Events of Karbala

The events of Karbala took place 61 years after the Hijrah on the date of Ashurah,

which is 10th Muharram.

The people of Iraq (Kufah) wrote to Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ ) and asked him to come

out to them so that they could swear allegiance to him as their ruler, which

happened after the death of Mu'aawiyah (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ') , and the accession of his son

Yazeed to the caliphate.

Then the people of Kufah turned against

Husayn after 'Ubaydullah ibn Ziyaad

was appointed as governor of the city by

Yazeed inb Mu'aawiyah and killed Muslim Ibn'Ugayl, who was Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ)envoy

to them. The hearts of the people of Iraq were with 

Husaynرَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ )but their swords were with 'Ubaydullah ibn Ziyaad.

Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) went out to them, not knowing of the killing of Muslim ibn Uqayl, or of the people's changed attitude

towards him.

Wise men who loved him had advised him not to go out to Iraq, but he insisted on going out to them. Among those who

gave him this advice were: "Abdullah ibn Abbaas, "Abdullah ibn 'Umar, Abu Sa'eed

al-Khudri, Jaabir ibn "Abdullah, al-Miswar ibn Makhramah, 

and  

Abdullah ibn az-Zubayr(رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ)

So Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) travelled to

Iraq, and halted at Karbala', where he came

to know that the people of Iraq had turned

against him. So Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) asked the

army that came to fight him for one of three

things: either to let him return to Makkah, or

to let him go to Yazeed ibn Mu'aawiyah, or to

let him go to the frontier to fight in jihad for

the sake of Allah.

But they insisted that he should surrender to

them, and Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) refused, so they

fought him, and he was killed wrongfully as

a martyr (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ)

Reference: Al-Bidaayah wa'n-Nihaayah - 11/473-520

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said:

Yazeed ibn Mu'aawiyah was born during the caliphate of

"Uthmaan ibn "Affaan ( رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) and did not meet the Prophet(ﷺ). He was not one of the Sahaabah, according to scholarly consensus, and he was not one of those who were

well known for religious commitment and righteousness. He was one of the Muslim youth, and he was not a disbeliever or

a heretic. He became the caliph after his father died, despite

the objections of some of the Muslims and with the approval

of some of them. He was courageous and generous, and

he did not outwardly blatantly commit immoral actions, as

some of his opponents said that he did.

During his rule, a number of grievous events

occurred, one of which was the killing of

Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ). Yazeed did not issue orders

that Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) be killed, and he did

not express joy at his killing. He did not poke

the severed head of  Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) with

 a stick, and the head of 

Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) was not brought to him in Syria,

 but he did issue instructions that 

Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) be

prevented from achieving his goal, even if

that involved fighting him. But those who

received his instructions went further than

that.

Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) asked them to let him

go to Yazeed or let him go to the border

and keep watch there, or let him go back

to Makkah, but they insisted on taking him

prisoner and 'Umar ibn Sa'd issued orders

to fight him, and they killed him wrongfully

- him and a number of his family members(رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُما). 

His killing was a major calamity,

because the killing of  

Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ), and of 'Uthmaan (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) before him, was among the main causes of turmoil in this ummah,

and their killers are among the most evil of

people before Allah.

He also said (25/302-305):

When Husayn ibn "Ali (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) was killed on the day of

"Ashoora";, he was killed by the transgressing, wrongdoing

group. Allah honoured Husayn with martyrdom, as He

honoured other members of his family; He honoured Hamzah and Ja 'far with martyrdom (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُما) as well as his father *Ali (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ,) and others. His martyrdom was one of the means by which Allah raised him in status, for he and his brother Hasan (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ ) will be the leaders of the youth among the people of Paradise, and high status is only achieved by means of trials, as the 

Prophet (صلی الله علیه وسلم) said, when he was

asked which of the people are most sorely tested?

He said: "The Prophets, then the righteous, then the next

best and the next best. A man will be tested to a degree com-

mensurate with his level of religious commitment. If there is

firmness in his religious commitment, his test will be greater,

and if there is any weakness in his religious commitment, the

test will be reduced for him. Trials will continue to befall the

believer until he walks upon the earth with no sin on him."

Hasan and Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُما) had previously been granted high status by Allah, may He be glorified, and they did not go through the same trials and hardships that had befallen their predecessors, because they were born at a time when Islam was prevalent and they had grown up with honour and dignity. The Muslims venerated them and honoured them, and when the Prophet (ﷺ) died, they had not yet reached the age of discernment. The blessing that Allah

bestowed upon them was that He tested them with that

which caused them to join the other members of their family,

just as He tested others who were better than them. "Ali ibn

Abi Taalib (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) was better than them, and he was killed as a martyr. The killing of 

Husayn (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) was an event

that provoked turmoil among the people, just as the killing

of 'Uthmaan ( رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) was one of the main causes of turmoil among the people, as a result of which the ummah is still divided until the present day.

When Husayn ( رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ) went out and saw that things had

changed, he asked them to let him go back (to Makkah) or

to let him go to one of the border regions, or to let him go

and join his paternal cousin Yazeed. But they did not let

him do any of these things, unless he surrendered to them

and they took him captive. They fought him, so he fought

back, then they killed him and a number of those who were

with him wrongfully and as martyrs. Allah honoured him

with martyrdom and caused him to join the pure and good

members of his family, and He humiliated thereby those who

wronged him and transgressed against him.

And Allah knows the Best.