Personalities, - Introduction of Hazrat Ayesha Siddiqa

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Sayyidah Ayesha Siddiqah Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha was the third lady to enter the house of the Beloved Habeeb Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him as his wife, and she was the only virgin in the consorts of purity of the Holy Prophet’s Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him house. She was of a tender age when she was married to Allah’s Apostle Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him.
Historical records bear ample testimony to the fact that Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha was a precocious genius and was developing both in mind and body with rapidity peculiar to such rare personalities. This marriage is significant in the history of Islam in so many aspects.
Firstly,it cemented the ties between Sayyiduna Rasoolullah Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him and his devoted friend Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddique Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha who always stood by him in hour of trial and who sacrificed his all for the cause of Islam.
Secondly,by this marriage, a lady of eminent qualities came under the direct influence of the Holy Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him at a highly impressionable age, and this provided her ample opportunities to penetrate into the innermost recesses of the sacred heart of the Beloved Habeeb Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him. She shared his company and thus was able to develop her potentialities and refine her taste perfectly in accordance with the teachings of Islam under the direct supervision of Sayyiduna Rasoolullah Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him.
This young age was in fact very opportune for marriage as it has been clearly shown in the researches of psychoanalysts that much of the emotional of a mature person and most of those seemingly unaccountable leanings, tastes and tendencies comprised in the term idiosyncrasies can be traced to the experience of his or her highly formative age of either later childhood or early adolescence.
Thirdly,all the wives of the Holy Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him with the exception of Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha were of advanced age and thus could neither share the feelings of the younger generation nor could they properly appreciate their point of view. The difference of age always stood as a barrier between them and the ladies of the younger ages. The only lady with whom young women could frankly enter into conversation and discuss problems without any reserve could be none but Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha. Thus, the marriage of the Holy Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him with Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha at an age when she was at the threshold of puberty was a great necessity, as it was through her that instructions could successfully be imparted to the young ladies who had newly entered the fold of Islam.
Moreover, this marriage struck at the root of a wrong notion that had firmly taken hold of the minds of the people that it was contrary to religious ethics to marry the daughter of a man whom one declared to be one’s brother. The Messenger of Allah Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him, with the help of his personal example, showed to the people that there is a great difference between a brother-in-faith and the brother in relation to blood. The marriage, which is forbidden in Islam, is with the daughter of the brother in blood and not with the daughter of the brother-in-faith.
Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha lived on almost fifty years after the passing away of the Messenger of Allah Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him. She passed away in the year 58 A.H. in the month of Ramadaan and was buried in the sacred graveyard Baqi al-Garqad of Madinatul Munawwara.
Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha reported that the Apostle of Allah Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him said:
“I saw you in a dream for three nights when an Angel brought you to me in a silk cloth and he said, ‘Here is your wife’, and when I removed the cloth from your face, it was yourself, so I said, ‘If this is from Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala, let Him carry it out.’”
Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha used to play with dolls in the presence of the Messenger of Allah Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him and when her playmates came to her they left (the house) because they felt shy of the Holy Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him whereas Allah’s Messenger Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him sent them to her. People sent their gifts when it was the turn of Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha seeking thereby the pleasure of Allah’s Messenger Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him .
Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha said:
“The wives of Allah’s Apostle Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him sent his daughter Faatima Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha to him. She sought permission to get in as he had been lying with me in my mantle. He gave her permission and she said: ‘Allah’s Messenger Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him ! Verily, your wives have sent me to you in order to ask you to observe equity in case of the daughter of Abu Quhafah.’ She (Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha ) said: ‘I kept quiet’. Thereupon, Allah’s Messenger Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him said to her (Faatima Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha ):
‘O daughter! Don’t you love whom I love?’ She said: ‘Yes, I do’. Thereupon, he said: ‘I love this one (Ayesha)’.
“Faatima Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha then stood up as she heard this from her father and went to the wives of Allah’s Apostle Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him and informed them of what she had said to him and what he had said to her. Thereupon, they said to her: ‘We think that you have been of no avail to us. You may again go to Allah’s Apostle and tell him that his wives seek equity in case of the daughter of Abu Quhafah’. Faatima Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha said: ‘By Allah I will never talk to him about this matter’.
Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha (further) reported:
The wives of Allah’s Apostle Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him then sent Zaynab bint Jahsh Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha , the wife of the Holy Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him , and she was one who was somewhat equal in rank with me in the eyes of the Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him and I have never seen a woman more advanced in religious piety than Zaynab Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha , more Allah-conscious, more truthful, more alive to the ties of blood, more generous and having more sense of self-sacrifice in practical life and having more charitable disposition and thus more close to Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala, the Exalted, than her. She however lost temper very soon but was soon calm. Allah’s Messenger Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him permitted her to enter as she (Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha ) was along with Allah’s Messenger Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him in her mantle, in the same very state when Faatima Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha had entered. She said: ‘Allah’s Messenger Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him , your wives have sent me to you seeking equity in case of the daughter of Abu Quhafah’. She then came to me and showed harshness to me and I was seeing the eyes of Allah’s Messenger Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him whether he would permit me. Zaynab Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha went on until I came to know that Allah’s Messenger Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him would not disapprove if I retorted. Then I exchanged hot words until I made her quiet. Thereupon, the Holy Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him smiled and said: ‘She is the daughter of Abu Bakr Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha ’”.
This Hadith gives a clear glimpse of the home life of the Glorious Messenger of Allah Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him. The wives of the Holy Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him were all eminent ladies having deep Allah-consciousness, but they, after all, belonged to the human race and thus, could not completely banish those minor human weaknesses, which are ingrained in the very nature of the fair sex. They were all deeply attached to the Holy Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him and every one of them had, therefore, an earnest desire that she should get the maximum love and affection from the Prophet of Allah Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him. It was out of this spirit of envy, rather than jealousy, that they put forward this demand. It was a natural expression of their humanly feelings born of their love for the Beloved Habeeb Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him , and not an objection against the attitude and behavior of the “Mercy of the Worlds”. And they could not even conceive of it; and how could they, when all of them had been receiving the most beneficent treatment at his hand?
Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha reported:
“When the Holy Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him set out on a journey, he used to cast lots amongst his wives. Once this lot came out in my favour and that of Hafsa Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha. They (Hafsa Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha and Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha ) both went along with him and when it was night Allah’s Messenger Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him used to travel on camel along with Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha and talked with her. Hafsa Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha said to Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha : ‘Would you like to ride upon my camel tonight and allow me to ride upon your camel and you would see (what you generally do not see) and I would see (what I do not see) generally?’ She said: ‘Yes’. But, Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha rode upon the camel of Hafsa Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha and Hafsa Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha rode upon the camel of Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha and Allah’s Messenger Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him came near the camel of Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha , (whereas) Hafsa Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha had been riding over that. He greeted her and then rode with her until they came down. She (Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha ) thus missed the company of the Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him and when they sat down, Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha felt jealous. She put her foot in the grass and said: ‘O ALLAH SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala , let the scorpion sting me or a serpent bite me. And so far as Your Messenger Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him is concerned, I cannot say anything about him’”.
Sayyiduna Anas bin Maalik Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha has said:
“The Holy Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him said that the excellence of Ayesha over women is like the excellence of Tharid over all other foods.”
Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha is one of the four persons (the others being Sayyiduna Abu Hurayra Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha , Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Omar Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha and Sayyiduna Anas bin Maalik Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha ) who transmitted more than two thousand sayings of the Holy Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him. The Holy Prophet Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him referring to her extensive knowledge of Islam is reported to have said:
“Learn a portion of your religion from this Humayra (red coloured lady).”
Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha not only possessed great knowledge but also took an active part in education and social reform. As a teacher she had a clear and persuasive manner of speech and her power of oratory has been described in superlative terms. Men and women came from far and wide to benefit from her knowledge.
According to the Orientalist, D.S. Margoliouth, he wrote:
“Of the entire number of inmates, Lady Ayesha alone, by force of character and keenness of wit, won for herself a place in the political and religious history of Islam.”[Quoted by Fida Hussain Maalik in his book, ‘Wives of the Prophet’, Bombay, 1989, Page 124]
Pearls of WisdombySayyida Ayesha as-Siddiqah
*.To spend for your guests is not extravagance.
*.Good deeds are to refrain from bad deeds.
*.A believer of truth never becomes disgrace even if the whole World turns against him while a believer in falsehood never gains respect even if the moon comes out on his forehead.
