المجالس العاشورية في المآتم الحسينية

you are saying? Make us understand, so that we may understand.

He said: I say: Fear God, your Lord, and do not kill me, for it is not lawful for you to kill me, nor to violate my sanctity. For I am the son of the daughter of your Prophet, and my grandmother is Khadija, the wife of your Prophet. Perhaps the saying of your Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) has reached you: Hassan and Hussein are the chiefs of the youth of Paradise.

Sheikh al-Mufid (may God have mercy on him) said: And al-Husayn (peace be upon him) called for his mount and rode it, and called out at the top of his voice: O people of Iraq! — and most of them were listening — He said: O people! Hear my words, and do not hasten, until I admonish you concerning what is rightly due to you from me, and until I present to you my excuse. If you grant me what is fair, you will thereby be more fortunate; but if you do not grant me fairness from yourselves, then gather your affair, and let not your decision be obscured to you. Then settle your matter against me and do not give me respite. Indeed, my Protector is God, who sent down the Book, and He is the Guardian of the righteous.

Then he praised God and extolled Him, and remembered God with what He is worthy of, and invoked blessings upon the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), upon His angels, and upon His prophets. No speaker, before him or after him, was ever heard more eloquent than he in speech.

Then he said: As for what follows — trace my lineage and see who I am. Then return to yourselves and reproach them, and consider: is it lawful for you to kill me and violate my sanctity? Am I not the son of the daughter of your Prophet, the son of his successor and his cousin, and the first believer who affirmed the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family) in what he brought from his Lord? Was not Hamza, the chief of martyrs, my uncle? Was not Ja'far the Flyer, who soars in Paradise with two wings, my uncle? Has it not reached you what the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family) said concerning me and my brother: These two are the chiefs of the youth of Paradise? If you believe me in what I say — and it is the truth, for by God I have never deliberately told a lie since I knew that God despises those who tell it — and if you disbelieve me, then among you are those who, if you ask them about it, will inform you. Ask Jabir ibn Abdullah al-Ansari, Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, Sahl ibn Sa'd al-Sa'idi, Zayd ibn Arqam, and Anas ibn Malik — they will tell you that they heard this saying from the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family) concerning me and my brother. Is there not in this enough to restrain you from shedding my blood?

Shimr ibn Dhi al-Jawshan said to him: He worships God only on the edge of doubt, if he even understands what you say. Habib ibn Muzahir said to him: By God, I see that you worship God upon seventy edges of doubt, and I bear witness that you speak truly when you say that he does not understand what he says — God has set a seal upon your heart.

Then al-Husayn (peace be upon him) said to them: If you are in doubt about this, do you then doubt that I am the son of the daughter of your Prophet? By God, there is between the East and the West no son of a prophet's daughter other than me, neither among you nor among others. Woe to you! Do you seek me for some slain man of yours whom I have killed? Or for some wealth of yours that I have destroyed? Or in retaliation for a wound?

But they began to give him no answer, so he called out: O Shabath ibn Rib'i! O Hajjar ibn Abjar! O Qays ibn al-Ash'ath! O Yazid ibn al-Harith! Did you not write to me that the fruits had ripened, and the meadows had turned green, and that I would be coming to an army marshaled for you? Qays ibn al-Ash'ath said to him: We do not know what you are saying. Rather, submit to the judgment of your cousins, for they will show you nothing but what you love. Al-Husayn (peace be upon him) said to them: No, by God, I will not give you my hand like a man humiliated, nor will I submit to you like a slave.

Then he called out: O servants of God! I have taken refuge in my Lord and your Lord lest you stone me, and I seek refuge in my Lord and your Lord from every arrogant one who does not believe in the Day of Reckoning.

Then he made his mount kneel and ordered Uqba ibn Sam'an to hobble it, and they began to advance toward him (1).

