{"id":6731,"date":"2021-08-29T10:58:20","date_gmt":"2021-08-29T09:58:20","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2021-08-29T10:58:20","modified_gmt":"2021-08-29T09:58:20","slug":"women-of-sacrifice-in-the-epic-of-karbala","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shiastudies.com\/en\/6731\/women-of-sacrifice-in-the-epic-of-karbala\/","title":{"rendered":"Women of Sacrifice in the Epic of Karbala"},"content":{"rendered":"

Women of Sacrifice in the Epic of Karbala<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Women of Sacrifice in the Epic of Karbala: <\/strong>When studying the epic of Karbala, one should not be oblivious of the fact that during the course of this everlasting and important event which took place in 61 AH, some great and magnanimous women also participated and made sacrifices. So much so that some of them were even martyred in this path and their honorable names have been mentioned in the glorious history of the rising of Imam Hussain with honor and respect. Having witnessed the massacre of their loved ones and after being paraded across towns and cities in captivity, these noble ladies spread the revolution of Hussain and preserved it, as a model, for all generations \u2013 till the end of time.<\/p>\n

When studying the epic of Karbala, one should not be oblivious of the fact
\nthat during the course of this everlasting and important event which took place
\nin 61 AH, some great and magnanimous women also participated and made
\nsacrifices. So much so that some of them were even martyred in this path and
\ntheir honorable names have been mentioned in the glorious history of the rising
\nof Imam Hussain with honor and respect.<\/p>\n

We now mention here the names of each of these great women in the historical
\norder and the role played by them.<\/p>\n

Lady Dulham: The first whose name deserves to be remembered with honor and
\nrespect was the wife of Zuhayr bin Qayn Bajali. She was the woman who acquired
\nthe most honorable position in the history of Islam for all times to come.<\/p>\n

A man belonging to the tribe of Bani Fazara says: “We were returning from Makkah
\nalong with Zuhayr bin Qayn Bajali and were proceeding to Iraq. At that time
\nHussain bin Ali was also on his way to Iraq. However we did not wish to halt at
\nthe same halting-place at which Hussain halted. Hence as and when Imam Hussain
\ndeparted from a place, we halted there and when he halted at a place we moved
\non. However, on one occasion it so happened that we were obliged to halt at the
\nsame place at which Hussain bin Ali halted. We pitched our tents on one side and
\nhe pitched his on the other. While we were taking our meals there suddenly came
\na messenger of the Imam. He saluted us and said: “O Zuhayr bin Qayn! Hussain bin
\nAli has called you.”<\/p>\n

We disliked this message so much that we put down the morsels which we had in
\nour hands and all of us were perplexed. However, Dulham, the daughter of Amr who
\nwas the wife of Zuhayr said to him: “The son of the Holy Prophet of Allah has
\nsent someone to you and called you; are you not prepared to go to him? Allah be
\npraised! What is the harm if you go and see him, hear what he has to say and
\nthen return!” The words of this woman had the desired effect and she placed her
\nhusband in the category of the greatest martyrs of Islam. Zuhayr was impressed
\nby the words of his wife and presented himself before the Imam. After some time
\nhe returned with a face beaming with happiness and ordered his tent to be
\npitched adjacent to the camp of the Holy Imam.<\/p>\n

Indeed, Allah is the guardian of those who believe. He takes them out of
\ndarkness into light. (Surah al-Baqarah, 2: 257)<\/p>\n

Zuhayr went with the Imam and met martyrdom and his wife returned to her
\nrelatives.<\/p>\n

Another honor which is recorded in history about this woman has been mentioned
\nin the book entitled Tazkira-e Sibt. According to it when Zuhayr was martyred
\nhis wife said to his slave: “Go and shroud your master.” The slave came and saw
\nthe Imam without a shroud. He said to himself: “Should I shroud my master and
\nleave the Imam without a shroud? By Allah I will do no such thing”. He,
\ntherefore, shrouded the sacred body of the Imam first and then he shrouded his
\nmaster.<\/p>\n

