Archive for month: October, 2016

The Shi’as of Kufa came in groups to meet Muslim as he stayed at al-Mukhtar’s house, pledging to him their obedience. This increased his happiness and elation. When he read to them Imam al-Husayn’s letter, Abis ibn Shibeeb ash-Shakiri stood and said, “I do not speak on behalf of the people, nor do I know what they conceal in their hearts, nor do I deceive you in their regard. By Allah! I can tell you what I personally have decided to do. By Allah! I shall respond to your call, and I shall fight your enemy. I shall defend you with my sword till I meet Allah desiring nothing except what He has in store for me.”

Habib ibn Muzahir said, “You have briefly stated your intention, and by Allah, the One and only Allah, I feel exactly as you do.” Sa’d ibn Abdullah al-Hanafi made a similar statement. Other Shi’as came to swear the oath of allegiance to him till hisdiwan counted as many as eighteen thousand men. Some historians say that they were as many as twenty five thousand men. According to ash-Sha’bi, however, the number of those who swore allegiance to him reached forty thousand. It was then that Muslim wrote Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) a letter which he handed to Abis ibn Shibeeb ash-Shakiri informing him of the consensus among the people of Kufa to obey him and to wait for his arrival.

In it, he said, “A scout does not lie to his people. Eighteen thousand Kufians have already come to me; so, hurry and come here as soon as this letter reaches you.” That was twenty-seven days before Muslim’s martyrdom. The Kufians, too, added to it their own letter wherein they stated the following: “Hurry and come to us, O son of the Messenger of Allah! A hundred thousand swords are in Kufa on your side; so, do not tarry.”

This angered a group of the Umayyads with vested interests. Among them were Omer bin Sa’d, son of the renown Sa’d ibn Abu Waqqas, Abdullah ibn Muslim ibn Rabi’ah al-Hadrami, and Imarah ibn Uqbah ibn Abu Mueet. They wrote Yazid warning him of the arrival of Muslim ibn Aqeel and the rallying of the people of Kufa behind him, adding that an-Numan ibn Basheer, governor of Kufa, was not strong enough to stand in his [Aqeel’s] way.

Yazid deposed an-Numan ibn Basheer and appointed Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad in his place. The new governor was a man very well known for his ruthfulness. Yazid ordered Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad to rush to Kufa in the company of Muslim ibn Omer al-Bahili, al-Munthir ibn al-Jarad, and Abdullah ibn al-Harith ibn Nawfal escorted by five hundred soldiers whom he hand-picked from among the people of Basra. Ibn Ziyad rushed to Kufa, paying no attention to anyone who fell off his horse due to exhaustion even if he were one of his own closest friends.

For example, when Shurayk ibn al-A’war fell on the way, and even when Abdullah ibn al-Harith fell, thinking that Ibn Ziyad would slow down for their sake, Ibn Ziyad paid no attention to them, fearing that Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) might reach Kufa before him. Whenever he passed by a checkpoint, its guards thought that he was Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ), so they said, “Welcome, O son of the Messenger of Allah!”

He remained silent till he reached Kufa via the Najaf highway. When he arrived, people welcomed him and said in one voice: “Welcome, O son of the Messenger of Allah!” This only intensified his outrage. He continued his march till he reached the governor’s mansion. An-Numan did not open the gate for him, and he spoke to him from the mansion’s roof-top. Said he, “I shall not return the trust to you, O son of the Messenger of Allah!” Ibn Ziyad said to him, “Open the gate, for your night has extended too long!” A man heard his voice and recognized him. He, therefore, said to the people, “He is Ibn Ziyad, by the Lord of the Ka’ba!” They, therefore, opened the gate for him then dispersed, going back home.

In the morning, Ibn Ziyad gathered people at the grand mosque. There, he delivered a speech warning them against mutiny and promising them generous rewards for conforming. Said he, “Anyone found to be sheltering one of those who scheme against the authority of the commander of the faithful [meaning Yazid] and who does not hand him over will be crucified on the door of his own house.”

