Husain Decides To Leave Madina

Husain decides to leave Madina

HUSAIN DECIDED TO leave Madina. Learning about the decision of the Holy Imam, people in groups approached him asking the reason for his decision to leave the holy city. Husain said that his refusal to pay 'Bait' to Yazid, will certainly be defied and Yazid will not spare shedding blood for it, and he did not like the holy city of his Grandfather, the Holy Prophet, to become the battlefield and the poor people of the city to suffer the wholesale massacre the tyrant's forces will enact. Poor people, old and young, men and women, and even young children will perish and the city will be ruined. Secondly, if Husain remained there, later people would say, why did not Husain leave the place when he knew the enemy would not leave him unchased. Hence he had decided to go to Mecca and after the pilgrimage to decide what to do.

Husain visited the shrine of his Grandfather and leaning on it said:

While saying this a drowse dawned on Husain and Husain saw in a vision his Grandfather standing out from his grave and selling him:

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Husain arose from the holy grave and then visited his Mother's grave and took leave of it and then visited his Brother Hasan's grave and taking leave of it, returned home and started preparations for the journey. From every house in Madina, particularly of the Hashimites, was heard the laments of the people for losing the Holy Imam from the city. Ladies in groups visited Zainab and in surprise asked her the reason for the decision of the Holy Imam to leave the place. Zainab could only say that it is God's will that her Brother Husain, the Holy Imam, was allowing to be done and none had any voice in it.

The youth of the city came to meet the children of Husain with tears in their eyes and asking when they would return, to which the young souls said: 'If God wills it. None could say when.

Husain's sister Umme Kulthoom being a widow resided with Husain and Zainab who had been married to Abdullah bin Jaffar, rushed to her husband and implored for permission to accompany Husain, saying that she would not live without Husain in the city. Abdullah granted the request and Zainab returned and prepared to leave with Husain.

Fatema Sughra, a daughter of Husain was sick with high fever and Husain the Guardian of the Word of God, could not act against it and thus had decided to leave the young daughter at home with his grandmother Omme Salema the Lithful wife of the Holy Prophet who alone remained attached to the House of the Holy Prophet. The young soul Fatema Sughra, anxious to accompany her parents and not be left alone in the deserted house, was restlessly imploring her father the Holy Imam who was unable to take her against the Word of God. The poor daughter of Husain in her sickness was requesting every member of the family to recommend her case to her father and none could go against the decision of God. The whole house was shedding tears for this young, sick and miserable soul.

The implorations from the citizens to Husain to reconsider his decision to leave Madina, did not cease till the last moment. Muhammad-e-Hanafia one of the sons of Ali came to Husain and advised him in the same way as others had done to which Husain said that he had to go in the fulfilment of the Divine Will disclosed to him by his Grandfather the Holy Prophet. Then Muhammad asked why he was taking the women and children with him, to which

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Husain said the Lord has destined that they should suffer captivity. Zainab who heard this discourse cried to Muhammad saying 'Why dost thou 0' Muhammad! Endeavour to cause separation between me and my brother?" Hearing Zainab, Muhammad kept quiet.

Lady Ommul Baneen whom Ali had married with a definite desire to have of her a son like Abbas, called her four sons and said:

Then the lady called Abbas and said :-

Abbas and his brothers kissed the feet of their mother and Abbas said:-

The Holy Imam's Determination

PEOPLE OF MADINA were fully aware of the dreadful consequences that would follow the blunt refusal of the Holy Imam to pay 'Baia!? to Yazid. They went to the Holy Imam in large numbers to know his final decision. Husain replied to them :-

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At last dawned the historic day of Husain's leaving Madina. All the ladies mounted the fully veiled litters on the backs of the camels and when the turn of Zainab came to mount, Ali-e-Akbar held the screen and Abbas lowered his knee for Zainab to place her foot on it and Husain held her hand to help her, and the daughter of Fatema mounted the camel. At last Husain bade goodbye to every one of the huge crowd of citizens that had assembled, and turning towards the graves of his Grandfather, Mother and Brother, Husain gave his last salutation. The caravan began to move with the people of the city crying aloud behind it with their lamentations saying:

Fatema Sughra in the high fever and in her disappointment had swooned and availing of the unconscious state of his daughter, Husain had asked the people of the house to make haste and start. When the caravan had left, Fatema returned to consciousness and seeing the whole house empty, asked Omme Salcma about the inmates to which she was told that they had all gone. Fatema got up and with the help of a stick in her hand, began to walk behind the caravan crying out:-

The caravan had gone sufficient away but God alone knows how Husain could hear the feeble voice of the crying of his ailing daughter coming at a considerate distance behind the caravan,

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inspite of the loud noises of the moving caravan. Husain called aloud to Abbas telling him:

The caravan stopped and Fatema somehow reached the caravan and began to implore saying:

Husain came down from his horse and tried to console her, explaining his inability owing to her sickness under which the Word of God does not allow him to take her on the journey.

