Karbala Is a Trust, Not a Tear

🎒 The Backpack You Are Carrying

Imagine you are holding a backpack, and inside it are the tears, the sweat, and the blood of every righteous one and everything they sacrificed for Islam. We are in 2026. Think about how much you are carrying as one individual — from fourteen hundred years ago until today.

We learn to carry the legacy of our parents: their tradition, their culture, their belief, their name. I carry my father's and mother's name, my family name, my extended relatives. I carry the identity of my community. And I carry the weight of the Islamic nation as a whole. Imagine how much weight rests on your back — and Karbala by itself is a vast responsibility.

🕯 After the Tears, a Mission

When people hear the name Karbala, they immediately think of tears — weeping, mourning, crying for Imam Hussain, for Ali al-Akbar, for Abbas, for al-Qasim, for the children, for Abdullah, for the companions. These tears are sacred. There is a narration that the angels gather these tears and that they will be a means of our salvation on the Day of Judgment. This is part of believing in the unseen — if you do not believe in the unseen, you will not accept a narration like the one recorded in books such as Bihar.

But tonight we ask: after the tears, what did Imam Hussain want from us?

When you cry, you light a fire inside you. That fire is energy. The question is what you do with that energy — how you use it to lift yourself and lift others. So was Karbala merely an event to remember — history we recall, plays we perform, lectures we hold, tears we shed, and then nothing once the tenth has passed? Or is it a mission to carry?

We are at the start of Muharram, the beginning of the Islamic year. We are recharging our intellects, our souls, our hearts — turning that into an energy we carry through the entire year.

⚖️ Why Did the Imam Rise?

When you start a movement, you need a leader, a vision, and a mission — and afterward you must examine whether you achieved what you rose for. Every movement has objectives; if you fulfil them, you have succeeded.

So why did Imam Hussain rise? He himself answered it in the famous message he sent to his brother Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya:

إِنِّي لَمْ أَخْرُجْ أَشِرًا وَلَا بَطِرًا وَلَا مُفْسِدًا وَلَا ظَالِمًا، وَإِنَّمَا خَرَجْتُ لِطَلَبِ الْإِصْلَاحِ فِي أُمَّةِ جَدِّي
Innī lam akhruj ashiran wa-lā baṭiran wa-lā mufsidan wa-lā ẓāliman, wa-innamā kharajtu li-ṭalabi l-iṣlāḥi fī ummati jaddī
"I did not rise out of arrogance, vanity, corruption, or oppression. Rather, I rose seeking reform in the nation of my grandfather."

He did not rise for money, fame, or power. He is Hussain — there are verses of the Qur'an revealed about him; he needs validation from no one. Notice what he did not say: he did not say he rose for power, leadership, or revenge. This was never a political feud between him and his cousin Yazid, as the internet would have you believe. He said: I rose to reform, to revive goodness, to stop and condemn evil.

And notice the level. He did not say "I rose to reform individuals." He said to reform the nation as a whole. Were the Muslims praying in the year 61 after Hijra? Yes. Fasting? Yes. Performing Hajj? Yes. But certain obligations had died at the level of the nation — and chief among them was enjoining good and forbidding evil.

Therefore Karbala is not simply a tragedy. It is a responsibility. It is not remembrance for history's sake. It is a mission.

🌿 Islam Rejects Isolation

There is no such thing as taking "a spiritual route" — retreating to a cave to worship alone twenty-four hours a day and leaving society to itself. There is no avoiding marriage forever because it brings trials and pressures, then calling that piety.

When you finish the revolution at the individual level, you must begin the revolution at the social level. The more you condemn evil in society, the more it shows that your spiritual light is growing.

طَلَبُ الْحَاجَةِ إِلَى... — the reward of social service outweighs solitary worship

Guiding a single soul is better than all that the sun has risen upon. Reconciling two spouses is better than the prayer and fasting of an entire community. The reward for social service in Islam is far greater than the reward for individual worship alone.

