The Children of Imam Ali and His Daughter's Marriage to Umar

Question

In this Q&A, the question revolves around the number of children Imam Ali had and whether his daughter, Umm Kulthum, was married to the second caliph, Umar. The response discusses the varying historical accounts regarding the number of Imam Ali's children and delves into the complexities surrounding Umm Kulthum's identity and her marriage.

Answer 1

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When referring to historical books and narrations, one finds no reliable source to definitively determine the number of Imam Ali's children. The discrepancies arise from the overlap of their names with their titles, leading to various claims:

Some say there were twenty-eight.

Others claim thirty-three.

Some assert thirty-four.

Others mention thirty-five.

And some say thirty-nine.

The earliest claim comes from Sheikh Al-Mufid, as mentioned in his book, Al-Irshad, Vol. 1, p. 354.

As for Umm Kulthum, the discussion is extensive and can be approached from two angles:

First: Who is Umm Kulthum?

Scholarly opinions vary between supporters, refuters, and deniers. Some affirm the existence of a distinct character named Umm Kulthum, while others consider her to be the same as Lady Zainab, with the nickname Umm Kulthum.

Some rely on historical evidence to affirm her existence but deny that she is the daughter of Lady Fatimah al-Zahra.

Others outright deny the existence of a daughter of Imam Ali by that name.

And there are many other opinions on this matter.

Second: Did Umm Kulthum marry the second caliph or not?

There are also many opinions here, and the research is extensive, with books, letters, and articles written to answer this question.

Some affirm it, while others deny it, as noted in the writings of earlier scholars like Sheikh Al-Mufid and Sayyid Al-Murtada.

Later scholars, such as Sayyid Abdul Razzaq Al-Muqarram, denied her marriage to the second caliph, arguing that Imam Ali had no daughters other than Zainab, and it is historically impossible to prove otherwise, especially since they refer to Zainab al-Aqila as Umm Kulthum as well.

However, his assertion raises points of discussion among scholars that cannot be covered in this brief response.

Conversely, some scholars suggest that the marriage may have occurred under duress and intense pressure. The late scholar, Sayyid Ja'far Murtada, explained that the narrations indicate this marriage resulted from insistence and strong threats after Imam Ali presented various excuses to avoid it.

He cited instances where Imam Ali claimed she was too young, or that he had set her aside for his brother Ja'far ibn Abi Talib, or that he wanted to consult his sons, Hasan and Husayn.

Al-Tabrisi stated that our scholars said: 'He only married her off after much resistance and strong refusal, and after presenting various excuses until necessity forced him to hand the matter over to Abbas ibn Abdul Muttalib, who married her to him.'

This action by Abbas may have been presumptuous, as some texts indicate that Umar threatened and warned, sending this severe threat along with Abbas, who then requested Imam Ali to delegate the matter to him, to which Imam Ali remained silent.

It has also been narrated from Imam Al-Sadiq that regarding Umm Kulthum's marriage, he said: 'That was a marriage we were forced into.'

Those who refer to hadith books and narrations will find that the marriage is established with credible chains according to the accepted rules and discussions of narrators.

For those interested in references, they may consult the book 'The Injustice of Umm Kulthum,' which contains sufficient information regarding your question, and its author is highly knowledgeable.

All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be upon our master Muhammad and his pure family.