Husain ibn 'Ali
Husain ibn 'Ali (Husayn ibn 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, al-) (3rd Sha‘bān 4 AH - 10th Muharram 61 AH; January 8, 626 - October10, 680). Grandson of Muhammad and the second son of Fatima and 'Ali ibn Abi Talib. Encouraged to raise the claims of his family against the Umayyads and motivated by a personal vision of an ideal Islam, Husain went into battle and met a tragic end at Karbala in Iraq. The date, 10 Muharram 61 A.H. (October 10, 680), is commemorated as Ashura throughout the Shi‘ite world with an annual ritual lamentation and pilgrimage to the Shi‘ite shrines, especially Karbala. The figure of Husain gave rise to many legends, while the events surrounding his death are the subject of popular drama in Iran and elsewhere.Husayn ibn ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib was the son of ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib (the final Rashidun Caliph and the first Shī‘a Imām) and Fātimah Zahrā (daughter of Muhammad). Husayn is an important figure in Islām as he is a member of the Ahl al-Bayt (the household of Muhammad) and Ahl al-Kisā, as well as being a Shī‘a Imām, and one of The Fourteen Infallibles of the Shī'a Twelvers.
Husayn ibn ‘Alī is revered by all Shi'a as a martyr who fought tyranny, as he refused to pledge allegiance to Yazīd I, the Umayyad caliph. He rose up to create a regime that would reinstate a "true" Islāmic polity as opposed to what he considered the unjust rule of the Umayyads. As a consequence, Husayn was killed and beheaded in the Battle of Karbalā in 680 (61AH) by Shimr Ibn Thil-Jawshan. The anniversary of his Shahid ("martydom") is called ‘Āshūrā ("tenth" day of Muharram) and is a day of mourning for Shia Muslims. Revenge for Husayn's death was turned into a rallying cry that helped undermine the Umayyad caliphate, and gave impetus to the rise of a powerful Shī‘a movement.
According to most reports, Imam Husayn ibn Ali was born on January 10, 626.
Imam Husayn and his brother Imam Hassan were the only descendants of Muhammad who remained alive. There are many of the accounts of Muhammad's great love for his grandsons, and refer to them together, and at times confuse them. Muhammad is reported to have said that "whoever loves them [his grandsons] loves me and whoever hates them hates me." Muhammad also said that "al-Hasan and al-Husayn are the sayyids of the youth of Paradise". This quote has been particularly important for Shias who have used it in support of the right of Muhammad's descendants to the imamate. Muhammad, according to other traditions, is depicted with his grandsons on his knees, on his shoulders, or even on his back during the prayer at the moment of prostrating himself. According to Madelung, Muhammad loved them and declared them as his Ahl al-Bayt frequently. The Quran has accorded the Ahl al-Bayt of the Prophet an elevated position above the rest of the faithful.
In addition to these traditions, a number of traditions also involve the presence of angels. From a Muslim point of view, these traditions do not create any problem but to non-Muslims they appear as legends created under the Shi'a influence.
Shi'as proclaimed that Ali's eldest son, Hassan, who was the successor to Ali's Imamate, should be the caliph and that the Islamic tradition should not be discarded again. Muawiyah had fought Ali for the leadership of the empire and now prepared to fight Hassan. After a few inconclusive skirmishes between the armies of Hassan and Muawiyah, Hassan reminded his followers of Ali's position that the Imamate is sufficient for successorship of Muhammad and that leading the Muslim state was not a criterion. Thus, to avoid the agonies of another civil war, he signed a treaty with Muawiyah and relinquished the control of what had turned into an Arabian kingdom. Hassan did indeed pledge his to Muawiyah. After making this treaty Hassan was poisoned by an unknown person. This left Husayn as the head of the Alids and the successor to Hassan's Imamate.
At the time of the siege of the caliph Uthman's residence in Medina, by rebels from Basrah and Egypt (led by Ibn Saba), when Uthman asked Ali to join the defender of his house, Ali sent Hassan and Husayn. While Hassan and Husayn guarded the gates of the Caliph's residence, the rebels entered from the back door and killed Uthman.
