Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Contemplations

916: The thing which is considered valuable by the Almighty, and that He has graced humanity with, is knowledge, cognition and understanding of Him (ma‘rifah), and for mankind to understand why they were created, where they came from, why they came into existence, and where will they end up.

917: If one’s intellect is perfected, one would not go after one’s desires; therefore will there be injustice, poverty, or misery? Of course not.

918: If one’s intellect is perfected, one’s belief and faith are perfected, rather even one’s life would be perfected.

919: Duty is one thing, and desire is another, and it is essential to ensure to distinguish between the two.

920: There is no doubt that the one who contemplates about the consequences of one’s affairs many times over would be able to perfect them, and would normally not err in them, just as the one who repeatedly practices something would master it and excel in it.

921: Productive discussion is a pathway to augmenting scholarly ability.

922: It is imperative that an individual has a strong resolve, robust guidance, and a will of steel in order to succeed in Almighty Allah’s obedience in the highest levels, and thus attain the highest ranks.

923: Whenever Truth and Falsehood battle it out, and a group of brave faithful emerge vowing themselves to Allah, He will guarantee them victory just as He did for the believers in [the battle of] the Confederates. This is Almighty Allah’s tradition and [you will not find any change in Allah’s tradition].

924: A human being, whoever one may be, will surely transgress the bounds,[130] or is potentially liable to transgress; it is therefore mandatory that no one may bully their way in holding on to power, and it is mandatory that no individual assume all power to himself excluding others.

925: To advance the various levels is like climbing the mountain; if one falls from a height of one meter one would have superficial injuries, but the fall from increasing heights would result in increasing severity, giving worst results.

926: Time is very; so if one of us lives one hundred years, then this would be insignificant compared to what needs to be done, and our lives fall shorter than that.

927: There are many stories and many lessons to learn from, but the important thing is to take heed and learn even from one lesson.

928: We may succeed to swindle someone who is not aware of our intentions and what goes on in our minds, but how impossible it is to cheat the Almighty Allah.

929: When we deal with others according to our own personal persuasions, we would not equal between those who are honest to us and those who cheat us. So why wouldn’t we expect this approach from Almighty Allah towards us?

930: If I swear a thousand oaths to you that I am an honest person, you wouldn’t be convinced of my honesty given the conduct you’ve seen from me or my intentions that you know of. In this case, would you deal with me like you would with a truly honest person? Of course you wouldn’t. You may pretend to do so, or even be courteous, but when it matters, and in critical circumstances, you would deal with me according to your own convictions. Therefore, if you are suspicious of me, you wouldn’t tell your secrets, and if I ask you the reason for this, you may change the subject, or you may even deny the secrets, but the real reason is that you don’t trust me. If these are the criteria in dealing with one another, and we deem them to be right and proper, why don’t we give Almighty Allah the same right, and still expect Him to deal with us like He deals with the honest individuals, although our intentions are not true towards Him?

931: There is no doubt that Almighty Allah does not equate the honest and the dishonest. Does the one who strives for material goals - whether for fame or wealth - equal the one whose endeavour is purely for Allah alone?

932: By Allah’s grace, we know our duties and if someone asks us about them we would be able to respond, but it is incumbent for us to apply and practice [our duty].

933: Whoever accomplishes the aim one has been aspiring for will feel the sense of achievement.

934: By nature, an individual is haste in attaining the results.

935: Misinterpretation, mix-up, and concealment is the root cause for great many inventions, and thus disputes, that exist between the faithful.[131]

936: There is no severance nor discontinuity in Truth, and in contrast, falsehood, sooner or later, fails its perpetrator.

937: If one is able to deceive one’s fellow human being with one’s appearance, one would not be able to do so with the Almighty, because Almighty Allah knows all too well what goes on in the consciences, and what the hearts conceal.

938: Amongst the faithful, do you think that the different parties involved know what they are doing when they dispute? And that they know it is disobedience [to the Almighty]? Not at all. Rather, the conduct of each party is made to look good, and each think they are right.

939: If the principal criterion in our conducts is to take the ma‘soom Imams as our role models, and that“the one who goes ahead of them is a renegade, he who lags behind them is in falsehood, and he who adheres to them is following in their footsteps” , then we should open hearts and minds to all people and encourage them to say whatever goes on in their hearts and minds; for this was the policy of the grand Prophet and the ma‘soom Imams from his family, peace be upon them.

940: There is no doubt that the advices and exhortations of the holy Prophet and the holy Qur’an are many; rather most of the holy Qur’an is advices and exhortations, and no doubt, all that the prophets brought forth or was revealed to them are summarised in the holy Qur’an, for it is the essence of the all the divine messages in their entireties.

941: Prophet Muhammad’s advices and exhortations are the essence of those of all the prophets before him, i.e. the one-hundred-and-twenty-four-thousands of them. However Almighty Allah instructs His messenger to summarise all the advices and exhortations into one expression. He instructs His gracious messenger: [Say: I exhort you only to one exhortation].

So what is the exhortation that Allah instructs His Messenger to admonish the people with, and nothing else? The holy verse continues: [that you rise up for Allah] i.e. your rising, your intention, your dedication, and your contemplation be purely and sincerely for Allah. By“rising for Allah” it is not meant to perform the daily prayers or other acts of worship, but it is intended to be the contemplation, dedication, and sincerity of one’s intention when doing any deed. In other words, it is“self-discipline” and“distancing [from the ego]” , and that only Almighty Allah be the goal, intention, and direction, and not the self and its interests in any way.

942: When in solitude, especially when others are asleep, let every one of us reflect and contemplate, and to say to oneself;“Who am I to wrong or hurt others? Or to commit the prohibited? And what will my destiny be? Where are my father, grandfather, friends and relatives who have passed away? Will I forever stay, or will I pass away in the same way? Is death and reckoning for them only and not for me, or will we all have this fate?” This line of thought is the essence of the holy Qur’an’s admonishments and exhortations. Indeed if one has such scruples, and thinks along those lines, it would be impossible for an individual to embark on committing a sin.

