Care For Orphans

Another interesting incident is when the Holy Prophet (sas) saw a girl raised by Hazrat Umme Sulaim (ra), he affectionately said to her, ‘Look at how big you have gotten!.’ Then he joked, ‘Don’t grow bigger than this.’ The girl went to Hazrat Umme Sulaim (ra) crying. Hazrat Umme Sulaim (ra) asked, ‘My dear child, what is wrong?’ She said, ‘The Holy Prophet (sas) has told me that I shouldn’t get bigger than this. Now I will never grow up.’ Hazrat Umme Sulaim (ra) immediately got up, wrapped a shawl around herself, and went straight to the Holy Prophet (sas). The Holy Prophet (sas) asked her, ‘What happened?’ She replied, ‘O Messenger of Allah! Did you curse my orphan girl?’ The Holy Prophet (sas) said, ‘Why do you say that?’ Hazrat Umme Sulaim (ra) narrated, ‘O Messenger (sas) of Allah! She thinks that you cursed her by saying, ‘Don’t grow any bigger.’’ The Holy Prophet (sas) laughed and said, ‘O Umme Sulaim (ra)! Don’t you know the covenant I have made with Almighty Allah? I have told Him that I am a human, and like ordinary humans, I get happy and I get angry. But, if I say something to someone in my Ummah that he is not worthy of, then on the Day of Judgement, God may make that same thing a source of purity and nearness to God for that person.’1

This incident also tells us that Hazrat Umme Sulaim (ra) looked after and cared lovingly for orphans within her home. She paid special attention to their tender emotions and tried her best to make them feel better.