The Sunday Mail
Sheikh Abdullah Makwinja
MUSLIMS are commemorating the martyrdom of Fatima who was born in the fifth year of Muhammad’s Prophet-hood. Her father was the Holy Prophet Muhammad and her mother was Khadija. (Khadija was the first woman to become Muslim, and she truly believed in God and His Prophet. She was loyal and rich, and spent all her wealth for the progress of Islam)
Fatima was the ideal lady of Islam and excelled all ladies in worship, manners and morals. For her husband, she was the best wife and for her children, she was the best mother.
She did the housework and took great pains and troubles upon herself to maintain and prepare the necessities of life.
Fatima loved her children very much. She cultured them with Islamic morals, manners and etiquette and brought up her children to be the best.
Fatima — peace be upon her soul — passed away in the year 11th A.H. which corresponded to August 7, 632 A.D. The commemoration of her martyrdom this year correspondence to the 2nd March, hence the Muslim community remembers this day with profound sorrow.
The Prophet Muhammad taught Fatima divine knowledge and endowed her with special intellectual brilliance, so much so that she realised the true meaning of faith, piety, and the reality of Islam. Her virtues gained her the title ‘Our Lady of Light’. She was endowed with greatness which caused her to be called ‘az-Zahra’ (the Lady of Light)”.
For all the verses revealed in the Holy Qur’an for women, Fatima is the perfect model, who translated every verse into action. In her lifetime, she was a complete woman, being daughter, wife and mother at the same time.
Her generosity and compassion for the poor was such that no destitute or beggar ever returned from her door empty-handed.
The story of the neck-less illustrates her generosity, a pale and dusty old man came into the mosque. He was clad in rags. He went to the Prophet and in three short sentences explained his circumstances: “Oh Prophet of God, I am hungry, give me food.
“I am cloth less, give me clothes. I am without means, help me!”
The Prophet (S.A.) told him, “I have nothing in hand. Go to my daughter’s house. She will help you.
The house of Fatima was near and one of the Prophet’s companions led the old man to it. The old man knocked at the door.
“Who is it?”
“I’m a hungry person, I’m cloth less, I’m without means, be kind and generous to me, God will be kind and generous to you.”
Fatima took from her neck the necklace given to her by her cousin and gave it to the old man saying, “Sell this necklace and spend the money. I hope that in the future you will be free of need.” The poor man returned happily. The Prophet was still in the mosque. The old man showed the necklace and said, “Oh Prophet, your daughter, Fatima, gave me her necklace to sell.”
One of the Prophet’s friends, Ammar ibn Yasir, heard what the old man said and asked him what price he wanted. The old man said that he would sell it for enough food to satisfy his hunger, enough cloth to clothe his body, and enough money to get home.
Ammar said, “I buy this necklace from you, for a meal of bread and meat, clothes of Yemenite cloth, a four-footer to take you home, and, in addition, eight dinars of gold and 200 dirhams of silver.”
Ammar then took the old man home and paid him the price of the necklace.
The old man ate the food, put on the clothes and went on his way satisfied and happy. Then Ammar put perfume on the necklace, wrapped it up in a piece of cloth and ordered his slave, “Go to the Prophet of God. I have given you and this necklace to him.”
The slave went to the Prophet and delivered Ammar’s message.
The Holy Prophet looked at the necklace and said, “And I have given you and the necklace to my daughter.”
The slave went to Fatima and told her what the Prophet had said and presented the necklace. Fatima thanked him and said, “And in the path of God, I have freed you. You are not a slave anymore!”
That man, the slave, became very happy and with joy and surprise said, “What a blessed necklace!
“It satisfied hunger, clothed the body, bestowed means in place of helplessness, mounted the walker, freed the slave, and finally returned to its owner!”
The Holy Prophet of Islam and his followers strove hard to combat slavery and were continually freeing slaves, whatever the price.
Thus, in Islam, the freeing of slaves is counted amongst the highest acts of worship, and, in some circumstances, is even considered obligatory. Fatima was the beloved daughter of Prophet Muhammad, so we associate the name with Islam. In this way the namesake in Portugal is connected to the Muslims. The name Fatima may be thought of as a bridge between Christendom to Islam. The name of Fatima is associated with a great effort for peace, and unparalleled greatness. Fatima’s very name now evokes hope for the world. Her name from the past is there to bring people together in the present..
