In the Name of God, the All-Merciful, the All-Compassionate – Welcome to the 5th episode of our daily programme the Epic of Karbala. Today we look at the letter written to the tribal elders of Basra in southern Iraq by Imam Husain (PBUH) seeking their cooperation. In his letter, the Imam states clearly that the undeserving rulers are responsible for corruption and the deviationist tendencies in Islam and the unhealthy innovations that have crept in.
After his arrival in Mecca, the grandson of Prophet Mohammad (blessings of God upon him and his progeny), wrote a letter to the tribal elders of Basra. Here is an excerpt from the Imam’s letter: "….But then, the Lord chose Mohammad (blessings of God upon him and his progeny) from among the people and honoured him by appointing him as His Messenger and Prophet. Then, when he had correctly and excellently carried out his duties as a Prophet, the Lord summoned him (that is, took away his soul). And we, the progeny of the Prophet, are his guardians, administrators, executors, rightful heirs and inheritors. We are the most worthy and the most deserving of all the Islamic ummah to be his vicegerent (or successor). But, a group of people usurped this right from us. We were fully aware that we were superior and more worthy (and deserving) than them, but because we wanted to avoid sedition, strife, conflict, discord, and disharmony among the Muslim masses, and to prevent the enemy from exploiting this situation, we kept silent since we give a higher priority to calm and peace among Muslims than our own (usurped) rights.
“But now that I send this letter to you, we find ourselves in a situation where the Sunnah or practice and ways of the Prophet have almost been totally destroyed, and replaced by innovations and heresy. If you (the tribal elders) accept my invitation, I will guide you towards prosperity and blessings. Greetings, mercy, and blessings of God upon you!
In his letter to the people of Basra, Imam Husain (PBUH) talks of a number of issues. He first of all invites the people of Basra to cooperate with him. He urges the people of Basra to join him in the fight against anti-Islamic and anti-Qur’anic elements. He talks of the status and position of the Immaculate Ahl ul-Bayt – the the blessed progeny of the Prophet (peace be upon them). And he also talks about the usurpation of the rights of the Ahl ul-Bayt (peace be upon them), particularly in relation to the issue of Caliphate or political leadership of the Islamic ummah.
The Imam also explains why the Prophet's progeny chose to remain silent at a particular juncture, and he also explains the main reasons and motivation for his uprising. The silence of the Ahl ul-Bayt (peace be upon them) at that juncture effectively prevented in-fighting, division and bloodshed among Muslims.
But the Imam also says in his letter, that today, Islam is not so much in danger of deviation, but rather complete destruction. Under these circumstances the only way is to fight, to rise up, and if during this fight the blood of the purest (and the most righteous) among the Islamic ummah is spilt, then we can say that the enemy cannot use this fact to its own advantage -- rather, in the end, this sacrifice will bring about the best results and the best values for Islam.
source : irib
