Timeless Lessons From Karbala: Lesson 3/5 - Compassion

A'udhu billahi min al-shaytaan Al-rajim. Bismillah Al-Rahman Al-Rahim. Wa bihi nasta'in. Wa as-salatu wa as-salamu 'alaa Sayyidina wa nabiyyina Muhammadin wa 'alaa ahli baytihi, at-tayyibin, at-tahirin. A'dhama Allahu ujuruna wa ujurakum bi masaa'ibina bi Sayyidina wa mawlaana Abi 'Abdillah al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salatu wa as-salam.

My dear sisters and brothers, thanks again for joining us on the third episode of our Reflections on Timeless Lessons that we gain from the Tragedy of Karbala and that of Abi 'Abdillah Al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaat wa as-salaam.

A couple of days ago in our first lesson, we reflected upon the idea and the notion of God consciousness. It means to have taqwa in Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala as illuminated by Imam Al-Husayn as-salaamullaahi 'alayh. And yesterday we spoke a little bit in regards to sincerity and the way of giving out of ourselves to Allah Subhana wa Ta'ala in light of the actions and the etiquette of Imam Al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaam, in a narration that we spoke about Imam Amir al-Mu'minin as-salaamul laahi 'alayhi.

In Shaa Allah, the third lesson that I want to focus upon really briefly this afternoon is in regards to compassion, is in regards to compassion, in regards to mercy that was emanated on the day of Ashura. As we know that the Messenger of God, Mohammed sallalahu 'alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam is spoken to by Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala when He states: "Wa ma arsalnak illa rahmata lil'aalameen" (21:107) 'We did not send you except to be a mercy unto the worlds'. We talk about the Messenger of God being a mercy unto the worlds, we recognize that every step and every breath and every interaction of his was an opportunity to serve people around him, an opportunity to dig them out of darkness and into light.

Huwa alladhi ba'athaa fil ummiyyina Rasulan minhum yatlu 'alayhim aayaatihi wa yuzakkihim wa yu'allimuhumu al-kitaaba wa al-hikmata wa in kaanu min qablu lafi dhalaalim mubeen" (62:2). Amongst the responsibilities of the Prophet sallalahu 'alayhi wa aalihi is to bring them out of darkness into light and bring them out of ignorance into knowledge. And at the same time, be an opportunity for individuals who walk in the footsteps of the Prophet of God sallalahu 'alayhi wa aalihi, for their ultimate success in this world and in the next.

For us being from the Ummah of the greatest of God's creations allows for us In Shaa Allah to enter into paradise in his company, assuming that we fulfil all of the prerequisites that requires us to truly be amongst those who consider ourselves from the Ummah of the greatest of God's creation.

And we know that when we talk about the Messenger of God sallalahu 'alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam being a mercy into the world and someone who is consistently illuminating compassion, that Imam al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaat wa as-salaam in the same way, does the same. Meaning he illuminates those same qualities, 'Husaynu minni wa ana minal Husayn -Husayn is from me and I am from Husayn'.

In the same way that the Prophet sallalahu 'alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam, even to his harshest enemies and critics and those who sought to isolate him and treat him harshly, it was the prophet of God sallalahu 'alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam who was consistently giving out of himself in order to demonstrate to his community a higher understanding of value.

Amongst those qualities that every human being loves, of course is compassion, of course is mercy. We love those who forgive and we love to forgive. Sometimes it is very difficult for us to do so but we know that deep down in many circumstances, it is the right thing to do.

But being merciful or being compassionate does not only mean to forgive, it means to live a life whereby we are consistently seeking to grow during the course of our relationships. Allah Subhana wa Ta'ala states within the Holy Qur'an in a verse that talks about marriage. For instance, He states "Wa ja'ala baynakum mawaddatan wa rahmah" (30:21). That 'He places in between the husband and the wife love, in addition to it, mercy, or rahmah.'

We begin every ayah of the Holy Qur'an, every chapter of the Holy Qur'an except for chapter number nine with the recitation of Bismillah Al-Rahman Al-Rahim. You begin in the name of God, the most Compassionate, the most Merciful. As we have taught within Islamic practice, before we do anything and everything, it is important to remember the Mercy and Compassion of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala that allows for us to be a little bit more mindful of what it is that we are about to do. So before I eat for instance, if I say Bismillah Al-Rahman Al-Rahim, it will remind me that I do not need to overeat because Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala is watching over me.

And again I say all of this because mercy is a term and compassion are terms that cannot only be limited toward forgiveness, but rather toward a code of conduct when it comes to life in general.

What we learn from the Prophet of God sallalahu 'alayhi wa aalihi, what we learn from Imam Al-Husayn, what we learn from the tragedy of Karbala and all of those unique personalities, is that they lived this notion and this identity of compassion and mercy. So it is not only that they forgave, but they consistently kept their hearts and their souls open for people when they needed them the most.

And the perfect example of that on the 10th of Muharram, like many of us know his story is that of Hurr bin Yazid ar-Riyaahi. Amongst those generals, among those commanders in the army of 'Umar ibn Sa'd, one of the most loyal and chivalrous and valiant warriors who was known in the city of Kufa. And on the 10th of Muharram, even though that this Hurr ar-Riyaahi was the same man who intercepts Imam Al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaat wa as-salaam and his family members and companions in a small town known as Sharaf in between Makkah and Kufa and diverts them from going to Kufa into the barren land of Karbala.

