Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Part Four: ‘A’ishah and Mu‘awiyah

The factors of friendship between

‘A’ishah and the Umayyads

O ‘A’ishah! To combat with the Prophet’s household, one day you ride a mule and the next day a camel!

We have already seen to what extent Mu‘awiyah went in his hostility to Imam ‘Ali, so that during the rule of the Imam be fought him in every possible way. After the Imam was martyred in the mosque of Kufah, Mu‘awiyah’s combat took the form of cold war and he never ceased in his propagation against the Imam and his abuse and curse to him. We saw also that ‘A’ishah, fought the Imam with her utmost ability during her life, and when he was killed by Ibn Muljam and departed this world, on being informed of his death, she was so overjoyed that she prostrated herself in thankfulness to God,(239) and began singing the following lines:

“ ‘Ali has died and there is no return for him.

With his death lam as overjoyed as the family

Of a dear traveler returning from his journey!

‘Ali’s death illuminated my eyes!”

‘A’ishah’s flame of enmity with the Alawite house was so strong, that she even veiled herself from his two sons who were her husband’s grandsons, and abstained from meeting them.(240) When we read what al-Ya‘qubi and Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani have narrated about the events of those days, we will see that her intense hostility continued so long that it could be regarded as a reason for the attachment between her and the Umayyads in general, and with Mu‘awiyah in particular.

al-Ya‘qubi writes: Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba had reached the last painful moments of his life, and wished to announce his will to his dear brother Imam al-Husayn. He said:“When I die, bury me by the side of my exalted grandfather the holy Prophet; for, no one deserves more than me to be buried by his side, unless they prevent this burial and do not let my last wish to be fulfilled. If this happens, then of course do your best in preventing even the smallest bloodshed.”

When the Imam departed this mortal life and reached eternity, preparations were made for his burial. His body was carried by his relatives towards the tomb of the holy Prophet.

According to Maqatil at-Talibiyin, ‘A’ishah, as a so-called kind mother of all believers, rode a mule in the company of the Umayyads, having the guilt of rousing them on her neck, and came in front of the procession and prevented them from proceeding to the Prophet’s tomb. The following lines have been composed for her unworthy act on that occasion:

“One day your ride a mule,

And the next day a camel!” (241)

al-Ya‘qubi writes: Marwan ibn al-Hakam and Sa‘id ibn al-‘As rode on and prevented the burial of the Prophet’s grandson by his tomb. ‘A’ishah, too, riding a mule, shouted in front of the mourners:“This is my house, and I allow no one to be buried here!”

al-Qasim, grandson of Abu Baker, came forward and said:“O aunt! We have not yet washed off our heads the blood of the day of the battle of al-Jamal. Do you intend that in future they call this day the day of mule?”

The Alawite supporters did not, naturally, remain passive. A number gathered round Imam al-Husayn and said:“Allow us to deal with those men. By God! They are no more than a bite for us!”

The Imam said:“My brother has willed that at his burial not even one drop of blood be shed.”

Then the body of Imam al-Hasan was taken to the al-Baqi‘ cemetery and buried by the side of his grandmother, Fatimah, daughter of Asad and mother of Imam ‘Ali.(242)

These activities of ‘A’ishah, which showed her old-standing rancor and hostility towards the Prophet’s household, had created a close and firm friendship between ‘A’ishah and Umayyads, especially with Mu‘awiyah, for which reason they showed a great respect to her and offered her many gifts.

Gifts of Mu‘awiyah

Once Mu‘awiyah sent ‘A’ishah one hundred thousand drachmas.

Historians

When a critical scholar searches reliable historical texts, he finds strange signs of ‘A’ishah’s attachment to the government of the Umayyads. These two, despite their past differences and their combats in the assassination of ‘Uthman, now found it expedient to sit alongside each other and form a single front.

The financial considerations of the Umayyad government towards ‘A’ishah are a clear evidence of the said attachment. Again and again many gifts and sums of money were sent for her by Mu‘awiyah and other Umayyad rulers. Here we cite some examples of this treatment, which we have collected from reliable historical texts.

