MUHAMMAD,
AISHA, ISLAM, AND CHILD BRIDES
INTRODUCTION
Muhammad was 52 and Aisha was 9 when they married and sexually consummated their
marriage. Muhammad followed an Arab custom in
marrying a child who had her first menstrual cycle. This
action must be questioned, regardless of it being a cultural norm, because Muhammad's
action and teachings on marriage established an Islamic precedent: a girl is judged an adult following her first
menses, and is eligible for marriage and sexual relations.
Thus Muslim men are allowed to marry and have intercourse with young girls
who have happened to have an early first menstrual cycle.
As will be shown, this leads to physical and psychological damage to the
child.
Muhammad's first wife - Khadija, died a few years before he fled to Medina. Later, he was encouraged to take another wife. At the age of 49 he was betrothed to Aisha, age
six. Aisha was his closest friend's, Abu
Bakr's, daughter. At that time, she had
already been betrothed to another man but by mutual consent the betrothal was dissolved. Three years later, following her first menstrual
cycle, he then formally married and sexually consummated his marriage with her.
Most Western people know it is not in a 9 year old girl's best interest to engage
in marriage and sexual relations with a 52 year old man, regardless of the cultural
setting. We know that, in our culture today,
a person doing such a thing could possible be sent to prison for sex with a minor,
statutory rape, or other related laws. Most
of us find it questionable for Muhammad, a self proclaimed prophet of God, to do such a
thing. We expect a real prophet to know
better, or at least hear from God on the matter.
What is more critical than Muhammad's single action with Aisha is that he taught
that a girl is considered an adult following her first menstrual cycle. He also taught that his followers were to follow
his "sunnah" or lifestyle. Thus
today, throughout much of the Mideast, girls as young as nine are often married by men old
enough to be their grandfather.
But why then do we find it objectionable?
After all, Muhammad did not live in our culture or under our law. He lived under a Semitic culture. And this custom of marrying girls after their
first menses existed in the Mideast long before Muhammad.
What is the basis for rejection of this Semite custom and Muhammad's precedent? Are there any valid reasons to criticize it? Or should it simply be rejected based upon our own
cultural bias?
I'll address this and other issues in this paper, and a discussion of the
consequences of his deed as well. However
some fundamental groundwork needs to be laid before moving on. Aisha's actual age is the first point that needs
to be established. Within the Islamic world
there is division concerning Aisha's age when she sexually consummated her marriage. Many Muslims in the West have a hard time
accepting Aisha was only a little girl of 9 when their "prophet" had sex with
her. Some Muslims, and even Western writers,
wrote that she did not have sex with Muhammad until she was 14 or so. I've never seen any textual Islamic support for
their position, only conjecture. But the
thought of their prophet committing such an act is embarrassing to them, so they invent,
or re-write, documented Islamic history to make it more acceptable to their minds and the
minds of other Western people as well.
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EVIDENCE
THAT AISHA WAS 9 WHEN HER MARRIAGE TO MUHAMMAD WAS CONSUMMATED
There are a number of sources, all written by Muslims, that detail Muhammad's
marriage and consummation with his young child-bride - Aisha.
FROM
THE HADITH OF SAHIH BUKHARI
I have used Bukhari's Hadith, translated into English by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan,
at the Islamic University in Medina. Bukhari's
Hadith is considered authentic by the majority of Sunni Islamic scholars. It is second to the Quran in terms of importance.
The central figure to approve and sign the translation is Dr. Amin Al-Masri, Ph.D.
Cambridge University. He is the Advisor and
Head of the Sharia Dept., at the College of Sharia and Islamic Studies in Mecca.
From
Bukhari vol. 7, #65:
"Narrated Aisha that the prophet wrote the marriage contract with her when she
was six years old and he consummated his marriage when she was
nine years old. Hisham said: "I have been informed that Aisha remained
with the prophet for nine years (i.e. till his death).""
Bukhari
vol. 7, #88:
"Narrated Urwa: "The prophet
wrote the (marriage contract) with Aisha while she was six
years old and consummated his marriage with her while she was nine years old
and she remained with him for nine years (i.e. till his death).""
Bukhari
vol. 5, #234 says:
"Narrated Aisha: The prophet
engaged me when I was a girl of six. We went
to Medina and stayed at the home of Harith Kharzraj.
