She was the first to believe in him...

She was the first to believe in him, defend him with her wealth and position, and gave him comfort and ease in some of his most trying times. The Commander of the Believers, Imam Ali (a.s.) refers to her position in one of his sermons found in Nahjul Balagha . He says: "...every year he (Prophet) used to stay is the cave of Hira for some time, and nobody used to be with him but I.

None could then see or hear him or be near him but I During those days Islam was the religion of only the Prophet and his wife, Khadijah. I was the third of the trio. Nobody else is this world had accepted Islam. I even then used to see the divine light of revelation and smell the heavenly fragrance of prophethood..." [^1] Other wives of the Holy Prophet of Allah (s.a.w.), after the death of Her Holiness Khadijah (a.s.), also achieved great ranks in history.

We should not forget the role of Um-Salamah who memorized so many of the traditions of the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.). Her regard and obedience to truth and the right path is famous in the history of Muslims to the extent that some of the Imams of Ahlul-Bait (a.s.) deposited inheritances of the prophethood with her in difficult times. The active participation of women in the socio-political history of Islam is important.

Among the first martyrs of Islam was Sommayah, mother of Yasser, who was brutally tortured and became actually the first martyr in Islam even before the migration to Medina. The participation and bravery of Muslim women of the past is seen on the pages of history. These heroic women possessed exalted personalities such as Sommayah. Their active participation in the religio-political movements is also a lesson to women all over the world urging them to regain their lost identity.

One example of the power Islam gave to a woman's character from the early history is Nasibah who lived in Medina. She was an Ansar (helper of the immigrant from Mecca), and was known as Nasibah Jarahe. She was married and had two sons named Ammar and Abdallah. Her name first appears in the history of Aghabeh Bei'at. Here, new converts to Islam shook the Messenger's (s.a.w.) hand in an oath of allegiance. During this ceremony 60 men and two women from the Ansar converted to Islam.

The Prophet of Allah (s.a.w.), who highly respected women, placed his hand in a dish of water and passed it to the women who in turn did the same. The government of the Prophet of Allah (s.a.w.) was aided by these people.