Every prophet was a reformer. None of them fled to a cave and left society drowning in darkness, doubt, and moral, ethical, psychological, and spiritual ruin. Every prophet confronted falsehood:

• Prophet Nuh against the idol-worshippers
• Ibrahim against Nimrod
• Musa against Pharaoh
• Isa against the corrupt scholars who twisted the Torah, and the Roman Empire
• Prophet Muhammad against the entire world of his age

Every prophet, every saint, every righteous one had enemies at the social level — and that is the proof that they were reformers, engaged in the social struggle.

Roughly seventy percent of Islam is social obligation, not individual ritual. Islam is not merely physical rituals you perform so you can enter Paradise. The rituals take perhaps half an hour to an hour of your day, with spiritual seasons like Ramadan and Hajj. The rest is the social struggle — your parents, your spouse, your children, your siblings, your family, your friends, your neighbours: judging between people, fixing problems, removing evil and doubt. This is what Imam Hussain was teaching us. This is why he rose.

📿 God's Mission From the Beginning

Why is this obligation so important? Because Allah Himself has a mission. When He created Adam and said He would place a deputy on earth, the angels objected:

أَتَجْعَلُ فِيهَا مَنْ يُفْسِدُ فِيهَا وَيَسْفِكُ الدِّمَاءَ
A-tajʿalu fīhā man yufsidu fīhā wa-yasfiku d-dimāʾ
"Will You place upon it one who will cause corruption there and shed blood?"

Notice: the angels spoke of social corruption — bloodshed and corruption — not private sins like lying. Allah's mission is to prove to the angels that He can send a being equipped with intellect, desire, anger, imagination, and free will, place billions of them on one planet, and have them freely choose Him and His way. That is what we mean by spreading justice and peace across the world after it had been filled with injustice and tyranny — a promise the Imam al-Mahdi will complete.

So the only way is for us to become positive social and spiritual energies that pave the way for his arrival — planting seeds of righteousness, justice, peace, and equality, so that when the Imam comes he finds places on earth already prepared for the global revolution.

Islam is for both personal perfection and social perfection: purifying yourself, building your bond with Allah, developing faith, and improving your character — and then lifting others. Allah sent the Prophet:

يُزَكِّيهِمْ وَيُعَلِّمُهُمُ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ
Yuzakkīhim wa-yuʿallimuhumu l-kitāba wa-l-ḥikmah
"...to purify them and teach them the Book and wisdom."

Look at the wording — them, not him. This is not the movement of one isolated individual. You cannot retreat to a cave and worship alone until you die, fleeing society's problems. You must be in the midst of it, fixing it, learning from it, developing the skills and experience that awaken the leadership within you, so each of us can lead a small group and we can grow as a community.

When you run to the cave and pray alone, sometimes that is selfishness. When you forget yourself and think about how to lift others, that is selflessness. The Prophet said:

By Allah, there is nothing more beloved than to say a good word to others, to lift people's spirits, and to help them.

If my brother falls, I help him rise. If my sister struggles, I help her return. If my community weakens, I strengthen it. This is why it is recommended to revive an abandoned mosque, and why it is more meritorious to go to the places that have few people — so that your spirituality can help that place rise — rather than always seeking out the crowded, full house.

🌙 The Value of Enjoining Good and Forbidding Evil

كُنْتُمْ خَيْرَ أُمَّةٍ أُخْرِجَتْ لِلنَّاسِ تَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَتَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَتُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ
Kuntum khayra ummatin ukhrijat li-n-nāsi taʾmurūna bi-l-maʿrūfi wa-tanhawna ʿani l-munkari wa-tuʾminūna bi-Llāh
"You are the best nation brought forth for mankind: you enjoin what is right, forbid what is wrong, and believe in Allah."

Today everyone says, "I don't care — mind your own business," blocking every avenue for you to fulfil this duty.

