The Life & Character of the Seal of Prophets (sa) - Volume II — Page 421
IX - Repeated Treachery of the Jews, Compilation and Sequence of the Holy Qur ’ā n, Marriage of Ḥaḍrat Zainab ra , the Great Calumny and Mischief of the Hypocrites 421 of additional marriages. Mr. Muir was also not at all unaware of the historical occurrence that when the people of Makkah could no longer bear the preaching efforts of the Holy Prophet sa and considered it to be destructive to their national religion, they sent a delegation to the Holy Prophet sa leaded by ‘Utbah bin Rabī‘ah. The delegation fervently pleaded to the Holy Prophet sa so that he would desist from his efforts. In addition to bribing him with wealth and power, they also begged that if he would be content upon marrying a worthy girl, and thus refrain from speaking ill of their religion and abstain from preaching this new faith, they were prepared to give him any girl he desired. At that time, the Holy Prophet sa was not very old, and his physical strength was also better than in his later life. However, the response that the Holy Prophet sa gave to the representative sent by the chieftains of Makkah is an open page of history, which does not need to be repeated here. 1 This historical occurrence was also not hidden from the eyes of Mr. Muir that prior to his divine appointment - that is, until forty years - the people of Makkah considered the Holy Prophet sa to be a man of impeccable character. 2 However, despite all these testimonies, for Mr. Muir to write that after the age of fifty- five, the Holy Prophet sa became indulged in sensuality and lust, despite the fact that his physical strengths naturally became weaker, and his engagements and responsibilities grew to such an extent that the busiest of people are put to shame, cannot be considered as being anything other than a prejudiced remark! Anyone is free to say as he wishes and others do not have the power to stop such a person’s tongue and pen, but an intelligent person should not make a statement which common sense rejects. If Mr. Muir and others like him had removed the veil of prejudice from their eyes, they would have come to know that the mere fact that all these marriages of the Holy Prophet sa took place in his old age proves that they were not motivated by carnal desires. Obviously, there were other motives hidden beneath the surface, especially when it is a historical fact that the Holy Prophet sa spent the days of his youth in such a state, that his own and others, all referred to him by the title of ‘Amīn. ’ I derive a spiritual pleasure in studying the fact that the era in which 1 * As-Sīratul-Ḥalabiyyah (Insānul-‘Uyūni Fī Sīratil-Amīni Wal-Ma’mūn), By ‘Allāmah Abul-Farj Nūruddīn ‘Alī bin Ibrāhīm bin Aḥmad Al-Ḥalabiyy, Volume 1, p. 430, Bābu ‘Arḍi Quraishin ‘Alaihi sa Ashyā’am Min Khuwāriqa. . . . . , Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2002) * Lubābun-Nuqūli Fī Asbābin-Nuzūl, Imām Jalāluddīn As-Suyūṭī, pp. 266-267, Sūratul-Kāfirūn / Qauluhū Ta‘ālā Qul Yā Ayyuhal-Kāfirūn, Dārul-Kitābul-‘Arabiyy, Beirut, Lebanon (2003) 2 The Life of Mahomet, By Sir William Muir, Chapter II (Occupation as a Shepherd), Reserved and temperate youth of Mahomet, p. 19, Published by Smith, Elder & Co. London (1878)