And in al-Manaqib, it is narrated with its chain of transmission from Abdullah, who said: When Umar ibn Sa'd arranged his companions to fight al-Husayn ibn Ali (peace be upon them both), and set them in their ranks, and raised the banners in their places, and arranged the men of the right wing and the left wing, he said to the men of the center: Hold firm. And they surrounded al-Husayn from every side until they made him like one within a ring. So he (peace be upon him) came forth until he reached the people and called them to silence, but they refused to be silent — until he said to them: Woe to you! What harm is there in your listening to me, so that you may hear my words? I am only calling you to the path of right guidance. Whoever obeys me will be among the rightly guided, and whoever disobeys me will be

among those who perish. All of you are disobedient to my command, not heeding my words. Your bellies have been filled with the unlawful, and a seal has been set upon your hearts. Woe to you! Will you not be silent? Will you not listen? Then the companions of Umar ibn Sa'd blamed one another and said: Be silent for him.

So al-Husayn (peace be upon him) stood, then said: Perdition be upon you, O assembly, and grief! Was it when, distraught and bewildered, you cried to us for help, and we answered you readily and prepared, that you then drew the sword against us, against our own necks, and kindled against us the fire of sedition which our enemy and yours had stirred up? So you became a faction against your protectors, a hand in support of your enemies against them — without any justice they spread among you, nor any hope that remained for you in them — except for the unlawful gain of this world they granted you, and the base livelihood you coveted, without any offense we committed, nor any wrong opinion that came from us. So why — woe to you! — when you came to hate us and abandon us, did you not, when the sword was not yet drawn, the heart was calm, and the resolve not yet firm — but instead you hastened upon us like the swarming of flies, and rushed upon us like the rushing of moths. So ugliness be upon you! For you are nothing but the tyrants of the nation, the outcasts of the factions, the rejecters of the Book, the spittle of Satan, the band of sin, the distorters of the Book, the extinguishers of the prophetic traditions, the killers of the children of the prophets, the destroyers of the progeny of the successors, those who attach bastards to lineages, the tormentors of believers, and the supporters of the leaders of the mockers — those who made the Quran into fragments.

And it is upon the son of Harb and his followers that you rely, while you abandon us. Yes, by God, treachery is well-known among you; your roots are intertwined with it, your origins and your branches have inherited it, your hearts are firmly set upon it, and your breasts are filled with it. So you became the foulest of things in nature for the hostile, and a morsel for the usurper. Behold, the curse of God be upon those who break their covenants — those who violate their oaths after confirming them, having made God a surety over you. By God, you are indeed they.

Behold, the son of the bastard, the bastard himself, has fixed me between two choices: between the sword and humiliation. But far be it from us that we should accept disgrace! God refuses that for us, and so does His Messenger, and grandfathers who were pure, and laps that were chaste, and noses

of dignity, and souls of pride that do not prefer submission to the base over the slaughter places of the noble. Behold, I have presented my excuse and given warning. Behold, I am advancing with this household, despite the scarcity of equipment and the desertion of companions.

Then he began to recite:

And in al-Malhuf, after these two lines, he added:

Behold, then you shall not remain after this but as long as it takes to mount a horse, until the mill turns upon you — a covenant my father pledged to me from my grandfather. So gather your affair and your partners, then plot against me all together and give me no respite. Indeed, I have placed my trust in God, my Lord and your Lord. There is no creature but that He holds it by its forelock. Indeed, my Lord is upon a straight path. O God, withhold from them the rain of the sky, and send upon them years like the years of Joseph, and set over them the youth of Thaqif, that he may make them drink a bitter cup, and let him leave none among them but he kills them — a killing for a killing, a blow for a blow — taking vengeance for me, for my supporters, my household, and my followers from them. For they deceived us, belied us, and abandoned us. And You are our Lord — upon You we rely, to You we turn in repentance, and to You is the return.

Then he said: Where is Umar ibn Sa'd? Call Umar for me! So he was summoned, though he was reluctant and did not wish to come to him. Al-Husayn said: O Umar! Will you kill me, claiming that the bastard, son of the bastard, will appoint you governor over the lands of Rayy and Jurjan? By God, you shall never enjoy that — a pledge and a thing pledged. So do what you are about to do, for you shall rejoice neither in this world nor in the hereafter after me. It is as if I see your head upon a reed, set up in Kufa, with

the children casting at it and making it a target among them.

