Umm Kulthum bt. al-Imam Ali (a): Difference between revisions

Historians have different opinions about Umm Kulthum's date of birth. However, both [[Shi'a]] and [[Sunni|Sunnites]] agree that [['Ali (a)]] and [[Fatima (a)]] had a daughter called Umm Kulthum.

It is recorded in the history that she was born in 6 AH/627. Some historians believe that she was born at the time of the [[Prophet (s)]] or before he (s) passed away. Another disagreement between Shi'a and Sunnites is that Shi'a scholars believe that she was younger than [[Lady Zaynab|Zaynab (a)]] while Sunnites believe that she was the third child of 'Ali b. Abi Talib (a) and older than Zaynab (a).

[[al-Shaykh al-Mufid]] has mentioned the names of Imam Ali's (a) children and introduced her as Zaynab Sughra whose kunya was Umm Kulthum. This Kunya was given to her by the Prophet (s) because of her similarity to her aunt, [[Umm Kulthum bt. Muhammad b. 'Abd Allah (s)|Umm Kulthum]] (the Prophet's (s) daughter). In many [[Shi'a]] and [[Sunnite]] sources, she is called Umm Kulthum Kubra.

He continues that if two last ones be the same, so there were three Umm Kulthum, otherwise there were four. In some other sources, the name of Umm Kulthum, the daughter of 'Ali (a) and Fatima (a) is mentioned as "Ruqayyah Kubra" and the name of Umm Kulthum Sughra is mentioned as "Nafisa".

{{Main|Marriage of Umm Kulthum to 'Umar b. Khattab}}

Some [[Maqtal books]] (narrative accounts of the [[Event of Karbala]]) have reported the attendance of Umm Kulthum in the Event of Karbala. In these books, she has been frequently mentioned beside [[Lady Zaynab (a)|Zaynab (a)]] and her sufferings have been quoted. [[Muhammad Baqi Majlisi|Majlisi]] says, "After Imam's martyrdom, when the tents were burned, the earrings of Umm Kulthum, [[Imam al-Husayn (a)|Husayn]]'s (a) sister, were taken out forcibly". She was a narrator of the Event of [['Ashura]] and preached a sermon in the meeting held by [['Ubayd Allah b. Ziyad|Ibn Ziyad]] in [[Kufa]].  In his book, Ibn Tayfur has quoted a sermon from Umm Kulthum which was delivered in Kufa when the Ahl al-Bayt of the Prophet (s) were held captive. Also 'Allama Majlisi has quoted poems and speeches of Umm Kulthum in the meeting held by Ibn Ziyad.

Most of hadiths narrated by Umm Kulthum are about the sufferings of the [[Ahl al-Bayt (a)]] of the [[Prophet (s)]].

[[Muhammad Baqi Majlisi|"Allama Majlisi]] writes:

:::Umm Kulthum said, "At the night of [[19 Ramadan]], I prepared two loafs of barley bread, some milk, and some salt for my father to break the fasting. After saying prayers, he (a) attended the food spread. He (a) took one look at his food and cried loudly. He (a) then said, "… O my dear daughter! If you do not take one of these two foods, swear by God, I will eat nothing …." And he (a) ate a loaf of bread and some salt"<ref>Majlisi, Vol.42, PP.276-8</ref>.

:::[['Ali (a)]] stayed awake all the night before the day he (a) was martyred. Umm Kulthum asked him the reason. He (a) said, "I will be killed in the morning". Umm Kulthum prevented him from going to [[Masjid]]. But Imam (a) said, "Death is inevitable" and left home<ref>al-Mufid, Vol.1, P.16</ref>.

[['Abd al-Karim b. Ahmad b. Musa b. Ja'far b. Tawus|Ibn Tawus]] has quoted a hadith from [[al-Shaykh al-Saduq]] in which Umm Kultum talks about Imam Ali's (a) advice to his children and his funeral and burial ceremony. In one part of this hadith we read:

:::… Umm Kulthum said, "At the burial ceremony, the grave was split. I do not know whether my lord (father) was buried in the ground or he (a) ascended to the sky. Suddenly, I heard a voice condoling with us and saying, "May God helps you in mourning for the vicegerent and proof of God upon His creation"<ref>Ibn Tawus, PP.63-4</ref>.

# When the [[Ahl al-Bayt]] were held captive and the people of [[Kufa]] brought food for children, Umm Kulthum cried out, "O people of Kufa! It is forbidden to give alms to the Ahl al-Bayt of the Prophet (s)"<ref>Majlisi, Vol.45, P.114</ref>.

# Some scholars believe that they passed away about 50 AH/670 at the time of [[Mu'awiya]] and government of [[Sa'id b. 'As]].

# Some others believe that they passed away at the time of [['Abd al-Malik b. Marwan]] (73-86 AH)(692-705).

# [[Ibn 'Abd al-Birr]] believes that she passed away at the time of [[Imam Hasan (a)]].

# Ibn Tayfur believes that she passed away after 61 AH and the [[Event of Karbala]].

:::"The tomb which is in Rawiya (Damascus) is not Umm Kulthum's, the daughter of Lady Fatima (a) … she passed away in Medina and was buried in Baqi' graveyard"<ref>Ibn 'Asakir, Vol.2, P.309</ref>.

Also some others believe that this tomb belongs to Zaynab (a), the daughter of 'Ali (a) and Fatima (a), whose kunya was Umm Kulthum<ref>Al-Bitar, Vol.2, P.50</ref>.

* Ibn 'Asakir, 'Ali b. Hasan, ''Tarikh madina damishgh, Beirut, Dar al-Fikr, 1415 AH/1994;

* [[Ibn Battuta]], Muhammad b. 'Abd Allah, ''Tuhfat al-nuzzar fi ghara'ib al-amsar wa 'aja'ib al-a'sar'', Beirut, Mu'assisa al-Risala, 1405 AH/1984;

* [[Muhammad Baqir Majlisi|Majlisi]], Muhammad Baqir, ''[[Bihar al-anwar]]'', Beirut, mu'assisa al-wafa', 1403 AH/1982;

* [[Mamaqani]], 'Abd Allah b. Muhammad, ''Tanqih al-maqal fi 'ilm al-rijal'', Najaf, 1352 AH/1933;

* [[Al-Shaykh al-Mufid|Al-Mufid]], Muhammad b. Muhammad b. Nu'man, ''[[Al-Irshad fi ma'rifat hujaj Allah 'ala al-'ibad]]'', Beirut, dar al-mufid, 1414 AH/1993;

* [[Sayyid b. Tawus]], 'Ali b. Musa, ''[[Al-Luhuf 'ala qatlay al-tufuf]]'', Tehran, Nashr Jahan, 1348 sh/1969;