‘Sayyida Fatima(S A) is the leader of all the women in paradise’ are the words of the Last Messenger of God, Muhammad ﷺ. Indeed the special place she held in her father’s heart and the noble and courageous life that she led combined with her spiritual excellence made her one of the greatest women that have ever lived.
Fatima al-Zahra (S A) was born in Mecca; some say it was one year before her fatherﷺ’s proclamation of Prophethood. However, most historians agree it was five years prior. In either case, it was apparent that she lived her formative years in a climate of open and harsh opposition to her father’s proclaimed message. It was during these years that her innate qualities of fearlessness, patience and perseverance surfaced and developed.
Hadrat Abd Allah b. Mas’üd (RA) narrates in Şahih al- Bukhārī that Lady Fatima(S A) was just five years of age when she witnessed a group of men surround her father ﷺ and throw raw meat on his blessed back while he prostrated himself in prayer near the Kaaba. This brave young girl ran to her fatherﷺ’s aid, lifted the heavy meat from his blessed back and and opposed the large group with her words and prayed:اللَّهُمَّ عَلَيْكَ بِقُرَيْشٍ ، اللَّهُمَّ عَلَيْكَ بِقُرَيْشٍ، اللَّهُمَّ عَلَيْكَ بِقُرَيْشٍ.O Allah! Deal with the Quraysh! O Allah! Deal with the Quraysh! O Allah! Deal with the Quraysh! Then the narrator-Abd Allah b. Mas’ud(Radiyallahu Anhu)- named Abū Jahl b. Hisham, Urba b. Rabī’a, Shayba b. Rabra, al-Walid b. Urba, Umayya b. Khalaf and ‘Uqba b. Abi Mu’ayt. Then ‘Abd Allah said, ‘I saw them dead in the well of Badr.”
Her second major life tribulation occurred at the age of just eight when she was forced to live through three incredibly hard years of social boycott along with her parents and other members of her family. The Blessed Prophetﷺ paid special attention to her tarbiya (training and development) by ensuring that she accompanied him to many of his significant life events such as to his first public declaration of Prophethood in the harsh and unpredictable surroundings of Mecca; and what was one of the most historically significant events of Islam, the night of Ascension, it was Fățima who had stayed with the Prophet and opened the door to Angel Gabriel(AS) the night that he ascended to the heavens and ultimately to God Almighty Himself. It was happenings like these at the onset of her life that led her to attain an unshakeable faith, strength and courage. No doubt these early years of hardship, challenges and close encounters with Islam’s most significant events were the beginnings of the making of what was to be her formidable character.
In later years, she would accompany her father and her husband in wars; privately she lived out her marital days in poverty, preferring to serve others over herself. Her love and devotion to her father, her loyalty to her husband, her strength as a mother, her chastity and purity of character, her sacrificial attitude towards others and her spiritual devotion to God led her to become one of the greatest women who have ever graced the earth.
This book is a collection of authentic hadith reports that describe Lady Fatima (S A)’s supreme spiritual status and the special place that she held with the Holy Prophet as well, and narrations describing the special status awarded to her husband ‘Alī (AS) and her sons, Hasan and Husayn (AS).
Foreword of Book :- Sayyida Fatima(AS): The Great Daughter of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ by Shaykh ul Islam Dr. Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri