Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

IMAM HUSAIN GAVE COMFORT TO HIS SISTER ZAINEB

In the evening, Imam Husain was reciting some sad poetry when his sister Zaineb heard him. She came out of her tent, and said, “O I wish that I were not alive today, so that I would not have to see this day.” Imam Husain said to his sister, “What are you saying? Where is your patience? Be afraid of Allah Most High, and believe in his commands and thank Allah Most High. My mother, Fatima, who was the daughter of our Prophet (sallal laho alihi wa sallam) has passed away. My father, Ali, has also passed away. My brother, Hasan, has gone as well. And all the people who are on this earth will one day have to die and even the angels will have to die. And there is no doubt that one day will come when everything will be destroyed, and there will be only Allah Most High. My father was better than me, my mother was better than me, my brother was better than me. We all have to obey our Prophet (sallal laho alihi wa sallam). If the people who were better than us have gone then who are we to think we will not? We will have to go one day. O my sister, if I were to die tomorrow then I do not want you to pull your hair or beat your chest or cry loudly. Be patient because Allah is pleased with those who are patient.” When she heard this, she became very quite and went inside her tent.

Imam Husain called his people and said, “Tighten all the ropes which are connected to each tent, and dig a trench around the tents and set fire in them, so when the enemy come to attack us in the morning they will not be able to reach the tents.” After doing this, they went and prayed until Fajar. Imam Husain led the Fajar prayer for his followers, and Umar bin Sa’d lead the prayer for his men. It was Friday the 10th of Muharram 61 AH.

IMAM HUSAIN’S HISTORICAL SERMON

When Imam Husain saw that both sides were ready to go to war, he mounted a camel and faced the opposition and made the following speech:

“O people do not rush to kill me as I am the grandson of our Prophet (sallal laho alihi wa sallam), I have not come here of my own accord but have been called by you people. At this time, there is not a man on earth who is the grandson of a prophet apart from me. Pause to think for a while who am I ? If you want to know about me, go and ask the Prophet’s companions who are still alive. Go and ask Jaffer bin Abdullah, Abu Sa'id, Suhail bin Sa’d, Zaid bin Arkam and Anas bin Malik. They will tell you how the Prophet (sallal laho alihi wa sallam) used to love us. Tell me is it right for you to receive me with un-sheathed swords? Tell me, for what crime do you want to kill me? Have I killed anyone that you want to punish me for his or her murder? Or have I taken anybody’s property? O people listen to me, did you not write letters asking me to come? Once again I say, I have come here because you have invited me. But since I have come here, you do not recognise me and you do not want to support me.” He then finished his sermon and dismounted the camel.

EXCHANGE OF WORDS BETWEEN ZUHAIR AND SHIMAR

Zuhair bin Qayn, one of the supporters of Imam Husain, said, "O people of Kufa! We are all brothers, and we have not yet started to fight. On one side is the grandson of our Prophet and on the other side is Ibn Ziyad. You should leave that evil man and come and join Imam Husain‘s group. Those who contribute to the killing of the grandson of the Prophet will be in utter loss on the Day of Judgement because the Prophet will not intercede on their behalf. Victory lies with Imam Husain; with King Yazid and the governor there is nothing but shame.” Shimar responded that Zuhair bin Qayn his group would all be punished and killed. Zuhair replied, "You should not interrupt us. We are honest supporters of Imam Husain, and for that reason we will be granted Paradise." Zouhair wanted to continue with this verbal battle, but Imam Husain told him to go back to his tent.

SEPARATION OF HUR BIN YAZID FROM THE ARMY OF UMAR BIN SA’D

When Umar bin Sa’d decided to attack, Hur came before him and asked him if they were going to fight with Imam Husain. And if they had not accepted his proposals.Umar bin Sa’d said that he wanted to accept one of those proposals but Ibn Ziyad had not agreed to any of those conditions. After listening to this Hur started to move closer and closer towards Imam Husain and his followers with thirty of his men. One person said, “Hur, why are your legs shaking? Hur answered “I am trying to decide whether to go to Paradise or to Hell.” Before they knew it, he and his men were beside Imam Husain. He said “I am the person who made you encamp here and stopped you from going back to Makkah. I swear by Allah Most High I did not realise that the situation would escalate to such a degree that they would want to kill you. Whatever I have done was wrong. Can you tell me, if I ask for forgiveness, will Allah Most High forgive me? Imam Husain said, “Of course, Allah Most High will forgive you and I will make Dua for you that Allah Most High forgives you for your past sins.”

In this way Hur joined Imam Husain and left Umar bin Sa’d‘s army. Hur then addressed Umar bin Sa’d‘s army:

“O people, why did you not accept any of the terms offered by Imam Husain? Do you think that Allah Most High will allow you to succeed and defeat the grandson of his beloved Prophet (pbuh)? Do you think that by killing Imam Husain you will gain salvation? O residents of Kufa! you called Imam Husain and have now left him alone. How sad it is that you have surrounded him in a place where he cannot go anywhere. And how pathetic it is that you have blocked the river (Euphrates) so that no person from his followers can have water. The Jews, Christians, Fire worshipers, dogs, pigs and other animals are drinking water but Imam Husain cannot have water. Is he not even worthy of drinking our water? O people, if you do not repent from this and give Imam Husain water, on the Day of Judgement Allah Most High will also not let you drink water from the river Kauther.”