During Ali's caliphate, the brothers Hassan, Husayn, Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah, and their cousin 'Abd Allah ibn J'afar appear as his closest assistants within his household.
When Imam Hassan ibn Ali agreed to a peace treaty with Muawiyah I, the first Umayyad caliph, he left Kufa and went to Medina with his brother Imam Husayn.
According to Shi'a belief, he lived under the most difficult outward conditions of suppression and persecution. This was due to the fact that, first of all, religious laws and regulations had lost much of their weight and credit, and the edicts of the Umayyad government had gained complete authority and power. Secondly, Mu'awiyah and his aides made use of every possible means to put aside past disputes and move out of the way the Household of Muhammad and the lovers of Imam Ali and his sons and thus obliterate the name of Ali and his family.
Muawiyah I ordered public curses of 'Ali and his major supporters including Imam Husayn and his brother.
According to Shi'a belief Imam Husayn became the third Imam for a period of ten years after death of his brother Imam Hassan in 669. All of this time but the last six months coinciding with the caliphate of Mu'awiyah.
Muawiyah designated his son, Yazid I, as his successor before his death in 680.
When Yazid I became caliph he forced Husayn ibn Ali and Abd Allah ibn Zubayr to pledge alliance with him, but they refused and migrated from Medina to Mecca in that year.
Husayn left Medina with his sisters, daughters, sons, brothers, and the sons of Hasan. He took a side road to Mecca to avoid being pursued, and once in Mecca Husayn stayed in the house of `Abbas ibn `Abd al-Muttalib and remained there for four months.
Husayn opposed Yazid I and declared that Umayyad rule was not only oppressive, but also religiously misguided. In his view the integrity and survival of the Islamic community depended on the re-establishment of the correct guidance. Husayn also believed that the succession of Yazid I was an attempt to establish an illegitimate hereditary dynasty.
The religious attitudes of the Umayyad also inspired people who believed that leadership of the Muslim community rightly belonged to the descendants of Ali, so they urged Husayn to join them and come to Kufa to establish his caliphate since they had no imam. They told him that they did not attend the Friday prayer with the governor of Kufa, No'man ibn Bashir, and would drive him out of the town as soon as Husayn agreed to come to them.
To convince Husayn to come they sent him seven messengers with bags of letters of support by Kufan warriors and tribal leaders. Husayn wrote the Kufans and told them that he understood from their letters that they had no imam and they wished him to come to unite them by the correct guidance. He informed them that he was sending his cousin Moslem ibn Aqil to report to him on the situation. If he found them united as their letters indicated he would quickly join them, for it was the duty of the imam to act in accordance with the Quran and to uphold justice, proclaim the truth, and to dedicate himself to the cause of God. The mission of Moslem was initially successful. The Kufan Shi'as visited him freely, and 18,000 men are said to have enlisted with him in support of Husayn. Moslem wrote to Husayn, encouraging him to come quickly to Kufa.
Husayn was also visited by a Shi'a supporter with two of his sons from Basra, where Shi'a sentiment was limited. He then sent identical letters to the chiefs of the five divisions into which the Basran tribes were divided. He wrote them that Muhammad's family were his family and were the rightful heirs of his position, and that others had illegitimately claimed the right which belonged exclusively to Muhammad's family. The family had initially consented to the actions of the first caliphs for the sake of the unity of the Ummah. He said that the caliphs who had seized the right of Muhammad's family had done many good things, and had sought the truth. The letter closely reflected the guidelines set by Ali, who had strongly upheld the sole right of the family of Muhammad to leadership of the Muslim community but had also praised the conduct of the first caliphs Abu Bakr and Umar. While most of the recipients of the letter kept it secret, one of them suspected that it was a ploy of the governor Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziad to test their loyalty and turned it over to him. Ubayd-Allah seized and beheaded Husayn's messenger and addressed a stern warning to the people of Basra.
