Sajah bint Al-Harith ibn Suwayd al-Taghlibi (,

fl. ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...

630s CE) from the tribe of

Banu Tamim The Banū Tamīm () are an Arab tribe that originated in Najd and Hejaz in the Arabian Peninsula. It is mainly present in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Iraq, Oman, Jordan and Lebanon, and has a strong presence in Algeria, and Morocco, Palestine, ...

, was an Arab Christian protected first by her tribe; then causing a split within the Arab tribes and finally defended by Banu Hanifa. Sajah was one of a series of people (including her future husband) who claimed

prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divinity, divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings ...

hood in the 7th-century Arabia and was also the only female claiming to be a prophetess during the Wars of Apostasy in the early Islamic Period.

Biography

Her full nisba was Sijah bint al-Harith bin Suwaid at-Tamimi. Translation of Chapter: Translation of= Taqu̅sh, Muhammad Suhail References: *

History of the Prophets and Kings The ''History of the Prophets and Kings'' ( ''Tārīkh al-Rusul wa al-Mulūk''), more commonly known as ''Tarikh al-Tabari'' () or ''Tarikh-i Tabari'' or ''The History of al-Tabari '' () is an Arabic-language historical chronicle completed by the ...

;

Al-Tabari Abū Jaʿfar Muḥammad ibn Jarīr ibn Yazīd al-Ṭabarī (; 839–923 CE / 224–310 AH), commonly known as al-Ṭabarī (), was a Sunni Muslim scholar, polymath, historian, exegete, jurist, and theologian from Amol, Tabaristan, present- ...

: Vol. 3, p. 115, 116, 271, 272-275 * At-Ṭabaqāt al-Kubra;

Ibn Sa'd Abū ‘Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Sa‘d ibn Manī‘ al-Baṣrī al-Hāshimī or simply Ibn Sa'd () and nicknamed ''Scribe of Waqidi'' (''Katib al-Waqidi''), was a scholar and Arabian biographer. Ibn Sa'd was born in 784/785 CE (168 AH) and di ...

: Vol. 1, p. 293, 294 * Kitāb Mu'jam al-Buldān;

Yaqut al-Hamawi Yāqūt Shihāb al-Dīn ibn-ʿAbdullāh al-Rūmī al-Ḥamawī (1179–1229) () was a Muslim scholar of Byzantine ancestry active during the late Abbasid period (12th–13th centuries). He is known for his , an influential work on geography con ...

: Vol. 2, p. 254, 255 *

Abu Zayd al-Balkhi Abu Zayd Ahmed ibn Sahl Balkhi () was a Persian Muslim polymath: a geographer, mathematician, physician, psychologist and scientist. Born in 850 CE in Shamistiyan, in the province of Balkh, Greater Khorasan, he was a disciple of al-Kindi. He a ...

: Vol. 2 p. 198. * ASIN: 9771425587 According to Muhammad Suhail Taqu̅sh,

Arab culture Arab culture is the culture of the Arabs, from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the east, in a region of the Middle East and North Africa known as the Arab world. The various religions the Arabs have adopted throughout Histor ...

and Turkic history professor of Imam al-Awza’i University, Sajah was a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

who also worked as a shaman. Her father was a chief of Banu Yarbu, a clan of

, which has dominant Christians populace after their frequent contact with the Christianity influences from the Euphrates Region. Her mother came from Bani Taghlib from the

Lower Mesopotamia Lower Mesopotamia is a historical region of Mesopotamia. It is located in the alluvial plain of Iraq from the Hamrin Mountains to the Faw Peninsula near the Persian Gulf. In the Middle Ages it was also known as the '' Sawad'' and al-Jazira al-s ...

region. However, according to Meir Jacob Kister,

Arabist An Arabist is someone, often but not always from outside the Arab world, who specialises in the study of the Arabic language and Arab culture, culture (usually including Arabic literature). Origins Arabists began in Al Andalus, medieval Muslim ...

from

Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public university, public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. ...

