LADY ZAYNAB IN CAPTIVITY
Bound with ropes and forced to ride on saddleless, lean camels, the ladies and orphans of the Prophet's family were taken as captives to Kufa. Their caravan was very horrible; clarion were blown and flags wereflutteringn. Let us listen to the story from an eyewitness:
Muslim, the plasterer, reports:
While I was plastering doors of the Governorate Mansion of Kufa, sounds of clarions attacked my hearing from every side. "Why is Kufa clamoring?" I asked one of the servants in that mansion. "The head of a mutinous who rebelled against Yazid is now entering the city," answered the servant. "Who is that mutinous?" asked I. "It is al-Husayn ibn 'Ali," answered the servant.
This answer acted upon me like a thunderbolt. I slapped my face so strongly that I feared on my eyes. As hurriedly as possible, I sashed my hands from the plaster and left the amnsion. While I stood among people who were waiting for the caravan of the captives and the cut off heads, forty camels carrying woman and children appeared. I saw 'Ali ibn al-Husayn on a saddleless camel, As both sides of his meck were bleeding because of chains and he was handcuffed, he was weeping an saying, "O evil nation! Curse you! You have not regarded us in favor of our grandfather. What will you sya on the Day of Resurrection when Allah will gather us with the Prophet? As if we have not guided you to the religion, you are, now, taking us on naked camels, by force."1
In view of this horrible situation, wome of Kufa began to mourn and cry, One of them approached one of the captured ladies and asked, "To whom do you belong?"
The lady answered, "We belong to the Ahl al-Bayt."
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1- See Muhammad Baqir al-Majlisi, Bihar al-Anwar, vol.45, p.114.
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As she heard this astounding answer, the Kufian lady, with the others who were nesxto to her, screamed aloud and hurried to ther house to bring any covers she had and throw on the captive ladies so that people would not lood at them. Another lady brought some food and dates and threw at the captive children who were harshly hungry, but Lady Ummu-Kulthum shouted at them, "It is Haram -unallowable- for us, the Ahl al-Bayt, to have from alms." Hearing this statemet, the hungry children threw the food from their hands an deven mouths.
LADY ZAYNAB'S FIRST ADDRESS
As she saw the crowds blocking all streets of Kufa an surrounding the caravan. Lady Zaynab decided to deliver a speech aiming at uniting the public opinion, referring to the grand misfortune that the Umayyad gang brought to the Islamic ummah by killing the actual leader, Imam al-Husayn (a), and charging people of Kufa with that crime, because it wasthey who breached their promises of supporting the Imam 9a) and protecting him. Nevertheless, they as if it ot they who caused that massacre, nourned for the Imam (a) and wept for the captivity of his harem and children.
Lady Zaynab asdked everybody to keep silent, and then she, calm, composed, and courageous, said:
الحمد لله , والصلاة علي أبي , محمد و آله الطيبين الأخيار. أما بعد يا أهل الكوفة, يا أهل الختل و الغدر, أتبكون؟ فلا رقات الدمعه ولا هدأت الرنة. إنما مثلكم كمثل التي نقضت غزلها من بعد قوة أنكاثا, تتخذون أيمانكم دخلا بينكم. ألاو هل فيكم إلا الصلف والنطف, و الصدر الشنف, و ملق الإماء و غمز الأعداء؟ أو كمرعي علي دمنة, أو كقصة علي ملحودة, ألا ساء ما قدمت لكم أنفسكم أن سخط الله عليكم و في العذاب أنتم خالدون.
( 192 )
All praise is due to Allah. Blessing be upon my father Muhammad (s) and upon his good and righteous progeny (a). Well now, O people of Kufa; people of deception and perfidy! Do you weep? May your tears never cease, and may the resounding of this calamity never stop. Your similitude is she who unravels her yarn, disintegrating it into pieces after she has spun it strongly, you make your oaths to be means of deceit between you. Is there anyone among you who is not a boaster of what he does not have, a charger of debauchery, a conceited liar, a man of grudge without any justification, submissive like bondmaids, of feeble before the enemies, just like a pasture in relics or like a dirty piece of cloth on a grave? Truly bad is that which your souls have committed. You have reaped theWrath of Allah, remaining in the chastisement for eternity.