943: The one who takes one’s desire for one’s god, in that case, one’s self and ego becomes more important [for him] than anything else, and thus one wouldn’t care about committing disobedience of Allah in the process. The important thing for such an individual is to provide for one’s self and to see to its wishes [at any cost, and that’s the crux of selfishness].

944: Do we value and respect Allah’s laws as much as some of us do for money? There are some who, if told about money or gold to be found somewhere, would endeavour to find it, but if told about that a particular thing being prohibited, would reply;“is this all that matters?” They do not value Allah’s laws even by as little as ten coins; who would chase them and strive to find them, though he is not even certain those may be found.

945: How can it be right to compare nothing with abundance? It is necessary that there is a number to compare the great with. This is why it is said that whoever favours Ali over Mo‘awiyah has disbelieved. This is because Mo‘awiyah has no merit so that one may say Ali is better than him.

Rather, not a single one from this nation - nor indeed from any other nation - may be compared with any one of Prophet Muhammad’s progeny; for they represented the holy Qur’an through their conduct and way of life.[132]

946: Both encouragement and dissuasion have their effects on the soul of the individual, but for the one who has attained the level of sincerity, these have no effect on one’s endeavour.

947: An individual’s deeds and conducts emanate from one’s soul or self. Therefore, the good deeds and praiseworthy traits either emanate from souls that are likewise, such as the souls of the ma‘soomeen, peace be upon them, and Allah’s devotees, or from souls that their owners have taken them under control [through self-discipline].

948: If an individual is in Almighty Allah’s Light, then one would not slip, or deviate, or transgress, nor would one’s evil-commanding ego control him. One would not allow Satan to seduce him, and the world would be the least of all in his view. This is because with this Light one sees the realities of things, just as with physical light one sees various things and distinguishes one thing from another, and takes what one wants and refrains from what one does not.

949: If an individual is not in Almighty Allah’s Light, he would be lost in darkness, bewilderment, and go astray, even if he did not realise this, and imagined himself to be aware of his status and surrounding.

950: The utterance of [to Allah we belong and to Him we return][133] makes the individual in Almighty Allah’s Light; that is, Allah bestows the Light and vision upon the individual to recognise what is beneficial to him and what is detrimental, for what [purpose] he should spend his life, how to interact with people, how to control his self and desires, how to escape from the love of the world and its adornments, and indeed how to be able to discern what is appropriate and thus accept it, and what is dispraised and thus refrain from it. This is the state of the individual who is in Almighty Allah’s Light.

951: Let there be an example and a lesson for us in the case of Owais al-Qarani. This devout servant was never honoured to meet Allah’s Messenger even though he lived at the time of the Prophet, peace be upon him and his holy family. He used to live in Yemen, and when he came to Medina to see Allah’s messenger, he did not see him, as he had been martyred. Owais was rather saddened by that. But do you realise that this Owais is preferred over many of those who had accompanied the Prophet, peace be upon him and his holy family?

952: A scholar’s sleep is never considered a mere abandonment (of duty), rather it is preliminary to it; because when a scholar sleeps this would constitute rest for him, and this rest is a prelude to serving, guiding, and directing the people, and transferring them from darkness to light, and from fire to paradise. Therefore a scholar is rewarded for sleeping.[134]

953: One of the consequences of being distant from Allah’s laws in life in Western civilisation is the number of mental hospitals there, which are far greater than other hospitals - contrary to our countries. It is evident that 90% of psychological illnesses are due to problems. But where do these problems come from? Does the Almighty descend them on mankind with the sun’s rays? Or do the seas flood us with the problems? No… these come from our own thoughts, when we assume the wrong role or put ourselves in the inappropriate situation.

954: Almighty Allah is mankind’s creator and He knows better what suits mankind; both in terms of creation and legislation (takwini and tashri‘i); thus the Almighty laid down the laws for the benefit of mankind and his life system; some of them creationist (takwini) to which a human being is coerced, while others are legislative (tashri‘i) which one has the freedom to uphold. If mankind adheres to Allah’s Sharia laws, his life would improve and blessings would descend on him; otherwise, mankind would lead a hectic and wretched life.

955: There is a difference between one who is proactively-sincere (mokhlis) and one who is inherently-sincere (mokhlas). The proactively-sincere is one whose conducts and deeds are purely for Allah - they are done for Allah only and share it with no one else… while the inherently-sincere is the one whom Allah has chosen, made his natural disposition sincere, and approved his sincerity.[135]

956: If we explore [our knowledge] we would find out that there are many things that we do not know of, and would discover there are numerous issues that we never thought of their details or possibilities. In other words, we would discover we were ignorant of many issues, and we will not be excused for our ignorance as long as we have the ability to learn and explore.

957: It is good to recall that there were people who were sinful and disobedient, but at some stage they upturned, because of the readiness of their hearts, through one or two admonishments to good and devout individuals.

958: We will be regretful and sorrowful on the day of resurrection, when there is no chance for one’s reform or development, when we learn that an individual who was remote from religious matters and discourses, reversed to become a good and devout individual and acquired a better status with Almighty Allah than us while we did not manage to reform and develop ourselves, while we knew the religious matters better than him.

959: There are some who give the impression that they lead their lives while observing religion soundly, but their destiny at the end of their lives would end up bad, and the opposite is also true.

