The wives of the Prophet (peace be upon him) have a special status, putting them in a class apart from all Muslim women, with special rules applying to them only. In the Qur’an, they were given the title ‘Mothers of the Believers’, yet all Muslim men were ordered not to speak to them unless they do so from behind a screen. Therefore, they were not to meet men in the way other Muslim women do, but to be always screened from them. This applied for the rest of their lives, even though some of them lived for many years after the Prophet (peace be upon him) had passed away. All Muslims, in all generations up to the present day, have honored them as their mothers. Yet the fact that they were to speak to people only from behind a screen did not prevent them from continuing their participation in the affairs of the Muslim community or speaking to men whenever the occasion arose. What the rules applicable to them meant was that certain manners needed to be observed when addressing or meeting them. Their participation in the social life of the community continued during the Prophet’s lifetime and after he passed away.
We have numerous Hadiths testifying to the fact that women have always been important participants in the Muslim community. When the Prophet went on an expedition, which might often involve a military confrontation or the threat of one, he took one of his wives with him, drawing lots among them to determine who came with him. After the Battle of Hunayn, in which the Muslims gained a very large amount of booty, the Prophet encamped at Al-Ji’irranah, a place between Makkah and Madinah. Abu Musa Al-Ash’ari reports: “I was with the Prophet together with Bilal at that place when a Bedouin came to him and said: ‘Are you not going to fulfill your promise to me?’ The Prophet said: ‘Soon enough! Rejoice.’ The man said: ‘You have given me too much of soon enough.’ The Prophet moved toward me and Bilal looking almost angry. He said to us: ‘The man has refused the good news. Accept it, you two.’ Both said: ‘We do.’ He asked for a jug of water, and washed his hands and face and rinsed his mouth. He then said to us: ‘Drink of this water and wash your faces and necks, and rejoice at what will be coming soon.’ We took the jug and did as he said. Umm Salamah called us from behind the screen saying: ‘Keep some for your mother.’ We kept some water for her.” (Related by Al-Bukhari and Muslim.)
The relevant point to our discussion in this Hadith is that Umm Salamah, the Prophet’s wife, followed the conversation from behind a screen and took part in it, making her request directly to the two men, describing herself as their mother. Had social participation been denied to women, it would have been denied to the Prophet’s wives, and Umm Salamah in this instance would have not spoken to the two men. She would have spoken only to her husband, the Prophet. This, however, was not the case. The Prophet did not object to her addressing them directly. Had it been objectionable, it would have been his duty to make that clear to all three, because his task was to deliver and explain God’s message.
Lady Ayesha reports: “When the Prophet received the news of the death of Zayd ibn Harithah, Jaafar ibn Abi Talib and Abdullah ibn Rawahah, he sat down looking very sad. I was looking through a hole in the door. A man came to him and mentioned Jaafar’s women relatives, pointing out that they were crying hard. The Prophet told him to go and tell them to stop. He went away and came back saying that they did not listen to him. The Prophet again instructed him to order them to stop. He came a third time and said: ‘Messenger of God! They would not listen.’ The Prophet said: ‘Then force them to stop.’ I said to the man: ‘May God lower your position. You have not done what God’s Messenger instructed you to do and you did not spare him trouble.’” (Related by Al-Bukhari and Muslim.)
This Hadith shows how Ayesha was close to what was taking place, fully aware of the Prophet’s feelings. She followed the incident as it took place, realizing that the man was ineffective in doing what the Prophet told him to do. Apparently the women concerned were wailing when they heard the news of Jaafar’s death. Had they been simply weeping, the Prophet would not have sent the man to tell them to stop, because it is permissible to express one’s sadness at the death of a dear relative by weeping. Wailing and lamenting are forbidden in Islam. Lady Ayesha intervened directly when she realized that the man’s ineffectiveness was causing the Prophet more sadness.
Perhaps it should be added here that the three men were very close to the Prophet. Zayd had a special status with the Prophet. In pre-Islamic days, the Prophet freed him from slavery and adopted him as his son, but later when Islam outlawed adoption Zayd reverted to his original name. He was the first man ever to accept the Islamic faith when the Prophet mentioned it to him. Jaafar was the Prophet’s cousin, while Abdullah ibn Rawahah was among the first of the Ansar to accept Islam. All three were appointed as commanders of the army that fought the Byzantines, and they were all killed in that battle, one after the other.
The Prophet’s wives have reported a large number of Hadiths and incidents taking place close to them, even though they remained behind a screen. While this indicates their close follow up of the community affairs, the two Hadiths we have quoted indicate their direct participation or intervention. At times, the Prophet might say something to his companions, and one of the Prophet’s wives might come forward asking for an explanation, as in the following Hadith reported by Ubadah ibn Al-Samit: “The Prophet said: ‘Whoever loves to meet God will find that God loves to meet him (or her); and whoever hates to meet God will find that God hates to meet him.’ Lady Ayesha or another one of the Prophet’s wives said: ‘Everyone of us hates to die.’ The Prophet said: ‘I do not mean that. When a believer is about to die, he will be given the good news of God’s acceptance and the reward awaiting him. Nothing is dearer to him then than what lies ahead of him. He will love to meet God and God will love to meet him. By contrast, when an unbeliever is about to die, he will be informed of what awaits him of God’s punishment. Nothing is more hateful to him then than what is ahead of him. He will hate to meet God and God will hate to meet him.” (Related by Al-Bukhari.)