When Muslim ibn Aqeel came to know about Ibn Ziyad’s speech and his explicit threats and having come to know about people’s conditions, he feared being assassinated. He, therefore, left al-Mukhtar’s house after the dark and went to the house of Hani ibn Urwah al-Mathhaji who was a very zealous Shi’a. He was also one of Kufa’s dignitaries, one of its qaris of the Holy Qur’an, and the shaikh and chief of the Banu Murad. He could easily raise four thousand troops fully armed and eight thousand cavaliers.

If he includes his tribe’s allies from Kindah, the number would swell to thirty thousand. He was one of the closest friends of the Commander of the Faithful Imam Ali ibn Abu Talib (ﻉ) on whose side he fought in all his three battles. He had seen and was honoured by being a companion of the Prophet (ﺹ).

When he was later killed in defense of Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ), he was more than ninety years old. Muslim ibn Aqeel stayed at the house of Shareek ibn Abdullah al-A’war al-Harithi al-Hamadani al-Basri, one of the main supporters of the Commander of the Faithful, peace be with him, in Basra. He had participated in the Battle of Siffeen and fought side by side with the great sahabi Ammar ibn Yasir. Due to his distinction and prominence, Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad appointed him as Governor of Kerman on behalf of Mu’awiyah. He used to be in contact with and in the company of Hani ibn Urwah.

The Shi’as kept meeting Muslim ibn Aqeel secretly at Hani’s house without attracting the attention of Ibn Ziyad, admonishing each other to keep it to themselves. Ibn Ziyad, therefore, could not know where Muslim was. He called Maqil, his slave, to meet him.

He gave him three thousand [dinars] and ordered him to meet the Shi’as and to tell them that he was a Syrian slave of Thul-Kila and that Allah blessed him with loving Ahl al-Bayt of His Messenger (ﻉ), that it came to his knowledge that one of the members of Ahl al-Bayt (ﻉ) had come to that country, and that he had with him some money which he wanted to deliver to him. Maqil entered the grand mosque and saw Muslim ibn Awsajah al-Asadi offering his prayers. Having seen him finish his prayers, he came close to him and made the above claim to him.

Muslim ibn Awsajah prayed Allah to grant that man goodness and success. He then accompanied him to the place where Muslim ibn Aqeel was hiding. The spy delivered the money to Muslim and swore the oath of allegiance to him. The money was handed over to Abu Thumamah as-Saidi who was a far-sighted and a brave Shi’a dignitary appointed by Muslim to receive the funds and to buy thereby weapons. That man kept meeting Muslim every day. No secrets were kept from him, so he kept gathering intelligence and getting it to Ibn Ziyad in the evening.

KARBALA AND BEYOND

Having refused to swear the oath of allegiance to Yazid, Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) realized that his stay in Medina was becoming impossible, unsafe; therefore, he decided to bid farewell to it. Bidding his people and friends to get ready for the journey, he went at night to the tomb of his grandfather Prophet Muhammad (ﺹ).

Approaching the grave, he greeted him then said, “Assalamo Alaikom, O Messenger of Allah! I am the son of the beloved portion of your heart Fatima. Grandfather! You yourself had bequeathed to our Umma (nation) urging them to look after me and to take care of me, but they have neglected doing so and quite forgotten all of that.”

He spent the entire night at the tomb occupied in prayer the entire period, returning after daybreak. He did the same in the following night. One of his prayers in that second night was:

Allah! This is the resting-place of Your beloved Prophet Muhammad (ﺹ) and I am his grandson. You know well the present situation in which I am, and You know what is in the innermost of my heart. I invoke You, Lord, to keep me by the grace of this holy place firmly steadfast in my pursuit of whatever meets Your Pleasure and the Pleasure of Your Prophet.