Lady Umme Wahab: The second lady who deserves to be It praised for her lofty
\ncharacter and sacrifice was the wife of Abdullah bin Umayr Kalbi. Abdullah bin
\nUmayr was a resident of Kufa and belonged to the tribe of Bani Ulaym. One day he
\nsaw that a large army had gathered in the date-palm garden of \u2018Kufa. He enquired
\nabout the army. He was informed that those people were going to fight against
\nHussain, son of Fatima, the daughter of the Holy Prophet. Abdullah said: ” Allah
\nknows that I have been keen to fight against the polytheists for His sake.
\nHowever, I now hope that the spiritual reward for fighting against these people
\nwho are going to kill the grandson of the Holy Prophet will be not less than
\nthat for fighting against the polytheists. Abdullah decided to leave and
\ninformed his wife Umme Wahab, daughter of Abdullah about his intention. His wife
\nsaid: “It is an excellent idea. May Allah guide you in all circumstances. Please
\ntake me also with you.”<\/p>\n

Both of them left Kufa at night and perhaps reached Karbala during the night of
\nthe 8th of Muharram. When fighting was started by the enemy in the morning of
\n\u0100shura two slaves of Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad came forward for a single combat.
\nHabib bin Mazahir Asadi and Burayr bin Khuzayr Hamdani got ready to fight with
\nthem, but the Imam asked them to wait. At this moment Abdullah bin Umayr sought
\nthe Imam\u2019s permission to fight. He faced both the enemies alone and killed them.<\/p>\n

When the woman observed her husband fighting with them she also picked up the
\nstick of a tent and entered the battlefield. She said to her husband: “May my
\nparents be your ransom Sacrifice your life for the sake of the children of the
\nHoly Prophet.” The Imam said to her: “May Allah give you a good reward! May
\nAllah bless you! Return towards the women and stay with them in the tent,
\nbecause women are not required to perform jihad.” Abdullah was the second person
\nto be martyred on the day of \u0100shura, the first being Muslim bin Awsaja.<\/p>\n

Lady Rub\u0101b: The third lady whose illustrious name has been recorded in the
\nhistory of \u0100shura was Rub\u0101b, daughter of Imraul Qays, a wife of the Holy Imam.
\nShe was the wife of the Imam who accompanied him during his journey to Karbala.<\/p>\n

As regards Shehr Banu, the daughter of Yazd Gard, the last King of Persia and
\nthe mother of the fourth Imam, she had died about 24 years earlier than the
\ntragedy of Karbala.<\/p>\n

No mention has also been made of the mother of Ja\u2019far bin Hussain, who belonged
\nto the tribe of Quz\u0101\u2019\u0101. There is also no mention in the event of \u0100shura of the
\nmother of Fatima, daughter of Hussain i.e. Umme Ishaq daughter of Talha bin
\nUbaydullah Taymi. Her daughter Fatima was however, present in Karbala. She also
\nwent to Kufa and Syria.<\/p>\n

During the period of the Caliphate of Umar he embraced Islam. From the very
\nfirst day the caliph made him the chief of the tribe of Quza\u2019a. Besides the
\nhonor of becoming a Muslim and an Islamic chief he also acquired another
\ndistinction. He had three daughters and he gave one of them in marriage to Ali,
\nthe second to Hasan and the youngest namely Rub\u0101b to Imam Hussain. Thus he
\nbecame the father-in-law of three Imams.<\/p>\n

Lady Rub\u0101b had one daughter and one son from Imam Hussain who were named Sukayna
\nand Abdullah respectively. The son who was a suckling was killed on the day of
\n\u0100shura and she herself as well as her daughter Sukayna were made prisoners.<\/p>\n

The fourth lady whose name may be mentioned in connection with the events of the
\nafternoon of the day of \u0100shura belonged to the tribe of Bakr bin Wa\u2019il. She
\nenjoys an eminent position in depicting the tragedy of Karbala. She has recorded
\non the pages of history a precise picture of the meanness of the enemy in a few
\nwords.<\/p>\n

She was with her husband in the army of Ibn Saad. However, when she saw that the
\nsoldiers of Kufa had made a rush on the tents of the children of Imam Hussain
\nand were looting even the dresses of the ladies she picked up a sword, proceeded
\ntowards the tents of Imam Hussain and shouted: “O children of Bakr bin Wa\u2019il!
\nYou are alive and in spite of this these people are plundering the tents of the
\ndaughters of the Holy Prophet. Allah is the only Arbitrator. Come on, and avenge
\nthe bloodshed.” By means of these brief words she showed to what extent the
\nenemy had become mean. It seems as if the cry of this lady is still resounding
\nat the doors of the tents of Imam Hussain.<\/p>\n