Then I got ill and my hair fell down. Later
on my hair grew (again) and my mother, Um Ruman, came to me while I was playing in a swing
with some of my girl friends. She called me,
and I went to her, not knowing what she wanted to do to me.
She caught me by the hand and made me stand at the door of the house. I was breathless then, and when my breathing
became all right, she took some water and rubbed my face and head with it. Then she took me into the house. There in the house I saw some Ansari women who
said, "Best wishes and Allah's blessing and a good luck." Then she entrusted me to them and they prepared me
(for the marriage). Unexpectedly Allah's messenger came to me in the forenoon and my mother
handed me over to him, and at that time I was a girl of nine years of age."
FROM
THE HADITH OF SAHIH MUSLIM VOLUME 2, #3309
Aisha reported: Allah’s Messenger
married me when I was six years old, and I was admitted to his
house at the age of nine….
FROM
THE HADITH OF THE SUNAN OF ABU DAWUD
Abu Dawud's Hadith is the third most respected Hadith in Islam.
From
Abu Dawud, Vol. 2, #2116:
"Aisha said, "The Apostle of Allah married me when I was seven years
old." (The narrator Sulaiman said: "Or six years."). "He had
intercourse with me when I was 9 years old."
FROM
THE HISTORY OF TABARI
Tabari wrote the most authentic Islamic history.
It covers 39 volumes. Tabari was one
of the greatest Islamic scholars and the greatest Islamic Historian.
From
Tabari, volume 7, page7:
"....my marriage (to Muhammad) was consummated
when I was nine....."
From
Tabari, volume 9, page 131
"Then the men and women got up and left.
The Messenger of God consummated his marriage with me in my house when I was nine
years old. Neither a camel nor a sheep was
slaughtered on behalf of me"......(The Prophet) married her three years before the
Emigration, when she was seven years old and consummated the
marriage when she was nine years old, after he had emigrated to Medina in
Shawwal. She was eighteen years old when he
died.
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I also want to provide evidence from the best Islamic Ency. available in English,
and other Islamic writers. They also
acknowledge Aisha's age being 9.
FROM
THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ISLAM, under
"Aisha". (pub. by E.J. Brill).
"Some time after the death of Khadija, Khawla suggested to Muhammad that he
should marry either Aisha, the 6 year old daughter of his chief follower, or Sawda Zama, a
widow of about 30, who had gone as a Muslim to Abyssinia and whose husband had died there. Muhammad is said to have asked her to arrange for
him to marry both. It had already been agreed
that Aisha should marry Djubayr Mutim, whose father, though still pagan, was friendly to
the Muslims. By common consent, however, this
agreement was set aside, and Muhammad was betrothed to Aisha.... The marriage was not
consummated until some months after the Hidjra, (in April 623, 624). Aisha went to live in an apartment in Muhammad's
house, later the mosque of Median. She cannot have been more than ten years old at the time and took her
toys to her new home."
From the Muslim book "WOMEN IN ISLAM" by Said Abjullah Seif-Al-Hatimy,
published by Islamic Publications in Lahore Pakistan:
"...(Aisha) She was the youngest
of his wives. It is said that she was nine
years of age when he married her."
SUMMATION
OF THE EVIDENCE OF AISHA'S AGE
I've belabored the point. But because
of the controversy within the Islamic world I had to document her age thoroughly. The most respected Hadith and Islamic scholars
from early on until this present day state that Aisha was 9 when Muhammad engaged in
sexual relations with her.
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DEFINITION
OF THE WORD TRANSLATED AS "CONSUMMATE"
There has been some confusion about the definition of the word
"consummate". In Sahih Bukhari,
vol. 7, #64, the root word used is "dakhala".
From the Hans-Wehr Arabic-English Dictionary p273, it means "to enter, to
pierce, to penetrate, to consummate the marriage, cohabit, sleep with a woman".
I have also asked two native Arabic speakers to confirm the definition of the word
used in Bukhari. They read Bukhari in Arabic
for themselves, and did indeed say it meant that Muhammad had sexual intercourse with
Aisha when she was 9.
