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Ethics: Questions & Morality of Human Actions, 3rd Edition

Fatima

by Thomas Gaskill

Identification: Daughter of Muhammad

Born: c. 606, Mecca, Arabia (now Saudi Arabia)

Died: 632, Medina, Arabia (now Saudi Arabia)

Type of ethics: Religious ethics

Significance: Revered throughout the Islamic world as the matriarch of the house of ‘Ali, Fatima stands as an exemplar of piety, spiritual purity, and spiritual power.

The daughter of Khadija and the Prophet Muhammad, Fatima was married (in August, 623, or June, 624) to the Prophet’s cousin, ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib, and was the mother of Husayn and Hasan. She and Khadija were the women most beloved by the Prophet, and the tragedies that befell her husband and sons contribute to the pathos of her story. Reverence for Fatima, whose father is the Prophet, is so deep that she is often referred to as umm abiha (“her father’s mother”). The Qur’an refers to God’s wish “to remove uncleanness far from” the “Folk of the Household” of the Prophet (sura 33:33).

Fatima is often included in that Household, which has contributed to her popular image as a model of purity (much as Mary the mother of Jesus is also revered in Islam). Such spiritual purity brings with it spiritual power (barakat), and Fatima is often asked to intercede on behalf of the faithful. Fatima, ‘Ali, and their descendants are still specially honored as sadat (singular, sayyid) or ashraf (singular, sharif), and widely believed to participate still in the residual barakat of Muhammad.

See also: Husayn; Islamic ethics; Muhammad.

Citation Types

Type
Format
MLA 9th
Gaskill, Thomas. "Fatima." Ethics: Questions & Morality of Human Actions, 3rd Edition, edited by George Lucas & John K. Roth, Salem Press, 2019. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=Ethics_0788.
APA 7th
Gaskill, T. (2019). Fatima. In G. Lucas & J. K. Roth (Eds.), Ethics: Questions & Morality of Human Actions, 3rd Edition. Salem Press. online.salempress.com.
CMOS 17th
Gaskill, Thomas. "Fatima." Edited by George Lucas & John K. Roth. Ethics: Questions & Morality of Human Actions, 3rd Edition. Hackensack: Salem Press, 2019. Accessed October 22, 2025. online.salempress.com.