A Complete Guide to Pedophilia in Islam (Amar Khan, dir.)

Contents

1. Introduction
2. Pedophilia in the Quran
3. Pedophilia in the Hadith
4. Pedophilia in Islamic Fatwas
5. Myth of Aisha's Age Contradiction
6. Proof that Ayesha was Prepubescent
7. Conclusions
8. Common Muslims Arguments

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There has been a great deal of debate over pedophilia in Islam. We, ex-Muslims, have collected a lot of data in bits and pieces regarding the pedophilic character of Muhammad. For the readers, particularly those with limited access to Internet around the world, to have an access to all the data regarding Islamic pedophilia with a single click, I have compiled them into a booklet. Many authors have contributed to forking out the information contained in this book and credit should go mostly to them. The following main contributors deserve a special mention:

1. Hector [forum, Faith Freedom  International]
2. Khalil Feriel [forum, Faith Freedom  International]
3. Yezeevee [forum, Faith Freedom  International]
4. Abdul Kasem
   

I urge readers to distribute this e-book among your fellows. You can email that to anyone. If you want your offspring to live on the planet earth happily, in peace, then Islam is to be tamed or eradicated.

Read the book at:

https://www.islam-watch.org/Amarkhan/pedophilia-in-islam/pedophilia-islam.htm

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About the editor

I was born in Pakistan as an atheist. Then Islam, a cult, was imposed upon me as a religion. Muslim invaders who conquered large parts of my country forced my ancestors to convert to their religion. Once one generation succumbed to Islam, the successive generations were either threatened or brainwashed so that they would never leave this evil cult. My forefathers were even used by Muslim invaders to spread their evil faith and empire. I was a fundamentalist Muslim with beard. I, however, managed to realize that Islam, in the guise of a religion, is actually an imperialistic ideology, similar to Nazism. It is like a net with the spider waiting for the big meal. It spreads through aggression and deception. It is time that we all try to understand 'what Islam truly is' and unite humankind to confront this vicious doctrine of hate. This book is a small step in that direction.

Regards

Amaar khan

7 February 2009.

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Pedophilia in the Quran

The Quran allows pedophilia. Though there is no verse, which gives clear sanction to pedophilia, there are some verses, which clearly allows the practice.

The Quran has stipulated a waiting period for  divorced women to get remarried. This waiting period is called Iddah as mentioned in the Quran. But there is an exception; Allah, the God of the Quran, prescribes no Iddah for a category of divorced women:

O ye who believe! If ye wed believing women and divorce them before ye have touched them, then there is no period that ye should reckon. But content them and release them handsomely. 

Ya ayyuha allatheena amanoo itha nakahtumu almuminati thumma tallaqtumoohunna min qabli an tamassoohunna fama lakum AAalayhinna min AAiddatin taAAtaddoonaha famattiAAoohunna wasarrihoohunna sarahan jameelan[Quran. 33:49] 

From this verses, it is understood that Iddah (stipulated waiting period) is tied to consummation of the marriage. If a woman is divorced by her husband before touching her, i.e. before having sex with her, she need not observe any waiting period to get remarried.

Clearly the reasons for Allah to stipulate Iddah is to avoid chances of pregnancy as a result of sexual relations between the married couple before their divorce.

In cases of divorces, where the husband had sex with the wife, the Quran specifies the Iddah, a waiting period of three months, in verse 65:4:

Such of your women as have passed the age of monthly courses, for them the prescribed period, if ye have any doubts, is three months, and for those who have no courses (it is the same): for those who carry (life within their wombs), their period is until they deliver their burdens: and for those who fear Allah, He will make their path easy.

Waalla-ee ya-isna mina almaheedi min nisa-ikum ini irtabtum faAAiddatuhunna thalathatu ashhurin waalla-ee lam yahidna waolatu al-ahmali ajaluhunna an yadaAAna hamlahunna waman yattaqi Allaha yajAAal lahu min amrihi yusran.

Here, Iddah is prescribed to two categories of women. First it says: “Yaisna mina al-maheedhi”—that is, “those women who are desperate of menses”. This indicates women, who reached the stage of menstruation but do not menstruate. The other category are those, who have reached menopause. Desperate of menses points to women, who, though reached the age, fail to menstruate. Their Iddah period is three months. This is prescribed probably to take maximum precaution about her being pregnant. Next, there comes “Wallaee Lam yahidhna”—that is, “those who have not menstruated yet”; this group of women are prepubescent girls, who have not menstruated yet. Here, the Iddah prescribed for them is the same: three months.

[I would urge readers to take particular attention on the phrase “Wallaee Lam Yahidhna”; because, it is going to be most important in this article.]

Let us sum up the two verses: a woman, divorced before sex, need not observe any Iddah at all [33:49].

But what is the reason for the prescribed Iddah for girls, who haven’t menstruated yet?

It is, obviously, because sexual intercourse has occurred between the child and her husband. It is, thus, clear that marrying prepubescent girls and having sex with them is sanctioned by the Quran.

Muslim Denials

Quranic verses with such obvious sanction of pedophilia is not enough to convinced some Muslims that pedophilia is permitted in Islam. They like to assign a different meaning and interpretation to the phrase “Lam Yahidhna” (“Not menstruated yet”) in verses 65:4. Some Muslims argue that this phrase only refers to women, who have reached the age of puberty, but fail to have courses. This is the main argument. But it holds little water, because the group of women, who have reached the age of puberty and do not menstruate, is covered in the verse in phrase: ”Yaisna min al-Maheedhi”—i.e. desperate for menstruation. Two categories of women can be desperate of menses:

1. Women, who have reached menopause, and

2. Women, who have reached the stage of puberty but do not menstruate.

Women, who have reached the stage of menstruation but fail to have menstrual courses, have been covered in the phrase “Yaisna Min al-Maheedhi”. The phrase under trial here is “Lam Yahidhna”, which comes next to it. It is a simple logic that a group of women, already covered in the earlier phrase, need not be repeated or covered again in next phrase. The Quran is the words of almighty Allah; it is not a matter of joke.

The secondly argument that comes from such Muslims is word “Nisa” in verse 65:4. They argue that “Nisa” means women; so the verse does not refer to prepubescent girls, but mature women. But this is an utterly lame excuse, which can be refuted using the same Quran. See some verses from Quran where we find the word “Nisa”:

1. And [remember the time] when we saved you from Pharaoh's people, who afflicted you with cruel suffering, slaughtering your sons and sparing [only] your women - which was an awesome trial from your Sustainer;
   (Waith najjaynakum min ali firawna yasoomoonakum sooa alAAathabi yuthabbihoona abnaakum wayastahyoona Nisaakum wafee thalikum balaon min rabbikum AAatheemun) [Quran. 2:49] 
2. Said the chiefs of Pharaoh's people: "Wilt thou leave Moses and his people, to spread mischief in the land, and to abandon thee and thy gods?" He said: "Their male children will we slay; (only) their females will we save alive; and we have over them (power) irresistible."
   (Waqala almalao min qawmi firawna atatharu moosa waqawmahu liyufsidoo fee alardi wayatharaka waalihataka qala sanuqattilu abnaahum wanastahyee Nisaahum wainna fawqahum qahiroona) [Quran 7:127]
3. And remember we rescued you from Pharaoh's people, who afflicted you with the worst of penalties, who slew your male children and saved alive your females: in that was a momentous trial from your Lord.
   (Waith anjaynakum min ali firawna yasoomoonakum sooa alAAathabi yuqattiloona abnaakum wayastahyoona Nisaakum wafee thalikum balaon min rabbikum AAatheemun) [Quran 7: 141] 
4. Remember! Moses said to his people: "Call to mind the favour of Allah to you when He delivered you from the people of Pharaoh: they set you hard tasks and punishments, slaughtered your sons, and let your females live: therein was a tremendous trial from your Lord.
   (Waith qala moosa liqawmihi othkuroo niAAmata Allahi AAalaykum ith anjakum min ali firawna yasoomoonakum sooa alAAathabi wayuthabbihoona abnaakum wayastahyoona Nisaakum wafee thalikum balaon min rabbikum AAatheemun) [Quran 14:6] 
5. And when he brought them the Truth from Our presence, they said: Slay the sons of those who believe with him, and spare their females. But the plot of disbelievers is in naught but error.
   (Falamma jaahum bialhaqqi min AAindina qaloo oqtuloo abnaa allatheena amanoo maAAahu waistahyoo Nisaahum wama kaydu alkafireena illa fee dalalin) [Quran 40:25] 

In these verses, the word “NISA” is used to signify “Female infants”; it's use is not restricted to refer to mature women. To get the picture right, it is necessary to quote from the Old Testament, because these verses are replicas of story depicted in Exodus:

And the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, of whom the name of the one was Shiphrah, and the name of the other Puah; and he said: 'When ye do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, ye shall look upon the birth-stool: if it be a son, then ye shall kill him; but if it be a daughter, then she shall live.' [Exodus, 1:15-16]

And Pharaoh charged all his people, saying: 'Every son that is born ye shall cast into the river, and every daughter ye shall save alive. [Exodus, 1:22]

The story of Israelites under Pharaoh and his command to kill all male infants but let female newborns alive..! If we check all those Quranic verses, NISA is obviously used to signify female infants. So, “NISA” simply means females of all ages, according to the Quran. 

Quranic Tafsirs justifying pedophilia

To Muslims' denial that the Quran sanctions marriage of prepubescent girls and sex with them, which amounts to pedophilia, is pure nonsense, rest of this article will look into most authenticTafsirs (Interpretation of Quran) to get the exact message of the verse of Iddah, Quran 65:4. First of all, let us look at the tafsir of modern scholars.  Renowned Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi (d. 1979) in Tafhim al Quran (Commentary on the Quran) interprets verse 65:4 as:

And if you are in doubt about those of your women who have despaired of menstruation, (you should know that) their waiting period is three months, and the same applies to those who have not menstruated as yet. They may not have menstruated as yet either because of young age, or delayed menstrual discharge as it happens in the case of some women, or because of no discharge at all throughout life which, though rare, may also be the case. In any case, the waiting-period of such a woman is the same as of the woman, who has stopped menstruation that is three months from the time divorce was pronounced.

Here, one should bear in mind the fact that according to the explanations given in the Quran the question of the waiting period arises in respect of the women with whom marriage may have been consummated, for there is no waiting-period in case divorce is pronounced before the consummation of marriage. (Al-Ahzab: 49). Therefore, making mention of the waiting-period for the girls who have not yet menstruated, clearly proves that it is not only permissible to give away the girl in marriage at this age but it is also permissible for the husband to consummate marriage with her. Now, obviously no Muslim has the right to forbid a thing which the Quran has held as permissible.

Note here what Maududi mentions giving prepubescent girls in marriage and consummating the marriage. He affirms that it is permitted by the Quran; no Muslims can question or forbid it. This viewpoint is shared by late Mufti of Saudi Arabia, Mufti Muhammad ibn Saalih al-Uthaymeen al-Wuhaibi al-Tamimi (1925–2001 CE) [Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Uthaymeen, Majmoo’at As’ilah tahumm al-Usrah al-Muslimah, p. 61–63; see here]:

If a woman does not menstruate, either because she is very young or old and past menopause, then her ‘iddah is three months, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“And those of your women as have passed the age of monthly courses, for them the ‘Iddah (prescribed period), if you have doubt (about their periods), is three months; and for those who have no courses [(i.e. they are still immature) their ‘Iddah (prescribed period) is three months likewise [Quran. Surah al-Talaaq 65:4]

The reason for bringing two modern scholars is only to show nothing has changed in Islamic tenets on marrying and having sex with prepubescent girls even in our era. Now, let us have a glance at classical Tafsirs of the Quran. Only relevant parts of the Tafsirs will be quoted here to save space.

