1.8- Why did Lady Fatima Masuma (A) not marry?
It is almost certain that Lady Fatima Masuma (A) did not marry. The question arises "Why?"
We know that marriage is a highly desirable and recommended act in Islam and in regards to marriage, some of the traditions of the Prophet (S) are quoted below:
ما بني في الاسلام بناء احب الي الله عز وجل واعز من التزويج
There is no institution more honourable
beloved to Allah, than marriage.1
النكاح سنتي فمن رغب عن سنتي فليس مني
Marriage is part of my Sunnah (practice) and
whoever disregards my Sunnah is not from me.2
It has been narrated that in the time of the 5th Imam, Imam al-Baqir (A), a certain woman did not marry for the sake of honour, self discipline and gaining nearness to Allah.
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1. Shaykh Hurr, al-Amili, Wasa'il al-Shi'ah, vol.14, p.3.
2. Wasa'il al-Shi'ah, vol.14, pp.7& 8.
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The Imam (A) told her: "If the abandonment of marriage gave a person more honour, then Lady Fatima Zahra (A) would not marry, for there is no woman purer and more honourable than her.1
Therefore, we can be sure that there must have been a good reason for Lady Fatima Masuma (A) not marrying. Two possible reasons are cited below:
The first reason may due to the fact that, the daughters of Imam al-Kazim (A), especially Lady Fatima Masuma (A), were woman of great distinction and to find husbands who would be compatible to them was not easy. Imam al-Kazim (A) had therefore recommnended them to take the advice and opinion of Imam al-Rida (A) in matters such as marriage, due to his own inaccessibility while he was imprisoned by Harun.2
The fact that there were no suitable spouses present for the daughters of the Ahl al-Bayt (A), does not seen so far - fetched when we consider the tradition from Imam al-Sadiq (A) in reference to Laday Fatima Zahra (A):
لولا أن تبارك وتعالي خلق أمير المؤمنين لفاطمة
ما كان لها كفو علي ظهر الارض من آدم و من دونه
"If God had not reactedthe Commander of the
Faithful (Ali) for Fatima, then there would not have
been a suitable husband for her in the whole world
from the time of Adam to the end of mankind."3
The second reason is that the fear and anxiety caused by Harun's government at that time was such that no-one dared to get close to the family of the Ahl al-Bayt (A).
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1. Wasa'il al-Shi'ah, vol. 14, pp. 117 & 118.
2. Usul al-Kafi, vol. 1, p. 317. This matter is discussed in section 1. 10.
3. Usul al-Kafi, vol. 1, p. 261
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To marry one of the daughters of Imam al-Kazim (A), and become his son in-law was condidered too dangerous.
This was one of the many sad difficulties that Imam's (A) family faced, due to the tyranny of the rulers of their time1
We cannot determine with certainly why Lady Fatima Masuma (A) did not marry, however, we can be sure it was not due to the abandonment of marriage as a personal choice.
1.9- Lady Fatima Masuma (A) as a narrator of traditions
One of the qualities of Lady Fatima Masuma (A) was her considerable knowledge of the various Islamic seiences and the teaching and merits of the family of the Prophet (S). She is counted amongst the highest rank of reliable narrators of traditions.
Unfortunately, due to the oppressive rulers at her time, there was great restriction in narrating anything from the Ahl al-Bayt (A) and so a lot of material has been lost.
Some of the traditions (ahadith) which have been narrated by this noble lady, that have reached us, are given below, with their chain of transmission (sanad).
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1. Another reason that is sometimes given in answer to why lady Fatima Masuma (A) did not marry, is from weak tradition, in which it is narrated that, Ma'mun, (the 7th Abbssid caliph), wanted to marry Lady Fatima Masuma (A) for his own political ends, and to avoid this catastrophe, she abandoned marriage altogether. Perhaps it is for this same reason that God did not allow Lady Fatima Masuma (A) to reach Khurasan, where her brother was, because Ma'mun might have forced her to marry him.
