1 / 48

Ashura’ why its spirit endures and remains relevant today

Ashura’ why its spirit endures and remains relevant today. Darul Salam Center Brother Zayd 9 Muharram 1427. Ashura’. Review of the actual event Its temporal and spiritual impact Applying its lessons today. Ashura’. Review of the actual event. The End of Enlightened Leadership.

juancollins
Télécharger la présentation

Ashura’ why its spirit endures and remains relevant today

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript


  1. Ashura’why its spirit endures and remains relevant today Darul Salam Center Brother Zayd 9 Muharram 1427

  2. Ashura’ • Review of the actual event • Its temporal and spiritual impact • Applying its lessons today

  3. Ashura’ • Review of the actual event

  4. The End of Enlightened Leadership • Islam as revelation: • individual spiritual enlightenment • just governance of society • The rule of Imam Ali (as) in Kufa • The last example of “utopian” leadership • Marked by salvation of the spirit of Islam amid fractious and devastating decline • Triumph of the spiritual over the material

  5. Mu’awiya ibn Abu Sufyan Ali ibn Abi Talib Kufa and Damascus:two paradigms of Islam • Perpetual devotion to Islam • The rule of law • The sanctity of civil service • Spiritual enlightenment • Justice • Temporal conquest • Dynasty & corruption • Ruler as absolute sovereign • Degeneration to tribalism • “Just us”

  6. Imam Ali’s two-room home, Kufa (Reproduced) Umayyad Palace, Damascus

  7. Imam Alithe pinnacle of enlightened leadership

  8. Imam Alithe pinnacle of enlightened leadership • Legacy of leadership encapsulated in his letter of advice to Malik al-Ashtar

  9. Imam Alithe pinnacle of enlightened leadership • Legacy of leadership encapsulated in his letter of advice to Malik al-Ashtar • Recently published by UN Development Program • 2002 Arab Human Development Report • Distributed worldwide • Urged Arab nations to heed this timeless message as a basis for their reform

  10. “He who has appointed himself a ruler of the people must begin by teaching himself before teaching others. • His teaching of others must be first by setting an example rather than with his words, • for he who begins by teaching and educating himself is more worthy of respect than he who teaches and educates others.”

  11. “Your concern with developing the land should be greater than your concern for collecting taxes, • for the latter can only be obtained by developing; • whereas he who seeks revenue without development destroys the country and the people.”

  12. “Seek the company of the learned and the wise in search of solutions to the problems of your country and the righteousness of your people.” • “No good can come in keeping silent as to government or in speaking out of ignorance.”

  13. “The righteous leaders are those of virtue, • whose logic is straightforward, • whose dress is unostentatious, • whose path is modest, • whose actions are many and • who are undeterred by difficulties.”

  14. “Choose the best among your people to administer justice among them. • Choose someone who does not easily give up, • who is unruffled by enmities, • someone who will not persist in wrongdoings, • who will not hesitate to pursue right once he knows it, someone whose heart knows no greed, • who will not be satisfied with a minimum of explanation without seeking the maximum of understanding, • who will be the most steadfast when doubt is cast, • who will be the least impatient in correcting the opponent, • the most patient in pursuing the truth, • the most stern in meting out judgment, • someone who is unaffected by flattery and not swayed by temptation and these are but few.”

  15. Ashura’a culmination of tragedies • Imam Ali’s enlightened leadership cut short by an assassin • Mu’awiya unilaterally declares himself Khalifa of the whole Islamic realm • To preserve unity and peace, Imam Hasan declines to resist Benu Umayya, but strikes an agreement • Yazid ibn Mu’awiya assumes power on his father’s demise

  16. Ashura’ the event10 Muharram 61 AH (10 October 680) • Rampant corruption and decline prompts Kufa people to plea to Imam Husain for rescue • At least 12,000 written entreaties are received by Imam Husain in Mecca • With his family and companions, Husain responds to the call, embarking on the last journey of his temporal life.

  17. Mecca to Karbala “We are the household of the Prophethood, the source of messengership, the descending-place of the angels. Through us the Almighty began showering His favors and with us He has perfected His favors, whereas Yazid is a sinful person, a drunkard, the killer of innocent people and one who openly indulges in sinful acts. A person like me can never pledge allegiance to a person like him…” “I am not rising (against Yazid) as an insolent or an arrogant person, or a mischief-monger or tyrant. I have risen as I seek to reform the Ummah of my grandfather [Muhammad].I wish to bid the good and forbid the evil.”