Bukhari writes regarding this hadith:

Narrated Sahl bin Sad:
While we were sitting in the company of the Prophet a woman came to him and presented herself (for marriage) to him. The Prophet looked at her, lowering his eyes and raising them, but did not give a reply. One of his companions said, "Marry her to me O Allah's Apostle!" The Prophet asked (him), "Have you got anything?" He said, "I have got nothing." The Prophet said, "Not even an iron ring?" He said, "Not even an iron ring, but I will tear my garment into two halves and give her one half and keep the other half." The Prophet; said, "No. Do you know some of the Quran (by heart)?" He said, "Yes." The Prophet said, "Go, I have agreed to marry her to you with what you know of the Qur'an (as her Mahr)." 'And for those who have no courses (i.e. they are still immature). (65.4) And the 'Iddat for the girl BEFORE PUBERTY is three months (in the above Verse). (Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 7, Book 62, Number 63) 

First of all, most prominent of all Mufassirs (Quran interpreters) Ibn Kathir says:

Allah the Exalted clarifies the waiting period of the woman in menopause. And that is the one whose menstruation has stopped due to her older age. Her `Iddah is three months instead of the three monthly cycles for those who menstruate, which is based upon the Ayah in (Surat) Al-Baqarah. 2:228). The same for the young, who have not reached the years of menstruation. Their 'Iddah is three months like those in menopause. [Ibn Kathir on Quran 65:4] 

Note that Ibn Kathir clearly mentions women in menopause as well as young girls, who have not reached the years of menstruation. Next, Tafsir Jalalain of Imam Jalaluddin Mahalli and Jalaluddin Suyuti also interpret the verse in the same way:

And [as for] those of your women who no longer expect to menstruate, if you have any doubts, about their waiting period, their prescribed [waiting] period shall be three months, and [also for] those who have not yet menstruated, because of their young age, their period shall [also] be three months. [Tafsir Jalalain on Quran 65:4]

Notice that, here too,  these two famous Mufassirs interpret “Those who haven’t not menstruated yet” in verse 65:4 as prepubescent girls.

These are amongst the greatest scholars of Islam. The Tafsirs of other scholars are not available in English. I will, therefore, include here other famous Tafsirs, now available only in Arabic, as listed in altafsir.com, with English translations:

[Tafsir Abu-Hayyan. On Quran 65:4] The underlined text: “Those who have not menstruated yet” denotes those not menstruated because of being young.

More can be brought from authentic Quran interpreters, which says the same and will only consume space. In all these greatest of Tafsirs, what is common is that all of them interpret the phrase “Those who have not menstruated” in Quran 65:4 as “Those girls who have not reached the age of menstruation due to their young age”. We, therefore, have an unequivocal evidence that the Quran stipulates Iddah or waiting period for prepubescent girls too, simply because the consummation of the marriage has taken place.

Conclusion: Quran 65:4 obviously stipulates Iddah to divorced prepubescent girls. Moreover, the Quran prescribes no waiting period or Iddah for a divorced woman,  who makes no sexual contact with her husband. Therefore, divorced prepubescent girls need to observe Iddah, simply because sexual contact has occurred between her and her husband. This proves beyond any scope of doubt that the Quran endorses pedophilia, the most abominable and perverted of all sexual crimes.
 

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Pedophilia in the Hadith

1. Sahih Hadiths of al-Bukhari (810-870)

1a. "Narrated Hisham’s father: Khadija died three years before the Prophet departed to Medina. He stayed there for two years or so and then he married ‘Aisha when she was a girl of six years of age, and he consummated that marriage when she was nine years old." [Bukhari 5:236, p.153]

1b. The same points are in [Bukhari 5:234, p.152]

1c. "Narrated ‘Urwa: The Prophet wrote the (marriage contract) with ‘Aisha while she was six year old and consummated his marriage with her while she was nine years old and she remained with him for nine years (i.e. till his death). [Bukhari 7:88, p.65]

1d. Narrated 'Aisha: The Prophet was screening me with his Rida' (garment covering the upper part of the body) while I was looking at the Ethiopians who were playing in the courtyard of the mosque. (I continued watching) till I was satisfied. So you may deduce from this event how a little girl (who has not reached the age of puberty) who is eager to enjoy amusement should be treated in this respect. [Bukhari 7:163]

1e. "Narrated 'Aisha: (the wife of the Prophet) I never remembered my parents believing in any religion other than the true religion (i.e. Islam), and (I don't remember) a single day passing without our being visited by Allah’s Apostle in the morning and in the evening." [Bukhari 5:245, p.158]. Thus ‘Aisha was either not very old or not born yet when her parents became Muslims. This is consistent with her being a child when her marriage with Mohammed was consummated.

1f. Mohammed lusting for a "woman" who still has a wet nurse:

Bukhari, Volume 7, Book 63, Number 182:
Narrated Abu Usaid:
We went out with the Prophet to a garden called Ash-Shaut till we reached two walls between which we sat down. The Prophet said, "Sit here," and went in (the garden). The Jauniyya (a lady from Bani Jaun) had been brought and lodged in a house in a date-palm garden in the home of Umaima bint An-Nu'man bin Sharahil, and her wet nurse was with her. When the Prophet entered upon her, he said to her, "Give me yourself (in marriage) as a gift." She said, "Can a princess give herself in marriage to an ordinary man?" The Prophet raised his hand to pat her so that she might become tranquil. She said, "I seek refuge with Allah from you." He said, "You have sought refuge with One Who gives refuge. Then the Prophet came out to us and said, "O Abu Usaid! Give her two white linen dresses to wear and let her go back to her family." Narrated Sahl and Abu Usaid: The Prophet married Umaima bint Sharahil, and when she was brought to him, he stretched his hand towards her. It seemed that she disliked that, whereupon the Prophet ordered Abu Usaid to prepare her and to provide her with two white linen dresses. (See Hadith No. 541). 

2. Sahih Hadiths of Abu Muslim (817-875)

This is generally considered the second most reliable collection of hadiths.

2a. "‘A’isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) married me when I was six years old, and I was admitted to his house at the age of nine. She further said: We went to Medina and I had an attack of fever for a month, and my hair had come down to the earlobes. Umm Ruman (my mother) came to me and I was at that time on a swing along with my playmates. She called me loudly and I went to her and I did not know what she had wanted of me. She too hold of my hand and took me to the door, and I was saying: Ha, ha (as if I was gasping), until the agitation of my heart was over. She took me to a house, where had gathered the women of the Ansar. They all blessed me and wished me good luck and said: May you have shared in good. She (my mother) entrusted me to them. They washed my head and embellished me and nothing frightened me. Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) came there in the morning, and I was entrusted to him." [Sahih Muslim 2:3309, p.715-716]

2b. "‘A’isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: Allah’s Apostle (may peace be upon him) married me when I was six years old, and I was admitted to his house when I was nine years old."

‘A’isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Allah’s Apostle (may peace be upon him) married here when she was seven years old, and she was taken to his house as a bride when she was nine, and here dolls were with her: and when he (the Holy Prophet) died she was eighteen years old." [Sahih Muslim 2:3310,3311, p.716]

2c. "’A’isha reported that she used to play with dolls in the presence of Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) and when her playmates came to her they left (the house) because they felt shy of Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him), whereas Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) sent them to her. [Sahih Muslim 4:5981, p.1299]

2d. "This hadith has been narrated on the authority of Hisham with the same chain of transmitters with a slight variation of wording." [Sahih Muslim 4:5982, p.1299]

3. Sahih Hadith of Abu Dawud (817-888/9)

3a. "‘A’ishah said: The Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him) married me when I was seven years old. The narrator Sulaiman said : Or six years. He had intercourse with me when I was nine years old." [Abu Dawud 2:2116, p.569]

3b. "(4913) ‘A’ishah said: I used to play with dolls. Sometimes the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him) entered upon me when the girls were with me. When he came in, they went out, and when he went out, they came in." [Sunan Abu Dawud 3:4913, p.1373]

Note carefully this is NOT saying Mohammed had intercourse with Aisha while her playmates were watching. Rather it says the playmates played with her, and they went out when Mohammed came by, and could come back after he left. 

3c. "(4915) ‘A’ishah said: The Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him) married me when I was seven or six. When we came to Medina, some women came. According to Bishr’s version: Umm Ruman came to me when I was swinging. They took me, made me prepared and decorated me. I was then brought to the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him), and he took up cohabitation with me when I was nine. She halted me at the door, and I burst into laughter. 

Abu Dawud said: That is to say: I menstruated, and I was brought in a house, and there were some women of the Ansari (Helpers) in it. They said: With good luck and blessing. The tradition of one of them has been included in the other. 

3d. (4916) The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by Abu Usamah in a similar manner through a different chain of narrators. This version has: ‘With good fortune.’ She (Umm Ruman) entrusted me to them. They washed my head and redressed me. No one came to me suddenly except the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him) in the forenoon. So they entrusted me to him 

3e. (4917) ‘A’ishah said: When we came to Medina, the women came to me when I was playing on the swing, and my hair were [sp] up to my ears. They brought me, prepared me, and decorated me. Then they brought me to the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him) and he took up cohabitation with me, when I was nine. 

3f. (4918) The tradition mentioned above has also been transmitted by Hisham b. ‘Urwah through a different chain of narrators. This version adds: I was swinging and I had my friends. They brought me to a house; there were some women of the Ansar (Helpers). They said: With good luck and blessing. 

3g. (4919) ‘A’ishah said: We came to Medina and stayed with Banu al-Harith b. al-Khazraj. She said: I swear by Allah, I was swinging between two date-palms. Then my mother came, and made me come down; and I had my hair up to the ears. The transmitter then mentioned the rest of the tradition." [Sunan Abu Dawud 3:4915-4919, p.1374]

Conclusion on Abu Dawud: Seven references and no counter-references affirm that Aisha was nine. 

4. Sahih Hadith of Abu Nas’ai (830-915)

4a. When Hadrat ‘A’isha passed nine years of married life, the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) fell in mortal sickness. On the 9th or the 12th of Rabi-ul-Awwal 11 A.H., he left this mortal world…Hadrat ‘A’isha was eighteen years of age at the time when the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) passed away and she remained a widow for forty-eight years till she died at the age of sixty-seven." [Sunan Nasa’i 1 #18, p.108]

Note that she had nine years of married life with Mohammed, and since he died when she was eighteen, she was nine years old when she started her married life with Mohammed. 

Conclusion on Sunan Nas’ai: One reference and no counter-references say Aisha was nine at the time of her marriage to Muhammad..

