al-Jūdī, then hand her over to ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Abī Bakr. The army did capture her and delivered her to him. He was smitten with her and favoured her above his other wives, until they began to complain about her to ʿĀʾishah. ʿĀʾishah reproached him, but he replied, “By Allah, it is as though I am sipping pomegranate seeds between her teeth!” Later she was stricken by an ailment that caused her front teeth to fall out; after that he grew distant from her, so she in turn complained to ʿĀʾishah. ʿĀʾishah said to him, “O ʿAbd al-Raḥmān, you loved Laylā to excess and now you dislike her to excess. Either treat her fairly or send her back to her family.” (1)
Al-Zubayr said: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Nāfiʿ related to me from ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Abī al-Zinād, from Hishām ibn ʿUrwah, from his father, who said: When Damascus was conquered, ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb allotted Laylā bint al-Jūdī to ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Abī Bakr. She was the daughter of the king of Damascus—that is, the ruler of the Arabs who dwelt around the city.
ʿUbayd Allāh ibn ʿAbbās ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib (2)
He was a Qurayshī Hāshimī and a cousin of the Prophet ﷺ. A year younger than his brother ʿAbd Allāh, their mother was Umm al-Faḍl Lubābah bint al-Ḥārith al-Hilālīyah. ʿUbayd Allāh was noted for his generosity and striking good looks, resembling his father in beauty.
We have transmitted that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would line up ʿAbd Allāh, ʿUbayd Allāh and Kathīr, saying, “Whoever reaches me first shall have such-and-such.” They would race to him, fall upon his back and chest, and he would kiss them and hold them close. (3)
During his caliphate, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib appointed ʿUbayd Allāh governor of Yemen. He led the Hajj in the years 36 AH and 37 AH. In 38 AH he and Yazīd ibn Shajarah al-Rahāwī—who had come for the Hajj on behalf of Muʿāwiyah—disagreed, but they eventually settled the matter by appointing Shaybah ibn ʿUthmān al-Ḥajabī to conduct the pilgrimage that year. Later, when power passed to Muʿāwiyah, he sent Busr ibn Abī Arṭāt against ʿUbayd Allāh; Busr killed two of his sons, and various events took place in Yemen which we have recounted elsewhere. (4)