So Umar was enraged by his words, and turned his face away from him, and called out to his companions: What are you waiting for with him? Charge upon him all together, for it is but a single meal.

Then al-Husayn (peace be upon him) called for the horse of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family), al-Murtajiz, and rode it, and arranged his companions (1).

The Third Gathering, of the Day of Ashura
The Slaying of the Helpers (peace be upon them)
Sheikh al-Mufid (may God have mercy on him) said: When al-Hurr ibn Yazid saw that the people were determined to fight al-Husayn (peace be upon him), he said to Umar ibn Sa'd: O Umar! Will you fight this man? He said: Yes, by God — a fierce fight, the least of which is that heads will fall and hands will be flung off. He said: Then is there for you no satisfaction in what he has offered you?

Umar said: Were the matter in my hands, I would do so, but your commander has refused. So al-Hurr came forward until he took a position among the people, and with him was a man of his tribe called Qurra ibn Qays. He said to him: O Qurra! Have you watered your horse today? He said: No. He said: Then do you not intend to water it? Qurra said: I thought — by God — that he wished to withdraw and not witness the battle, and disliked that I should see him when he did so. So I said to him: I have not watered it; I will go and water it. So he withdrew from the place where he was. By God, had he disclosed to me what he intended, I would have gone out with him to al-Husayn.

Then he began to draw near to al-Husayn little by little, and Muhajir ibn Aws said to him: What do you intend, O son of Yazid? Do you mean to charge? But he gave him no answer, and a trembling — a shudder — seized him. Muhajir said to him: Your matter is indeed suspicious. By God, I have never seen from you in any position the like of this. And if I were asked: Who is the bravest of the people of Kufa? I would not pass over you. So what is this that I see from you? Al-Hurr said to him: By God, I am choosing for myself between Paradise and Hell, and by God, I will not choose anything over Paradise, even if I be cut to pieces and burned.

Then he struck his horse and reached al-Husayn (peace be upon him) and said to him: May I be made your ransom, O son of the Messenger of God! I am your companion who held you back from returning, and traveled with you along the road, and forced you to halt in this place. I never thought that the people would reject what you offered them, nor that they would go so far with you as this. By God, had I known they would bring you to what I now see, I would never have done what I did. I repent to God for what I have done — do you see for me any repentance from that? Al-Husayn (peace be upon him) said to him: Yes, God will accept your repentance — so dismount. He said: I am better for you as a horseman than as a foot-soldier; I will fight them on my horse for a while, and dismounting will be the end of my affair. Al-Husayn (peace be upon him) said to him: Then do — may God have mercy on you — whatever seems best to you.

So he advanced before al-Husayn (peace be upon him) and said: O people of Kufa! May your mothers be bereaved of you, and may grief be yours! Did you summon this righteous servant, and then, when he came to you, hand him over? You claimed that you would lay down your lives for him, then attacked him to kill him. You have seized his very soul, taken him by the throat, and surrounded him from every side to prevent him from departing to the wide lands of God. So he has become like a captive in your hands, unable to bring himself benefit or ward off harm. And you have barred him, his women, his children, and his household from the flowing water of the Euphrates, which the Jews, the Christians, and the Magians drink, and in which the swine and dogs of the Sawad wallow. And here they are, struck down by thirst! Evil is the way you have succeeded Muhammad concerning his progeny. May God not give you water on the Day of Thirst.

So men charged at him, shooting him with arrows, but he advanced until he stood before al-Husayn (peace be upon him).

And Umar ibn Sa'd called out: O Durayd! Bring forward your banner. So he brought it forward, then he set an arrow to the heart of his bow and shot it and said: Bear witness that I am the first to shoot. Then the people shot (1).

And Muhammad ibn Abi Talib said: So all his companions shot, and there did not remain among the companions of al-Husayn (peace be upon him) anyone but he was struck by their arrows.

