A woman whose contribution to the first chapter of Musa’s life is all the more remarkable because her husband, Musa’s own father, is not mentioned in the narrative once.

Look at the strength of the wife of Pharaoh, the woman who Allah decreed would be tasked with the responsibility of raising the infant within the palace of the greatest oppressor who ever lived, her husband. A woman of faith who stood tall and resolute, crying “Do not kill him!” in the face of the guards her husband had dispatched to slaughter the newborn child fished from the river.

Look to the intelligence of the sister of Musa (as). A young girl who had been instructed by her mother to follow the little box as it bobbed with the tide. A young girl who had the bravery to approach the palace of a known tyrant, when the newborn Musa (as) refused the milk of every wet nurse offered him, and resolutely offered the services of her mother as wet nurse to Musa (as), thus returning him unbeknownst to his mothers loving arms.

Look to the intelligence of the daughter of Shuaib of Madyan. A woman who recognised the strength and manners exhibited by Musa (as) when he assisted her and her sister with watering their flock at a crowded well, and wisely counselled her father to take him into his employ, gaining not only a valuable worker but also a husband in the process.

Four women, whose words and actions shaped the early life of Musa (as). Four women who Allah chose to fulfil His Will, leading Musa (as) to the role he was born to fulfil. Four women who prove that the great adage is wrong. Great men don’t have great women behind them. They have great women beside them.