The Wife of Two Martyrs: Umm Hakeem
26/07/2010| IslamWeb
On the day of the Battle of Uhud, she was fighting against Islam and Muslims; and on the day of the Battle of Yarmook, she was fighting against disbelief and disbelievers. Umm Hakeem, may Allah be pleased with her, embraced Islam on the day of the Conquest of Makkah, but her husband, ‘Ikrimah ibn Abi Jahl, did not; he fled Makkah to Yemen after he heard that the Prophet had made his death lawful.
Umm Hakeem, may Allah be pleased with her, went early in the morning to the Prophet and asked him to grant amnesty to her husband, and, sympathizing with her, he permitted her to catch up with him and give him the glad tidings of pardon. She set out in his pursuit and caught up with him at the coast of Tihaamah when he was about to sail to Yemen.
She shed tears and said to him,
"O son of my paternal uncle! I have come (with good news) from the best of the people, and the keenest to maintain good relations with people. Do not ruin yourself after I have sought safety from the Messenger of Allah for you, and he granted you safety." He said, "Have you really done so?" She said, "Yes, I talked to him about you and he granted you safety."
'Ikrimah, may Allah be pleased with him, returned with her and they went to the Prophet and when they reached the gate of the mosque, she quickened her pace and entered and sought permission from the Prophet and when he admitted them, ‘Ikrimah, may Allah be pleased with him, proceeded and gave the pledge of allegiance to the Messenger of Allah for Islam and Jihaad (struggle).
She is Umm Hakeem bint Al-Haarith, may Allah be pleased with her, a woman who showed incomparable loyalty to her husband. She was keen on his best interests. She fully understood her husband’s character and used her good offices with the Messenger of Allah to seek safety for him, and the Messenger of Allah granted him safety.
In this way, she caused her husband to embrace Islam and be steadfast in his faith and fight in the way of Allah The Almighty until he was endowed with martyrdom in the Battle of Ajnaadeen.
After him, Umm Hakeem, may Allah be pleased with her, married the glorious Companion, Khaalid ibn Sa‘eed ibn Al-‘Aas, may Allah be pleased with him. Before he consummated his marriage with her, the caller for Jihaad made a public announcement to the Muslims to prepare to fight the Romans. But, Khaalid, may Allah be pleased with him, foresaw that he would be killed in the battle on the coming day; and the believer's foresight could hardly err, for he sees with the light of Allah The Almighty.
He expressed to her his wish to consummate their marriage, and she said to him, "Will you not postpone it until those (the Romans) gathering are defeated?" He said, "I think I will be killed [in battle]." She said, "Then, you may do so." He then consummated marriage with her near the bridge later known as the Bridge of Umm Hakeem, and in the morning, a wedding banquet was prepared for them. They had barely started their food before the Romans attacked, and fighting broke out and Khaalid, may Allah be pleased with him, was killed in the battle before her eyes.
On seeing her husband dead, Umm Hakeem, may Allah be pleased with her, put on her garment and proceeded to fight in support of the cause of Allah The Almighty and to avenge the deaths of her husbands, ‘Ikrimah and Khaalid, may Allah be pleased with them, and all the Muslims who were killed. She was able to kill seven Romans, with the pillar of the tent in which Khaalid, may Allah be pleased with him, consummated their marriage. Even after that, she continued her struggle in serving Islam and deserves to have her life recorded in history books with letters of light. and please her.