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ISLAM
AND THE AGE OF PUBERTY
Islam teaches that female puberty begins when the menses is started. From Bukhari, volume 3, Book of Witnesses,
chapter 18, page 513:
"The boy attaining the age of puberty and the validity of their witness and
the Statement of Allah:
"And when the children among you attain the age of puberty, then let them also
ask for permission (to enter)." Quran
24:59.
Al Mughira said, "I attained puberty at the age of twelve." The attaining of puberty by women is with the
start of menses, as is referred to by the Statement of Allah:
"Such of your women as have passed the age of monthly courses, for them the
prescribed period if you have any doubts (about their periods) is three months... [65:4]
...Al-Hasan bin Salih said, "I saw a neighbouress of mine who became a
grandmother at the age of twenty-one." [1]
[1] The note for this reference says,
"This women attained puberty at the age of nine and married to give birth to a
daughter at ten; the daughter had the same experience."
My understanding of the above is that Islam considers that when a child
"attains", or begins, "puberty", then he / she is considered an adult. Hence the validity of the witness.
Muhammad followed a cultural norm in marrying and having sex with a young girl. After all, she was considered an adult. Not only did he do that, but he taught his
followers to do as he did. Therefore is
acceptable for Muslim men to marry and have intercourse with girls who have had their
menarche. Muhammad established this cultural
practice as a precedent in Islam.
I add that there are other primitive cultures that allow girls to marry following
their menarche. But that does not make it
right or in the best interests of the child. Some
cultures killed baby daughters for various reasons. Cultural
norms do not make an action morally right.
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JEWISH
CULTURE AND MARRIAGE
The Baker Ency. of the Bible says about
Jewish marriage customs in volume 2, page 1407, under "Marriage":
"Subsequently, minimum ages (for marriage) of 13 for boys and 12 for girls
were set."
And Jim West, ThD, writes online, [at http://www.theology.edu/marriage.htm],
in "Ancient Israelite Marriage Customs":
"The wife was to be taken from within the larger family circle (usually at the
"outset of puberty" or around the age of 13) in order to maintain the purity of
the family line".
Even in the Mishnah, the age of maturity
for a female is 12.5 years:
"she won her case in court before she matured [at the age of twelve years and
six months], lo, they belong to the father." Mishnah
Ketubot, 4:1.
So we see that Jewish culture also allowed young girls to be married at an early
age. Not as young as 9, but as young as 12. The beginning of puberty was not the cultural norm
for the Jewish culture to allow marriage. I
assume marriage was allowed if the girl had her menarche, AND she reached the age of 12. This is superior to Islam's standard. Judaism insists that a girl must be at least 12,
Islam allows for marriage following the first menses.
I believe that there have been documented cases of girls having menarche as
young as 8.
So here is the crux of the matter: do
I, or anyone else, have the right to reprove Muhammad for instituting an accepted cultural
norm as a legally permissible practice? Is it
unjust criticism from me (and others) when we say that it is wrong to marry and engage in
sex with young girls?
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SCIENCE
AND PUBERTY
How do the biological sciences address the topic of female puberty? Here are quotes from several college level text
books, and the World Book Encyclopedia. There
is a great deal of info presented, but it is necessary to provide scientific details to
fully understand puberty.
From
"Adolescence",
by L. Steinberg, pub. by McGraw Hill, 1993.
page
22:
"Puberty derives from the Latin word "pubertas", which
means "adult". Technically, the
term refers to the period during which an individual becomes capable of sexual
reproduction, that is, it denotes the series of biological changes leading up
to reproductive capability. More broadly speaking, however, puberty is used as a
collective term to refer to all the physical changes that occur in the growing girl or boy
as the individual passes from childhood into adulthood."
page
23:
"Puberty may appear to be rather sudden, judging from its external
signs, but in fact it is part of a gradual process that begins at conception. (Petersen and Taylor, 1980). You may be surprised to learn that no new hormones
are produced and no new bodily systems develop at puberty.
Rather, some hormones that have been present since before birth increase,
and other decrease."
page
26:
"The effects of
the endocrinological changes of puberty on the adolescent's body are remarkable. Consider the dramatic changes in physical
appearance that occur during the short span of early adolescence. One enters puberty
looking like a child and within FOUR years or so has the physical appearance of a young
adult."
page
32:
[This page shows a
chart depicting that puberty lasts about 4 years in girls].
