RAMADAN 10:
DEATH ANNIVERSARY OF BIBI KHADIJA ؑ
Sayyeda Khadija ؑ was born in the year 555 AD in Makkah. Her father Hazrat Khuwalid ibn Asad ؓ from the Bani Asad clan of the Quraish tribe was a successful merchant and businessman of Makkah, while her mother Bibi Fatimah bint Zidah hailed from the Bani Hashim clan of the Quraish tribe. Her ancestry to Prophet Abraham ؑ could hence be traced both through her paternal as well as maternal sides. She had three siblings; two brothers Hizam ؓ and Awwam ؓ, and a sister Halah ؓ. As Bibi Khadija ؑ grew older, she began to take interest in her father’s trading business and earned herself quite a name.
Bibi Khadija’s ؑ mother passed away in the year 675 AD, and ten years later her father passed away too. Bibi Khadija ؑ was now thirty years old and successfully carrying forward her father’s business. It was a well known fact that the size of Bibi Khadija’s ؑ trade caravan equaled that of all the other Makkan trade caravans. Her success as a businesswoman attracted many noble and wealthy Arabs to ask her hand in marriage but she declined all offers. Despite her immense wealth, Bibi Khadija ؑ should great modesty and generosity. Several impoverished households in Makkah were financed through Bibi Khadija’s ؑ money.
It was some time in the year 595 AD, that she hired a trusted merchant, Abu Talib ؑ to head her trade caravan to Syria. Her real motive to hire Hazrat Abu Talib ؑ was to know more about his orphaned nephew Hazrat Muhammad bin Abdullah ؑ, who had already earned the titles of As-Sadiq (truthful) and Al-Amin (trustworthy). She also send her servant Maysara along with the caravan to keep an eye on Hazrat Muhammad bin Abdullah ؑ. Aged 25, Hazrat Muhammad ؑ did not have much experience of trading, but skillfully and honestly earned a large profit for Bibi Khadija ؑ. Moreover, Maysara witnessed certain paranormal events occurring around Hazrat Muhammad ؑ, of which he told his mistress. So moved was Bibi Khadija ؑ by Hazrat Muhammad’s ؑ fair conduct that she approached Hazrat Abu Talib ؑ with a marriage proposal to his nephew. Hazrat Muhammad ؑ accepted the proposal, knowing that Bibi Khadija ؑ was in fact a widow. The marriage was presided over by Hazrat Abu Talib ؑ. After marriage, Bibi Khadija ؑ moved in with Hazrat Muhammad ؑ and the happily-married couple started together a new begging. Their house was soon blessed with the birth of Hazrat Qasim ؑ, their first child. However, he died at a very young age. Sayyeda Khadija ؑ gave birth to two other more boys, Hazrat Abdullah ؑ and Hazrat Ibrahim ؑ, but they too passed away young. Among daughters, Bibi Khadija ؑ gave birth to Bibi Zaynab ؑ, Bibi Ruqayya ؑ, Bibi Umm Kulsum ؑ and Bibi Fatimah ؑ. Their last child, Bibi Fatimah was the favorite of Hazrat Muhammad ؑ, the reasons for which he would soon find out!
The couple were in their fifteenth year of marriage in 610 AD, when an event occurred that would forever alter their destinies. Hazrat Muhammad ؑ had begun to feel tired and bothered by all the rampant bloodshed and corruption of Makkah. He would often leave his family and go off to the hills to mediate. On one such occasion, Hazrat Muhammad ؑ came running back home, shivering violently and drenched in cold sweat. He wore a petrified expression on his face and immediate asked his wife to put him in his room and cover him with blankets. Horrified at her beloved husband’s disoriented behavior, she persuaded him to tell her the reason. He answered to her that he had been meditating in a cave when out of nowhere an angel like figured appeared before him claiming to be Gabriel ؑ, who declared him a prophet. Shocked by what she had heard, Bibi Khadija ؑ at once contacted her learned cousin Waraqah. He heard all that had happened and exclaimed that Bibi Khadija’s ؑ husband, Muhammad bin Abdullah ؑ, was in fact Prophet Muhammad ﷺ ,the last prophet to be send by God, whose coming was foretold in the Hebrew scriptures. This explained all the weird happening that Bibi Khadija’s ؑ servant had noticed when he had accompanied Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to Syria. Bibi Khadija ؑ comforted her husband and told him all that Waraqah had said. She solemnly testified the Oneness of ALLAH and the prophet –hood of Rasoolallah ﷺ, thus becoming the first ever believer.
As Rasoolallah ﷺ embarked on his mission to eradicate falsehood and spread the word of ALLAH, he faced stiff opposition from the people of Makkah, specially from the nobility, who saw Rasoolallah ﷺ as a threat to their wealth and leisure. Bibi Khadija ﷺ patiently bore all the taunts and insults that were flung at her family. Not once did she waver in the commitment that she made to Rasoolallah ﷺ. In the year 617 AD, the chiefs of Makkah declared a boycott of the muslims. Bibi Khadija ؑ gave away all her wealth in the cause of Islam by providing for food and shelter for the ousted muslims. The boycott lasted for two years, when it eventually failed to prevent the growth of Islam.
By the year 619 AD, Bibi Khadija ؑ had reached sixty-four. Her health began to deteriorate and she fell ill. After sharing the companionship of Rasoolallah ﷺ for twenty-four years, Bibi Khadija ؑ passed away on the 10th day of Ramadan, in 619 AD. That same year, Rasoolallah ﷺ also lost another of his relative, his beloved uncle Sayyedna Abu Talib ؑ. The Holy Prophet ﷺ was so depressed by the loss of his two dearest relatives that the year 619 AD came to be known as the Year of Sorrows. Both these great personalities were laid to rest in Makkah’s Al-Mualla Graveyard.
Rasoolallah ﷺ dearly loved Bibi Khadija ؑ., and would often speak of her long after she was gone, to Bibi Ayesha ؓ and his other wives. He placed her in the ranks of the four greatest women of all times, the other three being Bibi Aasiya ؑ (wife of Pharaoh), Bibi Mayram ؑ, (the Virgin Mary), and Bibi Sayyeda Fatimah Zehra ؑ. (daughter of Bibi Khadija and Rasoolallah). While none of Bibi Khadija’s ؑ sons survived beyond childhood, her three daughters did grow to adulthood. Bibi Ruqayya ؑ and Bibi Umm Kulsum ؑ married the great companion and future Caliph, Uthman bin Affan ؓ. However, both of them passed away before giving birth. It was Bibi Khadija’s ؑ youngest daughter Bibi Fatimah ؑ who grew up to marry Hazrat Ali bin Abu Talib ؑ, the inheritor of Rasoolallah’s ﷺ spirituality. It was through Bibi Sayyedah ؑ that the progeny of Rasoolallah ﷺ continues.
