Ibn ʿUyaynah narrated: Abu al-Muhayya told us, on the authority of his mother, who said:

When al-Hajjāj had killed Ibn al-Zubayr, he entered upon Asmāʾ and said to her, “Mother, the Commander of the Believers has charged me to look after you. Do you have any request?”

She replied, “I am not your mother; I am the mother of the man who is now crucified at the crest of al-Thaniyyah. I need nothing from you, but I will say this: I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ declare, ‘From the tribe of Thaqīf there will emerge a great liar and a destroyer (mubīr).’ The liar we have already seen”—meaning al-Mukhtār—“and the destroyer is you.”

He answered, “I am the destroyer of the hypocrites.” (1)

Ahmad ibn Yunus narrated: Abu al-Muhayya Yahyā ibn Yaʿlā al-Taymī told us, from his father, who said:

I entered Mecca three days after Ibn al-Zubayr had been killed, and his body was still hanging on the gallows. His mother—an elderly, tall, blind woman—came and said to al-Hajjāj, “Has the rider not yet dismounted?”

He retorted, “The hypocrite!”

She replied, “By Allah, he was no hypocrite; he fasted often, spent the nights in prayer, and was devoted to his Lord.”

He said, “Go away, old woman; you have lost your wits.”

She responded, “No, by Allah, I have not lost my mind since I heard the Messenger of Allah say, ‘From Thaqīf will come a great liar and a destroyer…,’” and she quoted the rest of the hadith. (2)

Ibn ʿUyaynah also reported, through Mansūr ibn Ṣafiyyah, from his mother, who said:

It was said to Ibn ʿUmar, “Asmāʾ is in a corner of the mosque”—this was when Ibn al-Zubayr had been crucified—so he went to her and said, “These bodies are nothing; the souls are with Allah. So be mindful of Allah and remain patient.”