960: It is truly unfortunate that some people sell their faith for the insignificant. Even though one may not be working as an agent for the secret service, is not on their pay role, or receive any payment from them, but one gives all one has to the oppressors for nothing in return, and makes one’s neck a bridge for them, and therefore such an individual will be one of those about whom the Almighty declares: [And when the hypocrites, and those in whose hearts is a disease, say: Allah and His messenger promised us naught but delusion].[136]

961: Today the Western politics is devoid of faith, morality, and virtue; and as a result, knowledge, which is the best means for advancement and development, and culture, which is the best tool to realise understanding, coexistence, security, and peace in the nation, or rather in the world, have become the means for decadence and disownment, for disseminating fear and panic, chaos and turmoil, war and destruction throughout the world.

962: The life and body of a human being move towards death and conclusion, but on the contrary, his metaphysical and his spirit move towards ascension and transcendence instead of decline and disappearing.

963: There is nothing in Allah’s Beautiful Names that prompt or inspire fear or repulsion.

964: Almighty Allah’s mercy, compassion, forgiveness, and all His names and attributes do not carry anything of the meanings of fear or dread.

965: Why shouldn’t one fear the Almighty Allah’s justice when one knows that there is no pause in Allah’s punishment [for the oppressor] on the day of resurrection, that it is eternal, and that the means of perdition and destruction - of every kind - pour on to the sinner on that day, and despite that he does not die, but continues to taste the severest punishment.

966: If one contemplates the holy Qur’an’s description of hellfire and its torment, one would have no peace of mind.

967: The wretched is not the one who sleeps while hungry, or languishes in the depths of dungeons and suffers the severest of torture, because all that are for a set time, and after that the hungry would be filled, and the prisoner released. But the wretched is the one who is met with Allah’s justice and reckoned for his evil deeds, on the day when the creatures’ deeds are presented before the Almighty, and nothing is left out; small or big.

968: The Almighty attributed the Ka‘bah to Himself, and so it is called Allah’s House, which is to sanctify its station and honour its standing. Since Almighty Allah does not actually have a house, and He is in no need for a place. He elevated this piece of land from the depths of the earth to the peak of the heavens, and honoured it by attributing it to Himself.

969: The reality is that we are slaves to Almighty Allah, whether we like it or not, but some motives propel us to be inattentive to this reality. As a result, this leaves us in a state of denial about the reality and the relation between us and our creator.

970: The one who admits to servitude to Allah, and make oneself recognise this, the Lord will not evict one from His mercy, even if some disobediences emanate from the individual, because soon one would realise this, apologises for them and decides not to repeat such conduct.

971: A simple slip or a small deviation due to some negligence might lead to suffering anguish and hardship for decades. For example, when working with a needle and due to inattentiveness one pierces one’s eye; the same goes for spiritual matters. Thus a simple mistake or a slip will make the individual to live with regret and sorrow for millennia in the hereafter.

972: A human being normally tries to smarten up his appearance, rather, he is wired to do so and to cover up his faults and deficiencies; therefore he tries to cover up his reality and interior so that others would not discover there is disagreement between his inward [reality] and outward appearances and whatever he pretends to be. This is because it is normally supposed that there is agreement between one’s inward and outward appearances, and this is the first impression of any individual, unless proven otherwise.

973: Almighty Allah did not take the lives of our ancestors because He had a negative view of them, and He did not give us life because He viewed us positively; neither all of those individuals did bad things which made them deserve death, nor did we all do good things which made us deserve life. Rather, Almighty Allah gives each an opportunity in this world to reveal how we perform.

974: There is a wrong phenomenon in society, where many people would say, if so-and-so who has such a societal, scholarly, or religious status and yet commits bad things, or there are slips in his life, then what do you expect from us mortals? There is no doubt this attitude is not right, it represents a wrong phenomenon, and proves that the heart of he who says such a thing is not linked to Allah, but to other than Him - as if he has forgotten that Almighty Allah asses our hearts and not our appearances.

975: We follow our leaders and scholars and learn from them, but if any one of them deviate by a fingertip, then it is imperative for us not to deviate with him, even if he was the means for our guidance [to begin with]. This is because the heart should relate to Almighty Allah, and Allah witnesses our hearts as to whether or not they are linked to Him. If they are linked to Him alone, then this is the required quality for which we have been created, otherwise none of our deeds would benefit us.

976: This nation’s common practice must - always and forever - be the endeavour that is emphasised upon by the Holy Qur’an, so that all affairs run accordingly with ease and simplicity, and distant from tragedies and hardship.

977: It was the will of Almighty Allah to take martyrs from this nation to be beacons for the faithful and role models for generations throughout history - in patience, perseverance and sacrifice.

