Rayhana

Rayhana bint Amr ibn Khunafa ( _ar. ريحانة بنت زيد بن عمرو) was a Jewish woman from the Banu Qurayza tribe. Her relationship with Muhammad is disputed.

Rayhana was originally a member of the Banu Nadir tribe who married a man from the Banu Qurayza.

According to Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad took her as as a maiden and offered her to become his wife if she accepted Islam, but she refused. According to Marco Schöller, Rayhana either became the Prophet's concubine or, was married to him and later divorced. [Schöller, Marco. "Qurayẓa (Banū al-)." Encyclopaedia of the Qurʾān.]

Ibn Sa'd writes and quotes Waqidi that Rayhana herself has said that she was manumitted and married by Muhammad. [cite book| last = Ibn Sa'd| title = Tabaqat | pages= vol VIII, pg. 92–3 ] According to Al-Halabi, Muhammad married and appointed dowry for her. It is further narrated that, upon marriage, she refused to take the hijab, causing a rift between her and Muhammad. The couple later reconciled. She died shortly after Muhammad's hajj and was buried in "Jannat al-Baqi" cemetery. [cite book| last = al-Halabi| first = Nur al-Din| title = Sirat-i-Halbiyyah | publisher = Idarah Qasmiyyah Deoband | pages= vol 2, part 12, pg. 90 |location = Uttar Pradesh Translated by Muhammad Aslam Qasmi.] Ibn Hajar quotes a description of house Muhammad allotted to Rayhana after their marriage from Muhammad Ibn al-Hassam's "History of Medina". [Ibn Hajar. "Isabaha". Vol. IV, pg. 309.]

In another version, Hafiz Ibn Minda writes that Muhammad set Rayhana free, and she went back to live with her own people. This version is also supported as the most likely by modern day scholar, Shibli Nomani.Nomani, Shibli (1979). "The Life of the Prophet". Vol. II, pg. 125–6]

Not much is known about Rayhana; she died a year before Muhammad.

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