She was the daughter of the first caliph Abu Bakir the first child of Abu Qahafah who is of descendants of Amer bin Ka’ab of the family of Tim of Quraish.
Her mother's name is Roman the daughter of Amer and her nick name is Umm Abdullah. she was born after the prophet hood of the holy prophet.
Prophet Muhammad married Aysha two years before Hijrah to Medina following Khadijah his first loyal wife passed away. It was one and a half years after Hijrah following the battle of Badr, they took her to her own house upon her father’s request in the month of Shavval. Their marriage took eight years and five months.
She was bias towards personal traits of the holy prophet and used to be sensetive towards the prophet’s social interactions. Some historians say accounts of her memories which show how sensitive she was towards different issues concerning the prophet. For further information on this you can refer to volume six of Musnad Ahmad, pages 115,147,151,221.
She had this sort of sensitivity toward the other spouses of the holy prophet as well, of which instances have been narrated in Sahih Muslim, chapter Al-Qairah as well as Musnad Ahmad volume six pages 111,144,277 for further information you can refer to those books.
The event of Ifk (slander):
First of all we need to go through the word Ifk in the holy Qur’an chapter Noor (the light) which states: Surely those who brought forth the slander are a party from among you…
Fakhre Razi says: Ifk is worse than a lie and false accusation in its context. It is something that should awaken you. The base meaning of the word Ifk means “Al-Qalb” that is to invert a factor or something from its actual dimension and it can also mean the worst of lies and false accusations. It is an inevitable fact and it is not doubted by the interpreters of the holy Qur’an.
There is no differences of opinions about it and has been wholly agreed upon by the interpreters of the holy Qur’an, in other words this false accusation is only directed to the house of the prophet and one of his wives, the main objective of the people who brought forth such slanders ,was to target the holy prophet’s reputation, because accusing prophet’s wives means the inefficiency of the prophet in running the affair of his wives which means that when it is possible for the prophet’s wife to do such a thing ,the way of doing things like that would most likely be opened to other people,therefore all Islamic schools of thought agreed upon it,the fact that the wives of the prophet ,according to the holy Qur’an are free from such charges, that God introduces it as Ifk.But what is the real basis of these kind of differences in verse 11 of chapter NOOR interpretations?The differences is about the cause of revelation and it’s motives and to which one of the holy prophet’s wives they have leveled and directed this slander? Some suspected Mariah Qebtiah,Umm Ibrahim as well as others and some suspected Aisha.
Fakhroddin al Razi(1149-1209)quotes several narrators quoting from Aisha as saying: whenever the holy prophet used to set out for a trip he used to draw among his wives.In the battle of Banu al Mustaliq ,I was elected and set out on a journey along with the prophet,half way through the trip we stopped for a rest and I got separated from the caravan to do something ,by the way I returned I figured I had lost my necklace ,in order to find it I went away from the camp and when I went back they had left and I had to stay out there I nthe hope that they would sense my absence and come back to find me.Safvan bin Muattal who always used to follow the caravan and used to collect things left by the caravan the time he saw me recognized me and rode me on his camel,finally we caught up with the caravan.But the people said what they ought not to say.This gave rise not only just to suspicion but allegation against me with Abdullah bin Ubay being the foremost.
According to this narration Aisha is the lady who was involved in this tragedy however God dismisses the charges against her and declares her innocence.Although most of the sunnie scholars for some unknown reasons believe that the cause of revelation as to the verse Ifk is all about Aisha.
Aisha did not give a child marrying the holy prophet.He moved to Aisha’s house in a state of illness leading to his death in which he passed away nad was burried there.
Aisha throughout caliphate of the Sheikhain:
Throughoutt this period she used to be respected thoroughly .she has higher status comparing prophet’s other wives and she has given fatwas at times.(1)
Some historians say that the second caliph used to pay more salary to her comparing other.As Zahabi says once a valuable piece of jewellery was brought from Iraq as booty was sent to Aisha by the order of Umar with others permission.
Ibn Athir says:in the last days of Umar’s life ,he asked her permission to burry him in her house beside the prophet and Abu Bakir ,to which she agreed.
Aisha at the time of Uthman’s rule:
At the beginning of Uthman’s caliphate ,she performed hajj accompanied by the second caliph ,however according to Yaqobi ,after a short while he denied her of the two thousand dinars which used to be given to her by Umar bin Khattab,and was paid as much as other spouses of the holy prophet .
Allame Askari says:as far as history is concerned we only know that the differences between the two has emerged in the second half of Uthman’s caliphate,as well as understand that this difference has neither occurred due to a simple incident nor suddenly,yet little by little and has intensified to a degree to which the ties between Aisha and Uthman was worsened.
Historians says,the case regarding his half brother Walid bin Aqaba was one of the provoking issues between the two.According to the Qur’an Walid bin Aqaba who was a corrupt man ,was given an official position in Uthman’s era.
Walid used to sin freely at the time of the rule of the third caliph to the extent that he used to pay his christian servant monthly payment out the muslim’s public treasury to buy wine and pork.(4)
When Walid was appointed as the governer of Kufa,Abu Zaid ,the christian poet joined him and Walid gave him a house which belonged to Aqil bin Abitalib,worst of all ,in order to go to Valeed ,Abu Zaid had to enter the mosque of Kufa to enter Walid’s house in order to drink wine and keep a vigil which made him intoxicated by the time he returned home.One of Walid’s evil deeds was that he tainted the mosque with jugglery.Walid was informed that a jwish man named Zurrara who was famous for jugglery and witchcraft is living in a village close to the bridge of Babylon.Walid orderde to bring him to Kufa to watch him doing witchcraft,he also ordered him to do a show inside the mosque to display his art to the ruler of muslims and his people.