At-Tabari, Abu Mikhnaf and many other historians record saying that Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) saw his grandfather the Prophet (ﺹ) in his vision at the end of that same second night calling unto him thus:

Come to me, O Husayn! Come to me going by and passing through the torturous stage of martyrdom and claim the right position reserved for you. The Lord, Allah, will resurrect me, your parents, your elder brother ( al-Hassan ) and yourself at the same time and gather us all at the same place on the Day of Judgment.

Umm Salamah, the virtuous wife of Prophet Muhammad (ﺹ), hurried to Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) as soon as she heard that he intended to depart from Medina. She said to him, “Son! How will I be able to bear your journey to Iraq? I have heard your grandfather (the Prophet [ﺹ]) saying, My son al-Husayn will be murdered on a tract of land people will call Karbala’’.’” “By Allah, mother,” Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) answered, adding, “I know all that. I also know on what day I will be murdered, and the name of the man who will murder me. I know, too, the people who will inter my dead body and the members of my Ahl al-Bayt and friends who will meet their martyrdom along with me. If you desire, I will show you the exact spot of my grave.” On Rajab 28, 60 A.D./May 7, 680 A.D., Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) left Medina for good accompanied by 21 male children in addition to the ladies.

KARBALA AND BEYOND

Yazid’s grandfather, Abu Sufyan, advised and managed the infidel’s campaigns against Islam till the conquest of Mecca, as stated above. His wife Hind (mother of Mu’awiyah and grandmother of Yazid) tried to chew the liver of Hamzah, uncle of the Prophet (ﺹ), because of her burning hatred and cannibalism.

Mu’awiyah, too, was an active opponent of Islam. Indeed, Abu Sufyan’s family was performing the strategic, financial and morale boosting in the infidel’s campaign against the Muslims for many years. Their efforts, wealth and diplomacy formed a great obstacle in the way of spreading Islam.

Time had lapsed and Mecca was suddenly besieged with the considerably large forces of the Muslims. The unbelievers in Mecca were stunned at seeing the Muslim fighters who had caught them by surprise, thanks to the shrewd military tactics of the Prophet (ﺹ).

Thus, the infidels, including Abu Sufyan, had no choice except to abandon their arrogance and to accept Allah’s sovereignty, or so did most of them pretend. Mu’awiyah was then 28 years old. Having seen how his father “accepted” Islam, though reluctantly, he fled for Bahrain where he wrote his father a very nasty letter reprimanding him for his “conversion.” It is not clear when Mu’awiyah brought himself to profess adherence to the Islamic creed.

During this incident, i.e. the fall of Mecca to the Muslims, which was accomplished on a Friday, the 20th of the month of Ramadan, 8 A.H., corresponding to January 14, 630 A.D., less than two years before the Prophet’s demise, historians recorded some peculiar stories about Abu Sufyan’s family; however, there is one thing certain: They accepted Islam unwillingly, and they were treated in a special way on that account.

For instance, they were given more than their share of the treasury in order to gain their hearts and win them over to Islam. But whether this generosity had any effect in producing any change at all in their attitude is quite another story. Indeed, subsequent events revealed the fact that no change at all had taken place in their way of thinking.

Yazid was brought up in such a family whose atmosphere was electrified with emotions of its dead who fought Islam and who were killed mostly during Islam’s first major battle, that of Badr which broke out on a Friday, the 17th of the month of Ramadan, 2 A.H., corresponding to March 16, 624 A.D. and to which the Holy Qur’an refers in 8:5-11. Seventy prominent pagan Quraishites were killed in it, half of them at the hands of Imam al-Husayn’s father Ali ibn Abu Talib (ﻉ). That, by the way, was Ali’s first battle; he was 24 years old.

