A resident of Baghdad, she was the servant of one of the Abbasid rulers (566-653 CE), one day she was returning home and she heard a teacher at a nearby school teaching in an eloquent manner. In captivated, she stayed listening to him, then went to the grand mosque to listen to a scholar teach Hadith.

The encounter changed her such that when she returned home, she was a changed woman. She would spend her time constructively whilst others would mock at her. One day when asked why she was so quiet she said, “I am a servant of Allah and it is encumbering upon me to obey His command.” (she said this as they were speaking improperly, so to avoid putting herself in difficulty she remained silent not contributing to the bad talk).

She was then asked, how she would explain her silence to the Caliph, to which she replied the same. When the Caliph heard this news, he set her free. She became a scholar of Hadith, and later began teaching Hadith. Once the Caliph sent her a gift of 10,000 Dinars, she returned it saying, “Wealth brings pride and arrogance and so I do not need it”.

(Leading Ladies: who made a difference in the lives of others)