أتبكون و نتحبون؟ إي والله! فابكوا كثيرا واضحكوا قليلا, فلقد ذهبتم بعارها و شنانها (و شنارها). و لن ترحضوها بغسل بعدها أبدا. و أني ترحضون قتل سليل خاتم الأنبياء, و معدن الرسالة , و سيد شباب أهل الجنة, و ملاذ خيرتكم , و مفزع نازلتكم , و منار حجتكم, و مدرة سنتكم؟ ألا ساء ماتزرون , و بعدا لكم و سحقا, فلقد خاب السعي و تبت الأيدي , ز خسرت الصفقة, و بؤتم بعضب من الله و رسوله, و ضربت عليكم الذله و المسكنة.
Do You really cry and sob? By Allah, you should then cry a great deal and laugh very little, for you have earned nothing but shame and infamy, and you shall never be able to wash it away, How could you do so? The descendant of the bearer of the Last Message, the very essence of the Message,master of the youths of Paradise, the refuge of the righteous from among you, the one who saves you from calamity, the beacon of your guidance, and the keeper of your traditions has been killed. O how horrible is the sin that you bear!
( 193 )
May you be distanced and crushed. The effort is rendered futile, perdition overtakes the hands, the deal is lost, and you earned nothing but wrath from Allah and His Messenger. You are doomed with servitude and humiliation.
ويلكم يا أهل الكوفة! أتدرون أي كبد لرسول الله فريتم؟ و أي كريمة له أبرزتم؟ وأي دم له سفكتم؟ و أي حرمة له انتهكتم؟ لقد جئتم شيئا إدا تكادالسماوات يتفطرن منه و تنشق الأرض و تخر الجبال هدا. بها صلعاء عنقاء سوداء فقماء (خرفاء شوهاء كطلاع الأرض و ملاء السماء). أفعجبتم أن مطرت السماء دما؟ و لعذاب الآخرة أخزي و أنتم لا تنصرون. فلا يستخنكم المهل, فإنه لايحفزه البدار و لا يخاف فوت الثار, و إن ربكم لبالمرصاد.
Woe unto you, O people of Kufa! Do you know whose heart you have burned, what a feat you have labored, what blood you have, and what sanctity you have violated? you have done a most monstrous deed, something for which the heavens are about to split asunder and so is the earth, and for which the mountains crumble. You have done something most uncanny, most defaced, duskiest, most horrible, as much as the fill of the earth and of the sky. Do you wonder why the sky rains blood? Surely, the torment of the Hereafter is a greater chastisement, and you shall not be helped. Let no respite elate you, for rushing does not speed it up, nor does it fear the loss of the opportunity for revenge. you Lord is waiting in ambush to do so.
Because he recognized that the situation could no longer stand the words of his aunt, Imam Zayn al-'Abidin interrupted her speech, saying, "That is enough, aunt, Thanks to Allah, you are a learned lady whom none taught and you can comprehend without being made to do so."
( 194 )
ECHO OF THE SPEECH
Lady Zaynab's eloquent speech, which is compared to Imam 'Ali's speeches, rebuked people of Kufa so effectively, exposed their false faith in Islam, falsified their deceitful tears, and introduced them as the most ignoble criminals as they contributed strongly in the murder of killing Imam al-Husayn (a), his household, and his companions.
With the utterance of justice and honesty and the voice of courage and right, Lady Zaynab hit people of Kufa and pointed to their lowliness and rotten-heartedness. Their forgery and falsehood could not deceive her as she reproached them for their crimes and ascribed to them the meanest characters. Moreover , she commented on their weeping by saying that they should have wept for the big crime of disappointing the Imam and letting him down.
