Why does this chapter cover two hard questions?

Many people first meet these topics in a short video online: "Your prophet married a child" or "Islam allows slavery." It can shake you. You may feel embarrassed, or worried that your faith has a hole in it.

Take a breath. These are fair questions. Asking them is not a sin. Muslims have discussed them openly for centuries.

This chapter tells you what the sources really say, gives each serious view fairly where scholars differ, and shows what it means for you today. Both questions are about a world very different from ours. Fair people look at that world first, and then judge.

"How could he marry a young girl?"

Here is the question the way people really ask it: "Nabi ﷺ was over fifty. Aisha was a young girl. Today we would call that wrong. So was he wrong?"

It deserves a serious answer. Start with what the hadith say:

• Aisha said: Nabi ﷺ married her when she was six, and she began living with him as his wife when she was nine. She stayed with him for nine years, until he died¹.
• She stayed in her parents' home for about three years after the marriage was agreed. Then, in Madinah, her mother took her to his home².
• Sahih Muslim gives the same report through more than one of her students. One says six, another says seven. One adds that she was eighteen when he died³.
• She remembered playing with dolls with her friends in his home. When they hid from him, he called them back to play with her⁴.

The short answer: Muslims explain this in two main ways. Most scholars, all through history, accept the ages and explain them by the time and place. Some modern writers argue Aisha was older. You do not have to settle this today. Your faith does not depend on her exact age. All agree that Nabi ﷺ was honest and kind, that Aisha loved him and was happy, and that Islam never allows harm to a child.

View 1: the ages are right, and the time was different

This is the view of most scholars, from the early centuries until today. Their main points:

• The hadith are strong. Aisha reported her own age, through several students⁵⁶.
• Customs were different. In much of the old world, girls often married young: in Arabia, and also in Europe and Asia until a few centuries ago. People did not count childhood by numbers as we do. They looked at whether a girl had grown up in body and mind.
• Her family wanted the marriage. Her father was Abu Bakr, his closest friend. Her mother prepared her, and the women of Madinah welcomed her with dua for good and blessing⁷.
• His enemies did not object. They called him a liar, a poet and a madman, and some spread lies about Aisha. Scholars note that none of them is reported to have found this marriage strange. In their world, it was normal.
• Classical scholars set limits. A wife lives with her husband only when she is ready in body and it will not harm her. A number on its own was never enough.

They add: we judge every figure in history by the customs of his own time. And what matters most is how he treated her.

View 2: Aisha was older

Some modern writers, including some Muslim researchers, argue Aisha was older, perhaps in her late teens. Their main points:

• History books give other clues. Old history books give the age of her older sister Asma, and the order in which people became Muslim. Adding these up, they say, makes Aisha older.
• They question how the report was passed on. Most chains go through one narrator, Hisham ibn Urwah. They say he told it late in life, in Iraq, when his memory was less sure.
• Ages were often not written down. Many people then did not know their exact birth year, so a number could be a rough guess.
• She remembered Makkah. Aisha said a verse came down in Makkah while she was a young girl at play⁸. Some say she must have been old enough to remember it clearly.

Scholars of view 1 reply: the report does not come only through Hisham, since Muslim gives it through other students too⁹. The history-book numbers are less sure than Bukhari and Muslim. And her memory of the verse fits either view.

So the discussion goes on. People of view 2 are not trying to reject the Sunnah. People of view 1 are not defending harm. Do not call either side bad Muslims. To see how scholars check a chain of narrators, read Can we trust the hadith?

Was Aisha happy?

Whatever her age, we can hear Aisha's own voice. She reported more than two thousand hadith, many about her home life. They show that she was loved, happy and respected.

• He loved her openly. A Companion asked Nabi ﷺ who was most loved to him. He said: Aisha¹⁰.
• He played with her. On a journey they had a running race, and she won. Some years later, when she had put on some weight, they raced again and he won. He said: this one is for that one¹¹.
• Jibril sent her salam. Nabi ﷺ told her: this is Jibril, greeting you with salam¹².
• He chose her home for his last days. In his last illness, his wives agreed he could stay where he wished. He stayed with her, and died with his head resting on her chest¹³.
• Allah defended her. When people spread a lie about her, Allah sent down verses in Surah an-Nur to clear her name¹⁴.

