The grandmothers of the Prophet (the Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon Him) were the noblest in their ancestry and origin of all Arab women. Ibn Asaker narrated the Prophet (the Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon Him) saying proudly on Hunain's Campaign: “I'm the son of al-Fawatem (plural of Fatima )”. Al-Tabarani cited Seyaba bin Asem narrating the Prophet (the Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon Him): “I'm the son of al-Awatek (plural of Atika) of Bani Salim”. Al-Manawi said: “The book of Al-Sihah had mentioned that nine of the Prophet's (the Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon Him) grandmothers (from his father and mother) were named Atika”.
Qutada narrated the Prophet (the Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon Him) saying in one of his campaigns: I'm the Prophet; it's not a lie, I'm the son of Al-Awatek”. In “Al-Faid” (The Flux), Al-Minawi said that Awatek is the plural of Atika.Ibn Al-Harbi and Muslim bin Qutaiba that the Prophet (the Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon Him) had referred to three women named Atika in his saying: “I'm the son of al-Awatek of Bani Salim”. These are: Atika / daughter of / Hilal (mother of Abdimanaf), Atika / daughter of / Murra bin Hilah (mother of Hashem bin Abdimanaf), and Akika / daughter of / Al-Awqas bin Murra bin Hilal (mother of Wahab, the father of Amina), mother of the Prophet (the Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon Him). The first among Al-Watek was the aunt of the middle one, and the middle was the aunt of the latest. Abu Abdullah Al-Talebi Al-Adawi said: “Fourteen women were named Atika, three from Quraish, three from Bani Salama, two from Bani Adwan, one from Bani Huthaila, one from Qahtan, one from Bani Quda', one from Thaqif, and one from Asa'd Bain Khuzaima”.
Ibn Sa'ed said that the meaning of Atika is the purified. However, in the dictionary, Atika means generous. Another meaning of Atika is the tanned women with yellow saffron and scent. As we previously mentioned, the Prophet (the Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon Him) would never be proud of them if they were unbelievers. “Who referred himself to unbeliever fathers seeking power and honor will accompany them in the hellfire”.
In “Dala'el Al-Nubowa” (The Evidences of Prophecy), Abu Na'em narrated Ibn Abbas citing the Prophet (the Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon Him): My parent had never met on adultery; and Allah continued to transfer me, purified and refined, within the noblest backbones and the purist wombs; wherever branched into two branches I was within the best one”. Ibn Sa'ed and Ibn Asaker narrated Mohammad bin Al-sa'eb bin Al-Kalbi narrated his father: “I had traced five hundreds of the Prophet's (the Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon Him) grandmother, and I did not find any of them on adultery or on any of the matters of the pre-Islam ignorance”.
