Quraysh Mourns her Dead

having ransomed her captives, quraysh still felt the wounds of her tragedy. makkah could find no reason to make peace with muhammad, and the memory of defeat at his hand remained alive for a long time to come. for one whole month, the women of quraysh mourned their dead. they shaved off their hair, whipped themselves, and cried when a dead man's camel or mare was paraded in the streets. only hind, daughter of 'utbah and wife of abu sufyan, did not cry in public at all. she was once asked by other quraysh women about this mastery of nerve: "would you not publicly mourn your father, your brother, your uncle, and your other fallen relatives?" she answered: "were i to mourn them publicly, the news will reach muhammad and his companions and the women of banu al khazraj who will all be pleased at my misfortune. no, by god, i shall not mourn them publicly until i have avenged them. fat and perfume shall be forbidden to me until we have defeated the enemy. by god, if crying would take away sadness from my heart i would have cried. but i know that sadness will not leave me until i have seen with my own eye vengeance taken on the murderers of my dear ones." true to her vow, hind never touched fat or perfume, nor came close to her husband's bed until the battle of uhud ; and she spared no moment or occasion to incite her fellow makkans to war. as for her husband, abu sufyan, he vowed never to wash himself until he had defeated muhammad.