Look at Luqman the Wise and the will he gave his son. After "establish prayer" he did not say "fast." He said:

يَا بُنَيَّ أَقِمِ الصَّلَاةَ وَأْمُرْ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَانْهَ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَاصْبِرْ عَلَىٰ مَا أَصَابَكَ
Yā bunayya aqimi ṣ-ṣalāta wa-ʾmur bi-l-maʿrūfi wa-nha ʿani l-munkari wa-ṣbir ʿalā mā aṣābak
"O my son, establish prayer, enjoin good, forbid evil, and be patient over what befalls you."

Notice the sequence: prayer → responsibility → patience. You need patience because once you take up this social duty, you will face problems. You become a spiritual warrior, a soldier living every day to remove evil from the hearts and minds of people.

A third verse:

وَلْتَكُن مِّنكُمْ أُمَّةٌ يَدْعُونَ إِلَى الْخَيْرِ وَيَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنكَرِ ۚ وَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ
Wa-l-takun minkum ummatun yadʿūna ilā l-khayri wa-yaʾmurūna bi-l-maʿrūfi wa-yanhawna ʿani l-munkar, wa-ulāʾika humu l-mufliḥūn
"Let there arise from among you a group calling to goodness, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong. It is they who are the successful."

They become successful only after establishing these two obligations — obligations that, in 2026, are still dead.

This duty knows no gender. The wife enjoins good upon her husband and the husband upon the wife. There is no "male versus female" here — it is a divine obligation, and Allah will ask each of us. On the Day of Judgment, if I called someone my friend yet never enjoined good or forbade evil to him, never helped him rise, Allah will question me about him. That is why Allah said many close friends will flee from one another that Day:

الْأَخِلَّاءُ يَوْمَئِذٍ بَعْضُهُمْ لِبَعْضٍ عَدُوٌّ إِلَّا الْمُتَّقِينَ
Al-akhillāʾu yawmaʾidhin baʿḍuhum li-baʿḍin ʿaduwwun illā l-muttaqīn
"Close friends, that Day, will be enemies to one another, except the righteous."

And the believers' bond:

وَالْمُؤْمِنُونَ وَالْمُؤْمِنَاتُ بَعْضُهُمْ أَوْلِيَاءُ بَعْضٍ ۚ يَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنكَرِ
Wa-l-muʾminūna wa-l-muʾminātu baʿḍuhum awliyāʾu baʿḍ, yaʾmurūna bi-l-maʿrūfi wa-yanhawna ʿani l-munkar
"The believing men and believing women are allies of one another; they enjoin what is good and forbid what is evil."

They hold a spiritual authority over one another. This is why Sayyida Zaynab could stand before Yazid and all his men and expose his falsehood. This is why Sayyida Fatima, after the Prophet's departure, went to the mosque and delivered her sermon, exposing darkness. This is why the wife of Pharaoh could stand against her own husband.

This obligation gives you dignity, honour, a strong identity, and a strong presence. When you see something wrong and say nothing, you lose that dignity and self-respect. It was said of Abbas that anyone doing something forbidden in the streets of Kufa would run away before Abbas even saw him — such was the character he had built. This is why it is forbidden to sit at a table where wine is being consumed: you carry a social identity, and people must respect that spiritual presence.

By the One in whose Hand is my soul, people spending in charity is not dearer than speaking good.

The best form of charity is a good word. And:

The one who guides to good is like the one who performs it.

Guide someone to pray, and as long as they pray, you gain that reward. Sometimes carrying the message begins with one message, one invitation, one act of kindness, one reason for someone to return to Allah. We need not turn everything into money. Sitting with someone for one hour can change his entire future — investing your time is charity.

🪞 Wisdom Before Preaching

Many of us love to enjoin good and forbid evil — but sometimes we ruin and destroy more than we build. Allah emphasised wisdom:

ادْعُ إِلَىٰ سَبِيلِ رَبِّكَ بِالْحِكْمَةِ وَالْمَوْعِظَةِ الْحَسَنَةِ
Udʿu ilā sabīli rabbika bi-l-ḥikmati wa-l-mawʿiẓati l-ḥasanah
"Call to the way of your Lord with wisdom and good admonition."

