“Khadija was a great teacher; she has such a maqaam in our religion. She taught the Prophet salla’Allahu ‘alayhi wasalam who he was; she was the one who elevated him in his esteem. When he had self doubt she said no. You can see that when the Prophet salla’Allahu ‘alayhi wasalam married Aisha he had no fear of strong women. Theres a lot of men who fear strong women, who want them to be wallflowers. Whereas with the Prophet salla’Allahu ‘alayhi wasalam, that’s not the type of people he encouraged. His wives were women who talked back, and the reason he wasn’t afraid was because khadija was his first wife. She was a women of the world. She knew the world, and she was completely self confident. That’s a sunnah of our Prophet salla’Allahu ‘alayhi wasalam, to elevate women”.
~ Shaykh Hamza Yusuf.

May Allah ta’ala elevate Shaykh Hamza’s rank in both worlds, protect him and allow us to benefit and take heed from his teachings. Amin ya Rabb!

* This quote by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf is taken from one of the Tassawuf classes on the 2009 Rihla; although I did not attend it, I would like to thank sister Nushmia Khan for sharing this and allowing me to post it here- Jazaka’llahu khayran!