Chapter 34 : Marriage of Ali and Fatima Flashcards
When did The Marriage of Imam Ali and Fatima occur
- In the end of Safar 2 AH, Ali and Fatima marry
- In the Shia Tradition [ Most Shia Traditions ], Fatima is 9 years old at the time but they still delay the wedding celebration for 10 months on the 1st of Dhu Al Hijjah
- In the Sunni Tradition, Fatima is believed to be in her late teens at the time of her marriage to Ali
- This contrast is due to the disagreement regarding the year of her birth. Shia Tradition says she was born 5 years AB while Sunni Tradition states she was born 5 years BB [ Before Bi’tha ]
Why would The Prophet give his daughter’s hand in marriage at such a young age
- In ancient and medieval societies, it was common for girls to be betrothed at or even before the age of Puberty [ Life expectancy necessitated early marriage ]
- Life expectancy at birth was a brief 25 years during The Roman Empire [ 753 BCE - 456 AD ]
- It reached 33 years by The Middle Ages [ 500 AD - 1,500 AD ]
- It raised to 55 years in the early 1900s
- Infant mortality rates were high and this required couples to have many children with the hopes that some would survive [ This was only possible if they married young ]
Hadith’s about The Marriage of Imam Ali and Fatima
- Al Hakim Al Naysaburi [ Sunni Scholar ] says that the tradition below is authentic based on the methodology of Bukhari and Muslim but they did not include it [ In their Hadith Collection ] :-
” Abu Bakr and Umar proposed to Fatima and The Prophet said ‘ She is too young [ Polite way of declining them ]. Then Ali proposed and he wedded her to him. ‘ “
Al Mustadrak Ala Al Sahihayn by Al Hakim Al Naysaburi [ Sunni Scholar ]
- Another narration is as follows :-
” The Nobles of Quraysh proposed to Fatima but The Prophet turned them away. Among the suitors was Abdul Rahman Ibn Awf at the suggestion of Abu Bakr and Umar. And Abu Bakr and Umar also proposed but they were also turned away. “
- A large number of narration states :-
” After having their proposal rejected. Abu Bakr and Umar went to visit Ali where he was working and said to him ‘ Why don’t you propose to Fatima ? ‘ “
- Ayatullah Sayed Jafar Murtada Al Ameli [ Died in 2019 ] wrote a book on The Biography of The Prophet called Al Sahih Min Sirat Al Nabi Al A’zam [ 35 Volumes ] in which he says that the probable reason why Abu Bakr and Umar asked Imam Ali to propose to Lady Fatimah was because they were hoping that The Prophet to reject Imam Ali’s proposal as well [ By doing so, it would equalize them and put them in the same level as Imam Ali ]. Make of it what you will. Allah knows best
- There are many narrations which also states :-
” The Prophet used to frequently say that he married Fatima to Ali by the command of God … “
- Another narration is as follows :-
” Abu Bakr and Umar reapproached The Prophet for rejecting their proposals and acceting the proposal of Ali. The Prophet responded to them by saying ‘ By God, I did not reject you but rather God turned you away and He wedded her [ To Ali ]. ‘ “
- There are some narrations as follows :-
” If God did not create Ali, Fatima would have no equal [ In Marriage ]. “
” If God did not create The Commander of The Faithful, Fatima would not have an equal on the face of the earth from the time of Adam until the end of time. “
” I [ Muhammad ] am a human being like you, I marry from you and I give in marriage to you except for Fatima for her marriage is decided by God’s order. “
” When Ali proposed to Fatima, The Prophet said ‘ She is yours O Ali ! You are not a con artist. ‘ “
- The phrase ‘ Not a con artist ‘ may imply that many or some of those who came earlier to ask for Lady Fatima’s hand in marriage were not sincere. Make of it what you will. Allah knows best
How did Imam Ali propose to Lady Fatima
- A narration is as follows :-
