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ABOUT THE MAP
This map shows Imam Husayn's journey from Medinah to Karbala' in 60/680 CE, and the journey of his family from Karbala' to Damascus and back to Karbala'. The route of the Imam's journey was determined by cities mentioned in Maqtal al-Husayn by 'Abdul Razzaq Muqarram. Some of the cities are positioned according to locations given by Tavo in a map of Islamic Arabia until the death of the Prophet. The route that the Imam took from Mecca to Karbala' follows, in reverse, a popular pilgrim route from Kufah to Mecca, which later became Tariq Zubayda. The Imam followed this route until prevented by Hurr from continuing towards Kufah. Thereupon, he deviated from the route and headed towards Karbala'. However, due to difficulty in determining the exact location, not all cities mentioned in Maqtal al-Husayn appear on the map
The journey of the Imam's family after the massacre of Karbala' in 10th Muharram 61/680 is described as going through major cites and the only names mentioned are Aleppo and Hamah. At that time two main routes existed from Kufah to Damascus. One followed the Euphrates Northwest to Aleppo and then South to Hamah, then Damascus. The other goes west across the desert directly to Damascus. It was concluded that the army took the Imam's family on the river route through Aleppo and Hamah, and upon leaving Damascus the family used
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the desert route in order to reach Karbala' on the occasion of 'Arba'in, 20th of Safar.
The following sources were consulted:
Al-Faruqi, Isma'il Ragi. Historical Atlas of the Religions of the World. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1974.
Iraq: Official Standard Names Approved by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names. Washington, D.C.: Office of Geography, Department of the Interior, 1957.
Powell, Grace L. Atlas of the Middle East. Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company, 1975.
Rebstock, Ulrich. "Das Islamisch Arabien his zum Tode des Propheten" in Tubinger Atlas des Vorderen Orients (TAVO). Wiesbaden: Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, 1987.
Hasan Hussain Jalali
Chicago, 1994
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CHRONOLOGY OF THE LIFE OF IMAM HUSAYN
| Day |
Month |
Year |
Event |
| 3 |
Sha'ban |
4/625 |
Birth of Imam Husayn |
| 27 |
Safar |
11/632 |
His grandfather, Prophet Muhammad, dies |
| 21 |
Ramadan |
40/660 |
His father, 'Ali, killed |
| 7 |
Safar |
50/670 |
His brother, Hasan poisoned to death |
| 27 |
Rajab |
60/680 |
Yazid demands allegiance of Husayn |
| 28 |
Rajab |
60/680 |
The Imam leaves Medinah at night |
| 3 |
Sha'ban |
60/680 |
The Imam arrives at Mecca |
| 10 |
Ramadan |
60/680 |
People of Kufah, Iraq, invite the Imam
|
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| 15 |
Ramadan |
60/680 |
Muslim goes to Kufah as Imam's messenger |
| 5 |
Shawwal |
60/680 |
Muslim arrives in Kufah |
| 8 |
DhulHijjah |
60/680 |
Muslim betrayed and killed |
| 8 |
DhulHijjah |
60/680 |
Imam leaves from Mecca to Kufah |
| 2 |
Muharram |
61/680 |
Imam arrives in Karbala', Iraq |
| 3 |
Muharram |
61/680 |
''Umar Ibn Sa'd arrives to army of 30,000 |
| 7 |
Muharram |
61/680 |
Imam's camp blocked from access to water |
| 9 |
Muharram |
61/680 |
The first attack on Imam Husayn's camp |
| 10 |
Muharram |
61/680 |
Massacre of Imam Husayn and his followers |
| 11 |
Muharram |
61/680 |
Captivity of Imam's family |
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Haig, Sir Wolseley, Comparative Tables of Muhammadan and Christian Dates. (London: Luzac and Co.), 1932.
Ibn al-Sabbagh, 'Ali b. Muhammad al-Maliki (d. 855/1451 CE), al-Fusul al-Muhimmah fi Ma'rifah al-'Ahwal al-'A'immah. Najaf, Iraq: Al-'Adl Press, 137011950 CE
Jalali, Muhammad Hussain, Mazarat Ahl al-Bayt. (Reprint) Chicago: Islamic Community, 1988/1409.
The Qur'an Translated. (unpublished manuscript)
Muqarram, 'Abdul-Razzaq, Maqtal al-Husayn Beirut, Lebanon: Dar al-Kitab al-Islami, 1979/1399.
Saduq, Abu Jaf'ar Muhammad b. 'Ali b. al-Husayn, d. 381, 'Mali al-Sadua, Najaf, Iraq: Haydariyyah Press, 1389/1970.
Wehr, Hans. A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic (Arabic-English) Edited by J. Milton Cowan, (Fourth Edition) Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1979.
