# Husayn ibn Ali

Hussain ibn ‘Alī ibn Abī Tālib (Arabic: الحسين بن علي بن أﺑﻲ طالب) ‎(626 – 680 AD) was the grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, the son of ‘Alī and Fātimah, as well as the third Shī‘ah Imām.

## Regarding the Advent of Karbalā

* Do you think that you can frighten me with death? Could a worse disaster happen to you than killing me? I do not know what to say to you. I can only address you as the brother of Al-Aws addressed his cousin when he met the latter as he was going to help the Apostle of God (Prophet Muhammad).
** Replied to Al-Hurr ibn Yazid Al-Tamimi, History of the Prophets and Kings, Vol. 19, p.97
* Yazid is a transgressor, a drunkard, killer of innocent people and an open sinner, we will never give our allegiances to the likes of him.
** Ibn A'tham al-Kufi, Al-Futuh, vol.5, p. 18-19
* I never revolted in vain, as a rebel or as a tyrant, but I rose seeking reformation for the nation of my grandfather Muhammad. I intend to enjoin good and forbid evil, to act according to the traditions of my grandfather, and my father ‘Alī ibn Abī Tālib.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.44, p. 329
* Oh people, the Messenger of God said: Whoever sees an aggressive tyrant that legalizes the forbiddens of God, breeches divine laws, opposes the tradition of the Prophet, oppresses the worshippers of God, and does not concede his opposition to God in word or in deed, surely Allah will place that tyrant (in the Hell) where he deserves.
** Khawarazmi, Maqtal al-Husayn, vol.1, p. 234
* Never will be salvaged the people who win the consent of the creature, at the cost of the dissatisfaction of the creator.
** Khawarazmi, Maqtal al-Husayn, vol.1, p. 234
* Our enemy is the enemy of my grandfather, Muhammad.
** al-Shahid al-Tustari, Ihqaqul-Haq, vol.11, p. 592
* Oh God! Surely you know that whatever we did was not a competition to gain worldly positions and not for the worthless physical attractions of the world. But to show the signs of religious ways and to remove corruption from your lands, so that the oppressed feel secured and act according to your traditions and rules.
** Ibn Shu’ba al-Harrani, Tuhaf al-'Uqul, p. 239

## Regarding Wisdom

* Receiving education nurtures human wisdom.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 128
* Increase of experiences, increases the wisdom of mankind.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78 p. 128
* Wisdom will not be complete except by following the truth.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 127
* Among the signs of a learned man is criticising his own words and being informed of various viewpoints.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 119
* Knowledge facilitates comprehension and experience increases wisdom.
** Muhammadi Reishahri, Muhammad (2010). Mizan al-Hikmah. 2. Qum: Dar al-Hadith.
* Two signs of learned person are: acceptance of other people's criticism, and being knowledgeable about the angles and dimensions of rhetoric and debate.
** Ibn Shu’ba al-Harrani, Tuhaf al-'Uqul, p. 252
* The wise one does not speak to one whom he fears he shall be belied, he does not ask anyone of anything if he fears he shall not give, and he does not repose hope on one whom he does not trust.
** Rayhānatur Rasūl, p. 55

## General Quotes

* If you neither believe in religion nor fear the hereafter, then at least be free from tyranny and arrogance
** Biharul Anwar, Vol. 45, P. 51
* People are slaves to the world, and as long as they live favorable and comfortable lives, they are loyal to religious principles. However, at hard times, the times of trials, true religious people are scarce.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 117
* One who reveals your faults to you like a mirror is your true friend, and one who flatters you and covers up your faults is your enemy.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 128
* Death with honor is better than a life of degradation.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.44 p. 192
* Associating with corrupt people makes you subject to suspicion.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 122
* The most generous person is the one who offers help to those who do not expect him to help.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 121
* Tolerance is man’s ornament, keeping promises is a sign of nobility, and bonding with others is a grace.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 122
* When you are frustrated and do not know a way out, only flexibility and moderation towards difficulties will save you.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 128
* Patience in a person glows like a jewel.
** Muhammadi Reishahri, Muhammad (2010). Mizan al-Hikmah. 3. Qum: Dar al-Hadith.

## Religious-based Quotes

* Anybody who would like to have a long life and make his subsistence expanded, should pay visits to his own relatives.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.74, p. 91
* One who pursues a goal through sinful ways, will ironically distance himself from that goal, and will approach what he was afraid of.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 120
* Honor and dignity of man is only in virtue and piety.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 128
* If one does not have these five things there is no good in him: intellect, religion, etiquette, shame and good manners.
** Rayhānatur Rasūl, p. 55
* Whoever seeks the satisfaction of people through disobedience of God, then God subjects him to people.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 126
* Those who worship God for the hope of gaining, they’re not real worshippers, they’re merchants. Those who worship God out of fear (of punishment), they’re slaves. And those who worship God to be grateful towards their creator, they are the free people, and their worship is a real one.
** Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 117

## Quotes by non-Muslims

* The historical progress of Islam, according to Gandhi, is not the legacy of the Muslim sword but a result of sacrifices of Muslim saints like Husain.
** Reliving Karbala: martyrdom in South Asian memory, By Syed Akbar Hyder, Oxford University Press, p. 170
* In a distant age and climate, the tragic scene of the death of Husein will awaken the sympathy of the coldest reader.
** Edward Gibbon, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, vol. 2, p. 218

## Disputed

* "If Husain fought to quench his worldly desires, (as alleged by certain Christian critics) then I do not understand why his sisters, wives and children accompanied him. It stands to reason therefore that he sacrificed purely for Islam."
** Attributed to Charles Dickens in The biography of Amir Mukhtar (Ghulamali Ismail Naji, Peermahomed Ebrahim Trust, 1973), but there appears to be no primary source.

## External links

* Al-Tabari: History of the Prophets and Kings, New York, United States, 1989
* Imam Husain And His Martyrdom
* Hazrat Imam Hussain Ki, Shahadat Ko Salam…