Leaflet 3

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Ashura Leaflet 3

This is a public leaflet on the sacrifice of Imam Husain and his holy family. It contains information about the Ashura and Karbala, and is;distributed on days of commemorations of the Holy Family.

God bless the Holy Family and their mourners.

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The Martydom of Imam Husain at Karbala

This is a day of remembrance, a day of mourning. We are marking the terrible massacre of God’s chosen people.

We believe this life is about a battle between two forces – good and evil. Our fate depends on how we act. You can’t be good if you side with wrong. Husain, like Jesus, was perfectly good. He was sinless. Infallible. Husain was God’s own beloved Saint. He said that good men never submit to evil.

Yazeed was a bad seed, a follower of the Devil. He wanted to subdue Husain, to make him kneel, and then rule the world. Husain said I have bowed before God. I cannot bow to a tyrant like you. I would rather die. And he proved it by sacrificing his life for God. This was October 680 A.D.

Today, we honour Husain and his family. God bless them. Every year, in every city, people come out in the streets to pay their respects to this holy family. Men and boys cry and beat their chests. We weep for those we love. We recite eulogies for Husain. We read poems for his children who were cut to pieces by forces of Yazeed. Husain paid the ultimate price to save us from evil. Today we are free because of Husain. A thousand years later, we still cry for our Imam. This ceremony marks the Karbala massacre.

Background story:

When Yazeed became king, he demanded loyalty from Husain. Evil always needs approval from a man of God in order to get legitimacy. This has always been the nature of evil. Even today we see evil men try to seek endorsement from God's men.

Husain said to Yazeed I love good people. I shall never betray them. I refuse to accept any evil leader. You can cut off my head but you can't take my soul. I will never sell myself to the dark side. My blood will protect humanity from darkness. Husain prepared his family. And with a cause most just and noble, Husain decided to die. Yazeed decided to kill.

Under threats, Husain and his family left their home. While travelling in the desert, they were ambushed by troops near Karbala in Iraq. Soldiers demanded that Husain either accept Yazeed or die. Husain again refused. He said leave me alone. Do not ask me to accept Yazeed. Light cannot accept darkness. Yazeed's army decided to finish this perfect man.

First, they cut off Husain's water supply from the river Euphrates. In the hot desert, Husain’s family began to suffer terrible thirst. Then the killings began. One by one, the holy family was butchered. All were killed - children, nephews, brothers. Even Husain’s six month old baby Ali Asghar was not spared. They fired an arrow into the baby’s neck, killing him in his father’s arms.

Watching their sons die, mothers wept. Sisters saw their brothers slaughtered. Total of 72 people were killed. Finally, the soldiers killed Imam Husain. Then they cut off the heads. Army ran their horses on headless corpses of the holy people. God watched it all. Why?

God says He loves His true Believers. He wanted to bless them more. He stopped Abraham from sacrifising his son Ishmael; and asked Imam Husain for a “Supreme Sacrifice” for love of believers. Husain fulfilled the Divine wish. With the price of his blood, he gave believers freedom and honour.

Blood of Husain protects believers. It forever strengthens good men. Now, whoever understands and loves Husain will have an honourable life. His perfect model saves mankind even today. With martyrdom of Husain, the good achieved victory over the dark side. Today we mark this greatest sacrifice in human history.

For those who follow Husain: Every day is Ashura. Every land Karbala.

After the brutal massacre at Karbala, Husain's sister Zainab, along with other women of Husain's family, were taken prisoner. Their hands were tied by the soldiers. The holy ladies were dragged on foot across the desert to the palace of Yazeed. But instead of collapsing from trauma and stress, Zainab did not give up in this terrible ordeal. This brave daughter of Imam Ali, the Lion of God, stood firm. Though she was persecuted and oppressed, Zainab did not lose faith in Almighty God. She delievered an historic and defiant speech in the court of Yazeed. Zainab's courageous words prevented the truth from being lost. God bless her. It is through the efforts of this pious lady that the world became aware how her brother's martyrdom achieved Divine Victory against evil.


by: Saklayn, U.K.

For more information, email: saklayn@yahoo.com

http://www.ukshias.blogspot.com/


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[ This leaflet was dedicated to all the innocent victims who
were murdered during the Israeli attack on Gaza in January 2009.]
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