Bibi Fatima and Her Sermon on Fadak

Bibi Fatima Zahra and Her Historic Sermon on Fadak
Dr.Mazhar Naqvi

Hazrat Fatima Zahra, the only lady among fourteen infallibles, is undoubtedly the best woman in both the worlds, for no lady excels her in love, obedience and nearness to God. Her triple relationship as daughter of holy prophet Hazrat Muhammad, wife of the first Imam Ali and mother of eleven Imams in her progeny also leaves her without a parallel in excellence. She is venerated by all Muslims because it was she who lived closest to her father and supported him in trying conditions and for sacrificing her life in defending the right of Hazrat Ali .She is rightly considered as a model of perfect character and her name is one of the most popular girl's names throughout the Muslim world. She is known by many titles given to her by Muslims to show their admiration of her moral and physical characteristics. The most used title is "al-Zahra"(the shining one).She is popularly known as Fatimah Zahra or Bibi Fatima. She is also fondly called as "al-Batul" (the chaste and pure one) because she spent much of her time in offering prayer, reciting the verses of  Qur'an and other acts of Ibadah( Worship).

She was born on Friday morning on  20 Jamad-Us- Sani at Mecca Mukarramah. Her father personally nursed her contrary to local customs where the newborn were sent to "wet nurses" in surrounding villages. She spent her early youth under the care of her parents in Mecca in the shadow of the tribulations suffered by her father at the hands of the Quraish. It is recorded in one of the traditions that  on one occasion while Her father was offering prayer in the Kaaba, Amr bin Hisham (Abu Jahal) and his men poured camel placenta over him. Hazrat Fatimah, upon coming to know about the incident, rushed to her father and wiped away the filth while scolding the men for their indecency. After the death of her mother, Janab-E-Khadija, she was inconsolable and found it very difficult to believe that she was motherless. At this juncture, Prophet  consoled  her by informing her  that he had received word from angel Gabriel that Allah had built for her a palace in paradise.

Her farther married Hazrat Fatima to his cousin Hazrat Ali. She led a very humble and simple life after her marriage. She did all of the work by herself. The shoulder on which she carried pitchers of water from the well was swollen and the hand with which she worked the hand mill to grind corn where often covered with blisters. While she  vouched to take care of the household work, Maula Ali , in return, took care of the outside work such as gathering firewood, and bringing food. He used to irrigate others’ land by drawing water from the wells. When the Muslims became economically affluent, she retained some maids but treated them like her family and shared their workload. An indication of her close bond and exemplary relationship with Hazrat Ali is found in the fact that Imam Ali never married another woman as long as Fatima was alive.

After his last Haj, Hazrat Muhammad one day summoned Bibi Fatima to inform her that he would die soon and also revealed to her that she would be the next of his household to meet him in paradise. After her father’s death, she was grief-stricken and remained so until her martyrdom in Jamad-Ul Awwal in 11 A.H at the age of 18 years in Madina Munawwara. She was buried at jannat-Ul-Baqi cemetery. Despite her short life, she was involved in three significant political actions. First, after the conquest of Mecca, she refused her protection to Abu Sufiyan, second, she defended Ali’s cause and  fiercely opposed the election of first caliph and third , she laid claim to the property rights of her father by challenging Caliph’s  categorical refusal to cede her Fadak and a share in the produce of Khaiber. Fadak is  near Medina and  was a grove on a habitable land with enough water and  good production. The land belonged to Banu Nadir clan and Hazrat Muhammad had acquired it by peace in the conclusion of Khaiber campaign. When she was informed about denial of Fadak to her, she became very angry and decided to confront the Caliph Abu Bakr in the mosque. Historians claim that she reached mosque with calmness and serenity even though she was very much annoyed and upset. At a time when women were not allowed to attend public gatherings, she put on her veil and gown and came with her maids and some of her fellow-women walking exactly like her father’s gait, to the caliph who was in the mosque with  a crowd. A curtain was drawn between women and men. She moaned and people began to cry by her discourse. She waited until they stopped crying and became quiet and began her speech. Her sermon exemplifies not only her skills as orator but also gives a glimpse of her authority over holy Quran ,courage and pleading with logic. The blogger is producing below the whole text of the sermon as a tribute to Bibi Fatima on her birthday today:

“Praise be to Allah for that which He bestowed (upon us), and thanks be to Him for all that which He inspired, and tribute be to Him for that which He provided; from prevalent favors which He created, and abundant benefactions which He offered and perfect grants which He presented; that their number is much too plentiful to compute, and too vast to measure; their limit was too distant to realize. He recommended to them (His creatures) to gain more (of His bounties) by being grateful for their continuity. He ordained Himself praiseworthy by giving generously to His creatures, and promised, through supplicating Him, to give more like them. I bear witness that there is no God but Allah Who is One without partner; a statement which sincere devotion is made to be its interpretation, put into hearts its continuation, and illuminated in the minds its sensibility. He Who can not be perceived with vision, neither be described with tongues, nor can imagination surround His form.

I too bear witness that my father, Muhammad, is His slave and messenger, whom He chose before sending him, named him before creating him, and preferred him by missioning him; when creatures were still concealed in the unseen, guarded from that which was appalling, and associated with the termination and nonexistence. For Allah the Exalted knew that which was to follow, comprehended that which will come to pass, and realized the place of every event. Allah has sent him (Muhammad) as perfection for His commands, a resolution to accomplish His rule, and an implementation of His decrees. So he found the nations to vary in their faiths, obsessed by their fires, worshiping their idols, and denying Allah despite their knowledge of Him. Therefore, Allah illuminated their darkness with my father, Muhammad, uncovered obscurity from their hearts, and cleared the clouds from their insights. He revealed guidance among the people; So he delivered them from being led astray, led them away from misguidance, guided them to the proper religion, and called them to the straight path.

O Muslims! Is my inheritance usurped? O son of Abu Quhafa, is it in the Book of Allah that you inherit your father and I do not inherit my father? Surely you have done a strange thing! Did you intend to desert the Book of Allah and turned your back on it? Allah said: (And Sulaiman was Dawood's heir. 27:16) and said about Yahya bin Zachariah: (Grant me from Thyself an heir, who should inherit me and inherit from the children of Yaqoub. 19:5-6) and said: (And the possessors of relationships are nearer to each other in the ordinance of Allah. 8:75), and He said: (Allah enjoins you concerning your children: The male shall have the equal of the portion of two females. 4:11), and He said: (Bequest is prescribed for you when death approaches one of you, if he leaves behind wealth for parents and near relatives. 2:180). You claimed that I have no position, and no inheritance from my father, and there is no kinship between us. So did Allah distinguish you with a verse, from which He excluded my father? Or do you say: people of two religions do not inherit each other? Am I and my father not of one religion? Or are you more aware of the Qur'an than my father and my cousin?”( The article has been posted today in view of Bibi Fatima's Birth anniversary today.References available on request).