"Generally, full reproduction function does not
occur until several years after menarche, and regular ovulation follows menarche by about
two years (Hafetz, 1976)....
The onset of puberty can occur as early as 8 years in girls and 9.5 in boys, or as
late as 13 in girls and 13.5 in boys. In girls, the interval between the first sign of puberty and complete
physical maturation can be as short as one and one-half years or as long as six years....In
more concrete terms, it is possible for an early-maturing, fast-maturing youngster to
complete pubertal maturation by the age of 10 or 11 - two years before a late-maturing
youngster has even begun puberty."
page
36 - 37: "(Although menarche
does not signal the onset of puberty....) .....the average age at menarche generally is
lower in those countries where individuals are less likely to be malnourished or suffer
from chronic disease. For example, in western
Europe and in the United States, the median menarcheal age ranges from about 12.5 years to
13.5 years. In Africa, however, the median
menarcheal age ranges from 14 years to 17 years."
page
66:
[There is a table
depicting the four stages of cognitive development according to Piaget. It shows that the brain develops mature cognitive
ability after age 11].
page
73:
[On page 73 he
presents a table showing that the brain is not fully mature until about the age of 16. From this table, I estimate that at age 9, the
maturation of the brain is between 50 to 60%.].
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From "Adolescent Life Experiences",
by G. Adams and T. Gullotta, pub. by Brooks / Cole, 1983:
page
89:
"The onset of
puberty is not a single, sudden event but a complex, gradual process. In perhaps oversimplified terms, puberty is
characterized by (1) a spurt in physical growth, (2) maturation of physiological
mechanisms, and (3) the appearance of secondary sex characteristics (for example, pubic
hair or breast development). The onset of
puberty is basically regulated by endocrine glands, important organs that create body
changes through the secretion of chemicals into the bloodstream or lymphatic system.
page
92:
"Although changes
in height and breadth are important in adolescent development, society is more inclined to
recognize the rapid maturation of the reproductive system during this period (D. D. Logan,
Calder, & Cohen, 1980). The major stages
in sexual maturation are (1) the initiation of puberty, which occurs approximately six
months earlier in girls than in boys, 92) the development of secondary sex
characteristics, which takes approximately four years; and (3) menarche, which occurs
approximately two years after the onset of pubertal change (Marshall & Tanner, 1969,
1970).
page
101: "DEVELOPMENTAL
DISORDERS
When the gonads become sexually mature and active before age 8 in girls or before
age 9 in boys, pediatricians are inclined to diagnose "precocious puberty". When this condition occurs, the pubertal process
is generally complete within two years."
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FROM
"ADOLESCENCE - TRANSITION FROM CHILDHOOD TO MATURITY",
by Lambert, Rothschild, Altland, & Green, pub. by Brooks / Cole, 1978:
page
106: "The
process of physical development that results in the end of childhood and the beginning of
adolescence involves three overlapping stages: Prepuberty,
pubescence, and puberty. Although this
sequence is the same for all individuals, the times of onset and the lengths of these
periods differ from one person to another (Thornburg, 1975).
Prepuberty begins at the end of childhood with a rapid rise in hormone levels... It
is also a period in which a rapid growth spurt begins and the secondary sex
characteristics, such as the budding of the breast in girls and the enlargement of the
testes and penis in boys, start to develop. Generally,
girls experience theses changes two years before boys; the average age of onset of this
stage is 10 for females, 12 for males (Tanner, 1975).
Pubescence, the second stage, is characterized by the proliferation of sex cells
and near completion of the secondary sex characteristics (Thornburg, 1975). Pubescence begins with the menarche, or first
menstruation, in girls.... The appearance of
these characteristics, however, does not necessarily indicate that the reproductive system
is complete. It may be a matter of months or
even years before the body is capable of reproduction.