Among the Umayyads who were killed in it were: Utbah, father-in-law of Yazid’s father Mu’awiyah, Utbah’s son al-Walid ibn al-Mugharah (father of the famous military leader Khalid ibn al-Walid), and Shaybah, Utbah’s brother. Al-Walid ibn al-Mugharah is cursed in the Holy Qur’an in 74:11-30 (Surat al-Muddaththir). Utbah is father of Hind, mother of Yazid, who tried to chew the liver of Hamzah, Prophet Muhammad (ﺹ)’s dear uncle and valiant defender of Islam.

Add to this the fact that such family witnessed how those who had killed their kinsfolk received full honour, recognition, and respect by the entire community, not to mention the wasted wealth, the injured pride, and the loss of privileges which they used to enjoy during the pre-Islamic period known as the jahiliyya.

Yet Yazid himself had some unique characteristics in the negative and adverse sense of the word in addition to what we recorded above. He was known as a playboy; he is on record as the first person ever to compose pornographic poetry. He described each and every part of his aunt’s body for sensual excitement, doing so without being reprimanded by his father or mother or anyone else. Historians record his being seen drunk in public, his committing adultery, and his leading quite a corrupt life, a life which did not last for long, thank Allah. In one of his poetic verses, Yazid stated, “The family of Hashim (the Prophet’s clansmen) staged a play to get a kingdom. Actually, there was neither news from Allah (wahi) received nor a revelation.”

Mu’awiyah was not ruling as an individual but was representing a way of thinking which differed in nature from everything Islam stands for. However, he was not satisfied to leave the ruling stage without making sure that it was properly looked after. His pragmatic and materialistic mind drove him to prepare for the crowning of his son, Yazid, as his successor.

Mu’awiyah had made many pledges not to install Yazid when he saw the conditions at the time not conducive to such a plan because Muslims were still politically conscious and desired to see the restoration of the Islamic laws and values. Mu’awiyah, hence, had a difficult job at hand before leaving this world.

He, in fact, tried his best to buy the allegiance for his son from his army’s commanders, tribal chiefs and chieftains, and entire tribes as well as men of distinction and influence, spending huge sums of money in the process. But his efforts did not succeed with everyone.

One of his failed attempts was when he wrote Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) soliciting his endorsement for his appointment of Yazid as the heir apparent to the throne. Imam al-Husayn’s answer was a scathing criticism of all what Mu’awiyah and Yazid had committed. Mu’awiyah, therefore, forewarned his son Yazid to beware of Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ).

Yazid eventually succeeded his father Mu’awiyah as the ruler. Yazid now spared no means to secure the submission for his unholy practices, oppression and aggression, from everyone. He knew very well that in reality, he had no legitimate right whatsoever to make claims or to issue demands. On the contrary, he was guilty of having committed many illegal and sacrilegious deeds for which he should have been killed, had there anyone powerful enough to implement the Islamic code of justice.

Once in charge, Yazid took his father’s advice regarding Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) seriously. He wrote the then governor of Medina, al-Walid ibn Utbah, ordering him to secure the oath of allegiance to him as the new ruler from everyone in general and from Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ), Abdullah ibn Omer (son of second caliph Omer ibn al-Khattab), and Abdullah ibn az-Zubair in particular, being the most prominent personalities. Yazid in an unmistakable language ordered al-Walid to secure such an oath for him by force if necessary, and that if Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) refused, he should behead him and send his severed head to him in Damascus.

But al-Walid’s efforts were fruitless. Imam al-Husayn’s reply was exact and direct; said he, “Ameer (Governor)! I belong to the Ahl al-Bayt (family) of the Prophet. Allah has consigned to and charged us with the Imamate (spiritual and political leadership of the Muslims). Angels pay us visits. Yazid is a wicked sinner, a depraved reprobate, a wanton drunkard, a man who sheds blood unjustly, and a man who openly defies Allah’s commandments. A man like me will never yield his allegiance to a person like him.”