This is an occasion for parents among the readers to imagine the state of mind of Fatema's mother and her other relatives.

At last Fatema made a request to her father which he could not resist granting:-

Husain said :-

Fatema went near the camel on which was her mother with her baby brother Ali-e-Azghar. The moment she beckoned, the baby rushed into her lap.

How could the caravan move now, with the mother leaving away the suckling babe away from her. The mother tried her best to get the baby back from Fatema, and along with the mother all other relatives tried, and even Husain tried his best to see that the baby returns from Fatema but every one failed and every time the baby looked at the face of the one who beckoned it and smiled and turned around and put both its hands round Fatema's neck, the caravan had stopped. At last Husain getting near the baby's ears, moved his lips saying something in the ears of the Innocent and the baby which did not respond to any one before and even to

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its mother, now hearing the words uttered into its ears by the Holy Imam, at once left Fatema and got into the lap of the Holy Imam. Fatema stood disappointed and at last the caravan moved away.

After the Massacre of Karbala, some one asked Ali ibnul Husain as to what was it that Husain said into the cars of the babe which did not respond to anybody's beckoning and even to Husain when he did it before, at once came away into Husain's lap. In reply yed-e-Sajjad Ali-ibnul-Husain sighed aloud saying:-

The Situation Worsens and the Atmosphere gets Totally Darkened

THE PEOPLE FOUND infidelity and godlessness spreading all around them, and its intensity being ever on the increase and getting more and more aggressive. There was no security for the faith and the faithful. Religion getting horribly adulterated with counterfeit traditions coined in favour of the grossly anti-religious elements. The practice of the faith laid down by the Holy Prophet strictly on the Qur'anic lines, was recasted into the wrong moulds of infidelity. The situation had become openly hostile to the House of the Holy Prophet, the love or faithfulness to the members of which, was under the command of the Lord, decreed incumbent on every muslim with a definite ordinance of the Holy Qur'an on it had become a mercilessly punishable crime :-

Those who professed faithfulness to the House of the Holy Prophet indentifying themselves as the Shias of Ali were persecuted, plundered, mercilessly crucified and brutally murdered and their properties were confiscated. People faithful to the Holy House had either to be killed or to go underground under the cover of

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'Taqiah' (hiding the faith); they were even then chased, spied and hunted and when found out, were condemned to death.

The situation actually needed a Muhammad to brave the devilish forces and deliver the people from the clutches of the satanic sway over the people and the cruel authority of the crown, as was sent Moses to deliver the Israelites from the clutches of Pharaoh. But the prayer of the people for another apostle or prophet would be only in vain for the Last Apostle had come and gone and there was no other prophet or apostle after him to come. The only way to salvation for the faith and the people was to appeal to Husain, the Holy Imam of the age, who was the Vicegerent of God in the place of the Holy Prophet, to come to their rescue.

The authority to rule over the destiny of the people in the various parts of the state was distributed by nepotism. Merits of personal righteousness and the sense of justice had lost their recognition and had no worth or value in the eyes of the administrators of the matters of the state.

Womanhood was once again subjected to a shameful subjugation to satisfy the brutal lust of the drunkard dcbauchees with the beastly lust to devour the chastity of women. Marriage had lost its sanctity and protection to married women. Deceitful measures were employed to force a husband to divorce his wife if she was wanted for the sexual lust of the ruling authority.

Human rights were deliberately denied and the rites of religion were openly defied and religious ordinances were violated with extreme impunity. There was no security of life or property: Plunder, pillage and persecution was freely practised to realise the political ends of the state.

People at last sent messengers with the written request to Husain, the Holy Imam, to come to the rescue of the faith and the faithful, with a note of threat that should Husain fearing death and destruction not come out and save the religion of God from getting lost and the faithful religionists from getting astray any longer, on the Day of Judgment the people wokild,,7complain to'God and His Holy Prophet against him. The deputation from the people of Kufa signed by a multitude of them approached Husain at Mecca.

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The call now was without any taint, purely for the rescue of the faith and the faithful. Husain now could not but respond. The Holy Imam knew that it was the destined and the awaited call. He offered prayers and looked to the heavens and decided to act, to fulfil his covenant with his Lord.

Husain at Mecca and the Deputation from Kufa

HUSAIN ARRIVED IN Mecca on 3rd Shahan 6o A.H. for the pilgrimage and thereafter to decide for his future step. He could not stay in Madina without paying 'Bait' to Yazid or getting killed in return for his refusal to pay the allegiance. Allegiance meant recognising the Devil in the place of God which Husain, could never do.

