3 of 5 · 60 AH · 680 CE · Madinah, Makkah and the road to Iraq
Al-Husayn ibn 'Ali رضي الله عنه
The Road to Kufah
Al-Husayn grew up honoured by the caliphs after his grandfather, stood with his father 'Ali through the civil strife, and accepted his brother al-Hasan's peace. When Mu'awiyah died in 60 AH and his son Yazid succeeded him, al-Husayn declined to give his pledge and left Madinah for Makkah.
Letters came to him from Kufah in great numbers, urging him to come and lead them. He sent his cousin Muslim ibn 'Aqil ahead; many pledged to Muslim at first, but when 'Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad took control of Kufah for Yazid, the people abandoned Muslim, and he was killed.
Senior Companions in Makkah — among them 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas, 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar and Abu Sa'id al-Khudri — pleaded with al-Husayn not to go, reminding him how the Kufans had treated his father and brother. Out of sincere conviction, he set out with his family and a small band of companions toward Iraq.
Al-Husayn was advised by people who loved him and acted on his own conviction; both the advice and the conviction were sincere.
How do you weigh the advice of those who love you against what your conscience tells you?
- al-Tabari, Tarikh al-Rusul wa al-MulukHistorical report
- Ibn Kathir, al-Bidayah wa al-NihayahHistorical report
- al-Dhahabi, Siyar A'lam al-Nubala'Historical report
- Ibn Sa'd, al-Tabaqat al-KubraHistorical report
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