176 A CHINESE LIFE OF MOHAMMED 



"Annals" agree in the main with the history which can be 

 read in Sir William MuirV Li/e of Mohammed." The famous 

 battles are described at considerable length, also the sub- 

 mission or coercion of the surrounding tribes. The assassina- 

 tions and massacres receive no condemnation, but rather 

 approval. The final triumph over Mecca is naturally exulted 

 in. The last ten years of Mohammed's life, while showing 

 the success of a conqueror and the quick spread of a religion 

 backed by force, do not call forth our admiration of the 

 Prophet, so I am relieved that space limits prevent my 

 putting them before you. But I must refer to the domestic 

 affairs of the Prophet, as these are known casually to most 

 people, and it is interesting to see the Moslem comment on 

 them. There can be no doubt that Mohammed's first wife, 

 Khadija, was an excellent woman and was of very great help 

 to the Prophet. Her wealth enabled him to devote himself 

 to religious meditation and to good deeds, and her wisdom 

 and sympathy and encouragement were of incalculable help in 

 the earlier years. She is said to* have been the first believer. 

 One would like to know more about her. For 25 years as 

 husband and wife they seem to have lived happily together, 

 •and Mohammed was contented and showed none of the 

 uncontrolled passion which marked his later years. The 

 Moslem Faith owes very much to Khadija, without whom 

 Mohammed might have been a very different person. 



Soon after Khadija's death, Mohammed married Sauda, 

 and was betrothed to Ayesha. Our author says that the 

 believers pressed the Prophet to take a wife, lest he should 

 leave them and go away. They offered wealthy and honour- 

 able ladies, but Mohammed declined them saying that as he 

 had had a rich wife before, it would now conduce to his 

 virtue to have someone who was very poor, so he chose 

 Sauda. 



Ayesha was the daughter of the Prophet's life-long friend 

 and stalwart disciple Abu Bekr; she was only six years old 

 at the time of her betrothal. It is said that both Abu Bekr 

 and the child urged the match, but it is also probable that 

 Mohammed adopted this means of binding to him the father, 

 though it must be acknowledged that he was devotedly 

 attached to Ayesha. The marriage took place when the girl 

 was nine years old, and she was the only virgin bride among 

 the eleven wives of Mohammed, the others all having been 

 married before. In the Chinese history most of the brides are 

 spoken of as virgins of special beauty and virtue, who had 

 refused all offers of marriage, being reserved for the Prophet. 

 Although the names of eleven wives are given, yet it is 

 repeatedly stated that the Prophet had nine wives, according 