KARBALA AND BEYOND

How did Mu’awiyah ascend to the post of ruler of the Muslims, and how did he dare to claim succession to the Prophet (ﺹ), the irreligious, liar, cheating, cunning and conniving man that he was? What happened to the Muslim world? Why was it silent at seeing the assumption of power by an ignoble person like Yazid? Indeed, it is astonishing to witness the indifference and irresponsibility demonstrated by the vast majority of Muslims.

One is tempted to say that such indifference is present even in our own time. Our time, in fact, can best be described as the neo-jahiliyya. There are already too many Yazids but no al-Husayn to come to the rescue. Islamic values and ideals were as if totally alien to the society. What happened to the dynamic forces that had awakened the world and shaken it like never before? The Prophet’s voice had not yet died away regarding the responsibility of the Muslims.

He once said, “One who sees a cruel governor violating Allah’s laws, breaking His covenant, acting in contrast to the tradition of the Prophet, committing mischief and intruding upon peoples’ rights, without trying to change that governor through his action, or speech, Allah will then reserve a suitable place for him in Hell.”

We all may wonder about the causes of deviation which led to this deplorable state of affairs. We know for sure that Islam is a perfect and practical religion, a complete way of life. Islam, no doubt, assured us of guiding us to a secure and prosperous life. The question of deficiency in the Islamic message, however, if there is such deficiency at all, or in the way it was conducted by the Prophet (ﺹ), has no place here.

The only possible shortcomings, therefore, are confined to the subsequent status of the Muslims, to their way of handling their affairs, and to their conformity to the Islamic laws besides the “natural” obstacles encountered in the sequence of events. Following is the major cause that contributed to the deplorable status quo of the Muslims of the time and is still contributing to that of our own and will continue to do so till the end of time.

KARBALA AND BEYOND

Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ), the Master of Martyrs and the hero of this brief history review, was the greatest spiritual leader of his time in the entire world of Islam. He was an Imam, the brother of an Imam, and the son of an Imam. None in history ever enjoyed such merits. All religious authorities admitted his moral, spiritual and religious superiority over everyone else. They admitted that if there was an individual fit for the spiritual and religious vicegerency of the Holy prophet of Islam (ﻉ), Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) was the person best suited for it.

Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) was born in Medina on the 15th of the month of Ramadan, 3 A.H./March 1, 625 A.D. and was named ” al-Husayn” which means “Junior al-Hassan,” since his older brother is named ” al-Hassan.” Ali (ﻉ) chose to name both his sons after Shabar and Shubayr, sons of prophet Aaron, older brother of Prophet Moses, peace be with both of them. Even during his childhood, Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) was known for his brilliance, piety, and lofty upbringing.

His grandfather, the Prophet of Islam, surrounded him with his affection and taught him a great deal, making him the custodian of Allah’s knowledge, and so did Imam al-Husayn’s mother, Fatima (ﻉ), the Head of all the Women of the World, and so did his father Imam Ali (ﻉ) whom the Prophet (ﺹ) took as a “brother” when he joined the Ansar and the Muhajiran with the bond of brotherhood following his historic migration from Mecca to Medina.

The Prophet (ﺹ), who never uttered a word out of favoritism or in response to an emotional outburst, called Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) and his older brother Imam al-Hassan (ﻉ) “Masters of the Youths of Paradise;” all the residents of Paradise are young.

Imam al-Husayn’s life and status in the Islamic history are formidable. Fatima (ﻉ), his mother, was the dearest daughter of her father (ﻉ). At-Tirmithi cited Usamah ibn Zaid ibn Harithah (referred to above) saying that the Prophet (ﺹ) had said, “The dearest member of my family to me is Fatima.” She was declared by the Prophet as the Head of all the Women of the world. She and her husband were members of the family who were distinguished for their qualities and services to Islam.

They are role models for all Muslim men and women. Their role was an extension of the Prophet’s role in leading the great cultural transformation from the darkness of an infidel culture to the light of Islam, the beacon of guidance and the guarantor of happiness in this life and in the one to come.

