Ayesha (rAa)'s marriage at the age of 15 or 17 years---

[OmAbdullah]

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Ayesha (rAa)’s marriage at the age of 15 or 17 years ---

Ayesha (rAa), the wife of the prophet salla Allaho alaihi wasallam, was 15 or 17 years old at the time of her marriage. I read this statement in a book named Sahaabiyaat . Also I read that Ayesha (rAa) was engaged to a Mushrik. When the idolators turned against the Muslims in Makkah, the in-laws of Ayesha (rAa) threatened Abu Bakar (rAa) that they wanted to break the engagement. At that time the command of “Muslim woman marriage not lawful with kafir” didn’t reveal. So Abu Bakar (rAa) was very upset. The idolater broke the relation. After that Abu Bakar ( rAa) did her marriage with the Prophet (Allah's Peace and Blessings be upon him) . She was 15 or 17 years old.

Legally (Islamically) a father cannot marry his daughter before her sex maturity. The evidence is from the Quraan and Hadeeth. In the Holy Quraan Allah said about the orphans that when they reach the age mature for marriage ---
Here is the verse 6 of surah Al- Nisaa:

And test the orphans [in their abilities] until they reach marriageable age. Then if you perceive in them sound judgement, release their property to them. And do not consume it excessively and quickly, [anticipating] that they will grow up. And whoever, [when acting as guardian], is self-sufficient should refrain [from taking a fee]; and whoever is poor - let him take according to what is acceptable. Then when you release their property to them, bring witnesses upon them. And sufficient is Allah as Accountant.

It is clear from this verse that the age for marriage is fixed in the Holy Quraan and that is the age of maturity/ adulthood.

In Sunnah:

The Prophet (Allah's Peace and Blessings be upon him) said:
“Take his consent and her consent.”
The companions asked:
“How can we take her consent?”
The Prophet (Allah's Peace and Blessings be upon him) replied:
"Her silence is her consent.”

We know that consent cannot be taken from an immature girl. Therefore on the bases of Quraan and hadeeth a father cannot marry his daughter at an age when she doesn’t understand the meaning of marriage and consent.

A girl’s nikaah was done by her father without her consent. She went to the Prophet (Allah's Peace and Blessings be upon him) and complained against it. The Prophet (Allah's Peace and Blessings be upon him) nullified the marriage and then asked her about the cause of her objection. She said that she had no objection against the man but she complained to prove the right of girls in the choice of their marriage.

Allah knows best the words of Allah’s Prophet (Allah's Peace and Blessings be upon him). I wrote in my own words what I knew from the hadeeth shareef. May Allah forgive me my mistakes, aameen.

[MuhammadHamza1]

I have posted an answer explaining the marriage.Please do see.

[AbdurRahman.]

afaik there is a consensus in sunni Islam that Ayesha [ra] was 6-7 when she got married and marriage consummated at age 9; it is detrimental to faith to believe in anything else as part of sunni aqeedah is to adhere to consensus:

As for "the comments of the experts" they concur on 6 or 7 as the age of marriage and 9 as the age of cohabitation.

https://www.abc.se/home/m9783/ir/d/aam2_e.pdf