6. Ibn-i-Majah 824-886/887 A.D. 273 A.H. 

6a. A’isha was married when she was six years old, and nine when she went to Mohammed’s house. [Ibn-i-Majah 3:1876, p.133]

6b. A’isha was married at seven, went to Mohammed’s house at nine, and was 18 when Mohammed died. According to al-Zawa’id, its isnad is sahih according to the condition of Bukhari. However Abu ‘Ubaida did not hear from his father, so it is munqata (has a gap) [Ibn-i-Majah 3:1877, p.134]

7. The Historian Ibn Ishaq [d. 767 or 773]

7a. "Yahya b. Abbad b. Abdullah b. al-Zubayr from his father told me that he heard Aisha say: "The apostle died in my bosom during my turn: I had wronged none in regard to him. It was due to my ignorance and extreme youth that the apostle died in my arms.""
(Guillaume, A., The Life of Muhammad, a translation of Ibn Ishaq's Sirat Rasul Allah, Oxford University Press, Karachi, Pakistan, page 682). A’isha said she was an extreme youth when Mohammed died.

7b. Muhammad even wanted to marry a crawling baby-girl. Let us read what ibn Ishaq, the most authentic biographer of Muhammad wrote about this. 

(Suhayli, ii.79: In the riwaya of Yunus I. I recorded that the apostle saw her (Ummu’l–Fadl) when she was a baby crawling before him and said, ‘If she grows up and I am still alive I will marry her.’ But he died before she grew up and Sufyan b. al-Aswad b. ‘Abdu’l-Asad al-Makhzumi married her and she bore him Rizq and Lubaba… (ibn Ishaq, 2001, p. 311).

8. Musnad Ahmad

8.a Muhammad saw Um Habiba the daughter of Abbas while she was fatim (age of nursing) and he said, "If she grows up while I am still alive, I will marry her." (Musnad Ahmad, Number 25636)

9. The Historian al-Tabari (d. 923)

9a. ‘Aisha was 6 (or 7) years old when she was married, and the marriage was consummated when she was nine years old. al-Tabari vol.9 p.129-131. Muhammad b. ‘Amr is one of the transmitters.

9b. ‘Aisha was 6-7 when married, and came the marriage was consummated when she was 9-10, three months after coming to Mecca al-Tabari vol.7 p.7. The chain of transmission includes an unnamed man from the Quraysh. 

X 9c. Aisha died in June-July 678 A.D. (A.H. 5 at the age of 66. That would make her born in 610 A.D. It says she consummated her marriage with the prophet when she was nine years old. al-Tabari Vol. 39, p. 171,173. (al-Tabari wrote 38 volumes of history, plus a 39th volume called Biographies of the Prophet’s Companions and Their Successors.)

9c. On the other hand, al-Tabari also wrote that i.e. "All four of his [Abu Bakr’s] children were born of his two wives—the names of whom we have already mentioned—during the pre-Islamic period." [Tarikhu'l-umam wa'l-mamlu'k, Al-Tabari, vol.4, p.50, Arabic, Dara'l-fikr, Beirut, 1979. Al-Tabari vol.11, p.141 also mentions this with footnote 766 saying al-Tabari has a conflict here. The footnote also says that al-Baladhuri’s Ansab I, p. 409-411; Ibn Hajar’s Isabah IV, p. 359-360 supports her being married by 9 years old.]

9d. Why did Muhammad wait three years between marrying Aisha when she was six and having sex with her when she was nine?

The Prophet left us and his daughters behind when he emigrated to Medina. Having arrived at Medina, he sent Zayd b. Harithah and his client Abu Rafi’ for us. He gave them two camels and 500 dirhams he had taken from Abu Bakr to buy [other] beasts they needed. Abu Bakr sent with them ‘Abdallah b. Urayqit al-Dili, with two or three camels. He wrote to [his son] ‘Abdallah b. Abi Bakr to take his wife Umm Ruman, together with me and my sister Asma’, al-Zubayr’s wife, [and leave for Medina]. They all left [Medina] together, and when they arrived at Qudayd Zayd b. Harithah bought three camels with those 500 dirhams. All of them then entered Mecca, where they met Talhah b. ‘Ubaydallah on his way to leave town, together with Abu Bakr’s family. So we all left: Zayd b. Harithah, Abu Rafi’, Fatimah, Umm Kulthum, and Sawdah bt. Zam‘ah. Ayd mounted Umm Ayman and [his son] Usamah b. Zayd on a riding beast; ‘Abdallah b. Abi Bakr took Umm Ruman and his two sisters, and Talhah b. ‘Ubaydallah came [too]. We all went together, and when we reached Bayd in Tamanni my camel broke loose. I was sitting in the litter together with my mother, and she started exclaiming "Alas, my daughter, alas [you] bride"; then they caught up with our camel, after it had safely descended the Lift. We then arrived at Medina, and I stayed with Abu Bakr’s children, and [Abu Bakr] went to the Prophet. The latter was then busy building the mosque and our homes around it, where he [later] housed his wives. We stayed in Abu Bakr’s house for a few days; then Abu Bakr asked [the Prophet] "O Messenger of God, what prevents you from consummating the marriage with your wife?" The Prophet said "The bridal gift (sadaq)." Abu Bakr gave him the bridal gift, twelve and a half ounces [of gold], and the Prophet sent for us. He consummated our marriage in my house, the one where I live now and where he passed away. [The History of Al-Tabari: Biographies of the Prophet’s Companions and Their Successors, translated by Ella Landau-Tasseron, SUNY Press, Albany, 1998, Volume XXXIX, pp. 171-173]

10. Khomeini's Teachings on sex with infants and animals:

Islamic teachings on sex with infants:

"A man can have sexual pleasure from a child as young as a baby. However, he should not penetrate. If he penetrates and the child is harmed then he should be responsible for her subsistence all her life. This girl, however would not count as one of his four permanent wives. The man will not be eligible to marry the girl's sister." [The complete Persian text of this saying can be found in "Ayatollah Khomeini in Tahrirolvasyleh, Fourth Edition, Darol Elm, Qom"]

11. Umar ibn al-Khattab married 10 or 12 year old girl:

Umar ibn al-Khattab, the 3rd caliph of Islam, at the age of 55 married Umm Kulthum bint Ali when she was between 10 and 12 years old. Some sources even say that she was five years old when Umar married her.

"'Umar asked 'Ali for the hand of his daughter, Umm Kulthum in marriage. 'Ali replied that she has not yet attained the age (of maturity). 'Umar replied, 'By Allah, this is not true. You do not want her to marry me. If she is underage, send her to me'. Thus 'Ali gave his daughter Umm Kulthum a dress and asked her to go to 'Umar and tell him that her father wants to know what this dress is for. When she came to Umar and gave him the message, he grabbed her hand and forcibly pulled her towards him. 'Umm Kulthum asked him to leave her hand, which Umar did and said, 'You are a very mannered lady with great morals. Go and tell your father that you are very pretty and you are not what he said of you'. With that 'Ali married Umm Kulthum to 'Umar." [In Tarikh Khamees, Volume 2, p. 384 ('Dhikr Umm Kalthum') and Zakhair Al-Aqba, p. 168]

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Pedophilia in Islamic Fatwas

1)  Fatwas by Ulemas:

By “sheikh mohammed al munajid” of Islam QA (see here).

Question:

Is it acceptable to marry a girl who has not yet started her menses?

I have not yet reached the age of puberty. Is it correct that a girl could get married before her menses start, or is that just a traditional myth?.

Answer:

Praise be to Allaah.

Firstly:

Marriage to a young girl before she reaches puberty is permissible according to sharee’ah, and it was narrated that there was scholarly consensus on this point.

1.  Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And those of your women as have passed the age of monthly courses, for them the ‘Iddah (prescribed period), if you have doubt (about their periods), is three months; and for those who have no courses [(i.e. they are still immature) their ‘Iddah (prescribed period) is three months likewise”

[al-Talaaq 65:4]

In this verse we see that Allaah states that for those who do not menstruate – because they are young and have not yet reached the age of puberty – the ‘iddah in the case of divorce is three months. This clearly indicates that it is permissible for a young girl who has not started her periods to marry.

Al-Tabari (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:

The interpretation of the verse “And those of your women as have passed the age of monthly courses, for them the ‘Iddah (prescribed period), if you have doubt (about their periods), is three months; and for those who have no courses [(i.e. they are still immature) their ‘Iddah (prescribed period) is three months likewise”. He said: The same applies to the ‘idaah for girls who do not menstruate because they are too young, if their husbands divorce them after consummating the marriage with them.

Tafseer al-Tabari, 14/142

2. It was narrated from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) married her when she was six years old, and consummated the marriage with her when she was nine, and she stayed with him for nine years.

Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 4840; Muslim, 1422.

Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr said:

The scholars are unanimously agreed that a father may marry off his young daughter without consulting her. The Messenger of Allaah married ‘Aa’ishah bint Abi Bakr when she was young, six or seven years old, when her father married her to him.

Al-Istidhkaar, 16/49-50.

Secondly:

The fact that it is permissible to marry a minor girl does not imply that it is permissible to have intercourse with her, rather the husband should not have intercourse with her until she becomes able for that. Hence the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) delayed consummating the marriage to ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her).

And Allaah knows best.

2) Fatwas By Islam Web

Fatwa No.: 88199; Fatwa Title: Age for marriage in Islam Fatwa; Date: 19 Jumaadaa Al-Uolaa 1425 / 07-07-2004

Question:

What is the normal age for a Muslim to marry?

Fatwa:

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds; and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon all his Family and Companions.

The preferred age for marriage for a young man is when he is fit to get married, can provide for his wife and can fulfill marital requirements. The Prophet () advised the youth to get married and illustrated its benefits, like lowering the gaze and protecting the private parts from illegal sexual relationship.

Bukhari and Muslim reported that the Prophet said: "O, young people whoever among you can marry, should marry, because it helps him lower his gaze, and guard his modesty (i.e. his private parts from committing illegal sexual intercourse, etc.), and whoever is not able to marry, should fast, as fasting diminishes his sexual power." [Al- Bukhari]

Therefore, young people should put this Hadith into practice. Poverty should not be a hindrance to getting married.

Allaah promised the person who wants to get married in order to guard his chastity to make him rich. Allaah says interpretation of meaning): "The Prophet () said: " Allaah promises to help three types of people: 'The Mujahid (a person who strives in the path of Allaah), the slave who signs a contract with his master to be freed in return for some money, and the person who gets married in order to guard his chastity." (Ahmed, Nasa'i, Al-Thirmidhi and Ibn Majah).

As regards, the age of getting married for a girl, it is when she becomes physically fit for sexual intercourse. It is confirmed in Sahih Al Bukhari that the Prophet married Aisha, when she was 6 years of age, and consummated the marriage with her when she was 9 years of age.

The guardian of a girl should take the initiative to marry her off if he finds a suitable person who has the required characteristics that the Prophet illustrated when he said: If any man whose religion and character are satisfactory proposes to marry one of your women, marry him, otherwise there will be great mischief and corruption on earth”. [Al-Thirmidhi and others].

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Myth of Aisha's Age Contradiction

The majority of Muslims agree that Aisha was only 9 years old when the Prophet married her.This site makes no apology for her young age and accuses the modernists for humbugging the Westerns morality and denying the truth.

This other site also defends Muhammad for marrying Aisha at 9 claiming that girls reach puberty at that age and therefore are considered adult and having sex with them at such tender age is acceptable.

However there are some “modernist” Muslims who dispute this fact such as in this site.

