Why the Prophet ﷺ Withdrew from His Wives

سبب اعتزال النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم نساءه

Why the Prophet ﷺ Withdrew from His Wives

Translated by: Reza Ervani bin Asmanu

This article, “Why the Prophet ﷺ Withdrew from His Wives,” is included in the Life of Prophet Muhammad Category

السؤال

Question:

سألني أحد عن أن الرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم اعتزل نساءه ذات مرة. ماهو السبب؟

Someone asked me about the occasion when the Messenger of Allah ﷺ withdrew from his wives for a period of time. What was the reason?

الإجابــة

Answer:

الحمد لله، والصلاة والسلام على رسول الله، وعلى آله وصحبه، أما بعد:

All praise is due to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah, his family, and his Companions. To proceed:

فقد ثبت حديث اعتزال النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم نساءه في الصحيحين من رواية ابن عباس رضي الله عنهما، وسبب الاعتزال ما وجد في نفسه عليهن، ففي رواية البخاري بلفظ:

The report that the Prophet ﷺ withdrew from his wives is established in the two Sahih collections, narrated from Ibn ‘Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both. The immediate reason for his withdrawal was the displeasure he felt toward them. In the narration of al-Bukhari, the wording is:

ما أنا بداخل عليهن شهرا من شدة موجدته عليهن.

“I will not enter upon them for a month because of the intensity of my displeasure with them.”

ورواية مسلم: وكان أقسم أن لا يدخل عليهن شهرا من شدة موجدته عليهن.

In the narration of Muslim: “And he had sworn that he would not enter upon them for a month because of the intensity of his displeasure with them.”

وأما سبب غضبه عليهن فقد اختلفت فيه الروايات، فذكر بعضهم أنه بسبب إفشاء حفصة إلى عائشة سرا كان النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم استكتمها إياه، ففي صحيح البخاري :

As for the reason for his anger with them, the reports differ. Some scholars mentioned that it was because Hafsah disclosed to ‘Aishah a secret that the Prophet ﷺ had asked her to keep. In Sahih al-Bukhari it is stated:

فاعتزل النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم نساءه من أجل ذلك الحديث الذي أفشته حفصة إلى عائشة.

“The Prophet ﷺ withdrew from his wives because of that matter which Hafsah had disclosed to ‘Aishah.”

والحديث الذي أفشته حفصة إلى عائشة فسره بعضهم بما ورد في قصة العسل وهي في الصحيحين، وفسره آخرون بإتيانه جاريته مارية القبطية في بيت حفصة، وقد رواها البيهقي، والدارقطني، والطبراني في الأوسط والكبير.

Some scholars interpreted the secret that Hafsah disclosed to ‘Aishah as referring to the well-known incident of the honey, which is reported in the two Sahih collections. Others interpreted it as referring to the Prophet ﷺ being with his bondwoman Mariyah al-Qibtiyyah in Hafsah’s house. This account was narrated by al-Bayhaqi, ad-Daraqutni, and at-Tabarani in al-Awsat and al-Kabir.

وذكر آخرون أن سبب غضبه عليهن ثم اعتزالهن ما ورد من مطالبتهن إياه بالنفقة، وقد جاءت بذلك رواية جابر في صحيح مسلم، وقد ذكر غير ذلك من أسباب.

Others mentioned that the reason for his anger and subsequent withdrawal from his wives was their request for increased maintenance from him. This is mentioned in a narration from Jabir in Sahih Muslim. Other possible reasons have also been mentioned.

قال الحافظ في الفتح: ويحتمل أن يكون مجموع هذه الأشياء كان سببا لاعتزالهن، وهذا هو اللائق بمكارم أخلاقه صلى الله عليه وسلم، وسعة صدره، وكثرة صفحه، وأن ذلك لم يقع منه حتى تكرر موجبه منهن صلى الله عليه وسلم ورضي الله عنهن.انتهى.

Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar said in Fath al-Bari: “It is possible that all of these matters together were the reason for his withdrawal from them. This is more consistent with his noble character ﷺ, his great forbearance, and his abundant forgiveness, and indicates that he did not take such a step until the causes for it had occurred repeatedly from them.” End quote. May Allah be pleased with them.

والله أعلم.

And Allah knows best.

Source: IslamWeb