All biographers agree that the first spouse of the prince of mankind was Khodayjah the greater—may Allah reward her. She was the daughter of Khowylad, son of Asad, s. of A’bdu-l-u’zza, s. of Qossai, s. of Kallâb. The noble pedigree of the most excellent of virtuous ladies and paragon of innocence converges in Qossai with the genealogy of his lordship the seal of prophecy. In dignity and rela­tionship Khodayjah stood nearer to the prince of Arabs and non-Arabs than any of his other wives. The cognomen of Khodayjah was Omm Hind [mother of Hind], and her sobriquet was Ttâherah [the pure one]. Her mother was Fattimah the daughter of Asad, s. of Alassum, of the tribe Bani A’amer B. Lowa. The first husband of Khodayjah was A’tyq, s. of A’abed, s. of A’bdullah Makhzûmy, by whom she had a son and a daughter. After his death Abu Hâlah, s. of Unnabâsh, s. of Zorârah Bayhâqy, married her. According to one tradition the name of Abu Hâlah was Mâlek, according to another Zorârah, and some allege that it was Zobayr, whilst others say it was Hind. The Sunnis admit that Khodayjah—may Allah reward her—had also by Abu Hâlah two sons, namely, Hâlah and Hind. Some chroniclers assert that Abu Hâlah was Khodayjah’s first and A’tyq her second husband; but this tradition originated from Mukhtâr, s. of Khoz.

In short, when the second husband of Khodayjah— m. A. r. h.—had died, many chiefs and nobles of the Qoraish desired to marry her, but her ladyship would bestow her hand on no one, because when the waning moon of the existence of Abu Hâlah had set in the west of annihilation, she dreamt one night that the sun had descended from the sky into her house, from which its light radiated. She related this dream to her cousin Waraqah, s. of Naofel, who replied: ‘The interpretation of this vision is, that the prophet of the latter times will take thee into the bonds of matrimony.’ Hereon Khodayjah— m. A. r. h.—inquired for the name and position of the prophet of the Arabs and non-Arabs, and Waraqah com­municated to her ladyship the seat of innocence all he knew on the subject. Khodayjah therefore always expected the rise of that sun of the sphere of prophecy, until she was exalted to the felicity of becoming his wife. At the time when the rays of the favour of the prince of existences shone upon the cheeks of her circumstances, his lordship was twenty-five years old, and according to the traditions of all Sunnis, Khodayjah—m. A. r. h.—was at that time forty years of age. In the Kashafu-l-ghummah there is a tradition of Ebn A’bbâs—m. A. r. h.—that Khodayjah was married to his holy and prophetic lordship in her twenty-eighth year, and that her dowry consisted of twelve Oqyahs* of gold. It is an authentic fact that all the children of his lordship the best of the servants [of God] were born of Khodayjah, except the lord Ebrâhim, to whom Mâryah the Coptess gave birth. As long as Khodayjah the greater—m. A. r. h.—was alive, the most excellent of men—the greater blessings be on him—would not, from regard for her noble mind, contract a marriage with any other woman.

The virtues and good qualities of Khodayjah—m. A. r. h. —were numerous, her perfections and accomplishments innumerable. She was the first who believed in the prophetship of the prince of the righteous, and she freely spent everything she possessed in order to please him. There is a tradition of A’li the Commander of the Faithful —the blessings of the Most High be on him—that the prophet—the bl. of A. and peace be on him and on his family—said: ‘The best woman of past times was Mariam [Mary], and the best woman of our times is Khodayjah.’ There is also a tradition of Ebn A’bbâs—u. w. b.—that his holy and prophetic lordship said: ‘The most excellent women among the inhabitants of paradise will be Mariam, the daughter of E’mrân;* Khodayjah, the daughter of Khowylad; and Fattimah, the daughter of Muhammad; and Asiah, the daughter of Mozâhum.’ There is a tradition of Anus, son of Mâlek, that the prophet said: ‘The best women of both worlds are, Mariam, the daughter of E’mrân; Khodayjah, the daughter of Khowylad; Fattimah, the daughter of Muhammad; and Asiah, the wife of Pharao.’

