Aspects of Pre-Islamic Arabian Society | The Sealed Nectar | Part 1
Excerpts from "The Sealed Nectar"
Social Life of the Arabs
Arab society presented a social mixture, with different and diverse social levels. Women among the social elite were according a high degree of esteem, and enjoyed considerable free will. Their decision would be enforced and they were so highly cherished that blood would be easily shed in defence of their honor. In fact, they were the most decisive factors that held the key to bloody fighting and friendly peace. These privileges notwithstanding, the family system in Arabia was wholly patriarchal, according supremacy to the older members of the clan. The marriage contract rested completely in the hands of the woman's legal guardian whose words with regard to her marital status could never be questioned.
On the other hand, there were other social circles where prostitution and indecency were widespread and in full operation. Al-Bukhari and other reported, on the authority of `Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, that there were four kinds of marriage in pre-Islamic Arabia:
The first was similar to present-day marriage procedure, in which case a man gives his daughter or the woman under his responsibility in marriage to another man after a proposal and a dowry has been agreed on. In the second, the husband would send his wife (after the menstrual period) to cohabit with another man in order to conceive. After conception, her husband, if he desired, would have a sexual intercourse with her.
Third kind was that a group of less than ten men would have sexual intercourse with a woman. If she conceived and gave birth to a child, she would send for these men, and nobody could abstain. They would come together to her house. She would say: You know what you have done. I have given birth to a child and it is your child (pointing to one of them). The man indicated in this manner would have to accept. The fourth kind was that a large number of men would have sexual intercourse with a certain women (a prostitute), who would not prevent anybody. Such women used to affix a certain flag at their gates to invite people in. If this prostitute got pregnant and gave birth to a child, she would collect those men, and seeress would tell whose child it was. The appointed father would take the child and declare him/her his own.
When Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam declared the advent of Islam in Arabia, he cancelled all these forms of sexual contact except that of the present Islamic marriage.
Women always accompanied men in their wars. Thee victors would freely have sexual intercourse with such women, but disgrace would follow the children conceived in this way all their lives.
Pre-Islam Arabs has no limit to the number of wives they could take. They could marry two sisters at the same time, or even the wives of their fathers if divorced or widowed.
وَلَا تَنكِحُوا مَا نَكَحَ آبَاؤُكُم مِّنَ النِّسَاءِ إِلَّا مَا قَدْ سَلَفَ إِنَّهُ كَانَ فَاحِشَةً وَمَقْتًا وَسَاءَ سَبِيلًا
And marry not woman whom your fathers married, except what has already passed; this surely is indecent and hateful, and it is an evil way. [4:22]
حُرِّمَتْ عَلَيْكُمْ أُمَّهَاتُكُمْ وَبَنَاتُكُمْ وَأَخَوَاتُكُمْ وَعَمَّاتُكُمْ وَخَالَاتُكُمْ وَبَنَاتُ الْأَخِ وَبَنَاتُ الْأُخْتِ وَأُمَّهَاتُكُمُ اللَّاتِي أَرْضَعْنَكُمْ وَأَخَوَاتُكُم مِّنَ الرَّضَاعَةِ وَأُمَّهَاتُ نِسَائِكُمْ وَرَبَائِبُكُمُ اللَّاتِي فِي حُجُورِكُم مِّن نِّسَائِكُمُ اللَّاتِي دَخَلْتُم بِهِنَّ فَإِن لَّمْ تَكُونُوا دَخَلْتُم بِهِنَّ فَلَا جُنَاحَ عَلَيْكُمْ وَحَلَائِلُ أَبْنَائِكُمُ الَّذِينَ مِنْ أَصْلَابِكُمْ وَأَن تَجْمَعُوا بَيْنَ الْأُخْتَيْنِ إِلَّا مَا قَدْ سَلَفَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ غَفُورًا رَّحِيمًا
Forbidden to you are your mothers and your daughters and your sisters and your paternal aunts and your maternal aunts and brothers' daughters and sisters' daughters and your mothers that have suckled you and your foster-sisters and mothers of your wives and your step-daughters who are in your guardianship, (born) of your wives to whom you have gone in, but if you have not gone in to them, there is no blame on you (in marrying them), and the wives of your sons who are of your own loins and that you should have two sisters together, except what has already passed; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful. [4:23]
To a very great extent divorce was in the power of the husband. The evil of adultery prevailed among all social classes except for a few men and women who is self-respect prevented them from committing such an act. Free women were in much better condition than the female slaves who bore the brunt of this shameful practice. Apparently, the great majority of pre-Islamic Arabs did not feel ashamed of committing this evil. Abu Dawud reported: A man stood up in front of Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam and said: "O Prophet of Allah, that boy why is my son. I had sexual intercourse with his mother in the pre-Islamic period." The Prophet said:
Islam is a religion of peace. It is the message of peace to all.keep shating.thank you.go ahead
Absolutely. Sure, I will @ausharya
To listen to the audio version of this article click on the play image.
Brought to you by @tts. If you find it useful please consider upvote this reply.
Merriage system in
Islam
Is great safe dignity or esteem for womens but current socities are thuoght totaly different due to lacking Islamic education.
Kept it up
@syedubair
Women in Islam are respected as the there were women who were ruling the Ottoman Empire in those times. They were called Valide Sultan and they ruled the empire when their sons were too young to rule it. Upvoted!