The first lady to use a girdle
was the mother of Ishmael(as). She used a girdle so that she might hide her
tracks from Sarah. Abraham brought her and her son Ishmael while she was
suckling him, to a place near the Ka'ba under a tree on the spot of Zam-zam, at
the highest place in the mosque. During those days there was nobody in Mecca,
nor was there any water So he made them sit over there and placed near them a
leather bag containing some dates, and a small water-skin containing some water,
and set out homeward. Ishmael's mother followed him saying, "O Abraham! Where
are you going, leaving us in this valley where there is no person whose company
we may enjoy, nor is there anything (to enjoy)?" She repeated that to him many
times, but he did not look back at her Then she asked him, "Has Allah ordered
you to do so?" He said, "Yes." She said, "Then He will not neglect us," and
returned while Abraham proceeded onwards, and on reaching the Thaniya where they
could not see him, he faced the Ka'ba, and raising both hands, invoked Allah
saying the following prayers:
'O our Lord! I have made some of my offspring dwell in a valley without
cultivation, by Your Sacred House (Kaba at Mecca) in order, O our Lord, that
they may offer prayer perfectly. So fill some hearts among men with love towards
them, and (O Allah) provide them with fruits, so that they may give thanks.'
(14.37) Ishmael's mother went on suckling Ishmael and drinking from the water
(she had).When the water in the water-skin had all been used up, she became
thirsty and her child also became thirsty. She started looking at him (i.e.
Ishmael) tossing in agony; She left him, for she could not endure looking at
him, and found that the mountain of Safa was the nearest mountain to her on that
land. She stood on it and started looking at the valley keenly so that she might
see somebody, but she could not see anybody.
Then she descended from Safa and when she reached the valley, she tucked up her
robe and ran in the valley like a person in distress and trouble, till she
crossed the valley and reached the Marwa mountain where she stood and started
looking, expecting to see somebody, but she could not see anybody. She repeated
that (running between Safa and Marwa) seven times."The Prophet said, "This is
the source of the tradition of the walking of people between them (i.e. Safa and
Marwa). When she reached the Marwa (for the last time) she heard a voice and she
asked herself to be quiet and listened attentively. She heard the voice again
and said, 'O, (whoever you may be)! You have made me hear your voice; have you
got something to help me?"
And behold! She saw an angel at the place of Zam-zam, digging the earth with his
heel (or his wing), till water flowed from that place. She started to make
something like a basin around it, using her hand in this way, and started
filling her water-skin with water with her hands, and the water was flowing out
after she had scooped some of it."The Prophet added, "May Allah bestow Mercy on
Ishmael's mother! Had she let the Zam-zam (flow without trying to control it)
(or had she not scooped from that water) (to fill her water-skin), Zam-zam would
have been a stream flowing on the surface of the earth." The Prophet further
added, "Then she drank (water) and suckled her child. The angel said to her,
'Don't be afraid of being neglected, for this is the House of Allah which will
be built by this boy and his father, and Allah never neglects His people.' The
House (i.e. Kaba) at that time was on a high place resembling a hillock, and
when torrents came, they flowed to its right and left. She lived in that way
till some people from the tribe of Jurhum or a family from Jurhum passed by her
and her child, as they (i.e. the Jurhum people) were coming through the way of
Kada'.
They landed in the lower part of Mecca where they saw a bird that had the habit
of flying around water and not leaving it. They said, 'This bird must be flying
around water, though we know that there is no water in this valley.' They sent
one or two messengers who discovered the source of water, and returned to inform
them of the water. So, they all came (towards the water)." The Prophet added,
"Ishmael's mother was sitting near the water. They asked her, 'Do you allow us
to stay with you?" She replied, 'Yes, but you will have no right to possess the
water.' They agreed to that." The Prophet further said, "Ishmael's mother was
pleased with the whole situation as she used to love to enjoy the company of the
people.