While studying the history of \u0100shura we come across the names of many
\nmagnanimous women who rose to support truth and the godly persons with perfect
\nsincerity and they are not the only four women mentioned above. However, just as
\nnone of the martyrs, whether Hashimite or non-Hashimite, in spite of their
\ngreatness, magnanimity and self-sacrifice, can attain to the position of Imam
\nHusyan, who was the leader of this revolution, none of these great women who
\ndisplayed an eminent performance at the time of the martyrdom of the martyrs or
\nduring captivity, could acquire a position equal to that of Lady Zaynab, the
\neldest daughter of Imam Ali.<\/p>\n

It was she who could truly take the place of her brother during captivity and
\nfollowed the same movement from the afternoon of the day of \u0100shura till her
\narrival in Madina. She truly followed what her brother said: “Abjectness and
\nhumiliation are far removed from us, the Ahlul Bayt.” She thus discharged the
\nresponsibility devolved upon her. We may say that it was due to the education
\ngiven to her by her mother, Lady Fatima Zahra. She ought to have been as patient
\nin the path of faith as her mother Fatima and her grandmother Khadija had been.
\nWas it not lady Khadija who was the first to believe in the Prophethood of the
\nProphet of Allah, and who made greater sacrifices than anyone else for the
\nadvancement of his religion and supported him in all difficulties and hardships
\nfor about ten years i.e. from the first year of his prophetic mission till the
\ntenth year when she died?<\/p>\n

Was lady Zaynab not the grand-daughter of the same Lady Khadija and was the path
\npursued by Imam Hussain any other path than the advancement of religion and the
\nrevival of the call of the Holy Prophet? Hence, in case it was necessary that
\nfor the sake of the true religion of Islam and for the Holy Qur\u2019an, women should
\nbecome captives and as a consequence of this should address the people in the
\nbazaars and the streets so as to nullify the unjustified propaganda of the enemy
\nand to make the reality known to the people. Who could be more suited for this
\ntask than the daughter of Imam Ali who had inherited self-sacrifice from Khadija,
\nthe greatest self-sacrificing lady of Islam, and Imam Ali the greatest supporter
\nof the Prophet of Allah?<\/p>\n

Lady Zaynab, who was the daughter of Ali ibn Abi Talib and also the
\ngrand-daughter of Khadija addressed the people in the bazaar of Kufa and spoke
\neloquently like her father. It might be said that she was speaking with the
\ntongue of Imam Ali. By making a sign to the people she made them quiet as if
\nthey had ceased to breathe, and suppressed the tumult.<\/p>\n

Ahmad bin Tahir Baghdadi (d. 280 A.H.) has given three versions of her address
\nin his book entitled Bal\u0101ghatun Nisa, one of which is reported to have come down
\nfrom Imam Sadiq.<\/p>\n

Umme Kulsum, the sister of Zaynab also addressed the people in the bazaar of
\nKufa. Both the sisters severely reproached the Kufians who were touched so much
\nthat they began to weep and lament.<\/p>\n

Fatima, the daughter of Imam Hussain also addressed the people in the bazaar of
\nKufa and invited their attention to the great sin which they had committed and
\nthe bad luck and adversity in which they had involved themselves.<\/p>\n

The task of Ahlul Bayt in the bazaar of Kufa came to an end and then they got an
\nopportunity to speak in the court of Ibn Ziyad. The daughter of Imam Ali came in
\nthe court in a very simple dress. She was encircled by her slave-girls. She went
\nand sat down in a corner of the palace. Ibn Ziyad asked: “Who is the woman who
\nhas gone and sat down in a corner along with her slave-girls?” None gave him a
\nreply. He then repeated his question. Thereupon one of the slave-girls of lady
\nZaynab said: “It is Zaynab and she is the daughter of the same Fatima who was
\nthe daughter of the Prophet of Allah.”<\/p>\n

At this moment a heavy responsibility devolved upon Zaynab. It was necessary
\nthat she should exercise self-control. She should also give a reply to Ibn Ziyad
\nand should not give him a chance to let the matter be ambiguous in the eyes of
\nthe people.<\/p>\n