Glossary

‘adil (plural ‘odool)	‘adil is the individual who adheres to and acts upon the obligatory duties and refrains from the prohibited acts, such that if his neighbours or colleagues were asked about him, they would report of his good nature, commitment, and piety.
‘alawiyyat	Female descendants of Imam Ali and Prophet Muhammad
‘allamah	Learned, erudite scholar
‘eid	Festival, happy returns
‘elm al-akhlaq akhlaq	The science of morals
‘esmah	Immunity from error, sin and forgetting
adhan	The call to the daily prayers
ahkam al-Islam	The Rulings of Islam [on the halal and haram]
Ahl al-Bayt	Members of the household of Prophet Muhammad
akhlaq & adab	Ethics and Etiquettes
al-Mostafa	The Chosen One – one of the titles of Prophet Muhammad
amir al-mo’mineen	The Commander of the Faithful (the title exclusively given to Imam Ali by Prophet Muhammad on divine instructions)
awliya’Allah	Allah’s Authorities or the prominent and pious personages
bayt al-mal	the treasury
dhimmi	The non-Muslims who are in the care of/under the protection of the Islamic government
diyah	expiation/compensation
du‘a	Supplication
fada’il	Virtues
fiqh	Jurisprudence
foroo’ al-deen	“ Branches of the Religion”; acts of worship, obligations and duties to be practiced by every male and female Muslim individual. For example the daily prayers, fasting the holy month of Ramadahn, etc.
ghayb	the unseen
halal	Approved/permissible
haram	prohibited
hay’ah	Group
hijab
Husayniah	religious centre dedicated to the programs of imam Husayn
ihtiyat
ijtihad (in fiqh)	level of expertise attained to become fully qualified to deduce and make judgement and issue verdict (fatwa)
iman	Faith
jahiliyah	the era of ignorance – in reference to the pre-Islamic era
Jum‘ah	Friday
Ka‘bah	the symbolic house of Allah situated in the sacred mosque in the holy city of Mecca
ma‘rifah	The concept of cognition and understanding (of Allah’s attributes)
ma‘soom (plural ma‘soomeen)	Infallible – the one who is immune from error, sin and forgetting. These are Allah’s prophets and applies to the fourteen ma‘soom, namely Prophet Muhammad, his daughter Lady Fatima, and the twelve divinely-appointed Imams.
majlis (plural majalis)	The gathering commemorating the martyrdom of any of the thirteen ma‘soom.
makrooh	Discouraged
malakah	“ second nature” or the disposition acquired through practice and observance certain conducts or merits
marje‘ (plural maraje‘)	The point of reference or the source of emulation. This is the term to the jurist or Islamic scholar who is fully qualified in all aspects of Islamic law as well as those the human society needs to address. He is an expert of Sharia law, and thus able to issue Islamic ruling or fatwa on any issue of concern, and is therefore considered as authority on Islam. A marje‘ has followers who seek of his fatwa and opinions on various matters of concern.
mobah	mobah [neutral] is referred to anything that is not categorised as either obligatory or prohibited
mohaqqiq	Learned/competent researcher
mojtahid	The jurist or Islamic scholar who is fully qualified in all aspects of Islamic law, and thus able to issue Islamic ruling or fatwa on any issue of concern, and is therefore considered as authority on Islam.
mokallaf	literally means duty-bound, and in this respect it means one who has reached the age of adolescence when one is obliged to fulfil one’s religious duties such as observing the five daily prayers, the fasting of the holy month of Ramadan, etc.
moqassir	Deliberate negligence, in reference to the individual being capable of learning or enquiring about his obligations but not attempting to do so.
mostahab	Recommended, encouraged
osool al-deen	The roots/fundamentals of the religion, the principle beliefs every Muslim individual should recognise and adhere to
qasir (ignorant)	The person who is not held accountable for his deeds due to him being ignorant of his religious duties and/or not having access to religious teachings and guidance. [see moqassir]
Qudsi hadith	divine hadith, Allah’s words other than the verses of the holy Qur’an
quosoor	mere ignorance [see taqseer, qasir, moqassir]
risalah amaliyyah	Islamic Law handbook
seerah	The conduct and way of life or biography of a notable individual
Sharia	Islamic Law
Sunnah	the Prophetic teaching or tradition
taghut	false deity
tableegh	conveying and disseminating the teachings of Islam
tafsir	explication exegesis
tajwid	particular format of recitation of the holy Qur’an
takwini / tashri‘i	natural or physical aspects / legislative aspects
taqseer	negligence and failure (see quosoor, qasir, moqassir)
tawheed	monotheism, the concept of oneness of Allah
ummah	the Muslim nation
wajib	Obligatory
wajib ‘ayni	individual obligation; every Muslim individual is obliged to observe such obligation
wajib kifa’i	Collective obligation; that which if adequate number of Muslim individuals in the community fulfil such an obligation, then the rest of the community is not bound to fulfil.
wajibat & muharramat	obligatory duties & prohibited conducts
wilayah	Authority (of Prophet or Imam over followers of the religion)
ziyarah (plural ziyarat)	Pilgrimage to the shrine of a prophet or an imam
ziyarat-al-arb‘een	Visiting the shrine of Imam Husayn commemorating the fortieth day of his martyrdom

Imam Husayn and Ashura

Introduction

Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, set out to seek to reform his grandfather’s nation, as he put it;“to promote good and prohibit evil; since good was not being promoted and evil not prohibited. And to uphold the policies of my grandfather and my father Ali bin Abu Talib.” In this cause Imam Husayn, on the day of Ashura, sacrificed everything; it cost him the lives of his sons, brothers, nephews, devotees, including himself, as well as his six-month old son, and it resulted in his wives, sisters, daughters and other women taken captives, and paraded across towns and cities from Karbala to Kufah and from there all the way to Damascus.

Ashura - the most unspeakable day in human history,“the like of which there is none” as stated by Imam Hasan, peace be upon him. Not only Allah’s most cherished were slaughtered on that day, but they were slaughtered in the most brutal way ever. Not only man and Jinn cried for Husayn, but even heaven and earth wept for Husayn. It is reported in numerous sources that on that day it rained blood, not only in Karbala but in other locations like Medina and Jerusalem. A report recorded in the Anglo Saxon chronicle alludes to this extraordinary phenomenon: 685 In this year in Britain it rained blood, and milk and butter were turned into blood.

The tragedy of Ashura is also cited in the Old Testament“For the Lord, the LORD Almighty, will offer sacrifice in the land of the north by the River Euphrates.” Jeremiah 46:10

Imam Husayn embarked on this mission and gave the blood of his heart - with one goal in mind - in order to secure humanity’s salvation, and rescue them from ignorance and straying, as stated by Imam Sadiq. And in the course of that endeavour, Imam Husayn showed the most exalted forms of compassion and humanity when he lavishly gave water to his own killers as well as the their horses, and sprayed them with water in the middle of the scorching desert - knowing full well that, very soon, they would deny him water and kill him in the most ruthless manner. This is why Prophet Muhammad said about him,“al-Husayn is a torch of guidance and an ark of salvation.”

Were it not for his endeavour and his sacrifice, there would be no trace of Islam, morals, or human values today. We would instead have been in a totally different world; a world beyond recognition, a world that would have no resemblance to the one we live in today, despite all the tyranny injustice and evil there is today … it would have been pure evil. We would probably be worshipping Yazid and the devil today. Editors.

