A lot of non-muslims think of Muhammad as a Pedophile, because of His supposed marriage with a nine-year-old girl named Aisha. History tells us that the age of Aisha was not nine years, when the marriage was first consummated. It is a well-established fact that Aisha was five years younger than Fatima (daughter of Muhammad), and Fatima was born in the year when Ka’bah was being rebuilt and it happened exactly five years before the Call. This fact proves that Aisha was not less than fifteen years old when the marriage was first consummated.
Arabs practiced Polygamy. Muhammad was also married to Khadija (His first Wife) who was 15 years older than Muhammad. Aisha’s father Abu Bakkar Siddique also married to a young girl when he was in his sixties; that was because, the standard of consummation was “puberty” or sexual maturity.
Still today, different societies have a different age limit for marriage. For instance, in the American state of Georgia, the age of marriage starts from 15 years and in Texas, one can marry at the age of 14. America has many states and in each state the age of marriage is different, ranging from 21 years, 19, 18, 16, 14 (Texas), 13 (New Hampshire) and even as low as 12 (Massachusetts). So who decides which age is right when one country cannot make its mind up?
In the case of Muhammad and Aisha, the marriage was not only meant to develop a matrimonial relationship. Aisha was the only young female personality that entered into the Muhammad’s life. It was Muhammad who nurtured and directed her growth to the most fruitful channels. Thus, she was groomed to play the most prominent role in the history of Islam. She was competent to give answers to those young girls who wanted to ask numerous questions to Holy Prophet, but they were too shy to ask those questions regarding female problems. It was Aisha, who played a vital role in spreading the true message of Islam.
