Women site, - Precious Pearls: Umm Shurayk

Have you heard about the pearl whose name is Umm Shurayk, may Allaah
be pleased with her? She was one of the early converts to Islam along
with her husband. Come and attentively hear what she says. She relates
her story by herself and says,
When I embraced Islam, I heard a Hadeeth )narration( from the Prophet,
sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, who does not talk from his own
inclinations, in which he said:"A person who calls to something good
or guidance will receive a reward equal to )the reward of( those who
act accordingly, while nothing of their reward is diminished."
Therefore, she wanted to call many people to Islam so that her act
would be added to the record of her righteous deeds. She wanted her
scale to be heavy before the Lord of mankind. Therefore, she went into
houses secretly and said to people, 'Bear witness that there is no God
but Allaah The Almighty and you will be successful.' She went to the
house of so-and-so and said, 'Bear witness that there is no God but
Allaah The Almighty and you will be successful.'
After a few days she became well-known and people knew that she had
changed her religion. She adds, 'My husband's family entered upon me
with their eyes full of evil, angry and snarling. They said to me,
"Have you embraced the religion of Muhammad?"'
Imagine a weak and submissive woman attacked by people who were
threatening her in this terrible way. You may feel sympathy for her,
but by Allaah The Almighty, we in fact need sympathy, not her. They
said to her, "Have you embraced the religion of Muhammad?" She
replied, "Yes. By Allaah, I am a Muslim." She said so with all glory
and steadfastness. They replied, "That is not a problem at all. We
swear to make you forget this life's pleasure." They left and shortly
thereafter they returned.
She added, "They tied me and carried me on a camel, which was the
worst and harshest of their mounts. They led me to the desert. When
the sun was very hot, they pitched their tents and shelters and left
me on the camels' back, tied and suffering." She was expecting death
at any time; however, she was patient to satisfy the Lord of The
Worlds.
She added, "When the first day passed, I was certain that I would not
remain alive until the following day. However, Allaah The Almighty
kept me alive. On the second day, they did the same. They prevented me
from drinking any water. They presented me bread and honey but
prevented me from having water. They continued in this way until my
saliva had dried up and I saw death with my very eyes."
She turned around with her eyes and wished with her heart hoping a
merciful hand would give her a sip of water to moisten her veins and
quench her thirst. Feel free to say anything about her feelings and
form any opinion about her, as you like. However, be certain that she
was of a different status.
She said, "When the days passed, I started to lose my hearing, mind
and sight. On the third day, I was absolutely certain that I would die
and meet the Lord of The Worlds and that I would not live until the
next day. While I was in this miserable state, my husband's family
came to me and I did not understand what they said. Nevertheless, I
heard them saying, 'Abandon Muhammad's religion and Islam and we will
relieve your pain and suffering.'
She said, "I wanted to make my lips move but they could not move. I
wanted to utter something with my tongue but it did not move. I wanted
to raise my hand. I wanted to open my eyes. But none responded to me.
When I wanted to lift my hand, it was as if mountains were upon it.
Finally, it moved by strength and power from Allaah The Almighty. I
lifted it until I pointed to the sky signaling that there is no God
but Allaah and telling them to do whatever they wanted."
While she was in this state and was badly affected by thirst under the
heat of the sun whose rays were enough to melt rocks, she was tied on
a camel's back whose hump nearly broke her back. However, she knew
that being merely dipped in Paradise would make her forget the
suffering of many years.
She explained,
While I was in this state, I felt the coldness of a bucket of water on
my chest. Shortly thereafter I had a drink of it and then it was taken
away. No sooner were my veins wetted, than I started to revive again
and some of my hearing and sight returned to me. I looked to see a
cloud above my head. There was a bucket hanging between the heavens
and the earth. It descended again, I had a drink from it and then it
was taken away. Then, I had a drink, and it was taken away. Then cold
water was poured on me as if it was Paradise. This wetted my head and
clothes.
My husband's family then came and saw drops of water dribbling from
the camel and wetting the ground, they said, "Woe unto you! O enemy of
Allaah! From where did you get this water?" Then my tongue moved and
my lips uttered and said, "I am not the enemy of Allaah The Almighty.
The enemy of Allaah The Almighty is he whom Allaah The Almighty
created, bestowed favor on and then he disobeys Him. The enemy of
Allaah The Almighty is he who associates others in worship beside
Him."
They moved to their water skins to see who opened them and gave her
water. There, however, they discovered the certain news. They found
their skins firmly closed and had been neither opened nor touched.
They returned counting their steps and mumbling. When they reached
her, they said only one statement, "By Allaah! Indeed The One who
provided you with water in the very place where we deprived you of it
is The True God, we bear witness that there is no God but Allaah."
Then their voices became higher and they repeated shouts of Allaahu
Akbar )Allaah is The Greatest(. Then, hands were lifted pointing out
that there is no Creator but the One who lifted the heavens. Allaah
The Exalted Says )what means(:}And whoever fears Allaah - He will make
for him a way out, and will provide for him from where he does not
expect.{]Quran 65: 2-3[
Glory be to Allaah The Almighty! He only put her to trial to remove
her suffering; He did not take from her, except to give to her. He
tried her for three days and nights so that thousands of people would
be added to the record of her righteous deeds. Do you know who were
those who embraced Islam after that incident? They are from the
Muhaajiroon )Emigrants( with whom Allaah The Almighty was satisfied.
Some of them were ostracized for the sake of Allaah The Almighty,
others fought for the sake of Allaah The Almighty, others prostrated
weeping out of fear of Allaah The Almighty, others abundantly gave
charity for the sake of Allaah The Almighty, and others generously
sacrificed for the sake of Allaah The Almighty. By Allaah, the reward
of all their steps, movements and offspring will be added to the
record of righteous deeds of Umm Shurayk, may Allaah be pleased with
her. Allaah The Exalted Says )what means(:}Indeed, he who fears Allaah
and is patient, then indeed, Allaah does not allow to be lost the
reward of those who do good."{]Quran 12: 90[
How many women have been guided through you? How many times did you
offer advice for the sake of this religion? How many times did you
stand for the Lord of The Worlds? Many times we guide people to shops
when there are sales, the most beautiful dresses and parks. But, how
many times do we stand for this religion? Allaah The Exalted Says
)what means(:}But none is granted it except those who are patient, and
none is granted it except one having a great portion ]of good[.{]Quran
41: 35[
Reflect on the situation of Umm Shurayk, may Allaah be pleased with
her. Glory is to Allaah The Almighty! How strong her personality was!
What type of personalities were these? What type of women were they!
By Allaah, this is indeed the true life.