When the primary supporters of The Battle of Jamal were...

When the primary supporters of The Battle of Jamal were defeated and the two staunch advocates, namely Talha and Zubayr, were killed and Imam ‘Al i (a.s.) , due to the immense respect he had for the Prophet (S), returned ‘A’ysha back to the city of Medina with full respect and honour, she relegated herself to staying at home.

Indeed she was a very conniving woman and it is for this reason that she considered herself worthy of issuing religious edicts (fatawa) , and due to her political inclinations, we see that the previous caliphs allowed her the leeway to carry this out! Ibn Sa’d in his work, al-Tabaqat , writes that ‘Umar had set the yearly stipends for the wives of the Messenger of Allah (S) at 10,000 dinar, however he gave ‘A’ysha 12,000 dinar!

However when a difference broke out between ‘Uthman and ‘A’ysha, according to the famous historian, al-Ya’qubi, in his book of history, he cut her allowance by 2,000 dinar. A dispute which arose between ‘Uthman and ‘A’ysha in relation to the deputation of Walid b. ‘Uqbah became exasperated, as in addition to being one who consumed alcohol, Walid also treated some of the prominent companions of the Prophet of Allah (S) - such as Ibn Mas’ud with utter disregard.

Even when he was brought to ‘Uthman and witnesses bore testimony to the fact that he consumed alcohol, according to the historian al-Baladhari in his book Ansab al-Ashraf , not only did ‘Uthman not reprimand his adopted brother Walid, rather he proceeded to punish the witnesses! After this event, the witnesses sought refuge in the house of ‘A’ysha, however ‘Uthman let out a cry in the city of Medina: Are the refractory Iraqis seeking refuge anywhere else other than the house of ‘A’ysha!?

When ‘A’ysha heard these words from ‘Uthman, she took the shoes of the Messenger of Allah (S) in her hands, raised them high in the air and said: The shoes of the Messenger of Allah (S) have not even become old yet and you have [in such a short period of time] thrown the tradition (sunnah) of the Prophet behind your back!?

When the people heard these words, a group of them took ‘A’ysha’s side, while another group stood beside ‘Uthman and both factions made their way to the masjid, physically accosting one another.