So, they settled there, and later on they sent for their families who came and
settled with them so that some families became permanent residents there. The
child (i.e. Ishmael) grew up and learnt Arabic from them and (his virtues)
caused them to love and admire him as he grew up, and when he reached the age of
puberty they made him marry a woman from amongst them.After Ishmael's mother had
died, Abraham came after Ishmael's marriage in order to see his family that he
had left before, but he did not find Ishmael there. When he asked Ishmael's wife
about him, she replied, 'He has gone in search of our livelihood.' Then he asked
her about their way of living and their condition, and she replied, 'We are
living in misery; we are living in hardship and destitution,' complaining to
him. He said, 'When your husband returns, convey my salutation to him and tell
him to change the threshold of the gate (of his house).' When Ishmael came, he
seemed to have felt something unusual, so he asked his wife, 'Has anyone visited
you?' She replied, 'Yes, an old man of so-and-so description came and asked me
about you and I informed him, and he asked about our state of living, and I told
him that we were living in a hardship and poverty.'
On that Ishmael said, 'Did he advise you anything?' She replied, 'Yes, he told
me to convey his salutation to you and to tell you to change the threshold of
your gate.' Ishmael said, 'It was my father, and he has ordered me to divorce
you. Go back to your family.' So, Ishmael divorced her and married another woman
from amongst them (i.e. Jurhum).Then Abraham stayed away from them for a period
as long as Allah wished and called on them again but did not find Ishmael. So he
came to Ishmael's wife and asked her about Ishmael. She said, 'He has gone in
search of our livelihood.' Abraham asked her, 'How are you getting on?' asking
her about their sustenance and living. She replied, 'We are prosperous and
well-off (i.e. we have everything in abundance).' Then she thanked Allah'
Abraham said, 'What kind of food do you eat?' She said. 'Meat.' He said, 'What
do you drink?' She said, 'Water." He said, "O Allah! Bless their meat and
water."
The Prophet added, "At that time they did not have grain, and if they had grain,
he would have also invoked Allah to bless it." The Prophet added, "If somebody
has only these two things as his sustenance, his health and disposition will be
badly affected, unless he lives in Mecca." The Prophet added," Then Abraham said
Ishmael's wife, "When your husband comes, give my regards to him and tell him
that he should keep firm the threshold of his gate.' When Ishmael came back, he
asked his wife, 'Did anyone call on you?' She replied, 'Yes, a good-looking old
man came to me,' so she praised him and added. 'He asked about you, and I
informed him, and he asked about our livelihood and I told him that we were in a
good condition.' Ishmael asked her, 'Did he give you any piece of advice?' She
said, 'Yes, he told me to give his regards to you and ordered that you should
keep firm the threshold of your gate.' On that Ishmael said, 'It was my father,
and you are the threshold (of the gate). He has ordered me to keep you with me.'
Then Abraham stayed away from them for a period as long as Allah wished, and
called on them afterwards. He saw Ishmael under a tree near Zamzam, sharpening
his arrows. When he saw Abraham, he rose up to welcome him (and they greeted
each other as a father does with his son or a son does with his father). Abraham
said, 'O Ishmael! Allah has given me an order.' Ishmael said, 'Do what your Lord
has ordered you to do.' Abraham asked, 'Will you help me?' Ishmael said, 'I will
help you.' Abraham said, Allah has ordered me to build a house here,' pointing
to a hillock higher than the land surrounding it." The Prophet added, "Then they
raised the foundations of the House (i.e. the Ka'ba). Ishmael brought the stones
and Abraham was building, and when the walls became high, Ishmael brought this
stone and put it for Abraham who stood over it and carried on building, while
Ishmael was handing him the stones, and both of them were saying, 'O our Lord!
Accept (this service) from us, Verily, You are the All-Hearing, the
All-Knowing.' The Prophet added, "Then both of them went on building and going
round the Ka'ba saying: O our Lord ! Accept (this service) from us, Verily, You
are the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing." [Narrated Ibn Abbas: Bukhari]