A great scholar

After Nabi ﷺ died, Aisha taught the ummah (the Muslim community) for many years. The Companion Abu Musa said: whenever a hadith was unclear to us and we asked Aisha, we always found knowledge with her¹⁵. Nabi ﷺ said: Aisha is better than other women, as tharid (a favorite dish of bread and meat) is better than other food¹⁶.

All her life, Aisha spoke of her husband with love, and taught his way to the world with pride.

Does this mean young marriage is good today?

No. Marrying young is not a sunnah you have to copy. Nabi ﷺ married women of many ages. His first wife, Khadijah, was older than him. Islam's marriage rules protect people, especially girls:

• A woman must agree to her marriage. Nabi ﷺ said a woman who was married before must be asked, and a young woman must give her permission²².
• A forced marriage can be undone. Khansa's father married her to a man she did not want. She went to Nabi ﷺ, and he cancelled the marriage²³.
• No harm is allowed. Nabi ﷺ said: no harming, and no harming back²⁴. A marriage that harms a child's body or mind breaks this rule.
• A minimum age is fine in Islam. Most Muslim countries today set a legal minimum age for marriage. Many scholars support these laws because they protect children and serve the common good.

See also Men and women, Women in Islam, and, for why Nabi ﷺ had more than one wife, How do we know Muhammad ﷺ was a prophet?

"Why did Islam allow slavery?"

Here is the second question: "If Islam is from God, why did it allow slavery? Why did the Companions own slaves? Why not ban it on day one?" It is natural to ask.

The short answer: Islam did not invent slavery. It was part of every society on earth. Islam closed most of the ways into it, opened many ways out, and gave slaves rights. Step by step, it pointed toward freedom. Today slavery has ended, and mainstream scholars agree it must never come back.

What was the world like?

When Islam came, slavery was everywhere: Arabia, Persia, Rome, Africa, India, China and Europe. No country had banned it. People became slaves when they were kidnapped, could not pay a debt, were sold by poor parents, were punished for a crime, or were captured in war. Often a slave had no rights at all.

How did Islam close the ways in?

• Enslaving a free person became a great sin. Allah says He will be against the man who sells a free person and eats the price²⁵. This closed kidnapping, selling children, and slavery for debt.
• Only captives of a real war remained. Even then, the Quran says prisoners may be freed as a kindness, or for a ransom²⁶. Classical scholars said the leader could also keep them as slaves, as every army did then. For the rules of war, see Jihad, war and terrorism.
• A child born to a slave woman from her master was born free, as his own child. Most scholars said she could then no longer be sold, and became free when he died.

How did Islam open the ways out?

• A great act of goodness. Allah describes the hard uphill path of goodness: freeing a slave²⁷. True goodness includes spending money to free slaves²⁸.
• A huge reward. Nabi ﷺ said: whoever frees a Muslim slave, Allah will save every part of his body from the Fire for every part of the slave's body²⁹.
• Kaffarah (a payment to make up for a sin). Freeing a slave makes up for killing someone by mistake³⁰, for a husband who cruelly compares his wife to his mother³¹, and for breaking an oath³². See Oaths and vows.
• Zakat for freedom. Part of zakat is set aside for freeing slaves³³.
• Buying freedom. If a slave asked for a contract to earn his freedom, and the owner saw good in him, the owner was told to agree, and even give him money³⁴.
• Hitting a slave meant freeing him. Nabi ﷺ said: whoever slaps or beats his slave, the way to make up for it is to free him³⁵.

What rights did slaves have?

• They are your brothers. Nabi ﷺ said: feed them from what you eat, and dress them in what you wear. Do not give them too much work, and if you do, help them³⁶.
• Allah is watching. A Companion was beating his slave. Nabi ﷺ said: Allah has more power over you than you have over him. The man dropped the whip³⁷.
• Kind words. Nabi ﷺ told people not to say "my slave", but "my young man" or "my young woman"³⁸.
• His last words. One of the last things Nabi ﷺ said was: the prayer, the prayer, and fear Allah about those your right hands possess, meaning your slaves³⁹.

People who had been slaves rose to the top. Bilal, once enslaved, called the adhan. Umar used to say: Abu Bakr is our master, and he freed our master, meaning Bilal⁴⁰.

Then why not ban it at once?

Scholars give a few reasons. Allah has not told us every reason, and it is fine to say so.

