(until he said)...

(until he said): The Prophet, Hamza, Aqeel, Ja'far, and

Ahlul-Bayt followed the caravan."

It is clearly stated in this narration that Ja'far, Asma's husband, was

present; which, as we said, supports our conclusion. In addition to this,

the Prophet's immigration to Medina took place after Khadijah’s death,

and Ja'far traveled to Habashah twice. The second journey took place

before Hijrah and after Khadijah’s death. Thus, it becomes easy to

understand how Asma was present at the time of Khadijah’s death. There is confusion in historical findings regarding the reason for the

presence of Umme Salama's name in the events preceding Fatima's

marriage; i. e., the Prophet leaving some of Fatima's dowry with her,

and the women's consultation with her- despite the fact that he married

her in 4 A.H., while Fatima's marriage took place in 2 A.H. Thus, the

question arises as to what role she played in these events even

though she was not yet married to the Prophet? There are two probable answers that can be given to this question. Digitized by: www.playandlearn.org 145

First: Perhaps there was a mistake in recording the year she was

married to the Prophet (S) But this is not based on any historical or

scientific findings and therefore cannot be taken into account. Second: Since Lady Umme Salama was the Prophet's cousin, it was

expected of her to participate in different stages of the wedding and to

keep part of Fatima's dowry in her possession according to the

I prefer the second opinion. Yet I leave it to Allah, for He is…

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