Furthermore, this speech made them amazed and perplexed. They put their hands on theirs mouths without knowing what to do. An old man, for instance, approached her with teary eyes, saying, "my father and mother be sacrificed for you. Your men are the best men, your youths are the best youths, your women are the best women, and your progeny will never die away or become low."1
Then, Lady Fatima, Daughter of Imam al-Husayn (a), delivered an eloquent speech similar to her aunt's. Because her words were so strong and had bearings on them, people of Kufa begged her to stop. She responded, but people could not stop their wailings and weeping.
Then, Lady Ummu-Kulthum spoke similar words that touched people so deeply that women began to slap their faced and men to weep incessantly.
Then, Imam Zayn al-'Abidin spoke. He proved they were not true Muslims and that they had a share in the crime of killing the Imam (a). They therefore said to each other, "We
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1- See Wafiyyat al-A'immah, 453.
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have certainly perished." They then asked him to stop, and he did as their cries and wailing rose.
BEFORE THE GOVERNOR
'Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad, son of the ill-famed Marjanah, was sitting on his throne in the Governorate Mansion when the captive ladies and children of the Prophet's family were obliged to be before him. They were living horrible hours in the humility of captivity and under the swords of those miscreants who were there to congratulate him for his triumph and narrate to him their crimes in Karbala', while he was listening arrogantly and joyfully. With a baton he had in the hand, 'Ubaydullah was whacking the holy head of Imam al-Husayn (a) and expressing his gloating over him by sayin, "I have never seen such a face."
Before he had finished his malicious statement, Anas ibn Malik, the companion of the Holy Prophet (s), said to him, "Yes, he looks like the Prophet." This statememt silenced 'Ubaydullah who could not find a word to answer.
After he had quenched his wicked, thirsty soul from the Prophet's family, 'Ubaydullah turned his face towards the captives. There was a lady trying to hide herself in a remote side of the session. Dignity and sublimity were drawn very dressed. As soon as his eyes fell on her, he asked, "Who is that lady taking the remotest sideof this session."
The lady did not answer because she despised and slighted him. He repeated his question more than once until one of the ladies answered, "This is Zaynab, daughterof Fatimah, daughter of the Messenger of Allah (a)." He therefore tried to show his gloating over her misfortunes by sayin, "Thanks Allah Who unmasked, killed, and belied your revolution."
Pattering her courageous fathers and brothers, Lady Zaynab replied him :
( 196 )
الحمدلله الذي أكرمنا بنبيه, وطهرنا من الرجس تطهيرا. إنما يفتضح الفاسق و يكذب الفاجر, و هو غيرنا يا بن مرجانة ...
"Thanks Allah Who honored us with His Prophet and purified us from uncleanness thoroughly. It is only the lewd whom is unmasked , and it is only the dissolute whom is belied. We are not any of these two. Indeed, we are not any of these two , son of Marjanah!"
As he received these shocking words, 'Ubaydullah had nothing to say. he therefore spoke a word of wreak as an attempt to cover up his failure and incapability to answer. he addressed her, "How do you see that which Allah has done to your brother?"
Bravely and steadfastly, Lady Zaynab answered with words of triumph :
ما رأيت إلا جميلا. هؤلاء قوم كتب الله عليهم القتل فبرزوا إلي مضاجعهم, و سيجمع الله بينك و بينهم فتحاج و تخاصم. فانظر لمن الفلج يومئذ. ثكلتك أمك يابن مرجانة.
"It was nothing but good. Those were people whom Allah knew they would be killed. They therefore came to the places where they would be slain. Allah will gather you with them for judgment and sentence. See, who will be the triumphant on that day. Woe shall be you, son of Marjanah, then."
These words of reproach and despise made the bastard governor lose his temper to the degree that the stood up to strike Lady Zaynab, but 'Amr ibn Hurayth warned him against so, saying, "She is only a woman, and woman's words should not be considered."
