Ever since he embraced Islam, Omar ibn Al-Khattab was a most remarkable and dedicated advocate of the new faith. A man with clear and direct vision, Omar could always come up with sensible ideas to sort out difficult questions. As a close companion of the Prophet, he always advocated direct action, reflecting strong commitment to the cause. The same sort of attitude could only be expected in his private life.
Omar’s daughter, Hafsah, was married to Khunays ibn Hudhafah, who adopted Islam in its early years and was among those who immigrated to Abyssinia in response to the Prophet’s advice. After rejoining the Muslim community in Madinah, Khunays took part in the first two major battles the Muslims fought at Badr and Uhud. In the second of these, he was badly injured and died soon afterward, leaving behind his young wife, Hafsah, who was perhaps in her early twenties.
Looking at his daughter’s misfortune, Omar thought that he should find her a good husband. He thought of his friend, Abu Bakr, as he knew him to be wise, caring and most dedicated to the Islamic cause. The fact that Abu Bakr was ten years older than him was not a point of issue with Omar. He knew that Abu Bakr would take good care of Hafsah. Therefore, Omar went to him and spoke about her and his concern for her wellbeing. Abu Bakr listened attentively, perhaps guessing Omar’s drift. Omar, however, soon made his purpose clear, saying to his friend: “I will give you Hafsah in marriage if you wish to take her.” Perhaps Omar could not foresee that his proposal would not be met with ready acceptance. Yet Abu Bakr remained silent. To Omar, that was baffling. Therefore, the conversation ended and Omar left, feeling rather upset.
His daughter’s future happiness remained his main preoccupation. Therefore, he went to Othman, who had suffered the loss of his own wife around 18 months earlier. When Omar suggested to him that he could marry Hafsah, Othman requested a few days to think it over. Othman then met Omar and told him that he did not wish to marry for the present.
Omar was very upset at this double rejection. He went to the Prophet, seeking the comfort of his company. The Prophet received him well, recognizing that he was upset. Omar soon poured out the reason, perhaps adding that it was rather humiliating to face such rejection. The Prophet smiled and said to him: “Hafsah will marry someone better than Othman, and Othman will marry someone better than Hafsah.”
These words took Omar by surprise. What? Who? Could it be true? Does the Prophet mean himself? Who else? The Prophet soon put all these questions out of Omar’s mind and said that he wanted Hafsah to be his wife. Omar was overjoyed and went to his daughter giving her the happiest news. She was to be the wife of none other than Muhammad, God’s messenger.
Soon afterward, Abu Bakr and Othman made their position clear. Both had heard the Prophet mentioning Hafsah and realized that he wanted to marry her. They could not speak out until the Prophet had made his intention clear to Omar. Therefore, they would rather accept that Omar might feel upset at their lack of response, realizing that the matter would soon come to a very happy conclusion. Thus, the third of the Prophet’s marriages after Khadijah took place.