In Kufa the situation changed radically when Yazid replaced Noman ibn Bashir with Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziad, ordering the latter to deal severely with Husayn's cousin, Moslem ibn Aqil. Ubayd-Allah succeeded in intimidating the tribal chiefs, and a revolt collapsed when the rebels failed to capture the governor's palace. Moslem was found and delivered to Ubayd-Allah, who had him beheaded on the top of the palace and his body thrown down to the crowd. Yazid wrote to Ubayd-Allah, commending him highly for his decisive action and ordering him to set up watches for Husayn and his supporters and to arrest them but to kill only those who would fight him.
Yazid perceived Husayn's refusal to pledge allegiance as a danger to his throne because he was Muhammad's family, so he plotted to kill the grandson of Muhammad during the Hajj, in the precincts of the Holy Kaaba, thus defiling and desecrating it (killing a person in Mecca is prohibited in Islam). In order to avoid this sacrilege, Husayn took along his wives, children, a few friends and relatives and headed towards Kufa to fulfill the responsibility of the bearer of the Imamate and to fulfill his destiny as was prophesied by his grandfather, Muhammad.
On his way, he was offered military support by the tribe of Banu Tayy as well as sanctuary in their hills from where he could (if he wanted to) safely lead a revolt and overthrow Yazid. But Husayn refused the offer and continued his journey with his few companions.
Husayn in his path toward Kufa encountered the army of Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad, the governor of Kufa, led by al-Hurr al-Riyahi (a top commander in the Umayyad army who later changed sides).
On October 10, 680 (Muharram 10, 61 AH), Husayn and his small group of followers and family members, fought a large army of under the command of Umar ibn Sa'ad, son of the founder of Kufah. Husayn and all of his men were killed and beheaded. The bodies were left for three days without burial and survivors from Husayn's family were taken as prisoners to al-Sham (Syria and Lebanon today) to Yazid.
Today, the death of Husayn ibn Ali is commemorated during every Muharram by Shiite Muslims, with the most important of these days being its tenth day, Ashura. Ashura is also commemorated by Sunni Muslims, but not like Shi'a.
Husayn's body is buried in Karbala, near the site of his death. His head is said to have been returned from Damascus and interred with his body.
Husayn's grave became the most visited place for Shi'as. The Imam Husayn Shrine was later built over his grave. In 850 Abbasid caliph, al-Mutawakkil, destroyed his shrine in order to stop Shi'a pilgrimages. However, pilgrimages continued. It is now a holy site of pilgrimage for Shi'a Muslims.
The Day of Ashura is commemorated by the Shi‘a as a day of mourning for the death of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala. In some countries and regions such as Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, India, Bahrain, Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica Commemoration of Husayn ibn Ali has become a national holiday and all ethnic and religious communities participate in it.
Husayn ibn 'Ali see Husain ibn 'Ali Husayn ibn 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, al- see Husain ibn 'Ali
Imam Husayn and his brother Imam Hassan were the only descendants of Muhammad who remained alive. There are many of the accounts of Muhammad's great love for his grandsons, and refer to them together, and at times confuse them. Muhammad is reported to have said that "whoever loves them [his grandsons] loves me and whoever hates them hates me." Muhammad also said that "al-Hasan and al-Husayn are the sayyids of the youth of Paradise". This quote has been particularly important for Shias who have used it in support of the right of Muhammad's descendants to the imamate. Muhammad, according to other traditions, is depicted with his grandsons on his knees, on his shoulders, or even on his back during the prayer at the moment of prostrating himself. According to Madelung, Muhammad loved them and declared them as his Ahl al-Bayt frequently. The Quran has accorded the Ahl al-Bayt of the Prophet an elevated position above the rest of the faithful.
In addition to these traditions, a number of traditions also involve the presence of angels. From a Muslim point of view, these traditions do not create any problem but to non-Muslims they appear as legends created under the Shi'a influence.