Wisdom is to say the right thing, in the right time, in the right place. Not everyone sits at the same spiritual or intellectual level — yet everyone is perfect at their own level. I may examine a person and understand his state, but Allah has not given me the authority to judge him. If someone is at level ten out of a hundred, I must descend to his level and lift him up; I cannot preach at level sixty to a man at level ten. The deeper you descend to lift someone, the greater the intensity of your mercy. This is why the Prophet was a mercy to all mankind — being the highest, he descended all the way down to lift us up.

Imam Ali said many times that if he spoke at his own level, no one would understand and they would only grow more confused. Some of the supplications the Imams left us are profoundly complex, because the Imam is speaking to Allah at his level, not ours.

Our scholars said: if there is no hope the person will be guided, or if you will ruin more than you fix, or if you yourself will be harmed — then you are not obligated. If I know for certain that forbidding evil will only bring harm upon me, it is not upon me. But if I have hope and confidence, and I trust that the person will listen, then I must act — and if I am the only one, I must act alone.

Every personality has a key. This is why, especially when young, you must be present socially, part of a community — because every interaction teaches you, builds your skills. As scholars we tried things that failed and things that worked; we took notes and built on them until we could deal with every age, every perspective, every ideology. Many people know what to say. Few know how to say it and when.

When Imam Hassan and Imam Hussain were children, they saw an old man performing his wudu incorrectly. Rather than shame him, they cleverly asked him to judge between them — to watch each of them perform wudu and say whose was correct. Seeing them both do it properly, the old man realised, "Now I know that my wudu was wrong." He then went to the Prophet and praised how his grandchildren taught people.

Contrast that with what the Shaykh witnessed himself: after Fajr prayer in a mosque in Lebanon, two old men were screaming at each other in the ablution area. One had told the other, "Aren't you ashamed — you're in your fifties and your wudu is still wrong?" He ruined it. That man, the Shaykh believes, never returned to that mosque. That is what it looks like when there is no wisdom.

So be merciful, be wise. Remember that Allah is Mercy — sometimes He accepts our worship even when we do it imperfectly. And remember: Allah judges each of us according to our own capacity and ability. There is no single template of judgment for everyone — the more proof, knowledge, and understanding you are given, and the more teachers Allah places around you, the more you will be questioned.

🩸 When Good People Stay Silent

Among the most frightening narrations comes from Imam al-Baqir. He said that Allah revealed to one of His prophets:

إِنِّي مُعَذِّبٌ مِنْ قَوْمِكَ مِائَةَ أَلْفٍ، أَرْبَعِينَ أَلْفًا مِنْ شِرَارِهِمْ وَسِتِّينَ أَلْفًا مِنْ خِيَارِهِمْ
Innī muʿadhdhibun min qawmika miʾata alf, arbaʿīna alfan min shirārihim wa-sittīna alfan min khiyārihim
"I shall punish a hundred thousand of your people: sixty thousand of the wicked and forty thousand of the righteous."

The prophet said: "My Lord, I understand the wicked — but why the righteous?" Allah replied:

لِأَنَّهُمْ دَاهَنُوا أَهْلَ الْمَعَاصِي وَلَمْ يَغْضَبُوا لِغَضَبِي
Li-annahum dāhanū ahla l-maʿāṣī wa-lam yaghḍabū li-ghaḍabī
"Because they compromised with the people of sin and were not angered for My sake."

Sin had been normalised — "I'm cool with everything around me." This is the lesson of Kufa. Not all of its people were murderers; we cannot curse them all. Many in Kufa never struck Imam Hussain, never carried a sword against him, never shot an arrow — they simply stayed silent. Yet in the ziyarat of Imam Hussain we curse:

the ones who killed you, the ones who oppressed you — and the ones who heard of it and remained silent.

