Verses pertaining to polygamy - For Joseph Islam

[Ali Ashkar]

Brother,
Salamun Alikum
I would like to know if there any instances in the Quran which attests that pre-Islamic Arabs practiced polygamous marriages!

Regards
Ali Ashkar
India

[Joseph Islam]

Wa alaikum assalam Ali Ashkar,

I think a better term to use in the context  I understand you are referring to would be 'polygyny', as opposed to ‘polygamy’. Please kindly see the difference in definitions.

To cite one example, please kindly see verse 4:23 where there is mention / example cited of two sisters being married / joined together with one person as a practice that may have occurred before Islam. Hence, this is one example of 'polygyny' being practiced before the advent of Islam.

004:023
“…And (it is forbidden unto you) that you should have two sisters together, except what has already happened (of that nature) in the past. Indeed! God is ever Forgiving, Merciful.”

Regards,
Joseph

[Ali Ashkar]

Thanx brother.
I have noticed it but overlooked the bolded part.
Then can we conclude that polygyny was restricted to not marrying two sisters together and other than these cases Quran allowed polygyny?.Also unlike some muslim apologitics says quranic polygyny was not intended to taking care of orphans?
can we understand then the case in 4:3 as using polygyny(which was prevelant in muslim society) to solve the problem of men not willing to marry slave girls and widows(widows with reference to "yatama alnnisai"-4:127) in those days?

Regards,
Ali Ashkar

[Ali Ashkar]

A mistake in my reply . I wrote as "slave girls" but orphan girls I intended. Pls re-read lie that.

[Hamzeh]

Asalamu Alykum Ali Ashkar

You asked

Then can we conclude that polygyny was restricted to not marrying two sisters together and other than these cases Quran allowed polygyny?

As hard as it may seem to accept for some, and some may even try to give exceptions on when a man can partake in such a marriages the simple answer to your question is yes. It seems like it always has been accepted by the Lord from the people of old and the people of today.

can we understand then the case in 4:3 as using polygyny(which was prevelant in muslim society) to solve the problem of men not willing to marry slave girls and widows(widows with reference to "yatama alnnisai"-4:127) in those days?

God knows best if that was the reason why or part of the reason. However that very well could be a positive thing for sure for the orphan women, slaves, and widows who wished to get married in a society of old which accepted polygyny and such marriages were considered to be "normal" by men and women. One can always surmise reasons and factors like that due to wars that there may always be more women that maybe desiring to get married and not enough men. God knows best why.

At the end, there is support from the Quran that polygyny is acceptable which also one finds from the Quran that there is responsibilities that go along with it. Also it seems that the Quran does not encourages nor discourages multiple marriages.

A couple related articles are

Peace

MARRYING FOUR WIVES IN ISLAM
http://quransmessage.com/articles/four%20wives%20FM3.htm

Critique: Marrying 4 wives in Islam
http://quransmessage.com/forum/index.php?topic=1090.0

[Ali Ashkar]

Brother Joseph Islam,
One a re-reading of the phrase "Illa Ma Khad salafa" from Muhammed Asad's translation I am in doubt.Asad says "except what has come to pass earlier" - i.e., forgiven shall be he who did it before the promulgation of this Qur'anic ordinance or (in the case of a conversion in later times) before one's acceptance of Islam."

So based on this could we necessarily understand practice of taking two sisters at a time as wives meant what was happened before Islam?(reference : your first response in this thread).Could it be after the promulgation of the ordinance in the Quran 4:3?
Moreover some logical reasons also adding hear which i takes as points to ponder whether Jahiliyya arabs practised polygini:
They are:
1.No prophets except Muhammed has seems to be taken more than one wives in the quran.
2.All the non muslims mentioned  by quran is presented along with their single wife(Ex: Firaun,Abu lahab)
3.Jahilya arabs who were money mongers(as aptly depicted by the quran) not to be expected for taking more wives by spending wealth for mahr.

On the basis of above I am inclined to think that it is the Quran which started polyginy and not the pre islamic arabs!
What is your take sir?