The Anger of Lady Fatimah al-Zahra
We must first understand the significance of the Hazrat Fatimah s.a.
Sayyida Fatima (AS) was no ordinary woman. She is the daughter of the Holy Prophet (sawa).
She is one of the five on whom the verse of Tatheer was revealed.
She was the only woman who participated in the Holy Prophet's (sawa) mubahela against the Christians.
She was compared to Maryam (AS), Khadija (AS) and Asiya (AS) as one of the four women of paradise.
She took care of theHoly Prophet (sawa) in his most difficult years. She was the one who cleaned the him and consoled him when the munafiqeen would throw trash on the Prophet and hurt him with stones.
She is not a woman whose feelings and thoughts can be cast aside, since the Holy Prophet (sawa) has said:
حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الْوَلِيدِ، حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ عُيَيْنَةَ، عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ دِينَارٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ أَبِي مُلَيْكَةَ، عَنِ الْمِسْوَرِ بْنِ مَخْرَمَةَ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ " فَاطِمَةُ بَضْعَةٌ مِنِّي، فَمَنْ أَغْضَبَهَا أَغْضَبَنِي ".
Narrated Al-Miswar bin Makhrama:
Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "Fatima is a part of me, and he who makes her angry, makes me angry."
| Reference | : Sahih al-Bukhari 3714 |
| In-book reference | : Book 62, Hadith 63 |
| USC-MSA web (English) reference | : Vol. 5, Book 57, Hadith 61 |
Therefore, if it is proven that Sayyeda Fatima (AS) died angry with some people, then we cannot say that this is any ordinary sort of anger. Indeed, if she was angry with someone, there is no doubt that this anger would be legitimate, and that the one who angered her has committed a grave, unforgivable sin.
Now let us take a look at authentic evidences taken from books of the Sunni scholars which prove the anger of Lady Fatimah al-Zahra against Abu Bakr
Narration
وفي الصحيح عن عروة بن الزبير أن عائشة أم المؤمنين أخبرته أن فاطمة ابنة رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم سألت أبا بكر بعد وفاة رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم أن يقسم لها ميراثها مما ترك رسول الله ص لى الله عليه وآله وسلم مما أفاء الله عليه، فقال لها أبو بكر: إن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم قال : لا نورث، ما تركنا صدقة . فغضبت فاطمة فهجرت أبا بكر فلم تكلمه حتى توفيت، وعاشت بعد رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم ستة أشهر .
Fatimah,
the daughter of the Messenger of Allah, asked Abu Bakr after the death of the
Messenger of Allah to give her. her inherited share from what the Messenger of
Allah left behind of property granted by Allah.
“The
Messenger of Allah said: We, the Prophets, do not leave inheritance. Whatever
we leave is charity.”
Page: 155 Publisher: Dār al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah
Narration
‘Urwah ibn al-Zubayr reports that ‘Aishah, the mother of the believers, told him that Fatimah, daughter of the Messenger of Allah, asked Abu Bakr after the
passing of the Messenger of Allah to divide for her the inheritance from what the Messenger of Allah left of property that Allah had granted him.
Abu Bakr replied:
“The Messenger of Allah said: We, the Prophets, do not leave inheritance. Whatever we leave is charity.”
So Fatimah became angry and cut off relations with Abu Bakr, and she did not speak to him until she passed away. She lived six months after the Messenger of Allah.
Source (Arabic)
المصدر: مسند الإمام أحمد بن حنبل، الجزء الأول، مسند العشرة المبشرين بالجنة، صفحة 63 ، طبعة دار
الكتب العلمية .
Source — English Translation
Title: Musnad of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal Volume: 1 Section: Musnad of the Ten Promised Paradise Page: 63 Publisher: Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah
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Narration
رُوي إبراهيم بن سعد بن صالح عن شَبَاب بن كِسَان عن ابن شِهَاب هذا الحديث بهذا الإسناد، وفيه : فغضبت فاطمة بنت رسول الله فهجرت أبا بكر فلم تزل مهاجرته حتى توفيت، ونُقِل البخاري بهذا اللفظ .
It is narrated by Ibrāhīm ibn Sa‘d ibn Ṣāliḥ from Shabāb ibn Kisān from Ibn Shihāb, with this same chain, that:
Fatimah, the daughter of the Messenger of Allah, became angry and stopped speaking to Abu Bakr, and she continued to avoid him until she passed away.
This wording is also reported by al-Bukhārī.
Source (Arabic)
المصدر: إمتاع الأسماع للمقريزي، الجزء الثالث عشر، صفحة 159 ، طبعة دار الكتب العلمية .
Source — English Translation
Title: Imtā‘ al-Asmā‘ Author: al-Maqrīzī Volume: 13 Page: 159 Publisher: Dār al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah
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There are 25 such traditions with authentic references in the book
The Anger of Lady Fatimah al-Zahra Against Abu Bakr
Written by: Hassan al-Mujtaba al-Mushayya‘ al-‘Iraqi
Published by: Mushayya‘ Iraqi Foundation
The set of narrations presented in this collection originate from twenty-four Sunni works, including hadith compilations, biographical histories, musnad-based transmissions, and commentaries on Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī. These narrations appear through two principal transmission patterns:
1. Chain A (Request–Refusal Sequence): A number of narrations are transmitted through ʿUrwah ibn al-Zubayr, reporting from ʿĀʾishah, in which Fāṭimah bint Muḥammad requested her share from the property left by the Prophet. Abū Bakr replied with the report attributed to the Prophet stating that the property of prophets is not inherited and is to be treated as ṣadaqah (non-inheritable trust). Following this exchange, the narrations consistently state that Fāṭimah ceased interaction with Abū Bakr and remained in that state until her passing, several months after the Prophet’s death.
2. Chain B (Direct Legal Statement): The second group of narrations conveys the statement directly from Abū Bakr, without reference to the initial request. In these transmissions, Abū Bakr reports that the Prophet said: “We (the Prophets) do not leave inheritance; what we leave is charity.” These narrations similarly conclude with the statement that Fāṭimah became upset and maintained non-association with Abū Bakr until her death.
Across both chains, the outcome is consistent. Each narration, regardless of variation in isnād or book type, records the same relationship status: Fāṭimah did not speak to Abū Bakr until she passed away, approximately six months after the Prophet’s death.
This conclusion is attested across works of hadith (e.g., Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Musnad Aḥmad), commentaries (e.g., al-ʿAynī, Ibn Baṭṭāl, al-Suyūṭī, al-Kirmānī), and historical compilations (e.g., al-Maqrīzī, Ibn Zayd al-Baṣrī, Ibn al-Jawzī). The repetition of wording across sources suggests textual stability of the core narrative in the Sunni tradition.
