The Prophet's Marriage
The reports of the seerah (Prophet’s biography) indicate that Khadeejah bint Khuwaylid (may Allaah be pleased with her) was a determined and intelligent woman, and she was also rich and had several kinds of trade. The men of her people were keen to marry her. She did not engage directly in trade herself, rather she used to employ men to work on her behalf.
Khadijah was a sensible, noble, pious, chaste, and generous woman. She was given glad tidings of entering Paradise. Allah (the Almighty) ordered His Messenger Muhammad (Peace be upon him) to give her glad tidings of having a palace in Paradise which is built from jewels with neither noise nor toil in it.
Of all Prophet Muhammad's wives, Khadijah had a special place in his heart. `Aishah said: "I did not feel jealous of any of the wives of the Prophet (peace be upon him) as much as I did of Khadijah though I did not see her, but the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to mention her very often, and when ever he slaughtered a sheep, he would cut its parts and send them to the women friends of Khadijah. Once when I said to him, "(You treat Khadijah in such a way) as if there is no woman on earth except Khadijah," he would say, "Khadijah was such-and-such, and from her I had children."
`Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said that Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) praised Khadijah every time he remembered her before he would leave the house. One day he (peace be upon him) praised Khadijah, then `Aishah felt so jealous and said: "Why do you remember an old woman, dead long ago, while Allah has given you a better one in her stead?" The Prophet (peace be upon him) got very angry and told her that Allah had not given him a better one in her stead as she (Khadijah) was the only person to believe in him when all people disbelieved, the only person to believe him when all people belied him, and the only one to bear him children when all his wives did not bear him children. Upon hearing this, A'ishah decided never to speak bad of Khadijah again.
News reached Khadeejah of the honest and trustworthy Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him); she heard a great deal about his honesty and trustworthiness, so she wanted to hire him to work for her and do trade on her behalf. She sent someone to him with an offer of work, and he (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) agreed to that.
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) went out to do trade with the money of Khadeejah (may Allaah be pleased with her), and there was with him a slave of Khadeejah’s whose name was Maysarah. Maysarah saw the signs that happened to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).
For example, when the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) came to the city of Busra in Syria, he stopped in the shade of a tree, and one of the monks said to Maysarah, “No one ever stops under the shade of this tree but a Prophet.” And Maysarah used to see two angels shading the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) when the heat of the sun grew too intense.
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) came back from that journey, and he had made far more money in trading for Khadeejah than anyone else ever had before. Khadeejah was impressed with the personality of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and she wanted to marry him. So she sent her friend Nafeesah bint Maniyyah to tell the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) about that. He (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) agreed, and the marriage of Khadeejah (may Allaah be pleased with her) was arranged by her father Khuwaylid, according to the most sound reports, as mentioned by the scholars of seerah.
Khadijah, the faithful supporter for Allah's Messenger in his pursuit of promulgating Islam, died three years before Hijra (the Prophet's immigration from Mecca to Madinah). She was sixty five years old then. Allah's Messenger interred her in the grave with his own hands. Khadijah's death was a big disaster to Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) which, however, he faced with patience and total surrender to the Will of Allah (the Almighty).