(See Ganjine-ye Athar-e Qum, vol.1, p.384)
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1. The tradition of Ghadir and the tradition of Manzilat
حدثتنا فاطمة و زينب و ام كلثوم بنات موسي بن جعفر قلن حدثتنا فاطمة بنت جعفر بن محمد الصادق حدثتني فاطمة بنت محمد بن علي حدثتني فاطمة بنت علي بن الحسين حدثتني فاطمة و سكينة ابنتا الحسين بن علي عن أم كلثوم بنت فاطمة بنت النبي عن فاطمة بنت رسول الله صلي الله عليه و آله وسلم قالت :
أنسيتم قول رسول الله صلي الله عليه و آله وسلم يوم غدير خم : من كنت مولاه فعلي مولاه
وقوله صلي الله عليه و آله و سلم : انت مني بمنزلة هارون من موسي
The daughters of Imam al-Kazim (A), Fatima (Masuma), Zaynab and Umm Kulthum have narrated to me; Fatima daughter of Imam al-Sadiq (A), narrated to us :
Fatima daughter of Imam al-Baqir (A) narrated to me; Fatima daughter of Imam Sajjad (A) narrated to me : Fatima and Sakina, daughters of Imam Husain (A) narrated to me :
Umm Kulthum daughter of Lady Fatima Zahra (A) narrated to us, from her mother, the daughter of the Prophet (S) that she said :
"Have you forgotten the words of the Prophet of God on the day of Ghadir Khum, when he said :
'Whosoever's leader I am, then Ali is also their leader', and his words, to Ali (A) 'Your relationship to me is like the relationship of Harun to Musa."1
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1. Allama Shaykh 'Abd al-Husain Amini, Al-Ghadir, vol.1, p.197. These traditions have also been reported by many Sunni scholars.
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2. With the same chain of narrators as above, Lady Fatima Masuma (A) narrates from Lady Fatima Zahra (A):
"I heard from father, the Prophet (S),who said:
"When I went to Mi'raj (ascension to the Heavens), I entered Heaven, and there I saw palace made of white pearls, the door of that palace was decorated with pearls and rubies, and on that door was hanging a curtain.
I raised my head towards it and saw written on the door:
لا اله الا الله محمد رسول الله علي ولي القوم
"There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger
of Allah, Ali is the Guardian of the community."
I then looked at the curtain and on that was written:
بخ بخ من مثل شيعة علي؟
"Ah, ha! Who is like the Shi'ah of Ali?"
I entered the palace, in it I saw a castle, made of red Aqiq. It had a door of silver, decorated with green topaz and on that door was hanging a curtain.
I raised up my head and saw written on that door:
محمد رسول الله علي وصي المصطفي
Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, Ali is the
Successor of Mustafa."1
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1. Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 68, pp. 76 & 77.
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3. Lady Fatima Masuma (A), through a reliable chain, has narrated from Safiyah, the daughter of Abd al-Muttalib, [the paternal aunt of the Prophet (S)], who relates:
عن صفية بنت عبدالمطلب قالت : لما سقط الحسين (ع) من بطن امه و كنت وليتها قال رسول الله صلي الله عليه و آله و سلم يا عمة هلمي الي ابني فقلت يا رسول الله انا لم ننظفه بعد. فقال صلي الله عليه و آله وسلم يا عمة انت تنظفينه ان تبارك وتعالي قد نظفه وطهره
"When Imam Husain (A)was born and I was attending to his mother, the Prophet (S) said to me: Oh aunt! Bring my child to me. I said: I have not yet washed him [to make him Tahir (clean)]". He said: "Oh aunt! Do you want to wash him, when God the Most High has washed
him and made him pure?"1
4. It is narrated that:
عن فاطمة بنت موسي بن جعفر عن فاطمة بنت الصادق جعفر بن محمد عن فاطمة بنت الباقر محمد بن علي عن فاطمة بنت سجاد علي بن الحسين زين العابدين عن فاطمة بنت ابي عبدالله الحسين عن زينب بنت أمير المؤمنين عن فاطمة بنت رسول الله صلي الله عليه و آله وسلم قالت قال رسول الله صلي الله عليه و آله وسلم
الا من مات علي حب آل محمد مات شهيداً
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1. Al-Amali, p.82.
