Does Ayesha’s Supposed Inclusion in the Verse of Purity Protect her from Criticism?`

Does Ayesha’s Supposed Inclusion in the Verse of Purity Protect her from Criticism?

Ibn al Hashimi insists:

We wonder why then the Shia scholars say that they are the “followers of Ahlel Bayt” since Aisha (رضّى الله عنها) and her co-wives are the Ahlel Bayt! Allah Himself addresses them in the Quran as such.

The Quran specifically refers to the wives of the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) as Ahlel Bayt in the following verse:

“O wives of the Prophet! You are not like any other of the women; If you will be on your guard, then be not soft in your speech, lest he in whose heart is a disease yearn; and speak a good word. And stay quietly in your houses, and make not a dazzling display, like that of the former Times of Ignorance; and establish regular Prayer, and give regular Charity; and obey Allah and His Messenger. And Allah only wishes to remove all abomination from you, you Ahlel Bayt (People of the House) , and to make you pure and spotless.” (Quran, 33:32-33)

The transliteration reads: “Ya nisa al-nabiyilastuna kahadin mina alnisa-i ini itaqaytuna fala takhdaAAna bialqawli fayatmaAAa allathee fee qalbihi maradun waqulna qawlan maAAroofan Waqarna fee buyootikunna wala tabarrajna tabarruja aljahiliyyati al-oola waaqimna alssalata waateena alzzakata waatiAAna Allaha warasoolahu innama yureedu Allahu liyuthhiba AAankumu alrrijsa Ahlul Bayt-i wayutahhirakum tatheeran” (Quran, 33:32-33).

Ibn al Hashimi insists that this verse corroborates Ayesha’s inclusion in the verse of purity as the wife of the Prophet (s), we will point it that (as already proven) her violation of the Quranic verse to remain in her home during the battle of Jamal coupled with her own testimony not to be buried alongside the Prophet (s) in no way suggests that she was a person that had been protected for all form of impurity. Moreover we have Ayesha’s very own testimony from Sahih Bukhari Volume 6, Book 60, Number 352:

Narrated Yusuf bin Mahak:

Marwan had been appointed as the governor of Hijaz by Muawiya. He delivered a sermon and mentioned Yazid bin Muawiya so that the people might take the oath of allegiance to him as the successor of his father (Muawiya). Then ‘Abdur Rahman bin Abu Bakr told him something whereupon Marwan ordered that he be arrested. But ‘Abdur-Rahman entered ‘Aisha’s house and they could not arrest him. Marwan said, “It is he (‘AbdurRahman) about whom Allah revealed this Verse:–

‘And the one who says to his parents: ‘Fie on you! Do you hold out the promise to me..?’”

On that, ‘Aisha said from behind a screen, “Allah did not reveal anything from the Qur’an about us except what was connected with the declaration of my innocence (of the slander).”

Note how Ayesha cited only one verse in honour of her family, and that verse related to the verse of her innocence. Has Ayesha also formed part of the verse of purity she would have definitely cited that, as it was far more significant, not only would it have protected her innocence, it would have guaranteed her protection from sins ad infinitum. Ayesha’s very own admission that only one verse exists in honour of the family of Abu Bakr serves as clear evidence that there existed no nexus between her and the verse of purity. Moreover it was Ayesha herself who testified the subjects of the verse of purification in Sahih Muslim.

Concluding our discussions on Ifq

There is no doubt that Ayesha was indeed exonerated of the evil lie made against her, one however wonders why so much detail was given but the Hadith narrators before this exoneration? We have without any addition or deletion cited Ayesha’s recollection of Ifk from your most authentic works Sahih Bukhari. Are the narrations not shameless and disgusting? What was the precise reason behind these narrators going into the precise minutiae of this terrible event? Would the life of Ayesha remain incomplete if so much vivid detail had not been disclosed to the masses? Or could it be that such details should be presented for all to see and admire, as they were cascaded to us via the blessed tongue of Ayesha? If all this was merely submitted to evidence the purity of Ayesha, what is the point having placed so many blots on her character up until then? If you have a white cloth that becomes stained in some way, it does not matter how much you wash it, it will never appear as clean and shiny as when you initially purchased it.

In conclusion, it would have been far better if Bukhari had steered clear of these traditions. One wonders why Ibn al Hashimi and his ilk baselessly attack the Shia for attacking the good character of Ayesha when the real culprits ate the Sahaba that slandered her, protected the perpetrators in the name of tribal affiliation and even openly questioned her character in the presence of the Prophet (s). It is evident that the practice of slandering Ayesha is not some Ibn Saba inspired concoction; rather it was the Sunnah of the Sahaba, who all are sources of guidance like stars in the sky for Ibn al Hashimi. It was these shameless individuals that attributed fornication to Ayesha that cause divine intervention via the subsequent declaration of innocence in Surah Noor. We relied purely on the testimony of Ayesha from Sahih Bukhari, for those interested in looking further into the matter, they can consult the following esteemed Sunni works:

1. Sunan Nisai Volume 4 page 162 “Kitab Hudood”
2. Fatah ul Bari Volume 5 page 273 “Kitab Shahadath”
3. Irhsad al Sari Sharh Bukhari Volume 4 page 494 “Kitab Shahadath”
4. Nawawi’s Sharh Muslim, Volume page 364 “Kitab Tauba”
5. al Bidayah al Nihaya by Ibn Kathir on page 160 Volume 4, Chapter “Dhir Ifk”
6. Tafsir Mazhari commentary of Surah Nur Volume 17 page 479
7. Tafsir Kabeer Volume 6 page 240 Surah Nur
8. Tafsir Fatah ul Qadeer Volume 5 page 49 Surah Nur
9. Umdah al Qari fi Sharh Sahih Bukhari, Volume 6 page 90
10. Sirat un Nabi by Ibn Hisham, chapter 137 (the event of Ifik) page 360

Ibn Kathir in al Bidayah al Nihaya, Volume 4 page 160 writes the following:

ثم خرج إلى الناس فخطبهم وتلا عليهم ما أنزل الله عزوجل من القرآن في ذلك ثم أمر بمسطح بن أثاثة وحسان بن ثابت وحمنة بنت جحش وكانوا ممن أفصح بالفاحشة فضربوا حدهم

“Then he (prophet) went to the people and addressed and then recited what Allah revealed in Quran, then he ordered that Mastah bin Uthatha, Hasaan bin thabit, Hamna bint Jahsh to be punished because they were among those who spread the allegation of adultery.”

As part of their propaganda, Nawasib often allege that we accuse Ayesha of this, but this is a blatant lie. Ayesha’s innocence ‘in this particular case’ has been vouched for in the Quran and the Shi’a have stated this clearly in their commentaries. It is unfortunate that rather than attack us these masters of fitnah don’t take into account that those who questioned Ayesha’s character were none other than the Sahaba themselves. As Shia we believe that the wife of a Prophet (s) can be a kaafir or a hypocrite but she will never indulge in zinah, Allah (swt) has ensured that his chosen servants are protected from such a scandal. We wish to make it clear may the curse of Allah (swt) be upon all those that accused Ayesha of Zinah, we would invite the Nawasib to do likewise.