Life and Teachings of the Prophet Muhammad
2. The Life of the Prophet Muhammad
~ 21 ~
When Muhammad was twenty-five, a rich 40-year old widow,
Khadijah bent Khuwaylid of the Quraysh tribe, entrusted him with
the management of her business. She used to employ men to
engage in trading on her behalf, and rewarded them with a share of
the profits. Muhammad was so honest in all his dealings that she
was deeply impressed by his virtues and expressed her desire to
marry him. After consultations with his uncle, Muhammad
accepted the proposal of marriage. Khadijah became his first wife
and during her lifetime he had no other wife. With the exception of
Ibrahim, who died in infancy, all his children were born to
Khadijah. All his sons died in infancy. Of the daughters, Ruqaiyyah,
Zaynab, Umm Kulthum and Fatimah lived long enough to accept
Islam and migrate to Madinah with the Prophet.
When Muhammad was twenty-five, the Quraysh decided to
rebuild the Kabah after a sudden flood had shaken its foundations
and cracked its walls. The old structure was demolished and the
new construction began. When the walls rose from the ground and
the time came to place the famous Black Stone (Hajr al-Aswad) in
its place on the east wall, a dispute arose among the clans as to
who would have the honour of laying it in place. Each clan wanted
to have the honour of placing the stone for itself. This dispute
almost led to a civil war. No peaceful solution seemed possible.
At this critical juncture Abu Umayyah, son of Mughirah al-
Makhzumi said to the Makkans, “Put it off till tomorrow, the man
who enters the Kabah first of all in the morning will be our
arbitrator in this dispute.” Everybody liked the idea. Men from
