📜 النساء المحاربات — The Women Warriors رضي الله عنهن, The Lionesses of Battle

مَا الْتَفَتُّ يَوْمَ أُحُدٍ يَمِينًا وَلَا شِمَالًا إِلَّا وَأَنَا أَرَاهَا تُقَاتِلُ دُونِي

"Wherever I turned at Uhud, to the right or to the left, I saw her fighting before me."

— [Ibn Sa'd, on Nusayba]

---

📖 Historical Context

Islam never confined women to the rear. When the defense of faith required it, heroines took up arms and fought alongside the Prophet ﷺ. These lionesses teach us that courage has no gender.

1️⃣ The Role of Women in Battles

---

⚔️ Nusayba bint Ka'b (Umm 'Umāra) — The Lioness of Uhud

1️⃣ Identity

2️⃣ The Second Pledge of Aqaba

Nusayba was one of the only two women present at this historic pledge:

• Nusayba bint Ka'b (Umm 'Umāra)
• Asmā' bint 'Amr (Umm Manī')

73 men and 2 women pledged allegiance to the Prophet ﷺ that night, promising to defend him as they would their own families.

3️⃣ The Battle of Uhud — Her Hour of Glory

The Context

The Heroism of Nusayba

Nusayba came to tend to the wounded and give water. But when the Muslim line collapsed...

The Prophet ﷺ said: "Wherever I turned at Uhud, to the right or to the left, I saw her fighting before me."
— [Ibn Sa'd]

Nusayba's son reported: "That day, my mother was carrying a water-skin. When the Muslims fled, she stood before the Prophet ﷺ, fighting with the sword and shooting with the bow."

The Wounds

"She received such a deep wound to her shoulder that it took a year to heal."

Protection of the Prophet ﷺ

When Ibn Qami'a (enemy) approached to strike the Prophet ﷺ:

Nusayba intervened and received the blow in his place.
Ibn Qami'a said: "Let me reach Muḥammad!"
She parried his attacks until the Prophet ﷺ was safe.

4️⃣ Other Battles

5️⃣ The Battle of Yamāma — Vengeance for Her Son

The false prophet Musaylima had captured and killed Nusayba's son, Ḥabīb. At the Battle of Yamāma:

"She swore to kill Musaylima or die trying. She fought until she lost her hand."

6️⃣ The Prophet's ﷺ Words About Her

The Prophet ﷺ said: "The position of Nusayba bint Ka'b today is better than the position of so-and-so."
— [Comparing her courage to that of men]

Nusayba asked the Prophet ﷺ: "Invoke Allah that I may be your companion in Paradise."
He said: "O Allah, make them my companions in Paradise."
She replied: "That is enough for me; I care not what happens to me after that."
— [Al-Wāqidī]

---

🌍 Umm Sulaym bint Milḥān — The Woman with the Dagger

1️⃣ Identity

2️⃣ The Battle of Ḥunayn

At the Battle of Ḥunayn (630 CE), Umm Sulaym was pregnant and carrying a dagger (khanjar).

Abū Ṭalḥa told the Prophet ﷺ: "O Messenger of Allah, here is Umm Sulaym with a dagger!"
The Prophet ﷺ asked: "What is this, Umm Sulaym?"
She replied: "A dagger I took. If a polytheist comes near me, I will rip open his belly!"
The Prophet ﷺ laughed.
— [Muslim 1809]

3️⃣ Her Merits

The Prophet ﷺ said: "I entered Paradise and heard footsteps before me. I said: 'Who is this?' I was told: 'This is Rumayṣā' bint Milḥān, mother of Anas ibn Mālik.'"
— [Muslim 2456]

---

💎 Khawla bint al-Azwar — The Legendary Horsewoman

1️⃣ Identity

2️⃣ Rescue of Her Brother

When her brother Ḍirār was captured by the Romans:

📜 HEROIC ACCOUNT

Khawla disguised herself as a black knight, attacked the enemy lines, and fought so fiercely that the Muslims thought she was Khālid ibn al-Walīd.

When asked her identity, she removed her veil: a woman!

She freed her brother and slaughtered the enemies.

3️⃣ Battle of Ajnādayn

At the Battle of Ajnādayn (634 CE), Khawla was captured with other Muslim women. She organized a revolt:

She armed the captives with tent poles and led them in an attack. They killed 30 Roman guards before being freed by the Muslim army.

4️⃣ Testimonies About Her Courage

Khālid ibn al-Walīd said: "If the Muslims had ten like Khawla, we would have conquered Constantinople that same day."

---

📚 Asmā' bint Abī Bakr — Dhāt al-Niṭāqayn

1️⃣ Her Role in the Hijra

2️⃣ The Heroism of the Hijra

When the Prophet ﷺ and Abū Bakr departed for Medina:

• Asmā' secretly prepared the provisions
• She tore her belt in two to tie the food
• She lied to Abū Jahl about her father's destination

Abū Jahl, furious, slapped her violently. She did not speak.

3️⃣ Courage Until the End

At over 90 years old, during the siege of Mecca by Al-Ḥajjāj:

• Her son 'Abdullāh ibn al-Zubayr was besieged
• She told him: "Die free rather than surrender!"
• He died fighting

---

🎓 Other Notable Fighters

1️⃣ Ṣafiyya bint 'Abd al-Muṭṭalib

She said to Ḥassān ibn Thābit: "Kill him!" He hesitated. So she did it herself.

2️⃣ Umm Ḥarām bint Milḥān

The Prophet ﷺ said: "The first army of my Ummah to ride the sea, Paradise is guaranteed for them."
— [Al-Bukhārī 2924]

---

📖 Lessons

1️⃣ Courage Has No Gender

2️⃣ Defense of Islam

3️⃣ Balance

---

🎯 Conclusion

These extraordinary women — Nusayba, Umm Sulaym, Khawla, Asmā', Ṣafiyya — prove that Islam honored courageous women who defended their faith with arms in hand.

The Prophet ﷺ praised them, prayed for them, and promoted them as examples.

مَا الْتَفَتُّ يَوْمَ أُحُدٍ يَمِينًا وَلَا شِمَالًا إِلَّا وَأَنَا أَرَاهَا تُقَاتِلُ دُونِي

"Wherever I turned, I saw her fighting before me."

— [Ibn Sa'd, on Nusayba]

---

📊 Key Points

---

رضي الله عنهن أجمعين
May Allah be pleased with them all