Aisha bint Abu Bakr, Ayşe, Ayesha, 'A'isha, or 'Aisha (Arabic: عائشة‎ `ā'isha, "she who lives") was a wife of Muhammad. The Arabic alphabet is the script used for writing in the Arabic language. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Aisha is quoted to be the source of 1210 hadith, with Muhammad's personal life being the topic for most of the narrations. She is also the subject of much controversy, both in Islamic history because of her opposition to Ali ibn Abi Talib, and in modernity because some critics^{[1] [2]} regard Muslim beliefs that she was married to Muhammad at nine, as notable. Hadith (Arabic: hadīth, Arabic pl. ... Ali ibn Abu Talib (Arabic: علي بن أبي طالب translit: ‘Alī ibn Abu Ṭālib Persian: علی پسر ابو طالب) ‎ (599 – 661) is an early Islamic leader. ...

Early life

It is not clear when Aisha was born. Most scholars calculate her age, by reference to the date of her marriage to Muhammad (622) and then subtracting her age at marriage. However, there are many theories as to her age at marriage. Events Hijra - Muhammad and his followers withdraw from Mecca to Medina - year one of the Islamic calendar. ... This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. ...

Aisha was the daughter of Abu Bakr of Mecca. They belonged to the Banu Taim sub-clan of the tribe of Quraysh, the tribe to which Muhammad also belonged. Aisha is said to have followed her father in accepting Islam when she was still young. She also joined him in his migration to Ethiopia in 615 CE; a number of Mecca's Muslims emigrated then, seeking refuge from persecution by the Meccans who still followed their pre-Islamic religions. Abu Bakr As Siddiq (Arabic ابو بكر الصديق, alternative spellings, Abubakar, Abi Bakr, Abu Bakar) (c. ... Mecca or Makkah (in full: Makkah al-Mukarramah; Arabic: ‎) is the capital city of Saudi Arabias Makkah province, in the historic Hijaz region. ... Banu Taim is a clan of the Quraish tribe. ... Quraish (sura) is also the name of a Surah in the Quran. ... In 615 CE a number of Sahaba, the Muslims who originally converted in Mecca, migrated to Ethiopia, seeking refuge from persecution. ... Events The Edict of Paris grants extensive rights to the Frankish nobility. ...

According to the early Islamic historian al-Tabari, Aisha's father tried to spare her the dangers and discomfort of the journey by solemnizing her marriage to her fiance, Jubair, son of Mut`am ibn `Adi. However, Mut’am refused to honor the long-standing betrothal, as he did not wish his family to be connected to the Muslim outcasts. The emigration to Ethiopia proved temporary and Abu Bakr's family returned to Mecca within a few years. Aisha was then betrothed to Muhammad. The name al-Tabari means simply from Tabaristan, thus more than one Muslim scholar is known by this designation: Ali ibn Sahl Rabban al-Tabari, Ali the scholar from Tabiristan (838-870 A.D.) was the writer of a medical encyclopedia and the teacher of the scholar physician Zakariya al...

Aisha's marriage to Muhammad

Aisha's marriage was delayed until after the Hijra, or migration to Medina, in 622. Aisha and her older sister Asma only moved to Medina after Muhammad had already fled there. Abu Bakr gave Muhammad the money to build a house for himself. After this, the wedding was celebrated very simply. For other uses see Hijra. ... Medina (Arabic: ‎ or المدينة ; also transliterated into English as Madinah) is a city in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia. ... The introduction of this article does not provide enough context for readers unfamiliar with the subject. ...

Age at marriage

Main article: Aisha's age at marriage

The age of Aisha at marriage is an unsettled issue, and the subject of increasing attention in recent years. There are several hadiths (said to have been narrated by Aisha herself) which state she was six or seven years old when betrothed and nine years old when married or when the marriage was consummated, but other traditional material (hadith, sira, etc.) suggests that Aisha may have been anywhere from twelve to nineteen years old when she married. It is possible that she was eight or nine years of age (or older) when a deal was made for marriage, but that the marraige did not actually take place until four years later. This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. ... Hadith (Arabic: hadīth, Arabic pl. ... As a verb, consummate means to bring something to its completion, such as a transaction, concept, plan or action. ... For the river and also village in Norway named Sira, see Sira, Norway. ...

