Who is Hussain ?
“I only desire to spread good values and prevent evil.”
– Hussain ibn Ali
Who is Hussain ?
Hussain was a 7th century revolutionary leader who made the ultimate stand for social justice in the face of corruption and tyranny. He gave everything, including his life, for the dignity of his society. Hussain ibn Ali was born in 620 AD in the city of Medina (in present day Saudi Arabia). He came from a family renown for their strong values of justice, charity and peace – the family of Muhammad (the Prophet of Islam). Hussain was widely respected across the lands of Arabia and beyond for his generosity, sincerity and wisdom.
Despite coming from a relatively privileged background and being a prominent figure in the Islamic Empire, Hussain would dismiss the grandeur of his status, in favour of breaking bread with the poor and needy. He challenged the status quo and brought people together.
Hussain, the Epitome of Love for God
Love always brings with it the idea of relationship; someone loves someone else. Love is like something that radiates from the giver, like the rays of light from the sun. God is the only being that existed before time began. It was God who loved the world into being. The creation itself is an act of love. Every creature that exists, whether on earth, in the sea or in the air, depends on light, water and air to exist. All these are gifts of the loving God, so we can say that no creature on earth can exist without being loved by God. In the same way, each plays its part in the great created order, and by so doing, this is their way of loving God in return.
Human beings are also loved by God, otherwise we could not exist. We have the ability to choose whether or not to love God in return. If we do, then we are like a flower opening out its petals to receive the rays from the sun. The flower blossoms, becomes beautiful and so fulfils its purpose on earth. In the same way, we human beings thrive and grow to our full potential by opening ourselves to receive the love of God. In turn, then, we are able to love in return. It is this love of God which should motivate every action that we make. God, does not create us for a relationship of fear, or for a relationship like a merchant measuring out every grain of rich in return for each small coin. God loves us without measure and so provides us with the capacity to love without measure in return. Every loving action becomes an act of worship of God. Every act of serving our family, community, society or the planet on which we live becomes an act inspired by the love of God our Creator. To say that we love God but do not love God’s creatures would be a nonsense. The love of God, just like the earth, air, sun and water, is meant to be shared.
We can look around us and in human history to see amazing examples of human beings expressing their love for God by loving their fellow human beings. Think of the nurses, doctors and scientists, who have worked heroically during the Coronavirus pandemic. They have not counted the costs in terms of their own well-being. Some of them have even lost their lives through serving others in need. Such a person in history was Hussain, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad. Hussain’s awareness of God was so intense that it prompted acts of love with every breath. Every act of worship or service was inspired by this love. This love purified him so that his being was like a perfectly polished mirror. The love of God shone on his life, like the sun on a polished mirror, so that it was reflected back towards God and all creation. When people reflect on his life and draw close to him in this way, it is as though we see the rays of God’s love shining out in everything that he did. In this way, he is often called the Friend of God, like someone so perfectly aligned with God that he is a constant reminder of that love which created us and keeps us all in existence.
Hussain had complete trust in God. There is no evil in God but only goodness and love. This means that everything that God wills must be to our benefit. Hussain’s first way of showing his love for God was by complete obedience to the way of life revealed by God so that human beings can thrive in this life and draw close to God in the life after death. This complete obedience meant loving everything that is good and opposing everything that is bad. Mere words are not enough: we cannot imagine a mother comforting a hungry child with loving words alone, she will express her love in action and feed the child. Hussain’s love for God drove him to imitate God’s goodness in all his actions. He forgave completely the man who brought him to the place of his last battle. He sought to avoid fighting and bloodshed if at all possible. He gave his servants their freedom so that they should not feel obliged to stand with him and risk their lives in the fighting. He gave his family members and friends the opportunity to save their lives rather than be killed in the battle that was to come. He was willing to sacrifice everything rather than give in to oppression and injustice. Everything meant not just his own life, but also the lives of family members and companions. Love knows no limits and so the love of God, of Truth and Justice, knows no limits as well. Love demands that everything should be sacrificed if necessary to stop the onward march of evil and injustice. That is the example of the supreme lover of God, Hussain, the grandson of Muhammad, the one who sacrificed everything on the Field of Karbala so that humankind should have a role model to see what heights human beings can ascend in their loving response to the love of God. If we say that we love God, how could we not also love such an exemplary Friend and Lover of God?
Arbaeen 2023
Who is Imam Hussain?
Can you imagine what any modern general would say to his troops before the battle?
His words would perhaps be, “Stand firm, stay with me, don’t leave!”
Now, what Hussain said to his companions before the battle in Karbala was that, “It’s me they want, not you, save yourselves, go away.”
It is because of these differences in attitudes towards human dignity that the love of Hussain never fades in people’s hearts.
6 thoughts on “Who is Hussain”
So beautiful 😍
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سلام
اجرتون با اباعبدالله حسین (ع)
مطالب زیباو درست بودن .
Ilove imam hussain alayhissalam
It’s the best way get to know hussain
Beautiful 🌹