of His Bounty. {24:33}
Thus, a man has to be able
to provide for every wife and cannot require them to live in the same house as
is sometimes done by some ignorant and careless people today. He must also have
the physical stamina to be able to satisfy each wife as necessary, for it would
violate the equitability condition for him to give intimacy to one wife and
deny it to the others though they desire it.
Statistically speaking,
polygamous marriages constitute a minority of all marriages amongst Muslims today*,
even though it is a common subject of non-Muslim fascination and questions. The
financial burden alone limits the practice for many, and as Mark Twain once
reportedly said when asked to cite a Scriptural reference that forbids
polygamy, he responds with, “No man can serve two masters.”
*Stack, PF. (2001) Polygamy:
Not as Rare as You May Think. The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved from:
http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/2001/02/Polygamy-Not-As-Rare-As-YouMay-Think.aspx
Throughout this chapter,
and more specifically in the research that follows in this section, extensive
historical references and scriptural commentaries are often discussed. This
respected Rabbi said this, this Christian Saint or Church father said that. Truly
it can be a bit overwhelming. Yet, as respected as these prominent scholars may
be, a number of people who follow both Judaism and Christianity today are
likely to think that a number of these references don’t apply to them.
No doubt, Judaism, and to a
greater extent Christianity, have evolved to a certain degree over the past two
thousand years. As a result of this evolution, some of the opinions and rulings
that were previously part of both of these religious traditions have long since
faded away. So why discuss old ideas and interpretations? All of this history
does bring us to a very important conclusion.
In Islam, women were
granted their rights and their inherent dignity directly through revelation;
directly by the word of God. Muslims never had to concern themselves with
changing or reinterpreting their scriptures to erase outdated views or to
correct clear injustices. The Judeo-Christian scholars on the other hand, despite
their deep knowledge and religious devotion, most often inserted their own
societal practices and opinions into the scriptures. This practice then led to
Judeo-Christian women having to fight for their God-given rights—either by
reinterpreting the Holy Scriptures or by discarding them entirely in favor of
secular laws. Thus, the historicity of these matters is vitally important to
demonstrate both the original positions which the Judeo-Christian authorities
took on a number of these issues, as well as the changes that they felt were
necessary to be made.
Education
In Judaism, there is
considerable evidence pointing to the deplorability of women studying the
religious scriptures and consequently the teaching of religion. In Kiddushin
29b, the Talmud states:
How do we know that she
[the mother] has no duty to teach her children?Because it is written, [and you shall teach], which also reads [and you
shall study]: hence whoever is commanded to study, is commanded to teach; whoever
is not commanded to study, is not commanded to teach.And how do we know that she is not bound to
teach herself?Because it is written,
[and you shall teach]—[and you shall learn]: the one whom others are commanded
to teach is commanded to teach himself; and the one whom others are not
commanded to teach, is not commanded to teach himself.How then do we know that others are not commanded
to teach her?Because it is written,
“And you shall teach them to your sons” — but not your daughters.
Thus, Rabbis have concluded
that a woman’s exemption from the commandment of learning Torah is manifested
in three ways:
1.A woman is not required to teach her sons Torah;
2.A woman is not required to learn Torah herself;
3.A father is not required to teach Torah to his daughters.
On this matter, Rabbi
Eliezer of the 1st Century CE states: Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkonus, a Jewish scholar of the second
generation (1st century CE), who traced his pedigree for ten
generations back to the Biblical Prophet Ezra. Viewed by many Jews as one of
the great teachers of the period of the Mishnah, he was known in the Talmud
simply as Rabbi Eliezer although there are references to him as Rabbi Eliezer
the great.
