How Martyrdom healed divisions When we invite strangers or...

How Martyrdom healed divisions When we invite strangers or guests and make them free of our family circle, that means the greatest outflowing of our hearts to them. The events that I am going to describe refer to some of the most touching incidents of our domestic history in their spiritual aspect. We ask our brethren of other faiths to come and share with us some of the thoughts which are called forth by this event.

As a matter of fact, all students of history are aware that the horrors that are connected with the great event of Karbala did more than anything else to unite together the various contending factions which had unfortunately appeared at that early stage of Muslim history. You know the old Persian saying applied to the Prophet: “Thou comest to the world to unite, not to divide.” That was wonderfully exemplified by the sorrows and sufferings and finally the martyrdom of Imam Husain.

Commemoration of great virtues There has been in our history a tendency sometimes to celebrate the event merely by wailing and tribulation, or sometimes by symbols like the Tazias that you see in India, – Taboots as some people call them. Well, symbolism or visible emblems may sometimes be useful in certain circumstances as tending to crystallize ideas.

But I think the Muslims of India of the present day are quite ready to adopt a more effective way of celebrating martyrdom, and that is by contemplating the great virtues of the martyr, trying to understand the significance of the events in which he took part, and translating those great moral and spiritual lessons into their own lives.

From that point of view I think you will agree that it is good that we should sit together, even people of different faiths, – sit together and consider the great historic event, which exemplified such soul-stirring virtues as those of unshaken faith, and undaunted courage, thought for others, willing self-sacrifice, steadfastness in the right and unflinching war against the wrong.

Islam has a history of beautiful domestic affections, suffering and of spiritual endeavour, second to none in the world. That side of Muslim history, although to me the most precious, is, I am sorry to say, often neglected. It is most important that we should call attention to it, reiterated attention, the attention of our own people as well as the attention of those who are interested in historical and religious truth.