THE LIFE OF IMAM

ZAYN AL-'ABIDIN


PUBLISHER'S PREFACE XXXI
DEDICATION XXXII
INTRODUCTION XXXIII

CHAPTER I
MRS.SHAHZANAN


HER PSYCHOLOGICAL TRAITS 1
REPORTS OF HER MARRIAGE 2
A. At the Time of 'Umar 2
B. At the Time of 'Uthman 2
C. At the Time of the Caliphate of the Commander of the Faithful 3
CHECKING THE REPORTS 3
IRREGULAR IDEAS 5
HER HOLY NAME 6
THE HOLY RELATIONSHIP 6
PRE-ISLAMIC BELIEF 7
Imam 'ALI TOOK CARE OF HER 9
AL-HUSAYN TOOK CARE OF HER 10
THE HISTORIANS PRAISED HER 11
A. Al-Mubarrad 11
B. Ibn Shadqam 11
C. Al-Kunji 11

CHAPTER II
THE GREAT BABY

THE RITES OF HIS BIRTH 13
THE PLACE OF HIS BIRTH 14
THE TIME OF HIS BIRTH 14
HIS NAME 15
IBN TAYMIYA 16
HIS KUNYA 17
HIS NICK NAMES 17
1. Zayn al-Abidin 17
2. Sayyid al-Abidin 17
3. Dhu al-Thafanat 18
4. Al-Sajjad 18
5. Al-Zaki 19
6. Al-Amin 19
7. Ibn al-Khiyaratayn 19
THE DEATH OF HIS MOTHER 20
HIS NURSEMAID 21
HIS PHYSICAL QUALITIES 21
HIS SOLEMNITY 21
THE INSCRIPTION OF HIS RING 22

CHAPTER III
HIS CHILDHOOD AND BEHAVIOR


HIS CHILDHOOD 23
HIS BEHAVIOR 25
THE BEHAVIOR IN HIS HOUSE 25
HIS KINDNESS TO HIS NURSEMAID 26
A FABRICATED NARRATION 26
HIS BEHAVIOR TOWARD HIS PARENTS 27
HIS SUPPLICATION FOR HIS PARENTS 28
HIS BEHAVIOR TOWARD HIS CHILDREN 31
HIS COMMANDMENTS TO HIS CHILDREN 32
HIS SUPPLICATION FOR HIS CHILDREN 35
HIS BEHAVIOR TOWARD HIS RETAINERS 39
HIS BEHAVIOR TOWARD HIS NEIGHBORS 40
HIS SUPPLICATION FOR HIS NEIGHBORS 40
HIS BEHAVIOR TOWARD HIS FRIENDS 43
HIS BEHAVIOR TOWARD HIS SHI'ITES 44
A FABRICATED NARRATION 45
HIS ENJOINING THE SHI'ITES TO PRACTICE 46
PRECAUTIONARY DISSIMULATION 46
HIS ASKING FORGIVENESS FOR 47
THE SHI'ITE SINNERS 47
HIS BEHAVIOR TOWARD HIS ENEMIES 48

CHAPTER IV
HIS PSYCHOLOGICAL QUALITIES


CLEMENCY 51
PATIENCE 54
GLORY AND SELF-ESTEEM 56
BRAVERY 57
HIS UNSELFISH NATURE 57
KINDNESS TO PEOPLE 58
GENEROSITY 59
Mohammed b. Usama 59
His giving Food to the People 60
His Maintaining a Hundred Families 60
HIS KINDNESS TO THE POOR 60
A.His Honoring the Poor 60
B. His Kindness to the Poor 60
HIS PREVENTING THE PEOPLE FROM 61
REPROACHING BEGGARS 61
HIS ALMS 63
A. He gave his Garments as Alms 63
B. He gave as Alms what He loved 63
C. Dividing his Properties 64
HIS GIVING CHARITY IN SECRET 64
HIS SEEKING ALLAH'S PLEASURES 66
RENOUNCING WORLDLY PLEASURES 67
WITH THE SUFIS 68
HE HATED PLAYING 69
HIS TURNING TO ALLAH IN REPENTANCE 69
WONDERFUL EXAMPLES OF HIS TURNING 70
IN REPENTANCE TO ALLAH 70
1. His Seeking Asylum with Allah 71
2. His Fleeing to Allah 72
3. His Seeking Needs from Allah 73
4. His Pleading and Humbleness to Allah 75
5. His Humbling himself before Allah 78

CHAPTER V
HIS IMAMATE


THE MEANING OF THE IMAMATE 81
THE NECESSITY OF THE IMAMATE 81
THE PROPHET AND THE IMAMATE 82
THE HIGH POSITIONS OF THE IMAMS 83
REFERRING TO THE IMAMS IS OBLIGATORY 86
OBEYING THE IMAM IS OBLIGATORY 87
THE INFALLIBILITY OF THE IMAM 88
HIS IMAMATE 89
His Textual Imamate 89
THE IMAMATE IN HIS TIME 91
THE IMAMATE OF MOHAMMED BIN AL-HANAFIYA 92
IMAM ZAYN AL-ABIDIN WITH MOHAMMED B. AL-HANAFIYA 93
AL-KABULI RETURNES TO THE TRUTH 95
SOME SIGNS OF HIS IMAMATE 97
1. His Telling of the Martyrdom of Zayd 98
2. His Telling about the Government of 'Umar b. 'Abd al-'Aziz 99
3. His Telling about the Government of the Abbasides 99