While Hur was making his speech the people started throwing arrows at him and he went inside the camp.

BEGINNING OF THE WAR

On 10th of Muharram Umar bin Sa’d got his bow and arrows ready and started to fire them towards Imam Husain and his followers. He said “O people, be my witness that I was the first one to shoot my arrows towards Imam Husain.” When his people saw this they also started to shoot their arrows towards them. Afterwards Yassar the slave of Ziyad, and Salam, the slave of UbayduLlah came from Umar bin Sa'd’s army and challenged Imam Husain and said, “Send two of your champions and we shall fight them.” From Imam Husain’s side, Abdullah bin Omair Kalbi came out to fight. He killed Yassar. Salam tried to kill Abdullah and struck a blow with which Abdullah lost the fingers of one of his hands. Then Abdullah struck a blow on Salam and killed him too. Nearby was his wife who came running towards him and said, “I am proud of you for your willingness to sacrifice yourself for the grandson of our Prophet (sallal laho alhi wasallam) and I am also with you.” Abdullah said to her, “You should go back to where Imam Husain is.” Then Abdullah went towards Umar bin Sa'ds army and started to fight with them. They all attacked him and martyred him. (May Allah grant him Paradise, Ameen)

END OF IBN JOZAH

Ibn Jozah was from the army of Umar bin Sa’d. He left his post and started to say to Imam Husain and his followers, “Where is Imam Husain? Which one of you is Imam Husain?” The third time he asked this, one of the people from the crowd said, “He is with us. What would you like to say to him?” Ibn Jozah said “O Imam Husain I have come to tell you that you are shortly going to enter the Hell fire.” Imam Husain said, “You are a lair, after my death I am going to meet Allah Most High, who is the most Merciful and most Kind. Who are you?” Ibn Jozah told his name. Imam Husain then made a supplication (Dua) “O Allah Most High send him to the Hell Fire.” Upon hearing this Ibn Jozah became angry when he heard this and tried to ride his horse towards Imam Husain at high speed. But his horse became frightened and tossed him over, whereby his foot got caught in the stirrup and he was left hanging to the ground. The horse started to gallop very fast and he was dragged along the floor. It got to the point that there was no flesh left on his face and he died. One of Ibn Jozah’s friends said, “I am not going to fight with Imam Husain as his supplications are accepted immediately.”

MARTYRDOM OF IBN KHUZAIR

Yazid bin Ma‘qil came from the other side to challenge Imam Husain’s companions to single combat. Ibn Khuzair came out from Imam Husain’s side and said, “You people are liars and cheats. You should repent because you came to fight with Imam Husain.” They started to fight and Ibn Khuzair killed Yazid bin Ma‘qil. When his people saw this, they rushed over to attack Ibn Khuzair and K‘ab bin Jabir martyred him. K‘ab’s wife was on Imam Husain’s side. When she saw that her husband had killed Ibn Khuzair, she came over and said to him, “How can you kill a person who was the best amongst us in reading the Holy Qur'an, and was known as Sayyidul Qurah. I do not want anything to do with you. I am asking for a divorce from you as we have nothing in common.”

MARTYRDOM OF UMAR BIN QURZAH

One of Imam Husain’s followers Umar bin Qurzah came to help Ibn Khuzair and fought til he was also martyred. One of his brothers was in the army of Umar bin Sa’d. He shouted in a loud voice, “O Husain, you are a liar and your father was a lair also, and you brain-washed my brother so that he became your follower and was killed for you.” Imam Husain answered, “I did not mislead your brother but Allah Most High guided him on the straight path. You are being misled.” Upon hearing this Umar got angry and started to attack Imam Husain’s side and said, “There will be either me or you left; only one of us will survive this battle.” In the mean time, Nafi' bin Hilal from Imam Husain’s side shot an arrow at him and injured him badly and then pulled his sword out ready to go and cut off his head. Just as he was about to do some people from the other side came and took him back, thus he survived.

After this two other people, Muzahim bin Harees and Yazid bin Sufyan came out to fight. They challenged anyone, asking who wanted to confront them. Nafi' bin Hilal and Hur came out for the single combat. It was the saem Hur who had deserted Umar bin Sa’d’s army and had repented. They both went out to fight these two people and Allah Most High gave them victory over both of them. The losses suffered by Umar’s army greatly worried Amar bin Hujjaj, so he suggested that rather than meeting Imam Husain’s supporters in single combat,a general attack should be launched.Umar bin Sa’d agreed with his plan.

When Imam Husain heard this he said, “O Umar bin Hajjaj how can you turn the people against us. If you were to die in this position, in your heart you know who is speaking the truth and who is telling lies. Which of the two groups is on the straight path and which one is not.” Hajjaj could not bear to listen to the truth so he attacked Imam Husain’s side with the entire right-wing of the army under him. The attack was resisted by Imam Husain’s companions but Muslim bin ‘Awsaja was left on the ground of the battlefield. Imam Husain came to him and comforted him saying, “May Allah Most High be Merciful to you.” Habib bin Muzahar, who was close-by, said, “May Allah Most High grant you Paradise.” Muslim bin ‘Awsaja opened his eyes and said, “Whatever happens, until you are alive do not leave Imam Husain’s side as he is on the straight path.” Thus ‘Awsaja passed away.

