By Sana Khan
Many years ago, I was reading the Seerah of our Prophet Muhammed ﷺ. I was reading a chapter about the “Battle of Uhud,” one of the most important battles in Islamic history, named after the mountain “Uhud,” which was a few miles north of Medina at the time. This battle scene stayed with me long after I finished reading about it and visualizing it.
Muslims had a small army of 1000 soldiers and one horse, whereas the Quraish had 3000 soldiers, abundant weapons and 300 horses! The Muslim army, under the leadership of our Prophet ﷺ had a good start and it even appeared that they were winning the battle until the archers left their positions to plunder the loot, contrary to the prophet’s ﷺ orders not to leave their positions until the very end of the battle. The enemies, the Quraish, were just waiting for this one mistake to break their strategy, penetrate in and outmuscle them.
Consequently, Muslims were on the verge of defeat and scattering when an enemy of Islam was able to reach our prophet ﷺ in the battle field. The soldier was about to attack when he ﷺ saw a woman warrior before him. Unshielded and with only a sword in-hand, this woman warrior defended the Prophet ﷺ from all sides: “Wherever I turned, to the left or to the right, I saw her fighting for me,” he had said.
Nusaybah Bint Ka’ab رضي الله عنه was her name. She was a mother, a wife and a warrior on the battlefields, defending Islam. She was also one of the first Ansar women to visit the Prophetﷺ and to pledge her allegiance to protecting him in the name of Islam. As a warrior, she was skilled, brave and fierce to the point that she astounded her contemporaries.
“Where can anyone get courage like you, oh Umm Umaarah,” the prophet ﷺ said to her. (Nusaybah ra was also called Mother of Umaarah , after the name of her son)
Moreover, her two sons and husband fought alongside her in the “Battle of Uhud.” Another instance of her bravery in this battle occurred when her son was injured and when she discovered the soldier who attacked him, she avenged her son.
I couldn’t read any further that day because all I could think about was Nusaybah رضي الله عنه. It kept replaying in my mind how she must have picked up the sword, the fierceness in her eyes, her lightning-fast swordsmanship, her battle prowess and what an honor it must have been to be the first woman to defend the Prophet ﷺ on the battle grounds. Allah had set aside a special moment in history for her; it was her fate. What must it have felt like to see the injured soldiers, one of whom was her son, excellent warriors, acquaintances lying dead around her and then, to see our prophet ﷺ under attack! She didn’t freeze, she didn’t panic; but instead, she picked up a sword and fought, completely aware of what she was getting herself into.
Despite the fact that Nusaybah رضي الله عنه had lost two sons and her husband in the battles, she remained undeterred. She had also fought in the Battles of Hunayn, Kheybar and Yamamah, where she had lost a hand. At the time, she was 60-years-old. She was highly respected in society and was honored by Abu Bakr Al Siddique رضي الله عنه and Omar Bin Al Khattab رضي الله عنه.
Her life is an example of a woman who fought so many battles at different levels with society, her mind, and her own body can also have immense courage on the battlefield. She demonstrated that one can be feminine and strong at the same time, that one can be modest and still be a warrior, one can be kind and compassionate, and fierce all at the same time.
About the Author
Sana Khan is a Motivational Speaker, Writer and Coach. Moreover, Khan has attained her engineering degree from Shobhit Institute of Engineering and Technology (now a Deemed University) and Dr. APJ Abdul Kamal University (former UPTU) in India. She has an MA in International Business from EAE Business School in Barcelona Spain and UPC Catalunya, Spain. Khan has recently written a motivational eBook entitled, “Dreamcatcher Framework.” She has also co-authored a spiritual anthology called, “Pause and Pen.” When she is not reading or writing, she prefers to nature-walk or sip coffee with her husband and son in Belgium.
Website: www.talkwithsana.com
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