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peace' between the disputing tribes. This second role was of minor
importance. Her passive role was a natural consequence of continual
raids and wars between tribes. Ancient Arabs valued the capture of
hostages and women above that of cattle and booty. since the former
were far more profitable to them. They could ask a high'ransom for
hostages or exchange them for their own hostages. Another advantage
of women captives was to marry them without a dowry. and to get more
children. thus increasing their numbers and therefore their strength,
which would raise their status among other tribes. Moreover. in taking
women captive, greater humiliation is sustained by their enemy, so that
sometimes the major aim of a man was to take the enemy's women
captive in order to inflict shame and humiliation upon the enemy's
whole tribe.
Since wars were continual. women. as we mentioned before, were
frequently taken as captives. For example, when I Bi6tam bin Qays made
T
a raid on Bani MalikpUanzalah. he took some women captive, one'of whom
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was the mother of*Asmi; "bin Kharijah. Also, on the day of Nisz% many
of the noble women of the Banilm'irwere taken captive. Such women
hated their captivity. They were usually treated by the enemy as
bondmaids and were held in contempt. while even if kindly treated-
by their captors', they were still humilia*teý'd, deprived of their own"
people and homeland. Such hatred took a number of forms. Sometimes,
when a woman was taken captive. she blamed her own people'and
reproached them' with their weakness for failing to protect here
Women could only attempt to avoid capture by the most extreme measures;
when they knew of an enemy's victory over their own people. they went
out naked so that the enemies-wouid think that they were bondmaids
al-HZ; fr Ahmad, al-MaAh fr al Sgi Ir al-J; hl Ir' . P, 465
0a
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