RAIN OF ARROWS ON IMAM HUSAIN’S FOLLOWERS

The rival force decided to launch their attack at once, and simultaneously began to fire arrows at Imam Husain and his followers. Some of Imam Husain’s followers and their horses sustained injuries. Even Hur’s horse was injured, and many of the horses were no longer capable of being used in the battle. But the brave soldiers began fighting on foot and the fight dragged until the afternoon. By mid-afternoon the battle was in full force. Umar bin Sa'd and his followers saw that they were losing the battle and lost the courage to continue fighting. Eventually, Shimar and Umar bin Sa'd ordered the others to begin throwing fireballs on the tents of Imam Husain and his followers. When Imam Husain realised what they were planning to do, he came out of his tent and shouted, "Have you got no shame? There are children and women in these tents, how are they going to protect themselves if they get burnt?" He turned to Shimar and asked him, "Are you not ashamed to throw fireballs on my tent when my wife and children are inside it?" Shimar replied, "It does not matter to me that by burning down these tents I will go to Hell, I will burn them down anyway." Eventually, two men Humaid bin Muslim and Shabath bin Rib‘i, told him that it was wrong to be attack the tents in this way, and they stopped throwing the fireballs at them.

MARTYRDOM OF HABIB BIN MUZAHAR AND HUR BIN YAZID

As people from Imam Husain's side were martyred during the course of the battle, his group of followers began to look very small in number. In contrast, when members of the opposition lost their lives it made no difference to their strength. In the mean time the hour for the Friday prayer arrived. Abu Thumama Sa‘idi suggested to Imam Husain that they should ask the rival force to allow them to offer the Friday prayer, and if the enemy decided to kill them during the prayer then it will still be a great honour to die in the state of prayer. Imam Husain told him to ask Shimar if they were permitted to say the prayer.

He went to ask Shimar to stop the battle so that they could pray. Haseen bin Numair emerged from the ranks of the army saying, “what is the point of saying prayers when your prayers are not accepted.” Habib bin Muzahar from Imam Husain’s side said, “O dog of the world, do you think your prayers are accepted? How can you say that the prayers of the grandson of our Prophet (sallal laho alihi wa sallam) are not accepted? Are you not ashamed by saying this?” Haseen got angry and got on his horse and came very quickly towards Habib. Habib got his sword and waved it at him and hit him so hard that he fell off his horse and was badly injured. His companions ran to his rescue and took his body away and started to fight with Habib. Habib fought with them with great courage. Habib also killed Badeel bin Suream. Another person attacked Habib from behind and as he turned round to confront him Haseen came again and martyred Habib. When Imam Husain saw this he was deeply saddened by the fact that such a courageous man has been martyred.

Hur asked Imam Husain to allow him to sacrifice himself and take revenge for the death of Habib. Hur used his sword very effectively in the battlefield and killed amny men. This inspired such awe in the hearts of Umar bin S’ad’s men that they began shooting arrows at him. Eventually, it was Abu Thamama who martyred him.

MARTYRDOM OF NAFI’ BIN HILAL

Nafi’ bin Hilal, one of Imam Husain‘s friends, was a very courageous person; he killed twelve of Umar bin Sa'd’s soldiers. Eventually, he was injured so severly that they captured him and took him to Umar bin Sa’d. Umar bin Sa’d looked at Nafi' bin Hilal and said, “Look what we have done to you.” Nafi' said, “I have killed twelve of your men and sent them to Hell Fire. If I had any more strength in my arms I would kill you and send you to the Hell Fire as well. But I am glad that I am fighting for Imam Husain and am going to be martyred by people who are on the wrong path. After saying this he breathed his last and joined many others in martyrdom.

SOME OTHER MARTYRS

The fighting continued and people would come to Imam Husain and ask him to be allowed to sacrifice themselves. Abdullah and Abdur’rahman who were from the Gafari tribe came to Imam Husain and asked for his permission to fight. Permission was granted and while fighting with Umar bin Sa'd’s men they were martyred. Similarly, Saif and Malik came and begged for his leave. When they went in the battlefield, they told the rival force, “Leave the wrong path and join us on the straight path. How will you explain yourselves to Allah Most High on the Day of Judgement?” When they heard this Umar bin Sa'd’s men attacked and martyred them. Similarly, Shawdhb bin Abdullah and Ibn Abi Shabib Shakri’s servant, Shuzab, came to Imam Hussian to ask his permission to sacrifice their lives for the sake of saving the valuable principles of Islamic political system. They too achieved martyred. This pattern of events was repeated again and again and may people were martyrdom in this way.

