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GREAT MUSLIM WOMEN

COMPANIONS OF PROPHET MUHAMMAD

may Allāh be pleased with them all


  1. ‘Afrā’ bint Ubayd bin Thalaba al-Ansāriyyah, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was the mother of Hadrat Awf bin al-Hārith bin ar-Rifāa al-Khazrajī Rady Allāhu Anhu, and Hadrat Muawwidh Rady Allāhu Anhu who were martyred in the Battle of Badr. Her third son, Hadrat Muādh Rady Allāhu Anhu also took part in the Battle of Badr. This shows that the Companions of the Beloved Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam were prepared to sacrifice themselves as well as their whole families to eradicate oppression and establish Islāmic justice for the sake of Allāh Subhānahū wa Taālā.


  1. Asmā’ bint Abī Bakr as-Siddīq, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was among the first to accept Islām. She brought food to the Holy Prophet Sayyidinā Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam and to Sayyidinā Abū Bakr as-Siddīq Rady Allāhu Anhu while they were on their hijra (migration) from Makka to Madīna. She was married to Hadrat Az-Zubayr bin al-Awwām Rady Allāhu Anhu and was the mother of Hadrat Abdullāh bin az-Zubayr Rady Allāhu Anhu. She was Sādiqah (truthful), Dhākirah (in constant remembrance of Allāh), Sābirah (patiently persevering), and Shākirah (thankful).


  1. Asmā’ bint Umays, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was married to Hadrat Jafar bin Abī Tālib at-Tayyār (the bird of Paradise), Rady Allāhu Anhu. They made the first migration to Habash (Abyssinia, now Ethiopia), and from there, they made the second migration to Madīnā. Hadrat Jafar bin Abī Tālib Rady Allāhu Anhu was martyred in the Battle of Mu’ta in 8 A.H. Then she married Sayyidinā Abū Bakr as-Siddīq Rady Allāhu Anhu, and when he passed away in 13 A.H, she married Sayyidinā Alī bin Abī Tālib Rady Allāhu Anhu.


  1. Asmā’ bint Yazīd bin as-Sakan al-Ansāriyya, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She narrated some of the Hadīth, the Noble Sayings of Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam and was very eloquent. In the Battle of Yarmūk, she killed nine Byzantine soldiers with the pole of her tent.


  1. tima bint Asad bin Hāshim, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was the mother of Sayyidinā Alī bin Abī Tālib, Rady Allāhu Anhu and the grandmother of Imām al-Hasan Rady Allāhu Anhu and Imām al-Husayn Rady Allāhu Anhu. After the death of Hadrat Abdu’l Muttalib, it was Hadrat Abū Tālib and Sayyidatinā Fātima bint Asad who took loving care of Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam. She was like a mother to him.


  1. tima bint al-Khattāb, Umm Jamīl, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was among the first to accept Islām together with her husband Hadrat Saīd bin Zayd Rady Allāhu Anhu. She was the sister of Sayyidinā Umar al-Fārūq Rady Allāhu Anhu who persuaded him to accept Islām. One day, the Beloved Prophet Sayyidinā Muhammad al-Mustafā Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam prayed that may Allāh guide Sayyidinā Umar to Islām and the very next day, he came and declared the Kalima Shahāda and accepted Islām. Allāhu Akbar!


  1. Hamna bint Jahsh bin Riāb, Rady Allāhu Anhā

Her husband Hadrat Musab bin Umayr, her brother Hadrat AbdAllāh bin Jahsh and her uncle Hadrat Hamza bin Abdul Muttalib Rady Allāhu Anhum were all martyred in the Battle of Uhud. After that she married Hadrat Talha bin Ubaydullāh, Rady Allāhu Anhu. From this we draw the lesson that Islām has reached us because of the sacrifices that were made by both the male and female Companions of Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam.


  1. Al-Hawlā’ bint Tuwayt bin Habīb, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She emigrated from Makka to Madīna and gave allegiance to the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam. She used to keep awake the whole night in prayer.


  1. Hind bint Amr bin Harām al-Ansāriyya, Rady Allāhu Anhā

Her husband Hadrat Amr bin al-Jamūh al-Khazrajī, her son Hadrat Khallād, and her brother Hadrat AbdAllāh bin Amr Rady Allāhu Anhum were all martyred in the Battle of Uhud.


  1. Khansā’ bint Amr bin ash-Sharīd as-Sulamiyya, Rady Allāhu Anhā (Tamādir bint Amr in other texts)

She came with her tribe to the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam to accept Islām. She was a famous poet whose Diwān (collected poetry) has already been translated into French. She encouraged her four sons to fight in the Battle of Qādisiyya in the time of the Khilāfah of Sayyidinā Umar Rady Allāhu Anhu and all her four sons were martyred. Allāhu Akbar!


