REFRENCE FROM THE BOOK "The Conference of Ulema of Baghdad"

This is a humble translation for the famous story of "Mu'tamar `Ulamá' Baghdád" which occurred at the time of the Seljuk king Malikshah I (Maliksháh Seljuqi), the son of the Seljuk king Alp Arsalan.

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The Conference of Ulema of Baghdad
Written by
Muqátil ben `Atiyyah
Second Edition
This is the book of (The conference of the Ulema of Baghdad) that was held between the Sunnis and Shiites that were gathered by the great king (Maliksháh Seljuqi) under the supervision of the great scholar and vizier (Nizam Al-Mulk)

TRADITIONS FROM BEHAR UL ANWAR REGARDING OPPRESSION - PART II

Tradition No5 :
Al-Majlisi II, commenting on an authentic tradition narrated from the father of al-Hasan (A.S.), says that Fatima (A.S.) is a truthful martyr, adding,

 

This incident proves that Fatima, peace and blessings of Allah be upon her, was a martyr, and this is a consecutively reported fact. The reason is that when they confiscated the caliphate, and when most people swore the oath of allegiance to them, they sent for the Commander of the Faithful (A.S.) to participate, but he refused. `Omer brought fire to burn the house and everyone inside it, and they wanted to enter his house by force. Fatima (A.S.) prohibited them at the door, so Qunfath, slave of `Omer, pushed the door on Fatima’s stomach, breaking her rib and causing her to miscarry a fetus whom the Messenger of Allah (A.S.) had named Muhassan. She fell sick because of that, and she died, peace and blessings of Allah be upon her. Both al-Tabari and al-Waqidi have stated in their respective Tarikh books that `Omer ibn al-Khattab went to Ali (A.S.) in a group of men including Asad ibn Hudayr and Salamah ibn Aslam and said, “Get out or I shall burn you all.” This is narrated by Hazanah, too.¹

TRADITIONS FROM HOLY PROPHET ( SAWA) REGARDING OPPRESSIONS ON JANABE ZAHRA (SA)

The Calamities befalling Hazrat Faatemah Zahra (s.a.)


Saeed b. Jubair narrates from Ibne Abbas: One day the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) was sitting when Imam Hasan (a.s.) entered. He (s.a.w.a.) welcomed him and delightfully seated him on his right lap. Then Imam Husain (a.s.) entered. He (s.a.w.a.) welcomed him and seated him on his left lap. Then Hazrat Faatemah Zahra (s.a.) came and sat alongside Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.). After that Ameerul Momineen (a.s.) came and sat on the right of the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.).
Then the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.s) began weeping incessantly.
Someone asked: O Messenger of Allah! What has caused you grief?
Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) then revealed their virtues and the sufferings they would face in his absence. When the discussion reached Hazrat Zahra (s.a.), after elucidating her virtues, he (s.a.w.a.) said: When I see her, I remember the afflictions that will befall her after me.
(Al-Amali of Shaikh Sadooq (r.a.) Majlis 24 p. 99; Behaar al-Anwaar vol. 28 p. 37)

Fadak in The Political Arena

In addition to being a reason encouraging others to be unjust to Ahlul-Bayt, the usurping of Fadak by Abu Bakr ignited political unrest throughout history. Sheikh Ja’far Subhani, a leading historian, wrote the following in his book The Message p.601 regarding Fadak :

“The foundation of the deprivation of the descendants of Fatima’s claim of Fadak was laid in the time of the First Caliph. After the martyrdom of Ali, Mu’awiyah assumed the reins of government and divided Fadak amongst three persons (Marwan, Amr bin Uthman and his own son, Yazid). During the period of the Caliphate of Marwan, all three shares were assumed by him and he gifted them to his son, Abdul Aziz. He, in turn, gave the same to his son, Umar. On account of the fact that Umar Bin Abdul Aziz was an upright person from amongst Bani Umayyah, the first heresy which he removed was that he returned Fadak to the descendants of Fatima. After his death, however, the succeeding Umayyad Caliphs again took away Fadak from the Bani Hashim and it continued to remain in their possession till their rule came to an end.

Why Hazrat Zahra (s.a.) demanded Fadak from the government

She was a role-model for all Muslim women till the Day of Judgment as her father (s.a.w.a.) had declared, ‘An angel informed me and gave me glad tidings that my daughter, Fatemah is the chief of all women of my nation…’

The Garden of Fadak

Hazrat Fatemah Zahra (s.a.) (the chief of all women in Paradise) was least interested in worldly possessions. She being a lady of exalted disposition, enjoyed great spiritual status and this was well-acknowledged by the Islamic world. She had all along remained aloof from the world and was wary of its trappings and deceit. However, after the Prophet’s (s.a.w.a.) demise, she agitated against the government to assert her claim over Fadak.

Why was Fadak not granted to Hazrat Fatema (sa)

“If he had accepted her word on that day and had returned Fadak to her on account of her being a truthful woman and without asking for any witnesses, she could very well use this position for the benefit of her husband on the following day and say:  `My husband, Ali is entitled to the Caliphate,’ and then the Caliph would have been obliged to surrender the Caliphate to Ali on account of his having acknowledged her to be a truthful woman. However, in order to obviate any such claim or dispute, he deprived her of her undisputed right!”