Those who are silent are indirectly leading to more evil. Allah warned us through the story of the people of the Sabbath. He forbade them to fish on Saturdays, so they laid their nets on Friday and collected the catch on Sunday, thinking they could deceive Allah. When the punishment came, it did not fall only on the ones who fished — it also struck those who tried to stop others from advising them:

وَإِذْ قَالَتْ أُمَّةٌ مِّنْهُمْ لِمَ تَعِظُونَ قَوْمًا ۙ اللَّهُ مُهْلِكُهُمْ أَوْ مُعَذِّبُهُمْ عَذَابًا شَدِيدًا ۖ قَالُوا مَعْذِرَةً إِلَىٰ رَبِّكُمْ وَلَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَّقُونَ
Wa-idh qālat ummatun minhum lima taʿiẓūna qawman, Allāhu muhlikuhum aw muʿadhdhibuhum ʿadhāban shadīdā? Qālū maʿdhiratan ilā rabbikum wa-laʿallahum yattaqūn
"When a group among them said, 'Why do you advise a people whom Allah is about to destroy or punish severely?' They replied, 'As an excuse before your Lord, and perhaps they may become God-conscious.'"

Notice — the believers did not say "we are guaranteed success." They said perhaps. We cannot stay silent. Condemning falsehood is one of the very ways Allah wishes to see us. There is halal and there is haram; I cannot keep only the halal and forget the haram. I cannot reach Allah without first rejecting the false gods — there is no god (the negation) before but Allah. I cannot stand in the light if I have not first exposed and condemned the darkness.

✋ Three Levels: Hand, Tongue, Heart

The Prophet taught this hadith:

مَنْ رَأَىٰ مِنْكُمْ مُنْكَرًا فَلْيُغَيِّرْهُ بِيَدِهِ، فَإِنْ لَمْ يَسْتَطِعْ فَبِلِسَانِهِ، فَإِنْ لَمْ يَسْتَطِعْ فَبِقَلْبِهِ، وَذَٰلِكَ أَضْعَفُ الْإِيمَانِ
Man raʾā minkum munkaran fa-l-yughayyirhu bi-yadih, fa-in lam yastaṭiʿ fa-bi-lisānih, fa-in lam yastaṭiʿ fa-bi-qalbih, wa-dhālika aḍʿafu l-īmān
"Whoever sees an evil, let him change it with his hand; if he cannot, then with his tongue; if he cannot, then with his heart — and that is the weakest of faith."

With the hand — some believers, by Allah's grace, can confront and condemn darkness with action. The Prophet said Islam was established by two things: the wealth of Khadija and the sword of Ali — alongside, of course, the convincing message of the Prophet himself. You have the leader, the light, the message — but you also need the pillar of wealth and the pillar of strength. You need both.

With the tongue — if you cannot act, then speak a righteous word for the sake of Allah.

With the heart — and if you cannot even speak, then keep alive within you the conviction that what is haram remains haram to you. When we were young and a forbidden scene appeared on the television, we would run from it because it was so clearly displeasing to Allah. After twenty years of social media, hasn't everything been normalised? The Imam, speaking of the end of times, foretold exactly this — that things would become normalised — and warned us to be careful, cautious, and responsible.

Start with your family: those who share your blood are closest to you, so prioritise them, then relatives, then close companions. But it must finally happen as a community — we must rise with it together, or we have taken nothing from the Imams.

Do not abandon enjoining good and forbidding evil, or the worst among you will be set in authority over you; then you will pray, and your prayer will not be answered.

And the Prophet said:

My nation will remain in goodness as long as they enjoin good, forbid evil, and cooperate in righteousness. If they fail to do so, the blessings will be lifted from them.

