Wednesday 2 January 2008

Muharram: A Legacy of Sacrifice and Mourning


painting by Mahmoud Farshchian


“Haqeeqat e Abadi hai maqam e Shabbiri
Badalte rehtay hein andaz e Koofi o Shaami”

The abode of Hussain is the eternal Truth
They ways of the (oppressors) of Kufa and Syria are ever changing.

- Allama Iqbal


Black was the colour of pathos, and I was submerged in it. Women dressed in black sarees and salwar kameez were beating their chests to the chant of ‘Ya Hussain’. The chorus rose to a fevered pitch followed by a sudden silence. In that momentary silence was crystallized generations of mourning. The place – a Shia Muslim neighborhood in Lucknow; the time – the tenth of Muharram. If grief has different shades, one can see it during Muharram.

While the rest of the world greets its ‘New Year’ with celebrations, the Muslims, especially Shia Muslims, begin Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar of Hijri, with mourning to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussain (AS) – son of Hazrat Ali (AS ) and grandson of Prophet Mohammad (SAW). Over 1200 years ago, in the desert of Karbala, in present day Iraq, Imam Hussain  (AS) and his small band of relatives and supporters sacrificed their lives for true faith.

From the first to tenth of Muharram, and sometimes for a longer periods, majlises (the Mulsim counterpart of Satsang) are held day and night in Muslim neighborhoods and Imambadaas where zakirs and zakiras (male and female religious orators) give sermons which climax with the heart wrenching tale of Karbala.

History has seen numerous massacres of innocent people, but the tragedy of Karbala is one of the few where men, women and children voluntarily allowed themselves to be subjected to hunger, thirst, humiliation and death on the burning sands of Karbala because they believed that Imam Hussain  (AS) stood for righteousness. Little wonder that for over 1200 years Muslims, have been nurturing the tale of Karbala in their hearts like an open wound, lest they should forget the supreme sacrifice of Imam Hussain  (AS) and his followers.

Great spiritual leaders are known to make great sacrifices, but at Karbala, common men and women with infants at their bosom, their hearts and souls aflame with righteousness, chose death rather than evil and weakness. Such was the greatness of Imam Hussain  (AS), such was his spiritual power, which could uplift common mortals to heights of supreme courage and sacrifice.

The writings etched on the durgah of sufi saint, Khwaja Garib Nawaz, proclaims in Persian:

Shah ast Hussain, badshah ast Hussain
Deen ast Hussain, deen panaah ast Hussain
Sar daad, na daad dast dar dast-e-yazeed
Haqu-e-binney la ilaahaa ast Hussain


Which loosely transliterates as :

Hussain is the king, the king of kings,
He is righteousness; the guardian of righteousness is he.
Gave his head to Yazid, but his support gave he not,
For Hussain is the witness to the truth of God.

The tragedy of Karbala took place in 680 AD on the banks of the Euphrates in Iraq but Karbala has a universal appeal and in today’s climate of violence, it is more relevant than ever. The tragedy of Karbala and its spirit of non-violent resistance and supreme sacrifice has been a source of inspiration to the likes of Mahatma Gandhi . The former’s first Salt Satyagrah was inspired by Imam Hussain’s  (AS) non violent resistance to the tyranny of Yazid. Gandhi is said to have studied the history of Islam and Imam Hussain, and was of the opinion that Islam represented not the legacy of a sword but of sacrifices of saints like Imam Hussain.  
According to the great poet Rabindranath Tagore, Imam Hussain’s  (AS) sacrifice indicates spiritual liberation. Munshi Premchand, one of India’s greatest Hindi/Urdu writers, a visionary and reformer, eulogized the tragedy of Karbala in his famous play ‘Karbala’. Premchand’s Karbala was published both in Hindi and Urdu in the 1920s. This was the time when Hindu-Muslim relations were strained and the battle between Hindi and Urdu was raging. Premchand’s Karbala was aimed at both the Hindu and Muslim audience. This play was not just Premchand’s tribute to the martyrs of Karbala but also an attempt at reconciliation of declining Hindu-Muslim relations. In his introduction, Premchand drew parallels between Karbala, Mahabharat and Ramayan.