It is said: When they had loosed this volley upon them, the companions of al-Husayn (peace be upon him) grew few, and fifty men were killed in this charge. And Sayyid Ibn Tawus (may God have mercy on him) said: So he (peace be upon him) said to his companions: Rise — may God have mercy on you — to the death from which there is no escape, for these arrows are the messengers of the people to you. So they fought for an hour of the day, charge after charge, until a group of al-Husayn's companions (peace be upon him) were killed. He said: At that point al-Husayn (peace be upon him) struck his hand upon his beard and began to say: Severe is God's anger upon the Jews, when they assigned to Him a son; and severe is His anger upon the Christians, when they made Him the third of three; and severe is His anger upon the Magians, when they worshiped the sun and moon instead of Him; and severe is His anger upon a people who agreed upon killing the son of the daughter of their Prophet. By God, I will not grant them anything they desire until I meet God Most High while I am stained with my own blood.

And it is narrated from our master al-Sadiq (peace be upon him) that he said: I heard my father (peace be upon him) say: When al-Husayn (peace be upon him) and Umar ibn Sa'd — may God curse him — met and the battle began, victory was sent down until it hovered over the head of al-Husayn (peace be upon him). Then he was given the choice between victory over his enemies and meeting God Most High, and he chose to meet God Most High. The narrator said: Then he (peace be upon him) cried out: Is there no rescuer to rescue us for the sake of God? Is there no defender to defend the sanctities of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family) (2)?

Sheikh al-Mufid (may God have mercy on him) said: And Amr ibn al-Hajjaj charged upon the right wing of al-Husayn's companions (peace be upon him), with those of the people of Kufa who were with him. When he drew near to al-Husayn (peace be upon him), they knelt down on their

knees and leveled their spears toward them, so their horses would not advance against the spears. The horses turned to retreat, and the companions of al-Husayn (peace be upon him) showered them with arrows, striking down some men and wounding others.

And a man from Banu Tamim called Abdullah ibn Hawza came and advanced upon the army of al-Husayn (peace be upon him). The people called out to him: To where? May your mother be bereaved of you! He said: I am advancing toward a merciful Lord and an intercessor whose word is obeyed. Al-Husayn (peace be upon him) said to his companions: Who is this? It was said to him: This is Ibn Hawza al-Tamimi. He said: O God, hurl him into the Fire. Then his horse threw him into a ditch and he fell, his left foot caught in the stirrup while his right was raised. Muslim ibn Awsaja charged at him and struck his right foot, severing it, and his horse bolted with him, striking his head against every rock and every tree until he died, and God hastened his soul to the Fire. Then the fighting broke out and a group from all sides was killed (1).

And Muhammad ibn Abi Talib, the author of al-Manaqib, and Ibn al-Athir in al-Kamil said — and their accounts are close to one another — that al-Hurr came to al-Husayn (peace be upon him) and said: O son of the Messenger of God! I was the first to come out against you, so grant me leave to be the first slain before you, and the first to clasp the hand of your grandfather tomorrow. Al-Hurr said "to be the first slain before you," meaning the first slain of those who went out to single combat — otherwise a group had already been killed in the first charge, as has been mentioned. So he was the first to advance to the combat of the people, and he began to recite:

And it is narrated that al-Hurr killed forty horsemen and foot-soldiers, then he continued to fight until he was slain, may God have mercy on him. So the companions of al-Husayn (peace be upon him) carried him and laid him before al-Husayn (peace be upon him), and there was still breath in him. Al-Husayn began to wipe his face and say: You are al-Hurr, the free one, as your mother named you, and you are free in

this world, and you are free in the hereafter. And a man among the companions of al-Husayn (peace be upon him) mourned him — and it is said: rather it was Ali ibn al-Husayn (peace be upon them both) who mourned him:

And Ibn Shahr Ashub said: He killed more than forty men of them. And Ibn Nama said: It has been narrated to me with my chain that he said to al-Husayn (peace be upon him): When Ubaydullah dispatched me to you, I left the palace, and I was called from behind me: Rejoice, O al-Hurr, with good tidings! So I turned but saw no one, and I said: By God, this is no good tidings while I march against al-Husayn, and I am not even thinking of following you. So he (peace be upon him) said: You have indeed attained reward and good (1).