*.Wherever the torch of truth shines it is advantageous to all, and it must not be seen who the torchbearer is.
*.A very good trait of character is to protect your tongue.
*.When the stomach becomes full the faculty of thought becomes weak and wisdom and understanding become mute.
*.Gluttony is the root of all illnesses and abstinence is its remedy.
*.Magnificence is gained in 1% friendship and 99% hard work and physical exertion.

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Personalities, - Hazrat Khadija tul Kubra

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Sayyiduna Rasoolullah's (SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam) marriage with Sayyidah Khadija Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha took place about fifteen years before the beginning of the Revelation, he being 25, and she was 40 years old. She was a rich widow and ran a large trade of her own. It was she who offered herself in marriage to the Holy Prophet Muhammad SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam who was associated with her in her trading ventures. From the time of her marriage with the Holy Prophet SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam till her death, over a period of twenty years, she gave her husband ease of circumstances, and deep love and devotion.
In spite of conspicuous difference in age, Sayyiduna Rasoolullah's SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam love for Sayyidah Khadija Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha never wavered. When death parted her from the Beloved Nabi SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam after having shared with him for 28 years the toils and trials of life, especially the first ten years of his Ministry of Prophethood, he deeply mourned her death. Once Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha asked him if she had been the only woman worthy of his love. Sayyiduna Rasoolullah SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam replied in an honest burst of tender emotion:
"She believed in me when none else did. She embraced Islam when people disbelieved me. And she helped and comforted me when there was none else to lend me a helping hand."
In the heart of the Holy Prophet SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam grateful and affectionate remembrance of her remained fresh until the very end of his life. The Holy Prophet SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam remained true and loyal to Sayyidah Khadija Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha until he was over 50 years old. This had been the case at a time when polygamy was normal among the Arabs. Moreover, since no male offspring of Sayyidah Khadija Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha survived, he had all the necessary justification to marry another woman considering that newborn daughters were customarily buried alive and male offspring alone regarded as rightful heirs.
Before Sayyiduna Rasoolullah SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam announced his Prophethood he had lived 17 years of married life, and thereafter eleven more years without ever thinking of marriage with another woman. He was kind to all her fellows and occasionally sent them gifts.
"Never was I jealous of any of the Prophet's wives", said Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha, "but Khadija, although I never saw her. Her sweet memory never blurred in the Prophet's SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam heart. Once I hurt his feelings on this issue and he replied gravely, 'Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala has blessed me with her love.'"
Sayyiduna Khadija Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha bore the Beloved Habeeb SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam seven children, the first born was named Sayyiduna Qaasim Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anho, after whom, according to Arab custom, the Holy Prophet SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam received the Kunya "Abul Qaasim" or "the father of Qaasim". Then were born Sayyiduna Tayyab Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha and Sayyiduna Taahir Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anhum Ajmaa'een. All of them passed away in their infancy. Amongst the daughters Sayyidah Ruqayya Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha was the eldest, then came Sayyidah Zaynab Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha, Sayyidah Umm Kulthoom Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha and the last and best known of them was Sayyidah Faatima Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha.
Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Ja'far Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha reported that he heard Sayyiduna Ali Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anho saying in Kufa that Allah's Messenger SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam said:
"The best of the women of her time was Mariam Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha, daughter of Imran, and the best of the women of her time was Khadija Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha, daughter of Khuwailid. Abu Kuraib said that Waki' pointed towards the sky and the earth. What this implies is that Mariam Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha and Khadija Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha were best in their respective times not only amongst the creatures of the earth, but of the heaven too."
Sayyiduna Abu Hurayra Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha reported that Sayyiduna Jibra'eel Alaihis Salam came to Allah's Messenger SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam and said:
"Allah's Messenger! Khadija is coming to you with a vessel of seasoned food or drink. When she comes to you, offer her greetings from her Lord, the Exalted and Glorious, and on my behalf and give her glad tidings of a palace of jewels in Paradise wherein there is no noise and no toil".
This Hadith has been narrated on the authority of Abu Hurayra Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha through another chain of transmitters with a slight variation of wordings.
Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha reported that Allah's Apostle SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam gave glad tidings to Sayyidah Khadija bint Khuwailid Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha of a palace in Paradise. Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha further reported:
"Never did I feel jealous of any woman, as I was jealous of Khadija Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha. She had died three years before the Holy Prophet SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam married me. I often heard him praise her, and his Lord, the Exalted and Gracious, had commanded him to give her the glad tidings of a palace of jewels in Paradise, and whenever he slaughtered a sheep he presented its meat to her female companions".
In another Hadith, Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha added:
"I annoyed him one day and said, 'It is Khadija Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha only who always prevails upon your mind'. Thereupon, Allah's Messenger SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam said, 'Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala Himself had nurtured Her love in my heart.'"
Sayyidah Ayesha Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha reported that Allah's Messenger SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam did not marry any other woman till Sayyidah Khadija's Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha death. The point is why did Allah's Messenger SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam not marry during the lifetime of Sayyidah Khadija Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha but, after her sad demise, he married several wives. The fact is that the Holy Prophet of Islam SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam married all his wives from the point of view of religious necessity.
At the age of twenty-five, he married Sayyidah Khadija Radi ALLAHu Ta'ala Anha who was forty and she remained with him for the quarter of a century as a great source of strength and consolation to him. During this period the Holy Prophet SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam was busy in instilling in the minds of the people the fundamentals of faith, Oneness of Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala, Apostlehood of Muhammad SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam, life after death. He did not feel the necessity of marrying another lady because it was only in the matter of faith and belief that he had to strive hard with mankind.
After his migration to Madinatul Munawwara when the Islamic society was established and the Muslims were required to conform their personal and social behaviour to the teaching of Islam, revelations for practical guidance in all walks of life came from Almighty Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala. This had to be explained in various places and in different spheres by the life examples of the Holy Prophet SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam. There was not one problem but numerous problems and most of them were social which needed solutions at every step. Thus, it was felt that a group of women should be trained in Islamic ideals and it was done through the wives of Sayyiduna Rasoolullah SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam. It was not an ordinary work, but an important task of vast magnitude, which required the sweat, and labour of so many pious souls and these were the noble wives of the Holy Prophet of Islam SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam.

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Personalities, - Introduction of Syeda Fatima Tuz Zohra

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Sayyidah Fatimah az-Zahra Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha was the fourth daughter of the Holy Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam and Sayyidah Khadija Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha. "Zahra" (having gleaming and luminous face), "Batool" (aloof from the worldly pleasures) are "Tahira" (chaste and modest) are among her exalted titles.
She was an unusually sensitive child of her age. When she was five, she heard that her father had become the Apostle of Allah SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam. Her mother Sayyidah Khadija Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha explained to her what the responsibilities of a Prophet are. Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha became more closely attached to her father and felt a deep and abiding love for him. She used to accompany him through the narrow streets of Makkatul Mukarrama, visiting the Ka’bah or attending the secret meetings of the early Muslims who had embraced Islam and pledged allegiance to her father.
Once, she accompanied her father to the Masjid al-Haraam. Sayyiduna Rasoolullah SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam began to pray in front of the Ka’bah. A group of Quraysh chiefs gathered around the Holy Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam. Uqbah bin Abi Mu’ayt brought the entrails of a slaughtered animal and threw it on the shoulders of the Beloved Habeeb SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam. Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha, a ten year old girl, went up to her father and removed the filth. Then, in a firm and angry voice she lashed out against Abu Jahl and his colleagues. They could not utter a single word.
After the demise of her mother, Sayyidah Khadija Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha, she felt that she had to give even greater support to her father. She devoted herself to looking after his needs. She was so engrossed in her father’s service that people started calling her “Umm Abiha”, the mother of her father. The Holy Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam had a special love for Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha.