In the words of a famous Urdu poet Josh Mahlihabaadi:

“Insaan ko bedaar to ho lene do,
har qaum pukaraygi hamare hain Hussain
(Let humanity awake and every tribe will claim Hussain as their own. )

Another poet, Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar says

Qatl-e-Hussain asl main murd-e-Yazid hai,
Islam zindaa hota hai har Karbala ke baad”

Which loosely transliterates as:

In the murder of Hussain, lies the death of Yazid (representing Falsehood),
For Islam
(representing Truth) resurrects after every Karbala

No other community in the world has channelized their collective grief and pathos as creatively as the Shia Muslims. Over the years they have created different forms of elegies and singing styles like  soz, noha and
marsiya to narrate the tale of Karbala. The marsiyas - poems of mourning, of  Urdu poets like Mirza Salamat Ali Dabeer and Mir Anees, tragic in content yet magnificent in diction, are still read and sung at Shia gatherings.  Poets of modern India like Ali Sardar Jafferi used the tragedy Karbala to give voice to their struggle for social justice:

“Phir Al-Atash ki hai sada
Jesay rijz ka zamzama
Phir raig e sehraa par rawan
Hai ahl e dil ka karwan
Nehr e Furaat atish bjan
Ravi o Ganga khoon chukan
Ae Karbala! Ae Karbala!”

 The cry, “I thirst!” is heard again
Like a fountain eulogies.
 The caravans of beloved people,
Are on their way across the desert sand.
Fire flows in the Euphrates river,
Blood streams in Ravi and Ganga
O Karbala! O Karbala!


   In addition painters and artists have created visual art forms and folk motifs based on the tragedy of Karbala. 

image courtesy: Shianet.org




20 comments:

MoralsandEthics said...

nice article, but the translation is not proper.

The correct translation is:

“Ruler is Husain, Emperor is Husain,

Religion is Husain, Shield of religion i.e. Islam is Husain,

Gave his head (for Islam) but not his hand to Yazid,

To maintain the truth no one but is Husain.”

regards
http://moralsandethics.wordpress.com/

ashodara said...

'Haque' in Persian means 'Truth' which may be equated to 'God'; 'binney' is the present tense/past particlple of 'deedan' which means 'to see'or 'witness'.

Secondly, as mentioned in my write up, this is a loose translitration and not a literal translation of the orginal verse in Persian.

ashodara said...

I would also like to add that 'binna' is described as the imperative form of 'deedan' = to see, discern, to comprehend and 'haq-bin' = to see the truth, in 'A comprehensive Persian-English Dictionary by F. Steingass

Anonymous said...

Very well written article. I hope the story of Imam Hussain's sacrifice can bring tranquility and peace to predominantly shia Iraq. As you rightfully said, non-violence is perhaps the most crucial lesson humanity can draw from Karbala. in the words of Mahatma Gandhi, "I learnt from Hussain, how to be oppressed yet victorious".

Keep up the good work and Good Luck!

Anonymous said...

Excellent and very moving post. Here is a poem in tribute also which I take the liberty of sharing from our brother Jibrael at
http://jibraelism.blogspot.com

Ibrahim's intention was accepted by Allah,
Bear witness and fall into submission,
And listen to the earth weep
As it remembers the day
It kissed the forehead of Husayn.

Ya Haqq!

Anonymous said...

Hazrat Sayyidina Imam Husayn peace be upon him died with sword in hand fighting for the truth. Nothing to to with Gandhian Ahimsa.

Islam is not violent or about nonviolence, it is a middle way and believes in armed resistance where possible.

ashodara said...

cyclewala,

From what little I know about the tragedy of Karbala, Imam Hussain (sav)wanted to avoid fighting and lose of lives. That is why he left his army behind, and only took his companions with him, in spite of knowing that he might have to face the army of Yazid.

As far as the question of whether Islam advocates armed struggle, one will have to go into the historical conditions during which Islam was founded, before one strives to interpret only the literal meaning of everything written in the holy Quran.

Unknown said...

Why clerics like Dr.Zakir Naik are against Hussein and praising yazid?

ashodara said...

You should ask this question to Dr. Zakir Naik.

Unknown said...

Hi Rupa...thought you would enjoy the following 'band' from a marsiya by Mirza Dabeer:

Naqaash naqsh, Kaatib o Khat, Baani o Bina,

Bood o Nabood, Zaat o Sifat, Hasti o Fana,

Aadam Malak, Zameen Falak, Gard e Kimiya,

Duniya o Deen, Hadoos o Qidam, Banda e khuda,

Sab, Shahid e Kamal e Shahe Mashraqain hain,

Jab Tak Khuda Ka Mulk hai, Malik Hussain hain.

iNetVideo Community said...

Wow, quite an interesting article.