It is only with the third phase, puberty, that girls develop regular ovulatory
menstrual cycles and the capability for procreation....This period generally spans about
two years for girls and about three years for boys, ending when all of the secondary sex
characteristics have fully appeared and reproductive ability has been reached. Most boys are well into puberty by age 14
(Marshall, 1975), most girls by the age of 15-16."
page
108: "...the
gradual decrease in the average age at which menarche has been occurring among Western
European girls and apparently among girls of the United States and Canada as well
(Botstein & McArthus, 1976)....The fact that research has indicated that this trend is
just as evident among girls in temperate climates as among girls in warm climates would
also tend to destroy the myth that girls mature earlier in warm climates than in more
moderate ones."
page
111: "Abnormal
growth and delayed or precocious puberty are usually associated with disorders in
hypothalamic hormonal changes (Schonberg, 1075; Sizonenko, 1975)."
page
115 - 117:
"In girls
there initially appears a budding of the breasts, then the appearance of pubic hair, then
the menarche, and finally ovulation. ...Breast development and pubic hair first become
visible at about 10-11 years of age, whereas the menarche occurs, on the average, in the
range of 11-13 years, or approximately two years after initial breast development. Menstruation during pubescence is generally
irregular, partly due to factors of emotion, tension, and nutrition. Reproductive maturity is usually attained from one
to two years after the first menstruation, with maximum fertility developing in the early
20s (Lamburg et al., 1973)....
The average age at menarche is 12.5 to 13. However,
some normal girls may begin to menstruate as early as 9, while others may not start until
the age of 16 (Offer & Offer, 1968)....
Genital growth is usually not complete when menstruation begins, and this growth
continues slowly for several more years. The
menarche is frequently followed by a period of sterility, which lasts until a regular
ovulatory menstrual cycle is established. The
duration of this period varies considerable; the first ovulation (the discharge of the
first egg from the ovaries) may occur at menarche, or it may not take place until years
later....
For several months following the menarche, there is usually a lack of regularity in
the extent and timing of the menstrual flow."
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From "Child Adolescent Development",
by J. Brunk, pub by Wiley, 1975:
page
70:
"Precocious
puberty is the extreme opposite of delayed sexual maturation. In this condition, a girl may develop secondary
sexual characteristics before the age of 8, or a boy before he is 10. This clearly can produce severe psychological
problems for the affected child."
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AN
EDITOR FROM "PSYCHOLOGY TODAY", states
that:
"Most research of which I'm aware shows that young people reach full
intellectual maturity by age 11 or 12, whether or not they have achieved the physical
changes of puberty."
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From
the World Book Ency. under "Sex" on
page 333 regarding puberty:
"Puberty is the period of rapid growth that marks the end of childhood and the
beginning of physical and sexual maturity (full development).
From
the World Book Ency. under "Adolescent", page 61:
"Most girls start puberty at about age 11.
Most boys start at about age 13. Puberty
ends when a girl or boy reaches sexual maturity - that is, becomes capable of
reproduction. Most adolescents are sexually
mature TWO OR THREE YEARS AFTER they start puberty."
(Capitals mine).
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WHAT
ARE THE BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES TELLING US ABOUT PUBERTY?
To begin with, puberty does not begin with a girl's menarche. It begins about a year or two earlier. Islam missed the mark on this. Islam considers that puberty and adulthood begin
with the menarche.
Further, science teaches that puberty does not end with menarche. It takes at least 2 more years for a child to
sexually mature. Islam also missed the mark
on this end. Science shows that usually the
female body still has a ways to go from the time a girl has her menarche to the time she
is sexually able to reproduce, or is considered to have an adult body.
Science further documents that there are times when a child may have
"precocious puberty" and have menarche as early as age 8. This is usually due to a dysfunction or disorder
within the child. Aisha may have had
precocious puberty. Although it happens, it
is very rare that young children experience menarche at age 9. Aisha had been very sick
prior to her "marriage" to Muhammad. She
had even lost some of her hair during her illness. Physically,
she was having severe problems. Perhaps she
was having some type of sickness that triggered her menarche, or she was experiencing some
disorder that also caused the menarche. Either
way, having menses at age 9 does not signify adulthood and justify marriage and engaging
in sexual activities.
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PUBERTY,
MENARCHE, AND REPRODUCTION
There is a mis-conception that when a young girl has her first menarche, she is
capable of getting pregnant. Many primitive
cultures believed that a girl can become pregnant following menarche; Muhammad's culture
probably believed this as well. However,
science tells us this is very rare. Instead,
the average time for a girl to become pregnant following menarche is one to two years. Clearly then, girls are not "mature"
following their menarche. There are no
biological grounds to marry and engage post-menarcheal girls in sexual activity; they cannot conceive children yet. Puberty does not equal maturity, and therefore
this misconception should not lead to marriage.