MARTYRDOM OF IMAM HUSAIN’S FAMILY

When all his close friends and the followers who came with him had been martyred, the only people left were members of Imam Husain’s immediate family: his young sons, his brother and himself. One of Imam Husain’s sons, Ali Akbar, came to request Imam Husain to permit him to sacrifice himself in the cause of the Truth. Permission was granted and as he entered the battlefield, he killed many of Umar bin Sa'd’s men but they were too great in number and he suffered repeated attacks at their hands. Murah bin Munqad Abdi attacked Ali Akbar from behind with a spear which made him fall to the ground. When the people saw him falling to the ground, they ran to him and attacked him with swords and martyred him. Oun, Abdur’rahman, and Jaffer went with Imam Husain to bring Ali Akbar’s body back to the tent.

Abdullah bin Muslim then went to fight and was injured by Umar bin Subeah Saydani’s arrow. He was on the ground. Umar saw his chance and shot another arrow and martyred Abdullah. The enemy were slowly surrounding them and Abdullah bin Qutbah Ta‘i martyred Oun bin Abdullah bin Jaffer. Uthman bin Kahlid and Bisher bin Shawoth martyred Abdur’rahman bin Aqeel. Abdullah bin Urah Kashee martyred Jaffer bin Aqeel.

Qasim bin Hasan, Imam Husain’s nephew, went to fight and as soon as he entered the battlefield, Umar bin Sa’d bin Nafaill Azdi attacked him viciously from behind. Qasim fell to the ground and shouted “O my uncle, O my uncle.” When Imam Husain heard this he quickly went to his assistance and attacked Umar. Umar tried to save himself but his hand got injured and as he fell he shouted to his friends. His friends came in such a disordly fashion that a great commotion was caused by the galloping of so many horses and Umar was crushed to death by them.

Imam Husain stood by Qasim and said “How evil is this group, how bad are these people who have martyred you? Tomorrow on the Day of Judgement I will present you in front of Allah Most High and He will decide their fate. I have been forced into such a weak position that even when my nephew calls out to me for help I cannot help him. I have never before faced such helplessness, and I swear by Allah Most High that my enemies are great in number and my companions are few.” While Imam Husain was talking to Qasim, he slowly passed away. Imam Husain carried his body on his back and brought him to where the bodies of Ali Akbar and other relatives had been kept. Abu Bakr bin Hasn was also attacked and martyred.

MARTYRDOM OF ABDULLAH BIN HUSAIN

For a short period of time the battle was less intense, Imam Husain walked out of the tent. After a while he sat down with his son, Abdullah bin Husain, in his lap. Abdullah bin Husain was four or five year old at that time. A person from Bani Asad shot an arrow which penetrated Abdullah’s neck, and he was also martyred. Imam Husain looked up towards the sky and said “O Allah Most High, if you do not help us we will be killed one by one, take revenge on these tyrant people.”

IMAM HUSAIN’S BROTHERS WERE MARTYRED

Abbas bin Ali, Imam Husain’s brother called his two other brothers, Abdullah and Jaffer, and said, “Let us fight the enemy who are against Allah Most High and his Prophet, even if we have to be martyred.” They fought with their all hearts, until Hani bin Sabet martyred Abdullah bin Ali and Jaffer bin Ali. A person from the tribe of Bani, Abban bin Daram, attacked Uthman bin Ali and knocked him down. Then he got on top of his chest, cut off his head and martyred him. Another person from the same tribe martyred Muhammad bin Ali. Abu Bakr bin Ali was also martyred.

IMAM HUSAIN WAS LEFT ALONE

Imam Husain’s sons, nephews, brothers, relatives, friends and supporters – all had been martyred. Imam Husain was left alone. Imam Husain was thirsty and tired due to all the fighting. He started to go towards the river Euphrates so that he may have a drink. When he was close enough to have a drink, Haseen bin Numair shot an arrow that hit Imam Husain in the face. Imam Husain pulled the arrow out of his face and as he was wiping the blood, he kept saying; “O Allah Most High punish those who are doing these evil things to the grandson of your beloved Prophet. Punish those who are using force against me.” Later, Shimar got ten of his men and went towards Imam Husain’s tent. Imam Husain admonished them saying, “Don’t you have any shame? Are you not afraid of the Hereafter? Have you lost all sense of humanity? Tell your men not to harm the women and children.” When noone answered him, Imam Husain picked up his sword and started to fight. Shimar had with him Abdur Rahman bin Jofee, Qasam bin Nazeed Jofee, Sahleh bin Wahhab, Sinan bin Ans Nakhee, Khowlah bin Yazid Asbahee, and he shouted to them to surround Imam Husain, and kill him.

