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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
[ATBIL, 1678.
ment of the presence of any one of his womenfolk, and of the burden of her support; but should any of them cease to be desirous of continuing their relationship to him, they, in like manner, were at liberty to follow their own wishes, -always bearing in mind, of course, that the law of the new religion rendered farther conjugal alliance criminal. Without intending any rudeness to the memory of the ladies, it is but natural to suppose that it was, no doubt, this circumstance that gave so much poignancy to their grief at the prospect of being separated. from him, and which made them willing (as in the case of Sauda) to themselves propose the abdication of their conjugal claims provided they might be permitted to continue inmates of his haram. Though the rule laid down in the Qor'an for his followers was that the number of their wives was not to exceed four, yet there was no limit to the number allowed in his own case : the only passage in wbich there is so much as a hint on the subject of limitation in his case, was not revealed' till a short time before his death, at a time when the history of his relations with tho occupants of his harum was at an end, and as an old worn-out man, exhausted and enfeebled by physical ailments, he might be supposed to have attained satiety. Special divine permission was, he assures us, granted to him (“and," as he expresses it, "to none besides"') in all these particulars, as also that he was at liberty, if he were so inclined, to receive in any capacity whatever any person who might offer herself to him for the purpose of cohabitation, privilege of which, as we have seen in the case of the sufsbakhshis, he did not hesitate to avail himself. Among the spoils of the conquest Muhammad almost invariably secured in his share of the plunder the most beantiful of the captive damsels, and on his triumphal entry into Madina with the trophies of war the inmates of bis establishment were wont to peer from their privacy to catch a glimpse of their new rival.
It will not be surprising to learn that the above lists contain what many will hold to be inaccu- racies. Some of the dates we know to be dis- puted. There are but few points in history that are more disheartening to the student than the bəwildering diversity of statement which we find in Moslim records regarding the sobject of Muhammad's domestic relationships. The case
presents a very fair sample of the difficulty in which Muliammadan authorities have beclouded all subjects relating to their religion and its founder. It is only regarding the barest outlines of Mohammad's life thai there is even the semblance of agreement among them; the moment the student inqnires into details he perceives bow loose and unsatisfactory the whole fabric is. Honest inquiry for historical fact is baffled at every turning, --and this through the inability of Muhammad's biographers to agree among the selves. Seeing that his own admirers differ 80 widely concerning even mere matters of fact, the impartial investigator must labour to do his best in a judgment of charity, and must give up much as hopelessly involved in contradiction. If it is difficult to arrive at anything like certainty regarding the wives-proper of Muhammad, it is still more difficult to do so in regard to those women whose intended marriage with him was broken off at various stages before consummation. To the narratives of all such cases a certain degree of doubt attaches, for the relatives of such women would naturally seek to suppress the tradition of such abortive negotiations, as not creditable to them: there seems, in fact, every reason for doubting the details of such cascs as mentioned in tradition. Moslim tradition abounds in legends concerning these women, and dwells with delight upon Muhammad's relations with them. When we state that very few indeed of those legends reflect upon bim other than whąt ordinary men would call disgrace, notwithstanding that they were written by his own admirers and adherents, we state what is merely a cold, unvarnished fact. We shall not undertake the recital of such legends, for in so doing we should surely awaken in the minds of his followers emotions of irritation; for, however paradoxical it may seem, a calm and unbiassed inspection of Muhammad's deeds, and a careful analysis of his personal character, are processes which no Moglim can endure without being irritated almost to the point of frenzy. We therefore purposely repress all those inquiries and reflections which evolve themselves out of a study of the above lists, and content ourselves with placing on record the cold facte, which no duly-informed Mahammadan will call in question. The whole subject of Muhammad's relations to his womenfolk is so beset with contradiction, that any