Whoever teaches his
daughter torah teaches her obscenity (sometimes translated – it is as though he
taught her promiscuity).[Babylonian Talmud: Mishnah Sotah: 3, 4] Swidler, L. (1979). Biblical
Affirmations of Woman. Westminster: John Knox Press
Furthermore, according to
Jewish rabbis, women were mentally deficient and thus incapable of undertaking
the challenging task of learning the scriptures. For example, in the writings
of the 12thCentury CE Rabbi
Maimonides, whose works and views are considered a cornerstone of Orthodox
Jewish thought and study till today, we read:
A woman who studies Torah
is rewarded, but not to the same degree as is a man, for she is not commanded
and anyone who does that which he is not commanded to do, does not receive the
same reward as one who is commanded, but only a lesser reward.However, even though she is rewarded, the
Sages commanded that a man must not teach his daughter Torah.This is because the mind of the majority of
women is not disposed to study and they will turn the words of Torah into words
of nonsense according to their limited understanding.Our sages said that anyone who teaches his
daughter Torah is to be considered as if he had taught her trivial and unimportant
things.What were they referring
to?The Oral Torah. However, the Written
Torah should not be taught before the fact, but if he has taught her, it is not
considered as if he has taught her promiscuity (tiflut). [Hilchot Talmud
Torah 1:13] Angel, M.D. (2009). Maimonides,
Spinoza and Us: Toward an Intellectually Vibrant Judaism. Woodstock: Jewish
Lights Publishing
Moreover on the same point,
the Jewish law code known as the Mishnah states clearly:
May the words of Torah be
burned [first five books of the Old Testament], than that they should be handed
over to women. [Babylonian Talmud Sotah, 10a]Swidler, L. (1979). Biblical
Affirmations of Woman. Westminster: John Knox Press
On the contrary, the
Gospels record that Jesus not only taught women, but he even went so far as to
praise a particular women (Martha’s sister Mary in Luke 10:38-42) for her
learning over her sister’s concern for entertaining the guests. Yet,
Christianity in general continued the Jewish tradition of limiting the scholarship
of women as can be demonstrated in the clear instructions of Paul in the New
Testament. It must be remembered that Christianity is based upon the foundation
of the Old Testament which is the fountainhead of many Jewish legal
commandments, and thus legally there should be little difference
between the two religions as has been proven true historically. What then do
the writings of St. Paul reveal about the education of women? There are two
main passages that critics point to in this regard.
As in all the congregations
of the saints, women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed
to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says. If they want to inquire
about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is
disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church. [NIV, 1 Corinthians 14:33-35]
A woman should learn in
quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to have
authority over a man; she must be silent. For Adam was formed first, then Eve.
And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became
a sinner. But women will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in
faith, love and holiness with propriety. [NIV, 1 Timothy 2:8-15]
Commentary: When the
apostle exhorts Christian women to seek information on religious subjects from
their husbands at home, it shows that believing families ought to assemble for
promoting spiritual knowledge … The way to keep peace, truth, and order in the
church, is to seek that which is good for it, to bear with that which is not
hurtful to its welfare, and to keep up good behavior, order, and decency. (Matthew
Henry’s Concise Commentary, 1706)
Conversely in Islam,
education is not only allowed to women, but it is an individual obligation that
every Muslim must perform; man or woman. In fact, Islam is the religion of knowledge.
The first five verses of the Quran to be revealed to the Prophet Muhammad
pbuh establish the importance of reading, the key to knowledge and understanding.
God states:
Read! In the Name of your
Lord Who created …
He created man from a clot
.
Read! And your Lord is the
Most Generous.
Who has taught by the pen,
Taught mankind that which
they knew not{96:1-5}
It is essential to
understand from these verses that God didn’t distinguish between men and women;
the virtue of knowledge was discussed for the benefit of all who cared to seek
it, and not restricted to men. Furthermore, this obligation to seek knowledge
was not merely an encouragement for women to pursue, but it was obligatory upon
women; young and old, rich and poor. The Prophet Muhammad pbuh said,
Seeking knowledge is
obligatory upon every Muslim. [Ibn Majah]
The Prophet Muhammad pbuh also
sought to ensure that women were being educated in Islam to the point that he
even ordered the men who had traveled from afar to learn directly from him to pass
on what they had learned to the women in their families:
Malik ibn al-Huwayrith
said, “We came to the Prophet, may God exalt his praise and grant him peace, as
young men of about the same age and stayed twenty nights with him. The
Messenger of God was very kind and generous with us. When he realized that we
were missing our families he asked us about those we had left behind us and we informed him. He said, ‘Return to your families and stay with them and
teach them and instruct them’ …” [Abu Dawud]
Furthermore, Islam places
absolutely no limits on scholarship in regards to women, a fact that has
allowed women to reach the highest positions of education throughout the
history of Islam. Hence, the earliest women in Islam were active in seeking and
applying knowledge. The Prophet Muhammad pbuh even set aside a special time
especially for teaching women, upon their request. Islam also recognized female
scholarship in an age when women had no opportunity for education, much less
teaching. In fact, women could be, and in fact were, sometimes superior to men
in the mastery of Islamic sciences. It is no exaggeration to say that women
have been involved in the teaching and development of Islamic legal thought
since the very time of the Prophet.