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Fatima (Masuma) daughter of Imam al-Kazim,
narrates from Fatima daughter of Imam al-Sadiq,
who narrates from Fatima daughter of Imam al-Baqir,
who narrates from Fatima daughter of Imam al-Sajjad,
who narrates from Fatima daughter of Imam Husain,
who narrates from Zaynab daughter of Imam Ali,
who narrates from Lady Fatima Zahra daughter of the Prophet of God,
who has narrated that the Prophet (S) has said:
"Know that whoever dies having the love of the family of Muhammad, dies a martyr (shahid)."1
From the above traditons, narrated by Lady Fatima Masuma (A) with a reliable chain of narrators, we see that not only the men folk of the family of the Prophet (S) narrated traditions from the Prophet (S), but also the Woman of this family had a role in narrating his traditions.
1.10- The influence of Imam al-Kazim (A) and Imam al-Rida (A) on only Fatima Masuma (A)
According to authetic traditions, during the year 179 A.H, Imam al-Kazim (A) was arrested on the orders of Harun (the 5th Abbasid Caliph) and taken from Madina to Baghdad via Basra. In Baghdad, he was imprisoned and he remained in perison until his death in the year 183 A.H.
This separation of Lady Fatima Masuma (A) from her father was very difficult for her. She longed to see her father again but this was not to be, because the family of the Imam (A) learnt of his death within the prisons of Baghdad about 4 years later.
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1. Muhammad bin Ahmad chishti Daghistani, Al-lu'lu'at al-Thamminat fi al-Athar al-Mu'an'anat al-Marwiyah, p. 217; Ghanjine-ye Daneshmandian, vol. 1, pp. 16 & 17.
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From the time of the imprisonment of her father, Lady Fatima Masuma (A) was under the guardianship of her brother, Imam al-Rida (A), who was 25 years older than her. This lasted until the year 200 A.H, when he was summoned to Khurasan by Ma'mun.
This guardianship was accoring to the will of the their father, Imam al-Kazim (A).
In the beginning of the will of Imam al-Kazim (A), after mentioning the guardianship of Imam al-Rida (A) for his wives and daughters, the following was written:
و ان اراد رجل منهم ان يزوج اخته
فليس له ان يزوجها الا باذنه و امره
"... and if anyone of the brothers wants his sister to get married, he must get his (Imam al-Rida's) persmission ..."1
Imam al-Rida (A) was not only instructed to be the guardian of Lady Fatima Masuma (A) but also that of all the wives and daughters of Imam al-Kazim (A).
Fatima Masuma (A) spent the first six years of her life by the side of her noble father, which she utilised to the maximum, learning all she could from him.
Even as a child her level of knowledge and spiritual awarness was very high, as seen from a report by the late Ayatollah Sayyid Nasrullah Mustanbit,2 who reported that there were some manuscripts found in the Shushtari libraries in the Holy city of Najaf, that had the following tradition written on them :
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1. Usul al-Kafi, vol. 1, p. 317.
2. The son-in-law of Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Abu al-Qasimal-Khu'i.
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"One Friday, a number of shi'a went to Medina to meet Imam al-Kazim (A) to get some questions answered. But when they reached the house of the Imam (A), they were informed that he was away on a journey.
They decided to write their questions on a piece of paper and entrust this to the family of the Imam (A), so that when he returned from his journey he could answer the questions.
After a few days in Madina, the Shi'a decided to return home. Before their homeward journey, they passed by Imam's (A) house to say their farewells and here they were given their paper back with all their questions answered. The replies to their queries had been provided by Lady Fatima Masuma (A), who at the time was only six years old.
They left Madina satisfied with the answers. On their journey home, they happened to meet Imam al-Kazim (A), who was returnig to Madina. They related to the Imam (A)the events that had occurred.