195: The holy month of Muharram has such a distinction and a feature that at the onset of this season, and the sighting of the new moon of this month, one remembers and relates to the name of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, when he was wrongly and savagely slaughtered on the tenth day of this month.

196: The holy month of Muharram reminds us of our responsibility towards Imam Husayn’s cause and the retribution of his blood. Amongst our responsibilities are two:

First: Introducing Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, and his cause, such that every human being would recognise him throughout the globe.

Second: This is the more important, since the first leads to it; which is to pursue the goals of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him.

197: Promoting Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, and his cause, through holding mourning programs and Husayni rites on the one hand, and through the endeavour to materialise the aim of Imam Husayn which is the salvation of the masses from the ignorance of disbelief and deviation of falsehood to the light of the Truth, Islam, and faith on the other hand, are amongst the responsibilities placed upon us all, with respect to the blood of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him.

198: With the onset of the holy month of Muharram, it is time to remember what Almighty Allah bestowed upon Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, who sacrificed everything in Allah’s cause. The Almighty gave him merits that He did not give to absolutely anyone else, not even those who are superior to Husayn i.e. his grandfather Allah’s Messenger, his father Imam Ali the Commander of the Faithful, his mother Fatima al-Zahra’, and his brother Imam Hasan, peace be upon them all.[45]

199: Indeed, Almighty Allah has given al-Husayn, peace be upon him, that which He has given to no one else. The Almighty has linked his blood to the realm of creation; for He has placed the responsibility for his blood upon the entire Earth, and upon everyone who lives on it - as if the crime was committed by the entire earth and whoever on it. He then made them responsible to take his revenge.

200: We must roll up our sleeves during the months of Muharram and Safar; while having planned and prepared extensively beforehand, and utilise all our energies and resources in this cause so that ultimately Imam Husayn becomes a guide for all humanity. This may be achieved through the means of the Husayni rites and processions, movies, the internet, satellite television channels, seminars, and all other means available to us. This is part of our responsibility alluded to in Imam Sadiq’s address to his grandfather Imam Husayn:“Allah has made the Earth and whoever on it liable for your blood.”

201: Let us carefully study the [various] ziyarat of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, and contemplate the notions therein; it is only then that one would attain great understanding through reflections on the content of these ziyarat.

202: It is necessary to know why Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, and his sons and followers chose the path of martyrdom, and in this particularly tragic way. There is a passage in the salutation of ziyarat-al-arb‘een that answers this question of ours:“In order to bring about the salvation of Your servants [O Allah] from ignorance and from the confusion and perplexity of straying and perversity” . Here the term“Your servants” is used; but this does not concern the Shi’a only but all human beings.

203: How great is the number of the people who do not know Husayn, his cause, and the objectives of his uprising! And how grave is our responsibility thereof!

204: Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, revived and upheld the religion of his grandfather, peace be upon him and his holy family, and were it not for Husayn, no pillar of the Islamic religion would have stood still.

205: By his sacrifice and martyrdom, Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, revived and upheld the religion and protected the Sharia.

206: Were it not for Husayn, there would have been no trace of the salah, fasting, and the hajj pilgrimage - because the Umayyad’s were about to annihilate the Islamic religion, but Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, protected the religion by [sacrificing] his blood and the blood of his Ahl al-Bayt.

207: Doesn’t Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, have a favour for the salah; every salah on the face of the planet?! Doesn’t his blood have a favour upon the Ka‘bah and the Grand Holy Mosque?!

208: Were it not for the struggle and jihad of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, his revolt and his blood, there would have been no fasting during the month of Ramadan, and there would have been no trace of the zakah, khums, and all other laws of Islam.

209: The survival of the name of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him and his holy family, and its daily mention from the top of the minarets is by the blessings of Imam Husayn, and were it not for Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, Mo‘awiyah, Yazid, and after them the dynasty of Marwan would have wiped any mention of the Prophet’s name, and the jahiliyyah (the pre-Islamic era of ignorance) would have returned. This was the plan Mo‘awiyah had drawn up.

210: Every mosque you enter today owes its existence to Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, and every salah and fasting, and“bidding good and forbidding evil” , all kindness to parents, sincerity to Allah, and even the name of Allah’s Messenger, peace be upon him and his holy family, every time it is raised in the adhan . all these are due to Imam Husayn, peace be upon him. This is the meaning of the prophetic hadith,“I am from Husayn.”

211: The Prophets, their loyal successors, and devout followers were killed in the cause of Allah’s Laws. Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, informed his brother Muhammad al-Hanafiyyah when the latter tried to convince him not to leave for Karbala, that his grandfather, Allah’s Messenger, said to him in his dream,“O Husayn! Go for Allah has willed to see you killed [in the cause of saving the religion]” . Muhammad al-Hanafiyyah responded by reciting the Qur’anic verse“To Allah we belong and to Him we return.” He went on saying to Imam Husayn,“Then what is the purpose for taking the women and children with you, given you are leaving under these circumstances?” the Imam replied,“He told me: “Indeed Allah has willed to see them taken captive [to convey and revive the message of Karbala.]” “

212: The Prophet said to his grandson Imam Husayn,“You have degrees and ranks in Paradise that you may not attain except through martyrdom” . What did the martyrdom of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, attain other than it preserved and protected Allah’s religion and His Laws from being eradicated during the reign of the tyrant Yazid ibn Mo‘awiyah?!

213: It is absolutely not possible for us to imagine what the master of the martyrs, peace be upon him, endured on the day of Ashura. Occasionally some thoughts and ideas might occur to one, but it is absolutely impossible to imagine what actually took place on that day.

[For a brief account of some of the sufferings Imam Husayn faced on the day of Karbala, see endnote #2 in the endnotes section beginning on page 243.]

