THE STORY OF KARBALA - PART 1
A BRIEF REVIEW OF EVETS STARTING
FROM THE DEMISE OF THE PROPHET AND THE ENTHRONEMENT OF YAZEED TO
KHILAFAT
The Prophet of Islam (pbh)
passed away in the 11th year of Hijra. Imam Husayn was only seven years
old at that time. Abu Bakr became the first Khaleefa after Muhammad amid
some confusion, disagreements and political manoeuvering. The ruling
party at this point in time felt politically insecure in view of the way
they had taken power. It was, therefore, necessary to control all those
areas where trouble was expected. One of those areas was the family of
Banu Hashim, the Prophet's own people. The central figure there was the
surviving daughter, Fatima Zahra. While the politicians were busy
securing their hold on the community, the family of Banu Hashim were
busy performing the funeral rites of the Prophet.
NOTE: According to Islamic law, if a Muslim dies in the community, it is
a wajib kifa'ee (collective duty of the community) to complete the
funeral rites. If no one does it, the entire community commits a sin.
However, if any one or a few persons take care of it, the entire
community is absolved of the responsibility.
On Umar bin Khattab's advise, Abu Bakr collected an armed
party and surrounded the house of Fatima Zahra where most of the men of
Banu Hashim were gathered. According to the report in Ibn Qutayba
Daynoori's al-Imama was-Siyasa, it could have been just a few days after
the Saqeefa event.
When Ali heard the disturbance, he came outside and a dialogue ensued
between him and the gathering outside.
Ali asked as to why they had gathered. They said (mainly the
dialogue was held by Umar) that he (Ali) should do Abu Bakr's ba'yat
like everybody else.
Ali asked:'And if I did not?'
Umar said:"You will be beheaded, if you didn't"
Ali said: "Will you kill someone who is ABDULLAH (a worshipper of Allah)
and AKHU-RASOOL ALLAH (brother of the prophet of Allah)?
Umar said: "Yes, you are abadullah, that we accept, but we don't accept
you as a brother of the Prophet.
The situation grew uglier. However, Fatima Zahra came to the door
and protested. Umar threatened to burn the house down. Soon people came
to their senses and on extreme protest from Fatima Zahra, the armed
party left.
Abu Bakr remained full of remorse for the rest of his life for
violating Fatima Zahra's home. He lived for only 3 years as Khaleefa.
He is reported to have nominated Umar as his successor on his
death-bed. Husayn was now ten years old.
Umar appointed the elder son of Abu Sufyan, Yazeed, as the governor of
Syria. Yazeed did not live very long and soon after his death the
Khaleefa appointed his younger brother Mu'awiyah to that same post.
Mu'awiyah turned out to be a shrewd politician who would use any means
to get what he wanted. He used terror to subdue those who were
foolhardy enough to raise a voice of dissention and money to buy those
off who were greedy.
Husayn attained manhood during Umar's reign. Umar remained as Khaleefa
for ten years. During this period Mu'awiyah had really become a monarch.
When Umar visited Damascus, he saw all this. But he also saw that
Mu'awiyah had become so strong militarily as well politically that if he
was checked now, he would revolt.
After Umar's assassination, Uthman, a prominent member of the clan Banu
Umayya, became Khaleefa. This removed all obstacles from Mu'awiyah's
path. Uthman himself had no scruples when it came to favours for his
relatives. He misused the treasury. He had two prominent Companions of
the Prophet beaten up when they questioned him. This was sufficient
evidence for Mu'awiyah to persue his own ambitious plans, which he
did.(Read, Taha Husaain's Al-Fitnatul Kubra, for details. Also
see:Madelung, Succession to Muhammad, Cambridge University Press)
While Mu'awiyah was busy paving the way for his own son Yazeed's
succession to the throne of Damascus, the excesses by Uthman reached to
such an extent that people from the provinces gathered in Madinah first,
as delegations with genuine complaints, and then they turned into a
lynching mob which eventually killed Uthman and then forced Ali to
accept the position of Khaleefa. Husayn was now thirty-two years old.
Iran was conquered by the Muslim armies during Umar's reign. At that
time the family of the defeated king, Yazdigard, went into hiding.
