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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 Food for Thought: - Sayings of Imam Ali (A.S.) 02

2 Your Daily-Life Questions Answered 03

3 The Role of Hardship and Suffering in the Spiritual Progress 04

4 Why the Martyrdom of Imam Husayn (a.s) became Immortal? 15

5 The Defeat of the Umayyad Empire 23

6 The Arba’een 30

7 Duas and Ways Through Which One Can Earn Lawful Rizq

(Sustenance) 38

8 Shaking Hands with a Non-Mahram Woman 42

9 The Event of Di'bil al-Khuza’i 54

10 Imam al-Reza’s (a.s.) Martyrdom 57

Kids’ CornerKids’ CornerKids’ CornerKids’ Corner

12 Passing Away of the Holy Prophet (S) 61

13 The pilgrimage of the grave of Imam Husayn (A.S.) 62

14 EMAM-e- ZAAMIN (A.S.) 64

THE MESSAGE

Editor: Hujjat-ul-Islam Wal Muslimeen Sheikh Shabbir H. Lakhani (Maisami)

Editorial Board: Mr. Mazher Ali Jumani, Molana Sajjad Qaimi, Dr. Hussain Kanani,

Mr. Hasnain Nanjiani.

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and not of the Journal or its Editorial Board or the Publisher.

Published by

Zahra (S.A.) Academy Institute of Islamic Education, Development & Relief

The Message Safar-ul-Muzaffar 1441 AH

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1. Do not humiliate the weak

ones from among your

brethren; for whoever hu-

miliates a believer, Allah

Almighty will not bring them

together in Heaven until he

repents.

2. Poverty is part of the trial,

and worse than that is the

sickness of the body, and

worse than that is the sick-

ness of the heart.

3. Verily if you are not killed

then you are going to die

anyway, and I swear by the

One Who holds Ali’s soul in

His Hand, a thousand

strikes of the sword on

one’s head is easier to bear

than to die in one’s bed.

4. Be forgiving with your

power, generous in spite of

your own hardship and ef-

fective in spite of your own

neediness, and your virtue

will be perfected.

5. Pardon spoils a sinful man

just as much as it can re-

form a decent man.

6. One who is not ashamed in

front of people is not

ashamed in front of Allah,

Glory be to Him.

7. He who abundantly and

frequently takes lessons

[from his experiences] rare-

ly stumbles.

8. Patience is that a man

bears whatever afflicts him

and swallows his anger.

9. Whoever you have sought

your need from, you have

lowered yourself in his eyes.

10. When an intelligent man

grows old, his intellect re-

mains young [and sharp],

and when the ignorant man

grows old, his ignorance too

remains young [and more

reckless].

11. Opportunity is quick to pass

on, and slow to come back.

12. The little that you perform

continuously is weightier

than the great amount that

you perform odiously.

��

FOOD FOR THOUGHT Sayings of Imam Ali (A.S.)

Safar-ul-Muzaffar 1441 AH The Message

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Q.1: A man died leaving

behind his mother, wife

and a daughter. How

would we divide his prop-

erty?

Ans.: 1/6th of the deceased’s property will be given to his mother, 1/8th to the wife "not land" and the rest to the daughter.

Q.2: Is it true that all

games of betting are

prohibited apart from

betting on horse races and

archery, which is permis-

sible?

Ans.: Yes that’s true as per fatwa of Ayatullah al-Uzma Syed Ali Sistani.

Q.3: If there is gold on a

pen, can I carry it in my

pocket and pray with it?

Ans.: Yes, it is permissible to carry it, and carrying it during the prayer does not invalidate it.

Q.4: I wear an aqiq ring.

Should I wear it on my

right hand or can I also

wear it on my left hand?

What if I have two rings?

Ans.: It has been reported that wearing a ring in the right hand is recommended and it is not recommended to wear a ring in the left hand when one is not wearing any in the right hand.

Yes, if one decided to wear more than one ring, then it is fine to wear a ring in the left hand.

Q.5: Is there any religious

prohibition in wearing

black shoes?

Ans.: It is not prohibited to wear black shoes.

Q.6: At some schools as

part of teaching biology,

they require students to

dissect small animals like

frogs. Is this permissible?

Ans.: Dissection of animals is allowed for scientific research and learning, even if it does not agree with the emotional feeling towards the animal.

��

Your Daily-Life Questions Answered Your Daily-Life Questions Answered


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In the previous part, we discussed divine plan for human salvation in general and then we focused on the role of hardship in human life and what the faithful can achieve if they forebear the hardships with patience. We also stated that God will not impose more on the faithful than they are able to endure, though He might gradually increase their capacity and their hardships accordingly, like a good teacher or trainer who gradually introduces to his students more difficult subjects.[1]

In this world, the hardships of those whom God loves may increase so that they become more detached from this world and be more attached to the spiritual life. In this part, we will study how one can spiritually gain from mourning for Imam Husayn and his sufferings.

Point One

Imam Husayn was very close to Prophet Muhammad and received everything from him. It is [frequently] reported from both Shi‘a and Sunni authorities that the Holy Prophet stated, “Husayn is from me, and I am from Husayn.” Naturally, it is interpreted as, ‘Husayn is my son and my religion depends on him.’

If it were not for Imam Husayn, the religion of the Holy Prophet would not have remained - the religion in which he had devoted his life to and for which he made a great deal of effort. There-fore, if it was not for Imam Husayn, Islam would have ceased to exist. Imam Husayn himself said: If the religion of the Holy Prophet would not remain but by murdering me, then O’ swords! Take me!

The Role of Hardship and Suffering

in the Spiritual Progress By: Dr. Mohammad Ali Shomali


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Muhammad Hanafiyyah, a soldier whom Imam Ali sent to the Battle of Siffin several times asked why the Imam did not send his other sons - Imam Hasan and Imam Husayn - to the battle. Imam Ali answered, “You are my son and they are the Proph-et’s.” Thus, Imam Ali felt more responsible to protect the lives of the sons of Lady Fatima[2] more than his other son who was not from the Prophet’s progeny.

Only one thing that could be more important than Imam Husayn’s life was the religion of the Prophet. Thus, Husayn stated in the form of a conditional proposition, “If it is only through murdering me that the religion of the Holy Prophet could survive, then O’ swords! Take me!” If protect-ing the religion does not hinge upon the Imam’s life, then his life must be protected.

But when it is a matter of protecting the religion, not only Husayn ought to be martyred, but also dozens of

people like him. Not one Imam died naturally; they were all killed by poison or sword. If protecting Islam requires it, the family of the Imam was ready to be taken captive because the value of Islam is beyond everything else.

When Imam Husayn saw the Prophet in a dream on his way to Karbala, the Prophet told him, “Surely, Allah wants to see you martyred. And surely, Allah wants to see them [Imam Husayn’s chil-dren and family] captive.” The phrase “God wants to” refers to a fact that there was no other way except for it to happen. If Islam were to be preserved, Imam Husayn were to be ready for martyr-dom and his children and family were to be ready for captivity. Of course, this does not mean that God wanted Yazid to accomplish his heinous actions or approved of it. This dream was a sign of God’s approval of Imam Husayn’s decision at that


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time. Imam Husayn was going to Karbala anyway, but this dream along with the Proph-et’s hadiths confirmed that there was no other option for him.

The meaning of the Prophet’s saying, “Husayn is from me and I am from Husayn” is much deeper than what is normally thought in that it demonstrates extraordinary nearness.

Once Hudhayfah - a compan-ion of the Prophet - heard Imam Husayn (who was a child at the time) talking about his murder by the Umawid tyrants under the command of ‘Umar ibn Sa‘d. Hudhayfah was surprised and asked Imam Husayn if he had heard about this event from the Prophet, and the Imam said he had not. After relaying this incident to the Prophet, the Prophet replied, “My knowledge is his knowledge and his knowledge is my knowledge, because we know an event before it hap-pens.”[3] This was Husayn’s

knowledge when he was just a child.

As stated in several hadith, everything the Imams de-clared was received from the Prophet though there is much that can be said about how they received their knowledge from him. It was not always through conventional methods of receiving information or knowledge as we quote hadith; they did not receive it in the ordinary way we might assume, such as recording speech word for word which may have included mistakes. Imam Ali stated, “The Prophet opened a door of knowledge to me, after which, thousands of doors were opened…” Thus, the method of transfer-ring knowledge was not by the usual means of speaking and writing.

Point Two

Thus, carefully studying Imam Husayn’s life is a necessity for both his friends and foes. It is not possible to find a flaw in his life, not a single imperfec-


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tion. Not only is there no negative point, but no ambig-uous point in Imam Husayn’s life. If we give only the facts of the event of Karbala to any person, he would not doubt consider Imam Husayn right and his enemy wrong. Some-times there are noble men who were flawless throughout their lives, but their lives still contain ambiguity. The events in Karbala occurred in such a way that they clearly manifest Imam Husayn and his mis-sion. This is where the statement, “Surely, Husayn is the light of guidance” holds true.

Throughout history, there have been many guides though we do not fully understand some of them, since it needs patience, endurance, and preparation. Khidr, the Prophet, was a guide, but even Moses could not benefit from him. The problem was from neither Moses nor Khidr. But Khidr was not that “light of guid-ance” the way Husayn was

and still is. Anyone - a Chris-tian, Hindu, or an illiterate person who does not believe in Islam or knows little of it - can understand Husayn. This is why many non-Muslims take part and spend money in ceremonies that commemo-rate Imam Husayn’s martyr-dom.

Point Three

Imam Husayn endured a great hardship that no one in history had or will ever endure. The hardship Imam Husayn faced was extremely severe. In Ziyarat Ashura, we read: O Abu Abdullah! Un-bearable is the sorrow; nerve- racking is the agony you put up with, for us and for all the (true) Muslims. The crimes committed against you also shocked and unnerved the dwellers of the heavens, one and all.

The hardships endured during the Battle of Karbala were so great it goes beyond our imagination, a hardship that cannot be perceived by our


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minds, a hardship so great that even after fourteen centuries it is unforgotten.

No one should think that the reason we mourn is because we are emotional and sensi-tive people. It was the hard-ship of this event that was so enormous. On one hand, the task carried out by the Imam and his companions was tremendous; on the other, the wretchedness of the enemies was so great that it is neither forgotten nor has it depreciat-ed. No matter how much time passes after the event, nothing can have an impact on it. More than one thousand and four hundred years have passed, and within the next thousand years, nothing more severe than Imam Husayn’s hardship will ever happen: “No day has ever been like your day, O Abu Abdillah!”[4]

Point Four

So why did Imam Husayn endure such a hardship? To protect Islam. How can we benefit from this great sacri-

fice? We must share in Imam Husayn’s grief and suffering. If we can regard Imam Husayn’s grief as our own, then we too can benefit in his hardship. Of course, we do not have the capacity to endure this type of hardship. If something slightly bad happens to us, we weep and wail, cry to the heavens, complain to God, and say that our supplications are of no use or ask why our requests are not granted.

But one way has been pre-pared for us, which is possible for everyone to seek. Chris-tians can also come and seek this way. Jews can also do so. And even non-believers. Everyone can more or less benefit. When they hear what happened to Husayn and his Household, they can come and share in Imam Husayn’s grief. Another part of Ziyarat Ashura reads: I implore Allah to give me because of my suffering in you the best which might be given to an afflicted person, for the sake


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of your place before Him and your rightfulness and also the hardship I endured in your way.

Here the supplicant does not ask God to give him the reward for his own actions. He asks for the reward as a result of suffering. As ex-plained before, the reward for a believer’s enduring hardship is not comparable to anything else. What adds to the significance of this particular suffering is that it is not personal. This suffering is because of the loss of great friends of God in the most tragic event.