214: Imam Mahdi, may Allah hasten his reappearance, depicts the state of Imam Husayn’s horse when it returns to the tents without its knight; as if it feels it had failed to succour its master Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, and that it rushed to his family to inform them of a massive calamity.

215: The term“nashirat al-sho‘ur” [46] or“having spread their hair” may be envisaged as follows:

It was cultural tradition of the ancient Arabs that when a woman loses a beloved one, she would remain grief stricken for the rest of her life. In these circumstances she would untie her braid inside her hijab as a sign of her grief. This tradition is prevalent in Iraq and may be in other Arab countries. By this statement it is not meant, as some tend to believe, that the ‘alawiyyat ladies left their tents while their heads and hair exposed, God forbid.

The meaning of“nashirat al-sho‘ur” or“having spread their hair” is that the ‘alawiyyat ladies untied their tresses under their hijab given their immense grief, and wore their hijab on their heads firmly abiding by the instruction of Sayyid al-Shohada’, peace be upon him, who ordered them to do so, and not let their immense grief make them overlook their hijab.

216: The polytheists gathered their forces to fight Allah’s Messenger, peace be upon him and his holy family, and they meant to kill him in particular. But when they were defeated and some of them taken prisoners, the prophet could not go to sleep because one of them was groaning. But in the case of the Umayyad savages, they took the Prophet’s family and descendants [captive on the day of Ashura], and they never showed pity to them.

217: The calamity of Sayyid al-Shohada’ and his family is an exceptional calamity.

218: It is Allah’s will that the calamity of Sayyid al-Shohada’ and his household remains unparalleled in all existence from eternity until the day of resurrection.

219: Look at the station of Sayyid al-Shohada’s little daughter, Sayyidah Ruqayyah. After the passage of more than one thousand, three hundred and fifty years, in the district of the Levant, that is the centre of the Umayyad dynasty seat of power, great many prayers are answered through pleading to and the intercession of this honourable Sayyidah. This is in relation to this world, as for the hereafter, Almighty Allah is all-Knowing.

220: It is not for us to summarise the cause of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, by saying,“He is an Imam, and an Imam has the quality of patience and perseverance” .

221: In less than half a day, Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, experienced all those afflictions and endured such atrocities that no human being can possibly withstand. All that was in sight of Almighty Allah that never falls asleep; and the hour will come when in His absolute wisdom the time for patience will come to an end, and it will be the turn for Allah’s justice, of which retribution will be one of its consequences.

222: The battle of Karbala embodies the grandness of the Sayyid al-Shohada’ (Master of the Martyrs), peace be upon him.

223: When we speak about Imam Husayn and his merits and qualities, we may discharge some of our responsibilities towards him, and that may be not more than the amount of the wetness a needle can have from the sea. This is because talking about Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, is indeed talking about Almighty Allah, the Holy Qur’an, Prophethood, the Truth, and every merit and virtue there is.

224: Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, aimed at bringing about salvation of humanity from ignorance, straying and perversity.

225: If we want to attain closeness to Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, it is imperative that we sacrifice all we have in the cause of the salvation of ourselves and of all humanity from ignorance, straying and perversity.

226: Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, was martyred for the sake of three goals: the fundamental principles of the Islamic religion (osool al-deen), the Islamic Law, and the Islamic ethics and morality.

227: The majority of what we have of ideals and values is from the blessings of the sacrifices of the Master of Martyrs Imam Husayn, peace be upon him.

228: Ashura has implanted in our innermost the values of humanity, servitude before Almighty Allah, as well as favouring and serving others, compassion for the oppressed, and defence of those who have been wronged.

229: It is necessary to keep the embers of the slaughter of Ashura always burning, and to sacrifice the blood of our hearts for its sake. In this way we guarantee pride and prestige for ourselves and for the generations after us.

230: One of the goals for which Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, sacrificed the most precious on the face of the earth - himself and his family - and he emphasised that it be kept alive in words and in action, is to instil and uphold Islamic morality in the individual and in society.

231: Sound economy, just politics and morality were at the forefront of the goals of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, in his uprising against the Umayyad dynasty, who crushed all values, corrupted the country, humiliated the people, and imposed upon the nation detestable economy, and oppressive rule, such that the outward look of the nation became other than what Allah’s Messenger, peace be upon him and his holy family, had brought to the world, and had implemented during his blessed life.

232: Indeed Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, offered the greatest sacrifices in Almighty Allah’s cause, when he sacrificed his honourable person, and his righteous family, even his infant son, as well as his devout companions.

233: Were it not for the blessed movement of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, the policies and practice of the Umayyad dynasty, and those of the earlier ones before them, as well as their likes, would have uprooted the Islamic religion, and wiped out Islam altogether.

234: The holy month of Muharram and the memory of Ashura continue to serve as a torch of light by which humanity is guided from the time of martyrdom of the master of the martyrs Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, until today.

235: It is a duty upon the faithful to follow Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, by adoring themselves with good morals, and adhering to them in all conducts of social life; with friends and relatives, with strangers and enemies.

236: The faithful enhance themselves with Ashura’s rich lessons for their world and their hereafter.

237: Every time the Ashura anniversary is commemorated, Imam Husayn’s devotees acquire new values and understandings from the eternal Ashura School.

238: The massive slaughter of Ashura provides guidance and enlightenment for generations over the ages.

239: Ashura makes the reverend individuals bow their heads out of respect for the magnanimity of its owner.

240: Let’s not forget that the commemoration of Ashura has passed through various situations and confrontations, and that the sacrifices which the predecessors and ardent devotees of the Master of the Martyrs, peace be upon him, have offered are indeed the ones which have conveyed to us this school of Ashura which stands up to tyranny and oppression, and legendry in its holy objectives.

241: It is not appropriate for us to claim we follow the school of Ashura if we do not give the precious and priceless in the cause of continuing its sublime goals, and to convey this divine Husayni trust to the forthcoming generations intact and without it being stained by any defect, while at the same time, being proactive and distant from any form of straying or distortion. This may be achieved when the intentions are sincere, and the personal interests are shunned and replaced by the objective of realising the content of Almighty Allah.

