A brief description of the incident of Karbala

 

A brief description of the incident of Karbala

 

In the Holy Quran, the battle of truth and falsehood and its outcome is described.  Both the paths are described. 

 

It describes very clearly that those people who are the leaders of any nation or group, they will be so in the hereafter as well.  If they invited people to truth and good in this world, then those who followed them will remain under their standard on the Day of Judgment and will enter paradise in their lead.  If they invited people to some misguidance or some such path which is not the path of Islam, then those who follow them will be following them in the hereafter as well and will enter hell in their lead.

 

It should be remembered that pious, religious scholars are the true successors of the Prophets as given in Mirqaat Ul Mafateeh.  To follow them is to follow the Prophets.  On the other hand, those people who take the name of religion and the community and invite people to the mere material world and its profits and gather people around themselves, they follow the footsteps of the pharaoh.  Such people speak ill of the scholars and try to keep people away from them.  As mentioned in the Holy Quran:

 

Then followed their pathetic successors who gave up Prayers and followed the lusts (of their ill-commanding selves). So they will soon face punishment in the Hereafter (in the Ghayi valley of Hell).  Surah Maryam (19:59)

 

There are many such instances in the history of Islam.  The most heartrending and sorrowful of them is the martyrdom of Imam Abu ‘Abdullah Hussain (May Allah be well pleased with him), which has great lessons for us Muslims until the end of time.  However, the supporters and opponents have presented such a picture of this that the real lesson has been obscured.  It has been turned into a tale of sorrow and woe, which gives way to only crying and wailing and nothing more. 

 

This is a brief look at the incident in light of history.

 

Martyrdom of Imam Hussain (May Allah be well pleased with him) – Reasons and causes

 

When Yazeed took up the reins of the government and started breaking the rules of the Shariah intoxicated by the power.  When he fell into indecency, the people of Kufa started writing letters to Imam Hussain (May Allah be well pleased with him) and sent messengers requesting the Imam to come to Kufa and that they would give their allegiance to the Imam.

 

The Imam sent his paternal cousin Hadhrat Muslim bin Aqeel (May Allah be well pleased with him) to confirm this.  When Hadhrat Muslim bin Aqeel (May Allah be well pleased with him) reached Kufa, thousands of people gave him their allegiance.  On seeing this, Hadhrat Muslim (May Allah be well pleased with him) wrote a letter to the Imam staging: The Kufis are giving their allegiance.  Everyone is ready.  Please do come.

 

Here, when Yazeed learnt of this, he wrote to Ibn Zyad that he was being made the governor of Kufa.  The people of Kufa should be suppressed.  While leaving from Basra, Ibn Zyad wrote to Ibn Sa’ad that he should attack Kufa with an army of 4000.  Then Ibn Zyad himself reached Kufa and through his machinations made the people of Kufa step back from giving allegiance to the Imam.  He martyred Hadhrat Muslim (May Allah be well pleased with him) as well.

 

On this side, when Imam Hussain (May Allah be well pleased with him) made the resolve to go to Kufa, Hadhrat ‘Abdullah bin 'Umar and Hadhrat ‘Abdullah bin ‘Abbas (May Allah be well pleased with them) tried very hard to stop the Imam from doing so.  They told him explicitly that the people of Kufa should not be trusted.  They are untrustworthy.  However, the Imam remained firm on his stance and left for Kufa.

 

When the Imam neared Kufa, a regiment of Yazid’s army surrounded the Imam.  Along with the Imam, there were 72 people.  The Imam had also learnt that the people of Kufa had backtracked.  Looking at the explosive situation, the Imam told the commander of that regiment:  I had come here on the invitation of the people of Kufa.  Now that they have recanted, let me go back.  If you don’t want to do so, then I will go with you to Yazeed.

 

However, those scoundrels didn’t accept anything.  At last, things came to the boiling point in Karbala.

 

Hadhrat Imam Hussain (May Allah be well pleased with him) and his associates fought with great courage and bravery, which astonished the enemies.  To weaken the Imam and overpower him, they stopped access to the river Euphrates.  The Imam patiently bore this as well.  Hundreds of enemy soldiers were killed and the associates of the Imam were also martyred.

 

At last, when the Imam alone remained, the villains rained arrows, lances and swords on him.  The Imam was martyred.  He didn’t die, but gained eternal life.

 

The martyrdom of the Imam and his associates turned out to be the bane of Yazid.  Within 4 years, the cup of Yazid’s life overflowed and he died leaving behind the world and all its luxuries.  Until the end of time whenever the name of Yazid is mentioned, people cannot but express their hatred and condemnation. 

 

When the blessed name of Imam Hussain (May Allah be well pleased with him), heads bow down in reverence.  In this great catastrophe, there are lessons for Muslims.  When falsehood reigns and the Shariah is violated, in such a situation one should keep the life of the Imam in mind.  If one can remove falsehood through force, it should be done.  If falsehood engages in hurting and harming, then one should face it unflinchingly.  Even if one’s life is lost, one shouldn’t worry as it is not a mere murder but martyrdom.

 

May Allah Most High guide all Muslims to walk on the straight path and remain steadfast on it.

 

[An excerpt from a sermon of Hadhrat Mufti Abdul Hameed (May Allah shower His Mercy on him)]