Logically then, menarche is not a sign of a female being able to bear children. Only at the end of puberty can a girl conceive,
not at the beginning, not at the middle. Puberty
usually takes several years to complete.
Muhammad erred in establishing Islamic grounds allowing men to marry
post-menarcheal girls. The girls are not
sexually mature, they are not mentally mature, and they are not physically mature. Muhammad's precedent (Sunnah) is a blight upon
the children of the Muslim world.
DAMAGE
TO YOUNG GIRLS
SCIENCE
AND OTHER EFFECTS OF EARLY SEXUAL ACTIVITY
Besides the documented assessment of growth and puberty above, other scientific and
research groups have specifically addressed the effects of teen pregnancy. This of course reflects upon Islam, since
Muhammad took a child bride, and taught it was okay for others to do as well. Here are some excerpts from webpages that address
this issue.
from
the American Academy of Pediatrics, at: http://www.aap.org/policy/02325.html
"...Improvements
in prenatal care have resulted in decreases in medical complications among babies born to
teenage mothers, but mothers aged 14 years and younger continue to experience unacceptably
high rates of adverse outcomes. The most
significant medical risks for infants of teenage mothers are likely related to the
parental care those infants receive after the first year of life. Infants born to younger teenage mothers have a
higher rate of mortality by their second birthday than infants of older adolescents and
adults. [3] The incidence of prenatal
mortality and low birth weight increases with subsequent pregnancies in adolescents. [4] The morbidity experienced by the infants of young
mothers is more subtle to define but has been reported to include increased rates of
hospitalization and increased risks of accidents, poisonings, burns, and superficial
injuries. [5]...
...In
several studies the cognitive levels of infants of younger v older mothers have been
compared, and the results indicate lower cognition among the infants of younger mothers...
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FROM
THE UNITED WAY - MARCH OF DIMES BIRTH DEFECTS FOUNDATION:
TEENFACTS
http://babynet.ddwi.com/tlc/pregnancy/teenfact.html
"Health
Risks to the Mother"
"A teenage mother is more at risk of pregnancy complications such as premature
or prolonged labor, anemia and high blood pressure. These
risks are even greater for teens who are less than 15 years old.(3)"
"Health
Risks to the Baby"
"A baby born to a teenage mother is more at risk than a baby born to an older
mother.
"Nine percent of teenage girls have low-birthweight babies (under 5.5 lbs.),
compared to 7 percent of all mothers nationally.(1)"
"Low-birthweight babies may have organs that are not fully developed. This can lead to lung problems such as
respiratory distress syndrome, or bleeding in the brain."
"Low-birthweight babies are 40 times more likely to die in their first month
of life than normal-weight babies."
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FROM
THE UNITED NATIONS
http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu6/2/fs23.htm
NOTE: The webpage I obtained this from was particularly
gruesome to read. Some sections, that did not
pertain to this topic, (like female genital circumcision, a practice found throughout the
Islamic world and taught by one of the 4 major schools of Islamic theology), I could not
finish reading myself. It was just too gross. Do not read it if you have a weak stomach, or are
disturbed by reports about women being abused. In
this paper, I have tried to edit out gruesome details that were not necessary.
"HARMFUL
TRADITIONAL PRACTICES AFFECTION THE HEALTH OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN"
"An appraisal of harmful traditional practices and their effects on women and
the girl child.
Traditional cultural practices reflect values and beliefs held by members of a
community for periods often spanning generations. Every social grouping in the world has
specific traditional cultural practices and beliefs, some of which are beneficial to all
members, while others are harmful to a specific group, such as women. These harmful
traditional practices include female genital mutilation (FGM); forced feeding of women;
early marriage; the various taboos or practices which prevent women from controlling their
own fertility; nutritional taboos and traditional birth practices; son preference and its
implications for the status of the girl child; female infanticide; early pregnancy; and
dowry price. Despite their harmful nature and their violation of international human
rights laws, such practices persist because they are not questioned and take on an aura of
morality in the eyes of those practicing them....
(NOTE: most of these are practiced by the Islamic
world).
