Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him.
Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him, the grandson of our Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam,
and the son of Hazrat Ali, peace be upon him, was born in the fourth year of the Hegira.
His mother was Hazrat Fatima, the only daughter to continue the line of our Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam.
He was given the name Hussain, meaning fine or handsome in Arabic, by Rasulullah, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam.
Some of Hazrat Hussain's nicknames were Sibit, grandson, Sayyidi, shuhada, tabili, amrila, he who obeys Allah's command,
Zaki, and Mubarak.
Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him, bore a close resemblance to the Prophet Muhammad, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam.
Hazrat Ali, peace be upon him, said of that similarity,
Hassan resembled Rasulullah from his breast to his head and Hussain from there down.
Hazrat Hussain passed in the deep love and affection of Rasulullah, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam.
Following the martyrdom of our Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam,
he completed his education and upbringing at the side of Hazrat Ali, peace be upon him.
He had eight children, five boys and three girls.
Like his older brother, Hazrat Hassan, peace be upon him,
Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him,
would also sit on Rasulullah's, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, blessed knees,
and grew up with a profound love in his heart.
Our Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, was full of love for his grandsons and enjoyed playing with them.
A group of companions accompanied Rasulullah to a dinner to which he was invited.
They met his grandson, Hussain, on the road.
He was playing with the children.
When Rasulullah, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, saw the boy,
he passed in front of the group and opened his arms to embrace him.
The boy began scampering to the right and to the left.
Rasulullah copied him, running right and left until he caught him.
When he caught him, he placed one hand under his chin
and the other on the back of his neck and kissed him.
Hussain is my descendant.
Whoever loves Hussain, Allah will love him.
Hussain is a grandson of grandsons.
In one hadith, our Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, said,
Hassan and Hussain are the two Sa'id of the young people of Paradise.
Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him, was full of the love of Allah,
heroic, morally virtuous, compassionate, and generous.
In his will, addressed to his brother Muhammad bin Hanifiyah,
Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him, said,
Let the people of the world know that I am not the one who seeks rank or station,
nor a spreader of strife, a disturber of the peace, or a despot.
I have no such aims.
My position is to purify.
My aim is to purify the ummah of my ancestor.
I wish to command what is lawful and forbid what is unlawful.
In similar words, he also said,
I did not leave Medina out of excess, for rank, to spread strife, or to oppress others.
My aim is to purify the ummah of my ancestor,
to command what is lawful and forbid what is unlawful,
and to act along the line of my ancestor Rasulullah and my father Ali.
The Martyrdom of Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him
Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him, served as imam for ten years.
All but six months of that time were spent under the most harsh and difficult conditions.
Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him, was martyred at Karbala,
together with seventy-two blessed companions,
on the tenth day of the month of Muharram, in 681 A.D.
Following the martyrdom of Hazrat Ali,
peace be upon him, the Caliphate passed to Muawiyah.
Muawiyah sought to ensure, during his lifetime,
that the Caliphate would pass to his son Yazid after his death.
He made his supporters swear allegiance to Yazid.
When Yazid took over, the first thing he did
was to write to the governor of Medina
and demand that he swear allegiance to him,
not to Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him, on pain of death.
At this point, Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him,
was receiving letters from the people of Kufa,
offering their allegiance.
At this, Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him,
and his companions set out for Kufa.
They pitched camp at Karbala, near Kufa.
Yazid sent an army of thirty thousand
against Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him.
Hazrat Hussain, peace be upon him,
and his blessed family were deprived entirely of water.
Then, Hazrat Hussain's, peace be upon him,
six-month-old son,
Ali Askar,
was martyred by an arrow.
Following the martyrdom of Hazrat Hussain,
peace be upon him,
and his seventy-two companions,
the women and children with him
were taken prisoner by Yazid.
Among those who spent years in captivity
were Hazrat Hussain's, peace be upon him,
sister,
Zainab,
and his son,
Zainal Labedin.
Our blessed Prophet,
sallallahu alayhi wa sallam,
foresaw the martyrdom of Hazrat Hussain,
peace be upon him,
in a most miraculous way.
Rasulullah,
sallallahu alayhi wa sallam,
described that martyrdom as follows,
and it happened,
just as he foretold.
The messenger of Allah was sleeping one day.
There was red earth in his hand.
O Rasulullah,
what is that soil,
I asked.
He said,
Gabriel said he,
Hazrat Hussain,
peace be upon him,
will be martyred in Iraqi lands.
This soil comes from there.
Hussain, my son,
will be martyred in the place known as Karbala.
Let anyone who sees him
go to his assistance.
At this,
Enes bin al-Harris went to Karbala.
He was martyred there,
together with Hazrat Hussain,
peace be upon him.
Adnan Oktar
Hazrat Hassan and Hazrat Hussain
are my forebears.
I curse those who martyred them.
May Allah curse them.
My lion, Hazrat Ali,
peace be upon him,
was also martyred.
Hazrat Hamza was also martyred.
They were most heroic.
We have always given up martyrs,
and we must never mourn them.
One must not mourn for martyrs.
One must be proud of them.
I am proud of them,
Inshallah.
But we remember them
with love and affection.
They are most dear to us.
They are the Sa'ids
of the people of Paradise,
Inshallah,
as our Prophet,
Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam,
says.