ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Principles of the Shi’ite Creed Lesson 20: The Third Imam And The Fifth Infallible Figure, Imam Husayn He was born on Sha’ban 3, 04. At the command of God, the great Prophet named him Husayn and foretold his martyrdom in the cause of religion on the day of his birth and said, “A group of infidels and tyrants from Bani Umayyah would kill him.

May God keep my intercession from them.” Husayn (‘a) spent forty six years with his grandfather, parents, and brother and attained the position of leadership at the age of forty seven after the demise of Imam Hasan.

He suffered under the deceptive and oppressive rule of Mu’awiyah but so long as Mu’awiyah was living, he could not do anything because just as Imam Hasan, for the sake of Islam, agreed to peace with Mu’awiyah on a number of conditions and thought it advantageous to Islam and Muslims to renounce war with him, Imam Husayn (‘a) also thought it expedient to refrain from confrontation during the remaining ten years of his rule.

But following the death of Mu’awiyah, Yazid mounted the throne and announced his rule and to strengthen his position, demanded allegiance from all senior figures including Imam Husayn (‘a) but Imam (‘a) from the very beginning said, “When persons like the dissolute, gambling and drunken Yazid, who do not even superficially observe and respect Islam, intend to assume the leadership of the Islamic community, that time would mark the death and annihilation of Islam because these people intend to eradicate Islam with its own power.”[^1] And on these grounds, he refused to pledge allegiance and did not recognize the rule of Yazid and at the command of God, the Exalted, and for the sake of Islam, he decided not to acknowledge Yazid’s rule and rise up against him even at the risk of his life.

Thus, upon the invitation of the inhabitants of Kufah, he set out toward Iraq in the year 60. From the start of this journey through his martyrdom, he announced to his companions and other Muslims that his uprising was aimed at the promotion of decency and prohibition of indecency and revolt against the oppressor and refusal to acknowledge a tyrannical regime, and eventually the protection of the Holy Qur’an, Islam and the prophetic tradition.