If you do not care for Islam...

If you do not care for Islam, and do not fear the day of judgement, at least do care for that precious gift from Allah, the freedom of your spirit!!” When Umar Sa'ad called upon the army to attack and kill Imam Husayn he said: “Death is better that disgrace and disgrace is better than the fire of hell.” From all these sayings of Imam Husayn, from the ceremonies of mourning in which we have taken part during the 'ashra al-Muharram, from all the majaalis we have heard and the literature we have read, what are the specific lessons for the youths of the Shiah Ithnasheri Community?

This question has to be answered by the youths themselves. But surely it can not be anything to do with the form of Aza’ al-Husayn. The form will always remain culture bound and any comparison between the form in one country with the form in another country is an exercise in futility. We have to remember that Aza’ al-Husayn has tripartite objectives: (1) Demonstration of personal grief.

This is an issue which has by very definition to remain a matter of personal choice and every community has to ponder over it and decide upon the form acceptable to it having regard to its geographic location and its composition. (2) The dissemination of Husayn's message to the indigenous population. Where such population is Muslim of other persuasions, processions and public maatam have proved very effective.

In the west, there is a need to explore other avenues such as: a) The Blood Bank; b) Visiting hospital patients with small gifts in the name of the martyrs, c) Food drive for the homeless, the poor, the aged and those in the homes, d) Distribution of literature explaining the message of Karbala’.

(3) Finally, and most important, a personal commitment by each one of us to make every effort to get rid of those evil qualities within us which could prevent us from claiming to be the Shiahs of Husayn ibn Ali. Supposing every Muharram we forswear one evil habit like drug addiction, back-biting, arrogance, mischief making or any other un-Islamic habit, what a strong and powerful community we would be, and how sincere our maatam and tears would seem to us!

“Greetings be upon you, O' Aba Abdillah and upon the souls who were annihilated with you. Upon you, from me, is the (prayers) of peace from Allah for all eternity, as long as the night and day remain. May this visitation of yours not be my last contact with you.