5 of 5 · Her legacy · Remembered across the Ummah
Khadijah bint Khuwaylid رضي الله عنها
The Best of the Women of Her Time
'Ali ibn Abi Talib reported that the Prophet ﷺ said: "The best of its women was Maryam daughter of 'Imran, and the best of its women is Khadijah" (Sahih al-Bukhari 3432; Sahih Muslim 2430). Scholars explain that each was the best woman of her own community and time.
In another report he named four women as enough to know from all the women of the world: Maryam, Khadijah, Fatimah and Asiyah, the wife of Pharaoh. Two of those four are Khadijah and the daughter she raised.
Her lineage continues through Fatimah, and through her the whole family of the Prophet ﷺ. The first Muslim home, the first prayer in secret, the first wealth spent for Allah's sake — all of them were hers.
Her rank came from her faith and sacrifice when no one else believed; being first in goodness is a merit that can never be taken away.
In what good thing could you be among the first, rather than waiting for others to start?
- Sahih al-Bukhari 3432 Sahih · in the two Sahihs
- Sahih Muslim 2430 Sahih · in the two Sahihs
- Jami' al-Tirmidhi 3878Graded by Ahmad Muhammad Shakir: Sahih · Al-Albani: Sahih · Bashar Awad Maarouf: Sahih · Zubair Ali Zai: HasanSahih
What the hadith grades mean
- Sahih (authentic): an unbroken chain of trustworthy, precise narrators, free of hidden flaws or contradiction. It is acted upon.
- Hasan (good): like sahih, but a narrator's precision is slightly lighter. It is also accepted and acted upon. "Hasan sahih" means it reaches sahih by its routes.
- Da'if (weak): a break in the chain or a narrator who is not reliable enough. It is not used to establish beliefs or rulings.
- Very weak (munkar, matruk): a seriously flawed chain or a narrator accused of lying. It is not relied on at all.
- Mawdu' (fabricated): falsely attributed to the Prophet ﷺ. It may not be narrated as his words except to warn against it.
- The two Sahihs: every hadith with a full chain in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim is accepted as sahih by the scholars of hadith.
- Historical report: biographies and histories (Ibn Ishaq, Ibn Sa'd, al-Tabari) record events with chains that are often incomplete. They are used for the story, not for rulings.
- Hadith scholars grade a narration; the four madhhabs do not. Where a hadith carries a ruling, the page shows which schools act on it.
Create a free account to keep your place as you go. Create a free account · Sign in