Arguement 1:

According to the generally accepted tradition, Aisha (ra) was born about eight years before Hijrah. But according to another narrative in Bukhari (kitabu'l-tafseer) Aisha (ra) is reported to have said that at the time Surah Al-Qamar, the 54th chapter of the Qur'an, was revealed, "I was a young girl". The 54th surah of the Qur'an was revealed nine years before Hijrah. According to this tradition, Aisha (ra) had not only been born before the revelation of the referred surah, but was actually a young girl (jariyah), not an infant (sibyah) at that time. Obviously, if this narrative is held to be true, it is in clear contradiction with the narratives reported by Hisham ibn `urwah. I see absolutely no reason that after the comments of the experts on the narratives of Hisham ibn `urwah, why we should not accept this narrative to be more accurate.

Answer:

Even if we assume this narrative to be accurate, we have no reason to give it more weight than those that are so detailed about Aisha ’s age, describing her playing with her dolls, talking about her girlfriends coming to play with her and hiding when Muhammad entered the room, her memories of playing on the swing when her mother called her and washed her face and took her to Muhammad, her ignorance of what was going on and her “surprise” when Muhammad got into action taking his role as the husband, etc. These events are more likely to be remembered by someone of her childhood than when a particular Surah was revealed. It is more probable that a person confuse one Surah with the other than confuse all those details of her own life.

Argument 2:

According to a number of narratives, Aisha (ra) accompanied the Muslims in the battle of Badr and Uhud. Furthermore, it is also reported in books of hadith and history that no one under the age of 15 years was allowed to take part in the battle of Uhud. All the boys below 15 years of age were sent back. Aisha 's (ra) participation in the battle of Badr and Uhud clearly indicate that she was not nine or ten years old at that time. After all, women used to accompany men to the battle fields to help them, not to be a burden on them.

Answer:

This is a weak excuse. When the Battle of Badr and Ohud occurred Aisha was 10 to 11 years old. She did not go to be a warier, like the boys. She went to keep Muhammad warm during the nights. Boys who were less than 15 were sent back, but this did not apply to her.

Argument 3:

According to almost all the historians Asma (ra), the elder sister of Aisha (ra) was ten years older than Aisha (ra). It is reported in Taqri'bu'l-tehzi'b as well as Al-bidayah wa'l-nihayah that Asma (ra) died in 73 hijrah when she was 100 years old. Now, obviously if Asma (ra) was 100 years old in 73 hijrah she should have been 27 or 28 years old at the time of hijrah. If Asma (ra) was 27 or 28 years old at the time of hijrah, Aisha (ra) should have been 17 or 18 years old at that time. Thus, Aisha (ra), if she got married in 1 AH (after hijrah) or 2 AH, was between 18 to 20 years old at the time of her marriage.

Answer:

When someone gets that old, people don’t care too much about her exact age. It is very easy to say she was 100 years old when in fact she was only 90. The difference is not noticeable to the younger folks and 100 is a round figure. Assuming the Hadith is authentic, it could be an honest mistake. Since in those days people did not carry birth certificates, it is very much likely that the person who reported her age to be 100 did not know that she was 10 years older than Aisha and did not sit to make the calculations and deductions. She was not an important person and it did not occur to anyone that 1300 years later it would become the subject of a controversy. This could be a genuine mistake by the narrator of the Hadith.

Argument 4:

Tabari in his treatise on Islamic history, while mentioning Abu Bakr (ra) reports that Abu Bakr had four children and all four were born during the Jahiliyyah -- the pre Islamic period. Obviously, if Aisha (ra) was born in the period of jahiliyyah, she could not have been less than 14 years in 1 AH -- the time she most likely got married.

Answer:

Tabari’s narratives do not have the distinction to be known Sahih. Even if we assumed that this narratives is not forged, there is no reason to discard all those strong, detailed and explicit hadithes that concord with each other and confirm the age of Aisha was 9 when she married the Prophet, to accept this narrative that, could very well be also an innocent slip on the part of the narrator. People remember important events better than those that are relatively insignificant. The date of the birth of the children of Abu Bakr was not an important subject for Muslims to record. But the details of the Prophet's marriages were more important. As you can read in the story of Safiyah's wedding even the kind of food served is recorded.

Argument 5:

According to Ibn Hisham, the historian, Aisha (ra) accepted Islam quite some time before Umar ibn Khattab (ra). This shows that Aisha (ra) accepted Islam during the first year of Islam. While, if the narrative of Aisha 's (ra) marriage at seven years of age is held to be true, Aisha (ra) should not have been born during the first year of Islam.

Answer:

The apologist fails to provide the references to the hadithes that he quotes. But obviously this is an error. To understand and accept a religion, one must he at least intelligent enough to make such decision. That is about 15 years old. But let us be generous and say that age is about 12. If Aisha accepted Islam during the first year of Islam, she must have been 26 years old when Muhammad married her. (12+14) First of all, in those days girls married at much younger age. No one stayed that long to get married. And it is very unlikely that a 26-year-old woman plays with her dolls. It shows that some of the Muslim apologists are embarrassed of what the Prophet did and are desperately looking for excuses to exonerate him of his improprieties.

Argument 6:

Tabari has also reported that at the time Abu Bakr planned on migrating to Habshah (8 years before Hijrah), he went to Mut'am—with whose son Aisha (ra) was engaged—and asked him to take Aisha (ra) in his house as his son's wife. Mut`am refused, because Abu Bakr had embraced Islam, and subsequently his son divorced Aisha (ra). Now, if Aisha (ra) was only seven years old at the time of her marriage, she could not have been born at the time Abu Bakr decided on migrating to Habshah. On the basis of this report it seems only reasonable to assume that Aisha (ra) had not only been born 8 years before hijrah, but was also a young lady, quite prepared for marriage.

Answer:

It was an Arab tradition to betroth a girl to a boy even when the girl was a newborn. This tradition is still carried on in many Islamic countries. This is no proof that Aisha was a grown up.

Argument 7

According to a narrative reported by Ahmad ibn Hanbal, after the death of Khadijah (ra), when Khaulah (ra) came to the Prophet (pbuh) advising him to marry again, the Prophet (pbuh) asked her regarding the choices she had in her mind. Khaulah said: "You can marry a virgin (bikr) or a woman who has already been married (thayyib)". When the Prophet (pbuh) asked about who the virgin was, Khaulah proposed Aisha 's (ra) name. All those who know the Arabic language, are aware that the word "bikr" in the Arabic language is not used for an immature nine year old girl. The correct word for a young playful girl, as stated earlier is "Jariyah". "Bikr" on the other hand, is used for an unmarried lady, and obviously a nine year old is not a "lady".

Answer:

This explanation is absolutely incorrect. Bikr means virgin and, just as in English is not age specific. In fact Aisha was the second wife of Muhammad (after Khadijah) but Muhammad did not consummate his marriage with her for three years because she was too young. Instead he had to content himself with Umma Salamah, until Aisha matured a little bit more. It would not have made sense to marry a beautiful woman like Aisha and wait for three years to take her home.

Argument 8:

According to Ibn Hajar, Fatimah (ra) was five years older than Aisha (ra). Fatimah (ra) is reported to have been born when the Prophet (pbuh) was 35 years old. Thus, even if this information is taken to be correct, Aisha (ra) could by no means be less than 14 years old at the time of hijrah, and 15 or 16 years old at the time of her marriage.

Answer:

Of course this information cannot be taken as correct. If Aisha was five years older than Fatimah, and Fatimah was born when the Prophet was 35 years old, then Aisha was only 30 years younger than the Prophet. So at the time of her marriage when the Prophet was 54, Aisha must have been 24 yeas old. This is not certainly correct, for the reasons explained above and also it contradicts the Hadith that the apologist quoted about the age of Asma, Aisha ’s sister, who according to that Hadith was 10 years older that Aisha and died in 73 Hijra. So at the time of Hijra Asma must have been 100 – 73 = 27 years old, but according to this Hadith she was 34 years old. The discrepancy between these two hadithes quoted by the same apologist, demonstrate their inaccuracy. It all goes to show that in those days numbers did not mean much. It is more likely that people forget the dates. But events are better remembered. The reports of the tender age of Aisha is consistent with the stories of her childhood, playing with her toys, her girlfriends hiding when Muhammad entered the room, the Prophet playing with her, her ignorance and “surprise” in the night of the nuptials, etc. All those hadithes confirm that she was a little girl. Those who deny the facts and try to prove otherwise, demonstrate their embarrassment of the acts of the Prophet. Perhaps they should be credited for having some scruples and realizing that what the Prophet did was wrong but we cannot praise them for their intellectual honesty or lack of it.

Final argument:

“In my opinion, neither was it an Arab tradition to give away girls in marriage at an age as young as nine or ten years, nor did the Prophet (pbuh) marry Aisha (ra) at such a young age. The people of Arabia did not object to this marriage, because it never happened in the manner it has been narrated.”

Answer:

I respect his opinion, but disagree with him completely. Not only this WAS the tradition of the Arabs, it is still their tradition and it has become the tradition of other counties that converted to Islam. Even up to this day it is very common to find girls as young as 9-years given for matrimony. Of course the reason that no one objected to the marriage of Muhammad and a 9-year-old girl, is because it was a costume. The reason when it was reported in so many hadithes that neither the author nor the scholars objected is because it was nothing out of the ordinary.

Just a few weeks ago I read in the news that in Iran a 9-year-old girl filed for divorce from her 15-year-old husband just after 20 days of marriage because he would constantly beat her. When the young man was questioned he said: “She neglects her housework and plays with her dolls all the time”

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Proof that Ayesha was Prepubescent While Her Marriage

Many Muslims wish that Ayesha had reached the age of puberty when she slept with Mohammed. But in reality she was a pre-pubescent child at that time. Mohammed did not care for her mental and physical health while satisfying his lust. Muslim apologetics use different tactics to justify Mohammed’s lustful act. The following is the complete and well written proof that Ayesha was prepubescent at the time of marriage.

Part 1: Word consummate means “have sex"

Some Muslims cannot bring themselves to accept Bukhari's Sahih Ahadith, which clearly says that Muhammad had sexual intercourse with Ayesha, when she was nine years old. They typically resort to questioning the English translations of Dr Mohsin Khan without themselves reading the ahadith in the original Arabic. An examination of the Arabic text shows that, according to the Sahih Ahadith, Muhammad did have sexual intercourse with Ayesha when she was nine. 

There are many ahadith relating the same fact in question. The one most in contention is the following hadith:

Sahih Bukhari Volume 7, Book 62, Number 64:

Narrated 'Aisha: that the Prophet married her when she was six years old and he consummated his marriage when she was nine years old.
[An Ayeshath Radhiyallahu Anha: AnnaNnabiyya Sallallahu Alaihi Vasallama Thazawwajaha vahiya binthu sitha sineen, va udkhilath alaihi vahiya binthu this’in.]

In this hadith, the word “udkhilath” was translated by Dr Mohsin Khan to mean “consummated his marriage”.

Some Muslims claim that Muhammad “zawaj”ed Ayesha, when she was six and “nikah”ed her when she was nine (for example, Abdur Rahman Squires). They thus posit 'zawaj' to mean betrothal and 'nikah' to mean marriage. In this way, some Muslims claim that Dr Mohsin Khan’s “poor” translation of nikah as “consummation of marriage”, instead of just “marriage”, had inadvertently raised a sexual connotation when none was intended.

The Arabic text shows this reasoning to be false: Bukhari used zawaj and nikah interchangeably as synonyms to mean marriage (as does the Quran in verses 33:37, 44:54 & 52:20). Secondly, according to hadith, the relevant word was not “nikah” (which does not appear in Bukhari 7:62:64) but udkhilath.