Sayyiduna Miswar bin Makhramah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha reported that the Holy Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam said:
فاطمة بضعة منى ، فمن أغضبها أغضبنى
“My daughter is part of me. He who disturbs her in fact disturbs me and he who offends her offends me.”[Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3767]
The Holy Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam also said:
حسبك من نساء العالمين أربع مريم بنت عمران و آسية امرأة فرعون و خديجة بنت خويلد و فاطمة بنت محمد
“The best women in the entire world are four: The Virgin Mariyam Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha daughter of Imran and Aasiya Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha the wife of Pharaoh and Khadija Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha Mother of the Believers and Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha, daughter of Muhammad SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam.”[Mustadrak al-Hakim, Vol. 4, Page 262, Hadith 4745]
Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha thus acquired a place of love and esteem in the Beloved Nabi’s SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam heart that was only occupied by his wife Sayyidah Khadija Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha. She was given the title of “Zahra” which means “The Resplendent One”. That was because of her beaming face, which seemed to radiate light. She was also called “Batool” because of her purity and asceticism. She spent most of her time in the recitation of the Holy Quraan, performing Salaah and doing other acts of Ibadah.
Sayyidah Ayesha Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha said:
أقبلت فاطمة تمشي كأن مشيتها مشي النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم، فقال: "مرحباً بابنتي". ثم أجلسها عن يمينه، أو عن شماله
“I have not seen any one of Allah’s SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala creation resemble the Messenger of Allah SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam more in speech, conversation and manner of sitting than Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha. When the Holy Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam saw her approaching, he would welcome her, stand up and kiss her, take her by the hand and sit her down in the place where he was sitting.”[al-Adab al-Mufrad, Page 406, Hadith 421]
Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha learnt from her father the manners and gentle speech. She was kind to the poor. She often gave her food to the needy preferring herself to remain hungry. She had no inclination towards the materialistic world. She had no craving for the ornaments of this world or the luxuries and comforts of life.
Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha was married to Sayyiduna Ali Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha at the beginning of the second year after the Hijra. She was nineteen-year-old and Sayyiduna Ali Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha was about twenty-one. The Holy Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam himself performed the Nikah. On her marriage, Sayyiduna Rasoolullah SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam is said to have presented Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha and Sayyiduna Ali Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha with a wooden bed intertwined with palm leaves, a velvet coverlet, a leather cushion filled with the leaves of a plant, a sheepskin, a pot, a water-skin and a quern (A primitive hand-operated mill for grinding grain) for grinding grain.
One day Sayyiduna Ali Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha asked her to go to her father and ask for a servant. Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha came to the Holy Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam. The Holy Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam said:
ألا أخبرك ما هو خير لك منه ، تسبحين الله عند منامك ثلاثا وثلاثين ، وتحمدين الله ثلاثا وثلاثين ، وتكبرين الله أربعا وثلاثين
“Shall I not tell you of something better than that which you asked of me? I am telling you the words, which Jibra’eel Alaihis Salam has told me. You should say Subhan-Allah (Glory be to Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala) 33 times, Al-HamduLillah (Praise be to Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala) 33 times and Allahu Akbar (Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala is Great) 34 times.”[Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 5362]
This is called “Tasbeeh-e-Fatimah” and brings blessings upon the person who regularly recites it.
Before proceeding on to his Farewell Pilgrimage in Ramadaan, 10 A.H., the Holy Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam said to Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha:
إن جبريل كان يعارضني القرآن كل سنة مرة وإنه عارضني العام مرتين ولا أراه إلا حضر أجلي
“The Archangel Jibra’eel Alaihis Salam recited the Qur'an to me and I to him once every year, but this year he has recited it with me twice. I cannot but think that my time has come”.[Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3426]
On his return from the Farewell Pilgrimage, the Holy Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam became seriously ill. He was confined to the apartment of his beloved wife Sayyidah Ayesha Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha. When Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha visited her ailing father, Sayyidah Ayesha Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha would leave father and the daughter together.
