Who was Khadīja bint Khuwaylid?
The Prophet's ﷺ first wife, first believer, and lifelong support. What the hadith literature records about her faith, her wealth spent in the cause, and the Prophet's ﷺ love for her.
10 passages from 4 books in the library
Khadīja bint Khuwaylid was the Prophet's ﷺ first wife and, in the cited tradition, counted among the foremost women of Paradise. Ibn Kathir lists her in The Prophets of Bani Israil alongside Fāṭima, Maryam, and Āsiya the wife of Pharaoh as the mistresses of Paradise's women. Al-Ghazali, in the Book of Marriage, affirms that "the Prophet's love for Khadīja is well known, testified by authentic hadiths," and records that he honoured her memory by maintaining the ties she had kept.
Drawn from the classical sources below — in the scholars' own words.
The classical approach.
These passages are drawn from 4 books by Ibn Kathir and Imam al-Dhahabī — part of the classical Sunni tradition that carries over a thousand years of reflection on the Qurʾān, the authentic Sunnah, and the consensus of the early community. Nothing below is a paraphrase. The words are the scholars' own, translated from the original Arabic manuscripts.
14th century · Bosra, Syria
Monumental history Al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah, the world's most widely read Qurʾanic commentary, and the classical Stories of the Prophets.
More on Ibn Kathir →
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"those before and after her. And Allah knows best. She is mentioned alongside Ashiya bint Muzahim, Khadijah bint Khuwaylid, and Fatima, daughter of Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him. May Allah be pleased with them and grant them his satisfaction. Imam Ahmad, al-Bukhari, Muslim, al-Tirmidhi, and al-Nasai narrated from Ali ibn Abi Talib, May Allah be pleased with him, who said, The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, The best women of their time were Mary, daughter of Imran, and Khadijah, daughter of Khuwaylid."
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"and the mercy and blessings of Allah upon his Messenger. What is that house made of pearls? He replied, A hollow pearl between the house of Mary, daughter of Imran, Asiya, and Khadijah. daughter of Imran and Asiya daughter of Muzahim and they are among my wives on the day of resurrection. The root of sending peace upon Khadijah from Allah and her glad tidings of a house in paradise made of hollow pearls without noise or fatigue is authentic. However this particular narration with these additions is very rare. All of these hadiths have issues in their chains of transmission. Now there is another account regarding the Rock of Bait al-"
14th century · Bosra, Syria
Monumental history Al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah, the world's most widely read Qurʾanic commentary, and the classical Stories of the Prophets.
More on Ibn Kathir →
· Provenance →
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"This indicates her esteemed status among the righteous women of all times and Allah knows best. Mariam is often mentioned alongside Asiyah bint Muzahim, Khadijah bint Khuwaylid and Fatima bint Muhammad, may Allah be pleased with them. Imam Ahmad, al-Bukhari, Muslim, al-Tirmidhi and al-Nasai have narrated from Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, that the messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said, the best of the women of her time is Mariam bint Imran and the best of the women of her time is Khadijah bint Khuwaylid."
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"the best women of the worlds are four, Mariam, the daughter of Imran, Aisha, the wife of Pharaoh, Khadijah, the daughter of Khuwaylid and Fatima, the daughter of Muhammad, the messenger of Allah. This narration was reported by al-Tirmidhi and authenticated by others. Abu Huraira reported that the prophet, peace be upon him, said, the best of the women who rode camels are the righteous women of Quraysh, the most affectionate towards their children and the most caring towards their husbands."
14th century · Bosra, Syria
Monumental history Al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah, the world's most widely read Qurʾanic commentary, and the classical Stories of the Prophets.
More on Ibn Kathir →
· Provenance →
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"of Allah, peace be upon him, said, The best of their women is Maryam bint Imran, and the best of their women is Khadijah bint Khuwaylid, meaning the best of their times. Another narration tells us that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said, Many men have attained perfection, but no woman has attained perfection except three, Maryam bint Imran, Asaya, the wife of Pharaoh, and Khadijah bint Khuwaylid."
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"paradise. Hence he was called Dhu'l-Kifl. The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, returned home trembling. He went to Khadijah bint Kuwailid, saying, Wrap me up, wrap me up. They wrapped him until his fear subsided. He then shared the experience with Khadijah, expressing his fear. Khadijah reassured him, saying, No, by Allah, Allah will never disgrace you. You maintain family ties, honor your guests, bear the burdens of the weak, help those in need, and assist in matters of truth. Muhammad ibn Ishaq said, He is Al-Yasa ibn Akhtub. Al-Hafiz Abu al-Qasim ibn mentioned in his history that Al-Yasa is Al-Asbat ibn Adi, ibn Shutham,"
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"The death of Abu Talib, the uncle of the Messenger of Allah. After Abu Talib, Khadijah bint Khuwaylid, the wife of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, also passed away. Some say she died before him, but the more widely accepted view is that she passed after him. These two individuals were compassionate in different ways. Abu Talib, though a disbeliever, was a protector, while Khadijah was a believing, truthful woman. May Allah be pleased with her."
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"In a narration, Aisha expressed her feelings of jealousy when the Prophet praised Khadijah. She remarked that Allah had replaced him with someone better, referring to herself. The Prophet responded, emphasizing Khadijah's unique support and belief in him when others doubted him, and how she provided for him when others did not. He also mentioned that all his children, except for Ibrahim, were from Khadijah."
13th–14th century · Damascus, Syria
Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ — the monumental biographical dictionary of Islamic scholarship, from the companions of the Prophet ﷺ through al-Dhahabī's own era. A working-scholar reference used for seven centuries.
More on Imam al-Dhahabī →
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"saw Zayd ibn Harithah as a young boy with a braid, whom his people had placed in the marketplace for sale. He went to Khadijah, who asked about his price. The Messenger of Allah said it was seven hundred. Khadijah agreed, saying, "Take seven hundred." So he bought Zayd and brought him to her. The Messenger of Allah then said, "If he were mine, I would set him free." Khadijah responded, "He is yours." So he set Zayd free."
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"Al-Harith ibn Amir al-Nawfali, Tu'aymah, the uncle of Jubayr ibn Mut'im, Harith ibn Zam'ah ibn al-Aswad, his father, and his uncle Aqil were among those who perished. Nawfal ibn Khuwaylid al-Asadi, the brother of Khadijah, and al-Nadr ibn al-Harith, who was killed in captivity, were also among them. Umair ibn Uthman, the uncle of Talhah ibn Ubaydullah, Mas'ud al-Makhzumi, the brother of Umm Salamah, Abu Qays, the brother of Khalid ibn al-Walid, and Qays ibn al-Adi ibn al-Mughira al-Makhzumi were killed as well."
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