Surah al-Ahzab (The Confederates) 33 : 29

Overview (Verses 28 - 29)
 
This third passage in the sūrah speaks specifically of the Prophet’s wives, except for the last verse which tells of the reward for all Muslims, men and women, for their good actions. At the beginning of the sūrah, they were called ‘mothers of the believers’, and this motherhood establishes certain duties. Their noble position, which earned them this status, also establishes certain duties. Further duties are also made obligatory on them because of their relationship o the Prophet. The present passage outlines some of these duties and states the values God wants the Prophet’s home, with all its purity, to represent and uphold so as to serve as a beacon of light guiding travellers.
 
A Choice is Offered
 
Prophet! Say to your wives: ‘If you desire the life of this world and its charms, I shall provide for you and release you in a becoming manner; but if you desire God and His Messenger and the life of the hereafter, know that God has readied great rewards for those of you who do good.’ (Verses 28-29)
 
The Prophet chose for himself and his household a standard of living which was just about enough to meet their essential needs. The reason for so doing was not that he could not afford a better standard of living. Indeed, enormous tracts of land came under his control, yielding great wealth, and availing him of great riches if he so chose. Yet there were times when a month would pass without a fire being lit for cooking in any of his homes. At the same time, the Prophet was extremely generous when it came to giving gifts and charitable donations. Essentially, then, he made this choice so as to rise above material and worldly needs, and to sincerely seek what God keeps for believers. It was a question of preference. Neither his faith nor the law it lays down required that the Prophet lead such a life of austerity. Comfort and luxury are not disdained in Islam. Indeed, the Prophet did not turn his back on them when they were offered normally, without being sought after. Yet, he neither excessively indulged in them nor was he so preoccupied. We do not find any instruction from the Prophet requiring that any of his followers live the sort of life he chose for himself. He left it entirely o them, should they choose to emulate him in freeing themselves from the pressures of seeking life’s comforts.
 
The Prophet’s wives were ordinary women who shared all human feelings and desires. Noble, virtuous and close to the Prophet as they all were, their natural desire for life’s comforts remained strong. When they felt that circumstances had changed and, by God’s grace, prosperity had replaced poverty in the Muslim society, they spoke to the Prophet about their standard of living. He did not welcome this. In fact it was unpleasant to him, because his noble soul preferred to live without any such preoccupation. He appreciated the freedom and sublimity such a life provides. It was not a matter of whether life’s comforts were lawful or not: there was no question of prohibition as Islam made it clear that such comforts were not prohibited for Muslims. It was rather a question of being free from material pressures.
 
The Prophet was so upset at this turn of events that he did not go out to meet his Companions. That he stayed away was very hard for them. They, therefore, went to see him, but were not admitted. Imām Aĥmad relates on Jābir’s authority: “Abū Bakr went to the Prophet when people were sitting near his door, but he was not admitted. `Umar also went, sought permission to enter but no such permission was given. Later on though, he admitted both Abū Bakr and `Umar. As they went in, they saw the Prophet surrounded by his wives but he was silent. `Umar thought that he should say something to make the Prophet laugh. He said: ‘Messenger of God! I wish you had seen how last night my wife was asking me for more money and I thrust my fingers into her neck.’ The Prophet laughed heartily and said: ‘You see them surrounding me asking for more money.’ Abū Bakr rose to hit his daughter, `Ā’ishah, while `Umar sought to do the same to Ĥafşah, his daughter. Both said to them: Are you asking the Prophet to give you what he has not?’ The Prophet told them not to hit their daughters, and both `Ā’ishah and Ĥafşah said: ‘By God! We will never again ask the Prophet for anything he does not have.’ God then revealed the verses offering them the choice. The Prophet started with `Ā’ishah saying to her: ‘I am going to tell you something which I would like you o consider carefully and consult your parents before you decide.’ He then read to her the two verses: “Prophet! Say to your wives: ‘If you desire the life of this world and its charms, I shall provide for you and release you in a becoming manner; but if you desire God and His Messenger and the life of the hereafter, know that God has readied great rewards for those of you who do good.” She said to him: ‘Would I consult my parents about staying with you? I certainly choose God and His Messenger. However, I would request you nor o mention my choice to any of your other wives.’ He said to her: ‘God has not sent me to adopt a hard attitude, but He has made me a teacher and a facilitator. If any of them asks me about your choice, I will tell her.” [This ĥadīth is also related by Muslim on the authority of Zakariyyā ibn Isĥāq, and related in a slightly different wording by al-Bukhārī.]
 
The Qur’ān defines the principal values in the Islamic concept of human life. These values must be practically reflected in the Prophet’s home and in his own private life. His home remains a beacon of light for Muslims throughout human life. Hence it should provide the best and most accurate example of Islamic values.
 
