We said that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to marry for the benefits inherent in marriage, not merely for the sake of desire; otherwise, he would have married only virgins, but...
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The Shaykh : The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to marry for the sake of benefits, meaning the multiplication of women, and he did not marry merely for the sake of desire (peace and blessings be upon him); otherwise, he would have married only virgins. I say, may Allah reward you, regarding the hadith of the woman who offered herself to him: in the hadith, he looked at her and examined her, and she did not please him.
The Shaykh : Yes
The questioner : And his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): I say this does not indicate that he desires it even for the sake of desire...
The Shaykh : He is certainly not impotent. It is not that he does not desire it, but it is not for the sake of desire and lust that he marries.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : Yes, I do.
The questioner : But... that desire, whatever it may be.
The Shaykh : There is no doubt that it has an effect on him, but we cannot say, as the Christians say now, that Muhammad was a lustful man whose only concern was women. We say: If he were as you claim, he would not have taken anything but beautiful virgins; he would not have taken women who were not virgins, some of whom had children. Yes, indeed.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : Yes
The questioner : And his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):
Women were made attractive to me
حبب إلي النساءThe Shaykh : He is certainly not impotent. It is not that he does not desire it, but it is not for the sake of desire and lust that he marries.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : Yes, I do.
The questioner : But... that desire, whatever it may be.
The Shaykh : There is no doubt that it has an effect on him, but we cannot say, as the Christians say now, that Muhammad was a lustful man whose only concern was women. We say: If he were as you claim, he would not have taken anything but beautiful virgins; he would not have taken women who were not virgins, some of whom had children. Yes, indeed.
The questioner : ...