Mother of Ḥaḍrat ‘Alī(ra) Passes Away

The very same year, towards the end of 4 A.H., the elderly mother of Ḥaḍrat ‘Alī(ra), whose name was Fāṭimah bint Asad, passed away in Madīnah. This revered lady had been like a mother to the Holy Prophet(sa), because after the demise of his paternal grandfather ‘Abdul-Muṭṭalib, it was she who raised the Holy Prophet(sa) in her own home as her own. She loved the Holy Prophet(sa) dearly, and he was deeply saddened by her demise. Upon seeing the body of the deceased, the eyes of the Holy Prophet(sa) began to flow with tears. In his immense love, the Holy Prophet(sa) gave his own shirt to serve as her shroud. He stood in her grave and made all the arrangements for her burial himself. When she was being lowered into her grave, the Holy Prophet(sa) offered the following supplication in a very emotional voice:

“May God the Exalted grant you the best reward for having been a very good mother; for you were indeed a most exemplary mother.”1

In Volume I of this book it has already been mentioned that Fāṭimah bint Asad and Abū Ṭālib had four sons named Ṭālib, ‘Aqīl, Ja‘far(ra) and Ḥaḍrat ‘Alī(ra) and one daughter named Ummi Hani.