How Aasiya, wife of Pharaoh, died
Fatwa No: 350074

Question

Assalaamu alaykum. I have two questions; I hope you answer them both.
1. How did Aasiya, the wife of Pharaoh, die? Did Pharaoh kill her when she accepted Islam and became Muslim?
2. Why are camels and horses the great privileges in Islam? What is the reason behind it?

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

We did not come across any text from revelation about the death of the wife of Pharaoh, but some interpreters of the Quran mentioned some stories about it, and Allah knows best about their authenticity.

For example, the Tafseer (exegesis) of Al-Qurtubi reads:

"Abu Al-'Aaliyah said, 'Pharaoh found out about the belief of his wife, and he went out in public and said to them, 'What do you know about Aasiya bint Muzaahim?' They praised her. He said to them, 'She worships a Lord other than me.' They said to him, 'Kill her.' So he had her arms and legs tied to logs. She said: {My Lord, build for me near You a house in Paradise} [Quran 66:11]; and this coincided with the presence of Pharaoh; so she smiled when she saw her house in Paradise. Then Pharaoh said, 'Are you not astonished at her madness! We are torturing her, and she is smiling.' Then her soul was taken away.' Besides, Salmaan Al-Faarisi said in the narration reported from him by 'Uthmaan An-Nahdi, 'She was tortured by being exposed to the extreme heat of the sun, and when she was harmed by the heat of the sun, angels would spread their wings and shade her.' It was also said, 'She was tied up by her hands and feet in the sun, and stones where put on her back, then Allah showed her her place in Paradise.'"

As regards your second question, please refer to fatwa 310531.

Allah knows best.

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