Quick Answer:
From the very beginning of Islam, the Lady Fatimah (‘a) was an aid and support for her father.
Detailed Answer:
From the very beginning of Islam, the Lady Fatimah (‘a) was an aid and support for her father. During the three years before the emigration to Medina, the people of Mecca would oftentimes harass and persecute the Prophet (ṣ); sometimes they would d r o p ashes upon him, while other times they would throw the offals of animals on him. Each time he returned home, Fatimah (‘a) was there to clean and console him. Her eyes would fill with tears at what the people of Mecca were willing to do to her father but the Prophet (s) would console her, saying: Oh my daughter, do not become sad and do not cry, for the Lord is the protector and guardian of your father.[1]
Sometimes the enemies would congregate at the Ḥijr of Ismā’īl and they would swear upon their idols that they would kill Muhammad wherever they found him. Fatimah (‘a) would hear of this news and she would relate it to her father in order that he could take further precautions.[2] This shows that she was not only defending her father from within the home, but she also played a role in his defense from outside as well.
During this time, Abū Jahl instigated a group of Meccan thugs to throw sheep intestines on the Prophet (ṣ) while he was prostrating in prayer at the Masjid al-Ḥarām. When they threw the intestines on the Prophet (ṣ), Abū Jahl and his friends began to laugh and mock him. Some of the Prophet’s (ṣ) companions saw what had taken place but there was nothing they could do. The news of what had happened reached Fatimah (‘a); she quickly rushed to Masjid al-Ḥarām and helped to clean the Prophet (ṣ). With the utmost courage and bravery she castigated and censured Abū Jahl for what he had done.[3]
Similarly, when the Battle of Uḥud took place, the Prophet (ṣ) was injured in the midst of the fighting. The news of this reached Medina and Fatimah quickly rushed to Uḥud, even though the distance between these two places was quite considerable and she was only a young girl at that time. When she reached Uḥud, she washed her father’s face with water and wiped off the blood that was on him. Since his forehead continued to bleed from a cut, she burned a piece of a straw mat and used the ash to stem the flow of his blood. She even procured a weapon for her father for the battle that was going to take place on the following day.[4]
In addition to this battle, we see Fatimah (‘a) present alongside her father in all the major events of early Islamic history. During the Battle of Aḥzāb, she was the one who brought the Prophet (ṣ) food after he had been hungry for several days. Similarly, after the conquest of Mecca, she erected a tent in order that the Prophet (ṣ) could wash himself and his clothes, so that he could then go towards the Masjid al-Ḥarām while he had washed himself and was wearing clean clothing. This is just a small remembrance of the actions of the Lady Fatimah (‘a) towards aiding and supporting her father, the Prophet of Islam (ṣ); indeed entire volumes have been written on her role in the history and growth of Islam.[5]
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