LOVER OF THE BELOVED : AISHA

LOVER OF THE BELOVED : AISHA

It is the most unforgettable race in history, yet there are no spectators.

Of the two racers, the younger one draws a line on the ground; the starting line.They are going to begin running from that point. The older one ties his shirt around his belly. A strange contest; he will not become upset if he loses. He looks at his rival with love and proposes a race. Can you imagine it? He is the man whom thousands of people follow; he is the one who split the moon with just a single sign from his hand! On the way to Badr he asks smiling, knowing that they are on their way to the most important battle of all times:

"Would you like to race with me, Aisha?"

"Alright, Messenger of God!"

In a blink of the eye the race begins. The Prophet (pbuh) and his beloved wife begin to run. Although they were not there at that moment, millions of people witnessed this joyful race through the words of Aisha. They look with admiration at the page of love created by the Prophet on the road to the Battle of Badr. He wins the race. He is Prophet Muhammad. The loser does not seem to be upset, but rather delighted when the Prophet says: "This was the return match of the race in Zulmajaz!" These words take Hazrat Aisha back a few years. Back to the wonderful race which she won when she was a little girl with her father Abu Bakr.

Her fate is preparing her for a great responsibility; to record the memory of the Last Prophet. There is a need for a young memory, like a fresh clay tablet to record every detail, a memory to bring to the future every fact that has anything to do with him. It is for this reason that she is with him; at home, on journeys, at peace and war. After his death, she will account everything that she learned through her marriage of forty-seven years. For nine years she listens to the Last Prophet in her room. The wall of Aisha's room is next to the al-Masjid al-Nabawi. She hears every single word he says to his Companions and asks him about those things she did not understand. One day, Prophet Muhammad told his Companions: "Whoever desires to meet with Allah, Allah desires meeting them. And whoever does not desire to meet Allah, Allah does not desire meeting them." And by turning the comment of Aisha -"No one among us would wish for death" - into a key subject, he broadens the meaning: " A believer feels a longing to meet with Allah whenever the mercy, consent and the heaven of Allah is mentioned and thus Allah reciprocates the believer with the same longing. However, when an unbeliever hears of the wrath and rage of Allah, they do not desire the day when they will meet Allah and Allah corresponds with the same discontent." On another day, reacting with amazement to his remarks "All humans will be naked on the Day of Judgment" she asks the Prophet "How can this be? Are they not going to see one another?" He responded, "It is such a frightening day that no one will be aware of the others!"

She always remained beside her beloved. She had seen how the victory in Badr and the sorrow in Uhud fell upon the Prophet's face. While carrying water on her back, caring for the wounded, she was the mother of the believers; while leaning on his shoulder and watching the Abyssinians exhibiting war games with their spears, she was the lover of the Beloved. In one of his hadiths, Ali called her the "Lover of the Messenger". He spoke of her as the "Lover of Allah's Beloved". When the Prophet was asked about whom he loved the most in this world, he answered "Aisha", indicating her rank and stating that he received revelation only when he was with her, not with his other wives. Aisha deserved this love not only with her knowledge, intelligence, comprehension, and other qualities, but also with her worship; she fasted during the day and she prayed during the darkest moments of nights. She was the daughter of Abu Bakr; she had great modesty, prudence and generosity. She was the wife of the Prophet who abstained from gossip, protected the poor and who had great dignity.

She only had one flaw; she was jealous! She loved the Prophet so much and she was very jealous of him. Yet, she had the virtue and wisdom to keep this fire under control. She did not hesitate in accounting hadiths of the Prophet that were concerned with the virtues of his other wives and she left many records from the Prophet concerning the virtues of Ali, Fatima and other Companions.

The endless trust the Prophet Muhammad felt toward her made her his confidante. Among the milestones of history, the conquest of Mecca was entrusted only to her, and she was the only one to be told that the preparations were ready for the conquest. The factious ones, who hid their animosity towards the Prophet, targeted this infinite confidence in order to weaken and discredit the last Prophet. A necklace lost while returning from war was given to its owner after being drenched in the mud of slander, and the most dangerous enemy of all time, Abdullah ibn Ubay ibn Salul, threw the dark shawl of slander against the Mother of Believers. Although they were not in the least suspicious, the Prophet and Abu Bakr were affected by this filthy gossip, and our mother, who by accident heard about the slander, became ill from sorrow. Finally, she sought permission from her husband and wept tears there till she received exculpation from the seven skies.

Ten verses of the Surah An-Nur were revealed as a cure not only for Aisha, but also for victims of slander in the future, and with His wrath Almighty Allah threatened those who dishonored people and commanded, "Why did not the believers, men and women, when you heard it, think good of their own folk, and say: It is a manifest untruth? Why did they not produce four witnesses? Since they produce not witnesses, they verily are liars in the sight of Allah!" (An-Nur, 12-13).

These verses that forbade speaking negatively about the chastity of people without the confirmation of four reliable witnesses, stressed the importance and danger of this issue with the divine decree, "You counted it a trifle. In the sight of Allah it is very great." (An-Nur, 15).

The fortresses conquered by grief were replaced by bliss. Aisha turned back to her house and the face of our Master recovered its smile and with her endless questions our mother made her life partner smile again until she asked that question after a sleepless night full of pray, "O! The Messenger of Allah! Although all your past and future sins were forgiven, why do you go on tormenting your Holy body?" This question, which filled the eyes of the Master with tears, was answered with another question that would shake the centuries: "Should I not be a grateful servant?" And after a life full of gratitude, the Beloved of Allah laid his head on Aisha's lap.


The beloved of Allah won the second race as well and he set out on his journey to the afterlife with eyes full of compassion and tears.