4.4. HAFSAH AND THE STORY OF DEMONSTRATION
Verily, living with the Prophet (peace be upon him) in his house did not mean that his wives would be distilled from their natural feelings of womanhood. Some incidents happened to depict the inevitable human atmosphere as well as the methodology of education that the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to apply to his household and to his nation as well.
This story, which happened in the life of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his wives, was out of the jealousy that women possess by nature. Verily, jealousy comes as a result of a woman’s imagination that her husband loves another woman more than her. This is a natural behavior that is usually committed by high virtuous women, not to mention the ordinary ones. As we have mentioned before, when talking about Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her), that a wife’s jealousy is of no harm so long as its reason is loving the husband and it does not exceed the limits of moderation.
In this regard, we have the story of A’ishah and Hafsah (may Allah be pleased with them) when they both backed up each other against the Prophet (peace be upon him). This story was narrated in two different ways as follows:
- On the authority of A’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) who said, “The Prophet used to stay long time with Zaynab bint Jahsh and drink honey at her house. So Hafsah and I decided that if the Prophet came to anyone of us, she should say to him, ‘I detect the smell of Maghafir (a nasty smelling gum) in you. Have you eaten Maghafir? So when the Prophet visited one of them she said the same to him. The Prophet said, ‘Never mind, I have taken some honey at the house ofZaynab bint Jahsh, but I shall never drink it anymore. ‘ Upon this there was revealed, O Prophet! Why do you hold to be forbidden that which Allah has made lawful to you . If you two (wives of Prophet) turn in repentance to Allah… (At-Tahrim: 1-4) addressing and Hafsah.
- It was reported on the authority of Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah had a bondwoman to have sexual intercourse with her. But S A’ishah and Hafsah urged him not to do that until he banned himself to have sexual intercourse with her anymore. Whereupon, Almighty Allah revealed, O Prophet! Why do you hold to be forbidden that which Allah has ntade lawful to you (At-Tahrim:)
This incident affected the Prophet (peace be upon him) bitterly. Therefore, he swore to stay away from his wives for a whole month. Truly, this Prophetic lesson was necessary in order to reform this mistake and let matters return to natural course. Indeed, it was a critical period in the life of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his wives. Consequently, they were greatly remorseful for what they had done. The Prophet (peace be upon him) stayed away from his wives for a month. During this period he had not spoken with anyone concerning them and no one of his Companions discussed this matter with him until Muslims thought that he had divorced his wives.
‘Umar came up to Hafsah and said, “How could you hurt Allah’s Messenger, Hafsah? You know that Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him) does not love you, and had I not been (your father) he would have divorced you.” (On hearing this) she wept bitterly. In another narration s Umar said to her, “Did the Messenger of Allah divorce you?” She said, “I do not know but he is up in the attic.” S Umar went to him and asked his servant to take the Prophet’s admittance. After having the permission, Umar entered the room of the Prophet (peace be upon him) who was lying on a mat that left its impacts on his sides.
Therefore, he said, “Messenger of Allah, what trouble do you feel from your wives? Verily, if you have divorced them, Allah would be then with you. His angels, Gabriel, Mika’il, I and Abu Bakr and the believers would be with you as well.” He talked to the Prophet (peace be upon him) until his anxiety left him. Then, he again said to the Prophet (peace be upon him), “Messenger of Allah, have you divorced them?” He answered,
“No. ” Umar said, “Messenger of Allah, I entered the mosque and found the Muslims throw pebbles here and there saying, “Allah’s Messenger has divorced his wives. Shall I go down and inform them that you have not divorced them?” He (the Prophet) said, “Yes, if you like so. ” Then, N Umar kept on talking to the Prophet (peace be upon him) until he laughed.
The glad tidings quickly reached the Mothers of the Believers that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was going to return to his house. Immediately, they stood by their doors looking forward to seeing the Prophet’s face. Then, the Prophet (peace be upon him) came out from his apartment reciting Allah’s saying,
((0 Prophet! Why do you hold to be forbidden that which Allah has made lawful to you? You seek to please your consorts. But Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. Allah has already ordained for you, (O men), the dissolution of your oaths (in some cases), and Allah is your Protector, and He is Full of Knowledge and Wisdom. When the Prophet disclosed a matter in confidence to one of his consorts, and she then divulged it (to another) and Allah made it known to him, he confirmed part thereof and repudiated a part. Then when he told her thereof, she said, ‘Who told you this?’ He said, ‘The Knower, the Aware informed me. ‘ If you two turn in repentance to Allah, your hearts are indeed so inclined; but if you back up each other against him, truly Allah is his Protector, and Gabriel, and (every) righteous one among those who believe, and furthermore, the angels will back
(hi”?) up. It may be, If he divorced you (all), that Allah will give him in exchange consorts better than you, who submit (their wills), who believe, who are devout, who turn to Allah in repentance, who worship (in humility), who travel (for Faith) and fast, previously married or virgins. (At-Tahrim: 1-5)
Eventually, this incident bears a great lesson to Muslim women, namely, the value of keeping the secrets of their husbands and its influence in keeping the stability of souls and houses. Moreover, we should learn from this incident that a wife should be a fountain of love, comfort, and tranquility for her husband enjoying all good qualities of the ideal wife as it was specified by Allah, Most High.
(SOURCE: Wives of Prophet Muhammad, Their Strives and Their Lives by Muhammad Fathi Mus’ ad)
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