We should welcome “the hardship I endured in your way.” Today we must be stricken with grief, similar to a person who has shared in Husayn’s hardship. We must wear black and mourn. We must cry and weep and not just sit somewhere saying that we are very sorry about what happened. Neither must we be like those who merely hold a conference where articles

are presented about the tragedy, or, God forbid, hold parties because Imam Husayn achieved his goal and became martyred.

There are those who do so. But the heart of the matter is that we must be stricken with grief. The suffering of the Ahl al-Bayt must become your own suffering. We must pay attention to the fact that the more stricken we are, the closer to Imam Husayn we will be. We will be granted rewards according to how much we endure hardships. When we say, “Give me the best which might be given to an afflicted person for the sake of the hardship I en-dured in your way,” means that we are imploring God for the best thing given to an afflicted person.

This is a way God has laid out for us. If we understand, we will gain the greatest rewards through sharing in Imam Husayn’s hardship. In hadiths we read that if someone makes a hundred people to


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weep, or even a single person weep, he would go to heaven. Other hadiths state that if we weep we would go to heaven and furthermore, it is stated that if at least we pretend to weep, we might go to heaven. It means that the very least we can do to show that we share in Imam Husayn’s suffering is to be sad and prepared to cry. Sometimes we cannot cry. Although it is better to be able to cry, if we cannot, then we should not think that we have missed everything. Even if we have only come to the mourning session and pretended to weep, it still shows that we are stricken with grief. Of course, the more grief we feel, the higher our level will be.

If we really feel the grief and take the tragedy as our own, is it practically possible that we are not in opposition to Husayn’s enemies? Be fair! If someone does to you what they did to Imam Husayn, that they killed his brothers,

his nephews, his young son, and his six-month old son, and then also took his House-hold captive, then, can you help taking those people as your own enemies and ask God to keep them away from His mercy? Of course, you should have so much control over your emotions that you remain calm and not swear at them. But can you really say that you are truly heartbroken when tens of your family members, including the children, are brutally killed, the tents are looted and burnt and the rest of the family, mostly women and girls, are taken captive by the army of Yazid, and still not have any negative feelings for those enemies? Is this possible?

In any case, we must share in Husayn’s hardship. We must be stricken with grief today. Contrary to some Christian friends believe Jesus to have suffered and finally crucified to have everyone’s sins forgiven, we believe that Imam Husayn endured a


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great hardship, although not everyone is forgiven because of it. We must have done righteous deeds and be under Husayn’s leadership in his camp. It is not possible to act sinfully like the enemies of Husayn and still hope to accompany him in the Hereaf-ter. But if we are like Husayn, then there is hope for us. Indeed, the whole point is that your love for Husayn as a true servant of God must increase so much so that you resemble him in his conduct.

When people love and admire ordinary talented person, they subconsciously imitate his every move. How can we claim that we truly love Husayn and then act against his conduct and teachings?

Point Five

One of the great outcomes of sharing the suffering of Imam Husayn is that we would be able to be with him in the hereafter. Another part of Ziyarat Ashura reads: I ask Him to take me to the praised

position (al-maqiim al-mahmud) which you (the Ahl al-Bayt) have before Him.

What is the Praised Position? God told His Prophet: “And stay awake for some part of the night, beyond what is incumbent on you. It may be that your Lord will raise you to a praised position.” (17:79)

In the Hereafter, the Prophet and his Household will enjoy the uppermost status every-one will wish to have. In Ziyarat Ashura, those who are heartbroken over Imam Husayn’s hardship will say, “I ask Him to take me to the praised position that you have before Him.”

This is a great business, if we fully understand. If this prayer is answered we would be able to be with the Prophet and his Household in the Hereafter without having done the great services they did. It is true that we have faith, perform daily prayers, fast, and so on, but, as mentioned before, these deeds are very few


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considering the long journey we have ahead; however, we can see the aspiration men-tioned in this ziyarat. We are told to ask God to give us the position of Great Glory which the Household will indeed have.

How can we reach that position? Through sharing in Imam Husayn’s hardship, God the Almighty will let you share with Imam Husayn in his reward without reducing his own. This is the mercy of Allah that through love, sympathy, and agreement you can share the reward for the good any person does or the suffering he undergoes without that person losing anything. In any case, by following Husayn, he will take you where he himself is heading. That is why the Prophet described Imam Husayn as safinat al-najat or “The ship of salvation”.

Because life’s troubles are like a vast ocean ahead of us which is full of dangers and we do not know how to swim

in such an ocean, embarking on this “ship of salvation” is a necessary blessing.

What do we know? What are we proud of? Sometimes we cannot even find an address in the city we live in! How can we hope to find our way in this vast ocean? It may take a lifetime of a thousand years to do this!

Considering the tiny amount of good deeds we do, even if we do not commit any sins, we might need to live for thousands of years to gain something worthy enough as a provision for the journey to eternity that we have ahead of us. In mathematics, we learn that any number divided by infinity would come to approximately zero; which means that if we even live and work for hundreds of years, compared to our eternal journey, it will be nothing.

We need something to take us through this. To put our mind at ease, we need a safe and


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fast vehicle moving us in the right direction because we do not have thousands of years to live. With regards to this, in some sources, it has been reported from the Ahl al-Bayt: “We are all ships of salvation, but the ship of Husayn is the largest and the fastest.” All the guides in history have been like rescue ships, but this one is special. This is the rescue ship that will quickly take us to our destination.

Why? Because it is driven by the power of suffering and love and does not depend solely on our deeds. Our good actions are very few. To be honest, how much are we committed to the night prayers? How much do we give charity? Let us come and share in Husayn’s hardship! Come and embark on this ship!

Obviously, this ship has different levels depending on the deeds we have per-formed. Some people have taken the back seat, some may have taken seats in the

engine room, and some people are in the most luxurious rooms of the ship. At least let us just get on the ship to be safe! Do not be like the son of Noah who told his father, “I shall betake me (for refuge) to some mountain that will save me from water” (11:43).

There is no mountain that can save the sinful from going astray! There is no mountain that can save us from hell! We have to get on that ship. May Allah give us the oppor-tunity to experience such a pleasant life: “Whoever acts righteously, [whether] male or female, should he be faithful, We shall revive him with a good life and pay them their reward by the best of what they used to do” (16:97).

May Allah enable us to get on board the ship of Husayn and place ourselves under his flag and in his camp. If we do so, we should not have to worry about anything. But we should not deceive ourselves. Do not say that it is enough to love


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Imam Husayn. Become like him. Seek his way and adopt his manners. Look at Imam Husayn’s regard for prayer: While the enemy did not stop the war for a moment, Imam Husayn performed the prayer on time at noon on the day of Ashura.

Today we can see that even non-believers respect us when they see us performing our prayers. They even try not to make any noise. The enemies of Imam Husayn pretended to be Muslim, but they did not even respect the prayers. However, Imam Husayn did not consider this as an excuse to avoid praying on time. While Imam was praying two of his companions i.e. Sa‘eed ibn ‘Abdullah and Zuhayr ibn Qayn stood in front of Imam Husayn to guard him.

They were so loyal that even though they were frequently hit by the enemies’ arrows, they did not leave the Imam alone. Neither did Imam Husayn give up praying on time. Why have we kept such

distance from Imam Husayn? How will someone be able to look him in the eye on the Day of Judgment and tell him that he is his Shi‘a but that he sometimes forgot his prayers?

Let us persevere with our good deeds, board the ship, and be at ease. If we are pious and get on Imam Husayn’s ship, God willing, we will not face any harm at all, for “Surely God’s friends shall have no fear nor shall they grieve.” (10:62)

References:

1. This Address was originally presented at the Manchester Islamic Institute in Manches-ter on Ashura 1429 on 19th January 2008); it is reprinted here more or less as deliv-ered.

2. The daughter of Prophet Muhammad (s).

3. Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 44, p. 186.

4. Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 45, p. 218.

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Since the beginning of crea-tion until date, innumerable tragic incidents have occurred in the world. But in these tales of sorrows and tragedies the events of Karbala’ are seen to be as prominent as the moon among the cluster of stars. Human nature demands that happy remem-brances should always be retold and tragic reminders be obliterated from the memory as soon as possible. However, this law of nature had no control on the tragedy of Karbala’. Today, even after a passage of thirteen centuries every year this tragedy is remembered with such fervor as if it has just happened yesterday.

Indeed this is an astonishing fact. But if we ponder upon it we would be able to realize how the control of human nature became ineffective in this case. The significance and

endurance of a sacrifice depends upon the significance and firmness of its aims. Some sacrifices are presented for worldly aims and such sacrifices take man towards decadence. The Almighty Allah says:

“Who created for you all that is in the earth…[1]

Now if instead of considering these worldly things as our servants, we destroy our life in their service, such a sacrifice, instead of carrying any greatness would be eligible for denouncement because we have considered our life inferior to those things that were created for our service. The greatness of man demands that he should consider worldly things as means of life and not that he should make it the aim of his life. In the Islamic parlance it is the stage of, “There is no god except Allah.” And

Why the Martyrdom of Imam Husayn

(a.s) became Immortal?

Excerpts from the book, “Understanding Karbala” By: Sayyid Sa'eed Akhtar Rizvi


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reaching this point man thinks that the whole universe collectively cannot become equal to the value of a single human being. The aim of the life of man should be higher than the universe and such a being is only the Creator of the Universe. After, “There is no god” it is the stage of “except Allah.” To put it in a different way,

“Say: Surely my prayer and my sacrifice and my life and my death are (all) for Allah, the Lord of the worlds…”[2]

The purpose is to imply that you must make the principle of your life such that all your worship acts, rituals, life and death etc. should be for Allah, Who is the Lord of the worlds. In other words, the entire universe is for man and man is for the Lord of the worlds.

The world is transient. Every-thing here is going to be destroyed. If a sacrifice is made for these things that also shall be transient and not eternal. Its remembrance

would be finished in a few days. Contrary to this, the Creator of the world is eter-nal. He is from eternity and He shall be there forever. Therefore whatever sacrifice is presented on His path, its remembrance would also endure forever. Its remem-brance shall also remain fresh in the minds of all. That is why the Almighty Allah says:

And do not speak of those who are slain in Allah’s way as dead; nay, (they are) alive, but you do not perceive.[3]

That is why the sacrifice of Imam Husayn (a.s) is always fresh. Husayn (a.s) made Allah as the aim of his life and presented incomparable sacrifices in the path of Allah. In recompense, the Almighty Allah also crowned the remembrance of Husayn with the crown of eternality.

Why had Husayn (a.s) pre-sented this sacrifice? Let us see what Husayn (a.s) himself says about it. At the time when he was departing from


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Medina, he wrote a bequest to his brother, Muhammad Hanafiyyah. Some of the sentences of this testament were as follows:

“…I am not taking up arms in order to make merry, or be ecstatic over what I possess. I am not making mischief, nor exercising oppression. But I am ready to fight for the sole goal of seeking reform of the Ummah of my grandfather, the Apostle of Allah (S). I want to enjoin good and forbid evil and guide the affairs of the people as my grandfather and father were doing.”

