consequences to protect Islam.
So on the 8th of Zilhajj 60 hijri, 50
people from among his family and
companions set out with him. His
Uncle Ibn e Abbas and his brother
Muhammad e Hanfiya did not go with
him, but they did come to bid farewell
and to inform them of the dangers
ahead. Imam (as) left a letter with his
brother which explained his position
clearly. The letter said:
"I have not come out to stir
emotions, to play with oppression. I
want to bring the Ummah back to
the path of Amr bil maroof and
Nayih Anil Munkir. I want to lead
them to the path of my grandfather
and and my father Ali ibn Abi Talib
(as)."
So the Imam (as) began his journey and
reached Saffah where he met a poet
named Farazzdaq. He then reached
Dhat el Irq where his cousin Abdullah
Ibn Jaffar brought his two sons Aun
and Muhammad to their mother
Hazrat Zainab (as) and to help the
Imam. He did try to convince him to
return to Madinah but he (as) replied :
"My destiny is in the hands of
Allah"
Moving on he reached Batn e Rumma,
then Zarud, where he was again told to
return to Madinah but he remained
steadfast and firm. At Zarud, he (as)
met a man named Zohair who was not
among the supporters of Ahlulbait.
Imam (as) told him the purpose of his
journey and Zohair said that he wished
to be martyred with the Imam (as).
Imam then reached Zabala where he
heard the news of the martyrdom of
his cousin, Hazrat Muslim (pbuh). He
then went on to Batn e Aqeeq and
passed through Zuhasm. Imam (as)
reached Baiza the next day where he
delivered one of his most famous
sermons:
"'O People, the Prophet has said
that if a man sees a tyrannical ruler
transgressing against Allah (swt)
and the Prophet (sawas) and
oppressing people but does nothing
by word or action to change the
situation then it will be just for
Allah (swt) to place him where
he deserved to belong. Do you not see
to what low level the affairs have
come down... Do you not observe
that truth has not adhered to and
falsehood has no limit. And as for
me, I look upon death as but a
means of attaining martyrdom and
I consider life among transgressors
as nothing but an agony and an
affliction."
He (as) then stayed for a while at
Uzaibul Hajanatwas, Qasr-e-Bani
Maqatil, Nainawa and finally reached
Karbala. Imam (as) sighed and asked
the people for the name of that place.
When someone replied with "Karbala"
the Imam (as) said:
"Yes this is the place of Kerbin wa
Bala (i.e a place of pain and
torture), let us stop here for we have
reached at our destination. This is
the place of our martyrdom. This is
Karbala."
And so on his orders the tents were
erected near the river which was a
tributary of River Eupherates some
miles away. The date was 2nd
Muharram 61 hijri. Since yazid (l.a)
had ordered his army to seize the
allegiance of Imam (as) to him even by
brutal force, his army had to assemble
around the camp of Imam (as) and cut
off the basic necessities to the camp,
but the Imam (as) and his companions
and friends still stayed steadfast and
firm. In Karbala, Hussain (as), the 57
year old grandson of Prophet (sawas)
sacrificed all that he had for one goal.
The goal was to let the truth win over
falsehood. And Imam (as) succeeded in
exposing the disreputable nature of
Banu Ummayah though this was at the
expense of his life.