When they tried to surround Imam Husain, he attacked them and they all fell to the ground. In the end they all attacked him simultaneously. Even then Imam Husain fought them off. While this was happening, Sayyiduna Zaineb (Imam Husain's sister) came out of her tent to see what all the commotion was about. When she saw that her brother was being attacked, she looked up towards the sky saying, "O sky, why don't you fall down on the earth when they are attacking Imam Husain?" She saw Umar bin Sa'd and said to him, "Ibn Sa'd, my brother Husain will be martyred before your very eyes. Do you not have any shame?" Upon hearing this Umar bin Sa'd's eyes filled with tears and they rolled down into his beard. He had nothing to say in his defence and turned away from Sayyiduna Zaineb. Imam Husain continued fighting, determined not to surrender to those who had marked the beginning of Monarchism in Islam.He said to them, "You are hungry for my blood. I swear by Allah Most High that Allah Most High will not be pleased with you. Allah Most High will punish you for my death and he will take revenge before you even realise that He has done it. And I swear by Allah Most High that if you kill me the doors of bloodshed will be opened on you, and there will be many killings amongst your people. Why? Because you are trying to kill an innocent person, and that is not permissible in Islam." When Imam Husain told them this, not one person answered him. Meanwhile, Imam Husain was still protecting himself in the fight. In the back of their minds all of the soldiers had the thought that they should not be the one to actually kill him. In their hearts they knew that he was the grandson of the Prophet (Sallal laho alhi wasallam) and nobody wanted to be the person remembered and cursed until the Day of Judgement for killing Imam Husain.

MARTYRDOM OF IMAM HUSAIN

Shimar shouted to his men, “How cowardly you all are? You cannot even kill an injured person. There are so many of you that if all of you were to throw one stone at a time he would be killed and buried. So what are you doing? Attack him at once and kill him instantly.” When Imam Husain heard that Shimar was urging the people to attack him, he said, “The prophecy of the Prophet has come true. The Prophet had said that he was looking at a white dog that was sniffing at the blood of his family.” The reason Imam Husain said this was because Shimar had leprosy.

When they heard this they started to attack. Some of them started to shoot arrows at Imam Husain. Zurah bin Sahreek Tamimi attacked Imam Husain on his right shoulder, causing him deep and serious wounds. After that Sinan bin Anas Nakhee threw a spear at Imam Husain. The sheer force made Imam Husain fall to the ground, and Khowla bin Yazid Asbahi came forward with the intention of cutting off Imam Husain’s head. At that time Imam Husain’s whole body was shaking. Sanan said to Khowla, “You get back, I will cut his head off.” He came forward and cut Imam Husain’s head and separated it from his body. They started to divide Imam Husain’s belongings amongst themselves. Baher bin Ka’b took Imam Husain’s shirt, Qais took Imam Husain’s shoes and Aswad Azdee took his sword. There were spear wounds , and forty-three sword wounds on Imam Husain’s body.Umar bin Sa’d ordered ten horsemen to ride over Imam Husain’s body at such a speed that the meat would be separated from the bones.

During the course of the battle 72 people had been killed from the opposite side, and 88 people had been martyred from Imam Husain’s side. Umar bin Sa’d led the funeral prayer for his deceased and buried them and left Imam Husain and his followers as they were.

According to the Islamic calendar, it was the time of the Friday prayer on the 10th of Muharram in 61 Hijrah when Imam Husain was martyred.

EVENTS AFTER MARTYRDOM

THE TENTS WERE ROBBED

After Imam Husain was martyred, the enemy took all of his belongings, and captured his injured horse. They went towards his tents on their camels and entered the tents of Imam Husain’s wife and the rest of the women and started to take whatever they could find. They even took the blankets, which were on Imam Husain’s wife, sister and daughters. Shimar bin Zil Jawshan saw that Ali bin Husain, the son of Imam Husain, who was sick at the time, was in the tent He looked much younger in appearance than he actually was. When Shimar saw him he said, “Kill him also.” Humaid bin Muslim stopped him and said “Are you trying to kill little children as well?” When he heard this he stopped himself from killing Ali. This is the same Ali who is well known as Zain-ul- 'Abidin. Zain-ul- 'Abidin and all the women were taken into custody.

Imam Husain’s wife, Rubab, her servants Uqba bin Saman and Murkah bin Samama Asdi were still alive. Zain-ul- 'Abidin, Imam Husain’s sister and his daughter were also alive, as servants were not killed at the time of war Shimar got Imam Husain’s head and called Khowla bin Yazid and Humaid bin Muslim Asdee and said, “Take this head and go to Kufa and inform Ibn Ziyad that we have cut off Imam Husain’s head as he had wished.” Night had already fallen when these reached Kufa, the house of the governor was locked.

Khowla took Imam Husain’s head to his house for the night. When he reached his house he told his wife that he had brought the head of Imam Husain. His wife said, “People bring back bags of money when they go away, and you have brought into our house the head of the grandson of our Prophet (sallal la ho alihi wasallam)? For this reason I am not going to speak to you” He then went into another part of the house and went to sleep. His wife reported that in the morning she saw a light (noor) flickering towards the sky from the tub where Imam Husain’s head had been placed, and fluttering white birds were surrounding it.

In the morning Khowla took the head of Imam Husain to Governor Ibn Ziyad and presented it to him on a platter. The governor had a small stick in his hand and he tapped it on the teeth of Imam Husain. Zaid bin al-‘Arqam, a companion of our Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace), was present at the governor‘s house. He said to Ibn Ziyad, “Do not tap your stick on those teeth. I have seen those teeth being kissed by our Prophet (sallalaho alihi wasallam) many times. Today you are hitting your stick on those same teeth” Ibn Ziyad said, “May Allah Most High curse you. If you were not an old man I would have your head cut off as well.” Zaid bin Al’Arqam stood up and said “How evil you are, you have martyred the grandson of Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace).” Then he turned to the crowd and said “What kind of governor have you appointed that he is killing righteous people, curse on you all and on you Ibn Ziyad that you have made such a big mistake and you are not even ashamed of it.”

