The Lady Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her), in her Fadak Sermon (Khutbah al-Fadak), refuted this narration, declaring it in contradiction with the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), and established inheritance law. The hadith relied upon by Abu Bakr to justify the confiscation of Fadak clearly contradicts numerous Quranic verses.
Clear Contradictions with the Quran
This fabricated narration conflicts with the Quran, which explicitly recognizes the inheritance of prophets. Among the evidence presented by Lady Fatimah (peace be upon her) is her objection:
“Do you imagine that there is no inheritance for us, the Ahl al-Bayt? Do you seek the judgment of the age of ignorance while God is the best judge for those who are certain? Do you deny my right, while it is as manifest as the shining sun that I am his daughter? Are you going to claim my father’s inheritance while Abu Quhafa’s son inherits? Truly, you have brought a most strange, unfair, and reprehensible claim.”
Prophets Leave Inheritance
She further explained:
“Have you intentionally neglected God’s Book? Allah Almighty says, ‘And Solomon inherited from David’ (Quran 27:16). Likewise, in the case of Prophet Zakariya: ‘My Lord, grant me from Yourself a successor who will inherit from me and inherit from the family of Jacob’ (Quran 19:5–6).”
Lady Fatimah (peace be upon her) also cited Quranic provisions regarding kinship and inheritance:
“And the near of kin have more right to one another in the Book of God” (Quran 8:75), and “Allah instructs you regarding your children: the male shall have the equal of the share of two females” (Quran 4:11), as well as “If one leaves wealth, let the bequest be for the parents and near relatives in kindness; this is a right for the God-conscious” (Quran 2:180).
Political Nature of the Confiscation of Fadak
The cumulative evidence clearly demonstrates that the hadith “We, the Prophets, do not leave inheritance” is baseless, anti-Quranic, contrary to the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), and inconsistent with both rational and textual proofs. Lady Fatimah’s (peace be upon her) protest revealed that the seizure of Fadak was a politically motivated action rather than a religious ruling. This episode remains one of the clearest examples in Islamic history of the distortion of the rights of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them).
