Our mother ‘Aishah, may Allah be pleased with her.
“O ‘Aishah,
pray in the Hijr,
for it is a part of the House [the Ka‘bah].”
When we speak of the beauty of human interaction,
we are unable to fully describe the beauty of the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) treatment of his wives,
especially ‘Aishah, may Allah be pleased with her.
Jabir ibn ‘Abdullah, may Allah be pleased with him, describes
the character of the Prophet (peace be upon him)
and his way of interacting with ‘Aishah,
saying:
“The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was an easygoing man;
if his family desired something, he would follow their lead.”
Narrated by Muslim.
This is how a man should be with the women of his household—
his wives, daughters, and sisters:
easygoing, accommodating his family in their desires,
provided it does not involve sin.
This is part of good companionship with women.
This character is required at all times when dealing with women,
but it is even more necessary during travel,
so that the hardship of travel is not compounded by the harshness of the man.
Among the examples of the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) treatment
of ‘Aishah, may Allah be pleased with her,
is what occurred for her while she was in Makkah
with the Prophet (peace be upon him),
regarding her desire to pray inside the Ka‘bah.
How did the Prophet (peace be upon him) deal
with this desire?
‘Aishah, may Allah be pleased with her, says:
“I loved to enter the House and pray therein.”
So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) took me by the hand,
brought me into the Hijr,
and said:
“O ‘Aishah,
when your people built the Ka‘bah,
they fell short of funds,
so they left the Hijr out of the House.
If you wish to pray in the House, pray in the Hijr,
for it is a part of the House.”
Narrated by Ibn Khuzaymah.
‘Aishah’s desire was to pray inside the Ka‘bah,
as the Prophet (peace be upon him) and some of the Companions had done.
She expressed this desire to the Prophet (peace be upon him),
and he did not object to her wish nor forbid her;
rather, he strove to fulfill it for her,
even if not in the exact manner she had requested.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) explained to ‘Aishah why he would do what he did to fulfill her wish,
so that she would understand why he did not provide the exact form she wanted.
He said to her:
“O ‘Aishah,
when your people built the Ka‘bah,
they fell short of funds,
so they left the Hijr out of the House.”
This justification and clarification is very important in dealing with one’s wife,
so that she does not interpret the husband’s actions in the worst possible light,
and so that it does not open a door for the devil to whisper evil to her.
Then, the Prophet (peace be upon him) guided her on how to pray inside the Ka‘bah,
saying to her:
“If you wish to pray in the House,
pray in the Hijr,
for it is a part of the House.”
In this, there is a great opening for the Ummah, which is deprived of entering the Ka‘bah,
to pray inside it by way of praying in the Hijr,
at any time they wish.
The Prophet (peace be upon him)
did not prevent ‘Aishah from fulfilling her desire
by excusing himself that the House was closed,
or that she could not enter it, especially at the time she requested.
Instead, he sought to find a legitimate solution that would fulfill her desire.
This event
was utilized by ‘Aishah, may Allah be pleased with her, to engage the Prophet (peace be upon him) in dialogue
to learn more details about the story of the building of the Sacred House.
She said:
“I asked the Prophet (peace be upon him) about the wall [the Hijr]:
Is it part of the House?”
He said, “Yes.”
I said,
“Why then did they not include it in the House?”
He said,
“Your people ran short of funds.”
I said,
“And what is the matter with its door being raised?”
He said,
“Your people did that so they could let in whom they wished and keep out whom they wished.
Were it not that your people are newly removed from the Age of Ignorance,
I would have feared that their hearts might reject my including the wall in the House,
and my lowering its door to the ground.”
Narrated by al-Bukhari.
This style of dialogue used by ‘Aishah, may Allah be pleased with her,
is what enabled her to acquire knowledge and excel in it.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) told her about the details of the building of the House during the days of Quraysh,
and the reason they built it in that manner.
He explained, first, that the House was not built entirely upon the foundations of Ibrahim,
but that it was shortened on the side of the Hijr.
The reason for this reduction
was that Quraysh at that time did not possess enough lawful wealth—
wealth not mixed with usury or gambling—
to build the House upon the foundations of Ibrahim.
This means that, despite their associating partners with Allah,
they held the Sacred House in such high regard that they would not serve it with unlawful wealth
gained from usury or otherwise.
And because Quraysh was in control of the Sacred House at that time,
they changed the structure of the Ka‘bah and reduced its size.
The Arabs as a whole could not object to Quraysh at that time.
Then, when ‘Aishah asked about the secret of the House being raised above the ground,
the Prophet (peace be upon him) explained the reason to her:
it was that Quraysh wanted to control who entered the House,
so that people could not enter it except with their permission.
This control was not intended to protect the House from tyrants and the arrogant,
but rather it was intended merely for control and oppression of the general public.
They would open it for whom they wished, even if they were the most wicked of people,
and they would bar whom they wished, even if they were the most pious of people.
They continued this practice
until it became established among the people that this was the right way,
and that anything else was wrong.
Therefore, the Prophet (peace be upon him) refrained from rebuilding the House on the foundations of Ibrahim,
from lowering the door of the House to the ground,
and from giving the House two doors—
an eastern door and a western door—
so that people could enter through one and exit through the other,
because the people’s hearts were imbued with the incorrect image
that Quraysh had created by their distortion of the structure of the Sacred House.
Allah made the Sacred House a standing place for all people,
not for Quraysh,
but Quraysh was dominant over the Arabs,
imposing upon them whatever legislation they desired according to their whims,
in order to allow them to visit the Sacred Mosque.
This wish that the Prophet (peace be upon him) had
we would not have known about had Allah not inspired ‘Aishah to dialogue with the Prophet (peace be upon him),
causing him to express it,
upon which many rulings are built,
which you will find mentioned extensively in the scholars’ commentaries on the hadith.
May Allah be pleased with our mother ‘Aishah,
who, through her desire to pray inside the House,
caused a door to be opened for Muslims throughout the ages,
through which they are able to pray inside the Ka‘bah,
even if the laws of Quraysh had remained until the Day of Resurrection.
This is part of the blessing of ‘Aishah and the family of Abu Bakr upon the Ummah.
We ask Allah to grant us love for her and love for the family of Abu Bakr,
and to grant us a visit to the Sacred House, safe and secure.
We shall continue in a future meeting, if Allah wills.
And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.