The root of the verb “udkhilath” is “dakhala” which means to “enter”. This is the common Arabic meaning. There are other definitions, none of which fits with the context of the hadith.

Some Muslims try to cast doubt on the meaning of dakhala as sexual intercourse by pointing to these other definitions. One Muslim even gives the definitions below, albeit conveniently without the sexual definition despite claiming a fullness of definition:

Quote:

Here is the full definition of دخل (dakhala):

1. insert, enter, thrust, admit, drive in, let in, show in, make or let enter

2. turmoil, turbulence, topsy-turvy, abnormality, fuddle, tangle, riot, ruction, restiveness, chaos, fuss, disorder, clutter, confusion, commotion, defectiveness, disturbance, tumult, imperfection

3. aberration, imperfection, defect, blemish, abnormality, flaw, fault, vice, shortcoming

4. yield, revenue, proceeds, income, earnings, taking

5. conscience, innermost feelings, inward thoughts, inner self, soul, design

6. doubtfulness, doubt, mistrust, uncertainty, overconcern, peradventure, incertitude, suspicion, extreme solicitude, abnormal anxiety, anxiety

7. tie-in, pertinence, concern, connection, connectedness, contact, conjunction, association, business, yoke, nexus, linkup, liaison, linkage, link, relevance, affair

8. imperfection, vice, flaw, shortcoming, blemish, aberration, defect, fault, abnormality

Typically, the Muslim reasoning is that "consummation" could mean “completion” of the marriage or wedding ceremony, as in completion of a business transaction. However, this is erroneous as dakhala does not mean the English word “consummate” but the English phrase “consummate the marriage”. There is an important difference. This misunderstanding is due to the Muslim’s attack on the English word “consummate” and not the Arabic word “dakhala”. While the English word “consummate” may mean completion (as of a business transaction), the Arabic word “dakhala” carries no such connotation.

Further, an English speaker will never take “consummate the marriage” to mean complete the marriage or enter the marriage, but will always understand it to mean sexual intercourse. It is the only possible understanding of the euphemism. This is what these Muslims failed to understand: the meaning of the verb is dependent on the object in question. As the object is “marriage”, the verb “consummate” means sexual intercourse. This is because of the historical English (or more correctly Catholic) custom in which a marriage is considered to be consummated when the sexual act has taken place. It was a case for annulment if the sexual act was not performed, i.e. the marriage was not consummated. This has been the definition for centuries. Since ancient times to until quite recently, the wedding bed linen was displayed to the couple’s relatives on the morning after the wedding to signify consummation of the marriage. A bride was expected to be a virgin and a bloodstained sheet left no doubt as to both the bride’s honor and the finality of the marriage contract—i.e. it had been consummated and that there would be no question as to its legality. 

A common English definition of the word dakhala, such as in Hans-Wehr Arabic-English Dictionary, p. 273: “to enter, to pierce, to penetrate, to consummate the marriage, cohabit, sleep with a woman”.

Some Muslims attack this definition, thinking that each definition is a separate alternate. Unfortunately for them all the Hans-Wehr definitions are exactly the same. Just as in the English language “consummate the marriage” is an euphemism for sexual intercourse, “cohabit” does not mean merely sharing the same roof but is a euphemism for living together in a sexual relationship, and “sleeping with a woman” does not mean merely sharing the same bed but engaging in a sexual relationship.

Here is the complete list of the Quranic verses containing the word “dakhala”:
dakhala (3;37, 3;97, 4;23, 4;23, 5;23, 5;61, 7;38, 12;36, 12;58, 12;68, 12;69, 12;88, 12;99, 15;52, 17;7, 18;35, 18;39, 24;61, 27;34, 28;15, 38;22, 51;25, 71;28 ); yadkhulu (2;111, 2;114, 2;214, 3;142, 4;124, 5;22, 5;24, 7;40, 7;46, 12;67, 13;23, 16;31, 17;7, 19;60, 24;27, 24;28, 24;29, 33;53, 35;33, 40;40, 40;60, 48;27, 49;14, 68;24, 110;2); udkhul (2;58, 2;208, 4;154, 5;21, 5;23, 7;38, 7;49, 7;161, 12;67, 12;99, 15;46, 16;29, 16;32, 27;18, 27;44, 33;53, 36;26, 39;72, 39;73, 40;76, 43;70, 50;34, 66;10, 89;29, 89;30); dukhila (33;14); dakhil (5;22, 66;10); dakhal (16;92, 16;94); muddakhal (9;57); mudkhal (4;31, 17;80, 22;59); adkhala (5;65, 21;75, 21;86); yudkhilu (3;192, 3;195, 4;13, 4;14, 4;31, 4;57, 4;122, 4;175, 5;12, 5;84, 9;99, 22;14, 22;23, 22;59, 29;9, 42;8, 45;30, 47;6, 47;12, 48;5, 48;17, 48;25, 58;22, 61;12, 64;9, 65;11, 66;8, 76;31); adkhil (7;151, 17;80, 27;12, 27;19, 40;8, 40;46); udkhila (3;185, 14;23, 71;25); yudkhalu (70;38 ). 

In all ayats, except 16:92 and 16:94 (dakhal = deception), the meaning is to enter or gain admittance or be granted admission to some location such as a house, gate, fire, paradise, hell, or someone’s presence etc. In the Quran dakhala is never used to denote “participation” as in the English phrases “enter a transaction” or “enter a marriage” or “completion” of any activity. 

There is only ONE instance (twice in verse 4:23), where the Quran uses the verb 'dakhala' in relation to marriage or women, and it is clear that the meaning here is SEXUAL INTERCOURSE: 

Daryabadi: Forbidden unto you are your mothers and your daughters and your sisters and your father's sisters and your mother's sisters, and your brother's daughters and your sister's daughters. and your foster mothers and your foster sisters, and the mothers of your wives and your step-daughters, that are your wards, born of your wives unto whom ye have gone in, but if ye have not gone in unto them, no sin shall be on you, and the wives of your sons that are from your own loins, and, also that ye should have two sisters together, except that which hath already passed; verily Allah is ever Forgiving, Merciful.

[Transliterated Arabic: Hurrimat AAalaykum ommahatukum wabanatukum waakhawatukum waAAammatukum wakhalatukum wabanatu al-akhi wabanatu al-okhti waommahatukumu allatee ardaAAnakum waakhawatukum mina alrradaAAati waommahatu nisa-ikum waraba-ibukumu allatee fee hujoorikum min nisa-ikumu allatee dakhaltum bihinna fa-in lam takoonoo dakhaltum bihinna fala junaha AAalaykum wahala-ilu abna-ikumu allatheena min aslabikum waan tajmaAAoo bayna al-okhtayni illa ma qad salafa inna Allaha kana ghafooran raheeman]

Other Muslim scholars also translate dakhaltum to mean sexual intercourse: Grand Sheikh Qaribullah & Sheikh Darwish (lain with); Sheikh Muhammad Sarwar (had carnal knowledge with); Ahmed Ali (slept with); Imam Al-Mawdudi (consummated the marriage); Mohammad Habib Shakir (gone in); Dr Muhammad Ayub Khan (gone into); and Imam Ibn Kathir (sexual relations with). 

Thus, eminent Muslim scholars translate the verb dakhaltum (root, dakhala) to mean sexual intercourse, because the literal meaning is to “enter”, “insert into”, “penetrate” or “pierce” a woman. It does not mean “enter a marriage”: it means “enter” the woman.

When applied the meaning of dakhala to Bukhari 7:62:64, it becomes clear that the object “marriage” is absent in relation to the verb “dakhala”; the object is “Ayesha”—that is,  Muhammad “dakhala”ed her (grammatically, he “udkhilath alaihi”). Thus, clearly the meaning is that he “entered” or “had sexual intercourse with” her.

Here is another translation of the root “dakhala”: he, or it, entered; or went, came, passed, or got in; to enter, go in, join one’s self in company, visit, intrude, meddle, have intercourse with, go into (one’s wife), intrigue, penetrate, deceit, corrupt. The primary signification is a thing that enters into another thing and is not of it. 

Other definitions: He had an unsoundness in his intellect, or in his body, or in his grounds of pretension to respect; his affair, or case, or state, was, or became, intrinsically bad or corrupt or unsound. Income, or revenue, or profit that comes in, or accrues, to a man from his immovable property, such as land and houses and palm trees, and from merchandise. A disease; a fault, defect, or blemish, and particularly in one’s grounds of pretension to respect. Tangled, or luxuriant, or abundant and dense, trees. [taken from An Arabic-English Lexicon, E.W. Lane, volume three, p. 858–861; and The Dictionary of the Holy Quran, 1st edition, Abdul Mannan Omar, p. 174–175]

It is clear that the only meaning of dakhala applicable to the context of the hadith is 'sexual intercourse'. 

To further confound Muslim apologists, the Bukhari Sahih Ahadith use another phrase to convey the fact that Muhammad had sexual intercourse with Ayesha.

Sahih Bukhari 5:58:236 

Narrated Hisham's father: Khadija died three years before the Prophet departed to Medina. He stayed there for two years or so and then he married 'Aisha when she was a girl of six years of age, and he consummated his marriage when she was nine years old.

[An Hisham An Abeehi Qala thuwaffiyath Khadijathu qabla makhrajannabiyyi sallallahu Alaihi Vasallama ilal Madeenathi bi thalatha sineenaa falabitha sanathaini ou qareeban min dhalika va nakaha Ayesha vahiya binthu sithi sineena thumma bana biha vahiya binthu this”I sineen.]

and, Sahih Bukhari 7:62:65

Narrated 'Aisha that the Prophet 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 for nine years (i.e. till his death)."

An Ayeshath AnnaNabiyya Sallallahu alaihi vasallama thazawwajaha vahiya binthu Sitha sineena, va bana biha vahiya binthu This”I sineen. Qala Hisham : Va unbiethu Annaha kanath Indahu This”I Sineen.

The Arabic word, “bana” means to build or construct. But if we add biha, which means with her (biha is a feminine verb in Arabic), the meaning is entirely different. Literally “bana biha” means build with her. But this is a phrase that is commonly used to denote intimate sexual relations. If we say in Arabic: Muhammad bana bi Ayesha, the meaning is: Muhammad had intercourse with Ayesha. This is the only possible Arabic understanding of the phrase. So, again it is apparent that Dr Mohsin Khan had used the euphemism “consummated the marriage” to denote the sexual act.

Other Bukhari ahadith that use the phrase “bana biha” to mean sexual intercourse (though not between Muhammad and Ayesha) include 4:53:353 and 7:62:87.

Conclusion 
A reading of the relevant Bukhari ahadith makes it clear that Muhammad had sexual intercourse with Ayesha when she was nine years old. The terms used are “udkhilath” and “bana biha”, which can only mean sexual intercourse in the context of the ahadith. The Muslim confusion comes from their lack of understanding of the English phrase “consummation of marriage”, and their unwillingness to admit that their prophet had sexual intercourse with a nine year old child. Thus, instead of attacking the English phrase, “consummation of marriage”, it might be better served for Muslim apologists to read the relevant ahadith in the original Arabic.

Part 2: Proof that doll-playing girls are prepubescent

Playing with dolls and having pictures is strictly prohibited in Islam except for children not reached puberty. Therefore, Ayesha was allowed to have dolls. This proved that she had not reached at the age of puberty yet.