  18. Ashura’ the event10 Muharram 61 AH (10 October 680) • 5,000 Benu Umayya troops dispatched to force Imam Husain and his partisans to submit to Yazid • Abandoned by those who implored him to come, Imam Husain and 100 others reach the open desert of Karbala. • They are surrounded by Benu Umayya army.

  19. Ashura’ the event10 Muharram 61 AH (10 October 680) • Benu Ummayya cut off the Household of the Prophet and their families from drinking water. • Benu Ummayya ranks reinforced to >30,000 armed men • Imam Husain & companions spend 9th of Muharram in prayer and supplication—it is their last night. • This night, 30 soldiers broke ranks with Yazid to join in defending Imam Husain. • Among them was General Hurr al-Riyahi.

  20. Ashura’ the event10 Muharram 61 AH (10 October 680) • On the 10th day of Muharram, the last stand was made. • The partisans of Husain fought from morning until their last breath. • By the day’s end, 72 had perished, including: • 2 children of Imam Hasan, aged 13 and 11 • 3 children of Imam Husain, aged 18, 5, & Ali al-Asghar, just 6 months old • 2 children of Zainab • 5 brothers of Husain, (Abbas and his brothers) • 17 nephews of Imam Husain • 32 supporters: 8 Sahaaba of the Prophet and 20 of Ali’s companions

  21. Ashura’ the event10 Muharram 61 AH (10 October 680) • Facing Benu Umayya army alone after the deaths of all his defenders, Imam Husain finally fell. • Mortally wounded, he was killed while prostrating to the Almighty.

  22. Ashura’Temporal Repercussions • The killings at Karbala became a scandal convulsing the entire Umayya realm. • Potently negated vicious propaganda against Ahlul-Bayt • Revolts and rebellions spawned by the crime continued for over a decade. • Ashura was a principal force underlying the eventual demise of Benu Umayya.

  23. Ashura’ Temporal Repercussions • Imam Husain’s companions amplified the significance of their sacrifice • People of principle, not warriors • Included members of various tribes & clans from Arabia and beyond • an elderly companion of the Prophet • liberated slaves • a newlywed Christian couple • women, children, his entire family • Ensured this event would never be misrepresented (e.g., as a clan struggle or power grab)

  24. Ashura’Temporal Repercussions • Imam Husain laid the foundation of the revolution with his blood. • Zainab propelled the revolution with her oratory. • Scholarly & fearless speeches before Yazid • Dignitaries & foreign emissaries brought to tears by the account of the massacre • News spread like wildfire • Humiliation & scandal stirred an empire

  25. Ashura’Temporal Repercussions • Singly halted the progressive decline of Islamic ideology and reversion to pagan mores. • Many postulate that Islam as we know it may have self-extinguished were it not for Ashura’. • Put the lie to Benu Umayya “glory” as the face of Islam • Obstructed Benu Umayya’s practice of subverting the Sunnah • Concocting phony traditions to support their rule and denigrate their opposition—the Prophet’s lineage

  26. Ashura’Spiritual Symbolism • The ultimate representation of the clash of the spiritual versus the material • The ultimate triumph of an ideal over worldly force • The ultimate symbol of resistance to temptation and resistance to injustice • The ultimate sacrifice to restore the sanctity of the Islamic message

  27. Ashura’Spiritual Symbolism • In his stance, Imam Husain restored a system of life. • A real-life embodiment of rational justice • Conquering human baseness (savageness, brutality) and appetite (material greed & lust for power) with decency & reason • Confronting injustice to safeguard peace and security of human society perpetually

  28. Ashura’Spiritual Symbolism • The ultimate embodiment of the Shahaada: There is no deity but Almighty God.

  29. The relevance of Ashura’ to humanity today • “Every day is Ashura’ and every land is Karbala.” - Imam Ja’far As-Saadiq (as)

  30. The Relevance of Ashura’to humanity today • Simple, earthly level • Monarchy is unacceptable • Oppression must be resisted • Leadership must be for the people,not imposed upon them

  31. The Relevance of Ashura’ to humanity today • A higher, spiritual level • A reminder of the transientness of the material world versus the eternity of the spiritual • A reminder of the frailty of human logic • A reminder of our life’s purpose

  32. The Relevance of Ashura’to humanity today • A higher, spiritual level • An ultimate metaphor for the eternal choice between good and evil

  33. The Relevance of Ashura’to humanity today • A higher, spiritual level • A reminder of the power of faith exemplified by Ahlul Bayt.

