|
|
|
|
|
'And some of the females held my banner' (qasida 6:6) This is the motto for this section, which is either for the women view points or for the things that matter the most for them. You can find all special expressions in the Glossary. We need your comments to develop this site for you.
|
||
|
The Mother of Believers Khadija [AAH]
She is the mother of believers Khadija bent Khowylid ibn Asad ibn Abdel-Ozza ibn Qusayy, the Qurayshan, the Asadian. Her mother is Fatima bent Gandab. She was born in Maccah in the year of 68 BH. Her root was the deepest in the families of Quraysh as of origin, honor, and kinship. She grew up to the noble morality, and she had characters like firmness, wisdom and chastity. Her predecessors lineage meets with the lineage of the Prophet [PPBUH] in the 5th grandfather, so she is the closest to the Prophet of all the mothers of believers. She also was His first wife and the first Muslim ever, by consensus. Her life in the pre-islamic era: Before Islam and before meeting the Messenger of Allah [PPBUH], Khadija [AAH] was a woman of wealth and successful trade. She used to hire men for her trading trip to ash-Sham. Days have passed and she heard of "Muhammad ibn Abdullah"; the well-mannered, truthful, and honest man. Such merits were rare to be heard of at that time. Thus she sent for Him and asked Him to travel to ash-Sham to manage her business and she offered to give Him more than she used to give all other traders. He accepted that and then traveled to ash-Sham with her money and servant; Maysara. Arriving there, He rested in the shadow of a tree close to the hermitage of a monk. The monk asked Maysara and said: who is that man under the tree? Maysara said: He is a man from Quraish, from of the Haram people. The Monk said: no one has ever rested under that tree unless he is a prophet. However, the Messenger of Allah [PPBUH] sold the goods He brought with Him, and bought what he wanted. When He returned back to Maccah, with Khadija's goods, she sold what he brought back and gained double what she used to gain or even more. Moreover, Maysara told her about the good manners of the Prophet [PPBUH], and what special traits He had during the trip. Hence, She thought of marrying Him. So He married her at the age of 25 while she was 40 years old. Khadija was married twice before she had the honor of getting married to the Messenger of Allah [PPBUH]. and both of her husbands died. The Messenger of Allah [PPBUH] married her before revelation and lived with her for 25 years till passed away at the age of 65, while He was 50 years old. Muhammad's (PPBUH) marriage to Khadija was the longest among all his marriages; she was also the closest wife to his heart, as he has never married any other woman during her life time. She was the mother of His children: al-Qasim (after whom He was named Abo-al-Qasim), Abdullah, Zainab, Roqaiya, Um-Kalthum, and Fatema. only Ibrahim was the son of Egyptian Marriya [AAH]. Her Islam:
Here the Prophet said to Khadija [AAH]: (O, Khadija, I do not know why did I fear for Myself). He told her about what happened back there at the cave. She answered him with what eased His mind and calmed His fear, so she said: No, You should cheer up. I swear, Allah will never let you down, because You maintain your relationship with your kinship, you say nothing but the truth, you are helpful to the weak, you are kind to the poor, you are generous to your guests, and you are supporting in the adversities of time. Khadija [AAH] then took Muhammad to her cosine Waraqa ibn Nawfal, who was a Christian in the time of pre-Islam, and knew how to write in Arabic. He used to translate from the Bible in Arabic as much as he could. He became a blind old man by the time they went to see him. When the Prophet [PPBUH] told him what happened, Waraqa told Him that it was the Angel that came down to Muses [PBUH]. Thus, Khadija [AAH] was the first to believe in Allah and his Messenger and all that He came with. Allah made it easier on the Prophet with her support. She was the shelter to which Muhammad [PPBUH] retreated when wronged or disavowed by others. When he would tell her about what he faced, she used to ease, believe in and support him. Pure and Chaste Khadija: Purity and chasteness were major traits of Khadija. It was very rare to hear of such virtues in a pagan environment; that knows no lawful and no forbidden. In such filthy environment adultery spread so much that the prostitutes used to mark their places with red labels. This great woman was known for her chastity in such impudent atmosphere and was called "the pure", same as the Prophet Muhammad [PPBUH] was called "the Truthful and Honest". If such attributes were spread back then, it would not have been important to refer to such people who were known for it and it would not have been remembered . Wise and rational Khadija: Sayyda Khadija [AAH] was always associated with "resolute and rationalism". Why not? Choosing the honest and truthful Muhammad [PPBUH] to manage