And even more special was Hussein (AS).

goldenguy said...

karti rahegi paesh shahadat hussain ki...
azaedia hayaat ka yeh sarmadi asool....
katt jaye ghar ki sarr tera naize ki nook par....
leekin toh faasikun ki itaayat na kar kabool...

Anonymous said...

qyigpdwJannat mein bhi hum maatame zanjeer karenge.

Pehle hi bataa dein gham i Shabbir karenge

Shia-Sunni Unity said...

@captainjohann

There are two tribes Bani Hashim and Bani Umayya which is said that came from two brothers who were born united. they were separated by a sword and at that moment someone said that the clans from these would fight till the end of the world. prophet mohammed (PBUH) belongs to Bani Hashim. and the clashes between the two tribes at different generations go this way
Pr Mohammed (PBUH) - Abu Sufyan
Hazrat Ali (AS) - Maviya (son of AS)
Imam Hussain (AS) - Yazid (Son of M)

in present day the sufyanis are based in certain parts of middle east and other places and are known to be wealthy and disperse their wealth and power to do everything they can to hinder Shia beleifs. they also propogate shia sunni hatred but sunnis have nothing to do with this and the whole shia sunni problem is because of these kind of ppl. DR Zakir naik may be is funded by Sufyanis (Wahabis) I THINK. the amount of money he is generating for his massive stage shows MAY be from here so he has to support his groups Ideology. thats my answer to Zakirs propaganda. Also he is nothing in Islamic religion and is a mug pot. the signs of a learned man are that if he sees he has done wrong and proved so by other authentic SCHOLORS he should be sorry rather than trying to defend his point but we can see its in vain. his popularity has plummeted and his TV show TRPs are all down.
anyway here is a good link in response to zakir by a SUNNI world renowed SCHOLAR

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=np_6PrGNKSM

Anonymous said...

By its very essence Imam Hussain struggle was a moral and non violent one. I disagree with one blogger that Imam struggle is disconnected with non violance. for the benefit if bloggers few points:
1. did Imam messenger Muslim took control of Kufa.
2. Did not Imam dissuaded the establishment not to resort to bloodshed; litrally stop attrition on 9th evening.
3. Imam send his brother; an otherwise renowned warrior Abbas unarmed on a "rescue sortie" instead of a 'combat sortie" when he was sent to fetch water for kids. was not that a statement of non violance.
furthermore non violance for all practical purposes is vital to the moral high ground of any stance and Imam being a supreme saint could not have ignored the same.

Anonymous said...

According to most of the reports, Husayn ibn Ali was born on 3 Sha'aban 4 AH/10 January 626 CE.

Husayn, and his brother Hasan, were the last descendants of the Prophet of Islam living during his time and remaining after his death. There are many accounts of the Prophet's love for them which refer to them together but at times confuse them with each other.

ABBAS KUMAILI'S BLOG said...

assalamo alal hussain (a.s) waala ali (a.s) yebnal hussain (a.s) waala ashabil hussain (a.s)

abdulla said...

A beautiful site on imam hsuain(a.s)
Here u would find many answer related to the revolution of imam Husan(a.s)
http://imamhusain14.blogspot.com

SAM said...

Salaam alai kum Rupa. Nice attempt to portray succinctly about Imam Hussain a.s. and the event of Karbala. The philosophy of Imam Hussain a.s. (and all 12 Imams) is to fight only in defence, never in offence. They were great reformers who never believed in personal grudges and never fought wars for personal interest, but rose only to support truth and stop evil. Mahatma said he was inspired by Imam Hussain's philosophy and the event of Karbala. Your quotes in the article were good, moreso you gave a close translation. Thanks for mentioning Munshi Premchand's Karbala.I shall watch that.Nice reading!

SYEDA SAMEEN FATIMA said...

Salaam alai kum Rupa. Nice attempt to portray succinctly about Imam Hussain a.s. and the event of Karbala. The philosophy of Imam Hussain a.s.(and all 12 Imams) is to fight only in defence, never in offence. They were great reformers who never believed in personal grudges and never fought wars for personal interest, but rose only to support truth and stop evil. Mahatma said he was inspired by Imam Hussain's philosophy and the event of Karbala. Your quotes in the article were good, moreso you gave a close translation. Thanks for mentioning Munshi Premchand's Karbala.I shall watch that.Nice reading!

Dastangoi and the Tales that Bind

A modest looking middle age man, dressed in white walked gently on to the stage. The stage, like the man, was frugal: no ...