Nevertheless, 'Ubaydullah returned to gloat at the misfortunes of the Ahl al-Bayt by addressing Lady Zaynab, "At least, Allah has cured my heart and wreaked myself
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1- See Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari Tarikh al-Umam wa al-Muluk; 6:263.
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upon your tyrant master and the disobedient rebels of your family members."
These words filled Lady Zaynab's heart with sorrow and grief as she recollected the images of her protectors. Hence, she said to him :
لعمري لقد قتلت كهلي و قطعت فرعي واجتثثت أصلي. فإن كان هذا شفاؤك فقد اشتفيت.
"I swear by my life, you have killed my protector, pulled up my branches, and uprooted my roots. So, if this heals your heart, then you are indeed healed."
Out of his uncontrollable rage, 'Ubaydullah said, "This one is rhymist. Her father was rhymist and poet. I swear it."
Lady Zaynab answered, "I a too engaged to use rhyme. Women have nothing to do with rhyme."
As he found nothing to say, 'Ubaydullah turned his face towards Imam Zayn al-'Abidin (a) and asked, "Who are you?"
"I am 'Ali son of al-Husayn," answered the Imam(a).
"But Allah has killed 'Ali ibn al-Husayn," shouted the filthy criminal.
"I had a brother called 'Ali, too. You have killed him, and on the Day of Resurrection, you will be interrogated about this," replied the Imam (a) with composure.
"No, it was Allah who killed him," barked 'Ubaydullah furiously.
Imam Zayn al-'Abidin (a) answered with words of almighty Allah:
"Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, (39:42)"
"And a soul will not die but with the permission of Allah the term is fixed.(3:145)"
( 198 )
This answer bewildered the tyrant who did not expect to hear such strong evidence extracted from the Holy Qur'an, because he forgot that the holy Qur'an was revealed in the houses of those individuals and the one to whom the holy Qur'an was revealed is their grandfather and origin. Hence, he showed his arrogance saying, "How dare you answer my words? How dare you refuse my saying?" He then ordered one of his headmen to cut off Imam Zayn al-'Abidin head. But Lady Zaynab hurried to embrace her nephew and address 'Ubaydullah, "Son of Ziyad, suffice you what you have shed of our blood. Have you really spared anyone other than this? If you want to kill him, kill me with him as well."
'Ubaydullah was amazed by such situation of heroism and altruism. He therefore ordered, "Leave him for her. How strong the tie of kinship is! She wanted to be killed with him."
Thanks to Lady Zaynab, Imam Zayn al-'Abidin (a) was saved from that tyrant.
In a chamber lying next to the Kufa Masjid, the captive harem and children of the Prophet's family were detained and mistreated. Each one of them received a single loaf of bread for a whole day, and Lady Zaynab, however, used to distribute her share among the children and abstain from food for the whole day until feebleness attacked her notably to the degree that she chould no longer stand up for prayer. Noticing this, Imam Zayn al-'Abidin expressed his panic to his aunt who had to tell him the reason.
In view of Lady Zaynab's remarkable reputation throughout the Islamic state, the ladies of Kufa competed with each other in having the honor of visiting her, but she refused completely to receive anyone, declaring, "None should ever visit us except bondmaidens, for they have been captured, and so have we been."
The ruling authorities were waiting for the orders of the tyrant 'Yazid regarding the captives, and a few days later, they received his orders of sending them to Damascus.
( 199 )
With the caravan of the captives, the holy head of the martyrs were carried on spearheads so that, like people of Kufa, people of Syria would see them, and this would gladden the tyrant.
THE CAPTIVES IN DAMASCUS
Tied up with ropes, forced to ride saddleless, lean camels, and being in the utmost state of humiliation, the harem and children of the prophet's family were taken to Syria. Throughout their journey, they did not say a single word and did not ask anything from the drivers of their caravan. Being close to Syria, the caravan stopped so that enough time would be given to adorn the city with manifestations of festivity and to gather people to witness this false victory of their ruler.
The caravan was about four parasangs1 away from Syria when its people recieved them with joy, carrying drums and trumpets, and wearing their best dresses -all this was for showing their delight for the massacre of the Prophet's family.