Shi'as proclaimed that Ali's eldest son, Hassan, who was the successor to Ali's Imamate, should be the caliph and that the Islamic tradition should not be discarded again. Muawiyah had fought Ali for the leadership of the empire and now prepared to fight Hassan. After a few inconclusive skirmishes between the armies of Hassan and Muawiyah, Hassan reminded his followers of Ali's position that the Imamate is sufficient for successorship of Muhammad and that leading the Muslim state was not a criterion. Thus, to avoid the agonies of another civil war, he signed a treaty with Muawiyah and relinquished the control of what had turned into an Arabian kingdom. Hassan did indeed pledge his to Muawiyah. After making this treaty Hassan was poisoned by an unknown person. This left Husayn as the head of the Alids and the successor to Hassan's Imamate.
At the time of the siege of the caliph Uthman's residence in Medina, by rebels from Basrah and Egypt (led by Ibn Saba), when Uthman asked Ali to join the defender of his house, Ali sent Hassan and Husayn. While Hassan and Husayn guarded the gates of the Caliph's residence, the rebels entered from the back door and killed Uthman.
During Ali's caliphate, the brothers Hassan, Husayn, Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah, and their cousin 'Abd Allah ibn J'afar appear as his closest assistants within his household.
When Imam Hassan ibn Ali agreed to a peace treaty with Muawiyah I, the first Umayyad caliph, he left Kufa and went to Medina with his brother Imam Husayn.
According to Shi'a belief, he lived under the most difficult outward conditions of suppression and persecution. This was due to the fact that, first of all, religious laws and regulations had lost much of their weight and credit, and the edicts of the Umayyad government had gained complete authority and power. Secondly, Mu'awiyah and his aides made use of every possible means to put aside past disputes and move out of the way the Household of Muhammad and the lovers of Imam Ali and his sons and thus obliterate the name of Ali and his family.
Muawiyah I ordered public curses of 'Ali and his major supporters including Imam Husayn and his brother.
According to Shi'a belief Imam Husayn became the third Imam for a period of ten years after death of his brother Imam Hassan in 669. All of this time but the last six months coinciding with the caliphate of Mu'awiyah.
Muawiyah designated his son, Yazid I, as his successor before his death in 680.
When Yazid I became caliph he forced Husayn ibn Ali and Abd Allah ibn Zubayr to pledge alliance with him, but they refused and migrated from Medina to Mecca in that year.
Husayn left Medina with his sisters, daughters, sons, brothers, and the sons of Hasan. He took a side road to Mecca to avoid being pursued, and once in Mecca Husayn stayed in the house of `Abbas ibn `Abd al-Muttalib and remained there for four months.
Husayn opposed Yazid I and declared that Umayyad rule was not only oppressive, but also religiously misguided. In his view the integrity and survival of the Islamic community depended on the re-establishment of the correct guidance. Husayn also believed that the succession of Yazid I was an attempt to establish an illegitimate hereditary dynasty.
The religious attitudes of the Umayyad also inspired people who believed that leadership of the Muslim community rightly belonged to the descendants of Ali, so they urged Husayn to join them and come to Kufa to establish his caliphate since they had no imam. They told him that they did not attend the Friday prayer with the governor of Kufa, No'man ibn Bashir, and would drive him out of the town as soon as Husayn agreed to come to them.
To convince Husayn to come they sent him seven messengers with bags of letters of support by Kufan warriors and tribal leaders. Husayn wrote the Kufans and told them that he understood from their letters that they had no imam and they wished him to come to unite them by the correct guidance. He informed them that he was sending his cousin Moslem ibn Aqil to report to him on the situation. If he found them united as their letters indicated he would quickly join them, for it was the duty of the imam to act in accordance with the Quran and to uphold justice, proclaim the truth, and to dedicate himself to the cause of God. The mission of Moslem was initially successful. The Kufan Shi'as visited him freely, and 18,000 men are said to have enlisted with him in support of Husayn. Moslem wrote to Husayn, encouraging him to come quickly to Kufa.
