Battle Karbala and the uprising of Imam Husayn (a)! The actual reason behind the uprising of Imam Husayn is that very few people know what exactly it is. You will find out after reading this extraordinary speech by Ayatollah Jawadi Amoli!
For many of us, our fundamental problem is that we do not know ourselves. We do not know where we came from, nor we do not know where we are going. Thus, we have fallen asleep, and we live our lives in a numb and lifeless state.
In many verses of the generous Quran, when Allah (ﷻ) mentions the disbelief of the unbelievers, the hypocrisy of the hypocrites, and the plots of the ill-intentioned hypocrites, He swt says these people do not know themselves. With an expression of sympathy, He said that they had not recognized themselves. They do not know who they are.
In another verse, He swt says, “They do not know.” In some places, “They do not perceive.” In another verse, “They do not listen.” Allah (ﷻ) says, “They are fools, but they know it not.” He swt says they are fools, but they do not know they speak foolishly.
Well, who is within us? What is within us that we are unaware of it? We have been told that within you lies a true identity: who you really are. You have an encasing that is meant to be a tool for you.
In other words, you have a physical body that you all can feel and perceive. This body has a natural and animalistic force through which you eat, drink, experience pleasures, sleep, speak, work, etc. These are all part of your animalistic existence.
Animals also have this kind of existence. This physical body is just a vessel. It is not the real you. It is just there as a tool for you. Allah (ﷻ) has given you this natural and animalistic life so you can search, preserve, provide for your sustenance, reproduce, and so forth.
Your true Identity is hidden deep within you. You must search and dig deep for it. Your true Identity is not in your hands. It is in the innermost part of your existence. The Prophets came to mine and excavate, and as stated in the Nahj al-Balagha, they opened up these treasures. (Taqwa in Islam)
They showed Human beings their true identities and told them, “This is what you truly are!” Just like an expert geologist who finds treasures buried deep in the earth, this geologist examines the earth and mines, excavates the treasures, and brings them out of the earth. (Tawakkul in Islam)
The Prophets are the actual geologists. They mined and excavated, brought out our true identities, and showed them to us, telling us that this is the eternal part of you. That which will infinitely continue is this.
It is because of this inner Identity that Allah (ﷻ) says He swt subjugated the skies and earth for human beings. So, in the marketplace of the material world, if we were to sell ourselves in exchange for the sun, we would be at a loss. If we were to sell ourselves in exchange for the entire Milky Way, we would be at a loss.
There is nothing more valuable than us because we are eternal. For this reason, Allah (ﷻ) has created heaven for us. Whatever a Human being desires, they will find it in that heaven.
Sometimes, a human being lives a poor lifestyle, while within him lies such an identity and a treasure rich with angelic qualities. It is this temporary body that has covered up our true identities.
If we are not better than angels, then we are certainly no less than them. Many people knew this during the time of the Holy Prophet (s). After his passing away, they tried to return society back to a state of ignorance, and so Imam Husain (a) rose against them.
And his uprising was successful. They asked Imam Sajjad (a), “In the uprising movement and resistance, who was the victor?“
He replied, “We were.” He (as) said this even though he was brought to Damascus in chains. He (as) said we were victorious. We revived this school of thought; we showed humanity to human beings, and we showed them their true identities.
We dug and excavated and uncovered their treasures. Many people realized these truths, and the religion came back to life. Therefore, after the passing of the Prophet (saws), it is through Hussain ibn Ali (a) that our true identities were made clear to us.
Click to read: Why did so many people abandon Imam Husayn (a)?
Battle Karbala: Goal of Imam Husayn (a)
One of the factors that caused the Awliya’ of Allah (ﷻ) to be alone that caused others to separate from them is this: The goal that Awliya’ of Allah (ﷻ) has is a lofty goal.
That’s what happened in Karbala and when the Prophet (s) had to leave Madina.
They show us the pinnacles (of human potential), and they invite people to go in the direction of the pinnacles. Of course, only some people are of the type to want to go.
So naturally, they become alone. They invited people to monotheism (tawhid), servitude, fearing Allah (ﷻ), paying attention to eternity, and paying attention to justice. They invited people to do these things.
It’s true that if any of them became in charge of a government, they would provide safety because if they became in charge of a government, they would reasonably bring safety, welfare, and prosperity.
When Imam Mahdi (aj) comes, he will bring all these things. He will bring it to the extent that human beings need these things. However, this is not the goal. This is not their goal.
The goal of the Prophets and Awliya’s lowest goal was higher than types of things. The highest goal of the Prophets and awliya’ was that you should not attach your heart to this transitory world (dunya).
When it becomes like this, they invite people to pinnacles (of human potential), and not everyone wants to go. Some people, excuse me, but to the extent that their fodder is provided for, this is enough for them. They do not want anything more than this.
