Chapter Six

Sweeter Than Honey

Peace Be Upon the Martyr Who Was Slain Oppressed

السَّلَامُ عَلَى الْقَتِيلِ الْمَظْلُومِ،

السَّلَامُ عَلَى أَخِيهِ الْمَسْمُومِ

Peace be upon the martyr who was slain oppressed,

and peace be upon his poisoned brother.

— A passage from Ziyarat al-Nāḥiyah al-Muqaddasah

Hazrat Qasim (p) was the cherished legacy of Imam Hasan ibn Ali (p).

At Karbala, each of the distinguished members of the Ahl al-Bayt (p) was represented by a beloved remnant.

From the oppressed Imam of Madinah, Imam Hasan (p), his sons Abdullah and Qasim remained as his legacy.

The late al-Ṭurayḥī relates in al-Muntakhab:

Qasim ibn al-Hasan (p) came before Imam Hussein (p) and said:

يَا عَمِّ أَجِزْنِي لِأَمْضِيَ إِلَى قِتَالِ هَؤُلَاءِ الْكَفَرَةِ

“O my uncle, grant me permission to go forth and fight these disbelievers.”

Imam Hussein (p) replied:

“O the remnant of my brother, how can I give you permission to go to the battlefield and place the grief of your separation upon my sorrow-laden heart?

My heart cannot bear to see your delicate body amidst the arrows and the swords.”

Qasim’s Plea

Qasim (p) clung to the hem of his uncle’s garment and wept bitterly.

When Imam Hussein (p) saw this, he could no longer restrain himself and also began to weep.

No matter how much Qasim (p) pleaded and implored, the Imam (p) would not grant him permission to enter the battlefield.

When Qasim (p) lost hope of receiving permission,

فَجَلَسَ مَغْمُومًا حَزِينَ الْقَلْبِ مُتَأَلِّمًا،

وَوَضَعَ رَأْسَهُ عَلَى رُكْبَتَيْهِ.

In that sorrowful and heartbroken state, Qasim (p) lowered his noble head onto the knees of grief and wept bitterly over his loneliness and orphanhood.

Then he remembered that his father had tied a protective amulet upon his arm and had instructed him:

“O Qasim, when the armies of sorrow and countless afflictions surround you, untie this amulet, read what is written within it, and act according to its instruction.”

The Testament of Imam Hasan (p)

He reached for the amulet and untied it.

Inside, he found that his noble father had written, in his own blessed handwriting:

يَا وَلَدِي، يَا قَاسِمُ؛

إِذَا رَأَيْتَ عَمَّكَ الْحُسَيْنَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ بِكَرْبَلَاء

وَقَدْ أَحَاطَهُ الْأَعْدَاءُ

فَلَا تَتْرُكِ الْبِرَازَ وَالْجِهَادَ

لِأَعْدَاءِ اللَّهِ وَأَعْدَاءِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ،

وَلَا تَبْخَلْ عَلَيْهِ بِرُوحِكَ،

وَكُلَّمَا نَهَاكَ عَنِ الْبِرَازِ عَاوِدْهُ لِيَأْذَنَ لَكَ.

“O light of my eyes, Qasim, I entrust you with this counsel:

When your uncle Hussein (p) is surrounded by his enemies, strive to lay down your head at his feet and sacrifice your life in his path.

Even if he prevents you from entering the battle, persist in your request, for giving your life in sacrifice for Hussein is the key to everlasting felicity.”

When Qasim (p) read his father’s testament, he could no longer contain his joy.

He sprang to his feet, hastened to his uncle, and presented his father’s writing to him.

When the eyes of Aba Abdillah al-Hussein (p) fell upon his brother’s handwriting and he read its contents,

وَبَكَى بُكَاءً شَدِيدًا

وَنَادَى بِالْوَيْلِ وَالثُّبُورِ

وَتَنَفَّسَ الصُّعَدَاءَ

he wept bitterly, cried out in grief, and sighed deeply.

Peace Be Upon the Oppressed One Who Had No Helper or Supporter

السَّلَامُ عَلَى الْمَظْلُومِ بِلَا نَاصِرٍ

Peace be upon the oppressed one who had no helper or supporter.

— A passage from Ziyarat al-Nāḥiyah al-Muqaddasah

When Aba Abdillah al-Hussein (p) saw that the noble Qasim ibn al-Hasan (p) was determined to enter the battlefield, he said:

يَا وَلَدِي أَتَمْشِي بِرِجْلِكَ إِلَى الْمَوْتِ؟

“My son, are you going forth to meet death with your own feet?”

Qasim ibn al-Hasan (p) replied:

“O my dear uncle!

How could it be otherwise, when I see you standing alone among the enemy, with no helper and no supporter?

May my soul be sacrificed for your soul,

and may my life be a shield for yours!”

Peace Be Upon the Bodies Whose Color Changed Beneath the Scorching Sun

السَّلَامُ عَلَى الْجُسُومِ الشَّاحِبَاتِ،

السَّلَامُ عَلَى الدِّمَاءِ السَّائِلَاتِ

Peace be upon the bodies whose color changed beneath the scorching sun,

and peace be upon the blood that was shed.

— A passage from Ziyarat al-Nāḥiyah al-Muqaddasah

The Martyrdom of Qasim (p)

On the Day of Ashura, the men of Imam Hussein’s (p) household went out to the battlefield one after another, and many of them were martyred at the hands of the enemy.