  1. Khawlah bint Hakīm, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was married to Sayyidinā Uthmān bin Maz’ūn Rady Allāhu Anhu, and both of them were among the first to accept Islām. Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam referred to her as a pious woman. She narrated some of the Hadīth, the Noble Sayings of Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam.


  1. Māriya al-Qibtiyya, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was a Coptic Christian who was sent to the beloved Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam as a bondwoman by the Christian Governor of Alexandria in Egypt. She accepted Islām and was very pious. She bore the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam a son named Ibrāhīm who passed away while yet a child. The Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam advised the Muslims to protect and take care of the Copts as they have kinship. This kinship was derived from the fact that the mother of Prophet Ismāīl, the son of Prophet Ibrāhīm Alayhissalām was from them; and the mother of his own son Ibrāhīm was from them. Sayyidatinā Mariya al-Qibtiyya, Rady Allāhu Anhā passed away in the Khilāfah of Sayyidinā Umar Rady Allāhu Anhu and was laid to rest in Jannatul Baqī (the Paradise of Baqī) in Madīna.


  1. An-Nawwār bint Mālik bin Sirmah al-Khazrajiyya al-Ansāriyya, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was the mother of Hadrat Zayd bin Thābit Rady Allāhu Anhu. She transmitted Hadīth from the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam.


  1. Safiyya bint Abdil Muttalib, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was the aunt of Prophet Muhammad, Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam, the sister of Sayyidinā Hamza, Rady Allāhu Anhu, and the mother of Hadrat az-Zubayr bin al-Awwām, Rady Allāhu Anhu. She witnessed the martyrdom of Sayyidinā Hamza Rady Allāhu Anhu at the Battle of Uhud and bore it with great patience. She killed a Jew who came to spy on the Muslims in the Battle of Khandaq. She rests in peace in al-Baqī in Madīna.


  1. Salmā, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was married to Hadrat Abū Rāfi, Rady Allāhu Anhu. She was the mid-wife of Sayyidatinā Khadīja al-Kubrā Rady Allāhu Anhā when she gave birth to the children of Rasūlullāh Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam. She was also the midwife of Sayyidatinā Māriya al-Qibtiyya Rady Allāhu Anhā when she gave birth to Ibrāhīm, the son of Rasūlullāh Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam.


  1. Salmā bint Qays bin Amr, Umm al-Mundhir al-Khazrajiyya, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was one of the aunts of Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam. She was the sister of Hadrat Salīt bin Qays al-Badriyy Rady Allāhu Anhu who was martyred at the Battle of the Bridge of Abū Ubayd. She took the oath of allegiance with the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam at Ridwān. She was at Masjid Qiblatayn when the Divine Command to change the qibla to the Kaba in Makka came.


  1. Ash-Shifā’ bint AbdAllāh, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She became Muslim before the Hijra and emigrated to Madīna. She narrated Hadīth from Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam. She was knowledgeable in the science of medicine which goes well with her name which means “the healing”. She taught writing to Sayyidatinā Hafsa bint Umar al-Khattāb, Rady Allāhu Anhā.


  1. Sumayya bint Khubbāt, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was the first martyr of Islām who was killed by Abū Jahl, one of the greatest enemies of Islām. She, together with her son, Hadrat Ammār bin Yāsir Rady Allāhu Anhu were among the first ones to accept Islām and were tortured by the polytheists of Makka to leave Islām but never gave up.


  1. Umāma bint Abi’l Ās bin ar-Rabī, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was the daughter of Sayyidatinā Zaynab bint Rasūlillāh Sallallāh alayhi wa Sallam. The Holy Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam was her most loving and loveable grand-father. As a child, she used to climb on his shoulder when he went into sijdah in prayer. After Sayyidatinā Fātima Rady Allāhu Anhā passed away, following her will, Sayyidinā Alī Rady Allāhu Anhu married Sayyidatinā Umāma Rady Allāhu Anhā.


  1. Umm Atiyya al-Ansāriyya, Nusaybah bint al-Hārith, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She narrated Hadīth from the Holy Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam. She treated the wounded in battle. She used to give ghusl to those who passed away and gave ghusl to Sayyidatinā Zaynab bint Rasūlillāh, Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam..