Another problem was that Walid used to drink wine,something that is subject to religious devine punishment.some people who saw him drinking wine,they went to Medina to visit Uthman in order to relate him what had happened and present heir evidences ,even they went to Ali(pbuh)to seek help.
Abolfaraj in his book (Aqani) says:Uthman replied to the witnesses saying: it is not a practice to accuse the Amir if he annoys you,now because of this I will have you punished in the morning, as a result they took refuge to Aisha’s house ,hearing this that they are accusing him of aggression ,Uthman unconsciously shouted:did the Iraqi rebells and corrupt ones have no shelter except Aisha’s house? Hearing this Aisha took the holy prophet’s sandles to her hands raising them ,she shouted clearly:how quickly you forgot the Sunnah of the owner of these sandles.
Aisha’s words quickly passed through people and reached every one ,therefore people came to the mosque ,discussion concerning their argument with such excitement, caused disagreement among people.Some praised what Aisha did and some disagreed with it.sadly the disagreement reached to a point that they tackled each other ,roughing each other up.Concerning this Belazari adds:despite Ummol Muminin’s protest Uthman decided to take revenge ,shouting with anger that you do not have the right to meddle in the affairs ,you have been ordered to stay in your house.This story has been narrated via Yaqubi and Ibn Abdol Barr in his book Isti’ab with the same context.
Ali (pbuh) said to Uthman:fire Walid and if the witnesses testified face to face then apply the legal devine punishment on him,therefore Uthman ousted Walid from governorship of Kufa and summoned him to Medina.Following some hesitation Walid had to comply with Ali(pbuh) and gave the governorship to Saeed bin Al A’as ,the new governor of Kufa.
It should be mentioned that following taking the office ,Saeed ordered to clean the Kufa mosque and did not go on the pulpit until it was cleaned yet some heads of Banu Ummayya tried to stop him from cleaning the pulpit because this would bring disgrace to Walid who were both from Banu Umayya tribe ,however Saeed refused it ,ordering them to clean the pulpit.(5)
Following Walid’s return to Medina and testimony of witnesses as to his drinking ,Uthman ordered to lash him .
Whoever came and wanted to execute the punishment on him ,faced Walid saying: look at yourself and do not sever the bond of relationship with me and do not excecute the punishment on me and do not make the commander of the faithful angry.
Observing this Ali bin Abitalib took a whip and arrived Waliad’s place with his son Hasan bin Ali ,Walid started saying the same things,Ali said to him: if I do the same as well it means I have not believed in God.
Ali took Walid’s cloak off with difficulty and gave him 40 lashes with a double-laced whip ,while he had taken off his own cloak.
The murder of Uthman:
Following the mentioned events the blocked area was tightened against Uthman.He sent Abdollah bin Harith bin Nufel who was one of the descendants of Abdol Muttallib,with a quatrain of poem to Ali: if I am to be eaten,therefoe be my eater or help me before they slay me.(6)
At that time Ali was in Khaibar,having received the message ,he returned to Medina and went to Uthman.he reminded Ali of the right of Islam ,brotherhood , family relationship and of being the son-in-law of the prophet and sought help.Ali went to Talha asking him to disperse people from around Uthman ,although Talha said: I swear to God would never do so unless Banu Umayya go by people’s rights.
Ali came out and headed for the muslim’s public treasury,he ordered to break the door to hand out the existing property.
Talha went hurriedly to Ali saying:O ‘commander of the faithful I have done something so I ask God to forgive me.i had a certain idea in my mind although God did not want my wishes come true.Uthman replied:you did not come to repent however you came here cause you found yourself defeated, I leave you to God.
Noticing that people are determined to kill Uthman Ali commanded his sons Al-Hasan and Al-hussain: pick up your swords and stay guard by the door of Uhman’s
House and do not let any one to come near the caliph.Ali’s sons in order to implement their father’s command were engulfed in the process of clashes between Muhajerin and Ansar.Hassan’s face was dyed with his blood as well as Qanbar’s head who was Ali’s servant was severely injured.
Reports as to the murder of the caliph is slightly different however what is certian is that the murderes entered the Uthman’s plact through the roof of someone’s house from Ansar because they were not able to get to the house through the door ,the reason was,that the children of Bani Hashim including Imam Hasan and Imam Hussain and Imam Ali’s children were on guard by the door.
Ibn Abel Hadid ,Aabari as well as Belazeri have zoomed in on the murder of Uthman in their history books.
The caliph’s body waited there on the ground until Imam Ali personally meddled in his burial.He was buried in Hash Koukab only with the participation of Marwan and his fifth daughter as well as his three servants.(7)
It must be noted that ,taking the office Muawiah commanded to tear down the wall of Hash Koukab in order to annex it to the Baqi cemetery.
Ali Ibn Abitalib’s caliphate:
Following Uthman’s death the companions of the holy prophet came to Imam Ali saying: Utham the muslim’s caliph was murdered therefore muslims need a competent leader and you are the only one that we are aware of,they named the Imam’s advantagess and backgrounds .
Tabari says: following the death of Uthman people came to Ali several times in large numbers requesting him to accept the caliphate to become the ruler of the muslims,despite this Imam Ali refused it.They said if selecting the caliph would drag on for along time ,the order would mess up.It was at this point that Ali tells people ,you go to the mosque and gather around if you are insisting this much.He himself went to the mosque as well and began saying : it is not my desire to be a caliph however this happened due to insistence of people .
I want you to swear allegiance to me as to two matters that they will be implemented with no compromise:1-Revocking the social privileges 2-carrying out the equality of right among muslims in a precise way.Are you happy with it?they all unanimously said: yes we are.