Status as "favorite wife"

Even though the marriage may have been politically motivated, to mark the ties between Muhammad and his companion Abu Bakr, most early accounts say that Muhammad and Aisha became sincerely fond of each other. Aisha is usually described as Muhammad's favorite wife, and believed to have been his only virgin wife. Shi'a Muslims would disagree with this description, regarding it as politically motivated. They adduce the following episodes as proof that Muhammad and Aisha's marriage did not always go smoothly. Shia Islam ( Arabic شيعى follower; English has traditionally used Shiite or Shiite) is the second largest Islamic denomination; some 20-25% of all Muslims are said to follow a Shia tradition. ...

Aisha accused of adultery

Aisha was traveling with her husband Muhammad and some of his followers. She left camp in the morning to search for her lost necklace; when she returned, she found that the company had broken camp and left without her. She waited patiently for half a day, until she was rescued by a man named Safwan and taken to rejoin the caravan.

Malicious tongues started to wag, claiming that she must have been having an affair with Safwan. Some urged Muhammad to divorce his wife. He then received a revelation directing that adultery be proven by four eyewitnesses, rather than simply inferred from opportunity. One passage of the Qur'an, "Verily! They who spread the slander are a gang among you..." (24:11), is usually taken as a rebuke to those who slandered Aisha. The Quran [1] (Arabic: , literally the recitation; also called The Noble Quran; also transliterated as Quran, Koran, and Al-Quran, Turkish Kuran), is the central religious text of Islam. ...

The story of the honey

According to the tale widely accepted by both Shias and Sunnis, Muhammad's wife Zainab bint Jahsh was given a skin filled with honey, which she shared with her husband. He was fond of sweets and stayed overlong with Zainab bint Jash; at least in the opinion of Aisha and her co-wife Hafsa. Aisha and Hafsa conspired. Each of them was to tell Muhammad that the honey had given him bad breath. When he heard this from two wives, he believed that it was true and swore that he would eat no more of the honey. Soon afterwards, he reported that he had received a revelation, in which he was told that he could eat anything permitted by God (66:1). In the following verses, Muhammad's wives are rebuked for their unruliness: "your hearts are inclined (to oppose him)". This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Hafsa bint Umar (Arabic: حفصة بنت عمر) was the daughter of Umar ibn al-Khattab and wife of Muhammad. ...

Word spread in the small Muslim community that Muhammad's wives were tyrannizing over the mild-mannered man, speaking sharply to him and conspiring against him. Umar, Hafsa's father, scolded his daughter and also spoke to Muhammad of the matter. Muhammad, saddened and upset, separated from his wives for a month. By the end of this time, his wives were humbled and harmony was restored.

When Muslim commentators on the Qur'an explicate Sura 66, it is usually this story that is told to explain the "occasion of revelation". Surat At-Tahrim (Banning, Prohibition) is the 66th sura of the Quran with 12 ayat. ...

There is a similar but alternative explanation of this chapter, also involving Aisha. In this story, Aisha and her co-wives were unhappy because Muhammad was infatuated with Maria al-Qibtiyya, the Christian Coptic woman who bore Muhammad a brief-lived son. (Some accounts say that she was a slave, some that she converted to Islam, was freed, and was taken as a wife.) (Rodinson 1961, pp. 279-283) Maria al-Qibtiyya (Arabic: مارية القبطية) (alternatively, especially in non-Arabic traditions, Maria Qupthiya), or Maria the Copt, was a Coptic Christian slave who was sent as a gift from Muqawqis, a Byzantine official, to the Islamic prophet Muhammad in 628 CE. According to most Islamic accounts, she was Muhammads wife. ...

The death of Muhammad

Ibn Ishaq, in his Sirat Rasulallah, states that during Muhammad's last illness, he sought Aisha's apartments and died with his head in her lap. The Sunni take this as evidence of Muhammad's fondness for Aisha.

Aisha never remarried after Muhammad's death. A passage in the Qur'an forbids any Muslim to marry the Muhammad's widows.

Nor is it right for you that ye should annoy God's Apostle, or that ye should marry his widows after him at any time. Truly such a thing is in God's sight an enormity. (33:53)

After Muhammad

Aisha's father becomes the first caliph

After Muhammad's death in 632 C.E., Aisha's father, Abu Bakr, became the first caliph, or leader of the Muslims. This matter is extremely controversial. Shi'a believe that Ali should have been chosen to lead; Sunni maintain that the community chose Abu Bakr, and did so in accordance with Muhammad's wishes. This is discussed in much greater detail in the article Succession to Muhammad. Caliph is the term or title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. ... The factual accuracy of this article is disputed. ...