  1. Umm Ayman, Barakah, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was the Abyssinian nurse of Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam whom he emancipated. He said that Umm Ayman was “his mother” after his mother Āmina passed away, and referred to her as “the woman of Paradise”. She was among the first to accept Islām. She married Hadrat Zayd bin Hārithah Rady Allāhu Anhu and was the mother of Hadrat Usāma bin Zayd, Rady Allāhu Anhu. After the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam passed away, following his tradition, Sayyidinā Abū Bakr as-Siddīq Rady Allāhu Anhu and Sayyidinā Umar al-Fārūq Rady Allāhu Anhu also considered her just like their mother and used to visit her.


  1. Umm ad-Dardā’, Khayrah bint Abī Hadrad, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was married to Hadrat Abu’d Dardā’, Rady Allāhu Anhu. She was distinguished for her learning and her ibādāt (worship of Allāh). She narrated Hadīth Sharīf.


  1. Umm al-Fadl, Lubāba bint al-Hārith, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was among the first women to become Muslim after Sayyidatinā Khadīja bint Khuwaylid Rady Allāhu Anhā. She narrated Hadīth Sharīf. She was married to Sayyidinā Abbās bin Abdul Muttalib, Rady Allāhu Anhu, the uncle of Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam. She used to fast on Mondays and Thursdays.


  1. Umm Hānī’, Fākhita bint Abī Tālib, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was the cousin of the Beloved Prophet Muhammad, Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam, and the sister of Sayyidinā Alī al-Murtadā, Rady Allāhu Anhu. The Prophet Sallallahu alayhi wa Sallam was staying in her house in the precincts of the Kaba the night he was called for mirāj (his heavenly ascension). Masjid al-Harām (The Sacred Grand Masjid) in Makka has been so much extended that the spot where her house once stood is now inside the Masjid. Those who know of its exact location pray rakatayn (two raka) salāh an-nāfila there when they go for Hajj or Umra. She related Hadīth Sharīf.


  1. Umm Harām bint Milhān bin Khālid al-Khazrajiyya, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was among the first Ansārī women to accept Islām. She narrated Hadīth from the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam. The Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam dreamt that she was on a sea expedition with Muslims. This dream was fulfilled when she accompanied her husband Hadrat Ubāda bin as-Sāmit Rady Allāhu Anhu on a sea expedition sent by Sayyidinā Uthmān Dhun Nūrayn Rady Allāhu Anhu to conquer Cyprus and she died on the way.


  1. Umm Kulthūm bint Uqba bin Abī Muayt, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She became Muslim and left her parents in Makka after the Peace Treaty of Hudaybiyya in 7 A.H. to emigrate to Madīna. When her brothers came to fetch her, she refused to go back with them. A verse of the Qur’ān was revealed in this connection, so the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam refused to hand her over to her brothers. She narrated Hadīth from the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam. She was married to Hadrat Zayd bin Hārithah Rady Allāhu Anhu who was martyred in the Battle of Mu’ta.


  1. Umm Mabad, Ātika bint Khālid al-Khuzāiyya, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was blessed beyond measure when the Beloved Holy Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam became her guest while on his way from Makkah to Madīna during his hijra (migration) with Sayyidinā Abū Bakr as-Siddīq, Rady Allāhu Anhu.


  1. Umm Mihjan, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was a sahābiya of African descent who used to sweep the Masjid an-Nabawī in Madīna. When the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam did not see her, he enquired about her and was told that she had passed away and was buried. The Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam went to her grave to pray for her. This shows that he did not distinguish between the rich and the poor, or between the black and the white. His main concern was that people should accept Islām and acquire piety.


  1. Umm Rūmān bint Āmir, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She was the mother of Sayyidatinā Āisha As-Siddīqa bint Abī Bakr As-Siddīq, Rady Allāhu Anhā. She and her family members made the hijra (migration) from Makka to Madīna together with the family of the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam immediately after the Hijra of the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam. The Beloved Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam referred to her as a hūr i’l ayn (woman of Paradise) when she passed away.


  1. Umm Salīt bint Ubayd al-Ansāriyya, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She pledged allegiance to the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam. She took part in the Battle of Uhud, providing water to the thirsty.


  1. Umm Sharīk, Ghaziyya bint Jābir, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She tried to spread Islām among the women. She narrated Hadīth Sharīf.


