Sayeda Zainab (AS)

Lady Zainab was born on the 1st of Shaaban (A.H).  She was the third child of Imam Ali and Fatima al-Zahra. When Fatima brought Zainab to her father and said, "name her."  The Imam replied, "I would not name her before Allah's Messenger.

At this time the Prophet was on a trip and when he returned he again refused to name her before her Lord.  So Jibrael descended to inform the Prophet about Allah's blessings and said, "The name of this baby is Zainab; Allah chose her name for her."

Imam Husain's sister, Lady Zainab was known as "Shareekatul Husain", meaning the partner of Husain.

In Lady Zainab's childhood Prophet Muhammad took care of her until she was five, when he unfortunately past away.  Two months after her mother died, Imam Ali had the responsibility of looking after her.

She got married in the year 16 A.H.  She was married to Abdullah bin Jaafar Tayyar.  She had four boys, Aun, Mohammad, Abbas and Ali. She also had one daughter called Kulthum.  Aun and Mohammad were martyred with Imam Husain in Karbala.

Zainab had all her mothers' qualities.  She inherited her oratory eloquence from her father.  She got her patience from her older brother Imam al-Hasan and self-control from the third Imam, al-Husain.  Even though she was not infallible, she was spiritually perfect, unlike any mortal being.  She reached a level that is so perfect she could be compared to a Wali. (Friend of Allah)

She was extremely brave; for example, the mother of Prophet Musa could not bear to live without her child.  But Zainab sacrificed her two sons for the sake of furthering the cause of Islam. She also put up with the agony of seeing members of her family slaughtered and then having their heads mounted on lances.

After the martyrdom of Imam Husain Lady Zainab gathered all the women and children and cared for them.  She was their guardian and protector when they were enslaved by the accursed Yazid and taken from town to town.

Lady Zainab played an important role in Sham in the court of Yazid.    Yazid prepared a gathering for all people to witness his triumph over Imam Husain.  The people did not know that their accursed leader had slaughtered the son of the Holy Prophet because his cronies had covered the facts.  They had spread rumours that the people killed had revolted against the caliph. 

Lady Zainab however, saved Islam and exposed Yazid's treachery.    She revealed the true personality of Imam Husain.

Lady Zainab's speech in the court of Yazid is an example of sublime eloquence. In it she revealed to the people that they were not ordinary slaves of war,  but rather they were the progeny of the Holy Prophet.  This speech must rank high in the list with such speeches as that which her mother Fatima al-Zahra delivered in the Prophet's Mosque when the first two caliphs usurped the land of Fadak from her.  

Below are extracts of the speeches Lady Zainab delivered on three occasions.  The first is when she arrived in Kufa only to see the people who betrayed Imam Husain crying.  She said: "Oh people of Kufa! Oh you deceivers! You traitors! You sinners! Now you weep?  May God never diminish the flow of tears and may your hearts forever burn with grief and sorrow!

Your false pledges contain no element of truth and sincerity.  Know that you are as disgraceful and devoid of good moral character as the low and despicable purchased slave girls.  Now you are weeping for my brother and raise wailing cries after him?  Yes, by God you weep because you deserve it.  Yes, weep more and laugh less because you have contaminated yourself in the ignominy of slaying the Imam of the time. The stain of the unjustly shed blood of my brother is on your forehead and you can never wipe it off.

Oh Kufians! Woe be upon you!  Do you know which part of Mohammad you have cut and the vow that you have broken and whose blood you have shed and whose sanctity you have violated?

By killing your Imam you have assumed responsibility for such a disgraceful, grievous and gruesome deed.  Would you doubt if after all blood rains from the skies above?

Remember!  The punishment of the day of judgement which will be more severe and extremely harsh!

The second stage of her mission was executed in the court of Ibn Ziyad.  Her words were directed at the accursed Ibn Ziyad after he had addressed her saying, "God be thanked that he has killed you, dishonoured you and unveiled your wrong and false clan…."

Zainab stood up and firmly answered, "God be thanked, for He has honoured us and elevated our position through His Prophet Mohammad and has purified us from every kind of dirt.  Verily the wrong doer will shortly be dishonoured and disgraced; the adulterer is a liar…

I have not known but benevolence and goodness emanating from God!  As for my people, God has ordained upon them the blessings of martyrdom.  They therefore came out and took to defensive war and got martyred.  Oh Ibn Ziyad God will bring you all and all our martyrs together in one place,  where you will offer excuses and surely you will be disputed.  Oh Ibn Ziyad !  May your mother weep over you ….

The last stage of Zainab's mission was to expose then destroy Yazid.  After she saw Yazid disrespecting the head of her brother with a cane.  She stood and said, "God says, and He says the truth, the end of miscreants will be awful, those who belied the signs of God and mocked them.  Oh Yazid, do you feel that you have made our life miserable and existence impossible?   And you think that God has dishonoured us and that you have been honoured and elevated?  This apparent success of yours is the result of grandeur of your might and lofty status for which you are proud…. You feel that you have conquered the whole world and your affairs are organised and that our domain is now under you control…

Wait!  Wait!  Let not your ignorance make you so elated for have you not heard God's words - Let not those who disbelieve think that our giving them respite is good for themselves.  We only give respite to them so that they may increase in sins and for them is a disgraceful chastisement. (3:177)

Oh you the son of freed slaves!  Is this your justice that the ladies of your house remain veiled and we the Prophet's daughters should be paraded from place to place?  You have thus insulted our dignity….

Oh Yazid!  Your misdeed has proved your rebellion against God…. And this action of yours comes as no surprise from a person whose ancestors chewed the liver of such saintly martyrs.  The descendants of such enemies of God should naturally be the most deadly!

Oh Yazid!  You are happily disrespecting the teeth of Husain even though it was the place of kissing for the Holy Prophet!

Oh Yazid! It does not befit you to get inflated with joy after slaying the Prophet's progeny and reckon not those slain in the way of God to be dead: nay! Alive they are with their Lord, being sustained, rejoicing in what God has granted them" (2:168)

Oh Yazid! Feel not elated with our defeat, for you will have to pay the penalty of it on the day when you will be rewarded for your misdeeds.  God is not unjust to anyone.  We trust in Him.  He is our place of refuge.  In Him we seek sanctity and with Him rest our hopes!

You can never reach the level of our lofty position, nor can you destroy our remembrances, nor can you wipe out the ignominy you have earned for yourself by your abominable and vile performance.  Your decisions are poor and your days are numbered.  Your party will disperse the day when the Announcer will announce - 'GOD'S CURSE BE ON TYRANTS AND TRANSGRESSORS'.