The battle of the camel

Main article: Battle of the Camel

Abu Bakr's reign was short, and in 634 C.E. he was succeeded by Umar, as caliph. Umar reigned for ten years, and was then followed by Uthman in 644 C.E. Both of these men had been among Muhammad's earliest followers, were linked to him by clanship and marriage, and had taken prominent parts in various military campaigns. In 655 a Muslim force led by Caliph Ali defeated a superior force of rebel Arabs in the Battle of Bassorah (Bassorah = Basra). ... For other uses of the name, see Umar (disambiguation). ... Leave this page if youre under 18!! - Page contains huge lies and hardly has any facts > it will surely misguide you! Uthman ibn Affan (Arabic: عثمان بن عفان) (c. ...

Aisha, in the meantime, lived in Medina and made several pilgrimages to Mecca. In 656 C.E. Uthman was killed by rebellious Muslim soldiers. The rebels then asked Ali to be the new caliph. Many reports absolve Ali of complicity in the murder. He is reported to have refused the caliphate. He agreed to rule only after his followers persisted.

Aisha raised an army which confronted Ali's army outside the city of Basra. Battle ensued and Aisha's forces were defeated. Aisha was directing her forces from a howdah on the back of a camel; this 656 battle is therefore called the Battle of the Camel. ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib (Arabic: ‎ Persian: ‎ )‎ (599 – 661) was an early Islamic leader. ... Location of Basra Basra (also spelled Başrah or Basara; historically sometimes written Busra, Busrah, and the early form Bassorah; Arabic: , Al-Basrah) is the second largest city of Iraq with an estimated population of c. ... Events Ali succeeds Uthman as Caliph Battle of Basrah (also known as Battle of the Camel) Oswiu of Northumbria annexes Mercia Births Deaths Uthman ibn Affan, Caliph (murdered) Peada, king of Mercia (murdered) Categories: 656 ...

Ali captured Aisha but declined to harm her. He sent her back to Medina under military escort. She lived a retired life until she died in approximately 678. Events Pope Agatho succeeds Pope Donus. ...

Sunni and Shia views of Aisha

Sunnis recognize Aisha as a Mother of Believers, a title of honor given to Muhammad's wives. Sunni historians see Aisha as a learned woman, who tirelessly recounted stories from the life of Muhammad and explained Muslim history and traditions. She is considered to be one of the foremost scholars of Islam's early age and is revered as a role model by millions of women. Sunni Islam (Arabic سنّة) is the largest denomination of Islam. ...

Shi'a historians believe that Ali should have been the first caliph, and that the other three caliphs were usurpers. Aisha not only supported Umar, Uthman, and her father Abu Bakr, she also raised an army and fought against Ali, her step-son-in-law. The Shia believe that she did wrong in rebelling against Ali. Some say that since Ali forgave her, so should Shi'a; other Shi'a are less forgiving. ^{[citation needed]} Shia Islam ( Arabic شيعى follower; English has traditionally used Shiite or Shiite) is the second largest Islamic denomination; some 20-25% of all Muslims are said to follow a Shia tradition. ... For other uses of the name, see Umar (disambiguation). ... For other uses of the name, see Uthman (disambiguation). ... Abu Bakr As Siddiq (Arabic ابو بكر الصديق, alternative spellings, Abubakar, Abi Bakr, Abu Bakar) (c. ... ‘AlÄ« ibn AbÄ« Ṭālib (Arabic: ‎ Persian: ‎ )‎ (599 – 661) was an early Islamic leader. ...

See also

• Persons related to Qur'anic verses
• Muhammad's marriages
• Family tree of Aisha

Some of the Quranic verses are said to be revealed pertaining to some specific person. ... Muhammad (570-632 C.E.) is regarded by Muslims as the last prophet of Islam. ... This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ...

Notes

1. ^ Anthony Browne, Film-maker is murdered for his art, Times Online, November 3, 2004
2. ^ Ibn Warraq, Why I Am Not a Muslim, p. 320, Prometheus Books, 1995, ISBN 0879759844

November 3 is the 307th day of the year (308th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 58 days remaining. ...

References

• Guillaume, A. -- The Life of Muhammad, Oxford University Press, 1955
• Rodinson, Maxime -- Muhammad, 1980 Random House reprint of English translation
• Spellberg, D.A. -- Politics, Gender, and the Islamic Past: the Legacy of A'isha bint Abi Bakr, Columbia University Press, 1994
• Aisha bint Abi Bakr, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions, Oxford University Press, 2000

External links

Sunni view of Aisha:

• Biography of Aisha

Shi'a view of Aisha:

• Answering some important issues regarding Aisha