  1. Umm Sulaym, ar-Rumaysā’ bint Milhān bin Khālid al-Khazrajiyya al-Ansāriyya, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She married Mālik bin an-Nadr from whom she had Hadrat Anas bin Mālik, Rady Allāhu Anhu. After her husband was killed by one of his enemies, she married Hadrat Abū Talha, Rady Allāhu Anhu on condition he became a Muslim. She was present at the Battles of Uhud and Hunayn, providing water to the thirsty and nursing the wounded. She used to mix the sweat of the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam with perfume to make the perfume more fragrant. She offered her son Hadrat Anas bin Mālik, Rady Allāhu Anhu to serve the Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam when he was ten. She requested him to pray for her son. The Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam prayed for him that may he have wealth and many children, and Hadrat Anas Rady Allāhu Anhu had more than one hundred children and grand-children and became one of the most wealthy persons among the Ansār!


  1. Umm Umāra, Nasība bint Kab bin Amr al-Khazrajiyya al-Ansāriyya, Rady Allāhu Anhā

She gave allegiance to Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam at Aqaba. The Prophet Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam fought courageously in the Battle of Uhud, his teeth were wounded and he fatally wounded one enemy soldier. She too fought courageously in the Battle of Uhud and the Beloved Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam prayed for her. She also fought very bravely in the Battle of Yamāma in which she lost her hand and received twelve wounds. She narrated Hadīth Sharīf from Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam.

Wallāhu alam: Allāh knows best!

The Sahābiyāt: An Appreciative Explanation

Anyone who saw the Beloved Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam as a Muslim and passed away as a Muslim is called a sahābī (Companion). The plural is sahāba or ashāb. The feminine of sahābī is sahābiya. Its plural is sahābiyāt.

The Companionship of Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam so transformed his sahāba and sahābiyāt and gave them such īmān (faith and conviction), that after the Prophets alayhimussalām, they became the greatest men and women in all human history. They loved Allāh Subhānahū wa Taālā and His Prophetic Messenger so much that they followed the Qur’ān and the Sunnah to perfection to reach heights of spiritual and worldly glory. Allāh, The Glorified and The Exalted, says of them in the Holy Qur’ān that Allāh is well-pleased with them and they are pleased with Him (as their Lord) (98:8).

For that reason, whenever the name of a sahābī is mentioned, we say Rady Allāhu Anhu which means “Allāh is pleased with him”. When the names of the sahāba are mentioned, we say Rady Allāhu Anhum, meaning “Allāh is pleased with them”. When the name of a sahābiya is mentioned, we say Rady Allāhu Anhā which means “Allāh is pleased with her”. When the names of the sahābiyāt are mentioned, we say Rady Allāhu Anhunna meaning “Allāh is pleased with them”.

The Companions of Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam, both men and women, knew of their rights and responsibilities which Allāh The Glorified and The Exalted had bestowed upon them, but they were more concerned about fulfilling their responsibilities. Some of the responsibilities of a Muslim are explained in verse (33:35).

Surely the Muslim men and the Muslim women, and the believing men and the believing women, and the devout men and the devout women, and the truthful men and the truthful women, and the patiently persevering men and the patiently persevering women, and the humble men and the humble women, and the almsgiving men and the almsgiving women, and the fasting men and the fasting women, and the men who guard their chastity and the women who guard, and the men who remember Allāh much and the women who remember – Allāh has prepared for them forgiveness and a great reward. (33:35)

May Allāh Subhānahū wa Taālā guide us to try to walk in the footsteps of the sahāba and the sahābiyāt so that we are also able to fulfil the responsibilities given in this verse. Āmīn Yā Rabb al-‘ālamīn.

Siddīq Noormuhammad
Toronto.
Ramadān 1424/November 2003

Related Web Pages

The Four Greatest Women

Mothers of Faithful Believers

The Daughters of Prophet Muhammad, Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam

References

1. Al-Hāfiz Abū Nuaym Ahmad bin Abdullāh al-Asfahānī, Hilyatu’l Awliyā’ wa Tabaqāt u’l Asfiyā’ (The Adornment of the Saints and the Ranks of the Spiritual Elite), Dār u’l Kutub al-Ilmiyya, Beirut, n.d.

2. Izzuddīn Ibn Athīr Abi’l Hasan Alī bin Muhammad al-Jazarī, Usdu’l Ghābah Fī Mariati’s Sahābah (Learning About the Companions, Lions in a Forest), Dār u’l Kutub al-Ilmiyya, Beirut, 1415/1994.

(He gives biographies of about 6700 sahāba and about 1000 sahābiyāt. He records with great joy and meticulous care the miracles of Prophet Muhammad Sallallāhu alayhi wa Sallam).

3. Imām Yūsuf ibn Ismāīl an-Nabhānī, Anwār u’l Muhammadiyya (The Muhammadan Lights), Waqf al-Ikhlās (Hizmet Books), Beirut, 1408/1988.

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