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154<br />
The Prophet' a, special love towards his daughter. is expressed in these<br />
words: "Whoever hai pleased Fatimah has indeed pleased God, and<br />
whoever has, caused her to to angry has indeed angered God. " This,<br />
is an unambiguous declaration to the value in which daughters should<br />
now-be held, in marked contrast to pre-Islamic society.<br />
Moving on from her role as daughter, one incident in FAimah's life<br />
a<br />
after the death <strong>of</strong> her father, clearly illustrates the freedom <strong>of</strong> women<br />
in Islamic times to seek to protect her own interests. She sent a<br />
messenger to,, AbU*. Bakr asking him for her rights in the inheritance <strong>of</strong><br />
a village called 'Fedk' whose revenue the Prophet used to divide<br />
between its poor Muslims and the members <strong>of</strong> his family, and also <strong>of</strong><br />
what Allah had bestowed upon. her father in al-Madinah and <strong>of</strong> -what<br />
remained from the fifth <strong>of</strong> Khaybar. AbUBakr responded, "The<br />
Prophet said: We Prophets, what we leave behind is not for inheritance<br />
but for charity, and I shall deal with it the way he dealt-with it and I<br />
shall<br />
leave -nothing<br />
that the Prophet dealt with undealt with, for I fear<br />
if I leave I something <strong>of</strong> his affairs, I would be deviating-"<br />
So when Abu- Bakr was adamant about preventing<br />
ýatimah from 'Fedk'<br />
40<br />
she went to him to argue this matter. Her reputation as a skilled and<br />
eloquent debator, like her father, was known to AbZ; Bakr- She<br />
delivered a long speech before him explaining that she had a right<br />
to her, inheritance in 'Fedk'. C Umar bin al-Khatýa-b and AbU*Bakr went<br />
to see Fatimah. She refused them permission to enter. When'Ali came,<br />
they spoke-to him and he took, them to her. When they sat down,<br />
1. gdmayrah. Abd'al-Rahnr=.<br />
9 Niia'Anzal Allah Min a Qix4arm-a 9 P, 104'9