During Ali's reign they reappeared and were sent to cAli by his governor
in the Eastern provinces. The daughters of the Iranian king, Yazdigard,
were brought to Koofa and presented to Ali ibn Abi Talib. One of them
known as Shahr Banoo, was later married to Husayn and bore him his
eldest son Ali Zaynul Abideen. He was 24 years old at Karbala.
Ali ibn Abi Talib was a man of a different temperament and principles.
He was the closest to the Prophet and his teachings. He immediately put
radical reforms in action; he removed all those governors in the
provinces who were appointed by Uthman and were reported to have
oppressed the people unjustly and
plundering the treasury. This, obviously, hurt the Banu Umayya in
general because, Uthman had distributed these lucrative positions to his
clansmen.
Mu'awiyah refused to give up his post and accept Ali as Khaleefa.
There was a battle at the banks of the river Euphrates in Iraq, which
ended in utter confusion and without result, mainly because of the lack
of wit among the people who were representing Ali during negotiations.
Ali was assassinated during prayers in the mosque of Koofa in Iraq in
the 40th year of Hijra. Mu'awiyah was now free to do anything he
wanted. Ali's followers in Koofa elected Hasan to become the Khaleefa.
Hasan saw the dwindling support in his camp and decided that it was
futile to fight Mu'awiyah. He was more concerned about safety and
security of the remaining few of his followers.
He thought it prudent under the circumstances, to come to terms with
Mu'awiyah. Together they signed a treaty. Hasan gave up any claim to
temporal power but secured the promise that his followers will not be
harassed or molested, and that the succession after Mu'awiyah will be
left to general consensus among the Muslims. Mu'awiyah agreed in
principle to these conditions. But, in practice he did what he wanted.
Hasan died mysteriously of poisoning, in the 50th year of Hijra.
Many well known Companions of the Prophet who were known as the Qurra
(those who had learnt Qur'an by heart), were killed, their properties
plundered and their families harassed into silence or submission. Money
was used for the purpose of fabricating Hadeeth. People like Abu
Hurayra, a mere beggar on the streets, became so rich in the process
that his inheritance, a mound of gold, had to be chiselled with axes to
be distributed among his next of kin, after his death.
Mu'awiyah did not stop here. He went on to appoint his debauch son
Yazeed as his successor and asked the governors in the provinces to
promise him that they would support Yazeed after his death. Husayn at
this time, was forty-six years old.
Husayn being a man of principles, kept a quiet watch on the course of
events. He was bound by his own convictions to respect and honour the
treaty signed by his brother, although the other party was a defaulter
all the way.
Mu'awiyah died in the month of Rajab, in the 60th year of Hijra (April
680 A.D.). Husayn had now reached the mature age of 57.
Soon after Mu'awiyah's death Yazeed succeeded to the throne of
Damascus. One of the first things he did was to order Waleed, the
governor of Madinah, to summon Husayn to his presence and ask him to
swear allegiance to Yazeed. Waleed did this. Husayn came to his
presence with his brothers and nephews. Waleed stated the purpose of
the meeting. Husayn very diplomatically refused to oblige.
When Waleed asked Husayn for Yazeed's Ba'ya (allegiance to one's
authority), Husayn replied that since he was the senior most member in
the Prophet's house at that time, his Bay'a should be much more publicly
acknowledged. Therefore, it would be more appropriate to ask the
question again in the mosque at a general gathering. Waleed agreed to
this. Marwan, another infamous Umayyad, was sitting there. He said to
Waleed:
" If Husayn is allowed to leave now, you shall never get hold of him.
Either ask him to swear allegiance to Yazeed now or have him killed."
Husayn became angry at this and asked Marwan to shut up. When Husayn's
voice reached outside of the house where his relatives were waiting,
they all rushed into the house. Both Waleed and Marwan were intimidated
and Husayn and his family members left the house.
This scene is not very different from what happened fifty years ago at
the door of Fatima Zahra. Husayn was being threatened for his life for
ba'ya exactly like Imam Ali had been threatened for his life for bay'a.
Times had changed but policies remained the same. Faces were different
but questions and answers remained the same.
.............to be continued
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