The Shia accept Fatima (رضّى الله عنها) as part of the Ahlel Bayt, but we must analyze on what basis they do this. Do they honor Fatima (رضّى الله عنها) because she is the Prophet’s daughter, or rather because she is Ali’s wife? The answer, we hope, shall be made obvious: it seems to us that they do not honor the daughters of the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم), but rather they only honor Ali’s wife.
The Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had four daughters, not just one. The Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) and Khadijah had five children: Qasim (رضّى الله عنه), Zaynub (رضّى الله عنها), Ruqayyah (رضّى الله عنها), Umm Kulthoom (رضّى الله عنها), and Fatima (رضّى الله عنها). And yet, the Shia Ayatollahs will say that only Fatima (رضّى الله عنها) is part of the Ahlel Bayt. We’d like to ask why the other three daughters are left out? Unfortunately, it seems that in order to maintain consistency, many Shia clerics go so far as to claim that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had only one daughter! This is an easily proven historical inconsistency, but it is trumpeted on many Shia websites, including the popular “Answering-Ansar” website. The Ahlus Sunnah love all the Prophet’s daughters equally and it pains us to see that the rights of three of our noble Prophet’s daughters are neglected. We wonder how our Shia brothers would feel if we said that Fatima (رضّى الله عنها) was not the daughter of the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم), or that Hussain (رضّى الله عنه) was not the son of Ali (رضّى الله عنه)?
Every authoritative historical account affirms that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had four daughters; even secular historians attest to this fact. We could provide numerous references here that would prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Prophet had four daughters. However, in such discourses one will always find individuals who will quote from sources which may be objectively declared dubious, but will be touted by one party to be authoritatively factual. The argument will, in that case, be reduced to a tedious dispute between “our word” against “theirs”. Therefore we shall attempt to prove our claim from the Quran, something which our Shia brothers will admit is an accurate source, as a matter of creed.
The Quran Declares That the Prophet Has More Than One Daughter
Allah says in the Quran:
“O Prophet! Say to your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers that they let down upon them their over-garments; this will be more proper, that they may be known, and thus they will not be given trouble; and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.” (Quran, 33:59)
Here, Allah uses the plural word for daughters, not the singular form. Allah uses the term “banaatuka” which means “your daughters.” If it was one daughter only, it would be “bintuka.” This completely negates the claim that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had only one daughter. Had this been the case, then surely Allah would have not used the plural form, since Allah is above making grammatical mistakes. (We hope that the noble Sahabah will not be accused of doing Tahreef or tampering of the Quran!) We could provide more evidence to prove this fact of history, but it will certainly be a pointless endeavor if a Muslim cannot accept an evidence as ideologically authoritative as the Quran.
Why The Ayatollahs Deny Three Daughters of the Prophet
Let us return to the idea that Shi’ism originates from Abdullah Ibn Saba and his followers. Notive, how the Shia Ayatollahs do not care about the Ahlel Bayt of Muhammad (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم). They only care about the Ahlel Bayt of Ali (رضّى الله عنه). Notice how the Shia Ayatollahs deny that the Prophet’s wives are part of the Ahlel Bayt, but Ali’s wife is part of the Ahlel Bayt. Notice how Ali’s children–Hasan (رضّى الله عنه) and Hussain (رضّى الله عنه)–are considered by them to be in the Ahlel Bayt, but the Prophet’s three daughters are not. This again leads us to confirm the idea that Shi’ism originates from the Saba’ites. These Saba’ites excessively praised Ali (رضّى الله عنه) and eventually even declared that Ali (رضّى الله عنه) was superior to the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم). Today, the Shia adamantly deny this and they say that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) is superior to Ali (رضّى الله عنه). However, we wonder why then they praise the Ahlel Bayt of Ali (رضّى الله عنه) and not the Ahlel Bayt of Muhammad (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم)? Is this not a remnant of the Saba’ite origin of Shi’ism?
Another reason why the Shia Ayatollahs must deny that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had three daughters was because two of these daughters–namely Ruqayyah (رضّى الله عنها) and Umm Kulthoom (رضّى الله عنها)–married Uthman Bin Affan (رضّى الله عنه), the third Caliph. The Shia Ayatollahs base their entire belief on the repudiation of the first three caliphs; if the three caliphs were really evil as the Shia say they are, then why did the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) marry two of his daughters to one of these three Caliphs? Again, this, in our opinion, questions the ideological foundation of Shi’ism.