Fatima-the only surviving child of the Prophet, his most beloved- claimed inheritance of the property which could be apportioned to her in the lands of Medina and in Khaibar, as also Fadak, which having been acquired without the use of force, the Prophet had given her for her maintenance, in accordance with the commands of Allah.

Fadak In History (Book, English)

Fadak in History is a book in English by Shaheed Muhammad Baqir As-Sadr. The book is published by Ansariyan Publications – Qum

                                      CLICK HERE TO READ THIS BOOK                                                    

                                                        

Questions Concerning Fadak

Qur’anic verses and historical documents reveal that the land of Fadak situated near the Fort of Khaibar, formerly belonging to the Jews, was the personal property of the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h). It was neither a government property owned by the treasury nor was it war booty. The seventh verse of Surah Hashr, explains the point in detail:
“Whatever Allah has restored to His Apostle from the people of the towns, it is for Allah and for the Apostle, and for the near of kin and orphans and the needy and the wayfarer, so that it may not be a thing taken by turns among the rich of you. . .” (59: 7)

Fadak was a piece of land that had come in possession of the Prophet (p.b.u.h) without waging a war. In the seventh century, the people of that place had handed it over to the Muslims fearing reprisal. As it was given voluntarily, this land automatically became the personal property of the Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h), and had nothing to do with the government. The fact was accepted by many commentators and historians. For reference, we are quoting a few names: Bilazaris ‘Futuh al-Bildaan’;  Shaykh Shahabudin Hamui in ‘Mojam al-Bildaan’ under the word ‘Fadak’;  Mohammad Ibn Jurair Tabari in his ‘Tarikh al-Umam wal Molook’, vol.3, p. 14; Ibn Atheer in ‘Al-Kaamil’, vol.3, p.221; Ibn Abil Hadeed in ‘Sharh-e-Nahjul Balagha’, vol. 16, p.210

Who is Mohsin Ibn Ali (a.s.)? ( QURANIC AND HISTORICAL EVIDENCES)

Mohsin Ibn Ali (a.s.) is the third son of Ali (a.s.) and Fatimah (s.a.) after Hasan (a.s.) and Husain (a.s.). He is also referred to as Mushabbar which is also the name of Prophet Haroon Ibn Imran’s (a.s.) third son. He was no more than six months fetus at the time of the attack. (Al-Hidaayat al-Kubra, p. 407, Behaar al-Anwaar, vol. 53 p. 19)
Mohsin Ibn Ali (a.s.) was the least involved in the business of politics and machinations which the attack on Fatimah’s (a.s.) was all about. He was not concerned with anything that transpired on that day and no one who had any grouse with Ali (a.s.) and Fatimah (s.a.) had an argument against Mohsin Ibn Ali (a.s.). Even those who debate about the infallibility of Ali (a.s.) and Fatimah (s.a.) fall silent when the infallibility of an unborn child is raised because they have no answer.
Therefore, although the entire attack on Fatimah’s (s.a.) house was illegitimate, the attack on Mohsin Ibn Ali (a.s.) in many ways was the most illegitimate part of the attack.

HISTORY OF OWNERSHIP OF FADAK

On 7th Hijri, the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) had given this place as a gift to his beloved daughter Janabe Fatema (s.a.). She used to administer this place through her appointees.

• Just ten days after the demise of the Prophet (s.a.w.a.), Fadak was snatched away from her. Inspite of providing proofs and witnesses, it was not returned to her. It was not considered as a parented heritage and property.
• According to Sahih Bukhari the 2nd Caliph had returned it to the successors.

TRADITIONS FROM BEHAR UL ANWAR REGARDING OPPRESSION

Tradition No 1 :

 Al-Majlisi, may Allah have mercy on him, detailed a letter sent by the second caliph to Mu`awiyah narrating what al-Zahra’ (A.S.) had to go through at his hand. Among its contents are the following details:

 

I went to his [Ali’s] house bent on getting him out of it. I said to the maid, Fidda, “Tell Ali (A.S.) to come out to swear fealty to Abu Bakr since all the Muslims have already done so.” She said, “The Commander of the Faithful (A.S.) is busy.” I said to her, “Leave such talk aside and tell him to come out or else we shall enter and get him out by force.”

TRADITIONS FROM THE BOOK OF SULAYM IBNE QAYS E HILALI

Kitab-e- Sulaym Ibn Qays Al-Hilali

The greatness and esteemed value of this book can be gauged by the hadith of Imam Ja’far Al-Sadiq a.s that whoever does not possess this book does not have anything from The Ahlul Bayt AS. This is a book that has received endorsement from five Infallible Imams. This is the first book of the Shi’a containing knowledge of Traditions, History, Theology and Commentary. The author was born in Kufa and came to Madinah but was not able to see The Prophet SAWW. However, he was a trustworthy companion to Five A’immah AS. Many a renowned Sunni traditionalists have quoted ahadith from Sulaym and this is a sure endorsement of his authenticity. Sulaym’s book comprises 91 ahadith, which are illuminating, revealing and heart-rending for the oppression heaped upon Ahlul Bayt a.s after the demise of The Prophet SAWW cannot but move the reader.