Regarding the Commemoration of Imam al-Husayn on Ashura
Q. Is it permissible for Muslims to remember the murder of Ahlul Bayt and Imam Husayn on the day of Ashura? Also, are the miracles reported on that day attributed to the martyrdom of Ahlul Bayt such as the sky turning blood red etc. false and not reported by Ahlus Sunnah? Please clarify for us your view.
A. All Praise belongs to Allah and peace and blessings be upon His Final Messenger and his Family and righteous Companions.
Allah Most High says in the Holy Quran,
“Verily Allah intends to keep off from you every kind of uncleanness O' People of the House (Ahlul-Bayt), and purify you with a perfect purification". (Quran 33:33)
The Messenger of Allah is reported to have said while holding Imams Hasan and Husayn by the hand,
“He who will have love for me and these two and their father and mother shall be with me on the last day” (Tirmidhi)
The remembrance of the murder of the family of the Holy Prophet under the guidance of the pious Mashaikh is valid.
The commemoration of Karbala should be done so the Muslims may gain an understanding of the significant position of Ahlul Bayt, namely the Holy Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him and his family), Imam Ali, Lady Fatima, Imam Hasan and Imam Husayn. Its commemoration is comparable to the commemoration of mawlid which Ahlus Sunnah generally agrees with.
Ibn Hajar Asqalani’s work titled Asaba-fi-Magrek as Sahaba includes the following hadith, although termed by ulema as weak, yet attributed to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him regarding the mourning for Ahlul Bayt on the tenth of Muharram,
“He who shall shed tears on the tenth of Muharram (Ashura) for my child Husayn will be with the Prophets on the Day of Resurrection.”
Love for the Prophet's family is enjoined by Allah the Majestic in the Holy Qur'an, where He says: Say, 'I ask no other reward of you save love of my next of kin' (42:23).
Qur'an commentators from Ahlus Sunnah have generally agreed that 'the next of kin' here intended are Ahlul-Bayt. It should also be known that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, will ask his Nation regarding their treatment of them at the Hauz of Kawthar.
In regards to the miracles attributed to Karbala regarding the sky turning blood red due to the murder of Husayn bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), some ulema have verified and or endorsed these reports. For example, the famous Indian scholar, Mawlana Muhammad Yusuf Kandhlawi, included reports of the miracles attributed to the martyrdom of Ahlul Bayt in Volume II of his book Hayatus Sahabah (The Lives of the Sahabah) published by Idara Ishaat e Diniyaat, Delhi, India, under the heading, “CHANGES IN THE COSMOS OWING TO THE BLOODSHED OF THE COMPANIONS”. Mawlana Kandhlawi included reports of not only the sky turning blood red at the martyrdom of Al Husayn, but also included narrations which state that ‘whichever stone was lifted at Baitul-Muqaddas, fresh blood was found under it’ and that the Jinn could be heard from far lamenting the murder of Ahlul Bayt and that there was an immediate eclipse in the sky due to the murder of Husayn bin Ali (may Allah be well pleased with them).
Reproduced below is the passage from the book, which is from Ahlus Sunnah sources.
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CHANGES IN THE COSMOS OWING TO THE BLOODSHED OF THE COMPANIONS
Excerpted from Hayatus Sahabah: The Lives of the Sahabah. Vol II. Kandhalawi, Mawlana Muhammad Yusuf
It is reported from Rab’eeah bin Qaqeet that he was with ‘Amr bin ‘A’as in the year of battle between Mua’wiyah and Hazrat ‘Ali. When he was returning, fresh blood rained upon him. Rabee’ah says: ‘I have myself seen that I used to empty the vessel and it used to fill up again with fresh blood. The people thought that it was the same blood of the mutual fighting. So ‘Amr bin ‘A’as stood up and praised Allah with the thing of which is between you and Allah and then no harm can reach you even if these two mountains might clash with each other.’
Zhuri has said: ‘Abdul-Malik said to me: ‘With which lone sign that was found on the day of Hazrat Husayn’s murder are you incomparable?’ I said: ‘Which ever stone was lifted at Baitul-Muqaddas, fresh blood was found under it.’ So Abdul-Malik said: ‘I and you are comrades of each other in knowing this hadith’ (i.e., you are not alone in knowing it).
In another tradition Zhuri has stated that on the day of Hazrat Husayn bin ‘Ali’s murder, whichever stone was lifted in Syria, there was blood beneath it. From Umme-Hakim it is related that the day when Hazrat Husayn was martyred, the sky became jet red like thick blood and I was a child those days.
Abdul Qabeel stated that on the day of Hazrat Husayn’s martyrdom, there occurred a complete solar eclipse and right at noon the stars became visible and we thought that it was night.
The Genii’s Lamentation Over Imam Husayn’s Martyrdom
Hazrat Umm-e Salmah says that ‘I heard that the genii used to lament over Hazrat Husayn bin ‘Ali. She also stated: ‘I did not hear the genii’s lamentation after the death of the Messenger of Allah (sallallaho ‘alaihe wa sallam!), but tonight, and as far as I think, my son, i.e., Husayn has been martyred. She said to her slave-maid: ‘Go out and inquire.’ So that slave-maid was informed that he had been martyred. And suddenly a female jinn was lamenting over him, saying:
1. O Eye Beware! Shed tears over my toil. And who will cry over the martyrs after me?
2. Shed tears over a party which death is dragging towards one who, in spite of being slave, is an oppressor in the country.
Hazrat Maimunah says that she heard the genii that they were lamenting over Hazrat Husayn bin ‘Ali.
Source: Hayatus Sahabah: The Lives of the Sahabah. Vol II. Kandhalawi, Mawlana Muhammad Yusuf. Idara Ishaat e Diniyaat Book Depot, Hazrat Nizamuddin, New Delhi, India, 1992.
And Allah Knows Best!
Ahmed Amiruddin
