Re: The Husseini Lesson
Peace Pagluu
I found this on the al-islam site:
http://www.al-islam.org/kaaba14/6.htm
Where then was there any point in Imam Hussain(AS) trying to make up to Yazid. This is where Imam Hussain(AS) found himself placed in circumstances which were markedly different from those which confronted his elder brother who had abdicated only his temporal power in favour of Moawiya for the restoration of peace and order on the domain of Islam. This kind of oath was entirely out of question for Imam Hussain(AS) to accept. This would have totally degraded Islam as ordained in the Quran and as it was practised by the Prophet of Islam.
When settlement with Yazid being wholly out of question, the only alternative course open to Imam Hussain(AS) was to oppose Yazid to save and protect the values of Islam from further degradation and to protect the faith itself from destructive inroads of pre-Islamic revivalism. He could, however, have entertained no illusions about the kind of support he could hope to enlist for himself in any conflict with Yazid. The exceedingly unhappy position in which his elder brother had found himself through the treacherous withdrawal of the support given to him in his confrontation with Moawiya,Imam Hussain(AS) therefore thought of entirely new strategy of war with Yazid, for in any case war it had to be.** He made no attempt to meet Yazid’s military might with his own martial strength**. He build no hopes on numerical strength for the success of his cause which was entirely the cause of Islam and saving Islamic values. Imam decided to battle with Yazid on the spiritual plane, to oppose Yazid’s might with his nobility of character, confront power with powerlessness, meet multitudes with want of material support and defy oppression with suffering and martyrdom.
The proof of this line of thought became so clear in Imam Hussain’s sermons and letters to his brother Muhammad-e-Hanafiya when the Imam was leaving Makka for Iraq.
Imam, after leaving Madinah in the month of Rajab, stayed in Makka for about 5 months. It was in the month of Zilhijja 60 Hijri when he noticed that there were Yazid’s soldiers in Makka in the garb of Ahram to kill the Imam inside the Masjidul Haram. Imam changed the rituals of Hajj into Umra and decided to leave Makka. The date was 8th of Zilhijja 60 Hijri. When people saw the Imam leaving before completing the Hajj they began to ask questions as to why he was leaving in such a hurry.
Some doubted his motives, saying that he might be leaving Makka for Iraq to confront Yazid and take power into his hands.To quell these doubts he left a letter with his brother Muhammad-e-Hanafiya which clearly states his purpose of leaving Makka. He wrote in the letter,
“I have not come out to stir emotions, to play with discontentment, to provoke dissension or to spread oppression. I wish to bring the Umma back to the path of Amr-bil-Ma’arouf and Nahyi Unil Munker. I wish to bring them back to the path of my grandfather the Messenger of Allah and of my father Ali Ibne Abi Talib”.
The momentous journey of Imam Hussain(AS) begins from Makka towards an unknown destination which eventually ended at Kerbala.
The Map on the next page showing the Route of Imam Hussain (AS) from Makka to Kerbala was prepared by the writer of this book in 1984 and was presented at the Imam Hussain Seminar organised by the Muhammadi Trust. This map has been regarded as a pioneering effort and a land mark in Islamic history. The journey which began from Makka on the 8th of Zilhijja 60 Hijri ended in Kerbala on 2nd of Muharram 61 Hijiri and took about 22 days in all. Imam stopped at 14 places on his way to Kerbala. He met various people and delivered various sermons. What the Imam talked about to these people he met and said in his sermons at various places reflects the true motives he had in his mind.
The names of these places Imam passed were mentioned in history books but their exact locations were not traceable in modern geographical maps. After searching in the archives of the British Museum Library a map of 9th Century Hijri was found in which all these names were clearly shown.
The reader will see in the following pages the exact map of Hejaz and Iraq of that time and the exact route the Imam and his Caravan took in 60 Hijiri.
Map of Hejaz and Iraq showing the Route of Imam Hussain from Makka to Kerbala.
There were 14 places in all where the Imam was known to have passed during this journey.
The first place was called Saffah. Here the Imam stayed for the night. The next morning when he was preparing to leave for his next Manzil that he met the famous poet Farazdaq who was coming from Iraq and was going to Makka for pilgrimage. When he learnt that Imam was proceeding for Iraq he tried to persuade him not to go there. Imam asked Farazdaq about the conditions in Kufa and the poet replied,” Peoples hearts are with you but their swords are against you.” Imam told him,”Allah does what he wishes, I leave it to Him who proposes the just cause”. Farazdaq left the place for Makka and Imam’s caravan proceeded towards its next Manzil. The 2nd Manzil was Dhatul - Irq. Here the Imam stayed the night. Here he met Abdullah Ibn Jaafar who was Imam’s cousin and husband of his sister Hazrat Zainab. Abdullah brought his two sons Aun and Muhammad to accompany the Imam.Abdullah also tried to persuade the Imam to postpone his journey and return to Madina. But Imam replied,” my destiny is in the hands of Allah” These words which mention his destiny were repeated at many places during this journey and clearly indicate that he had a mission in his mind and he was proceeding towards that mission without fail.
The 3rd stage in the Imam’s journey was the small town called Batn-ur-Rumma. From here the Imam sent a letter to one of his friends in Kufa asking about the situation there. Qais Ibn Mushahir took the letter for the Imam. He also met Abdullah Ibn Mutee who was also coming from the troubled land of Iraq. He also tried to persuade the Imam not to proceed any further. He said that Kufans were not faithful to anyone -” Al Kufi La Yufi “- they could not be trusted. But Imam continued with his fateful journey with the same words that his destiny is in the hands of Allah.