The Imam (A) asked to see the paper with questions answered by Lady Fatima Masuma (A). After studying her replies and finding all the questions answered to so correctly and eloquently by his young daughter, the Imam (A) remarked:
فداها ابوها
May her father be sacrificed for her.
Imam (A) repeated this phrase three times.1
This same phrase had also been used by the Prophet (S) for Fatima Zahra (A).2
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1. Kashf al-La'ali, vol. 7, p. 14.
2. Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 43, pp. 86 & 88
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The tradition above demonstrates special giftedness of Lady Fatima Masuma (A), even as a child. It comes as no surprise, therefore, when we read in her Ziyarat - which was dictated by Imam Ali Rida (A), the following:
السلام عليك يا فاطمة بنت موسي بن جعفر و حجته وامينه
Salutations to you, Oh Fatima, daughter of Musa ibn Ja'far, the proof (hujjah) and trusted one (amin).1
After benefiting for six years from the guardianship of her father, Lady Fatima masuma (A) was then under the supervision of her brother for another 21 years. She took advantage of the opportunity to learn under another Imam (A).
Indeed, she acquired such a high spiritual level that, after her passing away, her brother gave her the title of "Masuma" (the infallible). This was high praise indeed, expecialy from an Imam (A).
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1. Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 43, p. 88.
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2.1- The separation of Lady Fatima Masuma (A) from Imam al-Rida (A)
Although the separation from her father had been very difficult, Lady Fatima Masuma (A) still had her brother to comfort her. However, in 200 A.H, Ma'mun (the 7th Abbasid Caliph), demanded Imam al-Rida's (A) presence in Khurasan. The departure of her brother further increased her sorrow. This separations lasted for only about one year, but sadly she passed away before they could be reunited.
When Amin (the 6th Abbasid Caliph) was killed by the soldiers of his brother Ma'mun, and Ma'mun became the Caliph, his rule was initially very unstable. The kindom was divided and Ma'mun felt the need to gather support. So as to gain the support of the Shi'a, he insisted that Imam al-Rida (A) come to Khurasan.
Here, he received the Imam (A) with great honour, pretending to respect his position, and even claiming to be his follower. The true test of his sincerity would have been to abdicate in favour of the Imam (A). Instead, he declared the Imam (A) his successor, never intending that that day shoul come.
The Imam (A) was forced to accept this invitation and he went to Khurasan, where his presence in the court of Mu'mun served the interests of the Shi'a and Islam. The Imam (A) reached khurasan in 200 A.H, and he was poisoned to death by Ma'mun in 203 A.H.
Ma'mun had prepared a document of the 'wilayat' (successorship) of Imam al-Rida (A) in five copies. One of
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these copies was sent to Makka, one to Madina, one to Sham, one to Baghdad and one was kept in Khurasan.
According to the orders of Ma'mun, the name of of Imam al-Rida (A) was mentioned in the khutba (sermons) of the Friday prayers, in all the Islamic lands and coins with the name of the Imam(A) were minted.
As a result of the intense desire of the Shi'a to be near the Imam, many of them decided to migrate to Khurasan. Some were also misled by the apparent respect being accorded to the Imam (A) by Ma'mun, and were unaware of his deceit and political ploys.
2.2- The journey of Lady Fatima Masuma (A) from Madina
After a difficult year of separaton from her beloved brother, Lady Fatima Masuma (A) decided to go to him. She began this journey from Madina to Khurasan, in the year 201 A.H, accompained by a caravan made up of some members of her hoursehold and friends of Imam (A).
Some historians are of the opinion that Lady Fatima Masuma (A) underlook this long and hazardous journey just to be close to her brother, but this is unlikely to be the only reason.
A more plausible reason for this journey is that she had a role to play at the side of the Imam (A). Her immense learning, and piety would help him in the propagation of Islam, especially amongst the ladies.
In this aspect her role would be similar to that of Lady Fatima Zahra (A)at the side to the Prophet (S) or that of
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1. Muhammad bin Hasan Amili, Tarikh-e Rawiyan, narrating from Nasi al-Din al-Tusi, p. 213.
