THE MOTHER OF Ishmael(as)
The first lady to use a girdle was the mother of Ishmael(as). She used a
girdle so that she might hide her tracks from Sarah. Abraham brought her and
her son Ishmael while she was suckling him, to a place near the Ka'ba under a
tree on the spot of Zam-zam, at the highest place in the mosque. During those
days there was nobody in Mecca, nor was there any water So he made them sit
over there and placed near them a leather bag containing some dates, and a
small water-skin containing some water, and set out homeward. Ishmael's mother
followed him saying, "O Abraham! Where are you going, leaving us in this valley
where there is no person whose company we may enjoy, nor is there anything (to
enjoy)?" She repeated that to him many times, but he did not look back at her
Then she asked him, "Has Allah ordered you to do so?" He said, "Yes." She said,
"Then He will not neglect us," and returned while Abraham proceeded onwards,
and on reaching the Thaniya where they could not see
him, he faced the Ka'ba, and raising both hands, invoked Allah saying the
following prayers:
'O our Lord! I have made some of my offspring dwell in a valley without
cultivation, by Your Sacred House (Kaba at Mecca) in order, O our Lord, that
they may offer prayer perfectly. So fill some hearts among men with love
towards them, and (O Allah) provide them with fruits, so that they may give
thanks.' (14.37) Ishmael's mother went on suckling Ishmael and drinking from
the water (she had).When the water in the water-skin had all been used up, she
became thirsty and her child also became thirsty. She started looking at him
(i.e. Ishmael) tossing in agony; She left him, for she could not endure looking
at him, and found that the mountain of Safa was the nearest mountain to her on
that land. She stood on it and started looking at the valley keenly so that she
might see somebody, but she could not see anybody.
Then she descended from Safa and when she reached the valley, she tucked up her
robe and ran in the valley like a person in distress and trouble, till she
crossed the valley and reached the Marwa mountain where she stood and started
looking, expecting to see somebody, but she could not see anybody. She repeated
that (running between Safa and Marwa) seven times."The Prophet said, "This is
the source of the tradition of the walking of people between them (i.e. Safa
and Marwa). When she reached the Marwa (for the last time) she heard a voice
and she asked herself to be quiet and listened attentively. She heard the voice
again and said, 'O, (whoever you may be)! You have made me hear your voice;
have you got something to help me?"
And behold! She saw an angel at the place of Zam-zam, digging the earth with
his heel (or his wing), till water flowed from that place. She started to make
something like a basin around it, using her hand in this way, and started
filling her water-skin with water with her hands, and the water was flowing out
after she had scooped some of it."The Prophet added, "May Allah bestow Mercy on
Ishmael's mother! Had she let the Zam-zam (flow without trying to control it)
(or had she not scooped from that water) (to fill her water-skin), Zam-zam
would have been a stream flowing on the surface of the earth." The Prophet
further added, "Then she drank (water) and suckled her child. The angel said to
her, 'Don't be afraid of being neglected, for this is the House of Allah which
will be built by this boy and his father, and Allah never neglects His people.'
The House (i.e. Kaba) at that time was on a high place resembling a hillock,
and when torrents came, they flowed to its right and
left. She lived in that way till some people from the tribe of Jurhum or a
family from Jurhum passed by her and her child, as they (i.e. the Jurhum
people) were coming through the way of Kada'.
They landed in the lower part of Mecca where they saw a bird that had the habit
of flying around water and not leaving it. They said, 'This bird must be flying
around water, though we know that there is no water in this valley.' They sent
one or two messengers who discovered the source of water, and returned to
inform them of the water. So, they all came (towards the water)." The Prophet
added, "Ishmael's mother was sitting near the water. They asked her, 'Do you
allow us to stay with you?" She replied, 'Yes, but you will have no right to
possess the water.' They agreed to that." The Prophet further said, "Ishmael's
mother was pleased with the whole situation as she used to love to enjoy the
company of the people.
