Amat al-Jalil bint Amr al-Adawiyya

Amat al-Jalil bint Amr al-Adawiyya was a devout woman of Banu Adi in Basra; Ibn al-Jawzi gives her entry in Sifat al-Safwa (no. 598) and describes her as utterly withdrawn from long striving. ¹

Ibn al-Jawzi relates, from a book in Muhammad ibn al-Husayn's own hand, from Misma' ibn Asim, that the devotees of Basra disagreed about sainthood (wilaya): some said that a servant who deserved it would attain whatever he set his mind on, in religion or the world; another said that the friend of God does not sin, but attains what he wants of the world only by seeking it, not by mere resolve; others said that one who deserves sainthood is not exposed to any loss of his share in the hereafter. They agreed to go to her; she admitted them, and they put their disagreement to her. ¹ She said: "The friend of God's hours are hours busy away from the world; the friend of God has no need in the world." Then she turned to one of them, Kilab, and said, "Whoever tells you that His friend has any concern but Him, do not believe him." Misma' said: "After that I heard nothing but people crying out from the corners of the house." ¹