The Reasons of the Prohibition of the Marriage of the Prophet's Wives after his Demise

Abstract

Describing the status of the Prophet's (PBUH) wives as Nisā al-nabī (نساء النبی), the Holy Qur'ān considered their remarriage after the Holy Prophet (PBUH) as tormenting, and severely forbids it. The present study aims to examine the reasons of the Prohibition of the marriage of the Prophet's (PBUH) wives after his demise, and explain the philosophy behind this decree of God based on Qur'ānic, narratives, and historical, social and intellectual reasons. In this study, the data were collected through a library research method and were analyzed using a descriptive-analytical method. The detailed study of the data indicated that those willing to marry the Prophet's (PBUH) wives did not respect dignity and status of the Prophet's (PBUH). In addition, after marrying the Prophet's (PBUH) wives, they could politically, socially, morally, and theologically abuse their status out of selfishness and adventure. Therefore, in addition to preserving the Prohibition of the prophecy, Qur'ān limited the possibility of personal identification of some people through affinity with the Prophet (PBUH) and prevented the possible slips. Moreover, his wives' denial of getting divorced after the elevation of the Qur'ānic verse 33: 53, indicates their self-sacrifice, appreciating the honor of continuing their marriage to the Prophet (PBUH) as well as maintaining the spiritual achievements of their matrimonial lives.