300,000 US Girls Married as Children, Yet Prophet Mohammed (saw) is Maligned

• Child marriage is legal in 42 states in America, and nearly 12 million Indian children were married before the age of 10- 84% of them were Hindu.

• These statistics do not determine the morality of the marriage between Prophet Mohammed (saw) and A’isha RA. However, they certainly expose the intellectual dishonesty and hypocrisy of some anti-Islamic groups.

The most common contention presented by critics of Islam is, ‘Your Prophet married a 9-year-old!’ This nonsensical argument has been heard on numerous occasions, including in formal academic debates at universities, online livestreams on YouTube, and from rogue and zealous Islamophobes in Speakers Corner.

It’s true, our Prophet did marry a 9-year-old, our mother A’isha RA, and as Muslims, we wholeheartedly believe that Prophet Mohammed (saw) was the best of creation to have ever walked this earth. We take great pride in who our Prophet was: the epitome of masculinity, a fierce and just warrior who impressively fought and won battles; his gentle approach won the hearts and minds of many enemies; and his care and concern for his community and humanity at large are remarkably admirable. Moreover, the divine revelation given to him illustrates the immense love our creator must have for him (saw).

The concept of childhood is a social construction

Historian of childhood Philippe Ariès declared that in the Middle Ages there was no such thing as childhood. Most people were not even sure of their own age. Medieval works of art typically depict them as miniature grownups.

It’s important to note that 4 surveys of 11 million teens were conducted across America since the 1960s to 2000 in how Teens Today Are Different from Past Generations. The Longitudinal study found that iGens grow up more slowly, they appear more reluctant to grow up, and are more likely to decline driver’s licenses (for instance).

The surveys also concluded that iGens have poorer emotional and mental health due to their consistent use of technology and media. We see here how the socialisation of human beings hugely impacts their very essence; i.e., a 15-year-old boy who seldomly sees the light of day on the weekends as he is engrossed in his ‘Call of Duty’ game will possess significantly different attributes in comparison to a 15-year-old boy who partakes in real wars and will consequently not be equipped for marriage in today’s day and age.

“Aisha couldn’t have been mature as she played with dolls”

Narrated: `Aisha: “I used to play with the dolls in the presence of the Prophet, and my girl friends also used to play with me…….”

Sahih al-Bukhair 6130, Book 78, hadith 157

This is also completely true. Aisha RA did indeed play with dolls when she was married to Prophet Mohammed (saw). But how does this determine her level of maturity?

As we see, almost half of British adults have bought children’s toys for themselves, over half of the population admits that playing with children’s’ toys and games is stress-relieving. In addition, when polled by Barclaycard, 7/10 adults did not see a problem with playing with children’s’ toys and games and considered it to be socially acceptable. Interestingly, the poll also revealed that 23% have pretended a toy purchase was for a child rather than for themselves.

“The ‘kidult’ toy industry is worth over £300 million. As a result of their findings, Barclaycard and Smyths Toys Superstores launched the ‘Big Kids Aisle’ in their Staples corner store, where grown-ups got a chance to play with toys old and new. This showcased how among the top 10 most popular toys that adults purchase are cuddly toys and action figures.

19th-century historian Edward Gibbon, in his book “The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire”, dedicates chapter 5 to Mohammed (saw). In it, he mentions Aisha RA’s age at the time of marriage, but there is no criticism of this. Similarly, there were never any criticisms of the age of Aisha RA from staunch enemies or critics of Islam historically, as this was the social norm in the 7th Century and beyond.

Intellectual dishonesty

Many ideological opponents of Islam fail to consider the statistics of child marriage in the modern world. To reiterate, the evidence below is not illustrated to showcase the truth of Islam or the morality of the marriage contract between Aisha RA and Prophet Mohammed (saw). However, interestingly, there is seldom any mention in the modern western discourse of the prominence of child marriage in countries such as India and America. It is curious what Islamophobes choose to focus their attention on.

In 2016, it was reported that 84% Of 12 million married children under 10 are Hindus. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP’s) former spokesperson, ‘Nupur Sharma’, should have considered this statistic prior to her criticism of Aisha RA’s age and offensive remarks about Prophet Mohammed (saw) during her TV debate. She should have also considered the fact that the Manusmriti text (which is followed by millions of Hindus around the world) promotes child marriage– “A 30-year-old man should marry a charming girl of 12 years or any girl of 8 years – sooner, if his fulfilling the law would suffer”.

Similarly, researchers at ‘Unchained at Last’ concluded about child marriage in the USA, that from 2000-2018, 300,000, 10 year old girls were married to adult men legally in the United States, and that child marriage is legal in 42 states in America.

“Aisha could not have reached puberty when her marriage was consummated; the age a girl gets her period has become significantly younger in comparison to older civilisations/generations“.

This is a myth. Also propelled by many intellectually dishonest individuals. Archaeological research/ancient remains show that children aren’t starting puberty younger (medieval skeletons reveal). “Children in medieval England entered puberty between ten and 12 years of age – the same as today”, the research evidences. Furthermore, Aisha RA related that:

“The Prophet (ﷺ) married her when she was six years old and he consummated his marriage when she was nine years old. Hisham said: I have been informed that `Aisha remained with the Prophet (ﷺ) for nine years (i.e. till his death).

Sahih al-Bukhari 5134, Book 67, Hadith 70)

It is evident from the Hadith above that the Prophet Mohammed (saw) waited for Aisha RA to reach puberty before their marriage was consummated. If this was unnecessary for Him, he would have consummated the marriage when she was 6 years old.

‘Lolita‘ deemed a literary classic- critics sympathise with a paedophile

The 1955 novella ‘Lolita’, written by Vladimir Nabokov, glorifies the apparent love, sexual predator Humbert (who is 37) has for Lolita (who is 12). Humbert becomes Lolita’s step father in order to gain access to her and subsequently kidnaps her. Although Nabokov’s work is fictional, Humbert’s deception, scheming and plotting to be with Lolita without the consent of her parents/family is ignored by many Literary critics. Humbert’s ‘love for Lolita’, is focused upon, in a bid for the reader to sympathise with a monster. Lolita is listed on ‘The New York Times’ and the Guardian’s ‘must read’ lists and is deemed to be a literary classic. However, Literary critics have not unanimously addressed the immorality and paedophilia in the novel, rather many well known critics have concluded that the novel is about unrequited love. But how is this pertinent to the discussion at hand? Popular culture has always shaped the lens of morality upon the masses, thus illustrating many inconsistencies and much hypocrisy regarding what the west seems to regard as socially acceptable- an ever-changing yardstick for morality.

Marriage in Islam

The institution of marriage is pleasing to Allah and is spoken about with great depth and beauty in the Qur’an,

‘And among His signs is this, that He created for you mates among yourselves, that you may dwell in tranquillity with them, and He has put love and mercy between your hearts”

(30:21)

The age of marriage and the age of consummating a marriage is not stipulated in shariah law. This number, as we see globally today, and historically, has changed manifold in the west. Islamic law simply states that there should be no harm inflicted upon individuals when marriage occurs and a person must be physically and mentally mature for marriage. Needless to say, a 9 year old today would not be fit for marriage as she would in 7th Century Arabia. Consequently, the rules of assessing harm and maturity can be applied to all civilisations. Islam is therefore a timeless religion that provides simple solutions to all questions and conundrums.