This event began in the year 60 A.H. when Yazid ascended to the throne. The enthroning of Yazid was a terrible calami-ty for humanity and Islam. Historians are unanimous that no aspect of Yazid’s character conformed to humanity or Islam. He neither believed in Allah nor had faith in the Messenger of Allah (S). He also denied faith in the Day of Judgment and Hereafter. He

used to ridicule Prayer and those who recited Prayer. Wine was served openly in his court. Chess and gambling were obligatory acts in his view. Stepmothers and sisters were sexually legitimate for him. He remained on the throne for three or three and a half years. During this brief rule, in the first year he wreaked havoc on the family of the Holy Prophet (S) and slaughtered them with utter mercilessness. He wrought a carnage for which we are mourning these days. It was such a terrible carnage that human history had never witnessed. In the second year, he had Medina attacked and allowed his soldiers to plunder and ransack, kill the inhabitants and rape their ladies. Hundreds of compan-ions of the Messenger of Allah (S) and memorizers of Qur’an were put under the sword. Prayer was not conducted in the Prophet’s mosque for three days at a stretch as Yazid’s soldiers had converted


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it into a stable for their horses. Thousands of women lost their honor and the Medinites were compelled to pay oath of allegiance to Yazid in the words, “We are slaves of Yazid. If he likes he can sell us and if he wants he can release us.” In the third year of his rule, Yazid’s forces attacked Mecca and laid siege to it. Catapults were em-ployed to throw fireballs on the Holy Ka’ba, which was consequently damaged. The siege was in process when Yazid died in Damascus.

This was a brief sketch of Yazid’s biography. How the times had changed and how the circumstances became inverted that such a person should demand allegiance from Husayn (a.s)!

Who was Husayn? The beloved one of ‘Ali and Fatima (a.s) and in the words of Qur’an, the son of the Mes-senger of Allah (S). He was absolutely sinless and had scaled the heights of purity of self and the best of deeds.

Love and regard towards him is made obligatory for the Muslims. According to the sayings of the Holy Prophet (S) Husayn was from the Prophet and the Prophet was from Husayn (a.s). In other words, every saying of Husayn was the saying of the Prophet and every action of Husayn was the action of the Prophet. That is why Yazid was so keen to obtain the allegiance of Husayn. Because he felt that if Husayn gave him allegiance, each of his acts, beliefs and policies would get the seal of approval of the Messenger of Allah (S). Husayn was also aware of this fact and thus he refused to give allegiance, and as a result bore with absolute resignation and tranquility, the mountains of calamities that befell him.

He had to leave Medina. He had to bid farewell to the shrine of his maternal grand-father, the grave of his mother and the tomb of his brother. Then he took refuge


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in the Holy city of Mecca. Here also no security was found, because Yazid sent 30 militants in the garb of pilgrims to assassinate Imam Husayn (a.s) in Mecca. They were ordered to kill Husayn (a.s) even if he was found circumambulating the Ka’ba. Husayn (a.s) was compelled to leave Mecca along with his family members one day before the Hajj and he headed for Iraq. On the way his path was blocked by the forces of Yazid. This army consisted of a thousand men. When they reached the caravan of Husayn (a.s) they were dying of thirst as their water supply had been exhausted. The riders’ condi-tion was serious due to the thirst. The horses were hanging out their tongues. It was the army of foes but the son of the great Prophet of Mercy could never allow them to perish of thirst. He ordered that not only the men but their beasts also be provided ample water. Husayn (a.s)

himself organized the distribu-tion of water.

Followed by these enemy forces, Imam Husayn (a.s) reached the plains of Karbala’ on the 2nd of Muharram. Forces dispatched by Yazid’s governor, Ibn Ziyad began to assemble in this area one after the other. In a few days, their numbers rose to 32000, who had gathered to slay a few oppressed people, among whom were aged men, children and women, totaling not more than 100-150 persons. The tents of Hu-sayn’s group were initially removed to a point far away from the riverbanks. From the 7th Muharram onwards water supply was completely cut off for them. From the 8th of Muharram the cries of “Thirst! Thirst!” from the children of Husayn’s camp began to echo in the deserts of Karbala’. The same Husayn (a.s) who had provided drinking water to even the enemy forces was unable to procure any water for his children & companions.


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The next day was the 9th of Muharram. During the after-noon, Umar Ibn Saad, the commander of Yazidite forces prepared his army to attack the entourage of Husayn (a.s). Imam Husayn (a.s) asked for a night’s respite to enable them to engage in the worship of Almighty. The eve of Ashura arrived. The camp of Husayn (a.s) buzzed with the recital of the Holy Qur’an, the chanting of invocations, ritual prayers and worship acts. People who have rec-orded those incidents say that such murmur arose from the tents of Husayn (a.s) as if bees were humming around the beehives.

In between these adorations and worships, Imam Husayn (a.s) assembled all his com-panions and relatives and recited a sermon, which, in brief said that Yazid did not have anything to do with them except the Holy Imam (a.s). Thus they must not endanger their lives. Husayn (a.s) released them from his

allegiance and told them that all of them could leave him and go away wherever they liked so that their lives could be saved. The Imam ex-plained to them in various ways so that they may leave him and obtain their survival. In the end he even extin-guished the lamp so that they could leave in the cover of darkness if they are embar-rassed otherwise. In reply to this, a wail arose from the gathering and different people stood up and reiterated their faith and loyalty to the Imam. Their wordings were different, their voices were various. But the aim of all of them was one and the same, that, “O Master! This is dying only once and achieving eternal success. Even if we are killed seventy times and our corpses are burnt and ashes scattered in the wind and after that again we are enlivened, we would not leave you ever.”

By according freedom of action to his companions and relatives, Imam Husayn (a.s)


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performed the same duty that Prophet Ibrahim (a.s) had performed by seeking the opinion of Ismail (a.s). Ibrahim (a.s) could have sacrificed his son without informing him about it. But in that case it would have been only the achievement of Ibrahim (a.s) and it would not have been shared by Ismail (a.s). Ibrahim (a.s), by taking the opinion of his son and the son by expressing his willing-ness for slaughter, made it a model of partnership between the Friend (of God) and the slaughtered one (Ismail). Exactly in the same manner, Imam Husayn (a.s) also, by according permission to them all to leave Karbala’, and the companions by expressing their determination to volun-tarily lay down their lives, made this event a model of a shared sacrifice.

The morning of Ashura was the day of terrible turmoil. By shooting the first arrow, Umar Ibn Saad initiated the battle. Initially the companions of

Imam Husayn (a.s) laid down their lives one after the other. In the afternoon, it was the turn of Banu Hashim (or more precisely the progeny of Abu Talib). The progeny of Aqil became extinct from the world. The beloved sons of Zainab were smeared in their blood. The last remains of Qasim were trampled under horses. The sons of ‘Ali (a.s) praised the bravery.

Abbas lost both his arms in his struggle to get drinking water for children and the lion of ‘Ali (a.s) after capturing the Euphrates went to sleep on the riverbanks.

The image of the Prophet, ‘Ali Akbar, arrived in the battle-field. The people witnessed the same valor of ‘Ali (a.s). At last a dagger pierced the chest and the shattered facsimile of the Holy Prophet, after being smeared with blood, mixed into the sands of Karbala’.

Now ‘Ali Asghar heard the call of his father for help and


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made himself fall off the cradle. Husayn (a.s) could not bear to see the thirst of the six-month old infant. He brought the child to the fields shading him with the tails of his cloak and asked for water for the child. Instead of giving water, Hurmula quenched the baby’s thirst with an arrow. This arrow not only pierced the neck of ‘Ali Asghar and the shoulder of Husayn (a.s), it also pierced the heart of Fatima (s.a.).

Now Husayn (a.s) pounced upon the forces of Yazid like a heavy flood. He launched three such deadly attacks that the enemy forces began to feel helpless. The time of Asr (late afternoon) approached. Husayn (a.s) was covered with wounds from the head to the toe. Incessant bleeding made him feel physically weak. He restrained his sword for a moment and the ene-mies began to shower him with arrows and stones from all sides. At last the moment arrived that a poet says,

The rider of the Prophet’s shoulders has come down from the saddle.

If I am not wrong, it is as if the sky has fallen to the earth.

Shimr exhibited such heart-lessness that the heavens and the earth were in turmoil. A call echoed in the atmos-phere:

Know that Husayn is slain in Karbala’!

Know that Husayn is slaugh-tered in Karbala’!

The world became empty of Husayn (a.s).

After the martyrdom of Imam Husayn (a.s), the enemies began to plunder his camp and his women and children. The tents were burnt down. Head coverings were snatched from the heads of the Proph-et’s daughters. The ailing son of Husayn (a.s) was arrested and tied up in chains and iron-collars.

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When the members of the Prophet's family reached the outskirts of Damascus they were made to halt. Yazid was informed of their arrival and he fixed a date for their entry into the city.

On the morning of the ap-pointed day, the members of the family of the Holy Prophet (S) were led into Damascus. They were tied with ropes and herded together like goats. If anyone stumbled she was whipped. The city streets had been decorated and the sound of music filled the air. People came out in throngs wearing festive clothes and rejoiced when they saw the proces-sion, preceded as always by the heads of the martyrs. Bearing themselves with dignity and self-respect, the prisoners were paraded through Damascus. Zaynab (S.A.) even cast aside the offerings of food that some of them out of compassion offered them.

In this manner the captives were paraded until the afternoon when they reached the palace of Yazid. There he was seated on his throne and was much pleased when he saw the forty-four bound captives arrive. The head of Husayn was then brought to him on a golden tray. He struck the Imam's teeth with his stick and said: "O Husayn! You have paid the price of your revolt."

When Zaynab (S.A.) and her companions saw this show of arrogance they burst into tears and there were many present who were ashamed. But Yazid carried on gloating over his victory. He said to his subjects: "My ancestors who were killed at Badr have been avenged today. Now it is clear that the Bani Hashim had just staged a play to gain power and there was never any divine revelation."

Zaynab (S.A.) however was not afraid. She drew herself

The Defeat of the Umayyad Empire

Source: http://alhassanain.org/


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up and boldly said for all to hear: "Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds and blessings on my grandfather, the Chief of divine prophets."

"O Yazid, Allah says, and his word is true, that: 'Then evil was the end of those who did evil because they rejected the communications of Allah and used to mock them' [30:10]."

"O Yazid, do you believe that you have succeeded in closing the sky and the earth for us and that we have become your captives just because we have been brought before you in a row and that you have secured control over us? Do you believe that we have been afflicted with insult and dishonour by Allah and that you have been given honour and respect by Him? You have become boastful of this apparent victory that you have secured and you have started feeling jubilant and proud over this prestige and honour. You think that you have achieved worldly good that your affairs have become

stabilised and our rule has fallen into your hands. Wait for a while. Do not be so joyful. Have you forgotten Allah's saying: 'The unbeliev-ers should not carry the impression that the time allowed to them by us is good for them. Surely we give them time so that they may in-crease their evil deeds, and eventually they will be given insulting chastisement' [3:178]."

"O son of freed slaves, is this your justice that you keep your own daughters and slave maids veiled while the daugh-ters of the Prophet of Allah are being paraded from place to place exposed."

"You have dishonoured us by unveiling our faces. Your men take us from town to town where all sorts of people, whether they be residents of the hills or of riversides have been looking at us."

"The near as well as the remote ones, the poor as well as the rich, the low as well as


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the high - all casting their glances at us while our position is such that there is no male relative of ours to render s help or support."

"O Yazid, whatever you have done proves your revolt against Allah and your denial of His Prophet (S) and of the Book and Sunnah that the Holy Prophet (S) brought from Allah. Your deeds should not cause amazement because one whose ancestors chewed the livers of the martyrs, whose flesh grew up on virtuous people, who fought against the Chief of divine prophets, who mobilised parties for fighting against him and drew swords against him, should conspicuously excel all Arabs in unbelief, sinfulness, excesses, and enmity against Allah and His Prophet (S)."

"Remember that the evil deeds and sinful actions that you have committed are the result of unbelief and old rancour you bear because of

your ancestors who were killed in Badr."