This is what the great hadith scholar, Shaykh al-Islam Imam Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar Al-'Asqalani, Commander of the Faithful in Hadith, Qadi of Egypt, said regarding doll-playing and little girls: 

Sahih Bukhari Volume 8:73:151:

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. When Allah's Apostle used to enter they used to hide themselves, but the Prophet would call them to join and play with me. (The playing with the dolls and similar images is forbidden, but it was allowed for 'Aisha at that time, as she was a little girl, not yet reached the age of puberty.) (Fateh-al-Bari, p. 143, Vol.13) 

How do we know that Ibn Hajar made the doll-playing exegesis: “The playing with the dolls and similar images is forbidden, but it was allowed for 'Aisha at that time, as she was a little girl, not yet reached the age of puberty”?

The reference to Fateh-al-Bari and a look at other translations of Bukhari 8:151, conveys the same message.

Alternative translation 1:

On the authority of Aisha (RA), who said: I used to play with dolls in the presence of the Prophet (SAW). And I had girl-friends (playmates) who played along with me. They would hide (feeling shy) from him (SAW) whenever he entered. But, he (SAW) would send for them to join me and they would play with me. (Sahih Bukhari & Muslim)

[The translator then provides some discussion about translations of various versions of this hadith before he follows up with Ibn Hajar and Fath-al-Bari] 

Al-Haafidh Ibn Hajar said in Fath al-Baaree (Fath al-Baaree, no. 6130, Kitaab: al-Adab, Baab: al-Inbisaat ilaa an-Naas): This Hadith has been used as a proof for the permissibility of possessing (suwar - of) dolls and toys for the purpose of the little girls playing with them. This has been especially exempted from the general prohibition of possession of images (suwar).

Alternative translation 2:

But if these images and dolls are toys for children, the Sunnah indicates that they are permissible. In al-Saheehayn it is narrated that ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) said: “I used to play with dolls in the presence of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and I had female friends who would play with me…” [al-Bukhaari 6130; Muslim 2440]

Ibn Hajar said: This hadeeth indicates that it is permissible to have images of girls (i.e., dolls) and toys for girls to play with. This is an exception from the general meaning of the prohibition on having images. This was stated by ‘Iyaad and was narrated from the majority. They permitted the sale of dolls to girls so as to teach them from a young age how to take care of their homes and children. Ibn Hibbaan stated that it is permissible for young girls to play with toys… 

Alternative translation 3:   

Aaishah said, “I used to play with dolls in the presence of the Prophet (pbuh), and my girlfriends used to play along with me. Whenever, Allaah's Messenger (pbuh) would enter, they would hide from him. So he called them to play with me.” 

In the classical commentary on Saheeh al-Bukhaare entitled Fat-h al-Baaree, Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalaanee wrote the following: “This hadeeth is used as evidence for the permissibility of making dolls and toys with human and animal forms for the purpose of girls playing with them. This category has been specifically excluded from the general prohibition against making images. ‘Iyaad stated this to be categorically so and related that it was the position of the majority of scholars. He further related that they permitted the selling of toys for girls in order to train them from their youth in their household affairs and in dealing with their children…” 

Note the great similarity in the commentaries of Ibn Hajar in Fateh al-Bari all four versions of the hadith. The words are different because of the different translators but the essential message is unchanged: only little girls (i.e. before puberty) are permitted to play with dolls. 

How do we know that little girls are prepubescent? Because Islamic customs and laws specifically state so.

For example:

http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/pillars/fasting/tajuddin/fast_21.html  

Girls reach puberty and adulthood when they experience the above three signs. However, they have a fourth sign, that is, menstruation (hayd). Whenever a girl experiences it, she is a woman even if she is 12 years old.

http://www.alinaam.org.za/social/myaaisha.htm 
http://www.lightuponlight.com/islam/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=151  

Islam and the Age of Puberty

Islam clearly teaches that adulthood starts when a person have attained puberty. 

These Islamic Websites provide the evidence that in Islam, when a girl reaches puberty, she ceases to be a girl and becomes a woman. Therefore, little girls must be prepubescent according to Islamic customs and laws.

We also have commentaries by hadith scholars that reinforce this point. 

http://www.themuslimwoman.com/beware/GirlsPlayingDolls.htm  

Al-Qaadee 'Iyaad has stated this position with definiteness, and transmitted it as the position of the Majority (Jumhoor) of the Scholars; and that they declared permissible the selling of toys/dolls (al-lu'ab) for little girls, to train them from childhood for the household responsibilities and child-rearing. 

Al-Khattaabee said: … it is understood that playing with dolls (al-banaat) is not like the amusement from other images (suwar) concerning which the threat (wa'eed) of punishment is mentioned. The only reason why permission in this was given to Aisha (RA) is because she had not, at that time, reached the age of puberty. 

http://www.themuslimwoman.com/beware/PossessionofDolls.htm  

… Abu 'Ubaid, who said: We don't see there being any reason for that (permission to play with her dolls), except due to the fact that these toys are a source of amusement (lahw) for the children. So, if they were owned by adults, it would definitely have been detestable (makhrooh).

Part 3: Proof that Aisha was prepubescent when Muhammad first had sex with her

Tabari IX:131:

My mother came to me while I was being swung on a swing between two branches and got me down. My nurse took over and wiped my face with some water and started leading me. When I was at the door she stopped so I could catch my breath. I was brought in while Muhammad was sitting on a bed in our house. My mother made me sit on his lap. The other men and women got up and left. The Prophet consummated his marriage with me in my house when I was nine years old. Neither a camel nor a sheep was slaughtered on behalf of me.

This hadith suggests that Muhammad had sex with Aisha in her house on her wedding day. However, was this event really on her wedding day? This is proven by the Sahih Bukhari hadith below. Note the similarity in accounts, although the Bukhari 5:234 hadith is more expansive on the fact that the events took place on Aisha’s wedding day. 

Narrated Aisha: "The Prophet engaged me when I was a girl of six (years). We went to Medina and stayed at the home of Bani-al-Harith bin Khazraj. Then I got ill and my hair fell down. Later on my hair grew (again) and my mother, Um Ruman, came to me while I was playing in a swing with some of my girl friends. She called me, and I went to her, not knowing what she wanted to do to me. She caught me by the hand and made me stand at the door of the house. I was breathless then, and when my breathing became Alright, she took some water and rubbed my face and head with it. Then she took me into the house. There in the house I saw some Ansari women who said, "Best wishes and Allah's Blessing and a good luck." Then she entrusted me to them and they prepared me (for the marriage). Unexpectedly Allah's Apostle came to me in the forenoon and my mother handed me over to him, and at that time I was a girl of nine years of age." [Sahih Bukhari 5:58:234]

Sahih Muslim 8:3311:

'A'isha reported that Allah's Apostle married her when she was seven years old, and (s)he was taken to his house as a bride when she was nine, and her dolls were with her; and when he died she was eighteen years old. 

Note that Sahih Muslim says that Aisha still had her dolls with her when she was taken to Muhammad’s house as a bride. Applying Ibn Hajar’s doll-playing exegesis from Part 1, it becomes clear that Aisha was pre-pubescent when she became a bride. 

Therefore, it is abundantly clear from the hadiths that Aisha was pre-pubescent when Muhammad first had sex with her on her wedding day.

Part 4: Proof that scientifically nine-year old girl is prepubescent

Scientific studies have also proven that the average age of menarche was older in earlier times compared to present. The evidence is that about 20% of all girls (today) reach puberty at the age of 14 or older.

According to a Scientific research paper posted at the John Hopkins University Website:

International Variability of Ages at Menarche and Menopause:

Patterns and Main Determinants

FRÉDÉRIC THOMAS, FRANÇOIS RENAUD,ERIC BENEFICE, THIERRY DE MEEÜS,
AND JEAN-FRANÇOIS GUEGAN

Mean Age at Menarche and References

Algeria 14.3 Grassivaro-

Egypt 13.2 Attallah (1978)

Morocco 13.75* Loukid et al.

Sudan 13.75 Attallah et al. (1983)

Yemen 14.4 Yemen Arab Republic Fertility 

Cameroon 14.61 Biyong et al.

Congo-Brazza 12.0 Samba (1982)

Congo-Kinshasa 13.83 Rashid-Tozin

Ghana 13.98 Adadevoh et al.

Kenya 14.4 Rogo et al. (1987)

Nigeria 15.0* Morabia et al.

Senegal 16.1 Simondon et al. (1997)

Somalia 14.78 Gallo (1975)

Sudan 13.75 Attallah et al. (1983)

Tanzania 15.21 Hautvast (1971)

Zambia 13.7 Katzarski et al. (1980)

Zimbabwe 13.5 Mbizvo et al. (1995)

USA 12.8 Malina and Bouchard (1991)

Britain 13.3 Mascie-Taylor

According to http://www.mum.org/menarage.htm, History shows us another trend:

Historical Data on Age at Menarche

Ancient Rome 12-14

Medieval Europe 12-14

Medieval Middle East 12-13

From above given data, it is very clear that even historically the mean age of puberty is much higher than nine. So, Ayesha was undoubtedly prepubescent at the time Muhammad slept with her.

Part 5: When did Ayesha get her first menses?

There are two narrations of Ayesha regarding her first menses. When she first experienced it, she started weeping and Mohammed consoled her.

Sahih Bukhari 1:6:293:

Narrated Al-Qasim:
'Aisha said, "We set out with the sole intention of performing Hajj and when we reached Sarif, (a place six miles from Mecca) I got my menses. Allah's Apostle came to me while I was weeping. He said 'What is the matter with you? Have you got your menses?' I replied, 'Yes.' He said, 'This is a thing which Allah has ordained for the daughters of Adam. So do what all the pilgrims do with the exception of the Taw-af (Circumambulation) round the Ka'ba." 'Aisha added, "Allah's Apostle sacrificed cows on behalf of his wives." 

Sahih Bukhari 2:26:631

Narrated Al-Qasim bin Muhammad:
' Aisha said, "We set out with Allah's Apostles in the months of Hajj, and (in) the nights of Hajj, and at the time and places of Hajj and in a state of Hajj. We dismounted at Sarif (a village six miles from Mecca). The Prophet then addressed his companions and said, "Anyone who has not got the Hadi and likes to do Umra instead of Hajj may do so (i.e. Hajj-al-Tamattu) and anyone who has got the Hadi should not finish the Ihram after performing ' Umra). (i.e. Hajj-al-Qiran). Aisha added, "The companions of the Prophet obeyed the above (order) and some of them (i.e. who did not have Hadi) finished their Ihram after Umra." Allah's Apostle and some of his companions were resourceful and had the Hadi with them, they could not perform Umra (alone) (but had to perform both Hajj and Umra with one Ihram). Aisha added, "Allah's Apostle came to me and saw me weeping and said, "What makes you weep, O Hantah?" I replied, "I have heard your conversation with your companions and I cannot perform the Umra." He asked, "What is wrong with you?' I replied, 'I do not offer the prayers (i.e. I have my menses).' He said, 'It will not harm you for you are one of the daughters of Adam, and Allah has written for you (this state) as He has written it for them. Keep on with your intentions for Hajj and Allah may reward you that." Aisha further added, "Then we proceeded for Hajj till we reached Mina and I became clean from my menses.

(Note: The second hadith has been shortened by deleting the last part which has no relevance here at all.)

Now, I want to dissect these two hadiths. There are more in Bukhari as repetitions of the same incident, but I just quoted two for the purpose. And I will focus on the second, since it is more descriptive. 

