Hazrat Abu al-As ibn al-Rabi

A Husband Who Would Not Forsake His Wife

Abu al-As ibn al-Rabi was a Qurayshi merchant of Banu Abd Shams, nephew of Khadija رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاHazrat Khadija bint Khuwaylidرَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاFirst wife of the Prophet ﷺ and the first of all people to believeMothers of the Believers · Ahl al-Bayt · Early Converts, who had married the Prophet’s ﷺ eldest daughter Zaynab رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاHazrat Zaynab bint Muhammadرَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاEldest daughter of the Prophet ﷺAhl al-Bayt before the call to Islam. When the Quraysh pressed him to divorce her in the wake of his father-in-law’s mission, he refused, saying he would prefer no other woman to her. 1 Seerat-e-Mustafa · Vol 1 · pp. 264–265 — Idris Kandhlawi — Abu al-As's marriage to Zaynab; he refuses to divorce her under Quraysh pressure.

Badr and the Necklace

He fought at Badr on the side of the Quraysh and was captured. Zaynab رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاHazrat Zaynab bint Muhammadرَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاEldest daughter of the Prophet ﷺAhl al-Bayt sent her wedding necklace — a gift from Khadija رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاHazrat Khadija bint Khuwaylidرَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاFirst wife of the Prophet ﷺ and the first of all people to believeMothers of the Believers · Ahl al-Bayt · Early Converts — as his ransom. On seeing it the Prophet ﷺ wept, and asked the Companions to return both the necklace and the captive, on condition that Abu al-As send Zaynab رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاHazrat Zaynab bint Muhammadرَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاEldest daughter of the Prophet ﷺAhl al-Bayt on to Madinah; he honoured this. 2 Stories of the Sahabah · pp. 238–239 — Zakariyya Kandhlawi — Zaynab sends her necklace to ransom Abu al-As; the Prophet weeps and returns the necklace.

The Long Way to Islam

Years later, a Muslim party seized his caravan returning from Syria; he slipped into Madinah and to Zaynab رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاHazrat Zaynab bint Muhammadرَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاEldest daughter of the Prophet ﷺAhl al-Bayt’s quarters, where she publicly granted him protection at the Fajr prayer. The Prophet ﷺ upheld her grant, and the Companions returned every penny of his goods. Abu al-As bore the goods back to their Makkan owners, then embraced Islam openly and returned to Madinah — and the Prophet ﷺ reinstated Zaynab رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاHazrat Zaynab bint Muhammadرَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَاEldest daughter of the Prophet ﷺAhl al-Bayt into her marriage. 3 Seerat-e-Mustafa · Vol 1 · pp. 266–267 — Idris Kandhlawi — Zaynab grants Abu al-As protection at Fajr; he returns the goods to Makkah, embraces Islam, and the marriage is restored.