Zaynab's Return to Madinah: The Necklace, the Spear, and the Night Escape
historicalBackground: Abū al-ʿĀṣ and Zaynab
Zaynab bint Muhammad, most likely the eldest daughter of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa-sallam, was married to Abu al-As ibn ar-Rabi. Abu al-As's mother was Halah bint Khuwaylid, the older sister of Khadijah. So Khadijah was his maternal aunt (khalah), making him a cousin of Zaynab herself. The marriage had taken place in the days of Jahiliyyah, and it was a marriage of genuine love: Abu al-As never prevented Zaynab from practicing Islam, and she remained devoted to him even after their faith separated them.
At the Battle of Badr, Abu al-As fought on the Qurayshi side and was captured. Zaynab in Makkah sent ransom for him. Among the items she sent was a necklace that Khadijah had worn and gifted to Zaynab at the time of her wedding, a precious heirloom from the Prophet's beloved first wife.
The Khadijah Necklace
When the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa-sallam saw this necklace among the ransom items, his heart was visibly moved. Those present could see the effect on his face as the memories of Khadijah returned. (This is the same depth of feeling that ʿAisha would describe about the Prophet, that even Halah's footsteps, sounding similar to Khadijah's, would affect him deeply enough to make Aisha feel jealous.)
The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa-sallam made an intercession (shafa'ah) to those who had captured Abu al-As. He asked them: "If you see fit, can you release him without requiring this particular item?" They agreed. The real condition, however, was that Abu al-As must send Zaynab back to her father in Madinah. Abu al-As, a man of honor even as a pagan, agreed to this.
Hind's Suspicious Visit
When rumors spread in Makkah that Zaynab might be leaving, Hind bint Utbah, the wife of Abu Sufyan, visited Zaynab and offered: "If you are planning to go back to your father in Madinah, there is no need for you to leave. But if you must go, come to me before you leave and I will help you prepare your luggage, women know what women need." Hind's actual motive was political: she wanted to keep the Prophet's daughter in Makkah, retaining her as a form of leverage over the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa-sallam. Zaynab felt something was wrong, her sixth sense was alerting her, and she said nothing to Hind about her actual departure plans. She packed her own bags in secret.
The Daylight Disaster
Abu al-As assigned his brother Kinānah to escort Zaynab out of Makkah, since he himself was too emotionally distressed to accompany his own wife on her departure. Kinānah, not thinking clearly (understandably, given the emotional weight of the situation), loaded Zaynab's bags on a camel and began leading her out of Makkah in broad daylight.
News spread immediately across Makkah that Zaynab was leaving. A group of Quraysh quickly gathered to stop her. Among them was Habbār ibn al-Aswad ibn al-Muttalib, a distant cousin of Zaynab through the Muttalib branch of Quraysh. Habbār thrust a spear at the camel. The camel reared in panic, and Zaynab, who was pregnant at the time, was thrown approximately fifteen feet from the camel's back. She fell hard to the ground, began bleeding immediately, and suffered a miscarriage. The physical injuries from this fall stayed with her and are considered one of the contributing factors in her death several years later (she died approximately three to four years after this incident).
Kinānah's Brave Stand
Kinānah jumped in front of the gathering crowd to protect Zaynab. He notched an arrow and declared: "I swear by Allah, whoever approaches her first will taste my sword and my arrow. And every one of you knows how good a marksman I am." A tense standoff ensued. The crowd did not want to risk their lives, but they also would not let Zaynab go. They stood in a circle around the two of them, not knowing what to do.
Abu Sufyan's Pragmatism
Word reached Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, who rushed on horseback to the scene. He assessed the situation and took charge. First, he dispersed the gathered crowd. Then he turned to Kinānah and said: "You acted foolishly. Did you really think we would let you take the daughter of Muhammad out in broad daylight like this? We cannot be humiliated so publicly. Go back now. Wait a few days until people stop talking. Then take her out quietly in the middle of the night. We have no real reason to hold onto this woman, she is the Prophet's daughter, but we cannot appear to bow to this so openly."
Abu Sufyan was being genuinely pragmatic, not cruel: he acknowledged that there was no benefit to keeping Zaynab in Makkah, but that the manner of her departure mattered greatly for the Quraysh's public standing.
The Nighttime Escape and Lessons
A few days later, in the middle of the night, Kinānah took Zaynab out again, this time discreetly. He delivered her to two companions of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa-sallam who had been waiting outside Makkah (the Prophet had sent them ahead precisely for this moment, one month after Badr). They took her safely to Madinah, where she was reunited with her father.
Dr. Qadhi draws two lessons: First, even in an unjust society, there are people of honor. Kinānah was not a Muslim, but he was an honorable man who fulfilled his brother's promise at risk of his own life. Second, Abu Sufyan, a fierce enemy of Islam at this point, nonetheless showed political intelligence and a certain humanity in his handling of the situation.
A Historical Footnote on Habbar
Habbār ibn al-Aswad, who caused Zaynab's miscarriage, later accepted Islam. More remarkably, his grandson was among those who accompanied Muhammad ibn Qasim in the famous Muslim conquest of Sindh in 93 AH / 712 CE, and the Habbārid Dynasty, named after this same Habbār, ruled over Makrān, Sindh, and the ancient city of Mansūra for over two hundred years. Dr. Qadhi points out: SubhānAllāh, Allah's Qadar is remarkable, from someone who persecuted the Prophet's daughter, to a dynasty that spread Islam across South Asia seven generations later.