Abu Nu‘aym al-Isfahani, well-known writer of Hilyat al-awliya’, quoting ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Qasim, says that once Mu‘awiyah sent some gifts for ‘A’ishah which included money, clothes and precious objects.(243)

He also quotes ‘Urwah ibn az-Zubayr, saying that on another occasion Mu‘awiyah sent ‘A’ishah one hundred thousand drachmas.(244)

Ibn Kathir, the famous historian of the 8th century, quotes ‘Ata’, saying that Mu‘awiyah sent a valuable necklace for ‘A’ishah in Mecca, the price of which was about one hundred thousand drachmas, and she accepted it.(245)

The reliable book of Tabaqat al-kubra reports that Munkadir ibn ‘Abd Allah visited ‘A’ishah, and after some preliminary talks, she asked him:“Have you an offspring?” He said:“No!” ‘A’ishah said:“If I had ten thousand drachmas, I would give it to you to buy a slave-girl and have an offspring by her.” This meeting came to end, and on the same day Mu‘awiyah sent ‘A’ishah a huge sum of money. ‘A’ishah said:“How soon we are entangled!” and then sent Munkadir ten thousand dinars, with which he bought a slave-girl.(246)

Ibn Kathir quotes another incident from Sa‘d ibn al-‘Aziz, saying that Mu‘awiyah once repaid a debt of ‘A’ishah for a sum of eighteen thousand drachmas. These debts were incurred by her owing to the gifts of money given by her to the people.(247)

These were some examples of the financial considerations of Mu‘awiyah for ‘A’ishah. Such a treatment was not confined to Mu‘awiyah. Other Umayyad rulers, too, acted in a similar manner, and from time to time they sent her various gifts. One of these men was ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Amir, governor of Basra, who once sent her money and clothes.(248)

Despite the time that separates us from ‘A’ishah and the Umayyad period, we see that the instances and evidence of such financial considerations by the Umayyad government towards ‘A’ishah are so numerous that we are compelled to conclude that the actual instances are much more numerous than what have reached us, and that history has buried most of them within itself.

In view of this point, we can realize the degree of the respect shown to ‘A’ishah by the Umayyad rulers on account of their own worldly considerations and expediency as well as the reciprocal consideration and expediency that ‘A’ishah felt towards them, and thus we discover the extent of the connection and attachment of those two strong fronts of the time. Thus we can henceforth have a better and clearer understanding of the evil results of the close connection of these two poles for the Muslims and Islam.

The influence of ‘A’ishah in the rule of the Umayyads

Ziyad ibn Abihi said proudly: This is the letter of ‘A’ishah Umm al-Mu’minin to me!

If the reader has paid sufficient attention to what has already been said about the life of ‘A’ishah and her political and social activities, he will have distinguished the extraordinary political genius of this woman. From the viewpoint of social and political understanding, and the power of imposing her views and many other qualities, which are necessary for a politician, she has an evident superiority over most men and women of her own time. This point will be illustrated in many ways in the forthcoming pages.

One aspect of this woman’s genius is the influence of her words. We read in the book of Tabaqat al-kubra: Murrah ibn Abi ‘Uthman was the freed slave of ‘Abd ar-Rahman son of Abu Bakr. One day he went to ‘Abd ar-Rahman and requested him to write a letter to Ziyad, asking him to meet his need. ‘Abd ar-Rahman wrote the letter but addressed Ziyad as the son of his real father ‘Ubayd, not as Abu Sufyan’s son. Murrah ibn Abi ‘Uthman said:“I won’t take such a letter to Ziyad, for instead of securing a benefit, I shall receive some harm.”

Then he went to ‘A’ishah and repeated the same request. ‘A’ishah wrote:“This is a letter from ‘A’ishah Umm al-Mu’minin to Ziyad, son of Abu Sufyan.” The man took the letter to Ziyad who said to him after reading it:“Go now and come back to me to-morrow so that I fulfill your wish.” Next day when he went to Ziyad while he was surrounded by people, Ziyad told him to read the letter. He read this sentence which was written in it and nothing more:“This is a letter from ‘A’ishah Umm al-Mu’minin to Ziyad, son of Abu Sufyan.” Then Ziyad complied with the man’s request.(249)

Yaqut al-Hamawi narrates this story in the section on“Nahr Murrah” of his geographical encyclopedia, and writes: Ziyad was very pleased with ‘A’ishah’s letter and treated the man very kindly, and then turned to the people and said proudly:“This is a letter of Umm al-Mu’minin to me!”

Then he ordered to give Murrah one hundred acres of land by the river al-Ubulah as his fief, and dig a special canal to irrigate his land, and this river is thus called“Nahr Murrah” .(250) What is interesting in this incident is the use made by Ziyad of the effect of ‘A’ishah’s written words for his own benefit. He felt so pleased at being addressed by ‘A’ishah as Abu Sufyan’s son, and being accepted by her as such. So he wished that the so-called letter be read publicly, so that the people would see that his noble lineage is recognized by ‘A’ishah, the great personality of the time, considering him as the son of Abu Sufyan, former chief of the Quraysh, and brother of the present caliph!

