Granada (21 page)

"Thanks
be
to
God,
and
prayers
and
blessings
on
our
Prophet
Muhammad,
on
the
members
of
his
household
and
all
his
companions.
Our
brethren
who
hold
on
to
their
faith
are
like
those
who
hold
on
to
live
embers,
the
most
deserving
of
God's
rewards
for
what
they
encounter
and
what
they
suffer
of
themselves
and
their
children
to
please
God.
Though
they
live
in
exile,
they
are
yet
to
be
brought
close
to
His
prophet
in
Paradise,
in
the
high
est
heavens.
They
are
the
inheritors
of
the
traditions
of
the
pious
ancestors
in
bearing
the
burdens
of
the
faith
even
in
the
face
of
death.
We
ask
God's
kind
ness
and
protection
for
ourselves
and
for
you.
May
He
help
us
all
preserve
His
righteousness
with
pure
faith
and
truthfulness.
May
He
lift
from
us
our
burdens
and
ease
our
difficulties.

"Greetings
upon
you
from
the
author
of
this
fatwa,
from
the
most
hum
ble
of
God's
servants
and
the
most
needy
of
His
forgiveness,
the
servant
of
God,
Ahmad
bin
Bujum
'a
al-Maghrawi
of Oran.
May
God
shed
His
kind
ness
and
protection
on
all,
May
I
prevail
upon
you
in
your
state
of
pure
heart
and
your
presence
on
distant
shores
to
pray
your
best
prayers
so
that
God
grant
us
a
safe
and
happy
ending
to
the
perils
of
this
life.
May
He
gather
us
in
the
company
of
those
pious
folk
on
whom
He
has
shed
His
grace.
Hold
on
dearly
to
your
faith
and
instruct
your
children
who
come
of
age
to
do
the
same,
even
if
exposure
to
the
enemy
is
no
longer
a
danger
to
you.
Blessed
are
those
who
follow
the
right
path
when
others
have
been
corrupted.
For
pray
ing
to
God
amongst
the
heedless
is
like
living
among
the
dead."

"The shaykh didn't say in his fatwa that you should turn your backs on those who were forced out of their homes and have become freedom fighters."

Hasan's face contorted, and he exploded in anger. "Just listen until I finish, and don't interrupt.

"Pray,
even
if
by
outward
gestures.
And
give
as
though
you
were
giving
to
the
poor
and
destitute,
because
God
does
not
look
into
your
faces,
but
rather
into
your
souls.
Wash
yourselves
from
any
ritual
impurity,
even
by
swimming
in
the
sea.
And
if
you
are
prevented,
pray
at
night
to
make
up
for
the
day
prayers,
even
if
you
are
compelled
to
use
unclean
water.You
may
per
form
your
ablutions
with
fine
sand
by
rubbing
your
hands
on
a
wall.
If
it
is
not
possible,
you
are
absolved
from
performing
the
prayer
for
lack
of
water
or
fine
sand,
unless
you
can
point
with
your
hands
and
face
to
pure
earth,
a
stone,
or
a
tree
with
which
to
clean
yourselves.Then
you
may
go
through
the
gestures
. . ."

Hasan read on in a soft voice with a slight tremor and a grim expression on his face.

"And
if
they
coerce
you
into
denying
your
religion,
and
if
you
can
do
so
deceivingly
and
with
trickery,
then
do
so;
and
if
you
cannot,
then
rest
assured
in
your
faith
even
if
you
utter
something false.
And
if
they
force
you
to
insult
the
Prophet
Muhammad,
then
do
so
with
the
devil
in
mind."

Tears rolled down from Hasan's eyes and his voice quivered and cracked as he continued to read until he reached the end.

"Whatever
hardship
you
face,
seek
counsel
with
us
so
that
we
guide
you
in
the
right
direction,
God
willing.
We
ask
God
to
end
all
coercion
against
Islam
so
that
you
may
worship
Him
with
His
grace
without
intimidation
and
fear,
but
with
the
aid
of
our
co-religionists,
the
noble
Turks.
2
And
we
bear
witness
to
you
in
the
eyes
of
God
that
you
have
been
truthful
and
you
have
accepted
Him
.
We
must
respond
to
you,
and
send
you
our
sincerest
wishes
for
your
safety.
May
those
in
exile
return,
God
willing."

Saad looked at Hasan despondently but responded with resolve: "This is a fatwa about something else. I'll be leaving at the crack of dawn."

2. It was widely believed among the Muslims of Spain and North Africa at the time that the Ottoman Turks would defeat the Christians and bring al-Andalus back into Islamdom.

15

U
mm Jaafar was waiting for Saad to return when she died in her sleep. She passed on with no one in the household aware of any trace of illness. She took to her bed because she was weak, and she never complained of any ailment. When they found her in the morning, she had already died during the night.

"What shall we do?" asked Umm Hasan, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Take Maryama and Saleema inside and wash the body according to our tradition, then dress her in her embroidered dress. I'll go and call the priest to come and read whatever prayers he wishes to read and let him go. Then I'll let Abu Mansour and some of the neighbors know. We'll conduct the prayers of the dead here in the house, then we'll carry the body out and walk in procession and bury her according to their tradition."

"We bury her according to their way?" she asked Hasan.

"Yes, according to their way." He replied as the color faded in his face and a stern look shot from his eye. He spoke as though he had rehearsed what to say and was exhausted from repeating it, and he delivered his lines quickly so he wouldn't stutter or waver. His mother stared at him, and he averted his eyes. "I'll perform the ablutions and get the Quran."

The women did exactly what he asked them to do. They were sobbing quietly while they poured warm water over the lifeless body. When Maryama brought the embroidered dress to the corpse,
Umm Hasan leaned over and kissed Umm Jaafar's forehead and whispered, "We never wanted to deprive you of your shroud. Forgive us!"
¹