"One who cast his glance of enmity, malice and rancour upon us does not lag behind in practising enmity against us. He proves his unbelief, declares it with his tongue and jubilantly proclaims: 'I have killed the sons of the Prophet (S) of Allah and made his progeny captive,' and wishes that his ancestors had lived to see his achievement and to have exclaimed, 'O Yazid, may your hands not lose their strength, you have wreaked good vengeance on our behalf.'"

"O Yazid, you are striking the lips of Imam Husayn with your stick in front of this crowd while these very lips used to be kissed by the Prophet (S) of Allah, and yet your face reflects pleasure and happiness."

"By my life, by killing the chief of youths of Paradise, the son of the chief of Arabs (Ali (A.S.)) and the shining sun of


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the progeny of Abd ul-Muttalib, you have deepened our wound and uprooted us completely."

"By killing Husayn ibn Ali (A.S.) you have gained nearness to the state of your unbelieving ancestors. You proclaim your deed with pride and if they were to see you they would approve of your action and pray that Allah may not paralyse your arms."

"O Yazid! If you had heart enough to take account of your nefarious deeds, you yourself would surely wish your arms to be paralysed and severed from your elbow and you would wish that your parents had not given birth to you because you would know that Allah has become dis-pleased with you. Allah, Grant us our rights. Avenge those who have oppressed us."

"O Yazid! you did what you wished, but remember that you have cut your own skin and your own flesh to pieces. Soon you will be brought before the Holy Prophet. You

will be overburdened with the weight of your sins committed by shedding the blood of his progeny and by dishonouring his family. The place to which you will be taken will be before all the members of his family. The oppressed will be avenged and the enemies will be punished."

"O Yazid! It is not seeming for you to swell with joy after slaying the Prophet's progeny. 'Reckon not those who are killed in Allah's way as dead; nay, they are alive and are provided sustenance from their Lord; rejoicing in what Allah has given them out of His grace' [3:169-170]."

"Allah is sufficient to deal with you. The Messenger of Allah is your antagonist and Hadrat Jibra'il is our support and help against you."

"Those who have made you the head of state and bur-dened the Muslims with your leadership will soon find out what awaits them. The end of all tyrants is agony."


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"O Yazid. I speak not to you thus to warn you of the severe chastisement in store for you so that you should be regretful for you are one of those whose hearts are hardened, souls are rebellious and whose bodies are busy in Allah's disobedience while they are under the curse of the Prophet of Allah. You are from among those in whose heart Shaytan has made his abode and has been breeding young ones."

"How amazing it is that the virtuous people, sons of the divine prophets and vicege-rents are killed at the hands of liberated slaves, evil-doers and sinners. Our blood is shed by their hands and our flesh serves as food for them. We feel grieved for those whose bodies are lying unshrouded and unburied in the battle-field, wounded with arrows."

"O Yazid, if you consider our defeat as your achievement then you will have to pay its price."

"Allah commits not injustice to His servants. Our reliance is on Allah. He alone is our Relief and place of Protection, and in Him alone do we repose our hope."

"You may contrive and try however much you can. By Him who honoured us with revelation, the Book and Prophethood, you cannot achieve our status, nor reach our position, nor can you effect our mention, nor remove from yourself that shame and dishonour that is now your lot because of perpetrating excess and oppression on us. Your word now is weak and your days are counted. Beware of the day when the announcer would announce the curse of Allah on the oppressors and the unjust."

"Praise be to Allah who gave good end to His friends and granted them success in their aims, and thereafter called them back to His Mercy, Pleasure and Bliss, while you hurled yourself into evil and


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mischief by committing injustice against them. We pray to Allah to favour us with full recompense through them and grant us the good of Khilafat and Imamat. Surely Allah is Kind and the Most Merciful over His creatures."

Among the gathering was a red haired Syrian who saw Fatima Kubra, daughter of Imam Husayn and asked Yazid to give her to him. When the girl heard this she clung to Zaynab (S.A.) and started to weep. She feared that now after the loss of her father she was to be made a slave girl.

Zaynab (S.A.) was not afraid. She turned to Yazid and told him that he had neither right nor authority to give the young girl away like that, at which he bristled, retorting that he could do so.

Zaynab (S.A.) riposted, "You are abusing me because of your authority and power." At this Yazid was shamed into silence. To the Syrian she said: "May the curse of Allah

be upon you. May hell be your eternal abode. May your eyes be blinded and your limbs paralysed." Immediately paralysis gripped the man and he fell to the ground dead.

Yazid was so enraged with Zaynab bold defiance of his authority that he might have ordered her killed had not Abdullah ibn Umar ibn Aas intervened and begged that no notice be taken of her harsh words since she had suffered much grief and hardship and was broken-hearted.

Imam Zayn ul-Abidin (A.S.) would also have suffered death at the hands of Yazid on account of his fearless speech, had not Zaynab (S.A.) saved his life by asking Yazid to slay her also along with the boy. Yazid was moved by her love for the boy and spared his life. But death neverthe-less took its toll. Sakina, daughter of Imam Husayn, died in captivity in Damascus at the age of four and was buried there.


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Through Zaynab's bold and fearless speeches and from the word that spread as a result of their journey, people came to know of the events of Karbala and their hearts were stirred. The continued captiv-ity and humiliation of the family of the Prophet of Allah was bringing their cause to the attention of an ever increasing number of people. Word came to Yazid that there was turmoil and unrest in the realm and he decided to release the captives.

When it seemed to him that the Ahlulbayt had been adequately humiliated, and upon the urgings of certain people who were alert to the public's growing dissension upon learning the truth, Yazid sent for Imam Zayn ul-Abidin (A.S.). He informed him of his impending release and asked if he wished for anything. The youth said he would have to consult his aunt Zaynab (S.A).

Arrangements were made and she arrived, properly veiled. She asked, "O Yazid, since the

day our leader and our chief Husayn was butchered we have not had any opportunity to mourn for him."

A large house was therefore provided for them in the residential sector of Damascus and here Zaynab (S.A.) held her first gathering for the mourning and remembrance of Imam Husayn. The women of the Quraysh and Bani Hashim arrived clad in black, with their heads uncovered, weeping wretchedly.

Imam Zayn ul-Abidin (A.S.) sat on the carpet of Imam Husayn and then Zaynab (S.A.) told the women of Syria what had befallen them. They shed tears and mourned. They had not known about the events of Karbala and Kufa, but when they went home they told their men folk.

Gradually illusions of Yazid's good intentions were dis-pelled. It was fear of revolt that caused Yazid to release the members of the family of the Holy Prophet (S).

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It is customary to pay tribute to a deceased person forty days after his death by doing acts of righteousness on his behalf, by eulogizing him and enumerating his merits. This is done at organized gather-ings in order to keep his memory alive just when people’s minds start to forget about him and their hearts start to ignore him. Thus, he remains alive in people’s minds.

Both Abu Tharr al-Ghifari and Ibn Abbas quote the Prophet (S) saying, "The earth mourns the death of a believer for forty mornings." Zurarah quotes Abu Abdullah Imam as-Sadiq (a.s.) saying, "The sky wept over al-Husayn (a.s.) for forty mornings with blood, while the earth wept over him for forty mornings with blackness. The sun wept over him for forty mornings with an eclipse and with redness, whereas the angels wept over

him for forty mornings. No woman among us ever dyed with henna, nor used any oil, nor any kohl nor cohabited with her husband till the head of Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad was brought to us, and we are still grieving even after all of that."

This is the basis of the ongoing custom of grieving for the deceased for forty days. On the 40th day, a special mourning ceremony is held at his grave-site attended by his relatives and friends. This custom is not confined to Muslims. Adherents of other creeds hold commemorative mourning ceremonies for their lost ones. Some gather at a church and conduct a special funeral prayer service. Jews renew their mourning service 30 days after one’s death, nine months after one’s death, and one year after one’s death. All of this is done in order to keep his memory

The Arba’een

Excerpts from the book, “Karbala and Beyond” By: Yasin T. Al-Jibouri


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alive so that people may not forget his legacy and deeds if he is one of the great ones with merits and feats.

At any rate, a researcher does not find in the band described as reformers a man so well shrouded in feats of the most sublime meanings, one whose life, uprising, and the tragic way in which he was killed..., a divine call and lessons in reform, even social systems, ethics, and sacred morals..., other than the master of the youths of Paradise, the man who was martyred for his creed, for Islam, for harmony, the martyr for ethics and cultivation, namely al-Husayn (a.s.).

He, more than anyone else, deserves to be remembered on various occasions. People ought to make a pilgrimage to his sacred grave-site on the anniversary of the passage of 40 days since the date of his martyrdom so that they may achieve such lofty objectives.

The reason why most people hold only the first such an

anniversary is due to the fact that the merits of those men are limited and temporal, unlike those of the Master of Martyrs: his feats are endless, his virtues are countless. The study of his life and martyr-dom keeps his memory alive, and so is the case whenever he is mentioned. To follow in his footsteps is needed by every generation. To hold an annual ceremony at his grave on the anniversary of his Arba’een brings his revolution back to memory. It also brings back to memory the cruelty committed by the Umayyads and their hench-men. No matter how hard an orator tries, or how well a poet presents his theme, new doors of virtue, which were closed before, will then be opened.

This is why it has been the custom of the Shi'as to bring back to memory on the Arba’een those events every year. The tradition wherein Imam al-Baqir (a.s.) says that the heavens wept over al-


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Husayn (a.s.) for forty morn-ings, rising red and setting red, hints to such a public custom.

So is the case with a state-ment made once by Imam al-Hassan al-'Askari (a.s.) wherein he said, "There are five marks for a believer: his fifty-one rek'at prayers, ziyarat al-arba’een, his audible recitation of the basmala, his wearing his ring on the right hand, and his rubbing his forehead with the dust."

Such a statement leads us to the ongoing public custom being discussed. Holding a mourning ceremony for the Master of Martyrs and holding meetings in his memory are all done by those who are loyal to him and who follow him. There is no doubt that those who follow his path are the believers who recognize him as their Imam; so, one of the marks highlighting their iman, as well as their loyalty to the master of the youths of Paradise, the one who was killed as he stood to defend

the divine Message, is to be present on the Arba’een anniversary at his sacred grave in order to hold a mourning ceremony for him and remember the tragedies that had befallen him and his companions & Ahlulbayt (a.s.).

All the Imams who descended from the Prophet (S) were the gates of salvation, the arks of mercy. Through them can a believer be distinguished from a non-believer. They all left this world after being killed as they stood to defend the divine Message, accepting the possibility of their being killed for the stand which they took in obedience to the Command of their Lord, Glory to Him, the One Who sent His wahi to their grandfather the Prophet (S). Imam Hassan Ibn Ali (a.s.) has pointed out to this fact saying, "The mission which we undertake is as-signed to Twelve Imams (a.s.) each one of whom is either to be killed or poisoned."

For all of these reasons, the Imams from among the


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Prophet’s Progeny (a.s.) found no alternative to attracting the attention to such a glorious revolution because it contains tragedies that would split the hardest of rocks. They knew that persistence in demon-strating the injustice dealt to al-Husayn (a.s.) would stir the emotions and attract the hearts of sympathizers.

One who hears the tales of such horrible events will come to conclude that al-Husayn (a.s.) was a fair and just Imam who did not succumb to lowly things, that his Imamate was inherited from his grand-father the Prophet (S) and from his father the wasi (a.s.), that whoever opposes him deviates from the path of equity. Whoever absorbs the fact that right was on al-Husayn’s side and on that of his infallible offspring would be embracing their method and following their path.