His murder at Madina would have caused the clash of the Madinites, particularly the Hashimites with the Yazidian forces, resulting in the destruction of the poor citizens and the ruin of the holy city of his Grandfather for which he did not like to be responsible. Besides, if he had stayed there in Madina with death facing the world would have questioned his stay there and not taking shelter somewhere out of it. He came to Mecca, and here he received the deputation from Kufa with the persistent implorations to go and guide them on the right path of the faith against the straying away from the faith forced on them with the infidelity and godlessness spread all over the country.

Husain could neither blindly accept the call from Kufa, for the Kufees who were known for their unstable character and unsettled conduct, if latr turn treacherous, the world would question Husain's ready response to their call without the necessary caution. Therefore Husain decided to send a deputy of his to Kufa to write to him after studying the sincerity in the invitation.

Muslim-the Holy Imam's Deputy to Kufa

THE HOLY IMAM commanded his cousin Muslim, son of Aqeel, to proceed to Kufa and to report from there, after studying the bona-fide of the call from the people of the place. On t4th Ramadhan 60 A.H. Muslim left Mecca with two guides of the route. Muslim took two young sons of his, along with him. The party lost their way and both the guides perished in the desert. Muslim taking the death of the guides as an inauspicious omen and reaching a halting place called 'Altizeeq min Ratne Janne wrote to the Holy Imam

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informing him of the fate of the guides and requesting him to spare him and depute someone in his stead. The Holy Imam wrote back to Muslim saying:

Muslim receiving the reply continued his journey and somehow reached Kufa.

Muslim in Kufa

THE KUFEES GAVE Muslim a very warm reception and thousands of them paid their 'Bait' to the Holy Imam on the hands of Muslim. Poor Muslim, impressed with and guided by the enthusiasm of the deceitful Kufees and not knowing what would befall him the very next day, wrote a letter to Husain to go over to Kufa. When the letter inviting the Holy Imam had gone with a favourable report about the situation at Kufa, Muslim learnt of the treachery, i.e., the turn of the tide of the situation. Yazid, having learnt of Muslim's arrival at Kufa as the Deputy of the Holy Imam and the Kufees having paid their homage to the Holy Imam, as their religious head, sent Ibne Zaid to handle the situation in his favour. In a day or two, almost all the leaders of the town were bribed and strong threats from Yazid's deputy the Governor of Kufa, made the people of the town as a whole, desert poor Muslim. Under the strict ordinances issued against those who gave even shelter to him, Muslim was left all alone in Kufa. None in Kufa would now even speak to Muslim and he was left actually homeless, wandering in the streets with everyone in town, now hostile to him. None would allow him even to rest for a while in the shade of his house. At every door he stood, he was being driven away, not even a cup of water he could have from anyone in the town. Hungry and thirsty, the helpless Deputy of the Holy Imam actually wandered in the streets of Kufa with his two innocent children, in the hope of help from some one, but none took pity on him, and not even on the innocent young children. The helpless father and his two young

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children were being driven away from place to place, nowhere to rest even for a while.

Hani ibne Orvah, the good-hearted Kufec who offered hospitality to Muslim was mercilessly butchered. All those miseries and persecution did never upset Muslim in the least but the one and only worry he felt, and which grieved him the most of which he frequently shed tears, was that he had written to the son of Fatema, the Holy Imam, in favour of such a treacherous people and had invited him to go over to a place where only death and destruction waited for him. He could not leave the town for he was not allowed to do it, nor could he send any note to the Holy Imam to intimate the treacherous change in the situation.

Muslim sends out His Children with His Message to the Holy Imam

AT LAST MUSLIM somehow managed to send his two young children out of Kufa with his message to the Holy Imam, a counter to his previous communication to him, requesting Husain never to think of Kufa anymore. The two innocents of the House of the Holy Prophet with the divine gift of bravery and courage against the odds and the miserses in the way of the Lord, walked through the desert during nights, hiding themselves from the sight of the people and during day time hid themselves in some bush or on the top of some date palms, hungry and thirsty as naturally they would but be in the desert. But nothing daunted them from their mission. The one and the only concern of the two young souls, was to somehow reach the Holy Imam with the message. The two young innocent fugitives were passing through a dreadful and mortal atmosphere. They were passing through the Valley of Death. Whenever they happened to meet anyone they would not disclose their identity and if any one took pity on their age and their plight, and offered any hospitality, they accepted it, otherwise they contented themselves with their lot but always mindful of the Lord and prayerful to Him.