ZAYNAB (A.S): THE SAGE OF BANU HASHIM
Zaynab (a.s)
is the shining sun in the history of Islam and of humanity. Wherever and
whenever, Imam al-Hussein (a.s) and the tragedy of karbala will be
mentioned, Zaynab (a.s) will also be remembered. The history of Karbala
is based on two pillars: The rising of Imam al-Hussein (a.s) and the
rising of Zaynab (a.s). She was an outstanding figure in the history of
Karbala endowed with divine steadfastness and fortitude. She sacrificed
her two sons ‘Aun and Muhammad while fighting against despotism and
upholding the importance of justice, freedom, humanity and virtues in
human society. After the martyrdom of her beloved brother and her two
sons, she knelt down before the Master of the Universe, on the soil of
Karbala and said, “O my Lord ! Accept our
humble sacrifice to You”.
BIRTH &
CHILDHOOD:
Zaynab (a.s)
was the daughter of Imam Ali bin Abi Talib (a.s) and Sayyada Fatimah
Zahra (a.s). She was born in Madina in 6 A.H. She was the grand-daughter
of the Holy Prophet (saww) and Khadeejah (a.s) from maternal side and
Abu Talib (a.s) and Fatimah binti Asad (a.s) from paternal side. Her
brothers were Imam al-Hassan (a.s) and Imam al-Hussein (a.s), the two
leaders of the youths of paradise. The members of her family, in trio
hierarchical order, were all great.
Zaynab (a.s)
was a brilliant star in the mandate sky that received rays of Knowledge
& Piety from the five suns. It was through this origin that she
displayed excellent qualities in life. In her childhood, She studied
with the Holy Prophet (saww) and when Imam Ali (a.s) moved to Kufa, the
respected women of Kufa requested Imam Ali (a.s) through their husbands
to allow them to benefit from the Knowledge of Zaynab (a.s). Imam Ali (a.s)
complied with their request and the interested women learned from her
the expounding wisdom of the Holy Quran.
Dr. Ahmed
Behishti writes in “Famous Women” thus:
Ibn Abbas quoted Hazrat Zahra (a.s) as having said that her daughter
Zaynab, like her father, was unparalleled in literacy eloquence and
courage.
MARRIAGE:
Zaynab (a.s)
married Abdullah, son of Ja’ffar bin Abi Talib (a.s) also known in the
history as Ja’ffar-e-Tayyar. He was a nephew of Imam Ali (a.s).
Although Abdullah was a wealthy man Zaynab (a.s) lived a modest life and
not a life of luxury. She and her husband were both charitable to the
needy people. The Arab tribes called Abdullah: “The sea or the cloud
of Munifecence”.
LIFE OF
HARDSHIPS & DIFFICULTIES:
After the
demise of the Holy Prophet (saww), there came the period of distress and
hardship in the life of Zaynab (a.s). She stood by her mother as far as
the question of supreme mandate of her father was concerned. When her
mother delivered the Fadak sermon, she was only 4 years old, but
narrated the sermon so lucidly and expressively that the people of Banu
Hashim remembered it by heart. Later, the Shiite scholars recorded it
and that is why She is known as Zaynab, the narrator of traditions.
After the martyrdom of her mother, Zaynab (a.s) suffered many
calamities. She saw the evildoers, oppressors, insurgents and breakers
of covenants defy the truth during the reign of her father. Finally,
Imam Ali (a.s) was struck with a sword on his head in the mosque of Kufa
which took his life. Then she saw her brother al-Hassan (a.s) being
forced to sign a peace treaty and eventually poisoned by his treacherous
wife by the order of Mua’wiyah. After al-Hassan (a.s), al-Hussein (a.s)
became the Imam, but the ruler of Syria violated the peace treaty and
appointed his son Yazeed as his successor who insisted Imam al-Hussein (a.s)
to swear an oath of allegiance to him. When Imam (a.s) refused, this led
to the tragedy of Karbala where Imam al-Hussein (a.s) together with the
members of his family and companions was brutally killed. His womenfolk
and children were taken as captives and paraded on the streets of Kufa
and Damascus and finally imprisoned for a year. Zaynab (a.s) was part of
this episode and all the time endured the hardships and difficulties.
More so, she vowed to continue with the mission of her brother and spoke
eloquently against the despotic regime of Yazeed wherever she found an
opportunity to address the Muslims.
SERMON IN
KUFA:
When
Zaynab (a.s) reached Kufa, she addressed people with fury words:
“Praise to Allah, and may the blessing of Allah be upon Muhammad and his
progeny. O people of Kufa ! you are hypocrites and deceitful. You feign
to be sorry for the death of my brother and his companions. May you
always shed tears. I find nothing in you but flattery, evil acts and
thoughts, pride and spite and ill-will. By Allah ! You deserve lasting
sorrow instead of joy. Shame on you, your hands are embrued with the
blood of the son of the Holy Prophet, the one who was your sole refuge
in case of adversity. By your evil act and disloyalty, you incurred the
wrath of Allah against you. Woe betide you ! No one will intercede with
Allah for you”.
Her
furious words provoked people of Kufa to avenge Imam al-Hussein (a.s)’s
martyrdom which frightened Ibn Ziyad and his cruel agents. She also
delivered a furious sermon in the court of Yazeed tht made his authority
and despotic rule feel undermined. She said:
“I fear no one but Allah. Make whatever evil
plot you can. Blazes are waiting for you in the hereafter. You will be
accountable to Allah for your atrocities”.
Mulla
Mujaheedali Sheriff
mulla@almahdi.org.uk |