NUSAYBAH BINT KA'B [radhiallaahu
anha]
A Gem who fought at the side of the Prophet
Nusaybah's life and example as a Muslimah, wife and mother can be
surpassed only by a few other women in the history of Islam.
She was one of only two women who traveled with seventy-three men
to Makkah, and pledged allegiance to the Prophet, sallallahu alayhe
wasallam, to believe in Allah alone and not to associate others with
Him. They also pledged themselves to jihad in complete obedience to
the Prophet, sallallahu alayhe wasallam, in ease and hardship and
harsh circumstances. That historical meeting is known as the second
pledge of al-Aqabah.
NuSaybah, known as Um Imarah, was a rare kind of Muslim. A pious
and noble woman, Um Imarah was also a daring courageous fighter in
the cause of Allah, and she proved more than once to be truthful to
her pledge.
Hearing that the Makkan pagans were preparing for a great battle
to take revenge for their heavy losses during the battle of Badr,
and that they were moving towards Uhud, the Prophet, sallallahu
alayhe wasallam, mobilized the Muslim men in Madinah. Um Imarah went
out with her husband and her two sons, Abdullah and Habib, to join
the fighters. In the beginning she brought water to the wounded and
tended to their needs, but as the battle raged, and the Muslims were
being defeated, she saw that some were fleeing the enemy leaving the
Prophet, sallallahu alayhe wasallam without protection. She tied her
belt around her waist so that she would not trip, brandishing a
sword at times and throwing arrows at others, she cut through the
ranks of the enemy and took sides with the Prophet, sallallahu
alayhe wasallam. She fought fiercely that day, striking fatal blows
to her opponents until she suffered many wounds, one of them left a
deep gash in her shoulder, which took a whole year to heal. She
herself related some of what had happened during that battle. "I
realized that people fled leaving the Prophet, sallallahu alayhe
wasallam, exposed," she said, "So less than ten men remained to
protect him, while the others were passing by, defeated. The
Prophet, sallallahu alayhe wasallam, saw me without a shield and saw
a man leaving the battlefield carrying his shield, he said,
'Surrender your shield to the one who is fighting.’ He surrendered
it and I picked it up and used it to shield the Messenger of Allah.
But those who gave us the hardest time were the horsemen, if they
were on foot like us; we would have defeated them, insha'Allah. A
cavalier came towards me, but he was unable to strike at me because
I protected myself with the shield. As he was turning back I dealt a
blow to his horse's hamstring and he fell on his back. The Prophet,
sallallahu alayhe wasallam, cried out, 'O son of Um Imarah, your
mother, your mother!' So he helped me kill the horseman."
Her own son related later more of her heroic behavior during the
battle. He said, "I was wounded during the battle of Uhud, and the
blood would not stop. The Prophet, sallallahu alayhe wasallam, said,
'Bandage your wound.' My mother was busy fighting the enemy, but
when she heard the Prophet, sallallahu alayhe wasallam, she came
toward me carrying bandages tied to her side, she bandaged my wound
while the Prophet, sallallahu alayhe wasallam, was standing by. She
then told me, 'Get up my son, and fight’ The Prophet, sallallahu
alayhe wasallam, said, 'Who can endure what you are enduring, Um
Imarah!' A short time later, the man who hit me was coming our way,
so the Prophet, sallallahu alayhe wasallam, said, 'Here is the man
who hit your son, O Um Imarah.' She went up to him and hit him in
the leg; she left him kneeling on the ground. The Prophet,
sallallahu alayhe wasallam, smiled at what she has done so broadly
that his molar teeth were showing and said, 'You avenged yourself,
Um Imarah.' Then more men came and struck the man and killed him.
The Prophet, sallallahu alayhe wasallam, said to her, 'Praise is due
to Allah Who gave you victory over your enemy and satisfied you by
showing you his death'."
A few months later when the call was announced to prepare for the
battle of Hamra-ul-Asad, Um Imarah got ready but she was not able to
continue in her way because her wound got worse and she was bleeding
profusely.
The battle of Uhud was not the only occasion when Um Imarah
showed her bravery. She was among those who gave the pledge of
ar-Ridhwan, to fight until martyrdom. She also witnessed the battle
of Hunayn.
When the Prophet sallallahu alayhe wasallam passed away, some of
the Arab tribes apostatized, at their head was Musaylimah The Liar.
Khalifah Abu Bakr rallied the Muslims to fight the renegades. Um
Imarah asked permission from Abu Bakr to join the army, accompanied
by her two sons. "We knew your bravery during the war," he said,
"Come on in the name of Allah."
This battle was a great test for Um Imarah. The fight was hard
and the two parties adamantly set to win it. She held her grounds,
always advancing. Now she heard that her son Habib fell prisoner to
Musaylimah the liar. He asked him, "Do you testify that Muhammad is
the Messenger of Allah?" When he said that he did, he went on, "And
do you testify that I am the messenger of Allah?" he answered, "I do
not hear." So Musaylimah began to cut him to pieces, organ by organ
until he died. He asked him the same questions over and over, but he
could not get a different answer. Um Imarah went to al-Yamamah with
the Muslims and took part in the war against Musaylimah. She was
eager to see the end of Musaylimah, and it was the will of Allah
that he be slain by her other son Abdullah, and another companion.
Um Imarah returned from the war having suffered twelve wounds
inflicted by spear and sword, and having lost an arm, and her
beloved son.
Um Imarah, Nusaybah bint Ka'b, was a woman who was true to her
words, a woman who occupies a special place in the history of Islam.
Alia Amer
Last modified:
July 19, 2007
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