, it was instead Sajah's father, Al-Harith ibn Suwayd, who belonged to the Banu Taghlib tribe of

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. During Sajah's lifetime, the Tamim tribe were subjects of the

Sasanian Empire The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...

. This relationship was established through the Kingdom of Hira, which was an extension of the Persian Empire. Persian traders passed through several regions first to reach Hira. Bani Tamim played a role in maintaining the security of Persian trade caravans that crossed the Arabian Peninsula. Meanwhile, due to their adherence to Christian religion, the Tamim tribe also develop close relationship with the Christians of the Euphrates region and northern

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

. The Yarbu branch which Sajah hailed from gained political monopoly in

Souk Okaz Sūq ʿUkāẓ ( ), or Al-Ukadh, is a historical souk at ʿUkāẓ, between Nakhla and Taif, in Saudi Arabia. It was the largest and best known annual fair in pre-Islamic times. Today it is a popular tourist destination. History Sūq ʿUk ...

, as one of their chiefs was entrusted as an arbitrator and judge of the market. However, their domination of Souk Okaz came to an abrupt end two years before

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

began preaching

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

. After the death of Muhammad, Sajah self-proclaimed herself as a prophetess. Muhammad Suhail suspected the motivation of Sajah proclamation was due to political move to unite the Tamim confederation branches. At first, Sajah came into Hizn region, where she managed to gain the allegiance from Bani Malik under Waki' ibn Malik, and Banu Yarbu' under Malik ibn Nuwayra. However, her proclamation was not entirely successful. Although the Taghlib tribe under Hudhayl ibn 'Imran pledged their allegiance and abandoned Christianity, the majority of the Banu Tamim clans rejected her call, which made Sajah give up hope of getting the support from the majority of her own kinsmen. As the

Ridda wars The Ridda Wars were a series of military campaigns launched by the first caliph Abu Bakr against rebellious Arabian tribes, some of which were led by rival prophet claimants. They began shortly after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in ...

broke out, she moved into

al-Yamama Al-Yamama () is a historical region in south-eastern Najd in modern-day Saudi Arabia. Only a handful of centralized states ever arose in the Yamama, but it figured prominently in early Islamic history, becoming a central theater in the Ridd ...

, where she joined forces with Musaylima in anti- Medinese coalition. Thereafter, 4000 people gathered around her to march on

Medina Medina, officially al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (, ), also known as Taybah () and known in pre-Islamic times as Yathrib (), is the capital of Medina Province (Saudi Arabia), Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ...

. Others joined her against Medina. However, her planned attack on Medina was called off after she learned that the army of

Khalid ibn al-Walid Khalid ibn al-Walid ibn al-Mughira al-Makhzumi (; died 642) was a 7th-century Arabs, Arab military commander. He initially led campaigns against Muhammad on behalf of the Quraysh. He later became a Muslim and spent the remainder of his career ...

had defeated Tulayha al-Asadi (another self-proclaimed prophet). As the time passed on, the alliance came into abrupt end as Musaylima grew suspicious towards Sajah. Thus, Sajah left Musaylima alone to fought against the Muslim army in al-Yamama. After the

Battle of Yamama The Battle of Yamama was fought in December 632 as part of the Ridda Wars against a rebellion within the Rashidun Caliphate in the region of al-Yamama (in present-day Saudi Arabia, South of Riyadh City) between the forces of Abu Bakr and Musay ...

, where Musaylima was killed, sources mention that Sajah converted to Islam after giving up her claim of prophethood and died after 661 during the reign of

Mu'awiya I Mu'awiya I (–April 680) was the founder and first caliph of the Umayyad Caliphate, ruling from 661 until his death. He became caliph less than thirty years after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and immediately after the four Rashid ...

. Other source said Sajah returned to the settlement of Taghlib tribe after the death of Musaylima, and then she converted to Islam and lived in

Basra Basra () is a port city in Iraq, southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the List of largest cities of Iraq, third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq bor ...

, where she lived her death 675 AD. After her death, Samura ibn Jundab, the governor of Basra, led the funeral prayer for her.

Biography

See also

References

Further reading