In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
And the city of Medina grew dark.
These were the final days in the house of ‘A’ishah.
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, would return to his home.
He would speak to ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her.
He would tell her that he was feeling the effects of the poison from the Jewish woman at Khaybar.
‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, relates:
The Prophet, peace be upon him, used to say during the illness in which he passed away:
"O ‘A’ishah,
I still feel the pain of the food I ate at Khaybar.
And now, I feel as though my aorta is being severed by that poison."
Ibn Hajar said:
The Prophet, peace be upon him, lived for three years after that incident,
until the illness in which his soul was taken.
He would repeatedly say:
"I still feel the pain of the meal I ate at Khaybar, time and again,
and now is the time I feel my aorta being severed."
It is a vein in the back.
Thus, the Prophet, peace be upon him, died as a martyr,
just as Ibn Mas‘ud swore to be the case.
Then Umm Mubashir entered and said:
"May my father and mother be sacrificed for you, O Messenger of Allah,
what do you suspect is the cause of your condition?"
She added, "I suspect nothing but the food that was eaten with you at Khaybar."
Her son had died before the Prophet, peace be upon him,
and he said:
"And I suspect nothing else;
this is the time I feel my aorta being severed."
The pain intensified for the Prophet, peace be upon him,
as ‘A’ishah and Ibn ‘Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, narrate.
He said:
When the final illness descended upon the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
he began to cast a garment of his over his face.
Whenever he felt distressed, he would uncover his face.
People came in succession to visit the Prophet, peace be upon him.
Then entered the beloved daughter,
Fatimah al-Zahra,
the person most deeply afflicted by the loss of the beloved Prophet, peace be upon him.
‘A’ishah says:
The Prophet, peace be upon him, called for Fatimah, peace be upon her,
during the illness in which he passed away.
He whispered something to her, and she wept.
Then he called her again,
and whispered something to her, and she laughed.
We asked her about that,
and she said:
"The Prophet, peace be upon him, whispered to me
that he would pass away during this illness of his,
so I wept.
Then he whispered to me again,
and informed me that I would be the first of his family to follow him,
so I laughed."
Fatimah laughed when she realized she would be the first of his family to join him.
She laughed to teach us
that death is better than a life without the companionship of the Message and the Messenger.
Anas Ibn Malik describes the final days of the Prophet, peace be upon him,
as he went out for prayer.
He says:
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, went out during the illness in which he died,
leaning on Usamah,
wearing a cotton garment,
and he led the people in prayer.
And the city of Medina grew dark.