Part 5 – Are Muhammad’s Actions Timeless Examples?

Slavery, Sexual Ethics, and the Collapse of Prophetic Universality

🔥 Introduction: When Example Becomes Endorsement

Islam doesn’t merely present Muhammad as a man who lived in history. It declares him to be the eternal model for all humanity, in all times, in all places.

“Indeed in the Messenger of Allah you have an excellent example (uswa hasana) for whoever hopes in Allah and the Last Day.”
— Qur’an 33:21

This is not optional. The Qur’an repeatedly commands believers to:

Obey the Prophet (Qur’an 4:59)
Emulate him (Qur’an 33:21)
Accept his decisions as final (Qur’an 33:36)
Not question his rulings (Qur’an 49:1)

Muslim theology teaches that Muhammad is:

The last and final prophet
The most perfect man
The standard for behavior, belief, and law

But here’s the dilemma:

If Muhammad owned slaves, kept concubines, and had sex with them without consent — and his actions are timeless — then slavery and concubinage are timeless too.

If not, then he is not a universal moral model — and the Qur’an is wrong.

This part of the series explores the fatal contradiction between Muhammad’s actions and Islam’s claim of eternal moral guidance.

📜 Step 1: What the Qur’an Says About Muhammad as a Model

The foundational verse is Surah 33:21:

“Certainly you have in the Messenger of Allah an excellent example (uswa hasana) for him who hopes in Allah and the Last Day...”

This is not qualified. It doesn’t say:

“In some areas...”
“During his time...”
“With cultural limits...”

The message is clear: Muhammad’s entire life is a template for all Muslims.

The same theme is repeated:

“Obey Allah and the Messenger.” (4:59)
“Whatever the Messenger gives you, take it.” (59:7)
“He does not speak from desire.” (53:3)

The Sunnah — Muhammad’s sayings, actions, and approvals — becomes part of Islamic law.

So the question becomes:
What exactly did Muhammad do with slaves?

🧕 Step 2: Muhammad’s Documented Actions with Slaves

Here is a short summary of uncontested historical facts from the sira and hadith literature:

🔹 Muhammad Owned Slaves:

Male: Zayd ibn Haritha, Anas ibn Malik, Abu Rafi’, Safinah, etc.
Female: Maria al-Qibtiyya, Rayhana, Safiyya (initially), etc.

🔹 Muhammad Had Sex with Female Slaves:

Maria al-Qibtiyya: Slave, not wife, bore him a son.
Rayhana: Taken as slave after the Banu Qurayza massacre. No marriage recorded.
Safiyya: Taken as war booty, “freed” and married the next day — after her husband and family were killed.

🔹 Muhammad Distributed Captive Women to His Men:

Sahih Muslim 3433: After the Battle of Hunayn, companions hesitated to sleep with captured women whose husbands were alive. Muhammad quoted Qur’an 4:24 to affirm it was lawful.

🔹 Muhammad Never Abolished Slavery:

He freed some slaves
He used others as labor, messengers, or personal servants
He never declared slavery immoral
He never issued a command abolishing the practice

Everything Muhammad did regarding slavery was within the bounds of Islamic law — because Islamic law was built around him.

📚 Step 3: Islamic Legal Theory on the Prophet’s Example

In traditional Islamic jurisprudence, there is a doctrinal principle called:

“Fi’l al-Nabi” – The actions of the Prophet are sources of law.

This means:

If Muhammad did it, it becomes part of Sharia
His actions are not just personal — they are prescriptive

This is echoed by:

Imam Shafi’i: “The Sunnah of the Prophet is second only to the Qur’an.”
Imam Malik: “The Sunnah is like the Ark of Noah — whoever boards it is saved.”
Ibn Taymiyyah: “The speech and deeds of the Prophet are binding proof.”

This means the practice of slavery and concubinage is not a cultural relic — it is a legal precedent.

🔁 Step 4: The Apologetic Evasion — “Context!”

Modern Muslim apologists, facing obvious moral contradictions, try to escape with a common move:

“That was the context of 7th-century Arabia. Today, things are different.”

But this move has deadly consequences for Islamic theology.

❌ It contradicts Qur’an 33:21

If Muhammad is only a good example within a time-limited context, then his model is not universal.

❌ It contradicts the concept of Sharia

If laws derived from Muhammad’s actions are no longer applicable, then Sharia is historically bound, not divinely eternal.

❌ It contradicts Islam’s self-description

The Qur’an claims to be:

“Fully detailed” (6:114)
“Perfected” (5:3)
“Clear guidance” (2:2)
For “all mankind” (34:28)

How can a religion claim perfection and eternality, while excusing its central figure’s actions as culturally outdated?

You can’t have it both ways.

🧨 Step 5: The Logical Trap

Let’s walk this through, Socratic-style.

You ask:

“Is Muhammad’s example timeless and moral?”

They say:

“Yes, of course. Qur’an 33:21 proves it.”

You follow up:

“Did he keep slaves, have concubines, and permit others to do the same?”

They say:

“Yes, but that was cultural...”

You press:

“So was he a timeless example, or a man of his time?”

Now they must choose:

Admit that Muhammad’s example is not universal
Or admit that slavery and concubinage are still valid today

Either way, the contradiction is fatal.

🧠 Why This Matters

If Muhammad’s actions define morality, then:

Concubinage is moral
Sex without consent is moral
Owning humans is moral

If those things are immoral today, then they were always immoral — meaning Muhammad was not morally perfect.

The entire Islamic system hinges on the moral reliability of its Prophet.
Once that collapses, so does everything else.

📚 Historical Echoes of the Dilemma

🔹 ISIS Justified Sexual Slavery Using Qur’an & Hadith

In 2014, ISIS published a pamphlet citing Surah 4:24, Sahih Muslim, and Ibn Kathir to justify:

Capturing Yazidi women
Selling them
Raping them as concubines

When asked why, they simply replied:

“This is the Sunnah of the Prophet.”

They were right — doctrinally.

They were wrong — morally.

Which proves the point: Islamic theology still enables these practices.

📊 Summary Table of the Contradiction

Claim	Reality
Muhammad is a timeless model	He owned slaves and had concubines
The Qur’an is eternal	It preserves the legality of sex with slaves
Sharia is perfect	It permits non-consensual sex and ownership of humans
Islam opposes oppression	But defines rape as lawful ownership
Muslims must emulate Muhammad	But many now reject the example they’re told to follow

🔚 Final Verdict: You Cannot Sanctify Slavery and Call It Moral

Muhammad’s example includes:

Taking slaves as war booty
Having sex with slave women
Never requiring their consent
Never abolishing the institution

If this is the “excellent example”, then rape and slavery are part of the ideal.

If you reject those acts — then you reject the example.
If you accept the example — then you accept those acts.

There is no way out.

A religion built on the actions of a man who did these things, and which calls his example binding forever, cannot be salvaged.

⏭️ Coming Next in the Series…

Part 6 – Why Didn’t Islam Abolish Slavery?

If Islam is a full and complete way of life — not just a cultural artifact — then we must ask:

“Why didn’t it do what later generations of humans did without divine help — abolish slavery?”

The answer is as revealing as it is damning.

Spotlight On Islam

Sunday, September 21, 2025