Another time ‘A’ishah wrote a letter to Ziyad in which he recommended a man. Ziyad wrote at the bottom of the letter: ‘He lives with his parents’, meaning that Ziyad will treat the man so well that he will feel as if he lives with his parents.(251)

‘A’ishah and Mu‘awiyah in reciprocal contention

I swear to God that Hujr and his friends were the leaders and selected ones of the Arabs.

‘A’ishah

Although the hostility with Imam ‘Ali had produced a deep friendship between ‘A’ishah and Mu‘awiyah, yet later on a number of factor caused a break in this relationship, and it led to coolness and enmity.

We will deal with these factors in several different sections. Mu‘awiyah’s constant efforts enabled him to seize the rein of all affairs, but he was not content with this and wished to make his rule hereditary. What is significant is that at first even some groups of his friends did not approve of this project, and at this time the son of Abu Sufyan revealed the savage and violent, and cruel side of his character. It was then that ‘A’ishah joined the group of his opponents, and severed her last bond of connection with Mu‘awiyah.

The first disagreement which arose between ‘A’ishah and Mu‘awiyah, appeared in the unpleasant event of the death of Hujr ibn ‘Adi, the brave warrior of Kufah and chaste Shi‘ah follower of Imam ‘Ali.

Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani writes: ‘A’ishah sent an envoy named ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Harath to ash-Sham to intercede on her behalf to Mu‘awiyah for Hujr and his friends. This man reached Damascus at a time when Mu‘awiyah had already killed them. ‘A’ishah’s envoy returned in disappointment and reported the event to her. ‘A’ishah said in vexation:“If it had not been for the fact that whenever we start a revolt and change the conditions, the situation becomes more complicated, and unpleasant events occur, we would have started another revolt, and would not have left Hujr’s death without vengeance, since I swear to God that he was a true Muslim and striver in the way of God.” (252) What ‘A’ishah meant by her statement about revolt was that the popular movement started by her against ‘Uthman, had produced many difficulties as a result of which Imam ‘Ali had assumed the position of caliph. This matter was so insupportable for ‘A’ishah that she longed and prayed for the annihilation of the heaven and earth and its people if the caliphate became a definitely established fact for the Imam.

But her hopes were in vain since Imam ‘Ali assumed that position as a fact. Therefore, she used all her efforts to change the course of events, and deprive the Imam of his position as caliph, and thus she started the battle of al-Jamal which caused so much bloodshed and massacre(253) , but without any avail, except that her cousin Talhah, her son Muhammad and her sister’s husband lost their lives, and she was brought much pain and suffering!

Now she was afraid that if she started a revolt against Mu‘awiyah, a step which was possible for her owing to her social power and influence, more bitter and unpleasant events would ensue which might affect her future, and condi¬tions would become worse.

Therefore, she was compelled to suppress her anger, and try to forget this failure which damaged her social prestige. Thus she controlled her rage and remained silent against Mu‘awiyah’s action.

Another point is mentioned in historical texts concerning the execution of Hujr, which shows ‘A’ishah’s deep political understanding. She had declared:“By God, if Mu‘awiyah had recognized the heroic spirit, zeal and power of the people of Kufah, he would never have dared to arrest and kill Hujr and his friends. But the son of the liver-eater woman (254) knows that fervent men of the Arabs no longer exist in this world-; I swear to God that Hujr and his friends possessed a high rank in their clear-sightedness, heroism and courage.”

The poet Lubayd has finely composed the following lines about this matter:

“Those under whose auspices one could live,

Have departed this life, and lam left alone,

Amidst those who are as worthless as leprous skins!

They afford neither a benefit,

Nor is there any hope of their charity,

Their spokesman is cavilled at,

Even if he has caused no mischief.” (255)

The death of Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr

O Mu‘awiyah! Did you not fear God in killing Hujr and his friends?

‘A’ishah

The second factor of ‘A’ishah’s disagreement with Mu‘awiyah, was the tragic event of the killing of her brother, Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr. Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr and Ibn al-Athir narrate: In the year that Mu‘awiyah had gone on a pilgrimage to Mecca, he went to Medina presumably to visit the tomb of the Prophet of God. During his stay in Medina, one day he went to visit ‘A’ishah. Her first words with him were related to the execution of Hujr, about which she said many things. The last answer of Mu‘awiyah was:“Leave Hujr and me alone to meet at the threshold of our God.” (256)

Some historians give greater details about this story and say: After Mu‘awiyah was permitted by ‘A’ishah to enter her house and sit down, she said to him:“Mu‘awiyah! How could you so confidently enter my house without fearing my retaliation for the death of my brother Muhammad?”