CHAPTER VI
IMPRESSIONS OF HIS CHARACTER


THE VIEWS OF HIS CONTEMPORARIES 103
1. Jarir al-Ansari 103
2. 'Abd Allah b. 'Abbas 104
3. Al-Zuhri 104
4. Sa'id bin al-Musayyab 106
5. Zayd bin Aslam 107
6. Hammad bin Zayd 108
7. Yahya bin Sa'id 108
8. Malik 108
9. Abu Bakr bin al-Barqi 109
10. Abu Zar'a 109
11. Abu Hazim 109
12. Abu Hatam al-A'raji 109
13. Abu Hamza al-Thumali 109
14. Imam al-Sadiq 110
15. 'Umar bin 'Abd al-'Aziz 110
16. Yazid bin Mu'awiya 111
17. 'Abd al-Malik bin Marwan 111
18. Mansur al-Dawaniqi 112
19. Al-Farazdaq 112
20. Al-Himyari 113
21. Ibn Shahab 113
22. Ibn Zayd 113
THE HISTORIANS 114
1. Ibn 'Asakir 114
2. Ibn Sa'd 114
3. Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani 114
4. Ibn Hajar al-Haythami 115
5. Al-Dhahabi 115
6. Abu al-Fath 115
7. Abu Na'eem 115
8. Al-Ya'qubi 116
9. Al-Waqidi 116
10. Safi al-Din 116
11. Al-Nawawi 116
12. 'Imad al-Din 117
13. Ibn 'Anba 117
14. Shaykh al-Mufeed 117
15. Al-Jahiz 118
16. Al-Sharawi 118
17. Al-Qulaybi 118
18. Ibn Taymiya 118
19. Al-Shaykhani 119
20. Ibn Khullakan 119
21. Ibn Shaddqam 119
22. Al-Manofi 119
23. Abu al-Futuh 119
24. Al-Manawi 120
25. Mohammed bin Talha 120
26. Mohammed bin Sa'id 121
27. Al-Sayyid Abbas 121
28. Al-Sayyid Mohsin 121
29. Al-Nuwayri 122
30. Al-Shafi'i 122
31. 'Ali bin 'Isa al-Arbali 122
32. Al-Bustani 124
33. Wajjdi 124
34. Agha Buzurg 125
35. Ibn al-Jawzi 125
36. Tajj al-Din 125
37. 'Arif Tamir 125
38. Al-Zarkali 126
39. Ahmed Mahmud Subhi 126
40. Ahmed Fahmi 127
41. Husayn 'Ali Mahfuz 127
IMPORTANAT PONINTS 127

CHAPTER VII
THE TRAGEDIES OF KARBALA'


ON THE PLATEAU OF KARBALA 132
IMAM AL-HUSAYN ANNOUNCED HIS DEATH 133
THE DAY OF ASURA 135
IMAMA HUSAYN'S SERMON 136
THE BATTLE 139
THE MARTYDOM OF THE RIGHTEOUS 140
IMAM AL-HUSAYN SOUGHT HELP 141
MARTYRDOM OF THE GREAT IMAM 142
SETTING THE TENTS TO FIRE 142
THE ATTACK AGAINST ZAYN AL-'ABIDIN 143
IMAM ZAYN AL-'ABIDIN BECAME IMPATIENT 143
HIS BURYING THE PURE CORPSES 144
THE CAPTIVES OF THE HOUSEHOLD TAKEN TO KUFA 145
IMAM ZAYN AL-'ABIDIN DELIVERS A SPEECH 146
THE TYRANT WITH IMAM ZAYN AL-'ABIDIN 148
A KUFAN KIDNAPS THE IMAM 149
THE CAPTIVES OF THE HOUSEHOLD TAKEN TO DAMASCUS 149
A SYRIAN WITH ZAYN AL-'ABIDIN 150
IMAM ZAYN AL'ABIDIN IN THE ASSEMBLY OF YAZID 151
IMAM ZAYN AL-'ABIDIN DELIVERS A SERMON 152
THE IMAM WITH AL-MINHAL 157
THE TYRANICAL APOLOGIZES TO THE IMAM 157
A SCHOLAR ASK ABOUT THE IMAM 158
THE IMAM WITH YAZID 159
THE JOURNEY TO MEDINA 159
BISHR ANNOUNCED THE DEATH OF IMAM AL-HUSAYN 160
IMAM ZAYN AL-'ABIDIN DELIVERS A SPEECH 161
IMAM ZAYN AL-'ABIDIN'S GRIEF 163
HIS PAYING THE DEBTS WHICH HIS FATHER OWED 164
HIS KINDNESS TO THE FAMILY OF 'AQIL 165
HIS STAYING IN MEDINA 165

CHAPTER VIII
HIS WORSHIP

HIS RITUAL ABLUTION 169
HIS PRAYER 169
Perfuming his Garments 170
His Garments during his prayer 170
His Humbleness during his Prayer 170