A man with one lame leg hobbles down a crowded bus aisle and everyone sitting down shifts guiltily. The standing passengers glare pointedly at their sitting counterparts and at the sign above the seats requiring them to be given up to those whose need is greater. The man does not bat an eyelash at the refusal of the seated passengers to give up their seat.

Instead, he grips hold of a nearby pole and gets himself comfortable for the journey. Others might see this as unkind but he knows better. Just because he has a disability does not mean he has to be treated differently. I have honestly never heard of a disabled Sahabah of the prophet. I’ve never thought about it actually, but with this humble write up, we are going to peer into the life of a great Sahabah, Amr ibn Jamuh.

His Early Life

Amr ibn Jamuh was one of the influential leaders in Yathrib (now known as Medina), during the dark ages. Being the chief of Banu Salamah, he was known to be of great generosity and bravery. As the chief, Amr had the “privilege” of having an expensive idol placed inside his house.

This idol was called “Manat”. Amr was devoted to Manat. Despite having one lame leg, he cleaned the idol, perfumed it, placed it in an auspicious position in the house and seeked help from it in times of need. Such was his commitment and furious belief in the power of Manat, an idol, expensive no doubt, but made of wood nevertheless.

Amr’s age had reached about sixty when Islam was introduced in Yathrib. Islam was accepted with open arms there and Amr was left to be one of the few people who had yet to embrace the religion. With him being a staunch believer of the religion of his forefathers, his wife and three sons, who had become Muslims, did not have the heart to tell him of their transition directly. Amr however, was worried should any of his family members turn away from the old religion and go into Islam.

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One day, Amr got wind that one of his sons, Mu’adh, had gone to a session conducted by a Muslim missionary called Mus’ab bin ‘Umair. He then summoned Mu’adh to tell him what Mus’ab had said. Mu’adh very cautiously recited Surah Al Fatihah to his father in response. Amr ibn Jamuh was captivated by the beautiful words and asked if those words were what were recited in every session.

Mu’adh confirmed this and added that even more beautiful words and sayings are recited in each and every session. Seeing his chance to convince his father to come into the blessed religion, Mu’adh asked if he was ready to join Islam since many of his people were already Muslims. Mu’adh did not want his father to miss out. Amr fell silent before deciding that he had to discuss it with Manat first.

Realizing that the idol failed to answer him, Amr came to the conclusion that the idol was helpless. He embraced Islam not long after that and grew even more firm in his belief and imaan. He did not change his generous ways and gave all his wealth for the sake of Allah and His Prophet (S).

His Martyrdom

So great was his imaan that when it came to the time where the battle of Uhud was near, he started getting ready for war when he saw his sons preparing. Being filial and loving sons, they informed their father that he was excused from the war because of his disability. Upset at this, he went straight to the Prophet (S) and requested that he be allowed to participate in the battle. Having turned Amr away from joining a previous battle, Prophet (S) allowed him to fight in Uhud and prayed that he got martyrdom.

Elated at the turn of events, Amr ibn Jamuh prepared for battle. He prayed that Allah grant him martyrdom and said his final farewell to his wife, Hind. With that, he went off to war to defend his beloved Prophet (S) and religion. He fought furiously landing his sword anywhere he could reach on the enemy troops preventing them from hurting the Prophet (S).

He did not stray from the battle unlike others who were distracted by the loot that the enemy left behind. He died within minutes of one of his sons while defending the religion he knew would lead him straight to Jannah.

Amr ibn Jamuh has proven that having a disability should not hinder anyone from doing what they love. Prove to people that you are capable of anything an able person can do. Even with one lame leg, Amr refused to let his disability get in the way of achieveing his goal: martyrdom. If he, a man with only one good leg could fight a war for Allah, who is to say what anyone else can achieve?

Radhiatul Mardhiyah Mustaffa
Mardhiyah graduated from Temasek Polytechnic with a Diploma in Applied Food Science and Nutrition. She’s an aspiring writer trying to find peace and serenity that comes solely from feeling Allah’s love.