of their offspring, cradled in the folds of tenderness and solicitous care, moving forward within an atmosphere of honor and love. Thus Fatimah became the fragrant blossom of the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—so that he was pleased when she was pleased and angered when she was angered.

Yet the parents’ affection did not prevent them from diligently cultivating their beloved daughter’s character and readying her to bear life’s responsibilities. It is related that she would manage her household chores entirely on her own, with no one to help her on most days, and that she herself tended her father’s wounds during the Battle of Uhud.

When al-Zahraʾ reached womanhood, many hopes were set upon her: among those who sought her hand were Abu Bakr and ʿUmar. The Messenger—peace and blessings be upon him—declined their proposals graciously, as though he intended to reserve her for ʿAli—may Allah be pleased with him.

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In the eighth year after the Hijrah, ʿAli ibn Abi Talib