|
Further reading: Laleh Bakhtiyar, Encyclopedia of
Islamic Law: A Compendium of the Major Schools (Chi-
cago: ABC International Group, 1996); S. D. Goitein,
“Prayer in Islam.” In Studies in Islamic History and
Institutions, edited by S. D. Goitein 73–89 (Leiden: E.J.
Brill, 1966); Moshe Piamenta, Islam in Everyday Arabic
Speech (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1979).
Fatima
(ca. 605–633) daughter of Muhammad,
wife of Ali, and mother of Shii Imams, the Shia regard
her as a saint, the only woman they count among the
five “pure” members of the Prophet’s household
Fatima was the youngest daughter born to m
Uham
-
mad
and his wife k
hadiJa
. Early historical sources
provide few details about her, except to indicate
that she married Muhammad’s cousin a
li
ibn
a
bi
t
alib
(d. 661) shortly after the h
iJra
to m
edina
,
when she was about 18 years old. Like other Mus-
lim families at that time, they lived in poverty until
more lands and property were acquired by the
early community as a result of the early conquests
under Muhammad’s leadership. She bore Ali two
sons who lived to adulthood: Hasan (624–669)
and Husayn (626–680). Accounts say that in his
last days, Muhammad drew Ali, Fatima, and their
two sons together under his cloak and said, “God
wishes to remove impurity from you, O People of
the House [
ahl
al
-
bayt
], and to thoroughly purify
you” (Q 33:33). This confirmed the holy status of
all five members of Muhammad’s household, and
as a result of this incident they are also known as
the People of the Cloak. Fatima also gave birth to
two daughters, Umm Kulthum and Zaynab. When
Muhammad was on his deathbed in 632, Fatima
and Ali tended to him, while the leadership of
the community was being decided elsewhere by
Muhammad’s associates a
bU
b
akr
(d. 634), U
mar
ibn
al
-k
hattab
(d. 644), and their allies. Thus, she
was implicated in the events that led to the split
between the Sunni and Shii branches of Islam.
Fatima died at a young age, within a year of her
father. Accounts differ as to where she was buried.
Some say she was buried in Baqi cemetery, near
Muhammad’s house; others say she was buried on
the grounds of his
mosqUe
.
Fatima is greatly revered by Muslims, especially
the Shia. Among the other names by which she is
known are al-Zahra, “the Radiant,” al-Mubaraka,
“the Blessed,” and al-Tahira, “the Pure.” Accord-
ing to medieval Shii hagiographies, her marriage
with Ali was celebrated in heaven and on Earth,
and all the Shii imams have descended from this
couple. It is also said that because of her purity,
she did not menstruate like other women, and her
pregnancies lasted only nine hours. Moreover, she
will be the first to enter
paradise
after the Resur-
rection, and, like m
ary
in Catholic Christianity,
she will intercede for those who honor her and
her offspring and descendants, the Imams. Indeed,
K 230
Fatima
in Shii literature, Fatima is compared to Mary
the mother of J
esUs
because of the violent deaths
suffered by each of their sons. Although Fatima’s
name is not mentioned in the q
Uran
, Shii com-
mentaries point out passages they believe contain
hidden references to her, such as Q 55:19, where
the two oceans of water that flow together are
interpreted as the reunion of Ali and Fatima after
a dispute. In popular Islamic practice, an image of
an outstretched hand, called the Hand of Fatima,
is used as an amulet to deflect the
evil
eye
, and the
Shia display it in a
shUra
processions in India.
During the 1970s, Fatima gained a modern
importance through the lectures and writings of
the Iranian intellectual a
li
s
hariati
(d. 1977),
who portrayed her as a symbol of the total
woman—daughter, wife, mother, freedom fighter,
and defender of the oppressed. Although Fatima
was likened to the Virgin Mary in Islamic tradi-
tion, she should not be confused with Our Lady of
Fatima, the name given to the apparitions of Mary
near the town of Fatima in Portugal in 1917.
See also
imam
; s
hiism
;
Women
.
Do'stlaringiz bilan baham: | 