Belazeri says: the muslims hurried towards Ali very enthusiasticly and very quickly in large numbers chanting this slogan that Ali is the commander of the faithful, swearing allegiance to him. people raised their hands and the ceremony of allegiance started.Talha was the first person to swear allegiance to imam Ali.some of the companions OF Ali such as Ammar as well as Malik Ashtar asked imam Ali to invite some others to swear allegiance ,however imam Ali replied: if any one does not welcome us and does not accept our allegiance we do not need them.it is interesting to know that people such as Marwan and Walid and Saeed bin Aa’s were agaist the allegiance whose polythiest fathers and ancesters had been killed by imam Ali which caused them to hold a grudge against the holy imam.
They said: you killed our fathers which caused Ali to reply: I did not kill them,they were killed because they were against the truth and in favor of the polytheism.Meanwhile Ali insisted on taking back the wealth that they had obtained from the muslim’s treasury and to do justice to them .on the one hand Talha and Zubair who had sworn a pledge ,thought that they were going to get more official positions as well as more share from the muslim’s public treasury ,when it did not happen they began to lash Ali’s government and putting spoke in his government.(Ali’s words with them exist in Nahjol-balaqa).
As to the request of Talha and Zubair Yaqobi says: (15) we were denied of every official position after the holy prophet’s death and were driven to a corner.now that the caliphate has fallen into your hands ,we expect you to make us your partner in the affairs of the government and to put one of the important positions at our disposal .
Ali said: your suggestion is out of question,forget about it.what more do you want than you are already my men?Be my helper in tough times,you are shouldering the backbone of the strength of my caliphate.can you imagine any higher position than this to the muslims?
Having found no flexibility in Ali’s words on one hand ,and learning that Aisha was going to avenge Uthman’s death from the other hand ,Talha and Zubair made their minds to travel to Mecca on the pretext of paying a visit to the house of God.of course they asked Ali’s permission,therefore he did so.
Talha and Zubair joined Aisha who was 45 years old at this time as well as other opposing parties and individuals to Ali’s rule who were namely the heads and the influential figures in the previous government who were didmissed from their positions based on Ali’s justice-oriented policies.large number of people had gathered.There was disagreement between the heads ,some wanted to head for levant to seek help from Muaviah ,however some said they wanted to go to Iraq to seek help from the people of Kufa and Basra,therefore the second idea was agreed upon and as a result the army moved towards Basra.Tabari says the number was 3000 people ,reporting various stories as to the disagreements between Talha and Zubair as well as division within the army enroute.
Intenal war within the army:
Unlike the general agreement and promised cooperation the internal division was absolutely obvious.the disagreement was all about leading the congregational prayer between Talha and Zubair as well as dispute over leadership and command to which even Aysha’s measures did’nt work.It reached to a point in which people could not tell which one to call Amir.
Some used to call Zubair the Amir who was appointed as the army chief by Aisha and some used to call the both the Amir.At this point Marwan played an important role and put many efforts in bringing about division and separation.
The other problem which could be seen within the army was that ,that they weren’t sure as to what they were doing as well as they were not able to tell the right from the wrong.Tabari says: few times Zubair has said: we have not recognized our way yet we guide others,we are doubtful in finding our way and are in doubt to implement our decision. Whatever I have done in my life I have thought of it’s consequences ,however the consequences of this are not clear to me.
Meanwhile it’s been narrated from Alqama bin Waqqas as saying: those days I was accurate about his behavior and I noticed he always was edgy, sitting alone and thinking.once I said to him : what is the reason that you are so edgy and why do you think too much? If you don’t desire to fight Ali so leave the army and go to your home.
Talha replied :once we all were united against the enemy of islam ,however sadly we were devided into two opposition parties and had to stand like two mountains against each other ,putting each other up to war.
This kind of statements indicate that these two generals of the army were undecided in their objectives and were doubtful as well as worried as to their resolve and accomplishments and as a result were afraid of it’s bitter consequences.
However on the contrary Ali used to say : I know for sure that God is my helper in this battle and will make me victorious because I believe I am guiltless and I am on the right side and I don’t have slightest doubt in my accomplishments and I have insight as to what I do.
Ali’s move from Medina to Basra:
The first plce in which imam Ali stopped was called Rabazah.There he ran into Uthman bin Hanif.he complained to Ali as to what happened to him in Basra, the imam felt pitty for him and talked him into being patient.he also wrote a letter to his governer in Kufa asking him to gear up an army and dispatch it toward the imam, however Abu Mousa ignored the letter and unlike the imam’s order he dissuaded the people of Kufa from helping him.
The second place Ali and his army arrived at was Ziqar.he dispatched his son Hasan al Mujtaba with a letter to Kufa to get some help , impressed by his speech many people joined his army.
Tabari says : the two army met each other at a place which was later called Qasr Ubaidullah bin Ziad .in the first three days they did’nt attack each other, it was Ali who used to either issue an ultimatum to the heads of the opposing army or dispatch deligations and at times contacted them directly to stop the war as well as bloodshed in order to stop them from corruption and sedition.
The battle of Jamal:
Ali addressed his troops on the day of the battle of Jamal saying out loud: Don’t shoot at the enemy and don’t attack any one with your swords and spears and don’t start the war unless the enemy starts it.Talk to them kindly.Nothing happened until noon and according to the command ,they refrained to start the war ,however on the contrary the opposing army were chanting “we want to avenge Uthman” which could be heard clearly.It was at this point that Ali invoked his lord saying :O lord suppress the murderes of Uthman this day.
Getting no results from his efforts ,the commander of the faithful resorted to the holy Qur’an whereby he warned them,so he raised a copy of the holy Qur’an among his troops saying out loud:who can hold this Qur’an in his hand to invite the opposing army to the right way till he gets martyred in this cause? therefore some youth rose to his feet and declared his readiness.Ali proposed his plan one more time and the same youth rose to his feet .The imam handed over the holy Qur’an to him and showed him the way to the enemy ,however the army attacked him and cut his both hands off ,yet he kept preaching them ,until he got killed.(10)
Following this event Ali said : now we are no longer obliged to them and it’s our duty to fight them.
