Imam Husain (a.s) left Medina for the cause of Islam; to save Islam from the corruption, innovation and distortions introduced by the Banu Umayya. Islam was no longer the simple way of life, in which bereft of pomp and pretensions, the ruler was hardly distinguishable from the ruled. When Imam Ali (a.s) went into the bazaar of Kufa, he could not be differentiated from the ordinary citizens. As the Caliph, Imam Ali (a.s) made it clear that he was not to be feared and shunned. He was one among them, though he held the ultimate authority. Even people, who did not profess Islam, felt safe under his rule.
The Banu Umayya always considered Islam the religion to be an empire and nothing more. They could hardly understand, nor did they care to understand the philosophy of Islam. For them, Islam was a monarchy heritable by those who had the money, means and power to suppress the masses. Instead of being the creed providing to the poor, help in this world and hope of salvation in the life to come, Islam was made into the creed of the oppressive ruler wielding his sword in the name of Islam while they were, in fact, cutting the faith into shreds. This terrifying image of the Banu Umayya is now being imposed upon Muslims all over the world by the opportunistic detractors of Islam. This terrorist image is the only everlasting contribution of the Banu Umayya to Islam.
It was then high time for someone to take up the cause of the real Islam, to bring out and expose the corruption, innovation and distortions introduced by the Banu Umayya in Islam. When Imam Husain (a.s) took up this cause, he had no fear of numbers or the immediate result. He knew that he was grossly outnumbered. He knew that he and his followers would certainly loose their lives in the strife. He also knew that ultimately posterity would realise that the truth would prevail over falsehood. He established that even in the face of huge numbers and heavy odds, the truth never bows down to falsehood. It is for these reasons that we find Imam Husain (a.s) ignoring what appears, at first look, to be sound advice from Abdullah Ibn Abbas, Mohammad ibn al-Hanafyyia, Abdullah ibn Ja’far, Jabir ibn Abdullah al-Ansari, Ibn az-Zubair, Umar ibn Abdurrahman, Musawwar ibn Makhramah, Abdullah ibn Umar and a great number of relatives and friends.
His relatives and friends were more concerned with the worldly outlook of extreme odds and immediate fatal result. Therefore, they tried to persuade him from going to Kufa, for they were fully aware from the days of Imam Ali’s Caliphate that the people of Kufa were weak-hearted, irresolute and most untrustworthy. They were also aware that Yazid and his men were capable of terrorizing and committing the greatest atrocities, even on women and children, in order to retain their power. However, Imam Husain (a.s) himself gave his reason for not listening to their apparently advice, “I shall not be blamed by Allah for shrinking from the religious duty of training and guiding people to be pious and simple. If the people of Kufa prove disloyal and if I am killed in the discharge of my duty, my position will be much nearer to God and they will be responsible for their disloyalty and evil deeds.”
According to the historian ibnul Atheer Abdullah ibn Ja’far himself, and according to other historians, the Governor of Mecca Amr bin Sa’eed either by himself or at the instance of Abdullah ibn Ja’far, wrote a letter to Imam Husain (a.s). The letter was taken by Abdullah ibn Ja’far and Yahya bin Sa’eed, the brother of the Governor of Mecca. At-Tabari sets out the contents of the letter as follows:“I am told that you are proceeding towards Iraq. May God protect you from any evil that may befall you. I am afraid you may be killed. I am sending this letter through Abdullah bin Ja’far and my brother Yahya bin Sa’eed so that you may come back with them to me. I assure you that in me you will find asylum, protection, kindness and good company, and for what I have written I hold God as my witness.”
Imam Husain (a.s) wrote back, “You have offered me asylum and protection. In Allah is the best asylum and refuge. He does not give refuge in the hereafter to those who do not fear Him in this world. We pray that we may fear and abide by Him in this world so that we may hope for and find His refuge on the Doomsday. May Allah reward you for your offer to be kind and good to me.
Mohammed bin Abu Talib Musavi writes that when al-Waleed bin Utba, the governor of Medina learnt that Imam Husain (s) was proceeding towards Iraq, he (al-Waleed) who knew the cruel nature of Ubaidullah ibn Ziyad, the recently appointed Governor of Basra and Kufa, wrote to ibn Ziyad as follows:“Al-Husain is coming towards Iraq. He is the son of Fatima who is the only child of the messenger of Allah. See that no harm comes to him nor should his family members be harassed in any manner. If any irreversible damage is caused by you, the world will never forgive or forget you.” Ibn Ziyad read the letter but he did not heed the advice.
