The first woman whom the Messenger of Allah married was Khadijah daughter of Khuwaylid ibn Asad ibn 'Abdi 'l’uzza ibn Qusayy. He married her when he was twenty- five years old. She’had been previously married to 'Atiq ibn 'A’idh al-Makhzumi, whom she had borne a daughter. She was then married to Abu Halah al-Asadi, whom she bore a son, Hind ibn Abi Halah. Finally the Messenger of Allah married her, and brought up her son Hind.
When the Messenger of Allah grew up and reached manhood, he was a man of little means. Thus Khadijah hired him to trade for her at the market of Khubashah. On his return, he sought Khadijah’s hand, and she was married to him by her father Khuwaylid ibn Asad. It is also reported that her uncle 'Amr ibn Asad gave her away in marriage.
Abu Talib addressed the men of Quraysh, who were present for the marriage ceremony, as follows: “Praise be to Allah Who made us of the seed of Abraham and the progeny of Ishmael. He granted us a Sacred House and a place of pilgrimage. He made us to dwell in a secure sanctuary (haram), to which the fruits of everything are brought. 69 He made us, moreover, arbiters in men’s affairs, and blessed for us this land in which we dwell.” Abu Talib then said: “Were Muhammad, the son of my brother 'Abdullah son of 'Abdu 'l-Muttalib, to be weighed against any man among the Arabs, he would excel him. Nor would any man be comparable to him. He is peerless among men, even though he is a man of little wealth. Yet riches are only transient possessions, and an ephemeral security. He has expressed a desire for Khadijah, and she likewise has shown interest in him. As for any bride gift (mahr) you demand - both the part to be presented now and the one presented at a later date - it will be of my own wealth.” Abu Talib was a man of note and high status; as well, he possessed a tongue of superior eloquence and persuasion.
The Prophet married Khadijah, and took her into his home the next day. The Messenger of Allah took no other wife until she died. She lived with him for twenty- four years and one month. Her bride gift was twelve and a half ounces of precious metal. The Prophet fixed this amount as the bride gift for all his other wives. The first child Khadijah bore was 'Abdullah son of Muhammad, whose epithets were at-Tayyib (the Good or Wholesome) and at-Tahir (the Pure). She also gave birth to another son called al-'Qasim. It is also reported that al-Qasim was the eldest son, and the Prophet’s firstborn, as he was known as Abu 'l-Qasim (father of al-Qasim). Some traditionists have mistakenly assumed that the Prophet had four sons from Khadijah: al-Qasim, 'Abdullah, at-Tayyib and at-Tahir. The truth is that he had from her two sons and four daughters: Zaynab, Ruqayyah, Umm Kulthum and Fatimah.
As for Zaynab, the daughter of the Messenger of Allah, she was married to Abu 'l-‘As ibn Rabi’ ibn 'Abdi 'l-'Uzza ibn 'Abd Shams ibn 'Abd Manaf. Zaynab bore him a daughter called Umamah, whom 'Ali ibn Abi Tablib married after Fatimah’s death in accordance with her own will. When 'Ali was martyred, Umamah was married to al-Mughirah ibn Nawfal ibn al-Harith ibn 'Abdi 'l-Muttalib, in whose house she died. The mother of Abu 'l-'As was Halah, daughter of Khuwaylid; thus Khadijah was Abu 'l-'As’s aunt. Zaynab died in Medina in the seventh year of the hijrah.
As for Ruqayyah, the daughter of the Messenger of Allah, she was married to 'Utbah son of Abu Lahab, but he divorced her before the marriage was consummated. Moreover, he ill treated her. Thus the Prophet prayed: “O Allah send against 'Utbah a dog (that is, a beast of prey) from among your dogs!” A lion did in fact pick him out from among his Companions. Ruqayyah was then married to 'Uthman ibn 'Affan in Medina, for whom she bore 'Abdullah, who died in infancy. A cock picked at his eyes, and the child fell ill and died. Ruqayyah died in Medina at the time of the Battle of Badr. 'Uthman stayed behind in Medina to bury her; thus he was prevented from taking part in the battle.
Ruqayyah had previously accompanied 'Uthman when he migrated to Abyssinia. 'Uthman also married Umm Kulthum after the death of her sister Ruqayyah. She too died with him. The Prophet’s daughter Fatimah will be discussed in a special chapter devoted to her alone.