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Lady Zaynab (A) at the side of Imam Ali (A), Imam Hasan (A) and then at the side of Imam Husain (A) in Karbala and in the aftermath of Karbala at the side of Imam Ali Zayn al-Abidin (A).
There are many different marrations of the events leading to this journey of the family of the Imam (A) from Madina to Saweh and the events that unfolded during this journey.
According to one narration, the Imam (A) wrote a letter to his sister, Lady Fatima Masuma (A), which he sent to her with one of his servants instructing him to hasten to Madina without stopping anywhere on the way.
After receiving the letter from her brother, Lady Fatima Masuma (A), immediately prepared herself for the journey to Khurasan via Saweh.1
According to another tradition, the Imam (A) wrote a letter to all his family members, inviting them to come to Khurasan.
It is narrated that after the arrival of this letter, a group consisting of the sons and other family member of the Imam (A), and other Shi'a, numbering over 12000 people made their way to Khurasan.2
Another tradition says that when the letter of the Imam (A) to is his family memebers arrived, their sadness at their separation from the Imam (A) made them decide to join him. A caravan was prepared, under the leadership of Ibrahim, son of Imam al-Kazim (A), and they began their journey to Khurasan.3
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1. Sayyid Dakhil bin Husain, Man La Yahduruh-u al-Khatib, vol.4, p.261.
2. Sayyid Mudammad Ali Rawdati, Jam'i al-Ansab, p.17
3. Bihar al-Ansab, pp.91-94.
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It is narrated that two separate caravans headed towards Khurasan. One of these groups was the one that Lady Fatima Masuma (A) was in. It was comprised of 23 people, under the leadership of Harun ibn Musa ibn Ja'far.1
The other group travelling to Khurasan consisted of about 12,000 people under the leadership of Ahmad ibn Musa al-Kazim2
These caravans reached a town called Saweh on their way to Khurasan. Here they were attacked by enemies of the family of the Prophet (S).
Many were martyred, including Harun, and many others were wounded or taken prisoner. A few managed to flee. A woman from the enemies put poison in the food of lady Fatima Masuma (A) and she became ill.
She then asked to be taken to Qum and her request was grandted. After a few days stay in Qum, she died of her illness and was buried there3
Another narration states that Harun and the other members of Lady Fatima Masuma's (A) family, totalling 23, were killed in an ambush by the people of the town of Saweh, who at that time had great enmity towards the family of the Prophet (S). In the book Qiyam-e Sadat-e 'Alawi, it is mentioned that the ambush was actuallycarried out by the soldiers of Ma'mun.
It is narrated that the soldiers insisted that the caravan progress no further. In the discussion that ensued, the soldiers falsely, "Your Imam is dead."
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1. Ali Akbar Tashayyad, Qiyam-e Sadat-e Alawi, p. 160.
2. Ibid., p. 169
3. Ibid., pp. 160 & 168; Ja'far Murtada Amili, Al-Hayat al-Siyasiya li al-Imam al-Rida
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This lie caused consternation in he camp and some people decided to return to Madina, while others wanted to press on. This might account for the mistaken notion that Lady Fatima Masuma (A) died as a result of being heartbroken at the news of the death of her beloved brother.
In any case, a confusion ensued and the soldier took the opportunity the attak the camp. During the assult, Lady Fatima Masuma (A) had to witness the brutal of 23 close family members.