Imam Husain’s caravan stopped at a place called al-Abtah where Yazid ibn Thabit al-Basri met Imam Husain (a.s) and learnt about the reasons of the Imam’s migration. The caravan halted for a short while at some place where Imam Husain (a.s) purchased food and other stock from a caravan that brought goods from Yemen.
At a junction of roads called Thatul Araq, Imam Husain (a.s) met Bishr bin Ghalib who was coming from Iraq. When Imam Husain (a.s) enquired, Bishr said, “Their (the people of Kufa) hearts are with you, but their swords are against you.”According to ath-Thahabi, at Thatul Araq, Imam Husain (a.s) met the famous poet al-Farazdaq who was going with his mother to Mecca to perform the Hajj.
Al-Farazdaq tried unsuccessfully to dissuade Imam Husain (a.s) from going to Kufa. When Imam Husain (a.s) resumed the journey towards Kufa, he found that all crossroads were manned by ibn Ziyad’s military and check-posts were set up barring all roads except the one leading to Kufa. Hussayn bin Numeir was in charge of these operations. By doing so, ibn Ziyad ensured that Imam Husain (a.s) had no other option but to take only the road to Kufa. Imam Husain (a.s) and his caravan reached a place called Tha’labiyyah where he met Abu Hurrah to whom Imam Husain (a.s) explained why he had to leave Mecca.
As there was no fresh news from Muslim, Imam Husain (a.s) sent, according to some historians, Qais bin Musahhir as-Saidawi, and according to some others, Abdullah bin Yaqtur, to go speedily in advance and get news about Muslim ibn Aqeel. It is quite probable that Imam Husain (a.s) sent both Qais bin Musahhir and Abdullah bin Yaqtur, one after another within a short span of time.
At a place known as Qadisiyya, Qais bin Mushir was intercepted by Hussayn bin Numeir. Before he could be searched, Qais destroyed the letter written by Imam Husain (a.s) to the people of Kufa. Hussayn bin Numeir arrested and sent Qais bin Musahhir to Ubaidullah ibn Ziyad in Kufa. Ubaidullah asked Qais to curse Imam Husain (a.s) from the on pulpit. Qais ascended the pulpit and praised the Ahlul Bayt (a.s) and cursed Mu’awiya, Yazid and Ubaidullah ibn Ziyad, who ordered Qais to be thrown from above the roof of the palace and later beheaded.
At a place called Wadi al-Aqiq, Abdullah ibn Ja’far’s two sons Oun and Muhammad brought and delivered a letter from their father addressed to Imam Husain (a.s). They told the Imam that Abdullah himself had gone to meet Amr bin Sa’eed, the Governor of Mecca, to persuade him to provide all comforts to Imam Husain (a.s) when he would arrive in Mecca. Later, Abdullah ibn Ja’far himself met Imam Husain (a.s) and left his two sons to serve him as his representatives.
The next day, Imam Husain’s caravan reached Waqisa, which was turned into a garrison of Yazid’s Syrian soldiers. A short distance from Imam Husain’s caravan, another caravan was following and pitching its tents. Imam Husain (a.s) sent his men to inquire who the members of the other caravan were and what there intention in following his caravan was. They found that the caravan belonged to Zohair bin al-Qain al-Bajali[1] of the Nukheilah tribe and that they were following Imam Husain’s caravan from Mecca, and out of the fear of the Umayyad soldiers, they were pitching their tents at a distance. When they heard the invitation of Imam Husain (a.s), they hung their heads and dared not visit him for fear of persecution by the Umayyad army that was posted all along the route taken by the caravans. When their women folk saw this, they blamed them for their meekness. Zohair ibn al-Qain then went to Imam Husain (a.s) and after a short conversation, he returned and asked his men to pitch their tents near Imam Husain’s caravan. Thus, Zohair’s men joined the small band of Imam Husain’s followers and their women joined the company of Lady Zainab (a.s).