It is recorded in the Kashafu-l-ghummah that A’ayshah said to Fattimah: ‘Shall I not rejoice you by telling you that I heard the apostle of God—b. o. A., etc.—say: The princesses of the inhabitants of paradise are four—Mariam, the daughter of E’mrân; Fattimah, the daughter of Muham­mad; Khodayjah, the daughter of Khowylad; and Asiah, the daughter of Mozâhum, the wife of Pharao.’ In the same book it is also mentioned that the lord of prophecy said: ‘Paradise is anxious to receive four women—Mariam, the daughter of E’mrân; Asiah, the daughter of Mozâhum; Khodayjah, the daughter of Khowylad; and Fattimah, the daughter of Muhammad.’

In many respectable books it has been mentioned by veracious authors that one day Jebrâil—salutation to him —waited on his lordship the best of men—b. o. h. and on his family till the day of resurrection—and said: ‘O apostle of God, this is Khodayjah, who is bringing to you a vessel full of almonds or of food. When she reaches you, announce to her the salutation of God and of me. Pro­mulge to her the glad tidings that in paradise her abode will be in a hollow pearl, in which house there will be neither emnity nor strife.’ When the lord Mussttafa [i.e., Muhammad] had informed Khodayjah of the greeting of God the Most High and Jebrâil, she replied: ‘Upon Jebrâil and upon you, O apostle of God, be also the peace, mercy and blessing of God,’ which elegant words bear testimony to the perfect intellect and discernment of Khodayjah—m. A. r. h.—because by the abundance of her penetration she was aware that the Most High could not be greeted as human beings are, and therefore she did not say ‘and peace to God,’ as some of the companions had done when they made their profession of the Faith and were reproved.

It is related of A’ayshah—m. A. r. h.—that she said: ‘I bore no such intense jealousy towards any woman as towards Khodayjah, although she was no longer alive, when I was exalted to the bed of the apostle—b., etc.—because the seal of prophets remembered her much, and when he slaughtered a sheep, he cut it into pieces which he occa­sionally sent to the women who had been the friends of Khodayjah; and I said to him from jealousy: “Perhaps there existed no other woman besides Khodayjah?” To which he replied: “She possessed many good qualities, and I had children by her.” On a certain occasion Hâlah, the sister of Khodayjah, knocked at the door for admission, when the apostle—b., etc.—remembered the reply he had given, and became sorry. But, according to another tradi­tion, he was glad, and said: “O God, make her [i.e., A’ayshah] like Hâlah.” I, however, was jealous, and exclaimed: “What makes you remember so much a Qoraish hag, who was so old that she had no longer any teeth in her mouth, whose life has come to an end, and in whose stead God—whose name be glorified — has given you another and a better one?” Hereon his lordship became so angry that his head shook, and he exclaimed: “I swear by Allah that He has not given me a better wife! She believed in me when all were infidels. She considered me to be veracious when everybody accused me of falsehood. She aided me with her property when all men kept aloof from me, and the boundless Giver has vouchsafed to me children by her.”’ Ssiddyqah* —m. A. r. h.—says: ‘I replied, I shall speak no more ill of Khodayjah.’ According to another tradition, she said: ‘I shall never blame you with reference to Khodayjah.’

It is related that one day Omm Zafar, who had been the tire-woman of Khodayjah, came on a visit to his lordship the best of men—greeting and peace to him—and he received her honourably, saying: ‘This woman used to come to our house in Khodayjah’s time.’ And, ‘A good custom is a part of religion.’ According to the most prevalent and correct tradition, the death of Khodayjah—m. A. r. h.—took place in the month Ramadzân, in the tenth year after the mission [A.D. 619]. The prophet—o. w. b. b. a. p.— entered her grave and buried her. It is in the Hajûn cemetery. According to the current tradition, she had attained the age of sixty, but according to another of sixty-five years, but Allah knows best the true state of the case.