As explained previously,
revelation in Islam is composed of both the text of the Quran and of the
Hadith. Thus, the hadith has been one of the most closely guarded and cherished
of texts throughout all of Islamic history. The scholars of Hadith have possessed
a special prestige since the earliest days of Islamic history due in part to
their astoundingly expansive and accurate memories, and due to the fact that
their knowledge and research protected the science of hadith from being
infiltrated by distortions and fabrications. Thus, it may come as a surprise
just how many of these noble and greatly honored scholars were in fact Muslim
women.
Since the very beginning of
Islamic history, Muslim women have played a significant role in the
preservation of hadith, and this task was equally venerated by their successors
down the centuries. In fact, in every generation of Muslim history there lived
numerous distinguished female scholars of hadith, treated by their male brethren
with the utmost of reverence and respect, as not only their noble teachers, but
also their colleagues and students in other cases.
During the life of the
Prophet Muhammad pbuh, a great number of women had not only been the reason behind
the revelation of important and far-reaching statements of the Prophet for the
rest of the Muslims, but had also been the ones to transmit these venerated
statements of the Prophet to their Muslim sisters and brothers in faith. After
the Prophet's death, many female Companions, particularly the Prophet’s
respected wives, were looked upon as central keepers of this knowledge, and
were approached for instruction by other Companions, to whom they readily
dispensed the precious pearls of wisdom and understanding which they had
gathered in the company of the Prophet Muhammad pbuh.
The names of ‘Aisha, Hafsa,
Umm Salamah, Maymuna, and Umm Habiba, are well-known to every student of hadith
as being among the earliest and most prominent transmitters of hadith. ‘Aisha,
in particular, is one of the most central figures in all of hadith literature,
not only as one of the most prolific narrators of hadith, but also as one of
the most knowledgeable and respected analysts of the wise words of the Prophet
Muhammad pbuh. (She
ranks fourth in highest number, having narrated 2210 hadiths from the Prophet
Muhammad pbuh.)
‘Aisha, the “Mother of the
Believers” (All of
the wives of the Prophet were known as “Mother of the Believers” due to their
position and honor.) as she was named in the Quran, was not only a model for wives
and mothers, but she was also a prominent commentator on the Quran, an
authority on Hadith and also well versed in the disciplines of Islamic Law, Arabic
history and literature.In fact, for
those who question the role of women in Islam, one need only look back at how
she was regularly consulted in countless and diverse religious matters both during
the life of the Prophet, and even more after his death.
Among the most famed
Companions and later great scholars of early Islam, Abu Musa al-Ash’ari is
recorded to have said:“If we, the
Companions of the Messenger of God, had any difficulty on a matter we asked
‘Aisha about it.”[Al-Muwatta of Imam
Malik]
Moreover, the great scholar
of the Students of the Companions, ‘Urwa ibnal Zubair says,
I did not find anyone more
proficient [than ‘Aisha] in the knowledge of the Quran, the Commandments of
Halal (lawful) and Haram (prohibited), Ilmul-Ansab (lineage) and Arabic poetry.
That is why even senior companions of the Prophet used to consult ‘Aisha in
resolving intricate issues.(Ibnul
Qayyim and Ibn Sa'ad, Jala-ul-Afham, vol. 2, p. 26.)
Also, the great 8th Century scholar ibn Hajar
said about ‘Aisha: “... it is said that a quarter of the rulings of Islamic law
are narrated from her.” (Geissinger, A. ‘A’isha bint Abi Bakr and her Contributions to the
Formation of the Islamic Tradition. Religion Compass 5/1 (2011): 37–49.