She is therefore sometimes compared to Lady Zaynab (A), who also witnessed the slaughtering of her close family members. And due to this intensely sorrowful event, Lady Fatima Masuma (A) became ill and was taken to Qum. And here after 16-17 days she passed away in Qum, and was buried there1
It is also narrated that the second group consisting of about 12000 Shi'a were also attacked on the orders of Ma'mun, throught the ruler of Fars, in a place called Shiraz. All the members of this group were either killed or ran away.2
The narrations above may explain why there are so many graves of the sons of the Imams (A) and other family members found within Iran. For instance in Saweh it self, the graves of Sayyid Ishap, Sayyid Abu Rida, Sayyid Ali Ashar (all from the family of Imam (A)) are popular sites for pilgrims, as are the graves in villages around Saweh, also attributed to children of the Imam (A).3
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2.3- Lady Fatima Masuma's (A) journey from Saweh to Qum
She asked Lady Fatima Masuma (A) became ill at Saweh, she enquired from her companions, how far Qum was. She was told 10 farsakh (approx 60 km).1
She asked to be taken to Qum, which at the time was a centre of the Shi'a.2 Saweh, on the other hand, was hostile to wards the family of the Prophet (S).3
Allamah Majlisi narrates:
"The more accurate narration is that, when it become known to the family of Sa'd Ash'ari, the leading Shi'a family in Qum at the time, that Lady Fatima Masuma (A) was in Saweh and that she was ill, all of them went to Saweh to invite her to come to Qum.
Prominent amongst this family was Musa ibn Khazraj ibn Sa'd Ash'ari who was a companion of Imam al-Rida (A). When he reached Lady Fatima Masuma (A), he took the reins of her camel and brought her to Qum, to is own house. Here she spent the last few days (16 or 17 dayd) of her life.4
It is believed that Lady Fatima Masuma (A) died on the 1th or the 12th of Rabi al-Thani and that she spent the last 16 or 17 days of her life in Qum, therefore we can estimate that she arrived in Qum around the 24th Rabi al-Awwal, 201 A.H.
The house of Musa ibn Khazraj ibn Sa'd Ash'ari, where lady Fatima Masuma (A) lived for the few days that she
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1. Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 60, p. 219.
2. Zindegi-ye Hadrat Musa ibn Ja'far, vol. 2, p. 384
3. Ghanjineh-ye Athar-e Qum, vol. 1, p. 382.
4. Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 60, p. 219
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was in Qum, has now become a school named "Madres-ye Sittiyeh". [Sittiy means Lady - hence the name of the school is "School of the Lady"]. Till today, opposite the gates of this school and within its grounds there remains the alter of worship (mihrab ibadat) of this noble lady, where she spent hours of the last days of her life worshiping Allah. It has been named "Bayt al-Nur' - "the House of Radiance.". The site is popular with pilgrims, who go there to pay their respects.
2.4- The events at that burial of Lady Fatima Masuma(A)
The place where Lady Fatima Masuma (A) is buried was known at the time of her burial as "Babelan". It was a deserted area with no buildings. It belonged to Musa ibn Khazraj, who donated it for the purpose of the burial of this noble lady.
After the place of burial of Lady Fatima Masuma (A) was selected, the family members of Sa'd prepared her final resting place by digging a crypt in which to place the holy body.
Once the Ritual Bath (ghusl) and the shrouding (kafan) of the holy body had been completed, the family of Sa'd began discussing who would have privilege of entering the cript ot lay the holy body into the groun.
After much discussion, they finally agreed on a man by the same of Qadir, who was a pious and God-fearing old man from the family of the Prophet (S).
At that moment, they saw two masked riders appear, from the direction of the desert. These two masked riders approached swiftly and dismounted at the burial site. They came forward and recited the prayer for dead (salat al-mayyit) for Lady Fatima Masuma (A). Then, one of them entered the cript while the other passed the holy body of Lady Fatima Masuma (A) to him. In this way her burial took place.
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After the ceremonies of burial were completed, these two masked riders, without uttering a word to anyone, mounted their horses and rode off into the distance.1
No one knows for certain who these masked men were, but those who were familiar with the character and behaviour of the Imams (A), were in no doubt that these two personalities were Imam al-Rida (A) and his son Imam al-Taqi (A).
They had come from Khurasan and Madina respectively, by the miracle of being able to cross vast distances in an instances in an instant (tayy al-ard), to participate in the burial ceremonies of Lady Fatima Masuma (A).