” Imam Ali went to The Prophet while he was in the home of Umm Salamah. He greeted him and sat in front of him. The Prophet asked ‘ Have you come for a need ? ‘ The Imam said ‘ Yes, I have come to propose to your daughter Fatima. Will you wed her to me ? ‘ Umm Salamah says ‘ I saw The Prophet’s face light up with joy and happiness. He smiled at the face of Ali and went to go see Fatima. ‘ The Prophet then says to Fatima ‘ Ali has made a mention of you and has expressed interest in marrying you and I have asked Allah to marry you to the best of his creation. What do you think ? ‘ Fatima remained silent and then The Prophet exclaimed ‘ God is great ! Her silence is her approval. ‘ The Prophet commanded Anas Ibn Malik to gather all of the companions so that he could announce the marriage of Fatima to Ali. When they all gathered, The Prophet said ‘ Verily God has commanded me to wed Fatima, daughter of Khadijah to Ali son of Abu Talib. ‘ “
What was the Mehr / Dowry [ Bridal Gift ] of Fatima
- Imam Ali had nothing of value apart from his camel, sword and shield
- The Prophet asked Ali to pawn his shield for 400 - 500 dirhams and gives that as A Bridal Gift
- The currency of the time was in the form of Gold [ Dinar ] and Silver [ Dirham ] Coins
- A Dirham is roughly 2.5 g of Silver
- Thus, The Bridal Gift of Fatima was about 500 Silver Coins which is the equivalent of about 1,300 USD Current Day [ Just a rough estimation ]
- Thus, it is recommended that when we get married, we should not exceed this value
- After Imam Ali presented The Bridal Gift to The Prophet, The Prophet designated it as follows :-
1) 1/3 For Perfumes
2) 1/ 3 For Clothings
3) 63 Coins For Household Items
4) The Rest For Umm Salamah
How the marriage between Imam Ali and Fatima took place
- Imam Ali says :-
” The Prophet told me ‘ O Ali, prepare some food for your family. On us is the meat and bread and upon you are the dates and butter. ‘ The Prophet told me to go to The Masjid and invite whoever you wish to the wedding feast. So I went to The Masjid and saw that it was crowded with people. I felt embarrassed to invite some and not others so I ascended a platform and said ‘ You are invited to the wedding feast of Fatima. ‘ Everyone ate and drank and the attendees were more than 4,000 men and the food did not decrease at all. The Prophet then requested some trays that he filled with food to be sent to his wives. He also requested a tray of food to be sent for Fatima and her husband. “
- Another narration is as follows :-
” When it was the wedding night and Fatima was preparing to leave her home and go to her new home [ The House of Ali Ibn Abu Talib ]. The Prophet put a place for her to sit on a mule and Salman Al Farsi guided the mule to The House of Ali Ibn Abu Talib and commanded the daughter’s of Abdul Muttalib and the women of The Muhajireen and The Ansar to accompany Fatima and recite the praises and glorification of Allah. The Prophet then took Ali with his right hand and Fatima with his left hand and hugged them both and kissed them on their foreheads and took the the hand of Fatima and placed it in the hand of Ali and said to Ali ‘ May Allah bless you now that you have Fatima as your wife. ‘ The Prophet then says to Ali ‘ Your wife is the best of wives. ‘ The Prophet then says to Fatima ‘ Ali is the best of husbands. ‘ Go to your home and may Allah shower his blessings and mercy upon you both. The Prophet then escorted them and took them into their new home. The Prophet then commanded all of the women to leave to give some privacy to the newlyweds. Asma Bint Umays [ Wife of Jafar Ibn Abu Talib ] remained in the house of Fatima. The Prophet then says ‘ Have I not commanded everyone to leave ? ‘ Asma says ‘ Yes O Prophet, I did not stay behind with the intention of disobeying you. I stayed for a few moments because of a promise I made to Khadija who requested me to be there on the day of her daughter’s wedding and I wanted to stay here with Fatima on behalf of her mother. ‘ The Prophet then began to cry and says ‘ Stay as long as you wish. ‘ “
