Flowers for the Women Wearing Veils - Volume II — Page 189
189 to do that ’. B ecause of this, his young wives often grew irritated. For example, Ha z rat A ’isha h ra was young and also took great care of the Holy Prophet sa. When the Holy Prophet Muhammad sa mentioned Ha z rat Khadijah ra at every little thing, she would at times, grow annoyed. Once she said, ‘O Prophet sa of God ! W hat has happened to you? After Khadijah ra God Almighty has given you young and caring wives , but you continue to mention that old woman. ’ The Holy Prophet sa replied, “ A’isha h ra , you do not know what a faithful companion she was to me. She helped me in every trouble I faced and gave every sacrific e for me in every hardship. How can I forget her? You have your own position [in my life] and Khadijah ra has hers. She took care of me at a time when the entire world had forsaken me. When facing my enemies , she stood by me like a mountain. ” The service Ha z rat Khadijah ra gave had such a deep effect on the Holy Prophet sa that once Ha z rat Khadijah ’s ra sister came to visit him, and her voice resembled Ha z rat Khadijah ’s ra voice. W hen t he Holy Prophet sa heard her, he felt as if Ha z rat Khadijah ra had arrived. It is stated in history that the Holy Prophet sa became very distressed and in this state of uneasiness repeated, ‘O my Khadijah ! O my Khadijah !’ As if saying, ‘Where has my Khadijah come from? ’ Then the people said, ‘O Prophet of Allah , it has been many years since Khadijah ra died. This is her sister’s voice. ’ See! Even fifteen or sixteen years after Ha z rat Khadijah ’s ra death, how restlessly t he Holy Prophet sa called out, ‘O my Khadijah ,’ at hearing a voice similar to hers, and i t wa s a clear indication that h er support left a deep impact on his heart , which even the long passage of time could not erase. So , even in the early period of Isl am , it was the women who served more. When the Holy Prophet sa announced his prophet hood, the people of M ecca all turned against him. In those days, if he could find any refuge it was in the home of his paternal aunt’s daughter, Umm - e - Hani ra. The earlier c ompanions ra of the Holy Prophet sa used to say, ‘We used to go to Umm - e - Hani ’s ra home to learn about religion from the Holy Prophet sa. Thus , the first person who provided him with financial support, an d regularly sent meals along with him in the days of worship to the cave of Hira , was a wom an. A nd after declaring prophet hood, when the whole of M ecca became his enemy, the one who gave the Holy Prophet sa refuge was also a woman.