So, they settled there, and later on they sent for their families who came and
settled with them so that some families became permanent residents there. The
child (i.e. Ishmael) grew up and learnt Arabic from them and (his virtues)
caused them to love and admire him as he grew up, and when he reached the age
of puberty they made him marry a woman from amongst them.After Ishmael's mother
had died, Abraham came after Ishmael's marriage in order to see his family that
he had left before, but he did not find Ishmael there. When he asked Ishmael's
wife about him, she replied, 'He has gone in search of our livelihood.' Then he
asked her about their way of living and their condition, and she replied, 'We
are living in misery; we are living in hardship and destitution,' complaining
to him. He said, 'When your husband returns, convey my salutation to him and
tell him to change the threshold of the gate (of his house).' When Ishmael
came, he seemed to have felt something unusual, so
he asked his wife, 'Has anyone visited you?' She replied, 'Yes, an old man of
so-and-so description came and asked me about you and I informed him, and he
asked about our state of living, and I told him that we were living in a
hardship and poverty.'
On that Ishmael said, 'Did he advise you anything?' She replied, 'Yes, he told
me to convey his salutation to you and to tell you to change the threshold of
your gate.' Ishmael said, 'It was my father, and he has ordered me to divorce
you. Go back to your family.' So, Ishmael divorced her and married another
woman from amongst them (i.e. Jurhum).Then Abraham stayed away from them for a
period as long as Allah wished and called on them again but did not find
Ishmael. So he came to Ishmael's wife and asked her about Ishmael. She said,
'He has gone in search of our livelihood.' Abraham asked her, 'How are you
getting on?' asking her about their sustenance and living. She replied, 'We are
prosperous and well-off (i.e. we have everything in abundance).' Then she
thanked Allah' Abraham said, 'What kind of food do you eat?' She said. 'Meat.'
He said, 'What do you drink?' She said, 'Water." He said, "O Allah! Bless their
meat and water."
The Prophet added, "At that time they did not have grain, and if they had
grain, he would have also invoked Allah to bless it." The Prophet added, "If
somebody has only these two things as his sustenance, his health and
disposition will be badly affected, unless he lives in Mecca." The Prophet
added," Then Abraham said Ishmael's wife, "When your husband comes, give my
regards to him and tell him that he should keep firm the threshold of his
gate.' When Ishmael came back, he asked his wife, 'Did anyone call on you?' She
replied, 'Yes, a good-looking old man came to me,' so she praised him and
added. 'He asked about you, and I informed him, and he asked about our
livelihood and I told him that we were in a good condition.' Ishmael asked her,
'Did he give you any piece of advice?' She said, 'Yes, he told me to give his
regards to you and ordered that you should keep firm the threshold of your
gate.' On that Ishmael said, 'It was my father, and you are the threshold (of
the
gate). He has ordered me to keep you with me.'
Then Abraham stayed away from them for a period as long as Allah wished, and
called on them afterwards. He saw Ishmael under a tree near Zamzam, sharpening
his arrows. When he saw Abraham, he rose up to welcome him (and they greeted
each other as a father does with his son or a son does with his father).
Abraham said, 'O Ishmael! Allah has given me an order.' Ishmael said, 'Do what
your Lord has ordered you to do.' Abraham asked, 'Will you help me?' Ishmael
said, 'I will help you.' Abraham said, Allah has ordered me to build a house
here,' pointing to a hillock higher than the land surrounding it." The Prophet
added, "Then they raised the foundations of the House (i.e. the Ka'ba). Ishmael
brought the stones and Abraham was building, and when the walls became high,
Ishmael brought this stone and put it for Abraham who stood over it and carried
on building, while Ishmael was handing him the stones, and both of them were
saying, 'O our Lord! Accept (this service) from us,
Verily, You are the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing.' The Prophet added, "Then
both of them went on building and going round the Ka'ba saying: O our Lord !
Accept (this service) from us, Verily, You are the All-Hearing, the
All-Knowing." [Narrated Ibn Abbas: Bukhari]
