Juwairiyah bint al-Harith Radi Allahu Anha
Sayyidah Juwairiyah bint Harith, may Allah be pleased with her, was a
very charming, sweet and very beautiful lady. All who saw Sayyidah
Juwairiyah (Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha) were stunned by herexceptional
beauty. Brought up as she had been in one of the foremost families of
the time, she was not only beautiful but graceful, elegant and
eloquent. Anyone who saw her could not help being captivated by her
charm and pleasant demeanour. Her father was Harith ibn Abi Dirar, who
was the chief of the Banu Mustaliq. When Sayyidah Ayesha (Radi Allahu
Ta'ala Anha) first saw Sayyidah Juwairiyah (Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha)
she exclaimed that she was as beautiful as a fairy.
She married the beloved Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon
Him) in Sha'baan 5 A.H., when the beloved Prophet SallAllaho Alaihi wa
Sallam was fifty-eight years old and she was twenty, not long after
his marriage to Sayyidah Zainab bint Jahash. Before then she was
married to Musaafi' bin Safwaan who was not a Muslim and was killed in
the very battle wherein she was captured.
Before her marriage to the Prophet (SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam) her
name was Barrah, butbeloved Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam
changed it to Juwairiyah. Sayyidah Zainab bint Jahash, Zainab bint Umm
Salamahand Maimoonah bint Harith Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anhunna were also
named Barrah, but the beloved Prophet SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam
changed their names as well.
Marriage of Sayyidah Juwairiyah bint Harith (Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha):
News reached the Prophet (SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam) on Sha'ban 2nd
to the effect that thechief of Bani Al-Mustaliq, Al-Harithbin Dirar
had mobilised his men, along with some Arabs, to attack Madinah
al-Munawwarah. Buraidah bin al-Haseeb al-Aslami was immediately
despatched to verify the reports. He had some words with Abi Dirar,
who confirmed his intention of war. He later sent a reconnoiterer to
explore the positions of the Muslims but he was captured andkilled.
The Prophet (SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam) summoned his men and ordered
them to prepare for war. Before leaving, Sayyiduna Zaid bin Harith was
mandated to see to the affairs of Madinah al-Munawwarah and dispose
them. On hearing the advent of the Muslims, the disbelievers got
frightened and the Arabs who were with them defected and ran away for
their lives. Sayyiduna Abu Bakr as-Siddiq Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anhu was
entrusted with the banner ofthe Emigrants, and that of the Helpers
went to Sa'd bin 'Ubada. The two armies were stationed at a well
called Muraisi. Arrow shooting went on for an hour, and then the
Muslims rushed andengaged with the enemy in a battle that ended in
full victory for the Muslims. Some men were killed, women and children
of thedisbelievers taken as captives, and a lot of booty fell to the
lot of the Muslims. Only one Muslim was martyr by mistake by a Helper.
Amongst the captives wasSayyidah Juwairiyah, daughter of Al-Harith,
chief of the disbelievers.
It is written that after this battle the prisoners were distributed
among the soldiers, and Juwairiyah (Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha) fell to
the lot of Thaabit binQais (or his cousin, according to some reports).
Her father took along a number of camels as ransom for his daughter,
hoping to buy her freedom. As he was onhis way to Sayyiduna
Rasoolullah (SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam), he decided to keep back two
camels that he liked. So he hide the two camels in a valley just
outside Madina Munawwarah and continued with the rest. When hearrived
in the presence of Sayyiduna Rasoolullah (SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam)
he presented the camels and asked that these be accepted in lieu of
his daughter's freedom. The Messenger of Allah (SallAllahu Alaihi wa
Sallam) asked him: "Andwhat about the two camels you hid in the
valley?!?!" Haarith was totally flabbergasted. Immediately he uttered
the Shahaadha and entered Islam, admitting that none besides Allah
could have given information to the Messenger about these camels.