The Messenger of Allah had no children by any wife other than Khadijah except Ibrahim. He was born in Medina to Mariyah al-Qubtiyyah in the eighth year of the hijrah and died in Medina at the age of one year, six months and a few days. His grave is in al-Baqi’ (an ancient graveyard in Medina containing the graves of a number of the imams, and other relatives and Companions of the Prophet).
The second wife of the Prophet was Sawdah daughter of Zam’ah, who was previously married to Sakran ibn 'Amr. Sakran, however, died a Muslim in Abyssinia.
The third was 'A’ishah daughter of Abu Bakr, whom the Prophet married in Mecca when she was only seven years of age. She was the only virgin whom the Prophet married. He went into her when she was eight years and three months old, after his migration to Medina. 'A’ishah lived well into Mu’awiyah’s caliphate (she died in 56/678).
The fourth wife of the Prophet was Umm Sharik, who offered herself to the Prophet (that is, no one acted as her guardian, nor did she demand a bride gift). Her name was Ghuzzayyah, daughter of Dudan ibn 'Awf ibn 'Amir. Before the Prophet, Ghuzzayyah was married to Abu 'l-'Ikr ibn Samiyy al-Azdi, whom she bore Sharik.
The fifth wife was Hafsah daughter of 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, whom the Prophet married after the death of her husband Khunays ibn 'Abdillah ibn Hudhafah as-Sahmi. The Messenger of Allah had sent him as an emissary to Kisra (Khusraw, the King of Persia). Khunays died, leaving no offspring. Hafsah died during the caliphate of 'Uthman.
The sixth wife of the Prophet was Umm Habibah daughter of Abu Sufyan, whose name was Ramlah. She was previously married to 'Ubaydullah ibn Jahsh al-Asadi. She accompanied him to Abyssinia, where he died a Christian. The Messenger of Allah then married Umm Habibah, 'Amr ibn Umayyah ad-Damri acting as his deputy.
The seventh was Umm Salamah, who was the daughter of 'Atikah, daughter of 'Abdu 'l-Muttalib, the Prophet’s paternal aunt. It is also reported that Umm Salamah’s mother was the daughter of 'Amir ibn Rabi’ah of the tribe of Firas ibn Ghanam, whose name was Hind daughter of Abu Umayyah ibn al-Mughirah ibn 'Abdillah ibn 'Amr ibn Makhzum; she was the paternal cousin of Abu Jahl. It is reported that the Messenger of Allah sent word to Umm Salamah: “Order your son to give you away in marriage.” Thus her son Salamah ibn Abi Salamah gave her in marriage to the Messenger of Allah. Salamah was at the time a youth who had not become of age. He fixed her bride gift, while he was with an-Najashi in Abyssinia, at four hundred dinars, to be received at the time of the marriage ceremony.
Umm Salamah was one of the last women whom the Prophet married. She died long after him. She was previously married to Abu Salamah ibn 'Abdi 'l-Asad, whose mother was Barrah, daughter of 'Abdu 'l-Muttalib. Thus Abu Salamah was the Messenger of Allah’s maternal cousin. Umm Salamah bore for him Zaynab and 'Amr. The latter fought on 'Ali’s side in the Battle of the Camel (36/656). 'Ali appointed him as the Governor of Bahrayn. 'Amr had a number of children who were born in Medina. Among Umm Salamah’s clients were Shaybah ibn Misah, who was the foremost authority on Qur’an recitation in Medina. Another client of Umm Salamah was Khayrah, the mother of Hasan al-Basri.
The eighth wife of the Prophet was Zaynab daughter of Jahsh of the Asad tribe. She was the daughter of Maymunah daughter of 'Abdu 'l-Muttalib, the Prophet’s paternal aunt. She was the first of the Prophet’s wives to die after him, during the caliphate of ‘Umar. Before marrying the Prophet, Zaynab was the wife of Zayd ibn al-Harithah. Zayd divorced her, and the story of Zayd and his wife Zaynab has been mentioned by Allah in the Qur’an. 70 She was also the first woman for whom a bier was constructed. This was done by Asma’ daughter of 'Umays who saw it being used in Abyssinia.