Let us listen to the scene as described by and eyewitness:
Sahl ibn Sa'd al-Sa'idi narrated:
Intending to visit Jerusalem, I passed by Damascus, but it was different -the city was exaggeratedly adorned with colorful gilding, its people were highly joyful, and their women were playing tambourines and drums. I thought that people of Damascus had a festivity that we did not have. Noticing some people talking secretly, I approached them and asked, "Do you people of Syria, celebrate a festivity that we do not know?"
"It seems that you are strange, are you not?" asked they.
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1- Parasang is a unit of length, usually reckoned as equal to between 3 and 3,5 miles -5 to 5,5 km.
( 200 )
"Yes, it is. I, Sahl ibn Sa'd, am one of those who met the Messenger of Allah," answered I.
They said, "Sahl, do you not think that it is very strange that the heavens are not raining blood and the earth is not sinking with its inhabitants?"
"What for is that?" asked I.
"All these are expecting the arrival of al-Husayn's (cut off) head from Kufa," they revealed.
"How strange this is! The head of al-Husayn is being forwarded while people are crowding cheeringly! From which gate will the head enter the city?" asked I.
As they pointed at the Gate of al-Sa't, I hurried there. Aqueue of banners began to enter, but my eyes fell on a horseman who had in the hand a banner without a spearhead on which lied a head most similar to that of tha Holy Prophet. That was the head of al-Husayn! On saddleless, lean camels, the captives appeared. As I reached one of the captives ladies, I asked about her identity.
"I am Sukaynah daughter of al-Husayn," she replied.
"And I am Sahl, the companion of your grandfather the Messenger of Allah, ask for anything and I will do it for you," I offered.
Grievously, she asked, "Ask the bearer of al-Husayn's head to precede us for a considerable distance so that people will look at head and ignore looking at us -the family of the Messennger of Allah."
So, I ran towards that horseman, bribed him with four hundred dirhams, and asked him to hurry forwardly away from the captive ladies, and he did.
In that situation too, an old Syrina man leaning on a stick who was gloating at the humility of those captives approached Imam 'Ali Zayn al-'Abidin (a) and said wreakfully, "Praise be to Allah who eradicated you and empowered the emir to triumph over you."
( 201 )
Out of his keenness and perspicacity, the Imam noticed that the old man was deceived by the wrong rumors that the ruling authorities spread against the Ahl al-Bayt (a). He therefore asked, "Old man, have you recited the Holy Qur'an?"
This statement shocked the old man who wondered and, thus, answered affirmatively.
The Imam(a) then asked him whether he had seen the following Quranic Verses: "Say: I do not ask of you any reward for it but love for my near relatives. (16:26)" "And know that whatever thing you gain, a fifth of it is for Allah and for the Messenger and for the near relatives. (8:41)"
Amazingly, the old man answered that he had recited these Verse.
The Imam (a) thus declared, "Only is it we who are intended in Allah's remark 'the near relatives' in these Verses."
Furthermore, the Imam (a) asked the old man whether he had recited Allah's saying:
"Allah only desires to keep away the unclianness from you, O people of the House! and to purify you a (thorough) purifying. (33:33)"
With astonishment, the old man answered that he had recited this Verse, too.
The Imam (a) hence said, "Only is it we who are the 'People of the House' whom Almighty Allah has purified thoroughly."
This fact changed the old man completely and made him feel sorry for the days on which he could not descern the reality of the Umayyad rulers and their authorities. Even his tongue was tied up by the new fact; he therefore said to the Imam falteringly, "Please, tell me by Allah! Is it you truly those ones?"
"Yes, it is, I swear it by our grandfather, the Messenger of Allah (s)," replied the Imam (a) confidently.
( 202 )
Feeling sorry for the words that he first showered at the Imam (a), the old man threw himself on the hands of the Imam (a) to kiss them heavily as signs of remorse, declaring, "I disavow those who killed you."