Saidatina Aisha r.a

Aisha Binti Abu Bakar Al-Siddiq was born in Mecca in 614 CE to Umm Ruman and Abu Bakar Al-Siddiq. Aisha was the third, youngest and favorite wife of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Most accounts report that Aisha was six years old at the time of her marriage and nine when the marriage was consummated. Although the bridal age of Aisha sometimes draws criticism, child marriages in 7th century Arabia were culturally and morally acceptable.

Aisha was reported to have been very beautiful. In fact, she was also called as “al-humaira” which means pinky bright, due to her bright colored skin. However, it is her piety, intelligence and remarkable memory that make her a notable figure in Islamic history. She absorbed vast religious knowledge from the Prophet (peace be upon him) including memorizing the entire Qur'an. She also witnessed a lot of the early histories of Islam, and she preserved the details of those events, as well as the details of the private and public life of Muhammad (peace be upon him) by narrating more than two thousand hadith.

Aisha was only 18 when the Prophet (peace be upon him) passed away, but she was already regarded as a religious scholar. Over the next four decades, until her own death, Muslims consulted Aisha for her extensive understanding of Qur'an, Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh), Islamic teachings and traditions (Sunnah). She helped in educating Islamic scholars and took custody of some orphans to raise them in Islam. Aisha r.a has contributed a lot during those days. Besides being a reference for her extensive understanding of Quran, people of those days especially women always sought for her advice in many things. It is also reported that she joined the Prophet (peace be upon Him) in many wars against the enemy to protect Islam.

Aisha passed away in 678 at the age of 65. Her scholarly contributions to Islam, as well as her pious example, have earned her special status among the “Mothers of the Believers,” a term of honor given to all the wives of the Prophet (peace be upon him).