242: The duties of the devotees of Ahl al-Bayt, peace be upon them, are to promote and glorify the issue of Ashura, disseminate its culture and programs, revive the Ashura majalis, processions, and everything that is related to the rites of Ashura in order to eternalise its memory. Needless to say, this task is surrounded by hardship and difficulties - but they are worth it since the final outcome is great and abundant reward.

243: Our daily prayers, fasting, good conduct with the family and community, and every other good deed that we may do is accounted for by Almighty Allah. But the endeavour made in the cause of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, has a special status compared to the aforementioned deeds. It is Imam Husayn alone that Allah has given the authority to reward for such endeavours; so good for those who multiply their endeavours in this cause.

244: Let us consider what Sayyid al-Shohada’ Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, has presented us so that we track his path and follow his footsteps.

245: We must try to learn lessons from Imam Husayn, peace be upon him.

246: One of the lessons of Karbala is to use our words and deeds for the good cause - always and with everyone without exception.

247: One of the lessons we have learnt from the Master of the Martyrs Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, is that if we are able to help someone out of difficulty, then we should not hesitate about that.

248: Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, teaches us that if it is possible for us to help someone we know - or even don’t know - with our wealth, or words and deeds, or conciliation, then we should do so.

249: The Day of Ashura is not an occasion purely for mourning and lamentation, but it has always been the time for learning from its lessons, and following the examples of its heroes.

250: It is imperative that we follow the example of Sayyid al-Shohada’, peace be upon him, and take him as a role model in all his conducts.

251: The movement of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, is distinguished by two features; the teardrop and the role-model, and these two features are always together.

252: The one who is privileged to attain a higher station and a greater sanctity in the sight of Sayyid al-Shohada’ Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, is one who is more capable in taking him as a role model and shedding tears for him. The rewards attained are according to the extent of the efforts made in these two respects.

253: By his martyrdom, Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, founded the school of guidance for all.

254: Great many non-Muslims, even fire-worshipers praised Imam Husayn, peace be upon him.

255: Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, called upon the people to confront oppression and wronging, and persevere with hardships and tribulations in order to experience happiness and prosperity.

256: Whoever wants to prove his loyalty to Sayyid al-Shohada’ Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, and his sublime goals, should endeavour to realize the goals for which the Imam was martyred, which are embodied in the religion’s fundamentals (osool al-deen), Shari‘a rulings, and Islamic morals, and that one makes these goals his or her top priorities.

257: We have an exemplary role model in the stance of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, vis-à-vis al-Hurr[47] and his army of fully armed men. [When they were stranded in the desert without water] Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, gave them all water to drink, knowing full well that they, with the exception of al-Hurr, will kill him after a while. Their mission’s only objective was to arrest Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, and surrender him to Ibn Ziyad [the governor of Kufah]. They were the clearest manifestation of oppressors, hypocrites, enemy combatants, rebels, and hateful adversaries without any doubt or hesitation. They were fully armed in order to force the Imam to surrender, and if necessary they would resort to using force. However, it is the conduct of the Imam, peace be upon him, that kept the Shi’a faith alive.

258: It was imperative for Imam Husayn, given his moral code of conduct, to give water to his killers [even though he and his friends and family would be left without water, as it turned out to be], to the extent that he would dismount and personally shower their horses with water, as the narrations report, but the most important matter for the Imam was Islam and inviting the people to it.

259: Imam Husayn’s exemplar and ideal may be embodied through relentless endeavour to exterminate ignorance and aberrance from humanity as a whole. This will not be realized except through unyielding efforts and sincerity to Almighty Allah, great deal of sacrifice in the cause of awakening the masses, and spreading the light of Ahl al-Bayt, peace be upon them, to every country, city, village, and corner of the world, and to every house, man, woman, boy and girl.

260: It is essential that Imam Husayn’s teachings are implemented when utilising Ashura to rescue humanity from the current wronging, killing and bloodshed, torture, and the indignity that many people face every day, and the Muslims in particular, in various parts of the world.

261: As we approach the Ashura of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, whom Almighty Allah made as a Torch of Guidance and an Ark of Salvation, it is necessary for us all to embark on what the Almighty wants us to do and would be pleased with us doing, and that which would realize the goals of Sayyid al-Shohada’, peace be upon him.

262: One of the most important goals of Ashura that rests on our shoulders [and we must faithfully discharge of it] is to disseminate the teachings of Islam - whether osool or foroo‘ (roots or branches) of religion - through all forms of mass media, communication and networking, and to propagate them in various aspects of life.

263: Amongst the goals of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, on Ashura was the instilling of: The roots of the Islamic faith such as tawheed [the indivisible oneness of Allah] along with Allah’s attributes; the mission of the prophets; the mission of the Prophet of Islam, the seal of the prophets, peace be upon him and his family and all prophets; the imamate [the leadership of the nation after the prophet] and its discussions; the resurrection, and its details, consequences, rewards and punishments, and heaven and hell.

264: One of the most important goals of Imam Husayn’s movement is to revitalise the fundamentals of the religion in the hearts and souls.

265: More than ever before, it is essential to use modern technologies to disseminate Imam Husayn’s teachings, aims and objectives through the various means of communications such as books and newspapers, films and theatrical plays, satellite television channels, internet, and whatever means that the voice of Imam Husayn may be broadcast with honesty and integrity to all humanity.

266: The movement of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, determined the fate of the Islamic nation when it rescued it from falling into the abyss of deviation, distortion and disagreement, in which other nations fell, such as the Jewish nation, the Christian nation, and other nations before them.

267: The blessed movement of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, opened up the pathway for the nation to continue the mission in the same line that was drawn up by Allah’s Messenger, peace be upon him and his holy family, for which the Commander of the Faithful Imam Ali fought to preserve, and the Holy and the Truthful Fatima al-Zahra’ sacrificed herself in its cause.