Zubair the first victim of the Jamal battle:
when the two armies encountered each other Ali laid his weapon down and rode on the holy prophet’s special horse and moved toward the army and called Zubair to come to him, Zubair went to Ali with his weapon on ,upon hearing the news Aysha was panicked that they might kill Zubair ,then shouted: woe to my sister’s misfortune that she will be a widow,however when she was told that Ali is not carrying a weapon she calmed down.in this manner historians describe the moment of meeting between Zubair and Ali: when Zubair got closer to Ali they threw their arms around each other’s neck and hugged and kissed each other ,then Ali said :woe to you ,why you have brought the army to this land? And why do you wage the opposition flag on me?
Zubair replied: the reason for this deployment is that we want to avenge Uthman’s blood . Ali replied:may God kill the one who participated and played a role in the murder of Uthman.then he reminded him of the holy prophet’s saying as to Zubair: O’ Zubair ,one day you will fight against Ali unlawfully.hearing the saying of the prophet Zubair sought forgiveness and regretted his action however saying: now that we have reached to this point and we are ready to fight ,no time is left ,I see no way to escape through closed doors.Ali replied: you are better off to face the disgrace than tomorrow while burning with it.
It was at this point that Zubair was impressed and decided to back off from the war.However when Abdullah bin Zubair was informed as to his father’s words,he said : why are you withdrawing from the war and…
Zubair’s reply to Abdullah is quoted by Masudi as following:Nay ‘it’s not as you think ,fear did not stop me from the war rather I recalled a story which made me aware and stopped me to fight Ali,that’s why I preferred the disgrace of withdrawing from the war to the fire of the hell.now since you are calling me a coward ,I will clean this disgrace off by using swords and spears.
Following this conversation ,Zubair attacked the right wing of the army of Ali,seeing him in anger Ali commanded his men to give him some time and don’t hurt him because he has been provoked and has lost his control.
Zubair attacked the left wing of the army for the second time shouting : what kind of coward is able to display such bravery?then he withdrew himself from the battle-front and went to the wilderness.
Legend has it, he got off his horse somewhere to say his prayers when a man called Amr bin Jarmoz ,stabbed him to death.(12)
Talha another victim of the Jamal battle :
Ibn Asakir says : before the onset of the war Ali did the same thing that he did to Zubair,that is to say he met with Talha, saying : did’nt you hear the saying of the holy prophet concerning me who said: whoever I am his master Ali is his master, O’ lord love Ali’s friends and be an enemy to Ali’s foes?Talha replied:yes. I remember it vividly.then imam Ali said ; I wonder why are you fighting against me?
According to Tabari Ali said : O ’ Talha ,you are the one who put your wife at home despite the fact that you brought the holy prophet’s wife with you to the battle front and breached your promise.
Ibn Asakir and Zahabi say: Talha was shouting asking his men to be silent so that they could hear him,however because they ignorned him ,he got annoyed saying :woe to this kind of people that are the moth around the flames of the hell.
As to the way that Talha was killed ,Yaqubi, Ibn Asakis , Ibn Abd Rabah ,Ibn Abd Albar in his book Isti’ab, Ibn Hajar Asqalani as well as Ibn Athir in his book Al_Kamil, say :the both armies were fighting each other,Marwan who was one of the generals of the army of Talha said : if I don’t take advantage of this opportunity to take revenge from the murderers of Uthman ,how can I get a chance like that?therefore he threw an arrow at his commander Talha ,as a result of severe blooding caused by the wound of the arrow, he died.
Ibn Sa’ad in his book titled Tabaqat says :In his last moments of life Talha said :I swear to God the arrow which wounded me was not shot by Ali’s troops.Historians say the murder of the second commander of the army didn’t have the slightest effect on the army because the army’s standard was a camel-litter which belonged to Aisha,so following the murder of the commander ,the army paid more attention to the the camel which was carrying the widow of the holy prophet causing the battle to go on with more intensity.(13)
Observing the circumstances, Ali wrapped his black turbun around his head and prepared the troops and entrusted the standard of the army with Muhammed Hanafia.the battle slowly reached to it’s climax and the ranks were broken through, as a result many fled from the front line.The one’s who resisted were alarmed and felt that their defeat is inevitable.They were chanting “we are going to avenge Uthman”,although reading epic poems was customary at wars times.on the contrary Ali’s troops began chanting “ Ya muhammed “. However imam Ali commanded them to chant the holy prophet’s own slogan which was “Ya mansoore ummah”.(14)
Following the breaking the right wing and the left one ,the battle around the camel reached to it’s climax and a lot of people gathered around the camel ,the camel was showered with arrows however it wasn’t hurt because it was covered tightly with felt.Yajir who was one of the companions of imam Ali was appointed to kill the camel ,therefore in a right time he dealt a blow on camel’s upper leg so the camel fell down,it was right at this point that all the troops were dispersed and everyone ran to a corner.Ali shouted addressing people there to cut the ropes off the camel-litter and removed it away from camel,so Ali’s troops raised the camel-litter in which Aisha was sitting on their hands to carry it away from the front-line.
The bloody Jamal battle ended with seditionist suffering a humulating defeat.Ali ordered Muhammed bin Abibakir (Aisha’s brother) to go to his sister in order to put up a tent for her mollifying her and to make sure she is hale and hearty.Muhammed bin Abibakir went to his sister, having his head inside the camel-litter she inquired who is this?Muhammed replied:it’s the closest person to you, yet the most hostile among your relatives.
Aisha said: are you the son of Khathamieh(the name of the tribe of the mother of muhammed Abibakir)?muhammed replied:yes,I am.Aisha said:may my mother and father be sacrificed for you,thank God you got away unhurt from the war.Muhammed replied:Ali the commander of the faithful asks about you and is worried ,God forbid you might have been injured.Aisha replies:an arrow hit me however to no effect.