The presence of an Imam (A) at the burial ceremony of a true Shi'a is not in itself unusual as there are many examples of this in hisroty. In one instance, Imam al-Kazim (A) came from Madina to Neyshabur to participate in the burial ceremonies of an old woman by the name of 'shatiteh' who was sincere and devout Shi'a. at that time, Imam (A) said to Abu Ja'far Neyshaburi, who was present and wondered at Imam's (A) presence so far from Madina:
انني ومن جري مجراي من أهل البيت لا بد لنا من حضور
جنائزكم في أي بلد كنتم قاتقوا الله في انفسكم وأحسنو
الأعمال لتعينونا علي خلاصكم وفك رقابكم من النار
"I, and whoever is the Imam of the Ahl al-Bayt
after me in my pace, has to be present in the
escorting of your dead bodies, in which ever land
you die in. So be God-fearing and pious and
persist in doing good, so that we come and help
free you from the fire of Hell."2
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1. Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 48, p. 290 and Tarikh-e Qadim-e Qum, p. 213.
2. Ibn Hamza, al-Thaqib fi al-Manaqib, p. 445.
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From the tradition above, it would not be unjustified to assume that the two masked riders who appeared from nowhere, to take part in the burial ceremonies of Lady Fatima Masuma (A) were, in fact, Imam al-Rida (A) and Imam al-Taqi (A).
2.5- Others who have been buried near Lady Fatima Masuma (A)
Some years after the burial of Lady Fatima Masuma (A), Umm Muhammad, daughter of Musa Mubarga', son of Imam al-Taqi (A). was buried near her gave. Some time later, Maymunah, sister of Umm Muhammad died and was also buried near the grave of Lady Fatma Masuma(A)
The dome on the graves of these two ladies was separate from that of Lady Fatima Masuma (A). Then Burayhiyah, daughter of Musa, son of Imam al-Taqi (A), was also buried in that place.1
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71. Bihar al-Anwar, vol. pp. 220 & 229
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The respected narrator, Shaykh Abbas, has mentioned that several other ladies have also been buried in the same place, such as: Zaynab, daughter of Imam al-Taqi (A); Umm Ishaq, slave of Muhammad ibn Musa Mubarqa' and Umm Habib slave of Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Musa Mubarqa'.1
The fact that other noble ladies from the family of the Imams (A) have also been buried near Lady Fatima Masuma (A) explains why we find the following passage in Lady Fatima Masuma's (A) salutation (ziyarat), where we recite:
السلام عليكن يا بنات رسول الله السلام عليكن ورحمة الله وبركاته
"Salutation on you, O daughter of the prophet
of Allah, Salutation and Mercy and the
Blessings of Allah be on all of you."
Another proof that others from the holy family are buried here is the shrine narrated by the late Ayatollah Hajj Aqa Husain Mujtahid, who narrates:
"At the time of Nasir al-Din Shah (d. 1313 A.H), when the floor of the shrine of Lady Fatima Masuma (A) was being covered with marble, an opening was noticed in a part at the foot of the burial chamber (darih) of this noble lady.
It was decided that this opening would would have to be repaired from within the crypt.
Two pious women were chosen to go into the crypt, to repair this opening. When they entered the crypt, they saw that the opening was not into the grave of Lady Fatima Masuma (A) hereself, but led to an adjoining crypt where
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1. Muntah al-Amal, vol. 2, p. 162.
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the bodies of three ladies were buried. They reported that the bodies looked completely unmarked, as if they had been buried that very day."
After investigation it was concluded that these bodies were of Maymunah, daughter of Musa Mubarqa', son of Imam al-Taqi (A) and her two slaves, Umm Ishaq and Umm Habib, who had been buried there eleven centuries ago!1
The above does not seem surprising if one looks at the tradition of Prophet Muhammad (S):
ان الله حرم لحومنا علي الأرض فلا يطعم منها شيئاً
"Indeed Allah made our flesh forbidden to the earth,
and the ground never consumes from our bodies."2
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1. Mirza Musa Farahani, Iqamat al-Burhan dar Usul-e Din, p. 479.
2. Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 22, p. 550; Man la Yahduruh-u al-Faqih, vol. 1, p. 121.