Retrieved from:
http://www.academia.edu/4240885/_Aisha_bint_Abi_Bakr_and_Her_Contributions_to_the_Formation_of_the_Islamic_Tradition_
)
Truly, in the field of
hadith scholarship ‘Aisha stands tall. She narrated 2,210 authentic Hadith
(more than any other Muslim except for the male Companions Abu Hurairah,
Abdullah ibn ‘Umar and Anas ibn Malik). Moreover, over 300 people narrated
hadith from her. (Nadwi, M.A. (2007). Al-Muhaddithat: the Women Scholars in Islam.
Oxford: Interface Publications). Thus, she made a priceless and profound contribution, not only to
the preservation of the tradition, or Sunnah, of the Final Prophet of God, but
to all of Islamic knowledge in general. She is undoubtedly one of most distinguished
personalities, not only in Islamic and women’s history, but in world history
altogether.
Although ‘Aisha was the
most prominent of the female scholars from the generation of the Prophet’s
Companions, she was by no means the only such scholar of distinction and
advanced learning.The celebrated 8th
Century scholar and author Ibnul Qayyim gives a detailed account of 22 female
companions who were known for issuing religious verdicts (fatawa) in the immediate
years after the death of the Prophet. Al-Jawziyyah, I.Q. (n.d.).I'lam
al-Muwaqqi'in 'an Rabb al-'Aalamin. Beirut: Dar al Kotob al Ilmiyyah,
In the period after the
Companions too, women held vital positions as learned scholars of all Islamic
sciences, hadith in particular. The late seventh century (less than 50 years
after the death of the prophet Muhammad pbuh) witnessed the rise of several significant
and key women scholars of hadith such as: Hafsah bint Sireen (who memorized
over half a million hadith), Umm al-Darda al-Sagheerah, Mu`aadhah al-`Adawiyyah
and bint `Abd al-Rahman ibn Sa`d—one of the outstanding students of ‘Aisha the
wife of the Prophet. In addition to being well known hadith scholars, `Amrah and
Hafsa were also legal scholars. Hafsa was also distinguished in Quran and
counted the well-known Quranic commentator Qatadah as one of her students.
In the decades after them
came the likes of 'Abida al-Madaniyyah, 'Abda bint Bishr, Umm Umar al-Thaqafiyya,
Zaynab the granddaughter of Abdullah ibn Abbas, Nafisa bint al-Hasan ibn Ziyad,
Khadija Umm Muhammad, 'Abda bint Abd al-Rahman, and several other Muslim women
who were renowned for their notable public lectures on hadith. These pious and
scholarly women came from the most diverse backgrounds, demonstrating that
neither class, nor gender, were obstacles to ascending the ranks of Islamic
scholarship.
This collaboration between
women and men in the gathering and preserving of hadith literature continued
into the ninth century CE when the great foundational collections of hadith
were compiled. A detailed analysis of these essential compilations confirms
that all the chief hadith compilers obtained a significant portion of their
education from female hadith scholars. In fact, every major collection of
hadith in use today lists the names of numerous women as the immediate authorities/narrators
who narrated and explained the hadith to the authors of these key collections.
And even after these central works had been compiled, many other women hadith
scholars would later master them, and then pass on the knowledge they had
gained by teaching these books through public lectures to large classes of male
and female students, to whom they would then issue their own “ijazas”, or
certifications of proficiency.
One such distinguished
hadith scholar was Karima al-Marwaziyya who lived in the eleventh century CE
and was considered the preeminent expert on Sahih al-Bukhari (the authentic
hadith compilation of the hadith specialist Muhammad al-Bukhari) of her era. In
fact, among her many students were the illustrious and celebrated scholars
al-Khateeb al-Baghdadi and al-Humaydi.
