Sara Ibrahim

From the southern Lebanese village of Ayneta, came a man who devoted his life for the sake of humanity, knowledge, charity and religion. Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Hussien Fadlallah, the Lebanese prominent Shiite Marja'a.

On Sunday the 4th of July, Sayyed Fadlallah passed away, after 75 years of non-stop sacrifice for the sake of all the people in need. His liver cancer and severe hemorrhage didn't prevent Sayyed Fadlallah from doing what he loved most, being a loving father to the whole Muslim world, for he supported every person in need in all aspects.

The founder of several Islamic religious schools, the establisher of the Mabarrat Association and the "spiritual mentor" of Hizbullah, left this world and left agony in the hearts of all the people who loved him.

On Tuesday, tens of thousands of mourners filled the streets of the Beirut southern suburb to attend the funeral procession of Ayatollah Fadlallah.

The streets were over loaded with lovers of Sayyed Fadlallah, and so they had to fill the buildings and roof tops.

Men, woman, children gathered around with sorrow, they marched the streets with teary eyes, holding Sayyed Fadlallah's pictures, weeping and crying as they heard the voice of Sayyed Fadlallah that were played by the organizers near the mosque. His voice echoed the streets of his home town, and every corner wept with pain for his absence.

Nothing stopped them from attending his funeral and crying their farewells out, some even fainted, others burst with hysterical tears, others just walked led by sadness.

Many of the attendance were students of Sayyed Fadlallah, many were children that he supported and adopted, many were his followers, they were all united at one place, one time, just like he always wanted, unity among all his beloved!

Politicians and High level delegations from Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Syria, Bahrain, and Nigeria attended the funeral to pay condolences to all the Muslim Lebanese.

One of the Bahraini delegations, Yaacoub Mohammad Ali said, " We came here to attend the procession of our father, brother, teacher, our master, and our friend. We lost everything after his death, this crucial world will remain dark till the appearance of Imam Mahdi may Allah hasten his return."

He added that Sayyed Fadlallah is a sea of knowledge, and the depth of Islam, the father of orphans, king of charity and the path of good deeds.

The president of the Shiite Suspension Court in Iraq Sheikh Saleh Al Haidari also had a word to say, "I send my condolences to all the Muslims around the world and especially the Lebanese for this great loss of a man who fought to sow seeds of love and peace around the world, a man of wisdom and knowledge."

He added that Sayyed Fadlallah raised a society that will forever Commit to the oath of good deeds and better ethics.

An 80 year old woman from Ayneta, Sayyed Fadlallah's village, wanting to express her deep sorrow, she recited a poem, "May your soul rest in peace our precious leader, you will forever be in our hearts, the wrinkles on my face increased and the pain in my bones grew stronger the moment you left this world."

Khodor Abdallah a counselor at the Nigerian Embassy in Beirut said that his great eminence will be a sweet memory carved in our hearts and minds. "May God Almighty give us strength to bear his absence, and may we be able to walk his path", he said.

He added that Sayyed Fadlallah is an Honor to the Muslim world, he was a leader that tried his best to unite all Muslims around the world, and today with this crowd, unity was achieved.

Today the whole Muslim world mourned, today the petals of the flowers he grew went pale after his death, but the seeds he sowed before he left will grow more and more of his sacred flowers of knowledge and morality.