Biography of UMM AYMAN BARAKAH

UMM AYMAN BARAKAH

She is Umm Ayman the Abyssinian (Ethiopian), the freed slave of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.

She was the caretaker of the Prophet ﷺ whom he inherited from his father.

He freed her when he married Khadijah.

She is from those who migrated to Ethiopia during the first migration.

Her first name is Barakah.

She was from the first and foremost to embrace Islam after Khadijah.

She was married to 'Ubayd bin al-Harith al-Khazraji.

She gave birth to their son Ayman.

Her son Ayman also migrated, he fought jihad and was martyred during the Battle of Hunayn.

Then she married the noble Companion Zayd bin Harithah and gave birth to their son, the noble Companion Usamah bin Zayd, who was known as "the beloved" of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. 

Umm Ayman is considered to be from the family of the Prophet ﷺ. 

The Prophet ﷺ used to say to Umm Ayman, "O mother."

He used to say about Umm Ayman: 

هَذِهِ بَقِيَّةُ أَهْلِ بَيْتِي. 

This is the remainder of my household."

Umm Ayman's Extraordinary Migration:

When Umm Ayman migrated to Madinah, she went out on foot without any riding beast, provisions, or water; in addition to this, she was fasting during the journey.

When sunset arrived, she was severely thirsty, but she did not have any water to drink.

She heard a noise above her, so she raised her head and saw a bucket suspended from a white well rope.

She drank the water inside the bucket and quenched her thirst, and she never became thirsty again for the remainder of her life.

She would say:

I was not afflicted with thirst after that, although I would expose myself to thirst by fasting during the severe heat of midday but I never became thirsty. 

Umm Ayman used to honor and take care of the Prophet ﷺ.

Umm Ayman was promised Paradise:

The Prophet ﷺ said: 

مَنْ سَرَّهُ أَنْ يَتَزَوَّجَ امْرَأَةً مِنْ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ، فَلْيَتَزَوَّجْ أُمَّ أَيْمَنَ. 

Whoever would be delighted to marry a woman from Paradise, then let him marry Umm Ayman.

Therefore, Zayd married her. 

The Prophet ﷺ would joke with Umm Ayman.

Umm Ayman came to the Prophet ﷺ and said:

"O Messenger of Allah, give me an animal to ride."

He said, "I will give you the baby of a she-camel to ride."

She responded, "It cannot hold me and I do not want it."

The Prophet said, "I will only give you a baby of a she-camel."

He was joking with her, because every camel is the baby of its mother she-camel. 

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to give Umm Ayman lots of gifts.

Anas said,

"Some (of the Ansar) used to present date palm trees to the Prophet ﷺ until Banu Qurayzah and Banu Nadir were conquered (then he returned to the people their date palms).

My people ordered me to ask the Prophet ﷺ to return some or all of the date palms they had given to him, but the Prophet ﷺ had given those trees to Umm Ayman as a gift.

Umm Ayman came and put a garment around my neck and said,

'No, by Him besides Whom none has the right to be worshiped, he will not return those trees to you, as he (the Prophet ﷺ) has given them to me.'

The Prophet ﷺ said (to her), 'Return those trees and I will give you so much (instead of them).'

But she kept on refusing, saying,

'No, by Allah, until he gave her 10 times the number of her date palms in lieu of the original gift."

Her Grandson:

Harmalah, the freed slave of Usamah bin Zayd, said, "While we were in the company of 'Abdullah bin 'Umar, al-Hajjaj bin Ayman came in, and he did not perform his bowing and prostrations his properly while praying.

So Ibn 'Umar told him to repeat prayer.

When he went away,

Ibn 'Umar asked me: 

مَنْ هَذَا؟ 

"Who is he?' 

"I said: 

الْحَجَّاجُ بْنُ أَيْمَنَ بْنِ أُمِّ أَيْمَنَ. 

"Al-Hajjaj bin Ayman bin Umm Ayman.' 

"Ibn 'Umar said: 

لَوْ رَآهُ رَسُولُ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، لَأَحَبَّهُ.

"If the Messenger of Allah had seen him, he would have surely loved him.' 

"Then Ibn 'Umar mentioned the love the Prophet ﷺ had for the children of Umm Ayman."

Umm Ayman's Love of the Revelation:

Anas said,

"After the death of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, Abu Bakr said to 'Umar,

'Go with us to Umm Ayman so we can visit her just as the Messenger of Allah used to visit her.'

When we reached her, she began to cry.

Abu Bakr and 'Umar said to her: 

ما يُبْكِيكِ مَا عِنْدَ اللَّهِ خَيْرٌ لِرَسُولِهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم.

"What makes you cry?

What is in store with Allah for His Messenger is better

(than this worldly life).' 

"Umm Ayman said: 

مَا أَبْكِي أَنْ لا أَكُونَ أَعْلَمُ أَنَّ مَا عِنْدَ اللَّهِ خَيْرٌ لِرَسُولِهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم وَلَكِنْ أَبْكِي أَنَّ الْوَحْيَ قَدِ انْقَطَعَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ. 

"I weep not because I am ignorant of the fact that what is in store with Allah is better for His Messenger.

Rather, I am crying because the revelation from the heavens has ceased.' 

"Her statement moved them to tears, so they began to cry along with her.

The Death of 'Umar: 

When 'Umar was killed, Umm Ayman cried and said: 

الْيَوْمَ وَهِيَ الْإِسْلَامُ . 

Today, Islam has weakened,

Umm Ayman's Death:

Umm Ayman died during 'Uthman bin 'Affan's caliphate.

She narrated five ahadith.

Some Ahadith narrated by Umm Ayman: 

- Umm Ayman said, "The Prophet ﷺ said: 

لا تُقْطَعُ الْيَدُ إلا في ثَمَنِ الْمِجَنِّ وَثَمَتُهُ يَوْمَئِذٍ دِينَارٌ. 

"The (hand of) a thief is not to be cut off except for the price of a shield.

And in those days, the price of a shield was a dinar"

[Sunan an Nasa'i 4948]

- It was narrated from Umm Ayman that she sifted some flour and made a loaf of bread for the Prophet ﷺ.

He said, "What is this?"

She said, "It is food that we make in our land, and I wanted to make a loaf of it for you."

He said, "Fold it onto itself and knead it." 

[Sunan Ibn Majah 3461]

- It was narrated that Ibn 'Abbas said, "When a young child of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was dying, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ picked him up and held him to his chest, then he put his hand on him, and he died in front of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.

Umm Ayman wept, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: 

يَا أُمَّ أَيْمَنَ أَتَبْكِينَ وَرَسُولُ اللهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم عِنْدَكِ .

 "O Umm Ayman, do you cry while the Messenger of Allah is with you?"

She said: 

مَا لِي لا أَبْكِي وَرَسُولُ اللهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَبْكِي. 

"Can I not cry while the Messenger of Allah is crying?"

"The Messenger of Allah said: 

إِنِّي لَسْتُ أَبْكِي وَلَكِنَّهَا رَحْمَةٌ . 

"I am not crying, this is mercy."

Then he said: 

الْمُؤْمِنُ بِخَيْرِ عَلَى كُلِّ حَالٍ تُنْزَعُ نَفْسُهُ مِنْ بَيْن جَنْبَيْهِ وَهُوَ يَحْمَدُ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ.

"The believer is fine whatever the situation even when his soul is being pulled from his body and he praises Allah, the Mighty and Sublime."

[Sunan an Nasa'i 1843]

End.

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