By: Seyyed Ali Shahbaz

 

“…Allah will test you with a stream: anyone who drinks from it will not belong to me, but those who do not drink from it will belong to me, barring someone who draws a scoop with his hand...” 

The above passage is part of Ayah 249 of Surah al-Baqarah of the holy Qur’an. It refers to a novel test decreed by God to determine the degree of faith of the Israelite soldiers accompanying King Saul for the encounter with the dreaded Philistine warlord, Goliath. 

God revealed these passages through His Last and Greatest Messenger, Prophet Muhammad (SAWA), as a lasting admonition to humanity, so as to sift truth from falsehood in order to avoid the fate of the disobedient persons and nations of the past.

The 4th of Sha’ban inspired me to refer to this particular passage of the Almighty’s Final Scripture to mankind, because it is the day on which a nephew was born to the Prophet in 26 AH (fifteen years after his departure from the mortal world), who would practically demonstrate obedience to Divine Commandments and the Chosen Ones of God by successfully passing this novel test of refusing to drink the water of the fresh flowing Euphrates in the heat of a life-and-death battle. 

He was not an ordinary nephew, in view of the fact that the Prophet, who did not possess any sibling, did have scores of cousins, of whom some were the sons of his mortal enemy, the infidel uncle, Abu Lahab.

He was in fact a special nephew with a status high in the sight of God, since he was the grandson of that primordial Muslim Abu Taleb, the Prophet’s beloved uncle and guardian. 

In other words, he was the son of the only person whom the Prophet had hailed as “My Brother” and publicly entered into pact of brotherhood by holding his hand, while pairing the rest of his companions – of like manners, tendencies and characteristics – with one another.  

To be more precise, he was the son of the One and Only Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali (AS), whom the Prophet had personally brought up since childhood, entrusted him the banner of his forces, made him his son-in-law on Divine Orders by tying the nuptial knot with his Immaculate Daughter, Hazrat Fatema Zahra (SA), and then by God’s command proclaimed him as Vicegerent at Ghadeer-Khom before a huge gathering of 120,000 Sahaba (neo Muslim companions), while returning from his Farewell Hajj Pilgrimage.

This son of Imam Ali (AS), however, was not a grandson of the Prophet like Imam Hasan (AS) and Imam Husain (AS), since Hazrat Fatema Zahra (SA) was not allowed to live more than 95 days after him by a murderous group of Sahaba, for her defence of the right of political leadership of her husband that had been usurped at the scandalous gathering of Saqifa Bani Sa’da. 

The bereaved widower Imam Ali (AS) had to marry – as per the Sunnah of the Prophet – and in doing so he consulted his brother Aqeel, who being an expert on the pedigree of the Arabs suggested that he take as wife the daughter of Hazam al-Kilabiyya who was noted for faith and bravery. 

“As Salaam alaika ya Aba’l-Fazl al-Abbas” is the phrase that spontaneously comes to our lips on the 4th of Sha’ban when this noble nephew of the Prophet was born in Medina in 26 AH following the marriage of Imam Ali (AS) with Fatema the daughter of Hazam who is known to history as Omm al-Baneen (Mother of Sons) and who considered herself a slave-girl to the deceased Noblest Lady of all times, Hazrat Fatema az-Zahra (SA), and hence never allowed her sons to address the Prophet’s grandsons, as ‘brother’.

That was the reason, the valiant Abbas (AS) used to address Imam Hasan as “Ya Seyyedi” (O’ My Lord) and Imam Husain (AS) as “Ya Mowlai” (O’ My Master), as proof of his proper cognizance of the exalted status of Imamate that God had bestowed on the Two Leaders of the Youth of Paradise.

Thus, in Karbala, when the tyrant Yazitd’s deceitful governor Obaidollah ibn Ziyad ibn Sumayya (the notorious whore of the days of Jahiliyya) drafted a letter of amnesty for the sons of Omm al-Baneen and sent it through the accursed Shimr Zi’l-Jowshan, who had some remote ties of kinship with the al-Kilabiyya clan, Hazrat Abbas (AS) spurned the offer with the words:

“We are in no need of your security. The safety Allah has provided us with, is better than that of the (grand)son of Sumayyah.” 

He then turned towards Shimr and said: “May Allah paralyze you and damn you and the letter you have brought. Are you offering us safety while the son of the Messenger of Allah is not safe?” 

The rest is history. On the Day of Ashura, this valiant nephew of the Prophet, passed the novel test mentioned by God in Ayah 249 of Surah al-Baqara by taking control of the banks of the River Euphrates after scattering the Yazidi hordes, but refrained from drinking a drop of water – not even the single scoop that he could have drawn – since the Prophet’s grandson Imam Husain (AS) and his children were thirsty.  

He attained martyrdom while carrying water to the Imam’s camp, when the cowardly enemies hiding behind the palm groves, ambushed him, first by cutting his left hand, at which he said: 

“By Allah, if you cut my right hand (as well), I will never stand back, and I will protect my religion; and I will support the Imam who stands firm in his belief, and is the grandson of the pure and truthful Prophet.”

They unmanly struck his right hand as well, shot an arrow into his eye, pierced the goatskin water carrier on his horse and as he fell down smote his head with a mace.

On his martyrdom, the Survivor of the heart-rending tragedy of Karbala, Imam Zain al-Abedin (AS), paid his uncle glowing tributes with the words:

“May Allah bless Abbas ibn Ali (AS), who dedicated (his life), was tested by tribulations, and sacrificed his life for his brother, to the extent that both his hands were cut off. Surely, Abbas has a status in the presence of Allah that all the martyrs will envy on the Day of Judgement”

To sum up the faith, fealty, and fidelity of the Immortal Standard-Bearer of Karbala, here is the statement of the Lord of the Age, Imam Mahdi (may God hasten his reappearance to avenge the blood of the Martyrs of Karbala and establish the global government of peace and justice):  

“Peace upon Abu’l-Fazl al-Abbas, Son of the Commander of the Faithful, who protected his brother with his own life, and collected provisions from his past for his future. It is he who sacrificed himself for his brother, made his own life a shield, and spared no effort for his sake.”