By: Seyyed Ali Shahbaz

 

“O God, I beseech You by the right of him who was born this day, to whom martyrdom was promised before he appeared and was born, for whom the heavens wept and those who are in them and the earth and those who are in it, before he even tread its stony grounds. The slain one for whom tears flow…”

As is clear by the wordings of the above passage of the special supplication to God Almighty for the 3rd of Sha’ban, the birth of the Immortal Martyr of Karbala was not an ordinary event, because of the simple reason that Imam Husain (AS) wasn’t an ordinary person.

Younger grandson of the Almighty’s Last and Greatest Messenger, Prophet Muhammad (SAWA), Divine Providence willed that he step on to Planet Earth in the year 4 AH (626 AD) after only six months in the womb of his Infallible Mother, Hazrat Fatema Zahra (SA) – the Noblest Lady of all times.

His father, the One and Only Commander of the Faithful, looked to his cousin the Prophet to name the radiant boy in view of the latter’s famous statement: “O Ali! Your position to me is that of Aaron to Moses”

Thus, since Aaron’s second son was Shubair, the newborn, following the swift descent of Archangel Gabriel with a message from the Lord Most High, was named Husain (AS) in Arabic – a year earlier the Prophet’s elder grandson was named Hasan, the Arabic equivalent of Aaron’s firstborn, Shabar.

It is obvious the grandfather and the parents of the baby born this day welcomed him with tears in view of what God Almighty had already informed the Prophet. 

The tears were definitely not of sorrow, but were a form of thanksgiving to the Source of Life for having bestowed to the child the exalted honour of martyrdom in his middle age. 

To be more precise, Imam Husain (AS) was destined to offer the Greatest Sacrifice the world would ever see, for salvaging the dynamism of Islam, the purity of the Sunnah (practice) and Seerah (behaviour) of the Prophet, the clarity of Fatema Zahra’s (AS)  sermon of Fadak to expose imposters in their true colours, the blueprint of the model government of social justice of Imam Ali (AS), the throwing away of the caliphate by Imam Hasan (AS) to unmask hypocrisy, and the gargantuan efforts of all prophets of the past in the face of the tyranny of Nimrod, Pharoah, etc – all of which stood imperiled by the Godless Yazid’s demand to swear allegiance to him as the caliph of God. 

Now we understand why we hail Imam Husain (AS) as the Successor of the Prophets Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad (SAWA) and of the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali (AS), while saluting him in the ziyarah known till this day “Ziyarat-al-Wareth”. 

That is the reason God decreed the continuation of imamate in the lineal descent of Imam Husain (AS), the last of whom will be the Qa’em al-Mahdi (AS) the Promised Saviour of mankind who will reappear in the end times, not just to avenge the innocent blood of the Martyr of Karbala, but also to rid Planet Earth of oppression and corruption by establishing the global government of peace, prosperity and justice – as is clear from the following supplication which the faithful recite on this day:

“The Imams are from his descent, curative is the soil of his shrine, and triumph will be with him and the legatees of his line at his return, after their “Qa’em” and his (lengthy) occultation, until they take vengeance and avenge the blood of the martyrs, pleasing God and being the best of helpers… O Allah, bless Muhammad and his descendants and gather us at resurrection in his fold and settle us with him in the abode of dignity and permanence.” 

No wonder, the very mention of the name of Husain (AS), even if it swells our eyes with tears, it grants us peace of mind, tranquility of heart, succour to the spirit, and solace to the soul, while infusing our whole body and existence with the determination to stand firm against social injustice, deviation from Islamic values, threats of attack, and the devilish designs of the dastardly terrorists. 

Imam Husain (AS) made blood triumph over swords, and by adhering to his legacy, we have acquired a distinct identity that makes us indomitable in the face of the heaviest odds even if it means the end of our transient life in this mortal world. 

This is the reason his birthday is marked in the Islamic Republic as “Rouz-e Pasdaar” or the Day of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) for the heroism of this selfless force in defending Islam, Iran, the Iranian people, the oppressed people of the world, and humanitarian values against terrorists and terrorism of all kinds, including the state terrorism of the US, the Zionists and reactionary regimes.

I end this brief newspaper column by quoting here two more passages from the special supplication for the blessed 3rd of Sha’ban that are self-explanatory:         

“O Allah, just as You honoured us with our knowledge of him, honour us also with nearness to him, grant us his companionship and precedence. Appoint us to among those who submit to his command, invoke much blessings on him when he is mentioned, as well as on all his successors and his elect, made by You twelve in number, the bright stars and Your testaments to all mankind.

“O Allah! Confer on us the best of gifts today, and grant us success in whatever we seek, just as You gave Husain to Muhammad, his grandfather. The Angel Futrus sought refuge by Husain’s cradle, and we seek shelter by his tomb. Being present at his graveside, we await his return. Amen, O Lord of all the worlds.”