Then they said: Everyone who wished to go out to battle would bid farewell to al-Husayn (peace be upon him) and say: Peace be upon you, O son of the Messenger of God! And he would answer: And upon you be peace, and we are right behind you. And he (peace be upon him) would recite: "Among them is he who has fulfilled his vow, and among them is he who awaits, and they have not changed in the least."

Then, after al-Hurr, Burayr ibn Khudayr al-Hamdani came forth. He was among the righteous servants of God. He came forth saying:

Such is the deed of good from Burayr. And he began to charge upon the people, saying: Draw near to me, O killers of the believers! Draw near to me, O killers of the sons of those who fought at Badr! Draw near to me, O killers of the sons of the Messenger of the Lord of the Worlds and his surviving progeny! Burayr was the most learned reciter of the Quran of his time, and he kept fighting until he killed thirty men.

He said: A man among the companions of Ibn Ziyad charged and killed Burayr, may God have mercy on him. His killer was called Bahir ibn Aws al-Dabbi. He said: Then it was mentioned to him afterward that Burayr had been among the righteous servants of God, and a cousin of his came to him and said: Woe to you, O Bahir! You have killed Burayr ibn Khudayr! With what face will you meet your Lord tomorrow? He said: So the wretch — may God curse him — regretted it.

Then after him came forth Wahb ibn Abdullah ibn Habbab al-Kalbi, and his mother was with him that day. She said: Rise, O my son, and aid the son of the daughter of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family). He said: I will do so, O mother, and I shall not fall short. So he came forth saying:

Then he charged and kept fighting until he killed a group of them, then returned to his mother and his wife and stood before them and said: O mother! Are you content? She said: I am not content until you are killed before al-Husayn (peace be upon him). His wife said: By God, do not bereave me of yourself! His mother said: O my son! Do not accept her word, but return and fight before the son of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family), so that he may be tomorrow on the Day of Resurrection an intercessor for you before God. So he returned and kept fighting until he killed nineteen horsemen and twelve foot-soldiers. Then his hands were severed, so his wife took a tent-pole and came toward him saying: May my father and mother be your ransom! Fight in defense of the good ones, the sanctities of the Messenger of God. So he came forward to return her to the women, but she seized the edge of his garment and said: I will not return unless I die with you. So al-Husayn (peace be upon him) [spoke to her], and Wahb kept fighting until he was killed, may God's pleasure be upon him.

He said: His wife went to wipe the blood from his face, and Shimr saw her and ordered a slave of his to strike her with a tent-pole he had with him. He crushed her and killed her, and she was the first woman killed in the army of al-Husayn (peace be upon him).

And I have seen a tradition that this Wahb was a Christian, and that he and his mother embraced Islam at the hands of al-Husayn (peace be upon him). He killed in single combat twenty-four foot-soldiers and twelve horsemen, then was taken captive and brought to Umar ibn Sa'd, who said: How fierce is your onslaught! Then he ordered that his neck be struck, and his head was thrown to the army of al-Husayn (peace be upon him). His mother took the head and kissed it, then hurled it back at the army of Ibn Sa'd, striking a man with it and killing him. Then she fought with the tent-pole and killed two men. Al-Husayn (peace be upon him) said to her: Return, O Umm Wahb, you and your son are with the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family), for jihad is lifted from women. So she returned saying: O my God, do not cut off my hope! And al-Husayn (peace be upon him) said to her: May God not cut off your hope, O Umm Wahb.

Then after him came forth Amr ibn Khalid al-Azdi and fought until he was killed, may God have mercy on him. The narrator said: And Amr ibn al-Hajjaj cried out to the people: O fools! Do you know whom you are fighting? You are fighting the horsemen of the city, the people of insight, and a people who court death. Not one of you goes out to them but they kill him, few as they are. By God, even if you only pelted them with stones, they would kill you. So Umar ibn Sa'd — may God curse him — said to him: The opinion is as you see. So he sent among the people one to enjoin upon them that none of them should engage them in single combat, and said: If you go out to them one by one, they will finish you off in single combat.

