Pre-Islamic
Arabia was a hostile place. Tribes and clans fought for generations over petty
issues. People worshipped stones, had
harsh and unrelenting forms of social justice, and they abused and punished the
weak without remorse.
If you were of noble birth, you had it all: family,
status, wealth, honor, and respect. If you were of inferior stock, you had no
recourse to family or tribal protection and had to live life as a secondary
citizen.
However,
when it comes to women, even for women of noble birth, life could be brutal. Women, in general, were
considered to be transferable property and a source of pleasure and service to
men. They had little control over their marriages and they could not inherit.
Female infanticide was common practice and slave women faced the worst forms of
treatment imaginable.
Take
a moment now to imagine how life would be for a slave in such conditions, having the lowest rank possible
in society and no rights whatsoever. How could anyone in such a position dare
to speak truth to power or to go against the status quo, especially against the
beliefs, practices, and traditions of the tyrannical masters of Makkah?
Summaya
Bint Al-Khayat, although she was not a noblewoman
in Makkah, was neither weak nor a coward. And she did not just simply embrace
Islam; she embraced it and openly announced her faith without being afraid of
how the so-called 'noble' disbelievers of the Makkan elite would react to the
announcement of her faith.
Here
we will tell her story to try to learn a little more about who she was, what
she achieved, and why her lesson is a shining example for both women as well as
men to follow for all time.
Who was Summaya Bint Al Khayat?
Summaya
Bint Al-Khayat was the slave of Abu Huthaifah. He was known to be a decent man
and he granted her freedom from slavery and married her to Yasir bin Ammar, a
Yemeni who had come to Makkah in search of his missing brother. Together they
had a son who was named after Yasir’s father, Ammar.
When
the Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him) first started preaching Islam publicly,
there were seven people who accepted
Islam. Summaya Bint Al-Khayat, Yasir bin Ammar, and their son were amongst those
seven people. Summaya did not hide her faith; she boldly and confidently
declared her belief in, and dedication to, Allah and His Messenger (peace be
upon him).
The treatment of the
Quraish
Over
time, as the number of converts to Islam increased, the local Makkans (who
belonged to the tribe of Quraish), became angered. They considered Islam to be
a threat to their own beliefs and way of life because they generated
substantial income from pilgrims who would visit
Makkah to perform rituals at the site of the Holy Kaabah.
To deter
people from accepting the true faith, the Quraish threatened and tortured the
new Muslims so that they would turn their backs on the Prophet Mohammad (peace
be upon him) and give up their faith. Some of the new converts were of high
status and had strong families to protect themselves, while others were not as
fortunate.
Summaya was a former slave and Yasir was a foreigner in Makkah, and
they were poor as well, so their family was beaten, tortured, and made to face extreme
hardships simply for their beliefs.
Abu
Jahal, the uncle of the Prophet (peace be upon him), was particularly violent
and menacing in his treatment of Sumayya and her family.
He beat and burned
them, said terrible things to them, and incessantly threatened and terrorized
them. He found the cruelest ways to torture them so that they would leave Islam
and return to the worship of stones and idols. However, the more they tortured
Summaya and Yasir, the more their faith became stronger. Summaya stood firm on
her faith and endured all these hardships for the rewards promised by Allah in
the Hereafter.
Enduring the hardship until
death
The
Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him) and his companions were not in a position
to help them at that time, but whenever he would pass by the suffering family,
he would tell them, “Patience, O family of Yasir, you have an appointment in
Jannah (Paradise).”
Abu
Jahal continued torturing Summaya and Yasir. Yasir was eventually killed and
became one of the first martyrs of Islam. Abu Jahl then proceeded to Summaya
and asked her if she would give up Islam, which she adamantly refused to do.
This angered Abu Jahl him and he stabbed her, making her the first woman martyr
of Islam.
Lessons
Summaya
Bint Al-Khayat is a symbol of bravery, strength, courage, and faith. She stood
firm on her faith even though Islam permits one to feint apostasy if it would
save one's life.
Allah, may He be exalted, says in the Quran:
"Whoever disbelieved in Allah after his
belief, except him who is forced thereto and whose heart is at rest with Faith,
but such as open their breasts to disbelief, on them is wrath from Allah, and
theirs will be a great torment." [Quran, chapter 16, verse 106] [1]
Summaya
Bint Al-Khayat chose to stay steadfast on her religion rather than to have a
longer life. She set an example for Muslims to follow for all time. She stood firm
in the face of danger and eventually gave her life for the religion and did not
utter even a word of disbelief or say anything against the Prophet Mohammad
(peace be upon him).
Aftermath
After
Yasir bin Ammar and Summaya Bint
Al-Khayat were martyred, the disbelievers seized their son Ammar and did not
let him go until he spoke in favor of their idols and against the Prophet (peace
be upon him). They then let him go, after which he went to the Prophet (peace
be upon him) and informed him about what happened, so the Prophet asked him what
condition he found his heart to be in.
Ammar replied that it was at rest with
faith, so the Prophet told him "If they do that again, do the same again
(as you did)."
Abu
Jahal was later killed in the Battle of Badr, at which time the Prophet (peace
be upon him) said to Ammar that "Allah has killed your mother’s killer."
Summaya
Bint Al-Khayat did not live long enough to see Islam grow and for Muslims to prosper,
but she is remembered for her courage, strength, bravery, and her steadfastness
on her faith. She set an example for Muslim women that they don’t have to belong
to strong and wealthy families to fight for their religion.
Her choice to stay
firm even when she was permitted to utter words of disbelief is proof that Islam
is not a religion spread by force and that women chose to follow it by choice
even when they were being forced to leave it.
May
Allah grant us the same strong faith and strength to stay firm on our beliefs,
and may He increase the first woman martyr of Islam in her honor and rank both
in this world and the next, and grant her the highest level of Paradise.
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