In the darkness of the jet-black night,
when eyes were asleep and voices were
silent, a Heavenly procession left Ali's
house while carrying the Messenger of
ALLAH's daughter to her final abode.
This was on the night of the third of
Jamadi Al-Thani (the second), 11 A.H.
The heartbreaking procession moved
towards an unknown location followed by
a small number of devoted ones...
They were Ali, Hassan, Hussain, Zainab
and Um Kulthum... Abu Dhar, Ammar,
Miqdad, and Salman were following them.
Where are the thousands who inhabited
Medina?! One asks, and the answer
came: Fatima (A.S.) requested that they
may not be present at her funeral!!!
The family and their friends hurry to bury
Fatima... then they rush back to their own
homes so that no one would know where
Fatima was buried!
In such a matter, the first start from
Ahlul-Bayt set after the sun (the Prophet)
and left everyone with the only light of
Imamate!!
Ali said: "O Prophet of ALLAH, peace be
upon you from me and from your daughter
who has come to you and who has
hastened to meet you. O Prophet of
ALLAH (P.B.U.H.)! My patience about
your chosen (daughter) has been
exhauted and my power of endurance has
weakened, except that I have ground for
consolation in having endured the great
hardship and heart-rending event of your
seperation. I laid you down in your grave
while your last breath had passed (when
your head) between my neck and chest.
Now the trust has been returned and what
had been given has been taken back. My
grief knows no bounds, and my nights will
remain sleepless till ALLAH chooses for
me the house in which you are now
residing. Certainly your daughter would
apprise you of the joining together of your
Ummah (people) for oppressing her. You
ask her in detail and get all the news
about the position. This happened when a
long time had not elapsed and your
remembrance had not disappeared. My
salam be on you both, the salam of a grief
stricken not of a disgusted or a hateful
person; for if I go away, it is not because I
am weary (of you); and if I stay, it is not
due to lack of belief in what ALLAH has
promised the endurers."
'Verily  we are ALLAH's and verily unto
Him shall we return.' (Quran 2:56)
At sunrise people gathered to participate
in Fatima's funeral, but they were informed
that the darling of ALLAH's Messenger
(P.B.U.H.) had been secretly buried
during the night.
Meanwhile, Ali (A.S.) made the shape of
four fresh graves in Baqi' so as to conceal
the location where Fatima was buried.
When the people entered the graveyard,
they were confused as to which spot was
actually Hazrat Fatima Zahra's grave; the
people turned towards each other and
with feeling of guilt said:
"O Prophet (P.B.U.H.) has not left behind
but one daughter, yet she has died and
was buried without our participation in the
funeral or the prayer rituals. We do not
even realize the place where she has
been buried!"
Noticing that a revolt might be ignited
because of the emotional atmosphere that
event created, the governing party
announced:
"Select a group of Muslim women and
ask them to dig these graves so that we
may find Fatima and perform prayers on
her."
Yes! They attempted to execute the plan,
violating Fatima's will and causing Ali's
attempts to hide the grave to lay veinly.
Have they forgotten Ali's sharp sword and
his well-known courage!! Did they really
think that Ali would remain indifferent to
their outrageous actions up to the point of
letting them dig Fatima's grave?!
Imam Ali (A.S.) did not fight back after the
Prophet's (P.B.U.H.) death because he
considered the Muslim;s unity and overall
interests. Yet, this did not mean that he
would ignore their villainous crimes
against Fatima even after her death. In
other words, Ali was asked by the Prophet
to have patienc, but only to a certain
extent; when Ali recieved the news of the
about to be executed plot, he put on his
fighting gear and rushed towards Baqi'. A
man from among the people called out:
"This is Ali Ibn Talib leveling his sword
and saying:
'If anyone moves even a more stone from
these graves, I shall strike even the "back
of the last follower of the unjust."'"
People who realized Ali's seriousness,
took his threats with complete belief that
he would do just as he said if anyone
were to appose him. Yet, a man from the
governing ones addressed Ali (A.S.) by
saying:
"What is the matter, Abu Al-Hassan?! By
ALLAH we shall dig her grave out and
perform prayers on her."
Ali then grabbed the man by his clothes,
shook him and threw him to the ground
and said:
"Son of the Sawada! I have abandoned
my right to prevent people from forsaking
their faith, but as regards Fatima's grave,
by Him in whose hand is my soul, if you
and your followers attempt to do anything
to it, I will irrigate the ground with your
blood!!"
At this, Abu Bakr said:
"Abu  Al-Hassan, I ask you by the right of
ALLAH's Messenger, and by Him Who is
above the Throne: leave him alone and
we will not do anything which you would
not approve of..." Thus, until this day, the
location of Fatima Zahra's grave remains a
secret.