This year over 20 million predominately Shiite pilgrims converged in the city by the Euphrates river, Karbala, to commemorate Arba’een, the capture and beheading of the grandson of Prophet Muhammad (S),* Husayn (AS), his family and children by Yazid’s army. The occasion reminds Muslims and others of the peaceful message behind Husayn’s (AS) sufferings to establish justice and fight injustice even when chances for success seem nonexistent. Arba’een is consistently among the largest peaceful gatherings on earth in human history. Last year, 18 million people gathered around Husayn’s (AS) shrine in Karbala; however, it hasn’t been always this ‘easy’ to visit his mausoleum; the devotees faced harsh treatment and bans for years. For instance, under Saddam’s regime it was forbidden to mark Arba’een publicly in Iraq for nearly 30 years. And around 850 C.E. (236 A.H.) Al-Mutawakkil, the Abbasid caliph, ordered to cut the hand of anyone who came to visit the shrine of Husayn (AS) for the first time and to cut his/her leg for his/her second visit!
During Arba’een, the pilgrims pay their respects and express sorrow by traveling on foot or by car, bus, or other transportation arrangements from either their original towns or other holy sites/cities like Najaf, Samarrah, etc., stopping at roadside free-of-charge tents for food and rest along the way. Some pilgrims or zawar (another Arabic-derived term for pilgrims who are visiting the shrine of Husayn (AS)) travel barefoot more than 50 miles and trap chains and shackles around their bodies in remembrance of the prisoners of war, mostly women and children who left behind after the massacre in Karbala, and were taken to Damascus barefoot with chains around their necks and feet. The zawar also perform ceremonial Matam a.k.a. Gestures of Mourning, in which zawar beat themselves on the head, cheeks, or chest to remember/imitate different tragedies suffered by Husayn (AS), his friends and family. For example, the mourners beat their cheeks to remember the ordeal of a four-year-old daughter of Husayn (AS), Sukaina (SA), whose earrings were torn off her ears and who was slapped throughout the journey to Damascus as a prisoner by Husayn’s (AS) executioner and others.
There are so many extremists claiming to follow Islam whom we hear about every day that it is sometimes easy to forget that Islam does not promote extremism. As it is reflected by the sacrifices and teachings of early leaders in Islam, Husayn’s (AS) stance has inspired many scholars and world leaders. It is believed that one of the inspirations for Mahatma Gandhi’s first Salt Satyagrah, which triggered the wider Civil Disobedience movement against British salt monopoly in colonial India, was Husayn’s (AS) practice of non-violent resistance. Gandhi is said to have studied the history of Islam and Husayn (AS), and was of the opinion that Islam represented not the legacy of a sword but of sacrifices of leaders like Husayn (AS).
Here are some of Mahatma Gandhi’s quotes about Husayn (AS):
“My faith is that the progress of Islam does not depend on the use of sword by its believers, but the result of the supreme sacrifice of Husayn, the great saint.”
“I have looked into the biography of Imam Al-Husayn, the great martyr of Islam, and I have scrutinized the tragedy of Karbala and reached the conclusion that if India wishes to achieve victory, it has to model after Al-Husayn.”
“I learned from Husayn how to be wronged and be a winner; I learnt from Husayn how to attain victory while being oppressed.”
Here is what other scholars had to say about Husayn (AS):
“The best lesson which we get from the tragedy of Karbala is that Husayn and his companions were the rigid believers of God. They illustrated that numerical superiority does not count when it comes to truth and falsehood. The victory of Husayn despite his minority marvels me!”
-Thomas Carlyle
“If Husayn fought to quench his world desires, then I do not understand why his sisters, wives, and children accompanied him. It stands to reason therefore that he sacrificed purely for Islam.”
-Charles Dickens
“It was possible for Husayn to save his life by submitting himself to the will of Yazid. But his responsibility as a reformer did not allow him to accept Yazid’s Caliphate. He therefore prepared to embrace all sorts of discomfort and inconvenience in order to deliver Islam from the hands of the Ommayyads. Under the blazing sun, on the parched land and against the stiffing heat of Arabia, stood the immortal Husayn.”
-Washington Irwing (American author/historian)
“Imam Husayn uprooted despotism forever, till the day of Resurrection. He watered the dry gardens of freedom with a surging wave of his blood, and indeed he awakened the sleeping Muslim nation… Verily, therefore he becomes the foundation of Muslim creed. ‘La Ilaha Illallah,’ meaning there is no deity but Allah (God).”
-Allama Iqbal (South Asian Muslim poet)
“No battle in the modern and past history of mankind has earned more sympathy and admiration as well as provided more lessions than the martyrdom of Husayn in the battle of Karbala.”
-Antoine Bara (Lebanese writer – Husayn in Christian Ideology)
P.S. – Arbaeen is marked on 20th of Safar (Islamic month). This year, it fell on Sat Dec 13 2014; actual date may depend on the local sighting of moon.
* Muslim Acroynms Below the Line:
__________________________________________
S: Sallallahu alayhi wasallam – May God bless him & grant him peace
AS: Alayh-is Salaam – Peace be upon him
SA: Salaam-o Allah-e alayha – Peace be upon her
Source Links:
http://alkafeel.net/english/en-news/index.php?id=1094#!prettyPhoto
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qISGjn-HOwg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arba%27een#cite_note-1
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_peaceful_gatherings_in_history
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2014/12/09/389381/millions-in-iraq-to-mark-arbaeen/
http://www.al-islam.org/arbaeen-imam-husayn-shaykh-saleem-bhimji/arbaeen-imam-husayn
http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/record-numbers-flock-iraq-s-karbala-arbaeen-1649708152
http://www.sibtayn.com/en/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5644:what-non-muslims-say-about-imam-husain-as&Itemid=701
http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/27008-i-learned-from-hussain-how-to-be-wronged-and-be
http://imamhussain-lib.com/en/pages/f334.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Mutawakkil
Sunday, December 28, 2014
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