Ibn Ziyad said: “I thank Allah that He has disgraced you and killed you and made
\nthe people aware of your fresh lies”. Ibn Ziyad uttered these blasphemous words
\non account of his being arrogant on his presumed victory in battle.<\/p>\n

Lady Zaynab said immediately in reply to Ibn Ziyad: “Allah be thanked that He
\nhas honored us by means of His Prophet Muhammad and purified us of every
\nimpurity. You have said that we have been disgraced but it is a libertine who is
\ndisgraced and you have said that we have lied but lies are told by the wicked.
\nAnd I thank Allah once again that others, and not we, are the libertines and the
\nwicked.”<\/p>\n

In spite of this prompt reply by the daughter of Imam Ali Ibn Ziyad said again:
\n“Have you seen what Allah has done with your family?” It appears that by saying
\nthis Ibn Ziyad wanted to remind her of those who had been martyred two days
\nearlier so that she might be moved and possibly say something according to his
\nwishes or make some requests. He was however, oblivious of the fact that the
\nAhlulBayt did everything very intelligently and did not utter even a word which
\nwas not worthy of their position, and whatever they said was well calculated and
\naccording to a plan, so that the object which they had in view might be
\nachieved.<\/p>\n

In reply to Ibn Ziyad\u2019s question: “Have you seen what Allah has done with your
\nfamily?” Zaynab replied: “Nothing new has happened. These martyrs of our family
\nwere persons for whom Allah had destined martyrdom, and they achieved this
\nblessing, and embraced martyrdom. However, a day will come soon when Allah will
\nsummon you and them for the settlement of accounts and there you will grapple
\nand dispute with each other.”<\/p>\n

On hearing this Ibn Ziyad was so much disturbed and annoyed that if Amr bin
\nHarith had not reproached him, it was possible that he might have ordered the
\nsister of the Imam to be killed. However, of what use could it be to him? Zaynab
\nhad already said what she had to say. She had also identified the libertines and
\nthe wicked and introduced the pure and sacred family of the Holy Prophet.<\/p>\n

After a month or a few days more had passed, the daughter of Imam Ali arrived in
\na more important and more delicate assembly. Here also it was her duty to speak
\nmore clearly. As compared with the Kufans, the Syrians were more mistaken and
\nmore unacquainted with the AhlulBayt. It was therefore necessary that she should
\nmention the reality and introduce the AhlulBayt more emphatically. This assembly
\nwas organized in Damascus, the Islamic capital of the time. Here too, Lady
\nZaynab addressed the people and spoke to them. This speech has also been
\nmentioned by Ahmad bin Tahir Baghdadi in Bal\u0101ghatun Nisa. He says: “When Yazid
\nsaw the prisoners belonging to AhlulBayt and found them standing before him he
\nordered the head of Imam Hussain to be brought in a tray. He hit the teeth of
\nImam Hussain with a stick which he had in his hand and recited some poetic
\nverses which are summarized thus: “I wish that my ancestors, who were killed in
\nBadr, had been alive today so that they might see the present condition of the
\ndescendants of Muhammad and had rejoiced and said: \u2018O Yazid! May your hands
\nnever ache.” He added: “May I not be a descendant of my ancestors if I don\u2019t
\ntake revenge upon the children of Muhammad.”<\/p>\n

When the matters took such a turn, and Yazid, who killed Imam Hussain, now rose
\nto oppose and take revenge upon the Holy Prophet. Was then lady Zaynab justified
\nin ignoring his words and deeds and in keeping quiet before one who claimed to
\nbe the successor of the Holy Prophet and ruled in that capacity and killed the
\nmost pious persons of Islam avenging the murder of the polytheists of Makkah,
\nwho were killed by the Prophet in the Battle of Badr? Could she remain silent
\nwhen she saw that the Syrians had accepted the words of Yazid as true and
\nbelieved them? Evidently Lady Zaynab could not keep quiet at this stage.
\nWhatever she said was her duty that she performed. Allah also preserved her
\nspeech and it was not eliminated like many other religious documents. We should
\nbe thankful to the Almighty Allah for this blessing.<\/p>\n

\n

Hazrat Abbas (A.S); the epitome of virtue and high moral standards<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n