Then after that Ali went to Aisha saying:O,Humaira did the prophet order you to wage this war against me?did the prophet,your husband, order you not to leave the house?those who brought you here wronged the holy prophet by bringing you to the front-line,while you were the wife of the prophet,yet put their own wives at home.you incited people to rebel aganist me and made them hate me,as a result they rebelled against me.
Aisha was silent while the imam was talking to her,however she only said:now that you have the upper hand ,and gained advantages and power,forgiveness is better.
Following the war,Ali told his troops to respect the failed army for the sake of the monotheistic phrase which they chant.
Respectful Return of Aisha to Medina:
Ali dispatched his causin Abdullah bin Abbas to Aisha to obtain her consent to return to her city Medina however she ignored it.for the second time Ali went to her place in person ,there he faced some women who were mourning for their killed ones,among them was Safiah the daughter of Harith Thaghafi ,who had a grudge against Ali .Therefore the imam told her : I don’t blame you for your enmity because I killed your grandfather in the battle of Badr and your uncle in the battle of Ohud and now I killed your husband in this very battle.If I wanted to kill all your loved ones, I would have killed all those who have gathered in this room.(the imam points out to Abdullah bin Zubair as well as Marwan and others who had been hiding there in that house).
Following the day,Ali sent his son Hasan to Aisha with a message which said:I swear to God who split the grain and created man,if you just don’t head for Medina right now ,you will see what I will do.Hearing this Aisha raised at once got ready to leave.(15)
The author of Aghdul Farid says:when Aish declared he consent to go back to Medina Ali provided the means for to travel and sent her back to Medina with forty or seventy women accompanying her.
Tabari says:Ali gave her twelve thousand Dirhams to her and sent her back to Medina with some men and women accompanying her.
Masoodi belives Abdurrahman bin Abibakir was appointed by Ali to get his sister to Medina along with thirty women from the tribe of Abd Qays as well as Hamdan.Yaqubi and Ibn Atham have written this report in their history books.(16)
Although the most important and inevitable thing for us is how Ali dealt with Aisha and made her return to Medina in a respectable manner.The imam orders Ummol Mumenin Aisha to head for Medina along with some women while they all had covered their faces,although she wasn’t happy about it.when they got to Medina ,though,uncovering their faces ,Aisha learnt that they all were women,which caused her to know that Ali had respected her more than she imagined.
Aisha after the battle of jamal:
Aisha being tactful and punctilious ,was able to talk a kind and forgiving person into pardoning her fault by saying: now that you have the upper hand and gained advantages and power over us ,have a heart and forgive me.
This kind of remarks suggests how strong she was in giving lectures.Meanwhile it has been narrated Aisha as saying: the battle of Jamal has stuck like a bone that in my throat.
Ibn Athir says:one day the name of the battle of Jamal was brought up in Aisha’a presence,she asked them:Do people still remember that battle?They replied back :yes.then she said:I wish I had never joined that battle .Historians quote a man whose name was Masroh as saying:whenever she recited the verse :“and stay in your houses” she wept so much that her scarf would get wet.
Aisha’s dealing with Amro Aa’s:
Once Amro Aa’s told Aisha:how much I desired that you had been killed on the day of Jamal.she asked why?He replied:you would have been dead and gone to heaven so we could have used your murder as the biggest excuse against Ali.(17)
This saying of Amro Aa’s vividly shows that what motives Bani Umayyah had in their minds and for what purpose the war was planned as well as to what extent the individuals who consisted the opposition party and the one’s who waged the war ,were unanimous in their objectives?
Ibn Kathir narrates another story in his book saying: one day someone talked about Zolthadiah being killed by Ali,she requested the people who witnessed the incident to prepare a testimony in order to take it to her.the narrator says:when I took the testimony to Aisha ,when she saw it ,she said: may God curse Amro Aa’s ,he claimed he had killed Zulthadia in Egypt.(18)
Following this story Ibn Kathir says:at that moment she cried very much ,calming down she said:may God bless Ali ,he never separated from truth and what happened between me and him in fact was like something that happens within a family between women and the family of their husbands.
However ,a question arises here as to why Amro Aa’s tells such a lie ?The answer is that the scholars and historians have quoted traditions regarding the reprimand and praise for the murderes of Zolthadiah because Amro Aa’s wanted to attribute the holy prophet’s praise to himself.
Aisha’s personality:
According to Zahabai ,she was an intelligent ,generous ,eloquent,and versed in polotics kind of lady.she had a sharp memory and knew many poems by heart.By the way she knew medical sciences of her time.
As for the way she used to dress,the author of Tabaqat quotes Qasem , Aisha’s nephew as saying:she used to wear yellow clothes as well as gold rings.Orwah ,Aisha’s niece says: she had a silk outer garment which she used to wear it from time to time which later granted to Abdullah bin Zubair.
Qasem the son of Muhammed Abibakir says:Aisha used to wear yellow Ihram dress along with gold and jewelleries.(19)
Abdurrahman quotes his mother as saying: I saw Aisha wearing Ihram dress which was as red as fire(20). As far as this sort of narrations is concerned there are many reports in the history as to Aisha’s way of life.
As to her generosity Umm Zarrah(who used to visit her frequently)says: a small fortune in two big sacks was delivered to Aisha.she said: I think the amount of the money is eighty thousand or one hundred thousand dirhams.then she asked for a tray and started to donate the money while sha was fasting.At night time nothing was left for her even a dirham.Then she told maid to fetch her some bread and olive oil for breaking her fast.