Sayyidah Ayesha Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha reported:
كن أزواج النبى -صلى الله عليه وسلم- عنده لم يغادر منهن واحدة فأقبلت فاطمة تمشى ما تخطئ مشيتها من مشية رسول الله -صلى الله عليه وسلم- شيئا فلما رآها رحب بها فقال « مرحبا بابنتى ». ثم أجلسها عن يمينه أو عن شماله ثم سارها فبكت بكاء شديدا فلما رأى جزعها سارها الثانية فضحكت. فقلت لها خصك رسول الله -صلى الله عليه وسلم- من بين نسائه بالسرار ثم أنت تبكين فلما قام رسول الله -صلى الله عليه وسلم- سألتها ما قال لك رسول الله -صلى الله عليه وسلم- قالت ما كنت أفشى على رسول الله -صلى الله عليه وسلم- سره. قالت فلما توفى رسول الله -صلى الله عليه وسلم- قلت عزمت عليك بما لى عليك من الحق لما حدثتنى ما قال لك رسول الله -صلى الله عليه وسلم- فقالت أما الآن فنعم أما حين سارنى فى المرة الأولى فأخبرنى « أن جبريل كان يعارضه القرآن فى كل سنة مرة أو مرتين وإنه عارضه الآن مرتين وإنى لا أرى الأجل إلا قد اقترب فاتقى الله واصبرى فإنه نعم السلف أنا لك ». قالت فبكيت بكائى الذى رأيت فلما رأى جزعى سارنى الثانية فقال « يا فاطمة أما ترضى أن تكونى سيدة نساء المؤمنين أو سيدة نساء هذه الأمة ». قالت فضحكت ضحكى الذى رأيت.
“We, the wives of Allah’s Apostle were with him (during his last illness) and none was absent therefrom that Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha, who walked after the style of Allah’s Messenger SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam, came there, and when he saw her he welcomed her saying: ‘You are welcome, my daughter’. He then made her sit on his right side or on his left side. Then he said something secretly to her and she swept bitterly and when he found her (plunged) in grief, he said to her something secretly for the second time and she laughed. I (Ayesha Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha) said to her: ‘Allah’s Messenger SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam has singled you amongst the women of the family for talking to you something secretly and you wept’. When Allah’s Messenger SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam recovered from illness, I said to her: ‘What did he say to you?’ Thereupon, she said: ‘I am not going to disclose the secret of Allah’s Messenger SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam. When the Holy Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam passed away, I said to her: ‘I adjure you by the right that I have upon you that you should narrate to me what Allah’s Messenger SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam said to you.’ She said: ‘Yes, now I can do that. When he (Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi wa Sallam) talked to me secretly for the first time he informed me that Jibra’il Alaihis Salam was in the habit of reciting the Qur'an along with him once every year, but this year it had been twice and so he perceived his death quite near, so fear Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala and be patient (and he told me) that he would be a befitting forerunner for me and so I wept as you saw me. And when he saw me in grief he talked to me secretly for the second time and said: ‘Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha, are you not pleased that you should be at the head of the believing women or the head of this Ummah?’ I laughed and it was that laughter which you saw.”[Sahih Muslim, Hadith 6467]
Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha is undoubtedly the Chief of the Ladies of Paradise and her two sons, Imam Hasan Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha and Imam Husain Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha, are the chiefs of the Youths of Paradise. But it should be borne in mind that Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha is the chief of the women of this Ummah and not of the whole world. The Chief of the Women of the whole world is Sayyidah Maryam Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha, as it has been stated in the Holy Qur'an:
وإذ قالت الملائكة يا مريم إن الله اصطفاك وطهرك واصطفاك على نساء العالمين
“And when the Angels said: O Mariyam, surely Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala has chosen thee and purified thee and chosen thee above the women of the world.”[Surah Aal-e-Imran: 42]
In another narration, Sayyidah Ayesha Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha reported that when she asked Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha the reasons of her crying and laughing when her father talked to her secretly, she said:
سارني النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم فأخبرني أنه يقبض في وجعه التي توفي فيه فبكيت ثم سارني فأخبرني أني أول أهل بيته أتبعه فضحكت
“He informed me secretly of his death and so I cried. He then informed me secretly that I would be the first amongst the members of his family to follow him, so I laughed.”[Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3427 ; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2450]
This Hadith shows the implicit faith that Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha had in the words of her father. She believed that her father was given the Knowledge of Unseen. She was quite sure that the events would take the same turn as her father had informed her. This Hadith also shows that Sayyidah Fatimah Radi Allahu Ta'ala Anha loved her father more dearly than her husband and children, and her meeting with him in the Hereafter was a source of great comfort and consolation for her.
Blessed be that symbol of honor; Pious Batool, our Prophet’s daughter
Blessed be the veils of graces; Which from sun and moon hid their faces
Blessed be our Prophet’s beloved daughter; Pious, pure and women’s leader

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