Why don’t we celebrate the mourning of Hussain bin Ali (عليه السلام )?
السلام عليكم و رحمة الله و بركاته
الحمد لله و الصلاة و السلام على رسول الله و على آله و صحبه أجمعين،
Hussain bin Ali (عليه السلام ) was brutally martyred by the army of Ubaidullah bin Ziyad and betrayed by the people of Kufa who didn’t come out to assist him.
Muslims whenever they are faced with a calamity are instructed by Allah and His Noble Prophet ﷺ to say [إن لله وإن إليه راجعون ].
When Hussain bin Ali was martyred (10th Muharram 61 AH / 680 CE), there were many Sahaba who were alive.
The Sahaba never thought of commemorating 10th Muharram as the day of mourning for Hussain bin Ali(رضي الله عنه) ,and they never took it as a day to come closer to Allah by mourning. The day of Ashoora (10th Muharram) is virtuous because Prophet Moosa (عليه السلام ) and the Bani Israeel were saved from Firaun.
Thus if a Muslim makes this day or month particular to mourn the martyrdom of Hussain bin Ali (رضي الله عنه) then he is innovating in the religion, and that is a Bidah and an opposition to the Sahaba and Tabaiin(students of the Sahaba) who were present and alive when the martyrdom of Hussain (رضي الله عنه) happened.
There were many more tragic incidents before the sad martyrdom of Hussain (رضي الله عنه). The greatest grief for the Ummah was the death of the Prophet ﷺ. Some other incidents were the defeat at Uhud, martyrdom of around seventy Sahaba who were Qurra (Quran rexiters) in Bir Ruma by the disbelievers, and then the martyrdom of Umar (رضي الله عنه) by Abu Lulu, Uthman bin Affan (رضي الله عنه) by the rebels, and martyrdom of Ali bin Abi Talib (رضي الله عنه) by one of the Khawarij. The three Sahaba from the Khulafa Ar-Rashidoon mentioned above were greater in status than Hussain bin Ali (رضي الله عنه), yet the Sahaba didn’t mourn them on specific days and months.
Thus such a mourning is a Bidah in the Deen since the best generation did not do it.
On the authority of the mother of the faithful, Aisha (ra), who said:
In another version in Muslim it reads: “He who does an act which we have not commanded, will have it rejected (by Allah).”
As for mourning these events to remind the Muslims of the sacrifices of the pious predecessors – this is not required – we don’t need to invent a Bidah for this.
What is required is that all the Muslims take out some quality time and study the Seerah of the Prophet ﷺ and Islamic History under a teacher who has proper Aqeedah (beliefs) and Manhaj (Methodology).
Wallahu Alam.
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Appendix:
1. Sahaba who lived after the death of Hussain bin Ali (رضي الله عنه):
Abdullah bin Umar (رضي الله عنه) died in 693 CE.
Abdullah ibn Zubair (رضي الله عنه) 692 CE.
Anas ibn Malik (رضي الله عنه) 712 CE.
Abu at Tufayl, ‘Aamir ibn Waathilah al-Laythee. He died in the year 106 AH.
((For more info read: Shaikh Uthaimeen, may Allaah have mercy on him said, “The last of all of the Companions to die was ’Aamir ibn Waathilah al-Laithi in the year 110 AH. The last of them to die in Medinah was Mahmood ibn ar-Rabi’ in 99 AH. In Damascus, Syria, the last of them to die was Waathilah ibn al-Asqa’ in 86 AH. The last of them to pass away in Basrah was Anas ibn Maalik in 93 AH. In Homs it was ’Abdullaah ibn Busr al-Maazini in 98 AH; in Kufah, ’Abdullaah ibn Abi Awfaa al-Aslami in 87 AH and the last of them to pass away in Egypt was ’Abdullaah ibn al-Haarith in 89 AH.” [May Allaah be pleased with them all]
Mustalah al-Hadith, p. 55.))
2. Prohibition of wailing and excessive mourning as done by the Rafidi Shiites whilst mourning for Hussain bin Ali (رضي الله عنه):
Narrated `Abdullah: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “He who slaps his cheeks, tears his clothes and follows the ways and traditions of the Days of Ignorance is not one of us.” (Al-Bukhari, 1294)
3. Virtue of 10th Muharram:
It was narrated from Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allah be pleased with him) that when the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) came to Madinah, he found them fasting on one day, i.e., ‘Aashoora’. They said: This is a great day; it is the day on which Allah saved Moosa and drowned the people of Pharaoh, so Moosa fasted in gratitude to Allah. He (the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)) said: “I am closer to Moosa than they are.” So he fasted on that day and issued instructions to fast on that day.
Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 3216.
(Translation from Islamqa.info #128633)
4. What to say when affected by a calamity?
Quran:
Who, when afflicted with calamity, say: “Truly! To Allah we belong and truly, to Him we shall return.”
-Sura Al-Baqarah, Ayah 156
Hadith:
It was narrated from Umm Salamah that Abu Salamah told her that he heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say:
“There is no Muslim who is stricken with a calamity and reacts by saying as Allah has commanded: ‘Inna lillahi, wa inna ilayhi raji’un. Allahumma indakah-tasabtu musibati, fajurni iha, wa ‘awwidni minha (Truly, to Allah we belong and truly, to Him we shall return. O Allah, with You I seek reward for my calamity, so reward me for it and compensate me),’ but Allah will reward him for that and compensate him with something better than it.” She said: “When Abu Salamah died, I remembered what he had told me from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and I said: ‘Inna lillahi, wa inna ilayhi raji’un. Allahumma indakah-tasabtu musibati, fajurni ihaiha (Truly, to Allah we belong and truly, to Him we shall return. O Allah, with You I seek reward for my calamity, so reward me for it).’ But when I wanted to say wa ‘awwidni minha (and compensate me with better), I said to myself: ‘How can I be compensated with something better than Abu Salamah?’ Then I said it, and Allah compensated me with Muhammad (ﷺ) and rewarded me for my calamity.” (Ibn Majah, 1598, Hasan Hadith)
5. Site from where I copied the information (point 1) on the last Sahaba to die:
Wikipedia and https://the-finalrevelation.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-last-sahabi-to-die-may-allah-be.html?m=1
6. Hadith Translations taken from sunnah.com .
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-Abu Muaaz Mohammed Manna,
17th June 2019 ||14th Shawwal 1440.
mannaforpeace17@gmail.com
Saheehus-Seerah 