Umm Zarrah says: I told her you could have bought some meat out of that money which you donated to people to break our fast.Aisha replid:if you had reminded me of it,I would have done so.(21)
In another narration Urwah the son of Zubair says: once I saw Aisha was donating seventy thousand Dirhams to people while wearing patched dress,Abdullah the son of Zubair could not bear all her donations, finally causing him to say, I declare her as Hashir(some one who is not in possession of his/her property),so that she can not possess her property.of course hearing all this, Aisha said:I vow not to talk to him until my death.
He Later used the help of some people to fecilitate peace with his aunt however she would not withdraw from her words saying:I swear to God ,I would never admit to such sin(that is to stop giving away donations as well as to stop collecting wealth).This separatin lasted for two years until he went to Aisha with two other individuals in an unkown manner ,asking her for the sake of family relationship to start talking with him again,after much insistence she did so.(22)
Aisha’s Demise:
The authentic book of Belaqat says: when dying Aisha was extremely upset,she was told:you are the mother of all belivers, why are you so upset?she replied: the battle of Jamal has stuck like a bone in by throat.(23)
Zahabi says: when dying ,she said with regret: when I die ,burry me beside the other wives of the holy prophet.
Meanwhile Zahabi says: she passed on in the year 58 AH ,17 Ramadan,following saying her Vatr prayers.She had a will to burry her the same night.Muhajerin and Ansar as well as a big number of people gathered around.
They burnt palm trees to to lighten up the way for people.The narrator says: I saw the women of Medina at that night inside the Baqi graveyard who had gathered around ,like the days of Eid.
Abu Hurayrah who was the ruler of Medina on behalf of Marwan lead the dead prayers on the mother of all believers and buried her beside the other wives of the holy prohet.She was 63 and something when she passed on.
Juridical and narrative character of Aisha:
More than 200000 narrations have been said in two books of the most important books of the sunnies that is Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim,even as Ibn Sa’ad puts it ,she used issue fatwas and make comment as to the jurisprudence and biography (sire) of the holy prophet.Allamah Askari says:she even used to point out Sahaba’s mistakes to them and correct them.
Ibn Sa’ad in his book Tabaqat says: at the time of the reign of Abubakir and Uthman as well as Omar until the end of her life Aisha was the only lady who used to give fatwas.(25)
The hadiths of Aisha deals with matters of acts of worship and transactions as well as social issues.some other quoted Ahadith of her, deals with family issues and her sustenance situation and her interactions with the other wives of the holy prophet and the household of the holy prophet including his daughter Zahra and the descendants of the holy prophet as well as Ali.
Narratives from Aisha:
A-As to Khadijah,Fatimah and Ali (pbut):
1-The holy prophet used to always remember Khadijah and before leaving home he used to talk about her and praise her.once the prophet was talking about Khadijah as usual, jolousy overtook me causing me to say: is not it that she was an old woman and God gave you a better one.Hearing this the prophet became angry and said:I swear to God no.I never had a wife better than her and I had no better replacement for her.She once believed in me that people disbelieved me,she accepted my words and believed me,once people denied me and my words.She defended me with all her assets once others left me alone and did not support me.she gave me a child by God’s grace while I have no children except her.At this point Aisha said: I promised I would never speak ill of Khadijah from now on.
2- I told the holy prophet that when Fatimah came ,you kissed her in a way that you put all your tongue into her mouth as if you want to make her taste honey?he replied yes Aisha,when I was ascended to the heaven Gabriel took me to paradise,then he gave me an apple ,I ate it ,therefore it turned into sperm in my loin,once I descended I went to Khadijah,as a result Fatimah was born.She is an angel among people ,when I desire heaven I kiss her.(26)
3- The prophet left the house at noon while he was wearing a woven cloack of black hair.Then Hasan bin Ali,then Hussain,then Fatimah,they all came one after another, and he entered them under his cloack,then Ali came and entered him too,then the holy prophet said:”surely God wants to purify you ,a thorough purification”.(27)
4- Aisha was asked as to Ali: She replied: what can I say about him,he was the most popular person in the sight of the holy prophet.I saw the holy prophet ,threw his cloack on Ali,Fatimah,Al Hassan and Al Hussain and said: these people are my Ahlul Bayt,O lord, protect them from every evil and cleanse them from every sin,then he said to Aisha: so why did you rebel against him?she replied: now I regret it however I think that was my fate.(28)
5- Ubaidullah bin Mousa was quoted from Zakarya from Abi Faras from Masrooq ,Aisha as saying: I swear to God that there is no God but Him.Fatimah’s walking is no different than the holy prophet’s.when the holy prophet saw him , he said twice : welcome daughter,then he said: will you not be happy to be the the lady of all believing women or the lady of all women of Ummah in the Day of Resurrection.
6- Aisha told Fatimah:Does not this make you glad that I heard myself from the holy prophet saying that the lady of all women of paradise are four:Mary the daughter of Emran,Fatimah the daughter of Muhammed and Khadijah the daughter of Khowailad and last but not least Asiah the daughter of Mozahem, pharo’s wife.
7- It is quoted Aisha as saying:prophet used to kiss Fatimah by the time he returned from a trip saying:I smell the scent of paradise from Fatimah.
8- It is quoted Aisha as saying:the holy prophet told Fatimah:Gabriel informed me that no women will be inflicted with suffering as much as you,so you should be more patient and more tolerant than them.(29)
9- Aisha said:I saw no one more honest and truthful than her father.(30)
10- It is quoted Aisha as saying: I saw no one to be very similar to the holy prophet in terms of Hadith and kalam except Fatimah.
If Fatimah entered a place the holy prophet would stand up in her honor and kiss her and welcome her,as Fatimah would do the same to the holy prophet.