Hurr ar-Riyaahi, he looks toward the tents, towards the caravan of Abi 'Abdillah Al-Husayn on the 10th of Muharram. And one of his companions, one of his colleagues, comes to him and says, 'O Hurr, that if someone were to ask me about the most courageous of all of the swordsmen of Kufa, I would have without a doubt said that it was you. Why do I see this anxiety today?' To which he utters his epic line, 'Inni araa nafsi bayn al-jannati wa al-naar - that surely I see myself between the gardens of paradise and eternal damnation.'

And that man, he says that, a few moments later I saw Hurr ar-Riyaahi get on top of his horse and slowly ride away. And I thought he was going to use the restroom but then I saw that he began to slowly by slowly approach the tents of Imam Al-Husayn as-salaamul laahi 'alayhi.

But in which state? Some of the historians, they state that Hurr ar-Riyaahi in a way to humble himself in front of the grandson of the Messenger of God salla-Llahu 'alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam, he looks down and he takes really small strides with his horse getting closer and closer to the tents of Imam Al-Husayn as-salaamul laahi 'alayhi and at that moment Imam Al-Husayn, he exits from the tent in the morning of the 10th of Muharram, he calls out 'Man anta?- Who are you?' To which he is too embarrassed to admit that 'I am Hurr, I am the one who did what I did and deferred your intention and brought you to this land of Karbala'

He calls out again 'Man anta ya rajulu? - Who are you, O man?' Imam Al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaam does not get a response, and then the third time, as he gets closer and closer in this very sort of incredible moment that is awfully humbling for Hurr, he feels really bad. Those are the orphans and the soon to be widows of Abi 'Abdillah Al-Husayn and his family. These are the family members of the Messenger of God, sallalahu 'alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam.

And he calls out 'Ya Rajul, man anta?' to which Hurr, he responds 'Ana al-ladhi ja'ja'abika min at-tariq.' He says 'Oh Aba 'Abdillah, please forgive me. I am the one who took you away from your ultimate destination.' As if to demonstrate 'Oh Aba 'Abdillah, I am the one who allowed for your children to be orphaned and your wives to be widowed.'

Hurr, in this demonstration of humility, in this demonstration of seeking forgiveness from Imam Al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaat wa as-salaam speaks in this way and how would we expect Imam al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaat wa as-salaam to respond. Of course, we know that he is the grandson of the Messenger of God and of course we know that he is the mercy unto to the worlds. "Wa ma arsalnak illa rahmata lil'aalameen" (21:107) [We did not send you except to be a mercy unto the worlds] he comes from that lineage so we would expect that Imam Al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaat wa as-salaam would of course forgive him.

But we never should limit Ahlul Bayt 'alayhim as-salaat wa as-salaam and their charisma and their virtue and their character. Not only does he accept him, but he gives him the honour of being amongst those who go out and fight from amongst the first of the companions of Imam Al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaat wa as-salaam until he falls down from the horse and Imam Al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaam, with with his, in his own energy goes and consoles the heart of Hurr ar-Riyaahi by placing his head on his lap on that day.

We should understand something specifically as a reminder to myself and all and to all of my sisters and brothers who are watching. What we learn from these unique anecdotes about Imam Al-Husayn, about Ahlul Bayt peace and blessing to be upon them, about the tragedy of Karbala is that more than anything, that this story and that this, these wisdoms that we attain from the tragedy of Karbala are eternal because they call to the most sublime and perfect values.

We talk about God consciousness, we talk about sincerity, we talk about mercy, we talk about generosity, we talk about patience, we talk about love. We talk about those qualities that every human being loves and desires, that innately we are attracted to these things. But on one day, that was on the 10th of Muharram, sixty one years after Hijrah, we see that all of these qualities were made manifest toward their highest of stations and levels during the course of several hours by the grandson of the Messenger of God, his family members and his companions.

So with that, we ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala to allow for us to enliven these majaalis of Imam Al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaat wa as-salaam, by living their qualities, not solely wearing black and grieving and mourning over the tragedy of Imam al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaam but truly living and instilling these values within our hearts.

Ask yourselves the questions, how can I become more God-conscious as we spoke about a couple of days ago? How can I perfect my actions into being a little bit more sincere as we spoke about yesterday? How can I be someone who is a little bit more merciful and compassionate as we learn from the Prophet, as we learn from 'Ali, as we learn from Fatima, as we learn from Hasan, as we learn from Husayn peace and blessings be upon them.

And that through utilization and application of the values that you learn from Karbala, truly then, we can be amongst those who enter into paradise next to Al-Husayn 'alayhi as-salaam, his grandfather the Prophet, his father 'Ali, his mother Fatima and his brother, Hasan 'alayhim as-salaat wa as-salaam.

We ask Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala for tawfiq. Wa al-Hamdulillah Rabb Al-'Aalameen, wa salli-Llahumma 'alaa Sayyidina wa nabiyyina Muhammad, wa 'alaa ahli baytihi, at-tayyibin, at-tahirin.