Mu‘awiyah said:“Because I have entered this asylum.” ‘A’ishah said:“O Mu‘awiyah! Did you not fear God in killing Hujr and his friends?”

Mu‘awiyah said:“They were in fact killed by those who have given testimony about them.” (257)

Ahmad ibn Hanbal writes in his book of Musnad that Mu‘awiyah gave the following answer to ‘A’ishah’s questions:“You would never commit such an act since I am in this asylum, and I have heard the Prophet say that a faith in God checks the act of killing a person.” Then he asked her:“What do you think of my treatment of you and meeting your needs?” ‘A’ishah said:“It is excellent.” Then Mu‘awiyah said:“In that case leave us to others until we meet at the threshold of our God.” (258)

As history was reported, Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr, ‘A’ishah’s brother was killed in the year 37 of the Hijrah, and Hujr ibn ‘Adi in the year 50. Therefore the question arises as to why and how ‘A’ishah remained silent all those years without saying a word about avenging her brother’s blood until Hujr and his friends were killed, and then she remembered her brother’s death?

We believe that the reason for these changes were the events that took place at the beginning. We have already seen that ‘A’ishah sent an envoy named ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Harath from Medina to ash-Sham to intercede for Hujr and his friends. The report of this mission spread to all parts of the Islamic realm, and the people who were aware of ‘A’ishah’s history and influence with the caliph’s government, sincerely hoped that her request would be complied with, and Mu‘awiyah would not disappoint her. But not more than a few days later her envoy returned in disappointment and for the first time announced ‘A’ishah’s failure.

Such a thing had been almost unprecedented in the past. ‘A’ishah had somehow or other secured a great influence in the time of the caliphs, and the government organization with the exception of the Alawite government had respectfully accepted her views,(259) and this was the first time that her demand was not agreed to.

With the spirit that we know of ‘A’ishah, it was very hard for her to bear this failure, and it created a deep rage and rancor in her. Was it not this same factor that caused her to speak harshly with Mu‘awiyah after so many years of friendship and attachment for him and despite all his material considerations and kindness to her, and remind him of his wrong deeds, and bring up the subject of the unjust death of her brother after fifteen years?

Sly and states manlike Mu‘awiyah preferred to show calmness and moderation against ‘A’ishah’s rage and dissatisfactions and remind her of his past friendship and his gifts and his generosity towards her.

Of course ‘A’ishah, as a strong woman that we have got to know in the pages of this book, would not so easily calm down from her state of boiling rage, and would not quickly forget her rancor and enmity, especially as Mu‘awiyah had at that time inflicted another fresh wound upon her, namely by putting to death another brother of hers in the question of the allegiance to Yazid. Naturally the disagreement between ‘A’ishah and Mu‘awiyah became more intensified at the sudden death of her own brother, ‘Abd ar-Rahman, and she was filled with boiling rage.

‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr is poisoned

Marwan is a piece of God’s damnation.

‘A’ishah

The third factor of the disagreement between ‘A’ishah and Mu‘awiyah was the question of the mysterious death of her brother, ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr. We have already seen that at the time when Mu‘awiyah was preparing the Muslim people to show allegiance to Yazid, Marwan ibn al-Hakam governed Medina. One day during his sermon he spoke of Yazid and of his nomination as caliph to succeed his father. ‘Abd ar-Rahman rose and spoke in opposition to Marwan, and Marwan ordered to arrest him.

But ‘Abd ar-Rahman fled out of the mosque and went to the house of ‘A’ishah, and Marwan’s men had no power to seize him. At this time Marwan said in reproach and scorn of him:“This is the man about whom the Qur’an has said: ‘And he who says to his parents: Fie on you! Do you threaten me?’ “ (260)

At this time ‘A’ishah cried out from behind the screen: “God has not descended any verse about our house except where He declares my innocence in the incident of Ifk.” (261)

Ibn al-Athir, the famous historian, narrates this story as follows: In the question of allegiance for Yazid, Mu‘awiyah wrote a letter to his governor, Marwan, and on receiving this letter, Marwan rose and declared:“Amir al-Mu’minin Mu‘awiyah has nominated a successor to the caliphate for you, and has shown good-will in this matter by choosing his son Yazid for this position.”