IMAM HUSAIN’S FAMILY TAKEN TO KUFA

The next day Shimar, who had captured all the women and Zain-ul- ‘Abidin and the two slaves, started to move them towards Kufa to bring them in front of Ibn Ziyad. When the women came out of their tents they could see in the distance that in the battlefield all the bodies were covered in blood and some were badly mutilated. They all screamed together and Sayyiduna Zaineb shouted “Ya Muhammad Ya Muhammad (O Muhammad O Muhammad), they have mutilated Imam Husain and he is lying there covered in blood.” She repeated the same words again and said, “Your daughters are shackled and prisoned. Your children have been martyred and their bodies are covered in dust.” When Sayyiduna Zaineb said this, even the enemy had tears in their eyes.

They were taken to the governor’s house in Kufa. Ibn Ziyad pointed towards Sayyiduna Zaineb and asked, “Who is she?” as he did not know who Sayyiduna Zaineb was. He asked two or three times. Someone answered and said, “This is Zaineb, Sayyiduna Fatimah’s daughter, the granddaughter of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace).” Ibn Ziyad said to Zaineb “I thank Allah Most High that your brother, who was a liar, has been punished.” Zaineb said “I thank Allah Most High for giving us birth in the house of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace), and for revealing the Holy Qur'an in our house. This world is only for a few days and you are wrong to think that we should be ashamed or embarrassed because in the Hereafter we will be the respected ones, and Allah Most High will punish those who are evil.” Ibn Ziyad said, “Did you not see how I killed all your relatives, and how I mutilated their bodies.” Zainab could not hold back the tears as she had witnessed these events before her own eyes and she began to weep.

Ibn Ziyad then looked at Zain-ul- ‘Abidin and and asked him who he was. He replied, “My name is Ali bin Husain.” Ibn Ziyad said, “Has not Allah Most High had Ali bin Husain killed yet?” When no reply came he said, “Why don’t you answer me, I heard that Ali bin Husain had been killed.” Zain-ul- ‘Abidin said “I had a brother called Ali Akbar and the people at Karbala martyred him.” Ibn Ziyad started to laugh and said, “Yes Allah Most High had him killed.” No one responded to this, so Ibn Ziyad said again, “Why don’t you speak?” Zain-ul- ‘Abidin said, “Allah Most High has said everyone must die no matter who they are.” Ibn Ziyad replied, “Are you from amongst them too?” Then he turned to one of his men and said, “He has grown up now so why don’t you kill him.” Zain-ul- ‘Abidin said, “If you kill me, look at all these women, who are they going to go to Madina with? They have no Mehram other than me who will go with them.” Sayyiduna Zainab could not hold her self back and started to cry again and hugged Zain-ul-Abidin and said, “Have your desires not been fulfilled yet? Why do you want to kill my last nephew as well? Do you not want to see any man alive? If you want to kill him then you have to kill me first. If you have any shame then do not kill him as he will go with us as a guardian to Madina.” Ibn Ziyad said, “I feel sorry for you but if I had really wanted to kill Zain-ul’Ahbedeen, I would kill both of you.”

MARTYR OF ABDULLAH BIN AFEEF

After this Ibn Ziyad ordered that all the people should be gathered together. One person stood up and called all the people and they gathered in the Mosque. Ibn Ziyad stood on the pulpit and gave a speech. In the speech he abused Sayyiduna Ali, may Allah Most High be pleased with him, and abused Imam Husain. Abdullah bin Afeef Azdee Waleabee was one of the companions of our Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace). He was a person who spent much of his time in the Mosque. When he heard this speech and the abuse that Ibn Ziyad was directing towards Sayyiduna Ali, he could not take it and said, “ O liar, your father was a liar too, how can you say such evil lies about Sayyiduna Ali, may Allah Most High be pleased with him. May Allah Most High send His wrath upon you. You have martyred the grandson of the Prophet, and you are talking like you have done a good deed.” Ibn Ziyad said, “Bring him to me.” Some of his men tried to bring him to Ibn Ziyad and there was a struggle. He ordered more of his men to arrest Abdullah. In the end Ziyad crucified Abdullah in the Mosque and he was also martyred.

PRISONER’S JOURNEY TO SYRIA

After the speech, ibn Ziyad ordered that the heads of Imam Husain, and some of the people who were martyred should be placed on top of long spears and taken around the streets of Kufa so everybody could see what had happened to the people who turned against the government. The next day he called all the women, Zain-ul-'Abidin and the two slaves and asked them to mount the camel’s bare backs and shackled everyone. He even made the women remove the veils from their faces so that the people could see them, and sent them all to King Yazid. Before they all arrived there Ibn Ziyad had sent the head of Imam Husain, so that the King could see for himself that he had obeyed his commands.