After the martyrdom of Ali al-Akbar (p), Qasim (p), whose face shone like a fragment of the full moon, stepped onto the battlefield while reciting the following rajaz:

إِنْ تُنْكِرُونِي فَأَنَا ابْنُ حَيْدَرَهْ

ضِرْغَامُ آجَامٍ وَلَيْثُ قَسْوَرَهْ

إِنْ تُنْكِرُونِي فَأَنَا ابْنُ الْحَسَنِ

سِبْطِ النَّبِيِّ الْمُصْطَفَى وَالْمُؤْتَمَنِ

هَذَا حُسَيْنٌ كَالْأَسِيرِ الْمُرْتَهَنِ

بَيْنَ أُنَاسٍ لَا سُقُوا صَوْبَ الْمُزْنِ

عَلَى الْأَعَادِي مِثْلَ رِيحٍ صَرْصَرَهْ

أَجْلِدُكُمْ بِالسَّيْفِ كَيْلَ السَّنْدَرَهْ

“If you do not know me, I am the son of Haydar al-Karrār,

the lion of the battlefield, the fearless lion who struck terror into his enemies like a devastating tempest.

If you do not know me, I am the son of Hasan (p),

the chosen and trustworthy grandson of the Messenger of Allah (p).

This is Hussein (p),

standing among these people like a captive.

May Allah never let these people be watered by the rain of His mercy.

I shall descend upon the enemies like a violent, destructive wind,

and I shall cut you down with the edge of my sword as a fierce lion tears through its prey.”

It has been narrated in al-Manāqib that he recited the following rajaz:

إِنِّي أَنَا الْقَاسِمُ مِنْ نَسْلِ عَلِي

نَحْنُ وَبَيْتُ اللَّهِ أَوْلَى بِالنَّبِي

مِنْ شِمْرِ ذِي الْجَوْشَنِ أَوِ ابْنِ الدَّعِي

In his hand was a sword.

He was clothed in a simple shirt and trousers, and upon his feet were a pair of sandals.

As Qasim (p) advanced toward the battlefield, the strap of one of his sandals broke.

The grandson of the Messenger of Allah (p) would not allow himself to enter the battlefield barefoot.

So he stopped to fasten the strap of his sandal, paying no attention whatsoever to the thousands of enemy soldiers surrounding him.

At that moment, ʿAmr ibn Saʿd ibn Nufayl (may Allah curse him) advanced toward him.

Ḥumayd ibn Muslim said to him:

“What do you intend to do with this young boy? Are not all those whom you see around him sufficient?”

But ʿAmr replied:

“By Allah, I will deal with him myself.”

He then turned back, struck Qasim (p) upon the head with his sword, and the young son of Hasan (p) fell to the ground.

Qasim (p) cried out:

يَا عَمَّاهُ!

“Yā ʿAmmāh!

O my uncle, come to my aid!”

Imam Hussein (p) rushed toward him like an enraged lion and struck ʿAmr, severing his arm at the elbow.

The army of Ibn Saʿd surged forward in an attempt to rescue him.

Amid the chaos of the charging horsemen, the blessed body of Qasim (p) was trampled beneath the hooves of their horses.

Imam Hussein (p) Beside Qasim (p)

When the dust of battle had settled, they saw Imam Hussein (p) standing beside Qasim (p).

Qasim (p), overcome by the agony of his wounds, was dragging his feet upon the ground in the throes of pain.

Then Imam Hussein (p) said:

بُعْدًا لِقَوْمٍ قَتَلُوكَ،

وَمَنْ خَصْمُهُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ فِيكَ جَدُّكَ وَأَبُوكَ

“Far removed from the mercy of Allah are the people who killed you.

On the Day of Resurrection, the ones who will contend with them before the Court of Divine Justice are your grandfather, the Messenger of Allah (p), and your father.”

How you have grown—or has your uncle become bent like a bow?

Or has the youthful standard-bearer returned once again?

Smile, O thirteen-year-old Abbas, for your smile has always been the very life of Hussein (p).

Rise, so they will not see me collapse to the ground,

for this lonely uncle, stricken by the loss of his young one, has been left powerless.

What has befallen you, that your head now falls in weakness?

What has my mother, Fāṭimah (p), witnessed here, that she has become half-lifeless with grief?

Then the Imam said:

عَزَّ وَاللَّهِ عَلَى عَمِّكَ أَنْ تَدْعُوَهُ فَلَا يُجِيبَكَ،

أَوْ يُجِيبَكَ فَلَا يَنْفَعُكَ صَوْتُهُ.

هَذَا يَوْمٌ وَاللَّهِ كَثُرَ وَاتِرُهُ وَقَلَّ نَاصِرُهُ.

“By Allah, it is unbearably painful for your uncle that you call upon him for help, yet he is unable to answer your call;

or that he answers you, but his response can no longer benefit you.

By Allah, today is a day when your uncle’s enemies are many, while those who stand by his side are few.”

The Final Return to the Tents

Then Imam Hussein (p) lifted the blood-soaked body of Qasim (p) onto his chest and carried him back toward the tents.

He laid him beside the bodies of the martyrs from his Household, and then said:

اللَّهُمَّ أَحْصِهِمْ عَدَدًا

وَاقْتُلْهُمْ وَلَا تُغَادِرْ مِنْهُمْ أَحَدًا

وَلَا تَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ أَبَدًا

صَبْرًا يَا بَنِي عُمُومَتِي

صَبْرًا يَا أَهْلَ بَيْتِي

فَوَاللَّهِ لَا رَأَيْتُمْ هَوَانًا بَعْدَ هَذَا الْيَوْمِ أَبَدًا

“O Allah, leave not a single one of them alive,

and never forgive them.

O my cousins, remain patient.

O my family, persevere with steadfastness.

By Allah, after this day you shall never again know humiliation.”