Eminent Muslim Personalities of African Origin

BACK⇒ Return to Table of contents   Sayyidah Umm Zufar al Habashiyyah   Adversity is abhorred by man and we all fancy prosperity and strive for comfortable lives. Meanwhile, Allah’s subhanahu wa ta ‘ala special servants are those whom He tests the most. Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was asked, “Which of the people is tried most severely?” He said, “The Ambiya’, then those nearest to them, then those […]

BACK⇒ Return to Table of contents   Sayyidah Barakah al Habashiyyah[1]   Sayyidah Barakah radiya Llahu ‘anha was the slavegirl of Sayyidah Umm Habibah radiya Llahu ‘anha. She travelled with her to Madinah from Abyssinia.[2] Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam had a wooden bowl in which he would urinate at night. He would keep this bowl under the bed. Sayyidah Barakah radiya Llahu ‘anha came and drank the contents […]

BACK⇒ Return to Table of contents   A Young Sahabiyyah   An African slavegirl of one of the Arabs embraced Islam and came to Madinah where she lived in a little hut in the Masjid. She would visit the female Sahabiyyat radiya Llahu ‘anhunna and talk to them; at the end of the gathering, she would exclaim, “The day of the scarf was one of our Lord’s wonderful spectacles. Verily! […]

BACK⇒ Return to Table of contents   Tabi’in Sayyidina ‘Ata’ ibn Abi Rabah   Ahmed ibn Hambal rahimahu Llah stated, “Allah bestows the treasure of knowledge to the one whom He loves. If knowledge would have been kept only for a specific people, then those with the noblest lineage would be most deserving of it. However, ‘Ata’ (ibn Abi Rabah) was an Abyssinian slave, Yazid ibn Habib was a Nubian, […]

BACK⇒ Return to Table of contents   Sayyidina Yazid ibn Abi Habib   Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam stated, “Whoever treads a path in search of knowledge, Allah will allow him to travel on one of the roads of Jannat. The angels lower their wings in their great pleasure with one who seeks knowledge. The inhabitants of the heavens and the earth and the fish in the deep waters […]