11- Aisha said:we were to the prophet when he was very ill and we were closely monitoring him ,when Fatimah came in she was walking in a way that was no different than the prophet’s,seeing her the holy prophet said:welcome daughter and sit her on his side,then revealed a secret to her ,causing her to break into tears .I said to Fatimah:the holy prophet told the secret only to you,yet you are crying?Then he told her another one causing her to laugh,Aysha says I said to Fatimah I ask you for the rights I have on you tell me what did the holy prophet told you?Fatimah replied:I will tell you now,I was crying because the holy prophet told me that Gabriel used to reveal the holy Qur’an once in a year however he did it twice this year which is a sign that the death of the holy prophet is near
So I cried.Then he said:be patient and and practice piety ,will you not be happy to be the lady of all women of my Ummah through practicing patience? So I laughed.
12- Aisha says:when Fatimah entered ,her way of walking was no different than the prophet’s,the holy prophet welcomed him then told her something which caused her to laugh first then causing her to cry.when she was inquired as to the reason of such reaction she said:I started crying because of the death of the apostle of Allah and laughed because I was the fierst person to join my father.(31)
13- Aisha is quoted as the holy prophet saying: Fatimah is my flesh and blood,whoever annoys her or causes problems for her in fact he/she has hurt me.(32).
14- Aisha says:I heard the holy prophet saying a harbinger would call out in the hereafter asking all people and jinnies to take their heads down until Fatimah the daughter of Muhammed crosses The Bridge.(33)
15- Aisha says:Fatimah and Ali were the most loved woman and man in the sight of the prophet.
16- Aisha says:the apostle of Allah said the truth is with Ali and Ali is with the truth and they would not get separated until they join me by the pond.(34)
17- Aisha says:I saw that Abubakir kept watching Ali’s face ,I said to him why is it that you keep watching Ali’s face?he said,dear, I heard the apostle of Allah saying that looking at the face of Ali is an act of worship.(35)
18- Hafiz bin Hajar Asqalani(in Al-esabah,v8,p183) is quoted as Leila Qaffari saying:I used to accompany the prophet in many battles to treat the injured ones,when Ali headed for Basra I accompanied him too,then I went to Aisha ,asking her:have you heard any words as to the virtues of Ali?she replied:yes.one day he entered the prophet’s place and I was sitting next to the prophet,he came and sat between the prophet and me,I told him:Did you not find a bigger place than this to sit? The prophet said:leave my brother to me,indeed he is the first person who believed in me as well as the first one who would meet me in the hereafter.
19- Aisha says:I was sitting with the prophet when Ali entered.then His Holliness said:this man is the master of the Arabs. I asked him:are you not the master of the Arabs?he replied:I am the master of the children of Adam and he is the master of the Arabs.(36)
20- The book Fazael al samani quotes Aisha as saying: whenever Fatimah visited the holy prophet,he used to stand up and kiss her head and sit her on his side,and whenever her father visited her, she used to welcome him,kissing each other and sitting together.
21- Aisha says: the prophet truly said that my best brother is Ali and my best uncle is Hamzah.(37)
22- Aisha also says:The holy prophet said: there are only three people who outpaced in faith,the one who outpaced in faith to believe in Moses was Yosha bin Noon,the one who outpaced in faith to believe in jesus was Yas and in Muhammed the holy prophet of islam was Ali bin Abitalib.(38)
23- Aisha says:once in my presence Fatimah said to the prophet:may my soul be ransomed for you,what do you think of me?He replied :you are the best lady of all time.She asked again,what do you think of my causin Ali?He replied: none of God’s creatures can be compared with him.(39)
24- Aisha says :Ali bin Abitalib is the most knowledgeable of you concerning the Sunnah.(40)
25- Aisha says:The holy prophet used to kiss Fatimah a lot.(41)
26- Aish says: God did not create a man to be more lovely than Ali bin Abitalib to the holy prophet.(42)
27- Aisha said: once Ali bin Abitalib entered the holy prophet’s place,then the prophet said:This man is the master and icon of all muslims. I said:Are you not the master and icon of all muslims?He replied: I am the seal of the prophets and the apostle of the lord of the universe.(43)
B: As to various issues:
1- I heard the prophet of God saying: if someone visits the grave of his/her parents or one of them on Fridays and reads chapter Yasin for them, for every letter he/she reads ,God will pardon him/her.(Al-tabarani,Ibn Udday,Al-deylami)
2- A man came to the holy prophet along with a an old man,seeing them He asked him who is this man?he said this is my father,then the holy prophet said:so do not walk ahead of him and do not sit down ahead of him,do not call him by name and do not do anything that will cause people to curse him.
3-Family ties and being a good-tempered person as well as a good neighbor will cause the lands to flourish and lives to prolonge.(Musnad Ahmad and Beyhaqi)
4- I asked the holy prophet:who has the greatest right on women?he replied:her husband.Then I asked:who has the greatest right on men?he replied:his mother.(Al-hakim)
5- The holy prophet said:O,Aisha ,if you commit a sin then ask God’s forgiveness,because repentence from sins is like regret and forgiveness.(Ahmad,Muslim,Bukhri)
6- The holy prophet said: once or twice breastfeeding does not turn him/her into having a blood kinship whatsoever.(Ibn Majah,Muslim,Abu Davoud,Nesayi,Ahmad,Aldar Qatni)
7- I aske the holy prophet what is the extent of neighborhood?he relplied: forty homes.(Al-beihaqi)
8- The holy prophet said:someone who has filled his belly but his neighbor is hungry,is not a believer.(Al-munzari)
9- I heard the holy prophet saying:do not feed the pour needy person out of what you do not eat.(musna Hanbal)
10- The holy prophet said: if someone inhabites a land ,he deserves it more than others and it belongs to no one except him.(Bukhari,Nesae,Ahmad)
11-The holy prophet said:marriage is my tradition and Sunnah,if one does not act on my Sunnah and tradition,he in fact is not my follower.Do get married because I will outnumber other nations through you.If you have enough money then get married and if you do not have enough money,then fast,because fasting is like a shield which protects you. (Ibn Majah,Daromi)
12- The holy prophet said ; God looks at His people with favor in the middle of the month of Sha’ban,and forgives the ones who seek forgiveness,however He keeps spiteful people away from His forgiveness as they were.(Beyhaqi)
13- Aish was told that a certain woman wears men’s footwear.she said:The holy prophet has cursed women who resemble themselves to men.(Abu Davoud)
14- The holy prophet said:The best women of my nation are the ones who are the most beautiful ones and the ones who have less marriage portion.(Ibn Udday)
15- The holy prophet said: There are three things that brighten the eyes,looking at the grass,flowing water as well as handsome faces .(Abu Naeim)
16- The holy prophet said: Exercise chastity so that your women be chaste and do good to your fathers so that your children treat you well and if a person seeks pardon from his fellow muslim brother for what he has done to him,yet he does not pardon him,he can not come to me by the pond in the paradise.(Al-tabarani)
17- The holy prophet said:The most popular things in the sight of God are the ones that are the most consistent ones ,even if they are little.
