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Excerpted from Why I Left the Nation of Islam
6.21 Interracial Marriages Authorized by the Prophet
In Western society, interracial marriages were considered taboo and anathema until the advent of the civil rights movement just a few decades ago. This was also the case in Pre-Islamic Arabia, a time known as the Age of Ignorant Barbarism (Jahiliyyah). The white-skinned Arabs looked down on marrying blacks, especially slaves. Yet, Prophet Muhammad ibn Abdullah sought to remove these prejudices from the white society he lived in, and encouraged interracial marriages. We shall cite three such examples here.
The Prophet of Islam encouraged a female in his own family, Zaynab bint Jahsh, to marry a black man, i.e. Zayd ibn Haritha. Zaynab’s brother refused to give her away in marriage on the grounds that Zayd was a freed black slave, whereas she was an aristocratic white-skinned Arab woman of noble lineage. Yet, the Prophet of Islam rejected this attitude of bigotry and insisted that Zaynab marry Zayd based on his piety and good character. The family continually refused until God revealed the following verse of the Quran:
It is not becoming of a believing man or woman, once God and His Messenger have decreed an affair, to have an option to follow their own choice. (Quran, 33:36)
After this verse was revealed, the family relented, and the two were married.
Another interracial marriage that the Prophet facilitated was that of Julaybib, a black disciple of the Prophet, and the daughter of an Arab family in Madeenah. The Prophet of Islam encouraged the two to get married based on their mutual piety and good character, but the Arab mother defiantly refused to have her daughter marry a black man. However, the daughter herself intervened and insisted on marrying Julaybib, based on the Prophet’s recommendation. And so they were married with the Prophet’s blessings. When Julaybib was martyred in battle, the Prophet said of his black disciple: “He is of me, and I am of him.” [1]
The third example we shall cite is that of Saad al-Aswad. Saad was of a very dark black complexion, which at that time was considered very ugly, due to the prevailing prejudices. Before he converted to Islam, Saad came up to the Prophet of Islam and asked him if his dark skin color and “ugly features” would prevent him from entrance into Paradise. To this, Prophet Muhammad ibn Abdullah told him that his looks had no bearing on his entrance into Paradise which would be based solely on his belief and obedience to God.
Saad sent marriage proposals to several women, but he was continually rejected due to his dark complexion and “ugly features”. Finally, Saad complained to the Prophet, who then sent him to marry the daughter of Amir ibn Wahhab, who was considered to be one of the most beautiful and “fairest” of ladies. Amir was a recent convert to Islam, and had not yet rid himself of pre-Islamic prejudices; Amir categorically rejected Saad’s proposal to his daughter. The Prophet of Islam rebuked Amir for his bigotry. Thankfully, Amir’s daughter herself interceded and told her father to accept the marriage proposal, lest they be disgraced by God’s revelation.
And so the two were married, but immediately the Call to Jihad (Holy War) was given, and so Saad left his wife before even being able to consummate the marriage with his beautiful wife. Saad fought valiantly on the battlefield and was martyred. Learning of his martyrdom, the Prophet of Islam placed Saad’s head on his lap, until the grave was prepared. The Prophet ordered his arms and mount to be sent to his wife’s family. God revealed to the Prophet that Saad would be married to an even more beautiful woman in the next life, i.e. one of the maidens of Paradise.
These marriages were not isolated or chance events. Rather, they were a part of the Prophet’s systematic plan to eradicate racism and bigotry from the hearts and minds of the believers, and to unite them all under the banner of Islam. The manner in which the Prophet confronted racist attitudes and prevalent prejudices is all the more amazing when we factor in how long ago he lived. It would take the Western world hundreds of years to catch up with the Prophet’s progressive and enlightened attitude towards race.
[1] Ibn Athir, 1:348; Alawiye pp. 138-140; Ibn Hajar, Fath al-Bari, 9:505-506, #5283
Posts: 1967 | From: USA | Registered: Oct 2006
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The quintessential 'Arabs' were, and to this day have always been, a 'mixed race' people of Kushitic and Shemitic admixture.
Moreover, as a distinct population group, Arabs predate the religion of Islam by at least 1000 years. What's your point?
Posts: 387 | From: England, UK | Registered: Feb 2008
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