The 4th Stage of Imam’s journey took him to Zurud. This was a small town just over the hills of Hejaz separating from the province of Najd. From here the mountains change into arid desert. At this place Imam met Zohair Ibne Qain. Zohair, until that time, was not the follower of Ahlul-bayt. He was undecided and considered himself as a person in middle not able to decide which side was the right one. Imam saw Zohair’s tent pitched in the distant and sent his emissary with a note. Zohair read the note, realized for the first time in his life that time for decision to chose the right path has arrived. Something happened to him inside that has changed his entire life. What was written in the note is not clear, but Zohair told his friends to take his wife and children back to his tribal lands, and he himself set out to join the Imam and his caravan.
Here it is important to mention that when the Imam was leaving Makka he was trying to persuade the hoards of people who wanted to come out with him, to go back to their homes.. Imam was telling them that there is no reward of wordly goods at the end of the journey. But at the same time he wrote letters to some people inviting them to accompany him to the end of his journey. One of them was Zohair as mentioned above. Imam wrote another letter to his childhood friend Habib Ibn Mazahir al -Asadi in Kufa inviting to join him in his journey of destiny. Habib was an old companion of the Prophet, was much o then the Imam. Some historians mention Habib’s age at 82.
Another important point worth mentioning here is that these additional people invited by the Imam were each from different tribes of Arabia. Out of total number of 72 male warriors with the Imam, 18 were from his own family, all descendents of Abu Talib. But rest of the martyrs were from all places and all creeds, almost from all Islamic lands of that time. There were men from Sham (Syria), from Jaba el Amul (Lebanon), from Armenia, from Azerbaijan, from Yemen, Abysiniya and Egypt. It appears that Imam was taking special care that whoever is martyred with him on the Day of Ashura comes from different tribes and different lands, different culture and creed so that the message reaches all corners of the Islamic lands through their relatives and friends.
The 5th stage of Imam’s journey was a small town called Zabala. Here the Imam learnt from two tribesmen coming from Kufa, about the death of Hazrat Muslim Ibn Aqeel. Imam uttered the words,”InnLillahe wa Inna Ilaihe Rajeoon”, loudly that all around him hear these words and know that something momentous has happened. When all his companions gathered around him he said,”Indallah Nahtasib Unfosana”, which means that before God we all are accountable to our actions and deeds”. Asadi Tribesmen tried to dissuade the Imam from proceeding any further, but to no avail. He told his companions of the death of his cousin Hazrat Muslim. In a very touching way he told Hazrat Muslim’s 4 year daughter of the death of his father. He called her, put her on his lap and gave her a pair of ear rings to put on. She asked why? then she replied herself, it looks like that her father has died and that she is an orphan now. Imam hugged her, consoled her and told her that he will look after her in place of her father. There was a commotion inside the ladies camp as they all realised that Kufa cannot be their destiny any longer. They also learnt that with Hazrat Muslim, his two small children and his friend Hani were also killed along with many friends of Ahlulbayt. Hoards of tribesmen who were still with the Imam’s party left him as they all realized for sure that there was not going to be a war for victory over Yazid but the purpose was something else. By this 5th stage only about 50 people were left with the Imam and many of them were women and children.
Imam left Zabala and arrived at Batn-e-Aqiq at his 6th Manzil. Here the Imam met a man from the Tribe of Akrama who told him that Kufa was not a friendly town, that Yazid’s army has surrounded this garrison town, no one was allowed to leave or enter the town. But Imam carried on toward his destiny.
The 7th Manzil was Sorat. Imam stayed the night here and in the morning after Fajr prayer he asked his companions to store as much as water as possible in all possible containers and sheep skins they had. The Wells were underground, and the Imam’s companions filled all possible containers, jars, sheepskins with water. The next day they arrived at a place called Sharaf. While the Imam was passing from this valley that one of his companions called out that he could see the approach of any army through the dust storm. Imam asked for a safe place, preferably a hill at their back. A guide took them near a hill where Imam asked everyone to dismount while kept the hill at their back. The name of the place was Zuhasm. It was here that Imam met Hur’s army of 1000 men. They were coming from Kufa and appeared to be without water for sometime. Imam asked his companions to give them water in spite of the fact that they were hostile to Imam’s party. Everyone drank to their fill, even horses and camels drank. One soldier was so thirsty that he was unable to drink the water himself and the Imam went to him and poured water in his mouth. Hurr who was the leader of that brigade from Kufa came to the Imam and wanted to get hold of the reins of his horse to which Imam replied not to be impertinent. Hur then refrained from doing that, but told the Imam he will take him to Kufa under escort to which Imam did not agree. While they were discussing these matters that the time for the Zohr arrived and all of them, friends and enemy alike stood behind the Imam to complete their prayers. After the prayers Imam told Hurr and his soldiers that he had received many letters from Kufa inviting him to go there as an Imam and guide in all matters religious or secular. The actual words of Imam’s Khutba as mentioned by Tabari is as follows.
**
“ O’people of Kufa, you sent me delegations and wrote me letters that you had no Imam and that I should come to unite you and lead you in the way of God. You replied that we Ahlulbayt are more qualified to govern your affairs than those who claim things to which they had no rights and act unjustly., But if you have changed your mind, have become ignorant of our Rights and have forgotten your promises, than I shall turn back”.
<<<<<<<<
**The part in red does not follow for me … at each stage Imam Hussein was avoiding war and only went towards Kufa in response to a letter that the people want to pledge to him …Is it therefore not true that Imam Hussein had no intention to fight?
