It is almost universally agreed upon by historians and hadith scholars that, from the time the Prophet’s illness began to affect his body, Ali (peace be upon him), along with the Hashimites and some of the Muhajirun and Ansar, was occupied with nursing the Prophet, preparing him after his death, and receiving those who came to offer condolences and pay their respects. He was unaware of what was taking place to exclude him from the caliphate. Even if he had known about the measures that the people had taken, he would not have left the Prophet (peace be upon him) lying in his house as a lifeless body and gone out to demand his right, especially since none of what occurred had been expected to happen with such astonishing speed.

It is certain that he and his group of Hashimites, along with some of the Muhajirun and Ansar, did not learn of what had happened until after the people left the Saqifah, escorting Abu Bakr to the mosque and calling out his name. Whenever they encountered someone, they would drag him to the mosque and order him to pledge allegiance. At first, the people were struck by a shock similar to the astonishment that had overcome them at the time of the Prophet’s death (peace be upon him).

It is mentioned in the biography of Ibn Hisham and other sources that when Abu Bakr was given the pledge of allegiance, the people turned their attention to preparing the Prophet’s body. Ali ibn Abi Talib, al-Abbas and his two sons, al-Fadl and Qutham ibn al-Abbas, as well as Usamah ibn Zayd, undertook the preparation. Usamah had returned from al-Jurf with the army that had been stationed there. Shuqran, the freed servant of the Messenger of Allah, supported the Prophet’s body against his chest, while al-Abbas and his sons turned him over with him. Usamah poured water over him, and Ali washed him while the Prophet was still wearing his shirt. He washed him from behind the clothing without directly touching his body with his hand, saying: “May my father and mother be your ransom. How pure and beautiful you were in life and in death.”

Shaykh al-Mufid said: When the Commander of the Faithful wished to wash the Prophet, he summoned al-Fadl ibn al-Abbas and instructed him to provide the water. When he had finished washing and shrouding him, he stepped forward and prayed over him alone, not allowing anyone else to join him in the prayer. Meanwhile, the Muslims in the mosque were debating who should lead them in prayer over the Prophet and where he should be buried. The Commander of the Faithful came out to them and said: “The Messenger of Allah is our imam, both in life and in death. Therefore, let one group after another enter and pray over him without an imam, and then leave. Allah does not take the life of a prophet in a place except that He has chosen that place for his burial. I will bury him in the room in which he passed away.” No one objected to this.

Ibn Abd al-Barr narrated in al-Isti'ab that when Ali and the Banu Hashim had prayed over him and left, the Muhajirun entered, followed by the Ansar, and then the rest of the people, all praying over him without an imam.

When they had finished praying over him, al-Abbas sent for Abu Ubaydah ibn al-Jarrah, who used to dig graves for the people of Mecca and prepare the burial niche. He also sent for Zayd ibn Sahl, who used to dig graves for the people of Medina. He was told: “Dig a grave for the Messenger of Allah.” So he dug a burial niche for him. The Commander of the Faithful, al-Abbas, al-Fadl, and Usamah ibn Zayd entered in order to undertake his burial. The Ansar called out from behind the house: “O Ali, we remind you of Allah and of our right today concerning the Messenger of Allah. Do not let it pass us by. Let one of our men enter so that we may have a share in laying the Messenger of Allah to rest.” He replied: “Let Aws ibn Khawli enter.” Aws was a participant in the Battle of Badr and a virtuous man from Banu Awf. When he entered, Ali told him: “Go down into the grave.” He descended, and the Commander of the Faithful placed the Messenger of Allah into his hands and lowered him into the grave. When he had placed him in the grave, he told Aws to come out, and Aws did so. Ali (peace be upon him) then descended, uncovered the face of the Messenger of Allah, and placed his cheek upon the ground, facing the qiblah. He then placed the bricks over him, covered the grave with earth, and raised the grave approximately one span above ground level; some reports say slightly more than that.

Reports differ concerning the day on which he was buried. Most reports state that it was on the second day after his death, while some say that his burial took place during the final hour of Tuesday.

Fatimah (peace be upon her) came to the grave at the time of his burial and said: “Could you bring yourselves to throw dust upon the Messenger of Allah?” She took some of the soil from the grave and placed it upon her eyes, then recited:

“What harm would it do to one who has smelled the soil of Ahmad,
that he should never smell precious fragrances again throughout his life?

Calamities have been poured upon me,
that if they had been poured upon the days, they would have turned into nights.”

On that day, a face disappeared from the world of humanity such as history had never known a more noble face, nor a man who had given humanity what he gave and left behind what he left. No man had carried to the world a message like that message, a miracle of the ages and centuries. He was able to shake the world from one end to the other for fourteen hundred years, from that time until the present day, and he will remain, for as long as history endures, the foremost man in human history to shake tyrants, oppressors, kings of the world, and its mighty rulers.

His life story will remain a rich source of meanings of sacrifice in the cause of truth, justice, faith, and noble ideals. His law will remain humanity’s greatest miracle for as long as religions, laws, and human beings continue to exist upon the face of the earth.

And Allah, Glorified and Exalted, is the One from whom I ask that He accept this work of mine and reward me for it with the reward of those who work and strive in His cause. He is the Most Generous of those from whom anything may be asked.

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