The Life & Character of the Seal of Prophets (sa) - Volume I — Page 90
Seal of the Prophets - Volume I 90 the thirst of her infant child, and in her concern that water be not wasted, she placed stones at the surrounding perimeter of the spring, thus transforming it into a reservoir. It is narrated by Ḥaḍrat Ibni ‘Abbās ra that the Holy Prophet sa would say, “May God have mercy on Hagar, for had she not controlled this water, it would have become a flowing stream. ” The Holy Prophet sa would also state, “During the pilgrimage, the Sa‘ī 1 between Ṣafā and Marwah is in sacred remembrance of Hagar. ” 2 A brief and somewhat transposed and altered version of these accounts is mentioned in the Bible as well. 3 The Holy Prophet sa honoured the sacred remembrance of Hagar as with such magnitude that in another narration, at one instance the Prophet sa said to his companions, “When God makes you the victors of Egypt, treat the people of Egypt with goodness and kindness. On account of our mother Hagar (who was Egyptian), the people of Egypt possess a distinct right upon you. ” 4 In any case, after Abraham as left Hagar as and Ishmael as in the abandoned land of Makkah and then departed, a divine spring came into being. Afterwards, due to this spring of water, which is known as the fountain of Zamzam in Islāmic history, other people also began to settle in the Valley of Becca and the habitation of Makkah commenced. It is recorded that the first tribe to settle there was the tribe of Jurhum, which was a branch of the Banū Qaḥṭān. This tribe emigrated from Yemen and was initially settled at some distance from the Valley of Becca. However, when they were informed of the existence of Zamzam , their chieftain named Maḍāḍ bin ‘Amr Jurhumī sought the permission of Hagar as to settle in the close proximity of the water spring. Hagar as gladly granted permission and this is how the tribe of Jurhum settled in the Valley of Becca. Ishmael as – Dhabīḥullāh 5 After having settled Hagar as and Ishmael as in the Valley of Becca, Abraham as would occasionally visit and then return. When Ishmael as grew older, that is to say in light of various narrations, when he reached the age of thirteen, Abraham as saw a dream in which he was slaughtering his son, Ishmael as. Since no injunction on the prohibition of actual human sacrifice 1 Refers to the running to and fro between Safā and Marwah during the Ḥajj (Publishers) 2 * Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, Kitābu Bad’il-Khalq * As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Malik bin Hishām, p. 96, Bābu Ishāratin ilā Dhikri Iḥtifāri Zamzam, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001) 3 Genesis (21:14-21) 4 Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Kitābu Faḍā’iliṣ-Ṣaḥābah, Bābu Waṣiyyatin-Nabī sa li Ahlil-Miṣr, Ḥadīth No. 6494 5 Sacrificial Offering of God (Publishers)