Hadith unravels an incident when Muhammad along with Ayesha and some of his companions went for Hajj. But Ayesha struck in the middle weeping…. Please notice she began to weep, and what was the reason? Muhammad asks what’s wrong with you my darling ? (Hanatha is difficult to translate to English, that should be why the translator himself put the same Arabic word.) Anyway, just have an idea Hanatha is someone who bought all opulence for a man. It is a term used to address the most beloved women in Arabic. Ayesha replies I can not pray, because something has occurred (As you can say in the first hadith she has begun to menstruate) . NOW: Please be very attentive to Muhammad’s reply: It will NOT HARM you, for you are one among the daughters of Adam and Allah has written it for them.

Ayesha was having her first experience, because many of you women know first experience of menstruation is always somewhat frightful or an emotional experience. Since it was the first time she experienced such, she should have frightened and started to weep. Muhammad does a good job here; consoling Menstruation is not harmful, but quite natural as all those females born Adam should necessarily go through it. If Ayesha had any previous experience, Muhammad shouldn't have used this consoling words...! But like a counselor, he convinces his beloved wife "Menstruation is not harmful" Lesson from Muhammad for a girl who is having her first experience.

There are some other narrations where an other wife of Mohammed (Saffiya) got her menses but Mohammed did not console her. But in above case Ayesha was having her first menses so Mohammed consoles her.

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Conclusions

The followings are the conclusions we get after the long discussion.

Mohammed was a pedophile

Even according to the most stringent clinical definition of pedophilia, DSM-IV-TR, Muhammad would be defined as a pedophile. Note that there are other generally accepted definitions of pedophilia that do not confine the definition to pre-pubertal children or require fantasies, sexual urges or behaviors over a certain period of time. However, for the sake of this discussion I will confine my argument to DSM-IV-TR.

Diagnostic criteria for 302.2 Pedophilia

1. Over a period of at least six months, recurrent, intense sexually arousing fantasies, sexual urges, or behaviors involving sexual activity with a prepubescent child or children (generally age 13 years or younger). 
2. The person has acted on these sexual urges, or the sexual urges or fantasies caused marked distress or interpersonal difficulty.
3. The person is at least age 16 years and at least 5 years older than the child or children in Criterion A. 

(Note: Do not include an individual in late adolescence involved in an ongoing sexual relationship with a 12 or 13 year-old.)

Does Muhammad meet all these criteria?

1. Yes. Muhammad had sexual relations with a pre-pubescent girl for a prolonged period – likely to be at least 6-7 years. 
2. Yes. Muhammad had acted on his sexual urges – as demonstrated by Tabari IX:131 and various Bukhari hadiths (stating consummation at age nine when it has been established that Aisha didn’t reach puberty until she was at least 14 years old). 
3. Yes. Muhammad was 57 years old when Aisha was only 9 years old when they first had sex. 

Therefore, even according to the strict clinical definition of DSM-IV-TR, it can be proven that Muhammad was a pedophile.

Islam allows and promotes child marriage

Islam allows and promotes child marriages. This is the reason that many child marriages take place in Islamic countries. Few examples are:

• Roshan Qasem, 11, will joining the household of Said Mohammed, 55; his first wife; their three sons; and their daughter, who is the same age as Roshan. 
• Ghulan Haider, 11, is to be married to Faiz Mohammed, 40. She had hoped to become a teacher but was forced to quit her classes when she became engaged. 
• Majabin Mohammed, 13, at left, sits with her husband of six months, Mohammed Fazal, 45. Village elders advised him to accept Majabin as payment for a gambling debt.

Bad effects of child marriages

According to United Nations, Principle II:

Member States shall take legislative action to specify a minimum age for marriage, which in any case shall not be less than fifteen years of age; no marriage shall be legally entered into by any person under this age, except where a competent authority has granted a dispensation as to age, for serious reasons, in the interest of the intending spouses.  

In many countries, child marriage is a crime. And if a Muslim tries to follow his prophet’s Sunnah, he will have to face sever consequences.

WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES OR RESULTS OF EARLY MARRIAGE?

Adolescent pregnancy is alarmingly common in many countries. Every year, adolescents* give birth to 15 million infants.1 These young girls face considerable health risks during pregnancy and childbirth. Girls aged 15–19 are twice as likely to die from childbirth as women in their twenties; those under age 15 are five times as likely to die.2 Because early childbearing is so frequent, and carries so many health risks, pregnancy-related complications are the main cause of death for 15–19 year old girls worldwide.3 

* The World Health Organization defines adolescence as the period of life between ages 10 and 19. 

Sexual Behaviour and Childbearing

• Globally, most people become sexually active during adolescence. Rates are highest in sub-Saharan Africa, where more than half of girls aged 15–19 in seven countries are sexually experienced.4 

• Millions of adolescents are bearing children. In sub-Saharan Africa, more than half of women give birth before age 20. In Latin America and the Caribbean, this figure drops to one third.5 

Why is Adolescent Pregnancy So Common? 

• A lack of information and services: Adolescents often have poor information about reproduction and sexuality, and little access to family planning and reproductive health services. 

In Sri Lanka, one-third of young adults age 16–24 did not know the duration of a normal pregnancy. Fewer than 5% had discussed reproductive health with their parents.3 

• Cultural values: In many developing countries, female status is equated with marriage and motherhood. Adolescents often marry early; more than 50 countries allow marriage at age 16 or below, and seven allow marriage as early as age 12. 6 Even the youngest brides face immediate pressure to prove that they are fertile.7 

Health Risks 

Reproductive health problems and deaths are more common among sexually active adolescents than among women in their 20’s and early 30’s.4 Physiologically and socially, adolescents are more vulnerable to: 

• Maternal death: Girls age 15–19 are up to twice as likely to die during pregnancy or delivery as women age 20–34.4 

• Infant and child mortality: Children born to adolescents are more likely to die during their first five years of life than those born to women age 20–29.9 

• Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs): Each year, 1 in 20 adolescents worldwide contracts an STD (including HIV/AIDS).3

At Kenyatta Hospital in Nairobi, one-quarter of girls age 15-19 seeking antenatal care had an STD (gonorrhoea, chlamydia or herpes).10 

• Violence/sexual abuse: Adolescent girls may lack the confidence and decision-making skills to refuse unwanted sex. Girls who are subject to sexual abuse and rape can suffer serious, life-long physical and emotional consequences. 

In interviews with adolescents in Peru and Colombia, 60% said they had been sexually abused within the previous year.11 

• Unsafe abortion: Each year, girls age 15-19 undergo at least five million induced abortions.12 Because abortion is legally restricted in many countries, adolescents often resort to unsafe procedures by unskilled providers. Adolescent girls therefore suffer a significant – and disproportionate – share of death and disability from unsafe abortion.13 

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Rebutting Common Arguments Forwarded by Muslims

Argument  1

In those days the tradition of Marriage was based on tribal customs and rituals. The objective of marriage was mainly to foster friendship with the father of the bride and therefore the marriage of the Prophet with Ayesha was a political move.

Answer:

This is not a good excuse to marry an underage child. I am not bothered of the marriage of the prophet with a daughter of Abu Bakr, but the fact that Ayesha was a child. It is not proper for a messenger of God to have sexual feelings for a little girl and it is unconscionable to act on them. In this day and age if a 54-year-old man has an intercourse with a 9-year-old girl he will be jailed and despised as a pedophile. Why should the Prophet be forgiven?

Argument 2

The Prophet at the age of 25 married Khadijah, a woman who was 40-years-old and did not marry with another woman as long as she was alive. If the Prophet was a lustful man, he would not have married with an older woman and stay faithful to her all her life.

Answer:

Khadijah was a wealthy woman and the Prophet was a poor employee of her. Marrying a wealthy woman for him was climbing the ladder of social status. At that age, he was an orphan boy with little ambitions. Being a poor young man, no one paid attention to him. Kadijah was to him a boon. She gave him the comfort and the ease of mind from financial worries. Now he could afford to retreat to his cave and let his imagination fly; meet Jinns, battle with Satan, converse with Gabriel, and other creatures that haunted his feeble mind.

The fact that he remained faithful to Khadijah was not due to his chastity or loyalty but because she was a powerful woman and would not have tolerated infidelity from him. At that time Muhammad had no followers and he would have lost everything if he had offended his wealthy wife. That would have destroyed him completely.

However, he showed his true colors when he came to power and virtually nothing could stop him from doing what he pleased. It was then that he broke all the norms of the decency by the leave of his Allah.

Argument  3

The Prophets intention in marrying numerous old and widowed women, apart from sociopolitical considerations, was to foster their social status. Those were the days when women, especially slave girls, had little or no value and ignorance was such that they used to burry their daughters alive.

Answer:

The Prophet married Khadijah, as I explained above, for her wealth. After her death he married Ayesha who was only 6 years old and due to Abu Bakr’s request did not consummate his marriage with her for three years. During this time he needed a woman and the non-believers would not marry him as they thought he was a lunatic. Among his handful of followers there were few eligible women to whom he could marry. Sauda was a Muslim woman and a widow. She was ideal under the circumstances. She could warm his bed and take care of his home and needs. He married her two months after the death of Kahdijah. Khadijah and Sauda were the only wives of the Prophet, with whom he married not for lust but out of necessity. Hafza, the daughter of Omar also may have not been very beautiful according to her own father and the Prophet may have married her to please him and for political reasons. Every one of his other wives was a beautiful virgin or a beautiful divorcee or widow. Majority, if not all of them were in their teens. Prophet married them or simply slept with them without marrying them only because of their looks. Some times he had to bend few rules and even bring Allah to reveal some verses for him in order to allow him get what he wanted. As was in the case of Zeinab Bent Jahsh, Maryah and Ayesha. None of his wives were suffering from malnutrition or were lonely poor widows prior to marrying him. The stories of Safiyah, Maryah and Zeinab are love stories, flavored with lust, betrayal and crime.

You also correctly described the deplorable condition of the slave girls in those days, but you forgot to mention that many of these slave girls were free people before the Prophet took away their freedom and reduced them into slaves. Are you saying that the slave girls should have been grateful to the Prophet for killing their loved ones and sell them in the markets to a Muslim who would use them as a maid and a sex slave?

Argument 4

The marriage of the Prophet with Ayesha took place in the first or second year of the Hijra at the insistence of her father Abu Bakr and some of his friends. The Prophet, for sometimes after the death of Khadijah, remained single. His main objective in accepting this marriage was for political reasons. The reason for this marriage was that the Prophet was under the intense pressure by his enemies like Abu Lahab and Abu Jahl and was completely dependant of the protection of other tribes. Abu Bakr had a lot of tribal influence. And rejecting his offer, in those conditions, for the Prophet was not prudent. In reality this marriage was symbolic and not to satisfy his sexual instinct, because, as a rule a 53-year-old man cannot have sexual feelings for a 9-year-old girl. 

Answer:

The Prophet did not marry Ayesha at the insistence of her father. There are many Hadithes that show it was the Prophet who desired Ayesha and asked Abu Bakr to give him his then 6-year-old daughter for marriage. In fact Abu Barkr was shocked by such a request. He objected that he was a foster brother to the Prophet, which would have made such a marriage illicit. But the Prophet dismissed his concern saying that they were not real blood brothers and their oath of brotherhood was of no relevance in this case.

