Umm Al-Fadl

Umm al-Faḍl, born Lubābah al-Kubrā bint al-Ḥārith al-Hilāliyyah, was the wife of al-ʿAbbās ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib. She is regarded by many scholars as one of the earliest women to embrace Islam, some accounts placing her as the second woman to do so after Khadījah. She and her sister Maymūnah (who would later become a wife of the Prophet ﷺ) both accepted Islam early.

She is most prominently featured in connection with the Battle of Badr. When al-ʿAbbās was captured and brought to Madinah as a prisoner of war, he claimed to have no money to pay the 4,000-Dirham ransom the Prophet ﷺ demanded. The Prophet ﷺ then revealed to al-ʿAbbās knowledge of a secret: that he and Umm al-Faḍl had gone together to a hidden location on a specific day, buried a sum of money, and that al-ʿAbbās had told her which portions would go to each of his sons (al-Faḍl, ʿAbdullāh, and Quthum) in the event of his death. No one else knew about this buried money except the two of them. When al-ʿAbbās heard this, he immediately declared: "I swear by the One Who has sent you with the truth that you are indeed the Messenger of Allah, no one knew about this except me and her." This was one of the miracles of the Seerah that confirmed prophethood to al-ʿAbbās himself.

Umm al-Faḍl was the mother of several significant sons, including ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās (who would become one of the greatest Quranic scholars in Islamic history), al-Faḍl ibn ʿAbbās, ʿUbaydullāh, and Quthum. Allah revealed Q 8:70 in connection with al-ʿAbbās and the prisoners of Badr: that if Allah knows good in their hearts, He will give them better than what was taken from them.