ZUHAIR BIN QAIS WENT TO YAZID

They were still on their way to Yazid when Zuhair went ahead to meet Yazid. Yazid asked him how he was. He replied, “I have come to you with some good news, Allah Most High has given us victory. Imam Husain and 18 of his close relatives and 60 of his friends and followers came towards Kufa. When we heard this we went to them as we thought they would create trouble; and we told them that either they swear allegiance to Yazid or we would have to go to war with them. They preferred to fight with us rather than compromise, so we had to get ready for war. When the sun came out we surrounded them from all sides. We attacked them with our swords, arrows and spears. They tried to save their lives by running here and there, in the trees, mountains and behind rocks; like pigeons would run if they saw a vulture. I swear by Allah Most High that their running and hiding did not make any difference and did not help them at all. Our sharp swords killed them and their bodies are lying there in the field with no clothes, or shade as we speak. If they have any shade it is the sun’s rays and if they have any clothes it is the soil, and the strong winds of the desert are throwing their bodies around. The only people who are looking on them and feeling sorry for them are the wild animals.”(1)

When Yazid heard this, his eyes filled with tears and he said, "I would have been pleased with you even had you not killed Imam Husain. May Allah's Most High wrath be upon Ibn Zaid who has done this to him. I swear by Allah Most High that if I were you I would have forgiven Imam Husain, may Allah Most High send his blessings on him." After saying this he became very quiet, and instead of giving him a gift, as it was customary to give the bearer of good news, he turned him away.

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THE FAMILY OF IMAM HUSAIN REACHED SYRIA

Meanwhile the prisoners including the women, Zain-ul‘Abidin and the two slaves reached Syria and were taken beforeYazid. Imam Husain’s head, which was still on a spear, and all the other heads which were on platters were brought before Yazid. There were a lot of people with Yazid. When Fatimah and Sakeena, the daughters of Imam Husain, saw their father’s head they could not hold back and screamed out and cried. After a little while when they had calmed down, they said to Yazid, “Is it fair to make the relatives of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) prisoners?” Yazid said, “Go and look in my house. The women in my house are mourning in exactly the same way that you are mourning.” Siyyidia Zainab, Fatima, and Sakeena and the other women went in the palace and saw that all the women were crying and mourning

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(1) I ask how Zuhair bin Qais claimed that he had good news for the King when Yazid himself cursed Ibn Ziyad who did all these bad things. And also at a later time Ibn Ziyad admitted that he had done a very bad thing. Zohar hid Imam Husain’s bravery and did not mention how courageous he and his followers were. Moreover, he did not mention anything about the three requests Imam Husain had asked for. May Allah Most High have his wrath upon him.

Zain-ul‘Abidin said, “If the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) saw us would he not release us?” Yazid said “yes he would,” Yazid then looked towards the people who were present and said to them, “Take off the shackles.” When they were all bought in front of Yazid, a person called Nu'man bin Bashir Ansar said, “Can you imagine what our Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) would have said if he had seen them like this as prisoners?” Yazid said, “You have spoken the truth. He would have been very unhappy.” He freed them all and had tents set up for them and gave them clothes and other necessary provisions.

THE FAMILY’S JOURNEY BACK TO MADINA

After a few days they started to make plans to leave for Madina. When they were departing for Madina, Nu'man bin Bashir appointed a pious person and said, “You go with the caravan and guide them in the journey making sure that they do not come to any harm.” Yazid compensated them for what had been taken from them and sent them on their way. As they were about to leave Yazid came up to Zain-ul ‘Abidin and said, “May Allah Most High’s wrath be upon UbayduLlah bin Ziyad, if I were there in his place I would have accepted the requests that your father mentioned, and I would have helped him as much as I could. But what Allah Most High wanted to happen has happened. If you ever require my help, write to me and I will try to fulfil your request.(1)

(1) Yazid was telling Zain-ul ‘Abidin and Sayyiduna Zaineb how sorry he was, but it was all a show and a false Sa'dness. At least he could have removed Ibn Ziyad from his post as governor, and the people who had helped martyr Imam Husain and his followers could have been punished. But he did not do any such thing.

Yazid then turned to the people who were travelling with them and said they must not be harmed or be given any trouble on the way. Zain-ul ‘Abidin, his aunt, his mother, his sisters and the rest of the crowd left for Madina. The guides and the helpers looked after them with respect and fulfilled their every need. They were looking after them so well not only because Yazid ordered them to do so, but also because they knew that these were the relatives of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace). In this way the caravan reached Madina and they began to live in Madina in peace.

NAMES OF THE PEOPLE WHO WERE MARTYRED IN KARBALA

Sulaiman reports that when Imam Husain was martyred his head and other people's heads were carried on spears towards Ibn Ziyad. The following people were martyred at Karbala, May Allah be pleased with all of them.

Abbas, Jaffer, Abdullah, Uthman, Muhammad, Abu Bak’r, Abdullah, Husain bin Ali, Abu Bak’r, Qasim, Hasan bin Ali, Oun, Muhammad, Jaffer Abdur Rahman, Abdullah, Abdullah bin Muslim, Muhammad bin Abee Sa'id. These are the close relatives i.e. son, brother, and nephews of Imam Husain who were martyred in Karbala.

WHAT HAPPENED AFTER KARBALA?