Sahih Bukhari 7.18
Narrated 'Ursa:
The Prophet asked Abu Bakr for 'Aisha's hand in marriage. Abu Bakr said "But I am your brother." The Prophet said, "You are my brother in Allah's religion and His Book, but she (Aisha) is lawful for me to marry."

Arabs were a primitive lot with little rules to abide. Yet they had some code of ethics that they honored scrupulously. For example, although they fought all the year round, they abstained from hostilities during certain holy months of the year. They also considered Mecca to be a holy city and did not make war against it. A foster son’s wife was deemed to be a daughter-in-law and they would not marry her. Also it was costmary that close friends made a pact of brotherhood and considered each other as true brothers. The Prophet disregarded all of these rules anytime they stood between him and his interests or wishes.

Abu Bakr and Muhammad had pledged to each other to be brothers. So according to their costumes Ayesha was supposed to be like a niece to the Holy Prophet. Yet that did not stop him to ask her hand even when she was only six years old.

But this moral relativist Prophet would use the same excuse to reject the daughter of Hamza who was also a foster brother to the Prophet because she was not very pretty.

Sahih Bukhari V.7, B62, N. 37
Narrated Ibn 'Abbas:
It was said to the Prophet, "Won't you marry the daughter of Hamza?" He said, "She is my foster niece (brother's daughter). "

In the following Hadith the Prophet confided to Ahesha that he had dreamed of her before asking her hand from her father.

Sahih Bukhari 9.140
Narrated 'Aisha:
Allah's Apostle said to me, "You were shown to me twice (in my dream) before I married you. I saw an angel carrying you in a silken piece of cloth, and I said to him, 'Uncover (her),' and behold, it was you. I said (to myself), 'If this is from Allah, then it must happen.' Then you were shown to me, the angel carrying you in a silken piece of cloth, and I said (to him), 'Uncover (her), and behold, it was you. I said (to myself), 'If this is from Allah, then it must happen.' "

The excuse that this marriage was “political” can be also dismissed easily. Abu Bakr was a good friend of the Prophet; he was one of his followers and his foster brother, he belonged to the same tribe of the Prophet; there was no need for the Apostle of Allah to sleep with his little daughter in order to foster his friendship. The evidence shows that the holy Prophet took advantage of this man’s devotion and abused the trust that he had in him and coerced him into giving his little girl in marriage to him. How could you deny the request of a man whom you believe to be a messenger of God?

Abu Jahl (the father of ignorance) was a derogatory nicknames given to Abul Hakam (the father of erudition). It’s difficult to see in what ways sleeping with a 9-year-old girl would have protected the Prophet from him? As you said this marriage took place one or two years after Hijra. His enemies were in Mecca. Even if such a marriage could have protected the Prophet, which is absurd, he was already safe in Medina, so that alibi is unacceptable.

Anyway, the point is not that the Prophet married a daughter of Abu Bakr. The point is that he had sex with a 9-year-old child. If you say it was done to protect himself, then the Prophet was an opportunist who raped a little girl to save his own life. Please don’t say it was not rape because a 9-year-old child is not mature enough to consent and if she cannot consent it is rape. Your defense incriminates the messenger of Allah even more than my accusations.

You said that the marriage was symbolic. How symbolic it could be if the Prophet approached Ayesha when she, according to her own testimony, was still playing with her toys and gave her a completely different kind of toy to play with that “SURPRISED” that little girl?

Sahih Bukhari Volume 7, Book 62, Number 90
Narrated Aisha:
When the Prophet married me, my mother came to me and made me enter the house (of the Prophet) and NOTHING SURPRISED ME BUT THE COMING OF ALLAH'S APOSTLE TO ME IN THE FORENOON.

You wrote, “As a rule a 53-year-old man cannot have sexual feelings for a 9-year-old girl.” That is absolutely true. This is precisely my point. Unfortunately we are not living in a perfect world and there are people who are psychologically disturbed and violate the rules. Even today there are old men who fantasize having sex with small children, keep their photos and exchange them on the Internet. They are known as pedophiles and to protect our children we put them in jail. If the Prophet hadn’t “surprised” that little girl in the same forenoon that her mother took her to his house, I could have accepted that the marriage was “symbolic”, even though its merits are not clear. But when we see that the Apostle of Allah consummated his marriage with that little girl in the same day that she was taken to him, it is hard to see it as “symbolic”; symbol of what?

Argument 5

There is no doubt that the climatic conditions influence the physical and psychological growth of girls and their growth are more accelerated in hot climates.

Answer:

In the previous point you explained that the marriage was symbolic and “as a rule a 53-year-old man cannot have sexual feelings for a 9-year-old girl”. But now you are approaching from a totally different angle.

I am afraid 9-year-old girls in Arabia are still 9-year-old children. Unless you advance a scientific evolutionary theory that human race has undergone a huge mutation during these 1400 years and in those days women reached adulthood at the age of 9, the fact remains that the Prophet had sexual feelings for an underage girl and this was wrong. To be convinced that 9-year-old children were always children, even during the time of the Prophet, we do not have to look farther than another Hadith narrated by Ayesha herself. In the following hadith Ayesha is revealing that she was playing on a swing when her mother took her to the Prophet.

Sunan Abu-Dawud 41:4915
Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin:
The Apostle of Allah (pbuh) married me when I was seven or six. When we came to Medina, some women came, according to Bishr's version: Umm Ruman came to me when I was swinging. They took me, made me prepared and decorated me. I was then brought to the Apostle of Allah (pbuh), and he took up cohabitation with me when I was nine. She halted me at the door, and I burst into laughter.

And used to play with her dolls.

Sahih Bukhari Volume 8, Book 73, Number 151
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. When Allah's Apostle used to enter (my dwelling place) they used to hide themselves, but the Prophet would call them to join and play with me. (The playing with the dolls and similar images is forbidden, but it was allowed for 'Aisha at that time, as she was a little girl, not yet reached the age of puberty.) (Fateh-al-Bari page 143, Vol.13)

Sahih Muslim Book 008, Number 3327:
'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) married her when she was seven years old, and he was taken to his house as a bride when she was nine, and her dolls were with her; and when he (the Holy Prophet) died she was eighteen years old.

As a rule one would say that if she was still playing with her dolls, she was not mature enough to learn about sex, first hand, from a man who could be her grandfather.

Argument 6

The difference of age between men, and the women they married, in the primitive societies, was acceptable and customary. Also it was not indecent or lewd for older men to marry very young girls and people of those days did not deem that to be something immoral. Even up to this day, one can find marriages with very young girls among the Arabs. As a rule one should not compare the customs of the primitive and tribal societies with the customs of the modern and advanced societies of today.

Answer:

I agree that primitive societies had some customs that are shocking to our modern sensitivity. Primitive people did a lot of things that appall us today. They had, human and animal sacrifices; practiced gender discrimination, slavery and many forms of abuses of human rights. I am not condemning primitive societies for they did not know better. I am condemning modern people who follow those primitive societies by following the examples of a man who was just a product of his primitive society. I am condemning a man who called himself the Prophet of Allah, the “Mercy of God in the worlds” Rahmatu’llah lil Alamin” and the example for all mankind, who instead of setting the example of morality and rectitude followed the customs of his primitive society and thus reaffirmed them and perpetuated them as something to emulate. I am condemning a society that has forgotten its own past splendor and glory and is now trying to copy the customs of a primitive society and wants to establish their primeval precepts by following their prophet who had nothing new to add to that primitive society bur was a product of it.

Yes, we should not compare the customs of the primitive and tribal societies with the customs of the modern and advanced societies of today. But why should we emulate them? Why should we follow them? Why should we accept their prophet who was incapable to break away from that primitiveness, barbarity and savagery?

If the Prophet was truly a prophet, he would have acted differently. He would have not followed the customs of his primitive society but would have set a new standard. If he followed the example of his primitive society why are we following him? On one hand the Muslims of the world study Muhammad’s life meticulously, try to imitate him in everything he did. They dress like him, shave like him, walk like him and talk like him, do as he did and live as he lived. They believe everything he did, was ordained by God and he was sent to be the example to all humanity. Yet you say that he did just what his ignorant and primitive society used to do and we should forgive his sins because he was just a victim of that society. How pitiful are we who have not seen this yet. Look what has befallen to our mighty nation that has forsaken its own past glory and is now blindly following a man who followed the customs of his primitive society. Could we sink deeper than this? Is there any humiliation more denigrating than this?

Argument 7

The issues of each time and place must be viewed according to the standards of their own time and place and not according to standards of other times and places. On the other hand we find that the Prophet (pbuh) practically did not confront with many customs of his own time that were not in contrast with the educational and spiritual goals of Islam, but dealt with them gradually and with realism in order to slowly eradicate them.

Answer:

I agree that issues should be apprised in the context of to their own time and place. Something that was acceptable 1400 years ago in Arabia may not look that good today. Perhaps we should not judge those people so harshly. But the question is why should we follow them? The solutions that were appropriate then are no more suitable for our time. Why follow a doctrine that has lost its utility and is stuck in history?

Muslims are advised to follow the Sunnah of the Prophet. You say that the Prophet was an Arab, following the traditions of his own people, so what he did was right in that context. But by following him now aren’t we perpetuating those unfit and outdated customs of those Arabs of 1400 years ago?

You affirm that the Prophet did not confront those bad customs that were not in contrast with spiritual and educational goals of Islam. My question is then, what are the spiritual and educational goals of Islam? What is the main goal of Islam anyway? The Muslim’s answer is of course, to recognize that God is one and he does not have any partner and that Muhammad is His messenger. This is the main concern of Islam. Moral and ethical issues are secondary. All the sins can be forgiven. Theft, homicide, murder and pedophilia are forgivable but assigning a partner to God is not.

“Allah forgiveth not that partners should be set up with Him; but He forgiveth anything else, to whom He pleaseth; to set up partners with Allah is to devise a sin Most heinous indeed" (Q.4: 48).

In other words, Saddam Hussein, Idi Amin, Ben Laden, Khalkhali and Khomeini will be forgiven despite all their crimes because they were Muslims and did not set partners to Allah but Gandhi who was a Hindu and as Muslims claim believed in a multitudes of deities will be burned for eternity in hell.

This Allah must be sick. He is a lunatic and a very miserable being for wanting so desperately to be known by his creatures and being so jealous. If this is the god of Muhammad he is not worthy of any praise but needs to be locked in a mental hospice very urgently.

As to those bad habits of the people that the holy Prophet did not confront directly but tried to deal with them gradually in order to eradicate them, what are they? In our world, pedophilia is a crime. It’s a shame that the Prophet did not consider pedophilia important enough to deal with it immediately because it did not contrast the spiritual goals of Islam. But I would have been still happy if I could see that he at least discouraged it. But no, he did not discourage it at all. He actually endorsed it by himself setting the example. This is not the way to “eradicate” something. This is the way to confirm it, to perpetuate it and to promote it.

Prior to Islam, the Iranians were a cultured people. They did not have these customs and traditions. Thanks to Islam, these shameful traditions have also crept into Iranian culture; these are being practiced there.

Pedophilia is only one of the many horrendous gifts of Islam to humanity. The holy Prophet endorsed many traditions that are equally despicable. Assassination of one’s enemies, which is customary in Iran and all Islamic countries, was also a tradition of the Prophet. He used to send assassins to the houses of his enemies to kill them at night. The honorable members of the Islamic Regime of Iran are following that tradition of the messenger of God (peace be upon his immaculate soul).

The End