She was one of the noblest women around, coming from a very prominent family. She was also quite beautiful and the holder of a considerable amount of wealth, being a prominent businesswoman. To marry her would have been a great feat for any man, and indeed, quite a few of the most prominent and wealthy men in society had asked for her hand.
Yet, she rejected them all, already being a widow, she had lost the desire to marry again. Until he came into her life. He was a young man of 25, and although he was also of a noble family, he was an orphan and was not a man of many means.
He had made a meagre living tending sheep in the hills surrounding the city. Yet, he had an impeccable moral character, and he was widely known as the most honest man around. That is what attracted her to him. She was looking for someone honest who could conduct business for her, as she – a woman in a fiercely patriarchal society – could not do it herself.
So, he started working for her. After he came back from his first business trip, she asked her servant, whom she sent with him, about him and his conduct. The servant amazed her by his report: this young man was the kindest, gentlest and the most honest man he had ever met. Never did he treat the servant harshly, as many others do.
The businesswoman was quite impressed with her new employee. Not only that, this new employee proved to be an astute businessman in his own right.
All this was enough for her, the embers of love in her heart that were once extinguished re-kindled again, and she resolved to marry this young man, who was 15 years younger than she .So, she sent her sister to this young man.
She asked him, “Why are you not married, yet?”
“For lack of means,” he answered.
“What if I could offer you a wife of nobility, beauty, and wealth? Would you be interested?” she told him.
He replied in the affirmative, but when she mentioned her sister, the young employee chuckled in amazement.
“How could I marry her? She has turned down the noblest men in the city, much wealthier and prominent than me, a poor shepherd,” he said.
“Don’t you worry,” the sister replied, “I’ll take care of it.”
Not long after, the wealthy businesswoman married her young employee, and it was the beginning of one of the most loving, happiest, and sacred marriages in all of human history. He was the messenger of Allah, Muhammad SallAllaho alaihi wa sallam and Khadijah bint Khuwaylid RadhiyAllaho Anha.
When they were married, the Prophet SallAllaho alaihi wa sallam was 25 years old, and Khadijah RadhiyAllaho Anha was 40. Yet, that did not bother the Prophet SallAllaho alaihi wa sallam one bit. He loved her so deeply, and she loved him as deeply. They were married for 25 years, and she bore him seven children: 3 sons and 4 daughters.
Khadijah RadhiyAllaho Anha was a source of immense love, strength, and comfort for the Prophet Muhammad SallAllaho alaihi wa sallam, and he leaned heavily on this love and support on the most important night of his life.
After his ministry began, and the opposition of his people became harsh and brutal, Khadijah RadhiyAllaho Anha was always there to support the Prophet Muhammad SallAllaho alaihi wa sallam, sacrificing all of her wealth to support the cause of Islam. When the Prophet SallAllaho alaihi wa sallam and his family was banished to the hills outside of Makkah, she went there with him, and the three years of hardship and deprivation eventually led to her death.
The Prophet Muhammad SallAllaho alaihi wa sallam mourned her deeply, and even after her death, the Prophet SallAllaho alaihi wa sallam would send food and support to Khadijah’s friends and relatives, out of love for his first wife.
Once, years after Khadijah died, he came across a necklace that she once wore. When he SallAllaho alaihi wa sallam saw it, he remembered her and began to cry and mourn.
His love for her never died, so much so, that his later wife A’isha RadhiyAllaho Anha became jealous of her. Once she asked the Prophet if Khadijah RadhiyAllaho Anha had been the only woman worthy of his love. The Prophet replied: “She believed in me when no one else did; she accepted Islam when people rejected me; and she helped and comforted me when there was no one else to lend me a helping hand.”
