How Did Aminah, the Mother of the Prophet (PBUH), Die?
كيف ماتت آمنة أم الرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم؟
Aminah, the mother of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), went out to visit her husband Abdullah’s grave in Yathrib and traveled a journey of five hundred kilometers, along with her orphan son, and her maid Umm Ayman, and stayed for a month. On her way back home, she fell ill and died at al-Abwa, between Mecca and Medina, and Umm Ayman returned with the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) to Mecca.
خرجت آمنة أم الرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم، لزيارة زوجها عبدالله بيثرب، وقطعت رحلة تبلغ خمسمائة كيلومتر، ومعها ولدها اليتيم، وخادمتها أم أيمن، ومكثت شهرا، ثم قفلت: وبينما هي راجعة إذ يلاحقها المرض، فماتت بالأبواء بين مكة والمدينة، وعادت أم أيمن بالرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم إلى مكة.
1. The Journey to Yathrib to Visit Abdullah's Grave | رحلة الوفاء إلى يثرب لزيارة قبر الزوج الفقيد
When he was six, his mother Aminah took him from Mecca to Yathrib (Medina). The scholar's answer says she went to visit her husband Abdullah's grave there; Ibn Ishaq says she took the boy to visit his relatives of Banu Adi ibn al-Najjar, and al-Waqidi adds that Umm Ayman went with them.
أَلَمْ يَجِدْكَ يَتِيمًا فَآوَىٰ (سورة الضحى: 6)
لما بلغ ﷺ ست سنين خرجت به أمه آمنة من مكة إلى يثرب؛ ففي جواب الشيخ أنها خرجت لزيارة زوجها عبد الله، وذكر ابن إسحاق أنها قدمت به على أخواله من بني عدي بن النجار تزيره إياهم، وزاد الواقدي أن أم أيمن كانت معهم.
2. Falling Ill at the Desert Station of Al-Abwa | اشتداد المرض والوفاة بموضع الأبواء بين المدينتين
The scholar's answer says she stayed a month and fell ill on the way back; she died at al-Abwa, between Mecca and Medina, as Ibn Ishaq also reports.
كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَائِقَةُ الْمَوْتِ (سورة آل عمران: 185)
في جواب الشيخ أنها مكثت شهرًا ثم قفلت فلحقها المرض في الطريق، وذكر ابن إسحاق أنها ماتت بالأبواء بين مكة والمدينة وهي راجعة.
3. Umm Ayman's Faithful Care and Safe Return | وفاء أم أيمن والعودة باليتيم إلى مكة المكرمة
Umm Ayman brought him back to Mecca, as the scholar says. She was the servant from Abyssinia who looked after him from his birth until he grew up, and he later freed her (Sahih Muslim 1771). In Mecca his grandfather Abd al-Muttalib took him in.
يَتِيمًا ذَا مَقْرَبَةٍ (سورة البلد: 15)
عادت أم أيمن بالنبي ﷺ إلى مكة كما في جواب الشيخ، وهي الحبشية التي حضنته منذ ولد حتى كبر ثم أعتقها (صحيح مسلم 1771)، فضمه جده عبد المطلب إليه.
4. Compounded Grief: The Loss of Both Parents | يتم الأبوين في تفسير ابن كثير
Ibn Kathir explains "Did He not find you as an orphan then sheltered you?" (93:6) through these losses: his father died before his birth, his mother when he was six, and his grandfather when he was eight, after which his uncle Abu Talib took care of him. The same surah goes on: "So do not oppress the orphan" (93:9), the root of his teaching on the rights of orphans.
فَأَمَّا الْيَتِيمَ فَلَا تَقْهَرْ (سورة الضحى: 9)
فسر ابن كثير قوله تعالى (أَلَمْ يَجِدْكَ يَتِيمًا فَآوَىٰ) بهذه المراحل: توفي أبوه وهو حمل، ثم أمه وله ست سنين، ثم جده وله ثمان سنين، فكفله عمه أبو طالب. ثم تقول السورة: (فَأَمَّا الْيَتِيمَ فَلَا تَقْهَرْ).
5. The Moving Visit to Her Grave Decades Later | البكاء النبوي المؤثر عند قبرها بعد عقود
Years later the Prophet ﷺ visited his mother's grave and wept, and those around him wept too (Sahih Muslim 976). In a report Imam Ahmad records, which Ibn Kathir quotes, this happened when they had stopped at Waddan.
وَاخْفِضْ لَهُمَا جَنَاحَ الذُّلِّ مِنَ الرَّحْمَةِ (سورة الإسراء: 24)
وبعد سنين زار ﷺ قبر أمه فبكى وأبكى من حوله (صحيح مسلم 976)، وفي رواية للإمام أحمد أوردها ابن كثير أن ذلك كان لما نزلوا بودّان.
Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
Where did the Prophet's mother Aminah pass away?
She passed away and was buried at Al-Abwa, a desert waystation between Medina and Mecca.
How old was Prophet Muhammad when his mother died?
He was approximately six years old.
Where was she returning from when she fell ill?
From Yathrib (Medina). The scholar says she went to visit her husband's grave; Ibn Ishaq says she took the boy to visit his relatives of Banu Adi ibn al-Najjar.
Who brought Muhammad back to Mecca after her death?
Umm Ayman (Barakah), his father's servant from Abyssinia, brought him back to Mecca, where his grandfather Abd al-Muttalib took him in.