The Prophet Muhammad had multiple wives for important political, social, and religious reasons rather than lust. He married women who were widows or divorcees to take care of them and set an example of kindness. He also married for diplomatic purposes, such as marrying Maria who was from Egypt to gain the support of Egyptians. Additionally, his youngest wife Aisha was able to provide valuable eyewitness accounts of his daily life to spread Islamic teachings after his death. Polygamy was a social norm at the time across many cultures, including in the Biblical traditions.

1. In the name of Allah, Most
Merciful, Most Compassionate

2. Why did the Prophet
Mohammad have many
wives?

3. Here is the answer, as given
in a lecture by Amro Khalid
about the Mothers of the
believers ( the Prophet’s
wives )

4. Let’s first ask ourselves,
how many wives did the
Prophet marry?

5. They were twelve. When he
died there were ten wives
with him, while Khadija
and Zaynab died in his life

6. Their names are:
Khadijah Bint Khuwaylid
Sawdah Bint Zamaah
Aaishah Bint Abi Bakr
Hafsah Bint Omar
Zainab Bint Khuzaymah
Om-salamah ,
Zainab Bint Jahsh
Juwayriyah Bint Alharith
Safiyah Bint Huyay Ibn Akhtab
Ommo Habibah Ramlah Bint Abi Sofian
Maria Bint Shamoun the Egyptian
Maymonah Bint Alharith

7. Were they young beautiful
girls ?

8. Aaishah was the only wife
he married who was young
and who had him as the
first man in her life, all the
other wives were either
widows or divorcees.

9. Were they all Arabs?

10. All were Arabs, except for
Mariya, who was from
Egypt.

11. Where they all Muslims?

12. All but two; Safiya, who
was a Jew , and Mariya,
who was a Christian.

13. Now, let’s answer the main
and very important
question:
Was it lust that drove the
prophet to have so many
marriages?

14. To answer the question we
have to mention the
following facts:

15. 1- The Prophet married for
the first time when he was
25 years old. Too old for
someone who is driven by
lust.

16. 2- The first woman he married
, Khadijah, was 40 years
old, already married twice
before him and already had
children. He stayed married to
her alone for 25 years, until she
died. He stayed single after her
death for two years in grief and
mourning over her death. He
was, then, 52 years old. Can this
be a women loving man ?

17. After tow years of living single ,
he married Sawdah, an 80 year old
widow in order to honor her
because she was the first widow in
Islam. Not an act of a lustful man
after a long period of single life.

18. 3- From 52 to 60, he married
several times for political and
social reasons.

19. It’s not logical to say that lust
had appeared suddenly at the
Prophet’s life at the age of
52, and in the middle of the
fierce physical and
psychological struggle to
spread Islam.

20. There is only one conclusion we can
extract from the above:
1- Mohammad the man married
Khadijah
2- Mohammad the Prophet married
the rest of his wives.

21. But , was Mohammad the only
Prophet to have multiple
wives? Or polygamy was
taken by other Prophets
before him?

22. Mohammad was not the only
prophet to have more than one
wife. Polygamy was the norm at
the times of Ibrahim (Abraham),
Dawoud (David), Solayman
(Solomon), all known in the Bible
to have been polygamists.

23. Now, let me mention the
political, social and religious
reasons why the prophet had
those marriages.

24. First: To spread the culture through
eyewitnesses with all the details known
only to intimate people. Aishah , being so
young, was able to tell all those details to
the Muslims for more than 42 years. She
had seen and learned so much from him.
Her young age was a great advantage in
this regard. She could tell what the
Prophet used to do or say in all aspects of
daily life , so that people do and say the
same in the same situations

25. Aishah , was the most knowledgeable
person when it comes to the daily life of
the Muslim and how it should go as was
lived by the Prophet himself .
There are more than 3000 Hadiths (sayings
and doings of the prophet) narrated by the
prophet’s wives.

26. But how come he married Aishah
when she was only nine years old?
The desert climate answers to that .
In such environments, girls reached
puberty very young. Not only in
Arabia, but also in Rome and
Persia, girls were married that
young

27. Second: To strengthen the relationship
with his companions, he married
Aishah ( Abi Bakr’s daughter) and
Safiyah ( Omar's daugter ), and
married his daughters to Othman and
Ali, May God be pleased with them
all.

28. Third: out of mercy and rewarding
to the early Muslim widows and
divorcees he gave them the honor
of marrying them himself (their
husbands either died in battles or
were non Muslims who divorced
them because they embraced
Islam.). Sawdah, Om-salama and
Habeebah were widows.

29. Fourth: In order to set forth rules and
ethics, The Prophet was being a role
model for the Muslims by being kind
to the widows and to the people of the
book (Jews and Christians) who newly
embraced Islam. He married Safiyah
after her father - a Jew - embraced
Islam , so as to give him and his
daughter the honor among their
people

30. Fifth: He wanted to have ties and links
with the different nations of the world.
When he married Mariya, all
Egyptians were on his side, and when
he married Gowayriyah, all her people
embraced Islam (they were called Bani
Almustalaq and were captured by the
Muslims after a battle)

31. Please include me in your prayers
and supplications to Allah, God
the Almighty (this is His name
in Arabic)