• Big changes came step by step. The Quran forbade alcohol in stages. Aisha said: if the first verse had been "do not drink alcohol", people would have said "we will never leave it"⁴⁴. Slavery was even deeper in the whole world's way of life.
• The whole world held slaves. If Muslims freed every captive while enemy armies kept Muslim captives, Muslim prisoners would have had nothing to be traded for.
• Freed people needed a way to live. Freeing everyone in one day could have left many hungry and homeless. Islam freed people one by one, often with money to start again⁴⁵.
• The direction was clear. Classical scholars had a saying: the Sharia is eager for freedom. When it was unclear whether someone was free, they decided in favor of freedom.

Did Muslims always follow these rules?

No, and it is honest to say so. Over the centuries, many rulers and traders in Muslim lands, as in other lands, broke Islam's own rules. Free people were kidnapped and sold, which Islam calls a great sin⁴⁶, and many slaves were treated cruelly.

When Muslims did wrong, the wrong belongs to them, not to Islam. We judge Islam by the Quran and Sunnah, not by what people did. See When Muslims let you down.

Is slavery allowed today?

No. Over the last two centuries, every Muslim country banned slavery by law. Mainstream scholars today agree:

• Slavery has ended, and it must never come back. Many scholars add: Muslim countries signed agreements to ban it, and Allah tells us to keep our agreements⁴⁷.
• Taking people as slaves in our time is wrong. When a violent group did this in recent years, scholars all over the world spoke out against it.
• Modern slavery is haram. Trafficking, forced labor, taking a worker's passport so he cannot leave, or not paying wages are serious sins. In the same hadith, Allah says He will be against the one who hires a worker, takes his full work, and does not pay him⁴⁸.

What we do not know, and what to do

• We cannot be fully sure of Aisha's exact age. Neither side can prove the other wrong beyond all doubt.
• We do not know every reason Allah dealt with slavery step by step. We know the direction was toward freedom.
• One hard question does not cancel a strong case. The Quran, the life of Nabi ﷺ and the fitrah (the natural pull toward Allah inside you) still stand. See How to look for answers.

What you can do:

• Read the whole story, not a clip. Our Seerah page tells the life of Nabi ﷺ in order.
• Ask a scholar you trust. Allah says: ask the people of knowledge if you do not know⁴⁹.
• Stay calm with others. You do not have to win. Say what you know, admit what you do not, and be kind.
• Make dua for Allah to show you the truth and keep your heart firm.
• If this doubt brings deep sadness or worry, talk to someone today: family, an imam, a doctor or a counselor. You are not a bad Muslim for struggling.

Common questions

Which view about Aisha's age should I follow?

Both are held by people of knowledge. Most scholars accept the age in the hadith⁵⁰. Some modern writers argue she was older. Look at the reasons, then follow a scholar you trust. Do not call the other side bad Muslims.

A friend says: "If Bukhari has one mistake, the whole book is useless." Is that true?

No. Even writers who think this age was counted wrongly still trust Bukhari's book as a whole. And most scholars see no mistake here at all. See Can we trust the hadith?

Is it a sin to feel uncomfortable about Aisha's age?

No. Feeling uneasy is human. Look for answers honestly, and do not speak badly of Nabi ﷺ or Aisha because of a feeling. She loved him, and he was the best of people to his family⁵¹.

Can parents marry off a young daughter today because of Aisha's story?

Islam requires the woman's agreement⁵² and forbids harm⁵³. Most Muslim countries set a minimum age by law, and many scholars support it. Follow the law where you live. If someone is forcing a child to marry, get help right away.

The Quran mentions "those your right hands possess". Could slave women be used for sex?

This is a hard part of history, so here is an honest answer. In that time, when slavery was everywhere, the Quran allowed a man relations with a slave woman he owned, as well as with his wife⁵⁴. It also set limits. It forbade forcing slave women into prostitution⁵⁵. It praised teaching them, freeing them and marrying them⁵⁶. Her child from her master was born free, and most scholars said she became free when he died. All of this belonged to slavery, which has now ended. Mainstream scholars agree it cannot be brought back, and they spoke out against a group that tried.

Did Nabi ﷺ own slaves?

Yes. Like many people of his time, he did. He also freed slaves and taught others to free them. He freed Safiyyah and married her, and her freedom was her mahr (marriage gift)⁵⁷. Zayd ibn Harithah, who had been a slave, loved him so much that when his brother came to take him home, he chose to stay with Nabi ﷺ⁵⁸.