STRAIGHTPATHMONTHLY December 2011
46
SHAAM-E-GHAREEBAN, THE NIGHT OF
HOMELESS
By: Akil Kanani
It was after Asr on the day of Ashura. Imam Hussain
(pbuh) lay dead. The earth had trembled! Furaat had broken
its banks! From the camp of the family of the Holy Prophet
(pbuhahf) such lamentation arose as had never been heard
before!
'Umar son of Saad' received a letter from 'Ubayd Allah
son of Ziyad'. The Governor of Kufa instructed that they
should not be satisfied with the death of Imam Hussain (pbuh).
His body must be subjected to the ultimate insult of being
trampled by the hooves of horses. And this was done to the
Grandson of the Holy Prophet (pbuhahf)!
As the sun was setting in the horizon, the soldiers rushed to
the camp of Imam Hussain pbuh in search of booty. They
looted every tent. Every lady and every girl was stripped of her
veil. The daughters of Fatima a.s were left bareheaded. The
ear-rings that were given to Sakina a.s that were given to her
from her father, were pulled from her ears, splitting her ear
lobes. When the little girl pleaded for her veil to be left
untouched, she was slapped.
Surely they would stop now? But they did not. They set
fire to all the tents. Zainab pbuh was very distressed. She
turned to Imam Zainul Abideen pbuh and said "You are our
Imam now. Tell us what we should do now, should we
stay in our tents and burn, or go out without our veils?"
Imam Zainul Abideen pbuh told her that it was their religious
duty to try and save their lives. Zaina