18- The holy prophet said that God the Almighty says: verily I have promised my servants that if they say their prayers at the correct time ,I will not punish him/her ,and I will admit him/her to paradise.(Al-hakim)
19- The prophet said:verily God has made five- time daily prayers incumbent on his servants.(Al-batarani)
20- Sa’ad bin Hisham quots Aisha as saying:Two units of dawn prayer is better than the world and whatever exists in it.(Muslim,Tarmazi,Nesaei)
Notes:
1- Tabaqat ,Ibn Sa’ad (v8/p375)
2- Tabaqat,Ibn Sa’ad (v8/p67),Ijabah(p71 and 75), kanz(v7,p116),Tabari(4/161
3- Fazaelol Ashab Annabi by Bukhari as well as Tabaqat by Ibn Sa’ad
4- Ansabol Ashraf by Belazari(v5/p29 and 30)
5- Aqanij(v4/p181)
6- Asnabol Ashraf(v5/p78),Tabari(v5/p154),Ibn Athir(v3/p64)
7- Tabari(v5/p143),Ibn ATHIR(v3/p76),Ibn Athim(p159),Al-riadol Nazrah(v2/p131-132)
8- Yaqubi,chapter of swearing allegiance to Ali(p126)
9- 9- Mustadrak(3/371),Kanzol Amal(6/85)hadith no 1313
10- Kanzol Amal(6/85)hadith no 1313,Tabari (5/205),Kamel by Ibn Athir (2/104)
11- Tabari(5/205),Ibn Abelhadid in the book an explanation to Nahjol-balaqah(2/431)
12- Tabari(5/199,204),Aqani(1/126)-Abo mukhnaf quoting from Ibn Abelhadid in an explanation to Nahjol-balaqa(1/78)-the history book of Atham –Morojozzhab Tahzibbotarrikh by Ibn Asaker(364)-Mustadrak(3/366,367)-Alnabla zahabi(1/38,39)Asabah(1/527)
13- Tabari(5/204),Yaqubi(2/2/158),history of Ibn Asaker(7/84,87),Al-esabah(2/222),Aqdol farid(4/321)
14- Explanation of Nahjol-balaqah by Ibn Abel-hadid(1/87)
15- The explanation of the incident and Aisha’s Reply in the translation of Fotooh by Ibn Atham.(2/239,240)
16- Agdol-farid(4/328,329),the history by Atham(182),the history of Yaqobi(2/213),Morojozzahab(5/197)
17- Al-mustadrak(4/13),Masirol –al’am(2/141),Ibn kathir(8/303)
18- Ibn kathir(8/303)
19- Aisha’s biography in the book of Tabaqat and Sair Al’am Al-naba.
20- Tabatol-kobra:Aisha’s biography
21- Seirol-al’am All-naba(2/131)
22- Heliatol-olia(2/47-49)
23- Sahih Bukhari(3/11) ,Tabaqat(8/51)
24- Sairol-al’am Al naba (2/136)
25- Tabaqat by Ibn Sa’ad (8/375)
26- Khatib baqdadi
27- Sahih Neisahaburi(4/1883)
28- Al Mahasaen wal Masavi by sheikh Ibrahim bin Muhammad Beihaqi,printed in Beirut(p 338)
29- Fat’hol –bar by Ibn Hajar Asqalani,part 9 page 201.
30- Sanad Abu-ali Al-Muselipart 8 page 103,printed in Beirut.
31- Sahih Bukhari part 4 ,page 47,printed in Egypt.
32- Yanabiol-mawaddah by Soleiman bin Ibrahim Al-qondozi hanafi,died in the year 1294,page 260,printed in Istanbul.
33- History of Hafiz Ahmad bin Ali Khatibe Baqdadi,v8,p141,printed in Beirut.
34- Abubakir’s Narrative,Ahmad bin Mousa bin Marduyah with refrence to Muhammad abi-bakir
35- Hafiz Maqazeli in the book Manqeb page 210 quoted by Abdorrazaq by Moammar by Zohri by Orwah.
36- History of Ibn Asakir(2/261)
37- Sawaeq by Ibn Hajar page 124.
38- Ibn Hajar in Sawaeq quoted by Deilami.(and Al-tabarani and Ibn-marduyah by Ibn Abbas)
39- The book(Al0arbaeen p43)by Hafiz ,uhammad bin abi Al-fawares.
40- Ibn Asaker in the translation of the book)Al Imam Ali v3,p48.
41- Allamah Hafiz Ala-eddin in the book Kanzol Amal v7,p116,hadith no 18335.
42- HafizAbu Abdullah Muhammad bin Yusof Konji Shafeei in the book kefayatol-taleb,page 324.
43- Ibn asakir in the translation of the book Imam Ali in the section of the history of Damescus,v2,p263,with regard to a document by Jafar bin Abi Muqairah by Ibn Abzi.
