Umm al-Banin

'mother of the sons'), was a wife of Ali ibn Abi Talib, the fourth Rashidun caliph (r. 656–661) and the first Shia Imam.

Umm al-Banin married Ali sometime after the death in 632 of his first wife Fatima, daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.

When Umm al-Banin received the news of their deaths in Karbala, she reputedly said that she would have given her sons and everything on the earth to see Husayn alive again.

[1] Upon her return from Karbala, Zaynab bint Ali is also said to have personally visited Umm al-Banin to offer condolences.

[1] Especially in Iran, Shia women make the supplication of tawassul to Umm al-Banin, requesting her soul to join her prayers to them, particularly when in dire need or to find patience in difficult times.