Someone whose goal is not the same as the goal of the Prophets and Awliya’, they are busy with their selves. They are not interested in the goal of the Prophets and Awliya’. Someone whose goal is this: to preserve their worldly interests and maintain their own reputation when it comes time to give their wealth, reputation, life, and property to the wali of Allah (ﷻ). They are not interested.
Their goal is these very things. Preserving their life, children, property, these types of things. They are not prepared to give these things to the wali of Allah (ﷻ). So then, it is natural that they will not do it when the day comes for them to sacrifice. Their goal is something else, so it’s natural that they will not sacrifice.
The day of Ashura
On the day of Ashura, Imam Husayn (a) had a particular meeting with Umar ibn Sa’ad (l). This means that Aba Abdillah (a) was with these two people. He told his other soldiers not to come. One was Abu’l Fadhl (a), and the other was Ali Akbar (a).
Umar ibn Sa’ad (l) was on the other side with his son and servant. They were under one tent together. Imam Husayn (a) is the manifestation of Allah’s mercy (ﷻ), so he is also thinking about Umar ibn Sa’ad and his salvation.
Imam Husayn (a) said: “Umar, do not do this. The end of it is hellfire. Do not purchase hellfire for yourself.” (After life in Islam)
Umar said: “If I don’t fight with you, they will take my home and property.”
Imam Husayn (a) said: “I will give you better than it in Hijaz.”
Umar said: “If I don’t fight with you, my wife and child will be in danger.”
Imam Husayn (a) said: “I will give them safety. I guarantee this. Umar ibn Sa’ad kept giving excuses, and Aba Abdillah (a) would answer. The smell of the government of Rey had reached his nostrils and made him drunk.
Eventually, Umar did not accept.
Imam Husayn (a) said: “Know that you will not even eat from the wheat of Rey.”
Umar scoffed at the Imam (a) and sarcastically said: “I am satisfied with only the barley. I am satisfied with just barley if I don’t eat from the wheat.“
Aba Abdillah (a) got up and said: “The smell of the government of Rey has made you drunk. That is your goal. You are not with us.“
Imam Husayn (a) left and went outside, and as you know, the Karbala event occurred. The Holy heads of the martyrs were taken to Kufa to Ibn Ziyad.
Umar ibn Sa’ad went to Ibn Ziyad to have him write the ordinance so he could receive the government of Rey. He went to Ibn Ziyad and said: “I was true to my promise. I was supposed to fight with Husayn (a) and kill him, and I killed him. Write the ordinance for me to receive the government of Rey.”
Ibn Ziyad said: “First, that command that I have you to fight with Husayn (a), go and bring it to me. Go get it.” Umar ibn Sa’ad went and gave that command to him. Ibn Ziyad tore it apart.
He did not want any evidence in the hands of Umar showing that he was the one who gave the command to fight with Imam Husayn (a). So he tore up this document.
Then Ibn Ziyad said: “You killed the son of the Prophet (s), and you want a prize? Go get lost.” Umar ibn Sa’ad left, slapped his hands, and said, “Husayn (a) told me I will not eat from even the wheat of Rey, and I sarcastically said that I was satisfied with just its barley.”
He did not gain a single thing. Historically, what is well-known is that Mukhtar is the one that killed him.
In some places, it is said that Ibn Ziyad Himself sent someone who killed him in his sleep. Later, he could not say, “It was by the command of Ibn Ziyad that I killed Husayn (a) but rather, “I killed him myself and did a good service.
Ashura is not a fairytale
In this blog post, I want to clarify the importance of examining the lives of individuals who are highly regarded by many Muslims. These individuals were not only respected by the Holy Prophet (s) and Imam Ali (a), but they were also very close to them. People who, let’s say, were companions of Imam Kadhim (a).
When we look at these individuals and their lives, number one is that we’re looking at them for ourselves. We’re not looking at them to pass judgment on someone else. We’re looking at it so that we can make sure that we don’t have similar slips when our tests come.
Before diving into a specific subject, I will discuss key figures and their contributions. We will then extract valuable lessons from these historic events. How should we approach and analyze historical information?
Before discussing a specific topic, it’s essential to consider various individuals and factors related to the subject matter. Let’s take the time to understand the lessons and think critically about how we approach the topic.
In today’s modern world, Hollywood, in particular, promotes the narrative of fairytales. We do not want to propagate fairytales. I recently heard a clip where one of our great Maraja’ stated that the pulpit of Aba Abdillah al-Husayn is meant to clarify and speak the truth. We are born to seek out the truth and act upon it in this world. Unfortunately, when we look at history, we sometimes view it as fairytales.”
No, it is not!
