❖ My Son Has Been Killed, But My Modesty Has Not — The Incident of Umm Khallad
Authored by: Hafiz Muhammad Anwar Zahid حفظه الله
✿ The Incident:
It is narrated by ʿAbd al-Khabīr ibn Thābit ibn Qays ibn Shamās from his father, who narrated from his grandfather:
A woman named Umm Khallad came to the Prophet ﷺ. She was veiled and inquired about her son who had been martyred in jihad.
One of the Companions رضي الله عنهم remarked:
"You have come to ask about your son, yet you are veiled?" — implying surprise that she maintained her veil even in a moment of grief.
Umm Khallad replied:
"If my son has been killed, my modesty has not been killed."
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ then said:
"Your son will receive the reward of two martyrs."
She asked: "O Messenger of Allah! How is that?"
The Prophet ﷺ replied:
"Because he was killed by the People of the Book."
❖ Authentication of the Hadith:
Status of the Chain: Its chain is weak.
- [Narrated by al-Bayhaqi, 9/175]
Weaknesses in the Chain:
① Farj ibn Faḍālah is a weak narrator.
② ʿAbd al-Khabīr is majhūl al-ḥāl (unknown condition).
③ Thābit ibn Qays is mastūr (not reliably known).
- Also recorded by:
- Abu Dawud in Kitāb al-Jihād, Chapter: The Virtue of Fighting the Romans over Others, Hadith no. 2488
◈ Shaykh al-Albani رحمه الله has also declared this narration weak.
Despite its popularity among underinformed preachers, this narration is weak and should not be used or propagated.
✿ Conclusion:
While the content of this narration emphasizes the praiseworthy modesty of a believing woman even in the face of deep personal loss, the narration is not authentic due to significant weaknesses in its chain of transmission. Therefore, it should be avoided in preaching and public discourse.
