House of Khadija (r.a.)

This is the approximate region, outside the Marwah exit, where the house of Ummul Mu’mineen Khadija (r.a.) was located. It was here that the Prophet (s.a.w.) lived from the time of his marriage to her until he emigrated to Madinah.

- When the Prophet (s.a.w.) married Khadija (r.a.), he moved out from the house of his uncle Abu Talib and into the house of his bride. At the time of their marriage he (s.a.w.) was 25 and Khadija (r.a.) was 40 years old. They stayed together for 25 years.

- Khadija (r.a.) was the Prophet’s (s.a.w.) first wife, he married none other during her lifetime. She bore all his children except for Ebrahim, who was born to Mariya Qibtiya (Mary the Copt). All of the children were born at her home. They were named (in order of birth) Qasim, Zaynab, Ruqayyah, Umm Kulthoom, Fatima, Abdullah, and Ebrahim (scholars, however, disagree about the exact number and order of births). All the sons passed away during childhood, but all the daughters lived to see their father become a prophet. Each daughter embraced Islam and migrated to Madinah, and all but Fatima died during the lifetime of the Prophet (s.a.w.). Fatima died six months after her father’s death.

- As well as their immediate family, the Prophet (s.a.w.) and Khadija (r.a.) also had extended members of their household. Barakah (who later became more commonly known as Umm Ayman), was the freed African slave the Prophet (s.a.w.) inherited from his father and whom he would sometimes affectionately address as ‘mother’. Zaid bin Haritha was a slave boy given as a bridal gift to the Prophet (s.a.w.) by Khadija (r.a.); he was set free by the Prophet (s.a.w.) but Zaid chose to stay with him and became an adopted son. The Prophet (s.a.w.) also took his cousin Ali into his household on account of the financial hardships his uncle Abu Talib was experiencing.

- When the Prophet (s.a.w.) received the first revelation of the Quran on Mount Hira he came back home and said to Khadija (r.a.), “Wrap me up, wrap me up.” Khadija (r.a.) wrapped him up in a blanket. When he (s.a.w.) regained peace of mind after a short while, he related to Khadija (r.a.) what had happened to him with the remark, “I feel my life threatened.” Khadija (r.a.) replied, “By no means, I swear to Allah that He would never put you to shame. You join the ties of relationship, you speak the truth, you bear people’s burdens, you help the destitute, you entertain guests and you mitigate the pains and grief suffered for the sake of truth.” She unhesitatingly believed in him, and accepted Islam immediately.

- The boycott in She’eb Abi Talib took a heavy toll on the health of Khadija (r.a.), and shortly after it was ended she passed away. She was the Prophet’s trusted advisor and loyal companion, and was known by the title “Mother of the believers.” The Prophet (saw) once said of Khadija (r.a.), “When no one believed me, she believed in me, when people accused me of lying, she affirmed my truthfulness, and when people tried to impoverish me, she made me a partner in her wealth.”

- When the idolaters of Makkah plotted to assassinate the Prophet (s.a.w.) they surrounded his house at night. The Prophet (s.a.w.) was inside along with Ali (r.a.). The Prophet (s.a.w.) told Ali (r.a.) to sleep in his bed and cover himself with his green garment and assured him full security under Allah’s protection and that no harm would come to him. The Prophet (s.a.w.) then came out of his house and cast a handful of dust on the assassins and managed to work his way through them reciting these verses of the Holy Qu’ran:

“And We have put a barrier before them, and a barrier behind them, and We have covered them up, so that they cannot see.” [36:9]

- The Prophet (s.a.w.) made his way to the house of Abu Bake (r.a.) from where they set off on the Hijrah to Madinah. Unaware of the Prophet’s escape, the would-be assassins waited for him to come out of his house. Only at dawn when Ali (r.a.) awoke and came out did they realize that they had been tricked. They interrogated him about the Prophet’s whereabouts, but he pleaded ignorance. They then dragged him to the Ka’bah and kept him captive there, but he divulged nothing.

- The Prophet (s.a.w.) stayed in the house of Khadija (r.a.) for around 29 years.

Please note that the location shown above is only an approximation and it is highly unlikely that the house existed at the same ground level.

References:
Local Makkan guide
When the Moon Split - Shaikh Safiur-Rahman Mubarakpuri
The Sealed Nectar - Shaikh Safiur-Rahman Mubarakpuri
Muhammad – Martin Lings