...Child
marriage robs a girl of her childhood-time necessary to develop physically, emotionally
and psychologically. In fact, early marriage inflicts great emotional stress as the young
woman is removed from her parents' home to that of her husband and in-laws. Her husband,
who will invariably be many years her senior, will have little in common with a young
teenager. It is with this strange man that she has to develop an intimate emotional and
physical relationship. She is obliged to have intercourse, although physically she might
not be fully developed....
...Health
complications that result from early marriage in the Middle East and North Africa, for
example, include the risk of operative delivery, low weight and malnutrition resulting
from frequent pregnancies and lactation in the period of life when the young mothers are
themselves still growing....
The work of the Committee has also permitted the identification of certain areas
where law reform should be undertaken, in both civil and penal areas, such as the minimum
age for marriage and establishment of the age of criminal responsibility as being the
attainment of puberty. Some States have argued that girls attain their physical maturity
earlier, but it is the view of the Committee that maturity cannot simply be identified
with physical development when social and mental development are lacking and that, on the
basis of such criteria, girls are considered adults before the law upon marriage, thus
being deprived of the comprehensive protection ensured by the Convention on the Rights of
the Child. The International Conference on Population and Development, held at Cairo in
September 1994 (see p. 36 below), encouraged Governments to raise the minimum age for
marriage. In her preliminary report to the Commission on Human Rights, the Special
Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, Ms. Radhika
Coomaraswamy, also recognized that the age of marriage was a factor contributing to the
violation of women's rights ...
Early pregnancy can have harmful consequences for both young mothers and their
babies. According to UNICEF, no girl should become pregnant before the age of 18 because
she is not yet physically ready to bear children. Babies
of mothers younger than 18 tend to be born premature and have low body weight; such babies
are more likely to die in the first year of life. The
risk to the young mother's own health is also greater. Poor health is common among
indigent pregnant and lactating women. ...
An additional health risk to young mothers is obstructed labor, which occurs when
the baby's head is too big for the orifice of the mother. This provokes vesicovaginal
fistulas, especially when an untrained traditional birth attendant forces the baby's head
out unduly....
Generally throughout the developing world, the average food intake of pregnant and
lactating mothers is far below that of the average male. Cultural practices, including
nutritional taboos, ensure that pregnant women are deprived of essential nutriments, and
as a result they tend to suffer from iron and protein deficiencies...."
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So not only does science teach us that young girls are not mature just because they
have had first menarche, but science teaches us that teen, or worse yet, pre-teenage girls
should not be bearing children. Their bodies
are not ready for it. These type of
pregnancies are frequently harmful both to the mother and the child.
However, Islam does not take into account the child's or mother's health. Because it was part of Muhammad's
"sunnah", (lifestyle), and because early marriage of girls is permitted in
Islam, (following menarche), it cannot change it's position on this issue. Consequently, this type of abuse occurs throughout
the Islamic world. If anyone wants to see
just how bad child abuse is in the Islamic world, read the above webpage posted by the
United Nations. Most of the barbaric
cultural practices listed there are generally practiced in the Islamic world.
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MORE
PHYSICAL DAMAGE TO YOUNG GIRLS
Modern medicine teaches that a female's body is not fully developed at age 9. Sexual intercourse at that age could damage a
female's sexual organs. For instance, at the
age of 9 years old, the cervix of the female is yet undeveloped, as are many of the
child's sexual organs. Further, intercourse
at this age leads to an 80% increased risk in her developing cervical cancer later in
life.
In the book "One River", by Wade Davis, page 228, (Simon & Schuster),
Davis documents how when young girls are subjected to intercourse with an adult male,
their hips get damaged, because their bones are not fully formed:
"These were Loayza's concubines, Indian children who grew into adolescence
physically deformed, their hips weak and permanently dislocated from intercourse."
I am not saying that Aisha had deformed hips, or that Muhammad brutalized her. I am saying that just because a girl has her 1st
menstrual cycle doesn't mean she qualifies as an adult.
There are other factors that need to be considered. Islam however, fails to consider these factors.
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PSYCHOLOGICAL
DAMAGE TO YOUNG GIRLS
There have been several studies done on females who were married at a very young
age, and then taken into sexual intercourse. Following
is a citation from two of them.
"Sexual
contact between children and adults: A life course perspective."
Browning,
Christopher R; Laumann, Edward O
Citation: American Sociological Review, v62n4, pp.540-560, Aug 1997
Number: 03374356