The ninth was Zaynab daughter of Khuzaymah al-Hilaliyyah of the descendants of 'Abd Manaf ibn Hilal ibn 'Amir ibn Sa’sa’ah. Before the Prophet married her, Zaynab was the wife of 'Ubaydah ibn al-Harith. Zaynab died before the Prophet. She was known as ‘the mother of the poor’.
The tenth wife was Maymunah daughter of al-Harith, of the descendants of 'Abdullah ibn Hilal ibn ‘Amir ibn Sa’sa’ah. The Prophet took Maymunah in marriage in Medina, where Abu Rafi’ acted as his deputy. The Prophet went into her in Sarf - a place about ten miles distance from Mecca - on his way back to Medina, after performing the lesser pilgrimage. Maymunah died in Sarf where she was also buried. Before that, she was married to Abu Sabrah 71 ibn Abi Ruhm al-'Amiri.
The eleventh woman whom the Prophet married was Juwayriyyah daughter of al-Harith ibn al-Mustaliq, whom the Prophet took captive. He then freed her and married her. Juwayriyyah died in 56 A.H.
The twelfth was Safiyyah daughter of Huyay ibn Akhtab of the tribe of Banu 'n-Nadir. The Prophet chose Safiyyah for himself of the booty, then he freed her and married her. He gave her as a bride gift her own freedom. Safiyyah died in 36 A.H.
The Messenger of Allah thus married twelve women with whom he actually consummated the marriage. Eleven of these he married, and one offered herself to him as a gift. He also married 'Aliyah daughter of Zabyan, but then divorced her as soon as she was brought in to him. He also married Qutaylah daughter of Qays, and sister of al-Ash’ath ibn Qays, but he died before uniting with her. It is also reported that he divorced her before their coming together, and before he died. 72 She was then after married to a man called 'Ikrimah.
The Prophet also married Fatimah daughter of ad- Dahhak after the death of his daughter Zaynab. When, however, ayatu 't-takhyir (verse of choice)73 was revealed, he offered her the choice between ‘Allah, His Messenger and life in the hereafter’, or ‘the life of this world’, but she chose the life of this world. He thus let her go. It is reported that thereafter she used to pick animal dung and repeat, “I indeed am a miserable woman, for I have chosen the life of this world.”
The Prophet married Sana daughter of as-Salt, but she also died before she was brought in to him. He married Asma’ daughter of an-Nu’man ibn Shurahil, who exclaimed when she saw him, “I seek refuge in Allah from you!” The Prophet replied: “I too will grant you refuge; go back to your people!” One of the Prophet’s wives had instructed her to say this. Thus he divorced Asma’ before uniting with her.
Another woman whom the Prophet married was Mulaykah al-Laythiyyah. When he went in to her, he said: “Offer yourself to me!” She answered: “Would a queen offer herself to one of the rabble!” As he lifted his hand to touch her, she exclaimed: “I seek refuge in Allah from you!” He replied: “You have indeed sought refuge in One Who is worthy of refuge!” He thus let her go, and offered her, her bride gift.
The Prophet also married a woman called 'Amrah daughter of Yazid, but he found in her traces of leprosy. He thus said: “You (meaning her family) have deceived me!”, and returned her to her parents. He also married Layla daughter of Khatim al-Ansariyyah, who begged, “Let me go”; And he sent her back. He sought the hand of a woman of the tribe of Banu Murrah; her father said: “She has leprosy”, but in reality she did not. When, however, her father went home, he found her to be leprous.
The Prophet sought the hand of another woman whose father described her to him and said: “I wish to add that she has never been sick.” The Prophet retorted: “Allah has nothing good for this woman!” It is also reported that he did marry her, but when her father said this, he divorced her. The Messenger of Allah thus married or sought the hands of twenty-one women. He died having united with nine or ten of them. These were: 'A’ishah, Hafsah, Umm Salamah, Umm Habibah, Zaynab daughter of Jahsh, Maymunah, Safiyyah, Juwayriyah and Sawdah. Sawdah, however, gave her night to 'A’ishah. When the Prophet wanted to divorce her, she argued: “I have no desire for men; I only wished to be gathered (on the Day of Resurrection) among your wives.”