Imam Hussain himself spoke this very theme in Karbala:

أَلَا تَرَوْنَ أَنَّ الْحَقَّ لَا يُعْمَلُ بِهِ وَأَنَّ الْبَاطِلَ لَا يُتَنَاهَىٰ عَنْهُ
A-lā tarawna anna l-ḥaqqa lā yuʿmalu bih, wa-anna l-bāṭila lā yutanāhā ʿanh
"Do you not see that the truth is no longer acted upon, and falsehood is no longer forbidden?"

And:

قَدْ مَاتَتِ السُّنَّةُ وَأُحْيِيَتِ الْبِدْعَةُ
Qad mātati s-sunnah wa-uḥyiyati l-bidʿah
"Indeed the Sunnah has died and innovation has been revived."

He said that if the ummah is afflicted with a ruler like Yazid — an open sinner, one who sins publicly rather than secretly — then "recite the Fatiha over this religion." The one who sins openly exposes himself; that is why the Imam declared he must be confronted. They knew many things about Yazid's father Muawiya too, but did not expose them publicly, because Muawiya did not commit his indecencies in the open.

🌱 The Practical Homework

So be cautious. Watch over your children; guard them from exposure, keep watch over their phones.

If you truly want to become like Imam Hussain and carry this message, here is your homework for tomorrow: invite one person to this majlis. Think of one person and bring them with you. If each of us worked on one individual every year, our numbers would double by next year. As simple as that.

• Share one beneficial reminder each week with someone.
• Be known for good character.
• Correct people privately and wisely.
• Join one area of community service; be an active member.
• Invest your time, your money, your energy — invest everything — so we rise as a group and please Allah.

🕊 The Lonely Ambassador — Muslim ibn Aqeel

Tonight we have spoken of carrying responsibility, of being messengers of truth, and of how guidance is not always delivered through speeches and sermons. Sometimes it is carried through character, sacrifice, and unwavering loyalty to Allah. Be just; lead by example.

Among the greatest examples of this responsibility was Muslim ibn Aqeel. Imam Hussain entrusted him with a mission that would determine the fate of the whole movement of Karbala. He was sent with no army and no wealth. Muslim went alone — a representative, a messenger, a bearer of trust. And he carried that trust with complete faithfulness. Even when the people abandoned him, even when the streets of Kufa emptied, even when he stood entirely alone, he never abandoned his duty to Imam Hussain.

Now let us turn our hearts to the lonely ambassador of al-Hussain, the first martyr on the road to Karbala.

When Kufa betrayed him, Muslim was left alone in its streets, confused and broken. He did not know where to turn his face, which door would open, which home would welcome a stranger. He was trying to leave Kufa by night to carry Imam Hussain a message: do not travel here. He walked through the darkness, his thoughts circling like a storm, his heart shattered — until a house appeared before him. He stopped at its door while the fire of oppression burned in his chest.

He reached the door of a righteous woman named Tawʿa. He asked her for water; she brought it and he drank. She went inside with the vessel, but when she came out again she found him still standing at her door. Surprised, she said, "O servant of Allah, did you drink?" "Yes." "Then go back to your family." Muslim was silent. She repeated it a second time; he did not answer. The third time, she looked closely and saw upon his face the signs of fiery dignity and righteousness. She said, "Glory be to Allah, O servant of Allah — may Allah keep you safe. Go to your family; it is not proper for you to sit at the door of my house, and I do not permit it."

With a broken heart he answered, "O servant of Allah, I am a stranger. I have no family in this city, no tribe, no home in this land. Will you do a good deed for me — perhaps I may repay you after this day?" She said, "Who are you, that you would repay me on the Day of Judgment?" He said, "I am a stranger, and perhaps you do not know me. But if you let me stay tonight, I will repay you on that Day — the Day when every soul will need its reward. O noble woman, do not leave me outside. Let me be your guest until morning." She asked, "Where is your family?" "Far away." "Then do not speak of repayment."