And Amr ibn al-Hajjaj drew near to the companions of al-Husayn (peace be upon him) and said: O people of Kufa! Hold fast to your obedience and your community, and do not doubt in killing one who has departed from the religion and opposed the Imam. So al-Husayn (peace be upon him) said: O son of al-Hajjaj! Do you incite the people against me? Are we the ones who have departed from the religion, while you have held firm to it? By God, you shall surely know which of us has departed from the religion, and who is more deserving of roasting in the Fire.

Then Amr ibn al-Hajjaj — may God curse him — charged with his right wing from the direction of the Euphrates, and they fought for an hour. Then Muslim ibn Awsaja was struck down, and Amr and his companions withdrew. When the dust cleared, behold, Muslim lay struck down. Muhammad ibn Abi Talib said: He fell to the ground with breath still in him, so al-Husayn walked to him with Habib ibn Muzahir, and al-Husayn (peace be upon him) said to him: May God have mercy on you, O Muslim, for

"Among them is he who has fulfilled his vow, and among them is he who awaits, and they have not changed in the least." Then Habib drew near to him and said: Your slaughter weighs heavily upon me, O Muslim; rejoice in Paradise. He said to him in a feeble voice: May God give you good tidings of good. Habib said to him: Were it not that I know I shall follow soon after, I would have wished that you entrust to me everything that concerns you. Muslim said: Then I entrust to you this one — and he pointed to al-Husayn (peace be upon him) — so fight in his defense until you die. Habib said: I shall surely gladden your eye. Then he died, may God's pleasure be upon him.

He said: And a slave-girl of his cried out: O my master! O son of Awsaja! So the companions of Ibn Sa'd called out joyfully: We have killed Muslim ibn Awsaja! Then Shabath ibn Rib'i said to some of those around him: May your mothers be bereaved of you! Indeed, you are killing yourselves with your own hands and humiliating your own honor. Do you rejoice at the killing of Muslim ibn Awsaja? By Him to whom I have submitted, how many a noble stand he had among the Muslims! I saw him on the day of Azerbaijan kill six of the polytheists before the cavalry of the Muslims had even closed ranks (1). And how excellent is the saying of the poet:

And another said:

The Fourth Gathering, of the Day of Ashura
The Slaying of the Helpers (peace be upon them), continued
The narrator said: Then Shimr ibn Dhi al-Jawshan charged upon the left wing, but they held firm against him, and the companions of al-Husayn (peace be upon him) fought them fiercely — and they were but thirty-two horsemen. They would not charge against any side of the people of Kufa but they routed them. So Umar ibn Sa'd summoned al-Husayn ibn Numayr with five hundred archers, and they came forward until they drew near to al-Husayn (peace be upon him) and his companions, and showered them with arrows. Before long they had hamstrung their horses, and they fought them until midday, and the fighting grew fierce. They were unable to come at them except from one direction, because of the gathering of their tents and their nearness to one another. So Umar ibn Sa'd sent men to pull them down from their right and their left, that they might surround them. And three or four of al-Husayn's companions would slip through and fall upon any man who came near to dismantle and plunder, and they would shoot him from close range, strike him down, and kill him.

So Ibn Sa'd said: Burn them with fire! So they set them ablaze. Al-Husayn (peace be upon him) said: Let them burn them, for when they have done that, they will not be able to cross over to you. And it was as he (peace be upon him) said.

And it is said: Shabath ibn Rib'i came to him and said: We have frightened the women — may your mother be bereaved of you! So he was ashamed, and they took to fighting them only from one direction.

And the companions of Zuhayr ibn al-Qayn charged and killed Abu Adhra al-Dababi, one of the companions of Shimr.

And the companions of al-Husayn (peace be upon him) continued to be killed — one and two at a time — and that was evident among them because of their fewness, while ten of Umar's companions would be killed without that being evident among them, because of their multitude.