This is why the Imams (a.s.) did not urge the holding of mourning ceremonies for the Arba’een anniversary of any of

them, not even for that of the Prophet of Islam (a.s.), so that it alone would be the memory of his tragedy that would make a strong case for safeguarding the link with the creed. Turning attention to it is more effective in keeping the cause of the Infallible Ones dear to all those who discuss it: "Keep our cause alive, and discuss our cause."

Ahl al-Bayt (AS) In Medina

As-Sajjad (a.s.) had no choice except to leave Karbala’’ and set forth to Medina. It was too much for him to see how his aunts and the other women, as well as the children, were all crying day and night while visiting one grave after another. Bashir ibn Hathlam has said, "When we came close to Medina, Ali ibn al-Husayn (a.s.) alighted and tied his she-camel then set up a tent where he lodged the women. He said to me, O Bashir! May Allah have mercy on your father! He was a poet. Can you compose any of it at all?’ I said, Yes, O son of


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the Messenger of Allah! I, too, am a poet.’ He (a.s.) said, Then enter Medina and mourn the martyrdom of Abu Abdul-lah (a.s.).’ So I rode my horse and entered Medina. When I came near the Mosque of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him and his progeny, I cried loudly and recited these verses:

أھل يثرب _ مقام لكم بھا، يا

قتل الحسين فأدمعي مدرار

منه بكربyء مضرج الجسم

والرأس منه على القناة يدار

O people of Yathrib! May you never stay therein!

Al-Husayn (a.s.) is killed, so my tears now rain,

His body is in Karbala’ covered with blood

While his head is on a spear displayed.

"Then I said, Here is Ali ibn al-Husayn (a.s.) accompanied by his aunts and sisters; they have all returned to you. I am his messenger to you to inform you of his place.’

People went out in a hurry, including women who had never before left their cham-bers, all weeping and wailing. All those in Medina were in tears. Nobody had ever seen such crying and wailing.

They surrounded Ali, Zain al-Abidin (a.s.), to offer him their condolences. He came out of the tent with a handkerchief in his hand with which he was wiping his tears. Behind him was one of his slaves carrying a chair in which the Imam (a.s.) later sat, being over-come by grief. The cries of the mourners were loud. Everyone was weeping and wailing. Ali Zain al-Abidin (a.s.) signaled to people to calm down. Once they stopped crying, he, peace be with him said,

All Praise is due to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, the King of the Day of Judg-ment, Creator of all creation Who is Exalted in the high heavens, Who is so near, He hears even the silent speech.


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We praise Him on the grave events, on time’s tragedies, on the pain inflicted by such tragedies, on the crushing of calamities, on the greatness of our catastrophe, on our great, monstrous, magnani-mous and afflicting hardships.

O people! Allah, the most Exalted One, Praise to Him, has tried us with great trials and tribulations, with a tremendous loss suffered by the religion of Islam. Abu Abdullah, al-Husayn (a.s.) and his family have been killed, and his women and children taken captive. They displayed his head in every land from the top of a spear... Such is the catastrophe similar to which there is none at all. O people! Which men among you are happy after him, or which heart is not grieved on his account?

Which eye among you with-holds its tears and is too miser with its tears? The seven great heavens wept over his killing; the seas wept with their waves, and so did

the heavens with their corners and the earth with its ex-panse; so did the trees with their branches and the fish in the depths of the seas. So did the angels who are close to their Lord. So did all those in the heavens.

O people! Which heart is not grieved by his killing? Which heart does not yearn for him? Which hearing hears such a calamity that has befallen Islam without becoming deaf? O people! We have become homeless, exiles, outcasts, shunned, distanced from all countries as though we were the offspring of the Turks or of Kabul without having committed a crime, nor an abomination, nor afflicted a calamity on Islam! Never did we ever hear such thing from our fathers of old. This is something new.

By Allah! Had the Prophet (S) required them to fight us just as he had required them to be good to us, they would not have done to us any more than what they already have.


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So we belong to Allah, and to Him is our return from this calamity, and what a great, painful, hard, cruel, and catastrophic calamity it is! To Allah do we complain from what has happened to us, from the suffering we have endured, for He is the Omnip-otent, the Vengeful.

Peace with you, O Abu Abdullah, and with the souls that landed in your courtyard! Allah’s Greeting to you from me forever, so long as there is night and day! May Allah not make it the last time I greet you, O Ahl al-Bayt! Peace with al-Husayn, with Ali son of al-Husayn, with the offspring of al-Husayn, and with the companions of al-Husayn, the mercy of Allah and His bless-ings.”

Sa’sa’ah ibn Sawhan al-Abdi, an invalid who could barely walk on his feet, stood up and apologized to the Imam (a.s.) for not rushing to help his family due to his handicap. He, peace be with him, responded to him by accepting

his excuse, telling him that he thought well of him, thanked him and sought Allah’s mercy for his father. Then Zain al-Abidin (a.s.) entered Medina accompanied by his family and children.

Ibrahim ibn Talhah ibn Ubaydullah came to the Imam (a.s.) and asked him, "Who won?" The Imam, peace be with him, answered, "When the time for prayers comes, and when the athan and iqama are called, you will know who the winner is."

Zainab took both knobs of the mosque’s door and cried out, "O grandfather! I mourn to you my brother al-Husayn (a.s.)!"

The ladies who were born and grew up in the lap of Prophethood held a mourning ceremony for the Master of Martyrs (a.s.). They put on the most coarse of clothes; they shrouded themselves in black, and they kept weeping and wailing day and night as Imam as-Sajjad was cooking for them.


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Once Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq (a.s.) said, "No lady who descended from Hashim used any dye, nor any oil, nor any kohl, for full five years; it was then that al-Mukhtar sent them the head of Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad."

As regarding ar-Rubab, she wept over [her husband] Abu Abdullah (a.s.) till her eyes were no longer capable of producing any more tears. One of her bondmaids told her that using a particular type of herb was tear stimu-lant, so she ordered it to be prepared for her in order to induce her tears.

Ali Zain al-Abidin (a.s.), the only surviving son of Imam al-Husayn (a.s.), stayed aloof from the public in order to avoid being involved in their disputes with one another and in order to dedicate his entire time to worshipping Allah and mourning his father. He kept weeping day and night. One of his slaves said to him, "I fear for you lest you should perish."

He (a.s.) said to him, "I only convey my complaints and my grief to Allah, and I know from Allah what you all do not know. Jacob was a prophet from whom Allah caused one of his sons to be separated. He had twelve sons, and he knew that his son (Joseph) was still alive, yet he wept over him till he lost his eye sight. If you look at my father, my brothers, my uncles, and my friends, how they were slain all around me, tell me how can my grief ever end? Whenever I remember how Fatima’s children were slaugh-tered, I cannot help crying. And whenever I look at my aunts and sisters, I remember how they were fleeing from one tent to another..."

To you, O Messenger of Allah (a.s.), is our complaint from the way whereby your nation treated your pure offspring, from the oppression and persecution to which they were subjected, and all Praise is due to Allah, Lord of the Worlds.

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Before dealing with this subject, it has to be noted that unlike the common perception which restricts sustenance to its material manifestations, the term rizq (sustenance) has a wide range of meanings that include all divine bounties irrespective of the bounties being material or spiritual. Thus, health, tranquility, success over doing obligatory duties such as performing hajj, having a good friend etc. are all considered to be examples of sustenance. Indeed, there are some traditions which also refer exclusively to material suste-nance which will be men-tioned as follows:

1. Struggle for acquiring sustenance: Imam Sadiq (AS) says in this regard: "One who goes in search of little suste-nance will ultimately gain abundant rizq and he who does not go in search of little

sustenance, will end up losing the abundant sustenance too."[1]

2. Prayer and supplication for an increase in sustenance: There is a specific title in the book of Al-Kafi about an increase in sustenance.[2] In this chapter of the book, certain supplications have been recommended for increase of sustenance. For example, there it has been narrated that Imam Baqir (AS) said to Zaid Shahham: Read this dua in the sajdahs of your prayers for an increase in your sustenance:

يا خير المسئولين و يا خير "المعطين ارزقني و ارزق عيالي من فضلك الواسع فإنك ذو الفضل

]3العظيم"[

"O the Refuge of those ask for help, O the best of the bestowers, bestow upon me and my family your abundant rizq because you are the possessor of extensive grace."[4]

Duas and Ways Through Which One Can

Earn Lawful Rizq (Sustenance)

By: Ayatollah Mahdi Hadavi Tehrani


39

A man from the companions of the Prophet (S) had long not visited His Holiness. Upon seeing the Prophet (S), His Holiness asked him, "What made you not to visit us."

He said that he could not come due to illness, poverty and need. The Prophet (S) then said: "Don't you want me to teach you a dua which will rid you of illness and pov-erty?"

"O Messenger of Allah" he said "may Allah's blessing and mercy be upon you, teach me that dua." Then the Prophet (S) told him to recite:

_ حول و _ قوة إ_ بالله العلي العظيم توكلت على الحي الذي _ يموت و الحمد لله الذي لم يتخذ صاحبة و _ ولدا و لم يكن له

يكن له شريك في الملك و لم ل و كبره تكبيرا[ ]5ولي من الذ

As reported, it did not take long until one day the same man returned and said to the Prophet (S): "God ridded me of illness and poverty (by means of that dua)."

3. Staying awake between dawn and sunrise: Muham-mad bin Muslim asked Imam Baqir or Imam Sadiq (AS) about sleeping after Dawn Prayers to which the Imam replied: "Sustenance is distributed at this time and I do not like anyone to be asleep at this moment."

As well, Imam Sadiq (AS) said: "Morning sleep is bad and it makes man's face look yellow and ugly. Such a sleep is the sleep of people who are deprived of (divine blessings), and God distributes the sustenance of His servants from dawn till sunrise."[6]

Offering night prayer: It has been reported from Imam Sadiq (As) that a man was complaining about indigence and extreme poverty so much that he was even about to complain about his hunger. Addressing him, the Imam said: "O man, do you ever offer night prayer (salat al-layl)?"

"Yes" he answered.


40

Facing his companions, the Imam (AS) said: "One who claims to offer night prayers but he remains hungry during the day is not but a liar. Verily, God, the Almighty and Glorified, has promised to give, during the day, rizq (sustenance) of the individual who establishes night pray-er."[7]

The deeds which cause sustenance to increase are too many and we suffice to this much. Now we shall mention in brief some of the factors which are responsible for a decrease in the amount of rizq (sustenance):

1. Intention (niyyat): There is no doubt that intention has an impact on the individual's sustenance causing his sustenance to either increase or decrease depending on the nature of his intention. Imam Ali (AS) says:

"Man's sustenance is to the extent of his niyyat"[8]

This saying of the Imam (AS) suggests that man's intention

impacts one's sustenance and it makes it either decrease or increase. Hence, if a person intends to help provide his family with food and other means of livelihood, God shall increase his sustenance and if he intends to put them into hardship and distress, God too shall put him into hardship and distress.

2. There are some habits which have been introduced as factors responsible for reduction of sustenance. It has been reported from the Commander of the Faithful, Ali (AS) that he said:

"Not wiping off the spider web in one's house, answering the call of nature in a bathroom, eating and drinking in the state of janabat, brushing the teeth with tamarisk, combing the hair while standing, keeping garbage at home, making a false oath, adultery, sleeping between Maghrib and Isha, sleeping before sunrise, the habit of lying, listening to frivolous songs too much, turning away a needy person


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at night, not observing moderation in the expendi-tures, and cutting off ties with relatives are among the causes of reduction of suste-nance…”[9]

The Messenger of Allah (S) said:

“There are twenty habits which lead to a decrease of the sustenance including getting up from bed to urinate while naked, not washing hands before eating, demean-ing even a small morsel of bread, burning onion and garlic peelings, sitting on doorsteps, sweeping house at night or sweeping it using a dress/clothes, cleaning the house with an end of one's clothe, wiping limbs with hems or sleeves, leaving dirty dishes/utensils at night, leaving drinking utensil uncovered, making haste to exit the mosque, going early to the mall (market) and not coming back from the mall till late, buying bread from the poor, cursing one's children, sewing clothes while they are

worn and putting out a lamp by blowing on it.[10]

References:

1. Kulayni, Muhammad b. Ya'qub, Al-Kafi, vol.5, p.311, hadith 29.

2. Vide: Al-Kafi, vol.2, p.550, Chapter Du'a for Rizq.

3. Ibid, p.551, hadith 4.

4. Ibid, p.551, hadith 3.

5. Ibid, p.551, hadith 3

6. Tusi, Muhammad bin Hasan, al-Istibsar, vol.1, p.350, hadith 2.

7. Saduq, Muhamma bin Ali, Man Laa Yahzuruhu al-Faqih, vol.1, p.474, hadith 1371.

8. Amadi, Abdul Wahid, Ghurar al-Hekam, p.399

9. Tabarsi, Ali bin hasan, Mishkat al-Anwar, vol.1, p.128

10. Majlisi, Muhammad Baqir, Behar al-Anwar, vol.73, p.314

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Another issue is shaking hands. Of course, all of these issues arise only when there is no lust or fear of deviation present; otherwise they are clearly not permitted. Again, the traditions and religious edicts confirm one another in this matter. The Imam was asked if it is permitted to shake hands with a non-related woman. He said, "No, unless the hands be covered or the woman be mahram." One must not shake the hands with a woman who is not mahram unless her hand is covered and even then, pressure should not be applied.'

These Are Issues Of

Religious Edicts

Here there are two more points which should be mentioned. The first is that the issues mentioned up to this point were all referred to within the contents of the

verses and the traditions. Perhaps no further questions would occur to a person up to this point, but these are some of the issues which have occurred to me.

Since this is a matter of an edict, everyone must note that I have mentioned my own point of view and re-ferred to these proofs be-cause of their necessity but the issue is one which must be followed according to the Divine Law. The second point is that edicts exist which are comparable to the ones mentioned that include the religious edicts of the great ulama but these are the edicts of the minority, not the majority.

For instance, Shaykh Tusi gave such an edict as well as Shaykh Hedayat and Shaykh Ansari. All three are among the most learned Shi'ite scholars. The others mention

Shaking Hands with a Non-Mahram

Woman

By: Ayatollah Shaheed Murtadha Mutahhari


43

these reasons like Ayatullah Hakim in Mustamsak but when it comes to issuing a religious edict they hold back. The actions of Muslims, to this point, have been opposed to these views so the religious jurisprudent moves beyond the issue.

Muslim Custom

This itself is an issue that the customs and habits of Mus-lims oppose something which is clear from the verses of Quran and the traditions. The customs of the Muslims are not something which can be easily put aside. There is a need for an analysis as to what it is.

If we assume that Muslims have acquired a custom from the beginning of Islam whereby it is discovered to be from the customs of the Holy Prophet and the Imams, it should be preserved. Howev-er, a custom of the people is not proof in itself except when it is discovered to be among the customs of the Holy

Prophet. Then it becomes proof and must be observed.

For instance, take the beard. Some people say that the real proof for it is that men from the time of the Holy Prophet and later all had beards. Thus, we rely upon this.

Now note what they answer. If someone had said that it is forbidden to grow a beard we would have said that people in the past, according to custom, have a beard and this existed from the time of the Holy Prophet. Thus, it was not forbidden to have a beard. If it had been forbidden, it could not have become the custom. But the question then arises whether growing a beard is obligatory or recommended. We assume the possibility that it is a part of custom which is, at least, recommended or unspecified. Custom only dictates when there is a lack of respect involved. There-fore, it is either obligatory or recommended.

A thought has occurred to me here which is a historical


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social point and most often the reason why the religious authorities become fixed here is because they do not attend to the social issue. The modest dress did not exist among the pre-Islamic Arabs. Islam brought the covering of the head, neck, and chest, etc. and the forbidding of looking with lust. But a part of that which Islam brought existed in non-Arab areas. It was a very strong influence in Iran, in particular, among the Jews and people were influ-enced by their way of think-ing.

Islam did not make it obliga-tory to uncover the face. It said it is obligatory to cover the hair, not to display the face. Clearly, those nations which came to accept Islam were following their own customs because Islamic precepts did not say it was obligatory to display the face, except in the harem. Nor did they say it was forbidden to cover the face. It gave a choice. It left it up to the

various nations to practice their own customs of the modest dress if they so desired.

History shows that non-Arabs felt it was obligatory to cover the face. Thus, this custom of covering the face, as we find it now, is not a custom of the Holy Prophet and the Imams.

Another point which is very sensitive and should also be considered, relates to caution. Every religious jurisprudent speaks this way out of cau-tion. They all know that these two things exist, one in a woman and one in a man. That which exists within a woman is the desire to show herself off, it is a part of her nature. That which exist within man is an inclination towards looking, not just looking but flirting and receiving pleasure from it. Both of these exist.

Will Durant says that there is nothing in the world more firm and more persevering that a man's desire to look at


45

a woman. It exists no matter how much it is restrained and it is referred to in the tradi-tions. It is because of this that a religious jurisprudent does not find the courage, in spite of the fact that all of these reasons and proofs exist, to issue a religious edict. They say caution should not be put aside. The caution relates to human nature itself.

This brings up another issue. Some people follow a philoso-phy and that philosophy is that in those areas which are ruled by customs, whatever one does not say to the people is better. It is better not to say it than to say it.

I may have mentioned that I once received a letter in praise of the book I wrote called Stories of Good People. The ritual prayer leader in Khuzistan read the book. He said that he looked up all of the stories. Although not one idea was changed and they had been presented in a very readable, pleasant style, he had two criticisms. The first

criticism related to a story about the blessed Fatimah and Ali, peace be upon them. Their work had been divided so that Imam Ali did the work outside of the house and she, the work within the house, a division which the Holy Prophet had made at the very beginning of their marriage.

When Imam Ali was home, he helped her within the house and when he was not at home, she did the work outside the house as well. One day she was covered from head to toe in soot from having started the fire and because there was no flowing water in Madinah, it had to be carried from the wells, often at some distance away, the pressure applied by the straps of her water bag remained on her body because of all the water she had carried to her house. This man said that even though this story was true and was part of the traditions, I should not have mentioned it because it could be misused.


46

I do not deny the general principle that if telling the truth will cause the people to deviate; it should not be said because the reason for telling the truth, in the first place, is to guide the people, not to turn others away from it. Of course, the Holy Quran tells us, "Those who conceal the clear (Signs) that we have sent down and the Guidance after We have shown them clearly in the Book ... on them shall be God's curse and the curse of those entitled to curse ..." (2:159)

The tone of this verse is very strong. There are very few verses in the Holy Quran where such a strong and angry tone is found. At the same time, I believe the purpose to be that people should not conceal the truth because of their own interests but to conceal the truth because of the truth itself under very limited, temporary and definite conditions so that it is not misused and does not fall under this verse. In other

words, it is forbidden to lie but it is not always obligatory to speak the truth. That is, there are occasions when one must remain silent.

I am of the belief that this kind of prudence, when it is based upon the real issue of the truth, has no problem but, when it is based on individual, personal or group interests, it is a different story. Now the point is whether or not it is prudent thinking not to issue a religious edict about buying or selling a radio or that it is not obligatory for a woman to cover her face and hands. Is it a correct kind of thinking? Is it intelligible? Does it produce the correct result or not? Will some women who cover their face and hands then uncover their face and hands and finally their whole form by saying this truth? Or is the opposite true?

That is, many men and women think that the bases of the religious viewpoint is that the face of a woman should not show for when the face


47

shows, there will be no stopping the rest. On the other hand, the covering of the face is impractical and, from the point of view of logic, it is indefensible. No reasoning or deduction can be given for it being so. There-fore, they will then completely uncover themselves.

Some sociologists believe that the cause for the extremity in women's dress and their lack of modesty is because of the erroneous belief that society had about the modest dress. Yet the error was that the truth was not spoken! If it had been expressed just as the Islamic precepts express it, things would never have reached this point. It is here that one should refer to the proverb, "being, more Catholic than the Pope," or "jumping from the frying pan into the fire."

The Holy Quran says in Surah Hujarat, "O believers, advance not beyond God and His Messenger" (29:1). What is meant by 'advance' is a point

beyond which God and His Prophet said one needed to go, thereby, 'advancing beyond God and His Messen-ger'.

Imam Ali, peace be upon him, said, "God has given limits. Do not aggress beyond them. That is, he has specified the forbidden, do not disobey. He has specified the obligatory and the precepts; do not shun them and as to the things for which He remained silent about neither forbidden nor obligatory it was not because He forgot them but rather He wanted you to be free in regard to them. Therefore, do not restrict yourself there and make something your duty in the name of God's religion and God."

The Holy Prophet said in a tradition recorded in Jama'al-Saghir, "Just as God dislikes that which He prohibited, people should obey and He likes them to do what is allowed; whatever is without any problem should be considered to be such and


48

they should not forbid any-thing which God has not forbidden ..."

This tradition has also been recorded as the following, "God loves people who allow whatever He has allowed and prohibit whatever He has prohibited."

Perhaps I am mistaken. As I have mentioned, in areas covered by religious edicts, each person must follow the edicts of their own mujtahid.

But, in regard to that which is mentioned as prudent think-ing and saying it is not advisable to mention some-thing even though it is the truth, I disagree with this prudent thinking. I believe it is advisable to express the truth and that which is advisable is to counteract the concept that women today express, "The modest dress is impractical." We must prove to them that the Islamic modest dress is logical and practical.

Secondly, we must make efforts to establish cultural,

social, and health activities, particular to women, and resist the mixed activities which are imitated from Europe. It is only in this way that women will rediscover their real personality and the possibility that they will no longer be a tool, a toy and a means to men's lust in the name of freedom and equality.

The Religious Edicts on

These Issues

We have seen through these lessons that according to the precise and moderate pre-cepts of Islam, in regard to the relations of a man and a woman based upon the reliable sources and practices of the Holy Prophet and pure Imams, it is documented that it is not obligatory to cover the face and hands as well as the fact that they strengthen the permissibility for men or women to look at each other upon the condition that it is not for lust (unless they are husband and wife) nor fear of deviation. Now we will briefly refer to the edicts of the


49

religious jurisprudents be-cause it is important to know how they have interpreted this issue from the beginning of Islam to the present.

To begin with, what is the opinion of religious jurispru-dents as to the covering of the face and hands and secondly, what edicts have they issued in regard to looking?

As to the fact that it is not obligatory to cover the face and hands, there appears to be no difference of opinion among all of the religious jurisprudents, Shi'ite or Sunni. There was only one Sunni who disagreed. He was Abu Bakr ibn 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Hisham and it is not clear if his opinion related solely to the ritual prayer or if it included those people who were not mahram, as well.

There is no difference of opinion as to the face but some differences have ap-peared with regard to the hands to the wrist and the feet to the ankles as to

whether or not they are included among the excep-tions. Before mentioning what they have said, two points should be noted. First, the issue of covering is dealt with in two places in jurisprudence. One is in relation to the fact that it is obligatory in the ritual prayer for women to cover all of their body, whether or not a non-mahram is present.

Here the question arises whether or not the face and hands must also be covered. The second place the issue is discussed is in relation to marriage and to what extent a suitor has the right to look at the woman he may decide to seek permission to marry. Here, there is most often a general discussion about covering and the permissibility or impermissibility of looking.