Husayn was also visited by a Shi'a supporter with two of his sons from Basra, where Shi'a sentiment was limited. He then sent identical letters to the chiefs of the five divisions into which the Basran tribes were divided. He wrote them that Muhammad's family were his family and were the rightful heirs of his position, and that others had illegitimately claimed the right which belonged exclusively to Muhammad's family. The family had initially consented to the actions of the first caliphs for the sake of the unity of the Ummah. He said that the caliphs who had seized the right of Muhammad's family had done many good things, and had sought the truth. The letter closely reflected the guidelines set by Ali, who had strongly upheld the sole right of the family of Muhammad to leadership of the Muslim community but had also praised the conduct of the first caliphs Abu Bakr and Umar. While most of the recipients of the letter kept it secret, one of them suspected that it was a ploy of the governor Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziad to test their loyalty and turned it over to him. Ubayd-Allah seized and beheaded Husayn's messenger and addressed a stern warning to the people of Basra.
In Kufa the situation changed radically when Yazid replaced Noman ibn Bashir with Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziad, ordering the latter to deal severely with Husayn's cousin, Moslem ibn Aqil. Ubayd-Allah succeeded in intimidating the tribal chiefs, and a revolt collapsed when the rebels failed to capture the governor's palace. Moslem was found and delivered to Ubayd-Allah, who had him beheaded on the top of the palace and his body thrown down to the crowd. Yazid wrote to Ubayd-Allah, commending him highly for his decisive action and ordering him to set up watches for Husayn and his supporters and to arrest them but to kill only those who would fight him.
Yazid perceived Husayn's refusal to pledge allegiance as a danger to his throne because he was Muhammad's family, so he plotted to kill the grandson of Muhammad during the Hajj, in the precincts of the Holy Kaaba, thus defiling and desecrating it (killing a person in Mecca is prohibited in Islam). In order to avoid this sacrilege, Husayn took along his wives, children, a few friends and relatives and headed towards Kufa to fulfill the responsibility of the bearer of the Imamate and to fulfill his destiny as was prophesied by his grandfather, Muhammad.
On his way, he was offered military support by the tribe of Banu Tayy as well as sanctuary in their hills from where he could (if he wanted to) safely lead a revolt and overthrow Yazid. But Husayn refused the offer and continued his journey with his few companions.
Husayn in his path toward Kufa encountered the army of Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad, the governor of Kufa, led by al-Hurr al-Riyahi (a top commander in the Umayyad army who later changed sides).
On October 10, 680 (Muharram 10, 61 AH), Husayn and his small group of followers and family members, fought a large army of under the command of Umar ibn Sa'ad, son of the founder of Kufah. Husayn and all of his men were killed and beheaded. The bodies were left for three days without burial and survivors from Husayn's family were taken as prisoners to al-Sham (Syria and Lebanon today) to Yazid.
Today, the death of Husayn ibn Ali is commemorated during every Muharram by Shiite Muslims, with the most important of these days being its tenth day, Ashura. Ashura is also commemorated by Sunni Muslims, but not like Shi'a.
Husayn's body is buried in Karbala, near the site of his death. His head is said to have been returned from Damascus and interred with his body.
Husayn's grave became the most visited place for Shi'as. The Imam Husayn Shrine was later built over his grave. In 850 Abbasid caliph, al-Mutawakkil, destroyed his shrine in order to stop Shi'a pilgrimages. However, pilgrimages continued. It is now a holy site of pilgrimage for Shi'a Muslims.
The Day of Ashura is commemorated by the Shi‘a as a day of mourning for the death of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala. In some countries and regions such as Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, India, Bahrain, Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica Commemoration of Husayn ibn Ali has become a national holiday and all ethnic and religious communities participate in it.
Husayn ibn 'Ali see Husain ibn 'Ali Husayn ibn 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, al- see Husain ibn 'Ali
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