His eyes filled with tears, his voice broke, and he revealed his name: "I am Muslim ibn Aqeel, and my cousin is Imam Hussain. Kufa has betrayed me. They pledged allegiance to me, then broke their pledge. They deceived me, lied to me, drew me out of my homeland, and abandoned me." When Tawʿa heard the name of Muslim, her face changed and her heart trembled. She said, "May my soul be sacrificed for you, O Muslim. You have come to my house — then this house and all that is in it belongs to you. Enter. Spend the night as my honoured guest. Rest, O ambassador of Hussain."

That night Muslim entered her house, but he did not sleep. He spent the night standing, bowing, and prostrating before Allah — whispering to his Lord in prayer, in supplication, in tears, in farewell. The night passed and Muslim did not sleep, standing before Allah until the light of morning appeared.

But Tawʿa's son, Bilal — a wretched, greedy heart — returned in the night and discovered Muslim in the house. Coveting a reward, he went and informed the soldiers. When morning came and the army of Ibn Ziyad surrounded the house, Muslim understood what had happened. He thanked Tawʿa for her kindness — the woman who had sheltered him when an entire city betrayed him.

Then the soldiers stormed in. Muslim rose with his sword and came out to face them, crying:

أَقْسَمْتُ لَا أُقْتَلُ إِلَّا حُرًّا
Aqsamtu lā uqtalu illā ḥurran
"O soul, come out toward death — for there is no escape from it."

He fought them with the courage of Banu Hashim, driving them from the house, then fighting them through the streets of Kufa — one man against an army, one stranger against the city of betrayal, one loyal heart against a thousand false tongues. They struck him with swords, threw stones, burned him with fire, pierced him with spears, shot him with arrows. They struck his blessed mouth and wounded his pure face. They dug a pit and covered it with dirt, and when Muslim came forward he fell into it, wounded and exhausted.

They gathered around and seized him as a prisoner. As they carried the ambassador of Hussain away, Muslim began to weep. One of them sneered, "A man who seeks what you sought does not cry when this befalls him." Muslim answered: "By Allah, I am not crying for myself. I do not weep out of fear of death. I weep for my family who are coming toward this land. I cry for Hussain and the family of Hussain." — Meaning: if you have done this to me, what will you do to my master?

They brought him to the palace. At the gate he saw a vessel of water; thirst had overtaken him, his wounds had drained his strength, his broken mouth still bleeding. He asked for water. Some refused; another brought a cup. But every time he tried to drink, the cup filled with blood from his wounded mouth. He tried again — the blood flowed into the water. He tried again, until his teeth fell into the cup. Muslim looked at the water and said, "If this had been part of my destined provision, I would have drunk it." Even in his thirst, Muslim was sharing the grief of Hussain.

He tasted loneliness before Hussain. He tasted wounds before Hussain. He tasted thirst before Hussain. He tasted betrayal before Hussain.

They brought him before Ibn Ziyad, and Muslim refused to greet him. The guard said, "Will you not greet the governor?" Muslim replied, "Woe to you — he is not my governor." Ibn Ziyad said, "Whether you greet me or not, you will be killed." He ordered Muslim taken to the top of the palace and his neck struck from above.

As they led him to the rooftop, Muslim was glorifying Allah, praising Him, and sending blessings upon the Prophet and his family. At the highest point of the palace he turned his face toward the Hijaz — toward the direction of Hussain, his master — and called out: "I have been killed. Turn back and do not come to them. The people of Kufa betrayed me; they pledged allegiance to me and handed me over to the wicked; they have all abandoned me."

The people had gathered below the palace, and among them was Tawʿa, the loyal woman, come to see what had become of her guest. Suddenly the head of Muslim was thrown down from the top of the palace, and then his pure body cast after it. Yet even that was not enough for them: they dragged the body of Muslim through the markets of Kufa, all day long.

O Muslim — the lonely one.

اللَّهُمَّ عَجِّلْ لِوَلِيِّكَ الْفَرَجَ
Allāhumma ʿajjil li-waliyyika l-faraj
"O Allah, hasten the appearance of our Imam."

And make us all His most dedicated and sincere servants. O Allah.