THE STORY OF SUMAYA BINT AL-KHAYAT [THE FIRST WOMAN #MARTYR OF ISLAM] Sumaya Bint Al-Khayat (May Allah be pleased with her) was a pioneering woman who was a slave that was freed when she married a friend of her masters. She married a man named Yasir bin Ammar, a Yemeni, who had come to Makkah in search of a missing brother. Not long after they were married, the happy couple were blessed with a son they named after Yasirs father, Ammar. When Sumaya Bint Al-Khayat (May Allah be pleased with her) and her family learned the new religion and its gentle tenets, they all declared themselves to be Muslims and became one of the first people of history to embrace Islam. in acceptance of the familys beliefs, they where promptly handed over by the Qurashis to be tortured and tormented by Abu Jahal. Abu Jahal eagerly set about making the life of the small family into a living hell. He beat them and burned them. He said terrible, disgusting things to them. He threatened them and terrorized them. He encased them in iron and left them in the desert to be burned by the merciless sun and raked by the howling winds. Whenever our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Peace and blessings be upon him) passed by the suffering family, He (Peace and blessings be upon him) would say sorrowfully, Patience, family of Yasir, you have an appointment in heaven. At that time, Islam was a pacifist religion that didnt even allow self defense. As a result, the Muslims in those uncertain days of violence and dark impulses learned many difficult and important lessons in patience, self-sacrifice and self-control. During that period in Makkah slaves and those without family connections, were easy targets for the Quraysh (unbelievers), since their harassment did not result in tribal repercussions. New embraced Muslims like Bilal, Khabbab ibn al-Aratt, Abdullah ibn Masud, Suhaib ar-Rumi, Ammar ibn Yasir (Sumayyahs son), May Allah be pleased with them, all suffered extreme hardship which tested their faith, but they persevered and remained patient, steadfast and staunch, knowing that the road to Jannah is disguised with difficulties. Eventually, though Yasirs spirit was strong, his body succumbed to the injuries inflicted on his already frail body. His one sorrow as his soul slipped away into the safety and peace of the next life was that he left his wife and young son in the cruel hands of Abu Jahal. As time passed, Abu Jahal grew more and more frustration by Sumayas (May Allah be pleased with her) refusal to abandon Islam. No matter what he did, he simply could not shake her faith in Allah. Tiring of her stubbornness, Abu Jahal decided to try a different approach. He completely lost control of his temper and did the unthinkable. He snatched up his spear, which was never far from his hand, and as she lay on the hot burning sand, looking up to the sky, he plunged it through the frail, midsection part of her body of the woman before him. Sumaya Bint Al-Khayat (May Allah be pleased with her) went absolutely still as she felt the wickedly sharp spearhead tear through her body and plunge into her heart. With a shocked gasp, her soul fled her body and, the pure and innocent soul flew high to Heaven with the angels surrounding her, and with the promise that she would have a place in Paradise, safely reunited with her beloved husband, Yasir. She encountered the polytheists with the strength of a female believer, on the day that she was bayoneted by Abu Jahal, she surrendered her life for her belief in Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). Despite her weakness as an old and frail woman, she refused to do so until the last minute of her life. Such is our history and our faith that a mother was willing to offer her own life to Allah who had a firm will and died with nothing less than excruciating torture. When Abu Jahal was killed in the battle of Badr, the Blessed Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to Ammar ibn Yasir, Allah has killed your mothers killer. While Yasir and his wife Sumayyah were killed when they refused to denounce Islam, their son Ammar ibn Yasir was saved when he accepted to denounce Islam. Regarding this incident Allah revealed the below mentioned verse of surah An-Nahl; He who disbelieves in Allah after his having believed, not he who is compelled while his heart is at rest on account of faith, but he who opens (his) breast to disbelief-- on these is the wrath of Allah, and they shall have a grievous chastisement. [16:106] Sumayyah was truly a woman of immense distinction. She offers a provocative example to our modern day. What a heroic role! What great honour a Muslim woman had when she became the first woman martyr in the history of Islam! O brothers and sisters, wake up! For those who have a complex about womanhood, and endurance of trials and difficulties, let this be a lesson in reliance.
Posted on: Sun, 26 Oct 2014 08:35:40 +0000
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