The two verses gave the Prophet’s wives a choice: either world luxuries and life comforts or God, His Messenger and the life to come. No single heart can accommodate two different value systems. The Prophet’s wives had already said that they would never again ask the Prophet for what he did nor have. The Qur’ānic verses were revealed to define the principle involved. It is not a question of whether the Prophet has such luxuries or not: it is a question of choosing between God, the Prophet and the life to come on the one hand and the luxuries and adornments of the present life on the other. The Prophet’s wives were to choose whether they had worldly treasures at their disposal or their homes were without food. When this decisive choice was offered, they all made their preference clearly and absolutely, choosing God, the Prophet and success in the life to come. They proved themselves fit for the sublime standard their high position as the Prophet’s wives required. One report also mentions that the Prophet was delighted with their choice.
 
All Were Human
 
We need o pause a little to reflect on some aspects of this event which defines the Islamic concept of values. It leaves our hearts with no room for hesitation between worldly values and those of the life to come; between the world we live in and the world of heaven. It purges our hearts of any influence that hinders us from purely seeking God’s pleasure, to the exclusion of everything else.
 
From another point of view, the event describes to us the nature of the Prophet’s lifestyle, as well as those who lived with him and were closely related to him. The most beautiful thing about this lifestyle is the fact that it was chosen by ordinary people who never lost sight of their human feelings, desires and preferences, despite rising to sublime standards of devotion and dedication. Their human feelings and emotions did not die; they only rose to an exalted level and were purged of impurity while retaining their natural human beauty. Thus, they enabled them o attain the highest standard of perfection possible.
 
We often err when we give the Prophet and his Companions an untrue or incomplete image that does not consider all their human characteristics and emotions. We think that in this way we put them above what we consider to be a weakness. Our mistake renders the Prophet and his Companions opaque, devoid of their essential human features and characteristics. The human relation between us and them is severed, and we begin to see them as ghosts lacking a tangible reality. We begin to think of them as belonging to a different species: angels or a similar type of creature above human feelings and emotions. In this way they are removed from our lives and if we permit this they will no longer provide us with an example to follow or to be influenced by. When we read the history of the Prophet and his Companions we no longer find in this something for us to emulate, but instead we find ourselves looking at their lives with an awe and admiration that produces only vague feelings without practical effect. We also lose our ability to identify with such great personalities, because we no longer see them as ordinary humans who experienced the same emotions, feelings and reactions as we ourselves experience.
 
We can clearly understand God’s wisdom in assigning His messages to ordinary men to deliver. This task was not assigned to angels or to creatures from any other species. This provides a real bond between the lives of the messengers and the lives of their followers. The latter continue o feel that the messengers’ feelings and emotions, exalted as they were, were always those of humans. Thus, they love them and try to emulate them in the same way as children try o emulate adults.
 
In the question of the choice offered o the Prophet’s wives we note their natural desire for comforts and luxuries. We also see an image of the Prophet’s home life, with his wives asking their husband for more money. He is upset, but he does not allow Abū Bakr and `Umar to beat `Ā’ishah and Ĥafşah, their daughters for their requests. The whole question is one of feelings and inclinations, which need to be refined, not suppressed. The question remains at this level until God orders the Prophet to give his wives the choice and they make their free choice without pressure or the suppression of any feelings. That his wives opted for the sublime standard he preferred greatly delighted the Prophet.
 
We also need to reflect for a moment on what we see of sweet emotion in the Prophet’s heart. He shows that he loves `Ā’ishah and that he would love it if she rose to the standard of values God wants for him and his household. He therefore offers her the choice. He wants o help her rise to the sublime, so he asks that she does not make a decision until she has consulted her parents. He knows that her parents would never ask their daughter o leave him. `Ā’ishah does not overlook the Prophet’s sweet emotion towards her. She is delighted with it, and she mentions this in her report. In this ĥadīth we see the Prophet as a man in love with his young wife, and as someone who would be delighted o see her rise to, and maintain the standard he has adopted for his life. We also see her delighted to recognize her place in her husband’s heart, reporting his love and desire to keep her, which is manifested by his request that she consult her parents. We also see the woman in her as she requests him not to tell his other wives of her choice. She wants to be the one who makes that choice, ahead of at least some of them. But we also see the Prophet’s greatness as he tells her: ‘God has not sent me to adopt a hard attitude, but He made me a teacher and facilitator. If any of them asks me about your choice, I will tell her.’ He does not want to deprive any of them of what could help them make the right choice. He is not testing them to see who might fail; rather he is helping those who request help, so that they can rise above worldly attractions.
 
All these are noble human elements which we must never ignore, suppress or undervalue as we read the Prophet’s life story. To understand them as they truly are establishes a strong and active bond between us and the Prophet’s person, as well as the personalities of his Companions. We can thus interact with them in a way that motivates us into emulation.