The Woman Who Cleaned the House of God

There was a woman named Ummu Mihjan who lived in our Prophet’s blessed city, Madina. This respected mother, whose feelings and thoughts were as pure as herself, one day said to herself:

- Now that the Almighty God has purified my heart from being an unbeliever, let me clean His house; she decided to clean the mosque every day. From now on, she was going to clean, as much as she could, the Masjid Al Nabawi (the Mosque of the Prophet in Madina) where our Prophet taught and where Muslims worshipped.

Ummu Mihjan was poor but her feelings were shining. Whenever she cleaned the mosque, she felt at peace as if her heart was purified as well, and she used to feel joy and happiness.

One day, Ummu Mihjan became sick. She was deprived of the opportunity to pray behind our master the Messenger of God. Her body was in her bed but her spirit was among those pure-hearted people who prayed behind the Messenger of God. She was hoping to get well and continue doing her duty at the mosque but was not able to do so. In her ears, there was the voice of our Prophet that appeased the souls, and in her heart there was the wish of praying while listening to this voice.

When our Prophet did not see her for a couple of days, he asked about her. Her neighbors said:

- She is sick O Messenger of God.

Hearing this, our merciful Prophet walked towards the house of Ummu Mihjan, who lived at the outskirts of the city. The ones who arrived beforehand told her:

- Good news O Ummu Mihjan, the Messenger of God is coming to visit you.

When Ummu Mihjan heard the good news, she did not know what to do. Her heart that was tired from being ill started to beat rapidly. Her forehead became sweaty. A few moments later, a sweet voice was heard:

Peace be upon you (As Salaamu Alaikum), said our Prophet… A weak voice full of thanks answered: And peace be upon you O Messenger of God. The visit was short. However, in reality, the value of that time was very great. That is because the Messenger of God, the father of orphans and protector of the weak, the pure man, had come to visit her. Our Prophet, who said “God is pure and loves those who are pure.”(Tirmizi, Adab, 41), loved a lot the Muslims who pay attention to body, soul, and environmental cleanliness.

Our beloved Prophet was asking very often news about Ummu Mihjan from her neighbors and inquiring information about her health. One day he said to her neighbors:

- If Ummu Mihjan passes away, do not bury her before letting me know.

One evening, Ummu Mihjan passed her pure soul wrought with the love of serving God and His Messenger to the angel of death that had been sent by God. Without losing any time, her neighbors gave her the ritual bath and wrapped her in the funeral shroud. When the preparations were done, they departed on their way. They marched towards the house of our master, the Messenger of God (blessings and peace be upon him). However, the Night Prayer (Salat al-‘Isha) had been performed and our Prophet had already gone to sleep. This news saddened the visitors. Ummu Mihjan, who had a special place among her neighbors and whose value had increased even more especially after our Prophet visited her, was going to miss this last and important honor before she was buried. Ummu Mihjan’s neighbors said among themselves: It looks like that was not meant to be...

- It would not be right to disturb the Messenger of God…

- It is possible that he might receive divine revelation in his sleep and we might make a mistake if we interrupt…

- Let’s not bother him, they said.

Because of such worries, Ummu Mihjan was taken to the Baqi’ graveyard without our Prophet’s forewarning. The funeral prayer (Salat Al-Janazah) was performed and she was buried. The Honorable Companions of the Prophet left her in her grave praying for the Mercy of God. In the morning, when the Messenger of God asked about her, they said:

- She was buried O Messenger of God! Actually, after we completed the preparations, we had come to you. However, you were sleeping. We did not find it right to wake you up.

- Let’s walk together! said our master the Prophet as he set out to the Baqi’ Graveyard with his friends. Ummu Mihjan’s neighbors showed him her grave. The Messenger of God and his friends reprayed the ritual prayer of funeral for her. They left after they prayed for Almighty God’s mercy.

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