The Shia revere the Nahjul Balagha, which they claim are the sermons and letters of Ali (رضّى الله عنه). It is one of the most sacred and authoratative of Shia books. The Ahlus Sunnah wal Jama’ah believes that many of the narrations in the Nahjul Balagha are forgeries; however, the Shia accept all of it, and thus we will quote straight from the Nahjul Balagha to prove that Uthman (رضّى الله عنه) married two of the daughters of the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم).
Nahjul Balagha, Sermon 163
Ali went to see Uthman and said to him:
“You have seen as we have seen and you have heard as we have heard. You sat in the company of the Prophet of Allah as we did. (Abu Bakr) Ibn Abi Quhafah and (`Umar) ibn al-Khattab were no more responsible for acting righteously than you, since you are nearer than both of them to the Prophet of Allah through kinship, and you also hold relationship to him by marriage which they do not hold.”
(Source: http://www.al-islam.org/nahjul/163.htm)
This proves that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had two daughters who married Uthman (رضّى الله عنه). This revelation is troublesome the Shia Ayatollahs it would involve exalting the status of Uthman’s family (رضّى الله عنه). And most importantly, it shows that Uthman (رضّى الله عنه) was such a pious person that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) gave him two daughters.
Al-Islam.org
The popular Shia website, Al-Islam.org, finally rescinded the Shia claim that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had only one daughter. Let us see what Al-Islam.org has to say:
Al-Islam.org says
“Most reports (like those of Ibn Ishaq, al-Mas’udi) indicate that she [Khadaija] was the mother of all the Prophet’s children apart from Ibrahim (who was the son of Mary the Copt). She bore the following children to the Prophet: al-Qasim; Zaynab, Ruqqayya, Umm Kulthum and Hazrat Fatima (A.S). Bibi Fatima was the youngest daughter according to most reports. The daughters accepted Islam and migrated with the Prophet to Medina.
”
And we also read the following :
Al-Islam.org says
Khadija, peace be upon her, was the first woman who believed in the Prophet’s divine prophecy. She put all her wealth at his disposal to propagate and promote Islam. [39] Six children were born of his marriage: two sons named Qasim and Tahir who passed away as infants in Makkah and four daughers named Ruqiyah, Zaynab, Umm Kulsum, and Fatima, who was the most prominent and honoured of them all. [40]
It is distressing that the Shia exalt Fatima (رضّى الله عنها) by using the honorific “(A.S.)” as well as “Hazrat” but you will notice no such respect for the other beloved daughters of the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم). Nonetheless, we are pleased that they accept the Prophet’s daughters. We kindly ask Shia-Chat and Answering-Ansar to follow suit and also rescind their claims that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had only one daughter. How distressing it was to see an entire thread on Shia-Chat discussing how the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had only one daughter. The Answering-Ansar moderator boldly declared: “The Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had only one daughter, Bibi Fatima [A.S.].”
The Shia website Al-Islam.org has definitively refuted those who claimed that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) did not have four daughters. We read the following:
Al-Islam.org says
Khadija gave birth to several children of whom only four daughters survived: Zainab, Umme Kulthum, Ruqiya, and Fatima-Zahra who was the youngest and most exalted of them all.
There is a difference between historians regarding the first two daughters, for some claim that they were the Prophet’s step-daughters; but the fact is that they were his direct daughters. This fact will be explained in the coming pages, if Allah wills. [1]
[1] The story of Khadija’s marriage was summarized and carried on from Bihar al-Anwar: v.6.
It should be noted that Bihar al-Anwar is a very authoratative book to the Shia.
We are pleased that Al-Islam.org has accepted the truth on this matter, and has admitted that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had four daughters. However, we must ask then: if Fatima (رضّى الله عنها) is to be included in the Ahlel Bayt, then why aren’t the other three daughters of the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم)? Is this not unfair? Is this not illogical?
Al-Shia.com
Another popular Shia website, www.al-shia.com, contains the following Hadith compiled by Imam Kulayni in Al-Kafi, the most reliable of the four Shia books of Hadith. All of the below Hadith confirm that Umm Kulthoom, Ruqayyah, and Zaynub are direct daughters of the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم):
Al-Shia.com says
“
- روى الصفار بسنده عن الامام الباقر (ع ) قال : ولد لرسول اللّه (ص )من خديجة : القاسم والطاهر , وام كلثوم , ورقية , وزينب وفاطمة ((642)) .