Historians recorded the birth of Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) as an exciting event for the Muslims of Medina and especially for the Prophet of Allah (ﻉ). The Muslims congratulated each other for the new child whom the Prophet considered as his own son. The Prophet once declared, “Husayn is of me, and I am of Husayn. O Allah! Be pleased with whoever pleases al-Husayn!” This testimony was not accidental, nor was it the result of emotional expressions. This declaration came from a responsible wise leader, the Prophet of Allah, who would never commit a mistake during the performance of his Prophetic mission.

It is easy to understand the first part of this weighty statement: ” al-Husayn is of me,” for surely Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) was of the Prophet’s own lineage through his daughter Fatima.(ﻉ). But what about the other half, that of “and I am of al-Husayn”? How could the grandfather be of his grandson? If you consider this statement in the light of the role Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) played in Islam’s history, you will understand what the Prophet meant. He simply meant to say, “And my Message is to be continued through al-Husayn’s martyrdom.”

The Prophet, in this statement, was delivering an important message and foretelling people of who would act as the fountainheads of Islamic guidance and who would guard his divine message in the future. Emotions and sentiments are not loose in a Muslim’s life but are controlled by Islamic concepts and principles. There is always a criterion for “like” and “dislike” which evolves from the deeply rooted Islamic concepts.

Although Abu Lahab was an uncle of the Prophet (ﺹ), his infidelity made him cursed till the Day of Judgment. The same applied to another uncle, Abu Jahal. The Prophet of Allah made another statement which leaves no doubt about Imam Imam al-Hassan’s and Imam al-Husayn’s roles. As indicated above, he (ﻉ) said, ” al-Hassan and al-Husayn are the masters of the youths of Paradise.” This was presented as a credential to the Muslim nation so that it would uphold their leadership.

At a certain time, the Muslims in Medina realized and appreciated the Islamic message’s glory and sweet tasting fruits, so they intended to reward the Prophet (ﺹ) for his efforts in guiding them out of the darkness of jahiliyya and into the light of Islam. The gift they presented to the Prophet (ﺹ) was some gold which they had collected. The Prophet’s answer came not from him personally but, rather, from his Lord on his behalf in the text of the following Qur’anic verses which were revealed during this very incident:

Say (O Muhammad !): “No reward do I ask you for this (conveying of the Message) except that you be kind to those of my kin.” (Qur’an, 23:42)

Muhammad Jawad Maghniyyah, author of تفسير الكاشف Tafsir al-Kashif5, narrates saying that when this verse was revealed, people asked the Prophet (ﺹ), “O Messenger of Allah! Who are these of your kin for whom respect is made obligatory on us by this verse?” The Prophet (ﺹ) answered, “They are Ali, Fatima, and their two sons.”

However, this did not imply disrespect for other members of his kinsfolk or companions. Looking objectively at the message of this verse, it will indicate to you, first of all, reluctance to accept material rewards. If a reward is not suitable, it cannot, and it must not, be accepted. Hence, the verse was enjoining respect for specific people, not because they are only the Prophet’s relatives. But the real reason behind this respect was to safeguard the Islamic message. The role these holy personalities played in the Islamic history required such respect in order to enable them to perform their duties.

Al-Hakim quoted Au Sa’d al-Khudri saying that the Prophet (ﺹ) once said, “One who dislikes us, we Ahl al-Bayt [ﻉ] (family of Prophet Muhammad [ﺹ]), Allah shall hurl him into the fire of Hell.” This implies that those who dislike the Islamic conduct and way of life as personified by these individuals, through their exemplary conduct, shall receive the Almighty’s condemnation and shall taste of His torment.

Jabir ibn Abdullah al-Ansari6, a maternal relative and one of the greatest of all companions of Prophet Muhammad (ﺹ), narrated once saying that in a speech delivered immediately following the performance of his last pilgrimage, the Farewell Pilgrimage referred to above, the Prophet (ﺹ) said, “O people! I am leaving among you the Book of Allah and my Itrat (Progeny) for your guidance. So long as you hold fast to them both (at the same time), surely you will never stray.” This tradition was narrated not only by Jabir but also by at least twenty other eyewitnesses who heard it in person and who participated in that same pilgrimage, and their statements are recorded in numerous references.

Such statements were transmitted by chains of trusted narrators of hadith. In his renown book Sahih, Muslim cites some of them. In another tradition transmitted by Abu Tharr al-Ghifari, the Prophet (ﺹ) is quoted as saying, “O people! Let my family act among you like the head of the body, and like the eyes of the head among you.” These traditions are impressive in many respects. First, they were narrated by different sources of different inclinations; this adds to their credibility. Second, the same content indicates their consistency, underscoring their authenticity.

Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) was one member of the family of the Prophet (ﺹ). He was brought up in the Prophetic guidance where he received the direct attention of the Prophet (ﺹ). The ideal atmosphere where he had grown up with his grandfather, father, mother, and elder brother, was the highest level ever attained. Thus, he acquired wisdom and learned generosity, bravery, piety while attaining the highest knowledge. He occupied outstanding posts during his father’s caliphate. During the terror and corruption which swept the Muslim world at the hands of the Umayyad dynasty that ruled the Islamic world (from 661 – 750 A.D.) with an iron fist, he was the sole hope of the Muslims to restore the Islamic laws and to thus bring them prosperity, peace, and happiness in both worlds.

Having seen how his older brother Imam al-Hassan (ﻉ) was betrayed by his friends and poisoned by his foes, Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) remained in seclusion from the public for ten years, feeling helpless against the tide of Umayyad corruption and tyranny. Gradually, people realized that none could save them from such tyranny except Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) himself, so they kept appealing to him to lead them against the Umayyads, and he kept ignoring their pleas due to his knowledge that he could not rely on them to remain steadfast on the battlefield against Mu’awiyah’s mighty Syrian army, being convinced that they would betray him just as they had betrayed his older brother and his father. They did exactly so as you will see…

Most of the pleas came from the people of Kufa, Iraq, mostly Shi’as who were subjected to untold atrocities by Kufa’s then governor (appointed on behalf of the central Umayyad government in Damascus) Muhammad ibn al-Ash’ath and the top men who supported him and his Umayyad superiors, namely Shurayh, Kufa’s judge, a typical preacher of the rulers, by the rulers, and for the rulers, a man who was issuing verdicts according not to the teachings of the Holy Qur’an and the Sunnah but to please the Umayyads who were paying his salary and showering him and his likes with gifts from time to time, and Omer ibn Sa’d. The letters those Kufians sent to Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) numbered ten to twelve thousand, and many of them threatened Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) of questioning him before the Almighty on the Day of Judgment as to: “Why did you not respond to the people who sought your assistance to put an end to tyranny and oppression?”

Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) had to oblige despite all the odds against him. He, in fact, knew fully well that he was marching to his death, having already been informed of his martyrdom in the land of Karbala’’ by none other than his holy grandfather who even named his killer. He was informed of

his women and children taken captive and of the time and day when he would be martyred. Everything was already decreed, and Imam al-Husayn (ﻉ) had no choice except to fulfil a decree by sacrificing himself and all the dear ones with him for the sake of Islam. We only wish here to unveil the startling aspects of the revolution’s message which is often neglected in its traditional commemoration.

Confronting all the details of this momentous event, we have to answer many pressing questions such as: Why did this revolution take place? What were its implications and procedures? And what were its conclusive results? The answers may provide a guiding light so that we may form our conclusions. The following account is based on the most popular and trustworthy authorities on the subject.

To understand Imam al-Husayn’s personality and the collective culture of the society, a summary of Islam’s view of life is necessary.

KARBALA AND BEYOND