Abd Allah b. 'Umayr al-Kalbi

Abd Allah b. 'Umayr al-Kalbi
Burial Place of most of the martyrs of the Battle of Karbala, near the holy grave of Imam Hussain in his Holy Shrine of Imam Hussain
Native name	عبدالله بن عُمَیر الکَلبی
Companion of	Imam Hussain
Lineage	Banu 'Ulaym
Wellknown Relatives	Umm Wahb
Place(s) of Residence	Kufa
Death/Martyrdom	61/680
Cause of Death/Martyrdom	He was martyred in the Battle of Karbala
Burial Place	Holy Shrine of Imam Hussain, Karbala
Activities	Participating in the Battle of Karbala

Abd Allah b. Umayr al-Kalbi (Arabic: عبدالله بن عُمَیر الکَلبی) was one of companions of Imam Hussain who was martyred in the Battle of Karbala. Once he realized that Ibn Sa'd's army was dispatched to Karbala to fight with Imam Hussain, he left Kufa to join Imam Hussain's carvan. In his journey to They both were martyred on the Day of Ashura. According to Muhammad b. Jarir al-Tabari, Abd Allah b. Umayr was the second martyr in the Battle of Karbala.

Name and Lineage

Abd Allah b. Umayr belonged to Banu Ulaym tribe. Some historical reports about Wahb b. Wahb or Wahb b. Abd Allah al-Kalbi are similar to reports about Abd Allah b. Umayr which have led some scholars to identify these two and reject the existence of a person named Wahb b. Wahb. However, despite the similar historical reports, there are remarkable differences between them as well. Therefore, it is not unlikely that they are, in fact, two persons especially because it is mentioned in some historical resources that Wahb was a Christian which does not apply to Abd Allah b. Umayr who was a renowned companion of Imam Hussain.

Joining Imam Hussain

Abu Mikhnaf narrates the story of Abd Allah b. Umayr joining Imam Hussain's army in details. Once Abd Allah noticed that the people of Kufa were departing to participate in a battle, he asked them about their destination. They replied: "We are going to fight with Hussain, the son of Fatima al-Zahra, the daughter of the Prophet". He said: "I swear to God that I was looking forward to fighting with polytheists, and I hope the reward for fighting people who intend to fight with their Prophet's son is no less than fighting with polytheists".

He returned home and told her wife what was going on. Then, he informed her wife about his intention to join Imam Hussain's army. Umm Wahb said: "God has led you to a good path. Do this and take me with you". Abd Allah b. Umayr and his wife went out of Kufa over night and joined Imam Hussain's army.

Day of Ashura

In the first campaign of the Battle of Karbala, Yasar, Ziyad b. Abi Sufyan's emancipated slave, and Salim, Ubayd Allah b. Ziyad's emancipated slave, went to the battlefield and asked for rivals. Habib b. Muzahir and Burayr b. Khudayr wanted to go and fight with them, but Imam Hussain told them to stay. At this time, Abd Allah b. Umayr who had a muscular body and strong arms asked for Imam Hussain's permission to fight with them. The Imam gave him the permission. When he went to the battlefield, he was asked: "who are you?" He introduced himself. They said: "We do not know you. Zuhayr b. Qayn or Habib or Burayr should come to fight us". He told Yasar who was closer to him: "these people are superior to you and they will not fight with you". He then attacked and killed him. At this time, Salim attacked Abd Allah. Imam Hussain's soldiers shouted and tried to alert Abd Allah about Salim's attack, but Abd Allah did not notice until Salim approached him and hit him with his sword. Abd Allah tried to prevent the strike with his left hand and so his fingers were cut. Then Abd Allah attacked Salim and killed him with one strike.

Once Abd Allah fell on the ground, his wife, Umm Wahb, took a baton and went to him. Abd Allah asked her to go back to the camp, but she took her husband's clothes and told him: "I will not leave you unless I am martyred with you". At this time, Imam Hussain called her and said: "May God give you a great reward on behalf of Ahl al-Bayt. Go back (may God have His mercy on you) and sit with women, since it is not obligatory for women to fight". So she went back to women in camps.

Martyrdom

Before noon, Shimr b. Dhi l-Jawshan, who was the commander of the left wing of the army of Kufa, ordered attack on Imam Hussain's army. At this time, Hani b. Thubayt and Bukayr b. Hayy al-Taymi attacked Abd Allah b. Umayr and martyred him. According to al-Tabari, he was the second martyr in Imam Hussain's army.

Umm Wahb's Martyrdom

After Abd Allah was martyred, Umm Wahb went to her husband's corpse and sat by his headless body. She said: "May the Heaven be pleasant to you". At this time, Shimr b. Dhi l-Jawshan told his servant, Rustam, to hit the woman's head with a baton. He did so and Umm Wahb was martyred. She is said to be the first martyred woman in the Battle of Karbala.

References

• WikiShia, An online encyclopedia of the school of Ahl al-Bayt