Islam. 15Quranic vision there is no dichotomy between the sacred and
the profane, the religious and the political, sexuality and wor-
ship. The whole of life was potentially holy and had to be
brought into the ambit of the divine. The aim was tawhid
(making one), the integration of the whole of life in a unified
community, which would give Muslims intimations of the
Unity which is God.
Muhammad's numerous wives have occasioned a good deal
of prurient interest in the West, but it would be a mistake to
imagine the Prophet basking decadently in sensual delight,
like some of the later Islamic rulers. In Mecca, Muhammad
had remained monogamous, married only to Khadija, even
though polygamy was common in Arabia. Khadija was a good
deal older than he, but bore him at least six children, of whom
only four daughters survived. In Medina, Muhammad became
a great sayyid (chief), and was expected to have a large harem,
but most of these marriages were politically motivated. As he
formed his new supertribe, he was eager to forge marriage ties
with some of his closest companions, to bind them closer to-
gether. His favourite new wife was Aisha, the daughter of Abu
Bakr, and he also married Hafsah, the daughter of Umar ibn
al-Khattab. He married two of his daughters to Uthman ibn
Affan and Ali ibn Abi Talib. Many of his other wives were
older women, who were without protectors or were related to
the chiefs of those tribes who became the allies of the ummah.
None of them bore the Prophet any children.'' His wives
were sometimes more of a hindrance than a pleasure. On one
occasion, when they were squabbling about the division of
booty after a raid, the Prophet threatened to divorce them all
unless they lived more strictly in accordance with Islamic val-
ues." But it is still true that Muhammad was one of those rare
men who truly enjoy the company of women. Some of his
male companions were astonished by his leniency towards
his wives and the way they stood up to him and answered him