On the next day, Imam Husain (a.s) halted at a place called al-Khuzaimiah. He found a man hurrying past his tents. He sent Abdullah bin Sulaiman and Munthir bin Isma’il to find out who the rider was. The rider informed Sulaiman and Munthir that he was Bakr from the Bani Asad tribe and that he was coming from Kufa where he had witnessed the torture and beheading of Hani ibn Urwa and Muslim bin Aqeel. They narrated the details of the incidents leading to the martyrdom of Muslim ibn Aqeel and Hani ibn Urwa. When questioned about Abdullah bin Yaqtur, he said, “Abdullah was captured by Hussayn bin Numair who searched his bags and found letters addressed by Imam Husain (a.s) to some nobles of Kufa. Abdullah bin Yaqtur snatched and tore the letters into small bits and scattered them into the wind. Being Enraged, Hussayn sent bin Yaqtur to Ubaidullah ibn Ziyad, who in turn, tortured and threatened to kill him if he failed to either disclose the names of persons to whom Imam Husain (s) had addressed letters or alternatively to curse Imam Husain (a.s) from on the pulpit of the mosque of Kufa. Bin Yaqtur chose the second alternative. When being brought before the congregation in the mosque, bin Yaqtur ascended the pulpit and instead of cursing Imam Husain (a.s), he praised his noble qualities and he cursed Mu’awiya.
According to some historians, it was at Zobala that the Imam (a.s) received the details of the martyrdom of Muslim ibn Aqeel, Hani Ibn Urwa and Abdullah ibn Yaqtur.
Imam Husain (a.s) left Zobala after a few days. When the caravan passed a place called Batnul Aqabah, an old man called Amr bin Louthan from the tribe of Bani Ikrima told Imam Husain (a.s), “I see nothing but the tips of lances and the glint of swords as far as the eye could see in Kufa. The very people, who had written letters requesting you to come, have now turned against you. They will not stop short in killing you. Please turn back and to any place except Kufa.”
Imam Husain (a.s) replied, “I am aware of the situation, but I can not act against the Will of God. By God, these people will surely slay me.”
A short distance from Batnul Aqabah, the caravan came across an oasis in a place called Shiraf with many wells and ponds. Here, Imam Husain (a.s) halted the caravan and asked his men to fill all leather bags and every utensil they had with water. This move perplexed his companions as so much water added to the weight and slowed down the journey.
Thus surrounded, Imam Husain’s caravan reached a place that was about forty miles from Kufa and three miles from the bank of the Euphrates. Here, Imam Husain’s horse stopped and all efforts to goad him to go forward having failed. Imam Husain (a.s) took the unprecedented step of using his whip, which the Ahlul Bayt (a.s) never did as they loved their animals and always treated them kindly. Imam Husain (a.s) then changed several horses but to no avail. Then, camels were brought in and they too did not move from their place. At last, Imam Husain (a.s) asked some villagers about the name of the place, and some said it was al-Jazeerah, some others said Nineveh, and others said the Land of Taff. Yet, another said it was known as as-Saqiya, but Imam Husain (a.s) kept on inquiring. An old man, who had seen over a hundred summers said, “This place, I heard from my elders, was called Karbala in ancient times and that every Prophet (s) who passed by this place was afflicted with severe grief.” Imam Husain (a.s) said, “Verily, Karbala is composed of two words Karb (sorrow) and Bala (affliction).”
Imam Husain (a.s) sent his men to call the residents of the village inhabited by the Banu Asad, who owned the lands where he had pitched his tents. He offered to pay 60,000 dirhams and purchase the land. The tribesmen remonstrated saying that the accursed land was fallow and never did anything grow in it, and therefore no useful purpose would be served in buying it. Imam Husain (a.s) replied, “This land will become fertile with my blood and the blood of my kin and companions, and people will soon inhabit it and my Shia (followers) will visit it as a place of pilgrimage.”
Imam Husain (a.s) purchased the land for 60,000 dirhams and a purchase was made in the name of Ali al-Akbar bin al-Husain ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib (a.s). Imam Husain (a.s) asked Ali al-Akbar to immediately entrust the land back to the owners by declaring, “I donate this land back to you and make you its custodians so that you may keep the visitors of our graves as guests for three days.”
Then, Imam Husain (a.s) called all the men, women and children of the tribe of Banu Asad. He addressed their men saying, “My grandfather the messenger of Allah (s) has told me that after my martyrdom, Yazid’s army would severe the heads of the martyrs and leave the bodies on the open plains of Karbala. It is my desire that you should arrange to bury our bodies.” Imam Husain (a.s) turned to the women and told them, “If, out of fear of reprisal by Yazid’s men, your men fail to bury our bodies, please try to do so under the cover of night.” Imam Husain (a.s) then addressed the children of Banu Asad, “Oh children, if your men and women fail to bury our bodies, I entrust the responsibility to you to playfully come and throw a little soil to cover our headless bodies.”
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