"My nose has not been cut off"

Sheikhul Hadeeth رحمة الله عليه describes the reaction of his community to the simple, hassle-free nikah of his two daughters.

The nikah was performed but thereafter I had to bear the brunt of all the attacks. People did not know the boys and an announcement had been made that it was my daughters getting married. The two bridegrooms were both handsome young men, still without beards with the Madani turbans around their heads, which I myself had put on for them, while going to the mosque. Here are some of the taunts I received:

a. "What kind of people are those Molvies. They see two handsome young boys and give their daighters away to them."

b. "Two young men from among the rich ones of Bombay arrived at the jalsa. Seeing two rich ones, they gave their daughters away."

c. "They must have known them from before because they would not just see two boys walking along and then give their daughters away to them. These Molvies are no good."

d. One of the pious wealthy men from our mohalla went home and very happily told his wife about the marriage of my daughters. The wife became quite angry (may Allah pardon them both). She said, "The poor mice are jumping all over their house because they cannot find anything to eat. Everyday they send people to our door to beg and borrow. If they did not marry them off, then what else would they have done? You tell me: Allah had given you great riches and lots of wealth. Allah forbid that I have to let my daughters get married like paupers."

Thereafter because this nikah was against the custom of our people and because in the history of Kandhla it had never been performed like this ever, there was a lot of talk this way and that. One person's reaction reached me as having said, "Zakariya has cut his own nose and thereby he has brought dishonour to all of us. Is this the way to have a nikah performed?"

I replied, "I have not been dishonoured. My nose has not been cut off."

I told the messenger, "Even you can feel with your hand that my nose is still in place, so you may go and tell them what you have seen. No, my nose has not been cut off and no one else has been dishonoured."