‘Abd ar-Rahman rose and said:“Both you and Mu‘awiyah have lied! You have not taken into consideration people’s interest and welfare. Your intention is to transform the caliphate into an empire and adopt the ways of Kasras and Caesars, so that when an emperor dies, another emperor takes his place!”

Marwan addressed the people and said:“This is the man about whom the Qur’an says: ‘He who says to his parents: Fie on you! Do you threaten me?’ “ ‘A’ishah, hearing his words from behind the screen, stood up and shouted: “O Marwan! O Marwan!”

The people became silent, and Marwan turned his face in that direction. ‘A’ishah said after a brief pause:“‘Are you the man who said to ‘Abd ar-Rahman that a verse has descended in the Qur’an reproaching him? You are lying! I swear to God that he is not the man about whom the verse has descended, it must be another person, but you are a piece of God’s damnation!” (262)

According to another narration, she said:“He is lying. By God, ‘Abd ar-Rahman is not the man he spoke of. But God damned the father of Marwan when Marwan was still in his loins; so Marwan is a piece of God’s damnation!”

Thus Marwan found no chance to secure allegiance for Yazid. Therefore this important task was left for Mu‘awiyah himself to accomplish. After some¬time Mu‘awiyah travelled to Hejaz, seemingly for pilgrimage to Mecca, and then visited Medina. We have already described some of the incidents, which occurred in Medina, and now we will narrate some others.

Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr writes in his book of al-Isti‘ab: Mu‘awiyah sat on the pulpit of the Prophet’s mosque and called upon the people to show allegiance to Yazid. But Imam al-Husayn, ‘Abd Allah ibn az-Zubayr and ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr protested against it, and many angry words were exchanged. The son of Abu Bakr said:“O Mu‘awiyah! Has the caliphate been transformed into an empire so that if an emperor died, another emperor would take his place without taking people’s approval and allegiance into consideration? We can never agree to this matter.”

That night Mu‘awiyah sent him one hundred thousand drachmas to win his approval for the allegiance. But ‘Abd ar-Rahman refused to accept the bribe and said:“Do you suppose that I would sell my religion for the world? Never!” Then he departed from Medina and went to Mecca. But soon afterwards he died before the allegiance for Yazid was accomplished and accepted generally.(263)

Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr adds: ‘Abd ar-Rahman died of a sudden death in the vicinity of Mecca. The spot where he died was called al-Hubshi within ten miles of Mecca, and he was buried in the same place. It is said that he died in his sleep. When the news of his death was reported to ‘A’ishah, she hastily left Medina for Mecca, and after arriving there, she stood for some time by his grave and wept for the loss of her own brother, and recited the following lamentation for him:

“For a long time we two were

Like two companions of Judhaymah, king of Hira,

Who were so attached to each other

Like two inseparable companions,

So that it was said that they would never be apart.

But when we separated with the death of my brother; Malik,

It seemed as if we had not even spent one night

Together; despite all those attachments and companionships.” (264)(265)

Then she added with poignant grief:“I swear to God that if I were present at your death, I would have buried you in the spot where you died, and would not have shed tears for you in that condition.”

Thus the disagreement between ‘A’ishah and the Umayyads became more intensified and its flame soared higher. ‘A’ishah had unexpectedly lost her brother who had died suddenly and mysteriously. But there was really no mystery, and a close scrutiny will reveal its cause, since he died of poisoning on the way to Mecca in the same way that Malik al-Ashtar died on his way to Egypt.(266)

Undoubtedly his death like the deaths of ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Khalid, Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqas and Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba could not have been without a sinister cause. All these great men of the time were killed in order to open the way for securing allegiance for Yazid.

Thus the fire of dispute and division between ‘A’ishah and the Umayyads rose high after she lost her dear brother, but now there was no one to help her to start a combat with the Umayyads, since now neither az-Zubayr nor Talhah were alive, nor ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr, nor anyone else on whom she could rely. Thus she recited the following lines which eloquently expressed her present condition:

“Those under whose protection I could live,

Have gone and left me alone now

Amidst those who are as worthless

As leprous skins, who offer no benefit,

Nor is there any hope for their goodness.”

Besides, ‘A’ishah’s age was now such that she could not sit on a mount and cover deserts and mountains and start a war with the Umayyads. Therefore, she showed her rancor and hostility in a different way, and as we saw the Umayyad emir of Medina became the target of her revenge, and ‘A’ishah quoted the words of the Prophet concerning his reproach and damnation of him and his father and said that he was a piece of God’s damnation.