268: The sacred month of Muharram is the month of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, and the month of momentous sacrifices.

269: The sacred month of Muharram is the month of the Truth’s battlefront - personified by the holy and chosen ones from Ahl al-Bayt and their righteous devotees - against the front of tyranny and falsehood - represented by the oppressive Omayyad government and its materialists followers.

270: Karbala’s unequal battle - both in terms of men and ammunitions - resulted in the victory of the Truth and the annihilation of falsehood. The signs of this victory are evident throughout all times and places, especially in the months of Muharram and Safar.

271: Indeed Allah’s promise of victory to Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, has been materialised. The holy hadith narrated this from Allah’s messenger, peace be upon him and his holy family, and that lady Zaynab, peace be upon her, quoted this to Imam Sajjad, peace be upon him:“a standard will be set up for this Taff for the tomb of your father Sayyid al-Shohada’, the mark of which will not be extinguished, and its print will not be effaced despite the recurrence of the days and nights. So let the leaders of disbelief and the followers of aberrance do their utmost to obliterate and eradicate it, for indeed this will do nothing but enhance the manifestation of its mark and magnificence of its affair.”

272: Read the history to see how Almighty Allah’s promise of punishment against the enemies of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, materialised in their ruin and perdition.

273: We must learn from Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, the lessons of relying on Almighty Allah, sense of honour, sacrifice, morality, and every virtue.

274: It is extremely important that the devotees of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, know that the more they learn from Imam Husayn the closer they get to him.

275: It is imperative for us to do our utmost to realise - to the greatest extent possible - one of the most prominent goals of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, in his blessed movement, is the“salvation of humanity” in every sense of the word.

276: Almighty Allah insists on nothing but loftiness and superiority for Sayyid al-Shohada’ Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, and expansion and spreading for his blessed teachings, just as Almighty Allah insists on nothing but defeat and destruction for his enemies.

277: This year’s Day of Ashura is over, except that the tribulation of Ahl al-Bayt, peace be upon them, are not, rather they begin from now on. We should not allow this day to pass over us except in the best manner.

278: Despite the numerous attempts of the enemies to extinguish the torch of Sayyid al-Shohada’, peace be upon him, it remains shining over fourteen centuries, and it will remain shining until the Day of Resurrection.

[For a brief account of the recent history of some of the attempts against the shrine of Imam Husayn, see endnote #3 in the endnotes section beginning on page 243.]

279: The tomb of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, was in the vast stretch of the desert with no sign for it, and no one could find and visit it without a guide. On the other hand, spies and agents had orders to arrest anyone attempting to visit the tomb, and this casted fear in the hearts of all, and no one would dare visit the tomb.[48]

280: Look at what happened on the 10th Muharram 1425AH![49] Did the pilgrims stop visiting the tomb of Sayyid al-Shohada’, peace be upon him? Do the enemies believe that the people will abandon visiting Sayyid al-Shohada’, peace be upon him?

281: There is no doubt that those killed on the day of 10th of Muharram 1425AH [and on all other occasions before and after] have gone to Almighty Allah’s paradise, but woe onto those who wronged the devotees of Sayyid al-Shohada’ who had come to visit his shrine; those wicked individuals are amongst those who had lost both this world and the hereafter.

282: Good for those who were martyred while visiting the Ahl al-Bayt peace be upon them. Tomorrow we will envy them and we will see, by the will of Almighty Allah, their lofty station on the day of resurrection.[50]

283: I met many of the victims and those who had been wronged in Iraq. One of them used to say:“I have lost my five sons, and I know nothing of what has happened to them.” and there are many other such cases, where many youths have been killed, the honour of women violated, scholars assaulted, but despite all that the devotees never abandon the issue of Sayyid al-Shohada’, peace be upon him, and they will never abandon it until the day of resurrection.

284: It was Allah’s will to make out of the martyrdom of Imam Husayn a tear of sorrows and a role model, not only for the generations that followed him, but even for the divine prophets and messengers, peace be upon them, who preceded Imam Husayn, peace be upon him.

285: The trials and testing of the Ashura tragedy and its cause is not applicable to today only, nor was it on the day of Ashura 61AH, but rather it began before Almighty Allah created the Prophets, peace be upon them. So Almighty Allah trialled even Prophets Noah and Abraham, peace be upon them, with the case of Imam Husayn peace be upon him.[51]

286: The affair of Ashura will remain a burning issue until the day of resurrection, and millions of individuals will be tested on that.

287: We will all be tested, and therefore it is imperative that we take necessary caution not to disrespect any aspect of the affair of Sayyid al-Shohada’, peace be upon him. Indeed Almighty Allah will forgive a disobedience against Him quicker than forgiving an issue against the affair of Sayyid al-Shohada’, peace be upon him. This is similar to the narration which states: On the Day of ‘Arafah, Almighty Allah favours the visitors of the tomb of Sayyid al-Shohada’, peace be upon him, before He favours the visitors of His Sacred House.

288: The responsibility of those of us who know about Sayyid al-Shohada’, peace be upon him, is to convey the message of Imam Husayn to all humanity, by all means possible. In this way we can introduce Sayyid al-Shohada’ to the world, so that people of the world are guided to the truth.

289: The souls are created such that they would gather round the oppressed and defend the wronged. What would then be the response of the people when it comes to the calamity of Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, his pure household, and devout companions?!

290: The movement of Imam Husayn, the calamity he suffered, and the great results that came out of that were and will continue to be the best source of aspiration for the generations and their approach in adopting the policy of defeating the oppressors.

291: The Husayni school has endless legacies and achievements that never fade away.

292: Imam Husayn, peace be upon him, is our leader and the most sublime role model.

[See also the chapter on“The Husayni programs” .]