Zaynab Bint Khuzaymah

Zaynab Bint Khuzaymah (زینب بنت خزیمۃ) was one of “The Mothers of the Faithful”, and one of those Muslim women who were known for generosity and mercifulness. ¹ Due to her charitable acts, she was given the title of ‘Umm Al-Masakeen’ (امّ المساکین) or ‘Mother of the Needy’. ² She was distinguished from the other “Mothers of the Faithful” due to her compassion, patience, benevolence and struggle for the sake of

.

Lineage

She was Zaynab bint Khuzaymah ibn Al-Harith ibn Abdullah ibn Amr ibn Abd Manaf ibn Hilal ibn Sa’sa’ah ibn Muawiyah ibn Hawazin. ³ Her mother was Hind bint Awf ibn Al-Harith. Her half-sister, Maymunah bint Al-Harith , ⁴ also had the honor of becoming a mother of the faithful after the demise of Zaynab . Maymunah was the last woman

Muhammad married.

Life before Marriage with the Holy Prophet

Initially, she was married to Tufail bin Al-Harith bin Abdul Muttalib, who divorced her. ⁵ Then, she married Tufail’s brother Ubaydah who was martyred in the battle of Badr. ⁶

Marriage with Prophet Muhammad

After the martyrdom of her husband,

Muhammad proposed to her on humanitarian grounds, ⁷ and made an example in front of his companions, to take care of the widows whose husbands were martyred in the way of . ⁸ Hence, the Holy Prophet married Zaynab bint Khuzaymah in the month of Ramadan, ⁹ after his marriage with Hafsa bint Umar ¹⁰ and gave her a dowry of 400 Dirhams. ¹¹

Demise

After her marriage, Zaynab bint Khuzaymah spent most of her time feeding the poor and destitute people. ¹² She only spent eight months in the Holy

house and passed away in Rabi Al-Thani during the fourth year of the Hijrah, ¹³ at the age of around 30. ¹⁴ No other mother of the faithful died during the life of Holy Prophet after her. ¹⁵ Prophet Muhammad led her funeral prayer and laid her to rest in Jannat Al-Baqee. ¹⁶

 

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