Thenceforth that was the way she chose for future. We think that in this period she did not confine her activity only to quoting the traditions which were related to the reproach of the Umayyads, but she also quoted what she had heard the Prophet state concerning the virtue of his household and of Imam ‘Ali, Fatimah, al-Hasan and al-Husayn. For, in those times nothing was harder for the Umayyads to tolerate than hearing words of praise about the Prophet’s household. It meant condemning and humiliating the Umayyads, and made Imam al-Husayn who was the last member of that house and the noblest Muslim of that day, most loved by the people. Therefore the traditions which are found in books of tradition in which the names of Imam ‘Ali, Siddiqah (Fatimah) and her noble mother Khadijah are mentioned, must have belonged to this period even though their number is not great.

We think it probable that her expressions of penitence about the battle of al-Jamal, too, have their beginning in this period and have continued to the end of her life. Now we deal with this subject at length in the next section.

‘A’ishah is penitent about the battle of al-Jamal

Oh! The battle of Jamal is stuck in my throat like a bone!

‘A’ishah

Abu Jundab, a man of Kufah, narrates the story of his meeting with ‘A’ishah as follows: When I went to the house of Umm al-Mu’minin and met her, she asked me who I was. I said:“I am a man of the al-Azd tribe, living in Kufah.”

She asked me:“Did you take part in the battle of al-Jamal?” I said:“Yes” . She asked:“Were you fighting for us or against us?”

I told her that I was fighting against her.

She asked:“Do you know the person who declared in his slogan: ‘O dear mother! O the best mother that we know?’ “

I said: “Yes, he was my cousin.” Then she began to weep so profusely that I thought she would never calm down.(267)

Ibn al-Athir writes: One day in ‘A’ishah’s presence the conversation led to a mention of the battle of al-Jamal. She asked:“Do the people still remember it?” They said:“Yes” . She said:“I wish I had not taken part in that battle and had sat down in my house like the other wives of the Prophet. Keeping to my house like them would have been worthier for me than having by him ten noble children as ‘Abd Allah ibn az-Zubayr and ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn al-Harath ibn Hisham.” (268)

Historians and commentators quoted a man named Masruq, saying: When ‘A’ishah was reciting this verse of the Qur’an which orders the wives of the Prophet to stay at home,(269) she wept so much that her head cover was wet with tears.(270)

‘A’ishah before her death

Muhammad ibn Sa‘d author of the book of Tabaqat al-kubra, narrates that Ibn ‘Abbas one day went to visit ‘A’ishah before her death, and praised her. After his departure, ‘A’ishah said to ‘Abd Allah ibn az-Zubayr:“The son of ‘Abbas praised me. Now I do not like anyone to speak well of me. How I long to be forgotten by the people, or that I had never been born!” (271)

In the old and reliable Book of Balaghat an-nisa’ we read: When ‘A’ishah was on the point of death, she was very uneasy and distracted. They asked her:“Why are you so distressed? You are the daughter of Abu Bakr the Truth, and mother of all the faithful!”

She answered:“Indeed the battle of al-Jamal is stuck like a bone in my throat. I wish I had died before that day, or I had been one of the forgotten crea¬tures.” (272)

Another time she had said:“I swear to God that I wished to be only a tree! I wished to be a stone; I wished God had never brought me into the world!”

It is said: At the time of her death she said regretfully:“After the Prophet’s decease I have caused some events. Now that I am departing from this world, bury me alongside the other wives of the Prophet.” adh-Dhahabi, the great Sunni scholar writes: What ‘A’ishah meant by the word“events” was the battle of al-Jamal and her role in starting it.(273)

He says also: In the night of 17th Ramadan of the 58 of the Hijrah she died after her one-unit prayer. She had willed to be buried the same night. The Emigrants and Ansar assembled and a large crowd gathered. They lighted date palm branches to illuminate the way for the procession. The narrator of the story says: I saw the women of Medina in the al-Baqi‘ cemetery that night assembled like festival days. Abu Hurayrah performed her burial prayer, since he governed the city on behalf of Marwan. At her death ‘A’ishah was 63 years and a few months old.(274)

* * *

We have studied ‘A’ishah’s life from the first days of her arrival at the Prophet’s house until the last moments of her life in the time of Mu‘awiyah(275) and have made a survey of all her personality as a social and political genius. In the forthcoming pages we will discuss some of her fine qualities.