Commemorating the Mourning Rights of Imam al-Husayn

151 Pages·2022·3.949 MB·English

by  Sayed Hassan al-Shirazi

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Contents
Preface to the second edition 7
Inclination towards commemorating the legacy of
Imam Husayn (Peace be upon him) 24
Weeping 41
Feign weeping 49
Al Ma'atim (to communally mourn) 52
Dressing in a black attire 67
Shaqq Al Jayb (to tear the seam of the outer
garment) 77
Latam 81
Dharb Al Salalseel (to hit with the chains) 95
Re-enacting the tragic events of Karbala 99
Tathbir: bloodletting 109
Everything (within the realm of existence) wept for
Imam Husayn (peace be upon him) 113
A Glimpse of the divinity surrounding tathbir: 142
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In the Name of Allah (SWT), The Beneficent, The Merciful
I begin this humble writing with the hope of attaining the
pleasure of the Ahl ul Bayt (S), to whom all mankind is
greatly indebted. May our Master, the Imam of our time (AJ)
accept this humble work as a gesture of condolences for the
martyrdom of His Grandfather, the king of martyrs Abu
Abdillah Al Husayn (peace be upon him)
On the tenth day of Muharram, fifty years after the
martyrdom of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and
his progeny), the party of the devil disguised itself in the attire
of Islam and gathered to wage war against the noble grandson
of the Holy Prophet of Islam (peace be upon him and his
progeny) on the plains of Karbala.
Imam Husayn (peace be upon liim), his noble band of
seventy two companions and elite family members were
denied access to water for three days under the blazing desert
heat until they were finally massacred by an army of thirty
thousand mercenaries. The pure Imam (peace be upon him)
was martyred having received one hundred and fourteen
sword wounds to liis body (in addition to the numerous
arrows shot at him). In the end, he was beheaded by Shimr ibn
Dhil Jaushan (may he dwell in eternal damnation) who
stabbed the blessed neck of the Imam ten times with a dagger.
The mutilated corpse of the Prophefs grandson was then
trampled upon by horses, leaving it crushed to pieces between
the desert sands drenched in its own blood.
The devoted followers and lovers of the blessed
progeny of the Messenger of God have been commemorating
the grand revolution of Karbala and reviving its legacy each
year for the last one thousand two hundred and seventy years
despite their constant persecution throughout history. Indeed,
they will continue to do so until the hour of reckoning - and
before that, together they shall mourn the slain martyr in the
company of the Awaited Saviour Imam Al Mahdi (May Allah
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hasten his re-appearance) as He seeks to avenge the pure
blood spilled to preserve the pure cause.
Across the passage of time, numerous challenges and
obstacles were placed to attempt to limit the commemoration
and lamentation of Imam Husayn (peace be upon him).
Sometimes the barriers were in the form of violence and
executions, and sometimes by disseminating false ideological
beliefs within the circle of the Sliias consequently creating
doubts within their minds as to the scope of permissibility in
regards to the lamentation and commemoration rites practised
to honour the King of Martyrs.
This writing attempts to overcome the second type of
barrier hoisted by various parties for various reasons. This
work is a translation of majority of the original text in Arabic
titled "Al Sha'air Al Husayniyaz, (comniemorating the
mourning rites of Imam Husayn) authored by the martyr
Ayatullah Hasan Al Shirazi, founder of Hawza Al Zainabiya
located in the suburbs of Damascus within the precincts of
the Holy Shrine of Lady Zainab Al Kubra (peace be upon her).
He was executed in the year 1979 in Lebanon by the Ba'athist
party led by Saddam Husayn. He attained martyrdom having
received thirty nine bullet wounds to his body including nine
to the head.
This work has been translated by meaning and
provides a comprehensive understanding of the desirability
and scope of performing the various mourning rites related to
the commemoration of the tragedy of Karbala which has been
the subject of heavy criticism over the last few years. We hope
to clear all misconceptions through this work. As the
translator, I have added numerous additional notes
throughout the text with the aim of clarifying the proofs in
discussion. These footnotes are an addition to the original
work of the author and have been distinguished by being
printed in bold.
I would like to extend my gratitude to Sayid Mujtaba
Allawi who assisted a great deal in making this translation
possible. We pray to the Almighty Lord to bestow us with the
blessing of possessing love for the Holy Prophet and his
blessed progeny, and to implement the message which they
devoted their lives to.
Mohamed Abbas Panju
Hawza Al-Ilmiyya Al Zainabiya
4山 Safar, 1432
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Preface to the second edition
Introduction
Islam as a global religion bloomed from within the core
of the Arabian Peninsula. It was a suitable and strategic
starting point due to certain favourable circumstances such as
lack of any central government whose sole purpose was to
eliminate the religion from its very first days, and its
abundant population which possessed the potential and
ability to accept (the religion). Hence, unlike its surrounding
areas, it was a more suitable region to begin from. Despite
these circumstances, Islam emanated during an aggressive
period dominated by severe crisis and challenges inherited
from the long and dark ages of ignorance. As a religion, it
therefore had to be prepared to face the complex challenges
and obstacles from within the same region (that from one
dimension happened to be favourable for its emanation), and
the solution to these predicaments was nnoott tthhrroouugghh war or
violence, but through sublime morals and tender guidance.
Additionally, there were bands of blood thirsty people
nourished within a vicious cycle of life dominated by
savagery who absolutely refused to co-exist with Islam in a
non violent manner. They refused to adapt to the (honourable)
code of conduct presented by Islam - so they brandished their
swords against Islam before eventually seeking shelter under
its shade. Thereafter, the same people engaged in internal
rivalry to attempt the religion's downfall from within its own
ranks. The Prophet at this stage had one of two options: Either
to put them all to the sword or to accommodate them and
persevere. The Prophet selected the second option as it upheld
and illustrated the noble principles of non violence and mercy
incorporated by Islam.
At this juncture, the question that comes to mind is:
why would the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his
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progeny) accommodate such hypocrites within the ranks of
Islam despite knowing that they would create constant
obstacles and pose as regular threats to Islam during his
lifetime, and after his martyrdom?
The answer to this is that the righteous Prophet (peace
be upon him and his progeny) from the dawn of Islam, never
limited admission only to the sincere believers hence making
the religion exclusive, but accepted anyone and everyone from
whichever background of ignorance they surfaced such that
he may be able to fence Islam (at least through its apparent
large numbers) from the powerful regional oppositions that
united against it. Therefore the invitational slogan of Islam
was: "Say there is no God save Allah to be successful" In
return, the religion accepted within its fold everyone who
verbally uttered this slogan even if they did not truly believe
in the divine concept in their hearts. This leniency from
Islam's point of view was however exploited by the hypocrites
as an opportunity to penetrate the folds of Islam and
camouflage themselves witliin the ranks of pious believers
with utmost deception. They found the religion to be an
opportunity to achieve all their greedy motives which they
were not able attain during the times of ignorance. Even
though the Prophet (peace be upon him and his progeny)
used them (their apparent numbers) to ward off the external
enemies of Islam, but at the same time these hypocrites were
gnawing into the very entity of Islam. Therefore, the Holy
Prophet (peace be upon him and his progeny) diverted all his
efforts from both - a materialistic and spiritual perspective to
progressively nourish them with the (pure and sincere)
Islamic values hence they may mend their ways. As well, the
Holy Quran placed severe pressure on these hypocrites by
exposing them (through their actions and characteristics) and
1 Manaqib Ibn Shahrshuwb, vol. 1 一 Chapter on the non-believers and the message
of Islam, Bihar ul Anwar vol. 18 - Chapter on propagation of Islam
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