Mrs Farwa Hassan
RAMAZAN 10th marks the death anniversary of Hazrat Khadija tul Kubra (SA), the first wife of the last Prophet, Hazrat Muhammed (PBUH).
She was not only the First Lady of Islam but also a woman of many firsts: the first witness to revelation, the first believer among women and the first pillar of strength for the last Prophet until her last breath. Hazrat Khadija (SA) was not merely the wife of the Prophet (PBUH); she was his peace, his trust, his unwavering support in his divine mission. When the first revelation descended, she said with certainty that Allah would never forsake a man who upheld truth and justice. She did not hesitate. She listened and she believed.
In a society where daughters were buried alive, she was known as Tahira — the Pure. A fully authorized, independent businesswoman in sixth-century Makkah, she managed caravans to Syria and Yemen. She employed men. She chose integrity above all when she entrusted her trade to Hazrat Muhammed (PBUH), known then as Al-Amin. She later proposed marriage with dignity. There was no conflict between her femininity and her financial authority. I am a proud Pakistani woman who respects her faith and social values. I see in Hazrat Khadija (SA) a mirror and a map: a mirror to recognize the true features of feminine strength and a map for a woman’s life. She conducted business with grace. She held wealth without arrogance. She supported her husband without losing her own sense of self.
Her wealth became the backbone of early Islam. She spent generously in the cause of Allah. She paid from her wealth the heavy debts of many early converts to Islam. She utilized her wealth to free so many slaves. During the three-year social and economic boycott, her financial resources and faithful support sustained the Prophet (PBUH) and his extended family for the first two years in the Valley of Shi‘b Abi Talib. She gave Islam not only her fortune but her heart, her home, her hearth, her health and her life. Her sacred lap became the first school of Islamic motherhood. From it rose Hazrat Fatimah bint Muhammed (SA), the leader of the women of Paradise. From that household later emerged the courageous voice of Hazrat Zainab (SA), who spoke fearlessly against tyranny.
The year Hazrat Khadija (SA) passed away was the year when sorrows surrounded the Prophet (PBUH). With her death and the passing of the Prophet’s beloved uncle, Hazrat Abu Talib ibn Abd al-Muttalib (AS), in the same year, the Prophet (PBUH) named it Aam al-Huzn, the Year of Grief. There is another tender reflection in the month of Ramazan. The mother of Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS), Hazrat Fatimah bint Asad (SA) and the mother of Hazrat Fatimah bint Muhammed (SA), Hazrat Khadija (SA), both returned to their eternal abode in the holy month of Ramazan, though in different years. Hazrat Khadija (SA) left this world in Makkah before the Hijrah. Hazrat Fatimah bint Asad (SA) passed away in Madinah after the Hijrah. Two noble mothers. Two pillars of early Islam. United in greatness and grace and in their devotion to the Prophet (PBUH).
As an ideal for women empowerment, we must return to the enduring example of Hazrat Khadija (SA). Empowerment is not rebellion against faith; it is rooted in faith. She was empowered because she knew her Lord. She understood trade and trust. Western scholars, too, have recognized her stature. In Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet, Karen Armstrong acknowledges her decisive role in sustaining the Prophet emotionally and financially. In Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources, Martin Lings presents her as serene, intelligent and spiritually perceptive. William Montgomery Watt, in Muhammad at Mecca, notes her commercial success and independence in pre-Islamic Arabia. But we do not need validation from the West to know her worth. The holy Prophet’s Seerah is sufficient to honour her status. And, he never forgot her. Years after her passing, he spoke of her with tears.
What does this teach us? That partnership in marriage is sacred. That loyalty outlives death. That a woman’s contribution to faith, family and society is not secondary. It is foundational. On this 10th of Ramazan, we remember the woman who believed before the world did. We remember the business leader who proved that commerce and piety can coexist. We remember the wife who stood steadfastly with her husband. We should not imitate the West. We should revive our own precious heritage. We must demand education as our fundamental right. Each woman should be a republic within herself: economically active, socially responsible with her familial duties and spiritually guided by the character and conduct of the First Lady of Islam.
—The writer is a Microsoft-certified IT expert and president of the women’s rights group Women’s Republic.