Meanwhile, Sayyidah Juwairiayh had made an agreement with hernew
master Thaabit to pay for her freedom. This was the famous Mukaatabat
Contract in Islam in terms of which slaves could work and buy their
freedom for a fixed sum of money. However, Juwairyah had no intention
of working for her freedom. She had a better idea. She asked to see
Rasoolullah (SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam).
In fact, she demanded to see the Prophet Muhammad, with the intention
of asking him to help her with the ransom money. At that time The
Messenger of Allah was in the house of Sayyidah Ayesha (Radi Allahu
Ta'ala Anha). She was permitted to see the Prophet (Peace and
Blessings of Allah be upon Him) and was taken to him while he was with
Sayyidah A'isha. After she had finished speaking, the Prophet thought
for a moment, and then said, "Shall I tell you what would be better
than this?" She said, "And what is that Our Messenger of Allah?" He
replied: "I pay your freedom money, and you marry me."
Moved deeply by this unexpected elevation in her status, she exclaimed
she would be more than happy to accept. She was freed, and swearing
allegiance to Islam, she married the beloved Prophet (SallAllaho
Alaihi wa Sallam). Although Juwairiyah wasyoung and beautiful and of
noble lineage, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)
was thinking of how to save her and all her tribe from an ignoble
fate. By marrying Sayyidah Juwairiyah, the Banu Mustaliq would be able
to enter Islam with honor, and with the humiliation of their recent
defeatremoved, so that it would no longer be felt necessary by them to
embark on a war of vengeancethat would have continued until one of the
two parties had been annihilated. As soon as the marriage was
announced, all the booty that had been taken from the Banu Mustaliq
was returned, and all the captives were set free,for they were now the
in laws of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon
him). This is when Sayyidah A'ishasaid of Sayyidah Juwairiyah, "I know
of no woman who was more of a blessing to her people than Juwairiyah
bint al-Harith."
Virtues of Sayyidah Juwairiyah (Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha):
Most of the time she would be found engrossed in prayer. It has been
related by Juwairiyah that early one morning the Messenger(SallAllaho
Alaihi wa Sallam) left her room while she was doing the dawn prayer.
He returned later that morning and she was still sitting in the same
place."have you been sitting in the same place since I left you?" he
asked. "Yes," she replied. Whereupon the Prophet (SallAllaho Alaihi wa
Sallam) said,"I recited four phrases three times after I left you, and
if these were to be weighed against whatyou have been reciting since
dawn, they would still outweigh them. They are:
سبحان الله وبحمده عدد خلقه ورضا نفسه وزنة عرشه ومداد كلماته
'Glory be to Allah and Praise be toHim as much as the number of his
creations, and His pleasure, and the weight of His Throne, and the ink
of His words.'" [Sahih Muslim, Kitab Al-Dhikr, Hadith 6575]
Which reminds us of the following verse of the Holy Qur'an:
قل لو كان البحر مدادا لكلمات ربي لنفد البحر قبل ان تنفد كلمات ربي ولو
جئنا بمثله مددا
"Proclaim, 'If the sea became ink for the Words of my Lord, the
seawould indeed be used up and theWords of my Lord would never - even
if we bring another like it for help.'" [Surah al-Kahf, Verse 109]
Her Demise:
Sayyidah Juwairiyah was married to the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allah be upon him) for six years, and lived for another thirty-nine
years after hisdemise. She passed away at the age of sixty-five in
Safar in the year 50th after Hijrah during the caliphate of Sayyiduna
Mu'awiyah bin Abi Sufyan. The governor of Al-Madinah, Marwan bin Hakam
led the funeral prayer and she was buried in Jannat al-Baqi.
يا ايتها النفس المطمئنة ارجعي الى ربك راضية مرضية فادخلي في عبادي وادخلي جنتي
O the contented soul! Return towards your Lord – you being pleased
with Him, and He pleasedwith you! Then enter the ranks ofMy chosen
bondmen! And come into My Paradise! [Surah al-Fajr, Verses 27-30]
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