Thus, from the point of view of jurisprudence, we have two kinds of covering. One is the covering which is obligatory for the ritual prayer which has certain rules such as the


50

clothes worn must be ritually pure, not usurped, etc. The other is the covering which is obligatory, other than for the ritual prayer, before men with whom a woman is not mah-ram and which does not have the special requirements of the covering for the ritual prayer. As we will later point out, there appears to be no difference as far as extent of covering before a mahram.

The second point to be noted is that the religious jurispru-dents employ a term which refers to the body other than the face and two hands. This term is 'aurah', 'exposed' or 'bare' or 'naked'. It is possible that this term appears unat-tractive to some people in the sense that nakedness may be considered to be unattractive. We then ask if a woman's body, other than her face and hands, be something which is considered to be ugly or unattractive from the point of view of Islamic jurisprudence?

The answer is that the word aurah in no way refers to

something ugly or unattrac-tive. In the first place, not every ugly or undesirable act is referred to as aurah and the opposite is also true. The word aurah is often used in reference to something which has nothing to do with ugliness.

In the Holy Quran, the word is used in verse 33:12, "Truly our houses are open "(ex-posed, vulnerable, aurah) ,by which excuse they hoped to be exempt from fighting. It is clear that no ugliness is referred to in relation to their houses. In verse 24:59, which will be referred to, three times are mentioned where even a mahram needs to seek permission to enter an area of another's privacy (except a husband or wife) and these are called the time of "three aurah".

In the Majma' al-Bayan the author, who is incomparable among the commentators in his ability to cleave apart the meanings of words in refer-ence to the use of the word


51

aurah in verse 33:14 says, "aurah refers to anything which can easily be harmed which one is concerned about like the borders or frontiers of a country or something related to a war. A bare or exposed or naked place or house is a house which is vulnerable and easily harmed."

Thus, it becomes clear that the word is not used by the religious jurisprudents to abase or weaken. The body of a woman is referred to as vulnerable because it is like a house which contains no walls and can be easily harmed and must be covered by some kind of an enclosure.

Now let us look at what the edicts say. Allamah in Tazkirat ul fuqaha' wrote, "The totality of woman's body is aurah (vulnerable) other than her face." All of the ulama in the various cities confirm this other than Abu Bakr ibn Abd al-Rahman Hisham who believes all of the body of a

woman is vulnerable. His opinion is in the minority.

In the opinion of Shi'ite ulama, the two hands up to the wrist are like the face and are not considered vulnerable (aurah). Malik ibn Anis Shafe'i, Uwaz'i and Sugyan Thawri agree with the Shi'ite ulama because ibn Abbas had recorded from the Holy Prophet who said, "The face and two hands are included in the exception." But, according to the view of Ahmad Hanbal and Dawoud Zahiri, the two hands must be covered. The words recorded by ibn 'Abbas are sufficient to disregard this opinion.

Allamah refers to the two feet saying, "As can be seen, the religious jurisprudents refer to Surah Nur for the covering required for the ritual prayer yet it does not refer to the ritual prayer. That which must be covered in the ritual prayer is that which must be covered before a non-rnahram and if there is a difference of opinion, it is about whether or


52

not more areas need to be covered for the ritual prayer. But, as to the fact that which is not obligatory to cover in the ritual prayers is the same as that which is not obligatory to cover with a non-mahram, there is no difference of opinion."

Ibn Rushd, the famous Andulusian religious jurispru-dent, physician and philoso-pher wrote, "It is the opinion of the majority of ulama that the body of a woman, other than her face and two hands, is vulnerable, aurah. Ahmad Hanifah believes that the two feet are also not included. Abu Bakr Abd al-Rahman Hisham believes that the total body of woman is aurah without any exceptions.

Shaykh Jawad Mughniyah wrote in his book al-Fiqh ala Mazahib al-khamsah, "All of the Islamic ulama agree that it is obligatory for men and women to cover that part of the body for the ritual prayer which they cover outside of the ritual prayer. The differ-

ence arises as to how much needs to be covered.

The question in regard to women is whether or not it is obligatory for her to cover her face and hands to the extent necessary for the ritual prayer and the question in regard to men is if it is obligatory for them to cover more than the navel to the knee." Then he says, "According to Imamiyah Shi'ite ulama, it is obligatory for women to cover that much in the ritual prayers which she covers before non-mahram other than during the ritual prayer."

What is strange is that some contemporary ulama have thought that the view of the ulama in the past was that it was obligatory to cover the face and this is wrong.

As to the permissibility of looking, Allamah wrote, "A man looking at a woman or a woman looking at a man is either necessary (like the look of a suitor) or not. If there is no necessity, it is not permis-


53

sible to look at more than the face and hands and if there is fear of deviating, this much is also not permissible. If there is no fear of deviating, accord-ing to Shaykh Tusi, there is nothing to prevent it but it is disapproved. The majority of the Shafe'i believe the same but some believe that it is forbidden to look at the face and hands."

In regard to looking at the face and hands, there are basically three opinions. First, the opinion that it is absolute-ly forbidden according to Allamah and a few other people including the author of the Jawahir. Second, it is permissible to look once and what is forbidden is repeated looking. Muhaqiq in Sharae', Shahid Awwal in Lum'ah and Allamah in his other books hold this view. Third, it is absolutely permissible accord-ing to Shaykh Tusi, Kulayni, the author of Hada'iq, Shaykh Ansari, Naraqi in Mustamad and Shahid Thani in Masalik. Shahid Thani dismisses the

reasoning of the Shafe'i which Allamah had accepted but he says at the end, "There is no doubt that caution should prevail."

The above were the views of the past jurisprudents. Most contemporary jurisprudents do not refer directly to these two issues and, most often, cover it over by means of 'caution'. But among the contemporary jurisprudents, Ayatullah Hakim in his recital Minhaj al-Salihin, in the section on marriage, gives a direct edict in which he states the face and hands are an exception. "It is permissible to look at a person one intends to marry as well as dhimmah women as long as there is no lust in the glance including women whom one cannot prevent from not covering and women who areb rnahram. It is forbidden to look at any other woman, other than their face and two hands to the wrist, and that only if there is no lust involved."

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Di'bil al-Khuzai is one of the famous poets of Imam al-Reza (A.S.) era. He went to the presence of his holiness and said,

“O son of the Apostle of Allāh! I have composed a lyric poem about you and I have sworn not to recite it for anyone except after I read it to you.”

His holiness said, “Read it!” and Di'bil started to recite his famous poem that begins with the following lines:

مدارس آيات خلت من تyوة

ومنزل وحي مقفر العرصات

The schools of Divine signs are left devoid of recitation [of the Qur’ān],

And the descending place of Revelation has become slack and worn-out.

After expressing the op-pressed state of the Ahl al-Bayt (A.S.) and their depriva-tion from their own rights, he went on with the poem:

أري فيئھم في غيرھم متقسما

وأيديھم من فيئھم صفرات

I see their spoils are being divided among others,

And their hands are empty of what is theirs.

At this moment Imam al-Reza (A.S.) wept and said,

صدقت يا خزاعي

“O Khuza‘i! You have told the truth.”

Di'bil continued until he got to these lines:

لقد خفت في الدنيا وأيام سعيھا

وإني ¬رجو ا¬من بعد وفاتي

I was apprehensive in the world and in its time of striving;

And I hope to be safe after I die.

Imam al-Reza (A.S.) told him:

آمنك الله يوم الفزع ا¬كبر

“May Allāh keep you safe in that Great Dread [on the Resurrection Day].

The Event of Di'bil al-Khuza’i

Excerpts from the Book, “Story of the Sun: A Look at Imam al-Reza's Life by: Sayyid Muhammad Najafi Yazdi, translated by: Ahmad Rezwani


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Then, Di'bil pointed out the dispersion of the Ahl al-Bayt’s (A.S.) graves until he got to the following poem:

وقبر ببغداد لنفس زكية

تضمنھا الرحمن في الغرفات

And a grave in Baghdad [that is, Imam al-Kāzim’s (A.S.) grave]

For a purified soul that the Merciful God has encom-passed him in chambers [of Paradise].

Imam al-Reza (A.S.) said, “Shall I add two couplets to this stanza to make your poems perfect?”

Di'bil said, “Yes. O son of the Apostle of Allāh!”

The Imam (A.S.) said,

وقبر بطوس يا لھا من مصيبة

توقد با¬حشاء في الحرقات

إلي الحشر حتي يبعث الله قائما

يفرج عنآ الھم والكربات

And there is a grave in Tūs; what a tragedy!

That sets the hearts on fire that will be burning

Till the Resurrection until God will raise the Qā’im (the awaited Imam),

Who will relieve us of our sorrows and tribulations.

Di'bil said, “O son of the Apostle of Allāh! Whose is this grave that is in Ṭūs?” His holiness answered: “It is my grave. In the near future, however, Ṭūs will become the frequenting place of my Shi'as and visitors. Indeed, whoever visits (makes a pilgrimage to) me in my desolation in Ṭūs will be with me in the same rank on the Resurrection Day, while having been forgiven.

Imam al-Reza's (A.S.) Gift to Di'bil

When Di'bil finished reciting the poems, Imam al-Reza (A.S.) told him to stay on and went into the house. After a while, the Imam’s servant brought one hundred Razawī dīnārs (which were minted in the name of his holiness) and said to Di'bil: “My master says spend these for your journey expenses.”


56

Di'bil said, “I swear by God that I did not come for this and I did not write my poems for a reward.” He gave back the money bag and asked the Imam to give him one of his garments to get blessed by it.

Imam al-Reza (A.S.) sent back the money along with a robe and told the servant: “Tell him to take this bag, as he is soon going to need it.”

Di'bil took the bag and the robe and continued with his journey until he reached Qum. People of Qum asked Di'bil to recite his poem. He told them to gather in the grand mosque, and when they did, he recited the poem. People of Qum gave him a lot of money and gifts as sila (prize given to a poet). Then, the people happened to get informed of the robe that Imam al-Reza (A.S.) had given to him. They asked him to sell that robe to them for a thousand dīnārs. Di'bil did not accept. They said, “Sell a piece of that to us for a

thousand dīnārs.” He refused and left Qum.

In one of the villages near Qum, a group of Arab youths grabbed the robe from him. Di'bil went back to Qum and asked them to return the robe. The youth refused; they even did not listen to their elderly and told Di’bil: “We do not give back the robe; take a thousand dīnārs for it, in-stead.” Di'bil did not accept, but as he got hopeless, he asked them to give him a piece of it. They agreed and gave him a piece of the garment along with a thou-sand dīnārs.

Di'bil returned home and found out that the burglars had stolen all his furniture. He sold the hundred dīnārs that Imam al-Reza (A.S.) had given to him to the Shi'as for one hundred dirhams each. Thus he obtained ten hundred dirhams and recalled that the Imam had said, “You are soon going to need it.

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57

His holiness was under such heavy pressure and hardship that when he would return from the Friday Prayers, sweating and dusty, he would raise his hands to the sky and say: “O God! If my relief from what I am in lies in my death, hasten my death at this very moment!” He was constantly remorseful and discomforted until he passed away.[1]

The night before his martyr-dom, he sent for Harthama and told him: “Listen to what I say and memorize it; the time has now come for my return to God; it is time for me to join my ancestor and forefathers.