  34. Ahlul Bayt Each new shock, each new sorrow, and each new misfortune, was a new test of their faith, and it remained unshaken. Their faith in the mercy of the Almighty was greater than anything that could ever befall them, and they never surrendered to despair.

  35. The spirit of Ashura’modern commentary • Sir Muhammad Iqbal: “Imam Husain uprooted despotism forever until the Day of Judgment. He watered the dry garden of freedom with the surging wave of his blood, and indeed he awakened the sleeping Muslim nation. If Imam Husain had aimed at acquiring a worldly empire, he would not have traveled as he did. Husain weltered in blood and dust for the sake of truth. Verily he, therefore, became the bedrock foundation of the Muslim creed: ‘There is no deity but Allah.’ ”

  36. The spirit of Ashura’modern commentary • Charles Dickens: “IfHusain had fought to quench his worldly desires, as alleged by certain Christian critics, then I do not understand why his sister, wife, and children accompanied him. It stands to reason therefore, that he sacrificed purely for Islam.”

  37. The spirit of Ashura’modern commentary • Thomas Carlyle: “The best lesson which we get from the tragedy of Cerebella is that Husain and his companions were rigid believers in God. They illustrated that numerical superiority does not count when it comes to truth and falsehood. The victory of Husain, despite his minority, marvels me!”

  38. The spirit of Ashura’modern commentary • Edward Gibbon: “In a distant age and climate, the tragic scene of the death of Husain will awaken the sympathy of the coldest reader.”

  39. The spirit of Ashura’modern commentary • William Muir: “The tragedy of Karbala decided not only the fate of the Caliphate, but also of [Muslim] kingdoms long after the Caliphate had waned and disappeared.”

  40. The spirit of Ashura’modern commentary • Edward G. Browne: “A reminder of that blood-stained field of Karbala, where the grandson of the Apostle of God fell, at length, tortured by thirst, and surrounded by the bodies of his murdered kinsmen, has been at anytime since then, sufficient to evoke, even in the most lukewarm and the heedless, the deepest emotion, the most frantic grief, and an exaltation of spirit before which pain, danger, and death shrink to unconsidered trifles.”

  41. The spirit of Ashura’modern commentary • Mohandas Gandhi: “I wanted to know the best of the life of one who holds today an undisputed sway over the hearts of millions of mankind.... I became more than ever convinced that it was not the sword that won a place for Islam in those days in the scheme of life. It was the rigid simplicity, the utter self-effacement of Husain the scrupulous regard for pledges, his intense devotion to his friends and followers, his intrepidity, his fearlessness, his absolute trust in God and in his own mission to save Islam. These and not the sword carried everything before them and surmounted every obstacle.”

  42. The spirit of Ashura’modern commentary • Mohandas Gandhi: “I have learned from Husain how to be oppressed yet victorious.”

  43. My advice to you is to be conscious of Allah and steadfast in your religion. • Do not yearn for the world, and do not be seduced by it. • Do not resent anything you have missed in it. • Proclaim the truth; work for the next world. • Oppose the oppressor and support the oppressed.

  44. Do not stop from enjoining to the good and forbidding evil. Should you do that, the worst among you would be your leaders, and you will call upon Allah without response.

  45. I advise you, and all my children, my relatives, and whosoever receives this message, to be conscious of Allah, to remove your differences, and to strengthen your ties. I heard your grandfather, peace be upon him, say:  `Reconciliation of your differences is more worthy than all prayers and all fasting.’

  46. My advice to you is to be conscious of Allah and steadfast in your religion. Do not yearn for the world, and do not be seduced by it. Do not resent anything you have missed in it. Proclaim the truth; work for the next world. Oppose the oppressor and support the oppressed.

  47. Remain attached to the Quran. Nobody should surpass you in being intent on it, or more sincere in implementing it. • Fear Allah in relation to your prayers. It is the pillar of your religion.

  48. Do not stop from enjoining to the good and forbidding evil. Should you do that, the worst among you would be your leaders, and you will call upon Allah without response.

More Related