Khawla bint Tha'laba

Who was Khawla bint Tha'laba?

Khawla bint Tha'laba was a companion of the Prophet ﷺ honoured with an extraordinary distinction: when she came to the Prophet ﷺ pleading about a wrong done to her by her husband, Allah revealed verses from above the seven heavens in response to her — the opening of Surah al-Mujadila (chapter 58, "She Who Disputes / The Pleading Woman").

Her Story

Khawla's husband, Aws ibn as-Samit, had pronounced against her a form of pre-Islamic divorce called zihar — declaring her unlawful to him like the back of his mother — which left a wife in cruel limbo, neither married nor free. Distressed, Khawla came to the Prophet ﷺ and argued her case, seeking a solution, while the Prophet ﷺ had no ruling yet to give her. She turned to Allah in complaint. In response, Allah revealed: "Certainly has Allah heard the speech of the one who disputes with you concerning her husband and directs her complaint to Allah. And Allah hears your dialogue; indeed, Allah is Hearing and Seeing." (58:1). The revelation abolished and reformed the cruel practice of zihar, providing a just resolution. Khawla's plea thus became the occasion for lasting divine legislation. Years later, the Caliph Umar, despite his authority, would stop and listen to her with great respect, saying she was the woman whom Allah listened to from above the seven heavens.

Khawla in the Quran

• "Certainly has Allah heard the speech of the one who disputes with you concerning her husband and directs her complaint to Allah..." (58:1)
• The surah is named al-Mujadila — "she who disputes/pleads" — after her.

Her Virtues and Legacy

Khawla bint Tha'laba is a powerful sign that Allah hears the plea of the wronged, however weak or unnoticed by people. That an ordinary woman's complaint about her marriage prompted Quranic revelation shows the dignity Islam gives to women and to the oppressed, and that no sincere call to Allah goes unheard. Her story is cited as proof that justice in Islam reaches even the most private griefs, and that the door of complaint to Allah is always open.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is Surah al-Mujadila connected to Khawla?

The surah opens by referring to "the one who disputes with you [O Prophet] concerning her husband and directs her complaint to Allah" — this was Khawla bint Tha'laba. Her plea about the injustice of zihar prompted the revelation that reformed that practice, so the surah (chapter 58) is associated with her.

What is zihar?

Zihar was a pre-Islamic form of repudiation in which a husband declared his wife to be like his mother's back, leaving her suspended — neither divorced nor truly married. The Quran, in response to Khawla, abolished its cruelty and prescribed an expiation (kaffarah) for it, restoring justice to the wife.