This rebel (Ma’mun) has decided to poison me with grapes and pomegranate; he has poisoned the grapes with thread and needle and will have the pomegranate seeded by a servant with poisoned hands. Tomorrow, he will call me in to eat from them and

the destiny will be ful-filled…”[2]

It is further related in the hadith that after the Imam’s (a.s.) martyrdom, when Harthama told Ma’mun about the grapes and pomegranate, the latter’s face now turned pale, now red, and then black, until he passed out and at the same time saying out loud: “Woe be to Ma’mun from God, Woe be to Ma’mun from the Prophet, Woe be to Ma’mun from ‘Ali b. Abi Talib, Woe be to Ma’mun from Fatima al-Zahra,…

And when he came to his senses, he told to Harthama: “I swear by God, neither you nor anyone else on the face of the earth or in heaven is dearer to me than Reza; I swear by God that if I hear that you have told anyone else what you have heard from him, your death will be in that. Harthama promised that if he revealed anything,

Imam al-Reza’s (a.s.) Martyrdom

Excerpts from the Book, “Story of the Sun: A Look at Imam al-Reza's Life by: Sayyid Muhammad Najafi Yazdi, translated by: Ahmad Rezwani


58

shedding his blood would be allowed for Ma’mun, who then made him swear and make a covenant to conceal it.[3]

Imam al-Reza (a.s.) said to Aba Salt: “Go to the Harun’s dome and bring a fistful of dust from each of its four corners. When Aba Salt returned with the dust, his holiness smelled the dust from behind the head corner and let it fall to the ground and said, ‘Ma’mun wants to bury me here; but there will emerge a huge stone that if all the picks in Khurasan are brought here, they will not be able to move this stone.

Then, he smelled the dust taken from the upper part and the lower part [of the grave] and uttered the same words; and when he smelled the dust from the Qibla direction (in front of the Harun’s tomb), he said, ‘Here they will dig up a grave for me…’

Then he said, ‘O Aba Salt! Tomorrow I will go to this wicked sinner; if I came out

with bare head, talk to me as I will answer; but if I came out with covered head, do not talk to me as I will not an-swer.”

Aba Salt said, “The next day his holiness put on his clothes and sat in his prayer niche waiting until Ma’mun’s retain-er came and summoned the Imam (a.s.). His holiness set off and I went along with him.

There was a basket of grapes and other fruits before Ma’mun and there was a bunch of grapes in his hands, some of which he had already eaten. As soon as he saw Imam al-Reza (a.s.), he rose to his feet, hugged the Imam, kissed him on his forehead, and seated him in his own place. Then he offered the grapes to his holiness and said,

‘O son of the Apostle of Allah! I have seen no better grapes than this.’ His holiness an-swered:

‘It is likely that the grapes are from the Paradise!’


59

Ma’mun said, ‘Eat from them.’ The Imam said, ‘Spare me.’ Ma’mun responded. ‘There is no way. Why don’t you eat? Are you accusing me or suspicious of me?’ His holi-ness took the bunch and picked three grapes and threw the rest on the ground and stood up.

Ma’mun said, ‘Where are you going?’ The Imam said, ‘Where you have sent me to.’ Then, while his head was covered, came out and I (Aba Salt) did not talk to him. His holiness entered the house and lay down in his bed and ordered the house door to be closed.

I closed the door and sadly lingered on in the courtyard. All of a sudden I saw a charming black-haired youth who looked most like Imam al-Reza (a.s.). I went toward him and said,

‘How did you come in through the closed door?’ he said, ‘The One who brought me here from Medina at this moment,

the same One took me in the house through the closed door.’

I asked who he was. He said, ‘I am the proof of Allah to you O Aba Salt! I am Muhammad b. ‘Ali (Imam al-Jawad).’ Then, he went to his noble father.

As soon as Imam al-Reza (a.s.) saw his son, he rose to his feet, hugged him, and kissed him on his forehead and showered kisses on him, talked to him in secret (about Imamate) that I did not understand… Then, his blessed soul joined the Garden of Divine pleasure.

Imam al-Jawad (a.s.) began to perform the funeral ablu-tion for his father. I wanted to help, he said, ‘There are some with me who would help.’ Then he said, Go inside bring the coffin and the shroud and balm.’

He clad his father’s body in shroud and performed the burial prayer over it.’ Then, he said, ‘Bring in the coffin.’ I


60

said, ‘Shall I go to the carpen-ter to have a coffin made?’ He said, ‘No, go to the inner house, there is a coffin!’

When I went inside, I saw a coffin that I had not seen there before. He laid the body in the coffin and performed two rak‘at of prayer; then, all of a sudden the ceiling opened up and the coffin ascended through the ceiling!

I said, ‘O son of the Apostle of Allah! Soon, Ma’mun will come and ask me for Reza, what shall I do?’ he said, ‘Silence! He will come back. O Aba Salt! There is no Prophet who would die in the East and his successor is in the West, unless God would call their souls and bodies together (i.e., his holiness has been taken to the Prophet).’

No sooner had his holiness stopped talking than the ceiling reopened and the coffin descended. Imam al-Jawad took the body of his father out of the coffin and laid it on the bed as if no

funeral ablution and shroud-ing had been performed for it.

Then, he said, ‘O Aba Salt! Get up and open the door for Ma’mun.’ I opened the door and saw it was Ma’mun along with his retainers. That cursed devil (who had made sure of the Imam’s martyrdom) entered while crying and tearing his clothes and beating on his head and saying: ‘O my master, you pained my heart by your tragedy.’ And it happened as Imam al-Ridha (a.s.) had predicted.”[4]

According to more renowned traditions, the martyrdom of his holiness took place in the month of Safar/September of 203/818.

References:

1. Ibid, p. 14.

2. Uyun Akhbar al-Reza (a.s.),

vol. 2, p. 248.

3. Ibid, p. 253.

4. ‘Uyun Akhbar al-Reza (a.s.),

vol. 2, p. 244-245. (in brief)

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61

Kids

Corner

Passing Away of the Holy Prophet (S)

When death approached the

Messenger of Allah (S), and

there were men in the

house, the Prophet (S) said,

'Get me the things to write

with so that I may write

something by which you may

never be misguided after

me.' People differed and

quarreled over the matter,

although quarreling in the

presence of the Prophet was

unseemly. The Prophet cried

out, 'Go away from me!

The Prophet said to Fati-

mah, "Bring your sons to

me." Fatimah brought Hasan

and Husain to the Prophet.

Both of them greeted the

Prophet, sat by his side and

wept at witnessing the agony

of the Prophet in such a

manner that the people who

saw them weeping could not

hold their tears. Hasan

rested his face upon the

Prophet's face and Husain

rested his head upon the

Prophet's chest.

The Prophet opened his eyes

and kissed his grandsons

lovingly, enjoining the people

to love and respect them.

Then he said, "Call my

beloved brother 'Ali to me."

'Ali came in and sat near the

head of the Prophet. When

the Prophet lifted his head,

'Ali moved to the side and,

holding the Prophet's head,

he rested it, on his own lap.

The Prophet then said: O

'Ali! You will be the first

person to reach me at the

heavenly reservoir of al-

Kawthar. You will also be

given a lot of trouble after

my death. You should bear it

patiently and when you see

that the people prefer the

lust of this world, you should

prefer the hereafter. The


62

Prophet kept confiding in

'Ali till the time of his

death. Then he breathed his

last.

The Holy Prophet departed

from this world on the 28th

of Safar, 11 A.H. He left the

temporal world, but the

message he brought to

mankind is eternal.

��

The pilgrimage of the

grave of Imam Husayn

(A.S.)

It is quoted in Biharul Anwar

from the author of Mazare

Kabir, who quotes with his

chain of transmitters from

A’amash, who says, that I

took residence in Kufa and

had a neighbor with whom I

often sat. It was the night

preceding Friday and I

asked him, “What do you

have to say regarding the

pilgrimage of Husayn (a.s.)?”

He said, “It is an innovation,

while every innovation is

misguidance, and every

misguidance is destined for

hell”.

Hearing this I arose from

near him filled with rage,

and told myself that, “In the

morning I shall go to him and

relate to him the traditions

proving the excellence of

the Commander of the

Faithful Ali (a.s.), perhaps

Allah might enlighten his

eyes”. I went to him in the

morning and knocked at his

door. Someone answered

from behind the door saying,

“He has left for the pilgrim-

age in the beginning of the

night”.

Immediately I followed him

until I reached the Shrine

of Imam Husayn (a.s.) and

saw him prostrating, while

he was not tiring due to

excessive prostrations and

genuflections. I asked,

“Yesterday you told me that

his pilgrimage is an innova-

tion, and every innovation is

misguidance, and every

misguidance is destined for

hell, while today you come


63

for his pilgrimage?” He

replied, “O Sulayman! Do not

reprimand me. I was not a

believer in the Imamate of

Ahlul Bayt (a.s.) until tonight

when I saw a dream which

left me horrified”.

I asked, “O Shaikh! What

did you dream?” He replied,

“I saw a man in a dream, who

was neither too short nor

too long, but was handsome

while I am unable to de-

scribe his features. He was

accompanied by men who had

surrounded him and held him

in their midst. While facing

him was a man mounted upon

a horse with a bushy tail and

he had worn a crown with

four pillars. All the four

pillars were studded with

gems that had illuminated

the distance of the road

equal to three days. I

inquired as to who he was

and was told that he was the

Vicegerent of the Prophet

(S), Ali bin Abi Talib (a.s.).

I lifted my eyes further and

saw an illuminated Camel

with a litter of light, flying

between the heavens and

the earth. I asked as to

whose mount was that and

was told that it was of

Sayyidah Khadijah (a.s.), the

daughter of Khuwaylid, and

Sayyidah Fatemah (a.s.), the

daughter of Muhammad (S).

Then I asked as to who was

the youth and was told that

he was Hasan bin Ali (a.s.). I

asked as to where were they

going, and was told that all

of them were going for the

pilgrimage of the oppressed

martyr Husayn bin Ali (a.s.),

the martyr of Karbala. I

went towards the litter,

when I saw some notes

falling down from the

heavens, on which was

written: The immunity of

Allah, may His remembrance

be sublime, is for the

pilgrims of the grave of

Husayn (a.s.) on the night

preceding Friday. By Allah O

Sulayman! I shall not leave

this place until my soul

abandons my body.”

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64

EMAM-e- ZAAMIN (A.S.)

The 8th Shi'ite Imam, Imam

Ali ibne Musa ar-Reza (A.S.)

is also called as Imam-e-

Zaamin (A.S.).When Muslims

go on journeys they take

with them something called

Imam-e-Zaamin (another

name for Imam Reza (A.S.))

which is some money tied in

a cloth. This tradition

probably came from the

time of Imam Reza (A.S.)

when people used to carry

money with them especially

because it had Holy Imam's

(A.S.) name on it. It was

very easy for the Muslims to

carry the name of Holy

Imam (A.S.) with them,

especially when they went on

journeys.

Imam Reza (A.S.) is also

known as Imam-e- Zaamin

(A.S.). Zaamin means "The

Guarantor". One day when

Imam Reza (A.S.) was on his

historical journey from

Madina to Marw (Khurasan),

while in a jungle the Holy

Imam (A.S.) came across a

hunter who was about to kill

a deer. The deer was trying

to get away and when she

saw the Holy Imam (A.S.),

she said something to him.

Holy Imam (A.S.) asked the

hunter to free the deer so

that she could go and feed

her little baby deer who

were very hungry. Imam

Reza (A.S.) also told the

hunter that once the deer

had fed her babies she

would come back. The hunter

allowed the deer to go

because the Holy Imam

(A.S.) had told him to, but

he did not think the deer

will come back. But Imam

Reza (A.S.)) waited with the

hunter until the deer re-

turned with her young ones.

The hunter was amazed on

witnessing this miraculous

event and he set the deer

free as a mark of respect

for Imam Reza (A.S.). After

this historical event Imam

Reza (A.S.) became famous

as Imam Zaamin (A.S.).

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