Chapter: It Is Permissible To Seat A Non-Mahram Woman Behind One (On A Mount) If She Is Exhausted On The Road

Asma' daughter of Abu Bakr (RA) reported that she was married to Zubair. He had neither land nor wealth nor slave nor anything else like it except a home. She further said: I grazed his horse, provided fodder to it and looked after it, and ground dates for his camel. Besides this, I grazed the camel, made arrangements for providing it with water and patched up the leather bucket and kneaded the flour. But I was not proficient in baking the bread, so my female neighbours used to bake bread for me and they were sincere women. She further said: I was carrying on my head the stones of the dates from the land of Zubair which Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) had endowed him and it was at a distance of two miles (from Madinah). She said: As I was one day carrying the stones of dates upon my head I happened to meet Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) along with a group of his Companions. He called me and said (to the camel) to sit down so that he should make me ride behind him. (I told my husband:) I felt shy and remembered your jealousy, whereupon he said: By Allah, the carrying of the stone dates upon your head is more severe a burden than riding with him. She said: (I led the life of hardship) until Abu Bakr (RA) sent afterwards a female servant who took upon herself the responsibility of looking after the horse and I felt as if she had emancipated me.

Asma' reported: I performed the household duties of Zubair and he had a horse; I used to look after it. Nothing was more burdensome for me than looking after the horse. I used to bring grass for it and looked after it, then I got a servant as Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) had some prisoners of war in his possession. He gave me a female servant. She (the female servant) then began to look after the horse and thus relieved me of this burden. A person came and he said: Mother of 'Abdullah, I am a destitute person and I intend that I should start business under the shadow of your house. I (Asma') said: If I grant you permission, Zubair may not agree to that, so you come and make a demand of it when Zubair is also present there. He came accordingly and said: Mother of 'Abdullah. I am a destitute person. I intend to start a small business in the shadow of your house. I said: Is there not in Madinah (any place for starting the business) except my house? Zubair said: Why is it that you prohibit the destitute man to start business here? So he started business and he (earned so much) that we sold our slave-girl to him. There came Zubair to me while the money was in my lap. He said: Give this to me. I said: (I intend) to spend it as charity.