When Abu Thumama al-Sa'idi saw that, he said to al-Husayn (peace be upon him): O Abu Abdullah! May my soul be your ransom! These people have drawn near to you, and by God, you shall not be killed until I am killed before you. And I would love to

meet my Lord having performed this prayer. So al-Husayn raised his head to the sky and said: You have remembered the prayer — may God make you among those who pray. Yes, this is the first of its time. Then he said: Ask them to hold off from us until we pray. Al-Husayn ibn Numayr said: It will not be accepted. Habib ibn Muzahir said: The prayer will not be accepted — so you claim — from the son of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family), yet it is accepted from you, O drunkard? So al-Husayn ibn Numayr charged at him, and Habib charged at him and struck the face of his horse with the sword, and the horse reared and threw al-Husayn ibn Numayr off, whereupon his companions surrounded him and rescued him. Then al-Husayn (peace be upon him) said to Zuhayr ibn al-Qayn and Sa'id ibn Abdullah: Stand forward before me until I pray the noon prayer. So they stood before him with about half of his companions, until he prayed with them the prayer of fear.

And it is narrated that Sa'id ibn Abdullah al-Hanafi stood forth before al-Husayn (peace be upon him) and made himself a target for them as they shot him with arrows. Whenever al-Husayn (peace be upon him) moved to the right or the left, he would stand before him, and he kept being shot at until he fell to the ground, saying: O God, curse them with the curse of Ad and Thamud. O God, convey my greeting to Your Prophet, and inform him of what I have met of the pain of wounds, for by that I intended the aid of the progeny of Your Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). Then he died, may God's pleasure be upon him, and there were found upon him thirteen arrows, besides what he bore of sword-strokes and spear-thrusts.

And Ibn Nama said: It is said that al-Husayn (peace be upon him) and his companions prayed individually by gesturing. Then they said: Then Abd al-Rahman ibn Abdullah al-Yazani came forth saying:

Then he charged and fought until he was killed.

And the Sayyid said: Then Amr ibn Qaratha al-Ansari came forth and asked leave of al-Husayn (peace be upon him), and he granted him leave. He fought the fight of those who long for the reward, and went to the utmost in the service of the King of Heaven, until he killed a great number of the party of Ibn Ziyad, combining steadfastness and struggle. No arrow would come at al-Husayn

but he warded it off with his hand, and no sword but he met it with his lifeblood, so that no harm reached al-Husayn until he was riddled with wounds. Then he turned to al-Husayn and said: O son of the Messenger of God! Have I fulfilled my pledge? He said: Yes, you are before me in Paradise. So convey from me the greeting to the Messenger of God, and inform him that I follow close behind. Then he fought until he was killed, may God's pleasure be upon him.

And in al-Manaqib it is said that he used to say:

And the Sayyid said: Then Jawn, the freedman of Abu Dharr al-Ghifari, came forward — and he was a black slave. Al-Husayn (peace be upon him) said to him: You have my leave, for you followed us only seeking ease; so do not be afflicted by our path. He said: O son of the Messenger of God! In times of ease I licked clean your bowls, and in times of hardship shall I abandon you? By God, my odor is foul, my lineage is base, and my color is black — so breathe upon me with Paradise, that my odor may become sweet, my lineage be ennobled, and my face turn white. No, by God, I will not leave you until this black blood is mingled with your blood (1).

Then he fought until he was killed, and al-Husayn (peace be upon him) stood over him and said: O God, whiten his face, sweeten his odor, gather him with the righteous, and join him with Muhammad and the family of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family).

And it is narrated from al-Baqir (peace be upon him), from Ali ibn al-Husayn (peace be upon them both), that the people used to come to the battlefield and bury the slain, and they found Jawn after ten days, with the scent of musk wafting from him, may God's pleasure be upon him.

The narrator said: Then al-Hajjaj ibn Masruq — who was the caller to prayer of al-Husayn (peace be upon him) — came forth saying: