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THE PROPHETIC HOUSEHOLD
1. Khadijah Bint Khuwailid: In Makkah — prior to Hijra — the Prophet’s household comprised
him (Peace be upon him) and his wife Khadijah bint Khuwailid. He was twenty-five and she
was forty when they got married. She was the first woman he married. She was the only
wife he had till she died. He had sons and daughters with her. None of their sons lived long.
They all died. Their daughters were Zainab, Ruqaiya, Umm Kulthum and Fatimah.
·
Zainab was married to her maternal cousin Abu Al-‘As bin Al-Rabi‘ and that was before Al-
Hijra. Ruqaiya and Umm Kulthum were both married to ‘Uthman bin ‘Affan (May Allah be
pleased with him) successively (i.e. he married one after the death of her sister). Fatimah
was married to ‘Ali bin Abi Talib; and that was in the period between Badr and Uhud battles.
The sons and daughters that Fatimah and ‘Ali had were Al-Hasan, Al-Husain, Zainab and
Umm Kulthum.
It is well-known that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) was exceptionally authorized to have
more than four wives for various reasons. The wives he married were thirteen. Nine of them
outlived him. Two died in his lifetime: Khadijah and the Mother of the poor (
Umm Al-
Masakeen
) — Zainab bint Khuzaima, besides two others with whom he did not consummate
his marriage.
2. Sawdah bint Zam‘a: He married her in Shawwal, in the tenth year of Prophethood, a few
days after the death of Khadijah. Prior to that, she was married to a paternal cousin of hers
called As-Sakran bin ‘Amr.
3. ‘Aishah bint Abu Bakr: He married her in the eleventh year of Prophethood, a year after his
marriage to Sawdah, and two years and five months before Al-Hijra. She was six years old
when he married her. However, he did not consummate the marriage with her till Shawwal
seven months after Al-Hijra, and that was in Madinah. She was nine then. She was the only
virgin he married, and the most beloved creature to him. As a woman she was the most
learnèd woman in jurisprudence.
4. Hafsah bint ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab: She was
Aiyim
(i.e. husbandless). Her ex-husband was
Khunais bin Hudhafa As-Sahmi in the period between Badr and Uhud battles. The Messenger
of Allâh (Peace be upon him) married her in the third year of Al-Hijra.
5. Zainab bint Khuzaimah: She was from Bani Hilal bin ‘Amir bin Sa‘sa‘a. Was nicknamed
Umm
Al-Masakeen
, because of her kindness and care towards them. She used to be the wife of
‘Abdullah bin Jahsh, who was martyred at Uhud, was married to the Prophet (Peace be upon
him) in the fourth year of Al-Hijra, but she died two or three months after her marriage to
the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him).
6. Umm Salamah Hind bint Abi Omaiyah: She used to be the wife of Abu Salamah, who died in
Jumada Al-Akhir, in the fourth year of Al-Hijra. The Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him)
married her in Shawwal of the same year.
7. Zainab bint Jahsh bin Riyab: She was from Bani Asad bin Khuzaimah and was the
Messenger’s paternal cousin. She was married to Zaid bin Haritha — who was then
considered son of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) . However, Zaid divorced her. Allâh sent
down some Qur’ânic verses with this respect:
·
“So when Zaid had accomplished his desire from her (i.e., divorced her), We gave her to
you in marriage.” [33:37]
About her, Allâh has sent down some verses of
Al-Ahzab
Chapter that discussed the
adoption of children in detail — anyway we will discuss this later. The Messenger of Allâh
(Peace be upon him) married her in Dhul-Qa‘dah, the fifth year of Al-Hijra.
8. Juwairiyah bint Al-Harith: Al-Harith was the head of Bani Al-Mustaliq of Khuza‘ah. Juwairiyah
was among the booty that fell to the Muslims from Bani Al-Mustaliq. She was a portion of
Thabit bin Qais bin Shammas’ share. He made her a covenant to set her free at a certain
time. The Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) accomplished the covenant and married
her in Sha‘ban in the sixth year of Al-Hijra.
9. Umm Habibah: Ramlah, the daughter of Abu Sufyan. She was married to ‘Ubaidullah bin
Jahsh. She migrated with him to Abyssinia (Ethiopia). When ‘Ubaidullah apostatized and
became a Christian, she stoodfast to her religion and refused to convert. However
‘Ubaidullah died there in Abyssinia (Ethiopia). The Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him)
dispatched ‘Amr bin Omaiyah Ad-Damri with a letter to Negus, the king, asking him for
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