وروى الصدوق بسنده عن الصادق (ع ) قال : ولد لرسول اللّه (ص )من خديجة : القاسم والطاهر ـ وهو عبداللّه ـ وام كلثوم , ورقية , وزينب وفاطمة ((643)) .
وقـال الـكـليني : ولد له منها قبل مبعثه : القاسم , ورقية , وزينب وام كلثوم , وولد له بعد المبعث : الـطـيـب والـطـاهر وفاطمة وروى ايضا : ا ن ه لم يولد بعد المبعث الا فاطمة (ع ) , وان الطيب والطاهر ولدا قبل مبعثه ((644)) .
وقـال الـشيخ الطبرسي : فاول ما حملت ولدت عبد اللّه بن محمد وهوالطيب ((الطاهر)) والناس يغلطون فيقولون : ولد له منها اربعة بنين القاسم وعبد اللّه والطيب والطاهر , وانما ولد له منها ابنان , الـثـانـي : الـقـاسـم , وقـيـل :ان القاسم اكبر , وهو بكره , وبه كان يكنى واربع بنات : زينب ورقية وام كلثوم وفاطمة ((645)) .
وقال ابن شهر آشوب : اولاده : وله من خديجة : القاسم وعبد اللّه ,وهما الطاهر والطيب , واربع بنات : زينب ورقية وام كلثوم وفاطمة وفي (الانوار) , و(الكشف ) , و(اللمع ) , وكتاب البلاذري : ان زيـنب ورقية كانتاربيبتيه من جحش فاما القاسم والطيب فماتا بمكة صغيرين , مكث القاسم سبع ليال ((646)) .
وروى المجلسي عن الكازروني عن ابن عباس قال : اول من ولدلرسول اللّه بمكة قبل النبوة القاسم وبه كان يكنى , ثم ولد له زينب , ثم رقية ,ثم فاطمة , ثم ام كلثوم , ثم ولد له في الاسلام عبد اللّه فـسـمي الطيب والطاهر وامهم جميعا خديجة بنت خويلد وكان اول من مات من ولده القـاسم ثم مات عـبداللّه بمكة , فقال العاص بن وائل السهمي قد انقطع ولده فهو ابتر , فانزل اللّه تعالى ( ان شانئك هو الابتر ) ((647)) .
As for our English-only readers, we have the following quote from Imam Kulayni (which is actually a translation of one of the above Hadith):
“He [the Prophet] married Khadijah when he was twenty and some years old. Before recieving the Divine Commands, his children born to him from Khadijah were Qasim, Ruqayyah, Zaynub, and Umm Kulthoom. Of the children born after he recieved Divine Commands were al-Tayyib, al-Tahir, and Fatima (a.s.)”
(source: al-shia.com, http://www.al-shia.com/html/eng/lib/)
Authority of Shia Historical Accounts
The classical Shia scholars never argued that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had only one daughter. This was only a recent phenomena when the Ayatollahs realized that their position on the Ahlel Bayt did not make logical sense if the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) really did have more than one daughter. It is unfortunate that this policy of denial is a prevalent tactic of debate today. It is adopted with many other topics as well, such as Abdullah Ibn Saba; they deny his existence just like they deny the existence of the Prophet’s daughters. We would like to ask how it is that Shia historical accounts can be taken seriously when they deny such basic facts such as how many daughters the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had and who Abdullah Ibn Saba was?
Such famous Shia scholars as Kulayni, Majlisi, Sadooq, Toosi, and Tabarsi have confirmed that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had four daughters. Thus, when the modern day propagandists argue and say that the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) had only one daughter, then we remind them that they are not only arguing with us, but also these classical scholars. This newfound Shia opinion is in fact 100% at variance with what the very founding fathers of Shia theology had to say, those who were the foundation pillar of knowledge for the later generations of the Shia.
Conclusion
It is a prevalent opinion of the Shia followers to say that the Sunnis dislike or are against the Ahlel Bayt. This is simply not true. We have just shown how it is the Shia who, in fact, deny the very existence of the Prophet’s daughters.
To us this denial is an insult and we kindly ask the Shia Ayatollahs to refrain from insulting the Ahlel Bayt of Muhammad (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم) by denying their very existence. We urge our Shia brothers to think about the veracity of their beliefs and what reasons they have for denying the rights of three of our Prophet’s lovely daughters. It is clear that, contrary to much of what is disseminated, the Ahlus Sunnah wal Jama’ah indeed loves the entire family of the Prophet (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم), including all his wives and all his daughters.
Article Written By: Ibn al-Hashimi, www.ahlelbayt.com
