Hajar and Baby Isma'il: The Well of Zamzam
Ages 5–9 Story 7 of 30
Allah commanded Prophet Ibrahim (AS) to take his wife Hajar and their baby son Isma'il to a dry valley in Makkah. There were no people, no trees and no water there. Ibrahim left them with a bag of dates and a skin of water, and turned to go.
Hajar followed him and asked, "Ibrahim, are you leaving us here with nothing?" He did not answer. She asked, "Has Allah commanded you to do this?" He said, "Yes." Hajar said, "Then He will not let us down." Ibrahim walked away and made dua for them: "Our Lord, I have settled my family in a valley with no crops, near Your Sacred House…"
Soon the water and dates ran out. Baby Isma'il began to cry with thirst. Hajar climbed the hill of Safa to look for help, but saw nobody. She ran down and climbed the hill of Marwah, and still saw nobody. She ran between the two hills seven times.
Then she heard a sound. An angel struck the ground, and water gushed up from the earth. Hajar quickly built a little wall of sand around it to keep the water in. This was the well of Zamzam, and it still flows today.
Because of the water, a tribe called Jurhum came and asked to live there, and the empty valley became a town.
Where this story comes from
Qur'an 14:37 · Ibraaheem
Hadith: Sahih al-Bukhari 3364
💬 What did you learn?
Talk about these together. There is no right or wrong answer.
- Hajar trusted Allah, but she also ran and searched. Why do we need both trust and effort?
- When pilgrims go to Hajj or Umrah, they walk between Safa and Marwah seven times. Why do you think Allah wants us to remember Hajar?