Rant – Husbands are Duty Bound to Hide the Faults of Their Wives

–:Eighth Emotional Rant:–

Husbands are Duty Bound to Hide the Faults of Their Wives

Ibn al Hashimi insists:

Allah further says: “They (wives) are like garments for you, and you are like garments for them.” (Quran, 2:187) In the Tafseer, both Sunni and Shia Ulema say that this means that husbands should hide the faults of their wives, and vice/versa. Hence, the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) was a covering for Aisha (رضّى الله عنها), protecting her from slander and insults. Indeed, if the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) were alive today, he would defend Aisha (رضّى الله عنها) and refute the malicious lies levied against her. In fact, Allah commands the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) to be a protector and maintainer of his wives: “Men are the protectors and maintainers of women.” (Quran, 3:34)

Reply One – The descent of this verse concerns conjugal relations during Ramadhan

Ibn al Hashimi’s deception continues unabated. The garment verse relates to permissibility to perform conjugal relations with one’s wife during Ramadan, and has nothing to with hiding their faults. It was revealed to satiate the high libido of the Sahaba, Ibn Kathir states in his commentary of the said verse:

They are Libas [i.e., body-cover, or screen] for you and you are Libas for them.)

Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Sa`id bin Jubayr, Al-Hasan, Qatadah, As-Suddi and Muqatil bin Hayyan said that this Ayah means, “Your wives are a resort for you and you for them.” Ar-Rabi` bin Anas said, “They are your cover and you are their cover.” In short, the wife and the husband are intimate and have sexual intercourse with each other, and this is why they were permitted to have sexual activity during the nights of Ramadan, so that matters are made easier for them.

Reply Two – A husband has a duty to disclose those faults of his wife that threaten the smooth running of the State

If Sunni / Shia Tafseers have expanded on this to suggest that husbands should hide the faults of their wives, we would agree, there are certain matters that are personal to spouses and are no body else’s business but that couples. Differences can exist between spouses and it would be right to protect / hide those faults that have a bearing on no one else save the parties in that relationship. If for example a husband is critical of his wife’s cooking, the way she runs the house, these matters are private and such faults should be covered by the husband. If however a wife’s conduct goes outside the confines of the marital home, and in fact affects other individuals, and worse threatens the stability of society, his duty as a citizen of the State overrides his duty to his wife. In such circumstances the husband has a duty to warn others of the conduct of his wife so that individuals do not come under her wing.

Rasulullah (s) was the Head of the nascent state, and the Leader of an entire Ummah. He struggled through blood, sweat and tears to create a fully functioning Islamic government. Would Rasulullah (s) not seek to prevent any threats to that State, that could threaten its existence? Would he (s) not seek to warn his Ummah of any future conduct that might challenge the stability of the State? If the challenge was to come in the form of his own wife, would his duty be to remain silent and hide her faults, or would his duty be to warn his subjects of the threats that his wife posed? In such circumstances the duty to protect the Ummah from the seditious activities of his wife were more important than hiding her faults. There existed a direct nexus between her faults and the threat to societal stability, Rasulullah (s) accordingly made that fault a matter of public disclosure so that all recognized the threat that her conduct would pose in the future. That is why he stated in a public sermon, that we have cited before in Sahih Bukhari, Volume 4 Hadith 336:

“Narrated Abdullah: The Prophet stood up and delivered a sermon, and pointed to the house of Aisha, and said: “Fitna (trouble/sedition) is right here,” saying three times, “from where the side of the Satan’s head comes out.”

The Fitna / sedition of Ayesha came into fruition when Imam Ali (as) took the helm of Government following the assassination of Uthman, all that we are doing is highlighting the very Fitna that Rasulullah (s) foretold. We fully concur with the submission of Ibn al Hashimi:

Ibn al Hashimi insists:

Indeed, if the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) were alive today, he would defend Aisha (رضّى الله عنها) and refute the malicious lies levied against her. In fact, Allah commands the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) to be a protector and maintainer of his wives: “Men are the protectors and maintainers of women.” (Quran, 3:34)

We are in no doubt that Rasulullah (s) would have defended her for any sort of ‘lies’ leveled against her but we are dealing with an altogether different situation which pertains to historical facts about her leaving her home, mounting a campaign against the Caliph of the time, galvanizing an army, waging war against Caliph and her exhibiting abhorrence towards him (as). These are all matters that the Prophet (s) foretold his adherents.