Amina bt. Wahb: Difference between revisions

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'''Amina bt. Wahab''' (death: 40 years before Hijra/516 AD), the prophet's mother and one of the most respectful ladies of [[Quraysh]]. Amina got married with [['Abd Allah b. 'Abd al-Muttalib]] in 54 or 53 years before Hijra. Despite the short period of their marriage, she got pregnant with 'Abd Allah and gave birth to Muhammad in 52 years before Hijra. When Muhammad was 6 or 4, Amina passed away in an area called Abwa' while coming back from Medina.

Amina was born in Mecca. His father, Wahab, was a great member of Banu Zuhrah tribe, and his ancestor, Abd Manaf b. Zuhrah was his cousin's peer, Abd Manaf b. Qusay. They are called Manafayn for respect. The female ancestor of his father, Atikah, Awaqas b. Murrat b. Hilal al-Salimah's daughter, one of the third Atikah whom the prophet was proud of being her offspring and said: "I'm the offspring of Awatik from Bani Salim."

Her mother was Barrah. Her mother's ancestor was 'Umm Habib, daughter of 'Asad b. al-'izz b. Qusay and the mother of her was Barrah bt. Awaf.

The prophet was proud of his lineage and said: "God moved me from pure waists to pure uteruses and divided into branches which I was put in the beast ones of them."

She was the best girl in Quraysh in terms of lineage and character when getting married with 'Abd Allah b. Abd al-Muttalib. Before 'Abd Allah proposed to Amina, some women such as Nufil b. Asad's daughter, Fatima bt. Marr, and Liyli 'Udwiyyah had proposed to him. According to Bandarli, when Amina got married with Abullah, many Mecca women became heartbroken. Their ceremony lasted for three days and nights. During this period, 'Abd Allah was in bride's house on the basis of the tribe tradition.

== Abdullah's Early Death ==

Their shared life did not continue that much. After a few days of living together, 'Abd Allah set off for a commercial trip, catching an illness in Yathreb and passing away while returning. When the news of her death reached to Amina, she uttered some verses to mourn for him:

According to some historical reports, 'Abd Allah passed away a little time after prophet's birth. Some people think Abdullah's early death after his survival from being sacrificed represents that it was doomed for 'Abd Allah to marry Amina, therefore the prophet would be born.

Sawda, daughter of Zuhrah Kalabiyah, who was the fortune teller of Quraysh said to Bani Zuhrah: "There is a woman among you who warns from bad things or she will give birth to a prophet; show me your girls." They did so. Afterwards, she talked to each of them, and said about Amina:"She either is a prophet or will give birth to one."

Amina told Muhammad about her pregnancy: I didn't notice my pregnancy and did not feel like being heavy like other pregnant women. Someone, in dream or reality, came to me and asked: Do you think you are pregnant? I replied I didn't know. That person said: You are pregnant of a baby superior to all people in this 'ummat.

She gave birth to him in 17 Rabi' al-Awwal Amm al-Fil. Sunnis believe it was in 12 Rabi' al-Awwal. The news of his birth made Bani Hashim very happy so that Abu Lahab set free his slave Thabiyyah Aslamiyah who brought his cousin's birth news. Abd al-Muttalib named him Muhammad. When Quraysh asked about his grandson's name, he replied:"I want him to be praised in heaven and earth."

Amina was seeking for a nurse to accept Muhammad after giving birth to him. He was an orphan and was not wealthy. Initially, no one accepted him. At last, Halimah Sa'diyah, who no one had given her baby to milk until the sunset of that day, and had not accepted the nursery of Muhammad (a), accepted him.

After two years of milking to Muhammad, she brought the baby to Amina, but asked her to let her take Muhammad to the desert and keep him; since he had some blesses for them and protected her from cholera which was spread in Mecca. Amina consented to her request. Finally, Halimah Sa'diyah brought back Muhammad to his mother in 6th year of Amm al-Fil.

Amina took her offspring to visit Abdullah's uncles to Medina in 7th year of Amm al-Fil. Muhammad's father uncles were from Bani Najjar. She got sick when returning from Medina and passed away in Abwa'. 'Umm Iman brought Muhammad back to Mecca and five days later they arrived to Mecca.

Some people say the prophet decided to do hajj 'umrah while coming back from Tabuk Ghazwah. Therefore, he set off for Mecca: When he arrived in his mother's shrine, he asked God for the permission to pray for her forgiveness, but his request was rejected and this verse was sent to him:"And the request of forgiveness of Abraham for his father was only because of a promise he had made to him. But when it became apparent to Abraham that his father was an enemy to Allah, he disassociated himself from him. Indeed was Abraham compassionate and patient."

Also, it is narrated from Ibn Mas'ud that once the prophet visited Muslim's tombs and we followed him. He sat before a tomb and shaded tears there and prayed. We cried along with him and prayed with his supplication. He asked the reason of our cry. We replied that we are inspired by your cry. He said: This tomb belongs to my mother Amina. God let me visit it, yet I'm not allowed to pray for her forgiveness, and this verse was sent to me:" It is not for the Prophet and those who have believed to ask forgiveness for the polytheists, even if they were relatives, after it has become clear to them that they are companions of Hellfire." This is the reason of my cry.

In shi'a view, these hadiths are not authentic, because imami shi'a unanimously believes in faith of Abu Talib, Amina bt. Wahab, 'Abd Allah b. Abd al-Muttalib and the entire prophet's ancestor to Adam. This was pointed out in hadiths: "Jibra'il came to the prophet and said: Muhammad! Your God sends his regards to you and states: I've made hell's fire forbidden for the waist (sulb) which descended you, the uterus which was pregnant of you, and the one who brought you up. That waist belongs to 'Abd Allah b. Abd al-Muttalib, that uterus is Amina bt. Wahab's, and the one who brought the prophet up was Abu Talib, according to Ibn Fazil's hadith, and Fatima bt. Asad.", Imam Sadiq (a) stated.

In addition to this, shi'a has raised some problems to the mentioned hadiths. For instance, Allmah Amini says: Didn't the prophet know he and his followers could not pray for idolaters' forgiveness and mediate for them, even after sending many verses in Tabuk day? So, how he asked for the permission to pray for his mother's forgiveness and to mediate for her? Did he think his mother is not counted as human? Has this hadith been made to contaminate the holy prophet's reputation or view his mother an idolater? He writes in the following: Some have interpreted requesting for forgiveness praying for the corpse. In this case, it would be in harmony with the mentioned hadiths.