her business implied how wise she was. Then what was the strongest evidence on her wisdom; is when she proposed to him in a very conservative manner. As she sent Him sayyda Nafisa bent Monya to discuss the matter with him, as if He is the one proposing. After her marriage, one could see her perfect wisdom and her rational mind. So she receives the news of the first revelation with a reason that was never possible at that time and circumstances. She refused to deal with the matter as nonsense or illusions. Instead she concluded that Allah will not let Him down, then she took him to Waraqa ibn Nawfal to consider the matter. Notice, how wise she was, and how she dealt with the issue in a very reasonable way! Khadija, the supporter of the Messenger of Allah:
She moved with the Messenger from a stable life to a life of mission, strife, Jihad, and blockade. But that only added to her love for Muhammad [PPBUH] and His religion. She was even more eager and determined to support him and help him [PPBUH] to achieve his goals. When The Messenger of Allah was evicted with Bani Hashim to the mountains of Maccah and was prevented from dealing with people or even buying food, in the year of boycott, she never hesitated to go along with the Messenger of Allah to share with him the burden of delivering Allah's divine message. Nevertheless, She sacrificed everything, showed a very high aspiration, and she resided there with Him for three years, despite of her old age, with patience and anticipation for the reward of Allah Almighty. It was as if Allah has chosen her specially for the purpose of supporting the Messenger of Allah Muhammad [PPBUH] in delivering Allah's final message to the earth. As Allah has chosen and preferred His Messenger of all people to be His last Messenger, He also decided to give him who would be his true aid through out the first and most difficult stage of his way to fulfill his mission, and who would share with him the burden of this mission. She played such role marvelously, and was always there for him in all aspects when he [PPBUH] really needed that. The mistress of all women in Paradise: Undoubtedly, such virtuous good woman must have been greatly honored by Allah. So the Messenger of Allah [PPBUH] announced, in many occasions, that she is the crowned queen among all women in Paradise. Anas ibn Malik [AAH] narrated that the Prophet [PPBUH] said: (It is enough to mention, from all the women of paradise, Mariam bent 'Umran, Khadija bent Khowylid, Fatema bent Muhammad, and Aseya the pharaoh's woman). Her Lord greets her: The Lord, from above seven heavens, sent her salams [greetings] and promised her a house in paradise made of gold. Abu-Hurayra [AAH] said that Gabriel came to the Prophet [PPBUH] and said: (O, messenger of Allah, here comes Khadija with a pot of dip or food or drink. when she comes, give her the salams from her Lord and from me and give her the good tiding of having a house in paradise made from gold, free from clamor or hardship). The Prophet's love and faithfulness to Khadija: This pure soul lady had to have a preference and a position in the heart of the Messenger of Allah [PPBUH] higher than any other relation in his life, and to have this position lasting and sparkling in the face of history as a whole and the history of family relations in particular. Thus the Prophet [PPBUH] has always been grateful for her and did not forget or deny her what she shared with him for better and worse of His life. Moreover, He declared to the public, after her death out of honoring and faithfulness for her, (I was blessed with her love). That was not the end of it, rather He has never forgotten her after her death, and through all His life. He used to mention her a lot and to give charity for her soul. Sayyda Aisha [AAH] said: I have never felt jealous from any wife of the Prophet's but Khadija [AAH], although I have not seen her, but the Prophet [PPBUH] always mentioned her. Sometimes He would slaughter a lamb, divide it to pieces, and send it as charity for her soul. Once, I said to Him: you make me feel as if there are no other women on earth but Khadija, and He replied: (She was so and so, and I had children from her). Her death: Her soul [AAH] longed for her Creator. That was 3 years before the Hegira at the age of 65. The Prophet laid her down in her grave with his own hand. It was destined for her death to be the same year as the death of the Prophet's uncle; Abo-Talib. Abo-Taleb was always standing for the prophet and protecting him, side by side with sayyda Khadija [AAH]. That's why the Prophet was very sad that year, which was called later "the year of sadness". Muslims were very worried for Him [PPBUH]. Nevertheless, Muhammad (PPBUH) remained unmarried for quite a while afterwards.
Written by Samia Sa'id Translated by Noha
|
||
 |
||
|
|
||
|
|
Allah
Almighty has bestowed upon Khadija the purity of soul, the lights of
faith, and the 
That
characteristic was one of the most important characteristics of the
personality of