(alayhis salam) took him and his mother, Hajra, to the site of the
Ka'ba. He gave them some dates and a goat skin full of water and left
them there. At that time no one lived at the Ka'ba, and there was no
water nearby. As Ibrahim (alayhis salam) was walking away, Ismail's
(alayhis salam) mother followed him, asking why she and her son were
being left in sucha desolate place. She askedseveral times but he
would not answer her. Finally, she asked if Allah had ordered him to
do thisand he replied that it was so. Upon hearing this, she accepted
Allah's will and returned to the site where Ibrahim (alayhis salam)
had left her.
As soon as Ibrahim (alayhis salam) was out of sight, he turned and
prayed to Allah to protect and provide for his family which he had
left out in the wilderness:
"O our Lord! I have made some of my offspring to dwell in a valley
without cultivation, by Thy Sacred House; In order, O our Lordthat
they may establish regular prayer ; So fill the hearts of some among
men with love towards them, and feed them with fruits; So that they
may give thanks." (al-Qur'an 14:37)
Ismail (alayhis salam) and his mother lived for some time on the
supply of water and dates, but finally the water began to give out,
and Ismail's (alayhis salam) mother could no longer produce sufficient
milk to nurse herbaby. The baby became agitated and near to death
because of his thirst. The mother could not bear to see her child
suffering, so she ran to the top of nearby Mt. Safa to see if she
could find someone to help her. When she could see no one, she ran
down the mountain and across the valley to Mt. Marwa. Seven times she
ran from one mountain to the other, looking in vain for assistance.
After the seventh time she heard a voice and she called out toit for
help. When she looked she saw an angel digging the earth with his heel
until water flowed forth. That place was the site of Zam-zam. She
carefully made a depression around the place where the water was
flowing, and filled herwaterbag with her hands. Then she was able to
drinkwater and nurse her baby. The angel told her not to be afraid,
that she and her son would be provided for.
Ismail (alayhis salam) and his mother continued to live at the Ka'ba
all by themselves for some time. One day some people of the Jurhum
tribe were passing through the valley. They didn't intend to stop,
because they knew that there had neverbeen any water in that valley.
But they saw a kindof bird which was known to frequent wet spots, so
they followed it to the spring of Zam-zam. There they found Ismail's
mothersitting by the water.
Ismail's (alayhis salam) mother was a very sociable person who
lovedthe company of others, so she readily agreed to their request to
stop there for a while, provided that they did not claim possession
ofthe water. Some of the people of Jurhum decided to settle
permanently by Zam-zam and sent for their families. Ismail (alayhis
salam) grew up with these people and learned to speak Arabic from
them. When he grewup, they urged him to marry one of their women.
You can read about Ismail and his mother in Sahih al-Bukhari IV:582-584.
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