Many modern day “Muslim
feminist” writers falsely and unjustifiably allege that early Islamic legal and
societal practices were a direct result of male domination of scholarship, and
hence, interpretation of the central scriptural texts (Quran and Hadith). Yet,
even a cursory review of the history of Islamic scholarship reveals that even
the most revered book of Hadith, Sahih al-Bukhari, was in a number of cases
taught to men by women. Later scholars who gave commentaries on Sahih
al-Bukhari, like the famous Palestinian scholar ibn Hajar, also counted a
number of female scholars as their teachers. These female teachers provided ibn
Hajar with the deepunderstanding of
literally thousands of hadith allowing him to write hisfamous commentary on Sahih al-Bukhari (Fath
al-Bari).
Dr. Muhammad Zubayr Siddiqi
writes the following regarding later female Islamic scholars of hadith in his
excellent and ground-breaking book, Hadith Literature: Its Origin, Development,
Special Features & Criticism:
In his work al-Durar
al-Karima, Ibn Hajar provides several short biographical descriptions of
about 170 prominent female scholars of the eighth century, most of whom were
hadith specialists, and under many of whom the author himself had studied. Some
of these women were acknowledged as the best hadith experts of their era. For
example, the renowned hadith scholar Juwayriya bint Ahmad studied a series of
works on hadith, under scholars both male and female, who taught at the great
universities of that period. She then progressed to deliver several prominent
lectures on a number of Islamic branches of study. ‘Some of my own teachers,’
reports Ibn Hajar, ‘and many of my contemporaries, attended her discourses.’ A'isha
bin Abd al-Hadi, who for a substantial time was one of Ibn Hajar's teachers,
was considered to be one of the finest hadith specialists of her time, and many
students undertook long journeys in order to sit at her feet and study the
sciences of Islam.
The famous historian of
Damascus, Ibn Asakir, reports that he had studied under more than 1,200 men and
80 women scholars, obtained the certification (ijaaza) of Zaynab bint Abd
al-Rahman for the Muwatta collection of Imam Malik. Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti
studied the Risala of Imam Shafii with Hajar bint Muhammad. Afif al-Din Junayd,
a traditionist of the ninth century AH, read the Sunan collection of al-Darimi
with Fatima bin Ahmad ibn Qasim, and so on. Siddiqi, M.Z. (1961). Hadith Literature: Its Origin,
Development, Special Features & Criticism. Cambridge: Islamic Texts
Society
Other notable female
scholars outside the realm of primary hadith specialization include: Zaynab
bint Makki ibn `Ali ibn Kamil al-Harraniyyah who was a prominent 14th Century scholar
from Damascus and a teacher of Ibn Taymiyyah and the famous hadith scholar
al-Mizzi, among others. Zaynab bint Sulayman ibn Ibrahim al-As`ardi who was among
the teachers of the two great mid-14th Century scholars al-Subki and al-Dhahabi.
Zaynab had also studied Sahih al-Bukhari from the great scholar Ibn al-Zabidi.
Also, Fatimah bint `Abbas al-Hanbaliyyah who was a prominent mid-14th Century
legal scholar in the Hanbali legal school of Islamic Law and also a mufti,
first in Damascus and then in Cairo. Other later female scholars of great
eminence include Hanifah bint Abdur Rahman ibn Al-Qimni, Malikah bint
Sharf-ud-Din ibn Abdullah Maqdisi and Um ‘Umar bint Taqi-ud-Din Rafe as-Salami
of the 15th Century, who were teachers of the great scholars Jalal
ad-Din as-Suyuti and ibn Hajar, respectively.
Hence it can be concluded
that Muslim women, from the time of the Prophet Muhammad pbuh till at least the 15th
Century, were respected by their male peers as not only equals in the realm of worship
before God, but in fact they were in a number of cases the teachers of great
male scholars and their collaborative partners in teaching such magnificent
collections as Sahih al-Bukhari. In sharp contrast to the other religions that
coexisted with Islam who limited or even barred their women from studying their
respective scriptures, Islam lived its respect and reverence for women by not
only directing them to study the divine revelations of God, but by further
entrusting them with the momentous and heavy undertaking of preserving and explaining
the profound meanings of these revelations to the student of knowledge and
layman alike. The foundations of Islam, especially in narrating and preserving
the statements of the Prophet Muhammad pbuh, would not have been complete had it not
been for the impressive contributions of Muslim women throughout history.
