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Asma bint Abi Bakr — 'She of the Two Belts': The Woman Who Provisioned the Hijra and Refused to Submit to Her Father's Killer in Old Age

أَسمَاءُ بِنتُ أَبِي بَكر — ذَاتُ النِّطَاقَين: المَرأَةُ الَّتِي زَوَّدَت هِجرَةَ النَّبِيِّ وَأَبَت أَن تَستَسلِمَ لِقَاتِلِ ابنِهَا فِي شَيخُوخَتِهَا
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Asma bint Abi Bakr al-Siddiqiyya (أَسمَاءُ بِنتُ أَبِي بَكرٍ الصِّدِّيقِيَّة; d. 73 AH / 692 CE; daughter of Abu Bakr; full sister of the Prophet's wife Aisha on their father's side; half-sister of Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr; wife of al-Zubayr ibn al-Awwam; mother of Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr; nicknamed *Dhaat al-Nitaqayn* — 'She of the Two Belts' — for her role in the Hijra; died at the reported age of 100, shortly after her son Abdullah was killed in Mecca; her eyes had failed but her mind and firmness remained; reportedly told al-Hajjaj, who had ordered her son's crucifixion, that she feared God) is one of the most complete female portraits in the Companion era — spanning the Hijra, the battles, the fitnah, and an end of extraordinary composure.

She of the Two Belts

At the time of the Hijra (622 CE), when the Prophet and Abu Bakr prepared to leave Mecca secretly for Medina, it was Asma bint Abi Bakr who packed the provisions. She had nothing to tie the food bag closed, so she tore her own belt (nitaq) in two — using one half to tie the bag and the other for herself. The Prophet called her Dhaat al-Nitaqayn (She of the Two Belts) — a title she carried for life.


Her Strength Before al-Hajjaj

In 73 AH, her son Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr was besieged in Mecca by the Umayyad commander al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf, who had been sent to crush his claim to the caliphate. Before the final battle, Abdullah came to his aged and blind mother and told her he felt he was about to be killed. She told him: “It is better for you to die in dignity than to live in humiliation. Go.”

After Abdullah was killed and crucified, al-Hajjaj came to the aged Asma. She told him what she thought of him. He reportedly left in silence.

She died at over 100 years old — her teeth still intact, her mind still clear — shortly after her son’s death.

See also: Aisha Bint Abi Bakr, Abu Bakr Al Siddiq, Seerah Umm Sulaym, Seerah Hafsa Bint Umar, Seerah Zaynab Bint Khuzayma

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