Yazid changed the governor of Madina from Waleed bin Utbah, to Uthman bin Muhammad. When Uthman bin Muhammad reached Madina, he asked a small number of respected people to go to meet Yazid in Syria. Amongst the people were Abdullah bin Hanzalah, Abdullah bin Abee Amar, Munzeer bin Zubear. When they reached syria, Yazid respected them as a guest is supposed to be respected. He gave Abdullah bin Hanzalah a gift of 100,000 Dirhams, and gave the rest of them 10,000 Dirhams. When this caravan came back to Madina, the people of Madina asked Abdullah bin Hanzalah about the character of Yazid. He replied, “We come from a person who does not practice religion. He drinks alcohol and listens to music.” If there were any pious people there, they would gather the people and overthrow him. The people said, “We have heard that Yazid respected you and has rewarded you for your alleginace to him.” Abdullah said, “Yes he has, and I have taken the money so that I can buy weapons to fight against him.”

Because of this news, the people of Madina removed Uthman bin Muhammad from his post and his officials were prisoned. Abdullah bin Muti was appointed as the new governor. Uthman bin Muhammad wrote a letter to Yazid explaining everything. Upon reading the letter, Yazid prepared an army of 12,000 people and said to them “The people of Madina have broken their allegiance to me and have chosen a new governor, Abdullah bin Muti'. I want you to go there and bring Madina under my kingdom again.” He tried to make Umar bin Sa'id, the commander of these 12,000 men but he refused to be in charge. Then he asked UbayduLlah bin Ziyad. His repley was “In the beginning I listened to you and martyred Imam Husain but I do not want to make the same mistake again. I do not want to fight with the people of Madina or become a bad person in the sight of Allah Most High.(1)

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(1) The people who say that it was right to kill Imam Husain should read these words very carefully. Why would the person who had martyred Imam Husain say that he had committed a great error. The enemies of Imam Husain should really think hard at this point before saying or making these false accusations and claiming that Ibn Ziyad or Yazid acted lawfully under the Shari‘ah.

He then turned to Muslim bin ‘Uqbah Murri and said, “Do you want to become a leader of the army?” He agreed and said that he would, and if need be, fight with the people of Madina. They prepared to leave for Madina. Yazid went with them for a while giving guidance on what to do. Burning with rage, Yazid said, “When you reach Madina, tell the people that you will give them three days to re-instate the governor of Madina Make sure you obtain allegiance from them. And remember do not harm Ali bin Husain (who is known as Zain-ul ‘Abdin), because he has not taken any step against our government.”

ALL THE ROADS INTO MADINA WERE BLOCKED

When Muslim bin Uqbah reached Madina, he blocked all the entrances into the city and camped outside, so that noone could come to help the people of Madina. He then sent a messenger to Abdullah bin Muti' and the people of Madina telling them that if within three days they had not agreeed to the terms of the King, he was prepared to go to war with them, and he would take all their possessions.

WAR BETWEEN THE PEOPLE OF MADINA AND THE SYRIAN ARMY

When Abdullah bin Muti' and the people of Madina received the message they replied that they were prepared to go to war. Upon hearing the response of the people of Madina, Muslim bin 'Uqbah attacked Madina with his army and martyred many people. He killed Abdullah bin Muti'’s seven sons in front of him and then killed Abdullah bin Muti'. Many people fled the town and went into the hills and others hid in their houses. He ordered his men to take all the possessions the people of Madina. They raped over a 1000 women. A group of the companions of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) were also martyred. They tied their horses in the Mosque (Masjid Nabawi) and allowed them to urinate and defecate inside it. For three days there was no call for prayers and congregational prayers were not said inside the mosque.(1)

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(1) Imam Darmi writes that Sa'id bin Musaib, who was a great student of the companions, reported that when he was in the mosque he did not know about the time of the prayers until from the grave of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) he heard the call for the prayer.

Darmi chapter Fasaeilun-Nabi (Allah bless him and give him peace)

Hafiz Ibn Taymiah writes that like Sa'id bin Musaib heard the call for prayer there are other people who heard the answer of their sallams from the grave of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace).Kitab Iqtida us Siratal Mustaqeem page 373 by Hafiz Ibn Taimiya

Muslim bin 'Uqbah Murri made everyone pledge allegiance to Yazid. If anyone declined he would have them killed. This tragic event took place during 63 Hijra.

(1)

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(1) Hafiz Ibn Katheer writes that our Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) has said that the person who fights with the people of Madina will melt like salt does in water, and the person who scares the people of Madina, Allah Most High will make them scared. And Allah Most High and his angels and the people’s curse be upon him. As in this Hadith it mention any one who causes a war with the people of Madina. Some scholars agree that it is permissible to send curse on Yazid. Imam Ibnul Jozee has written a whole book on this and has explained that to send the curse is permissible. But some scholars say people should not, as then some people would send curse on the companions of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace). Tareek Ibn Katheer chapter on Karbala. This Hadith of Hafiz Ibn Katheer is in Bukahri, and Muslim in the chapter of Hajj.

After the ravage of the popel of, Muslim bin ‘Uqbah advanced towards Makkah, as guided by Yazid.