وَلَا تَنكِحُواْ ٱلۡمُشۡرِكَٰتِ حَتَّىٰ يُؤۡمِنَّ وَلَأَمَةٌ مُّؤۡمِنَةٌ خَيۡرٞ مِّن مُّشۡرِكَةٖ وَلَوۡ أَعۡجَبَتۡكُمۡ
Verse: "And do not marry polytheist women until they believe. A believing slave woman is better than a polytheist woman even if she pleases you." (2:221)
Occasion (Hasan): Al-Tirmidhi (3051), Abu Dawud (2081), and Al-Hakim narrated from Ibn Abbas: Marthad ibn Abi Marthad Al-Ghanawi would transport captives from Makkah. He had a woman he loved in pre-Islamic times named Anaq, who was a woman of ill repute. She came to him in Makkah but he refused and said: "Islam has come between me and you." He then asked the Prophet's permission to marry her and this verse was revealed.
Reliability: Hasan — Al-Tirmidhi said: hasan gharib; also Abu Dawud and Al-Hakim.
Lesson:
- Islam severs the prohibited relationships of pre-Islamic times — "Islam has come between me and you"
- Beauty and love are not criteria for marriage in Islam when faith is absent: "even if she pleases you"
- "A believing slave woman is better than a polytheist" — piety outweighs beauty and lineage
Question: What was Marthad Al-Ghanawi's position toward Anaq and how does it embody the Quranic principle in the verse?
Answer: He refused to marry her despite his love for her from pre-Islamic times and said: "Islam has come between me and you" — embodying that faith takes precedence over desire. He then sought permission and the verse came with a decisive prohibition.