On the Special Divine Gift Bestowed Upon That Noble Imam (a.s.)

در خصوصيت عطيه‌ي خداوند نسبت به آن حضرت

خصوصيتي است كه خداوند در عطيه نسبت به آنجناب نموده، از صفات كماليه‌ي خود، و آن اين است كه از آن صفات شريفه، نمونه بر آن جناب قرار داده و مخصوص آن سرور فرموده:يكي آنكه: از جمله‌ي صفات الهي آن است كه، تمام اشياء تسبيح الهي مي‌نمايند و لكن ما نمي‌فهميم حقيقت آنرا، چنانكه در قرآن [320] و به مقتضاي روايات، تمام اشياء بر گريه بر مصيبت آنحضرت مي‌نمايند و لكن ما نمي‌فهميم، حقيقت آن گريه را، مثلا گريه‌ي آسمان به تقاطر خون بود، و گريه‌ي زمين به آن است كه هر سنگي را كه حركت مي‌دادند در زيرش خون يافته مي‌شد، و گريه‌ي ماهيان به خروج از آب است، و گريه‌ي هوا [ صفحه 141] تاريكي آن است، و گريه‌ي آفتاب و ماه كسوف و خسوف است، و هكذا چنانكه در روايات وارد شده. [321] .دوم اينكه: توحيد الهي از جمله فطريات است چنانكه فرمود: (فطرة الله التي فطر الناس عليها) [322] حتي بت‌پرستان و زنديقان اقرار قلبي به آن دارند، هر چند به زبان انكار كنند، و دل سوختن بر حضرت حسين (عليه‌السلام) نيز فطري [323] است حتي كساني كه آنجناب را نمي‌شناسند گريه بر او مي‌كنند، و عزايش را برپا مي‌دارند، مانند بعضي از هندوها كه از دين اسلام بيگانه‌اند.بدانكه دشمنان آنحضرت در عين اظهار عداوت بر او گريان مي‌شدند، چنانكه ابن‌سعد در ساعتي كه امر به قتل او نمود گريان شد [324] و آن ملعوني كه فاطمه دختر حضرت را برهنه مي‌نمود گريه مي‌كرد [325] و همچنين قتله در بعض حالات گريه مي‌كردند، و يزيد عنيد در بعضي از شبها گريه مي‌كرد [326] بلي كسي كه از كثرت شقاوت و بي‌رحمي شنيده نشده كه رقتي كرده باشد يا گريان شده باشد ابن‌زياد لعين است، لكن باز حالتش اندك متغير شد، آنوقتي كه امر نمود به قتل حضرت سجاد (عليه‌السلام) و عمه‌اش او را دربر گرفت و گفت: اگر او را مي‌كشي مرا نيز با او بكش. آن ملعون نظر تندي كرد و كأنه متغير گرديد و گفت: بگذاريد او را؛ كه من گمان دارم از اين مرضي كه دارد نجات نخواهد يافت. [327] .سوم اينكه: در صفات كماليه‌ي الهي افعل التفضيل في الحقيقة جاري نيست هر چند به حسب ظاهر جاري مي‌شود، چنانكه از جميع فقرات دعاي سحر معلوم مي‌شود كه اول عرض مي‌كند: «اللهم اني اسئلك من بهائك بأبهاه»، بعد مي‌گويد: «و كل بهائك [ صفحه 142] بهي» [328] و همچنين باقي فقرات، و در جناب حسين (عليه‌السلام) هم مناسب اين صفت موجود است كه چون بخواهيم اعظم مصائبش را بيان نمائيم متحير مي‌شويم كه چه بگوئيم، چون هر يك را ملاحظه مي‌كنيم مي‌بينيم اعظم است، پس مي‌توان عرض كرد: «اني أبكي من مصائبك لأعظمها و كل مصيبتك عظيمة».

On the Special Divine Gift Bestowed Upon That Noble Imam (a.s.)

Among the special distinctions is that Allah bestowed upon that noble Imam (a.s.) reflections of His own attributes of perfection and singled him out with them.

The first is that among the Divine Attributes is the fact that all things glorify Allah, but we do not understand the reality of that glorification, as stated in the Qur’an [320].

Likewise, according to the narrations, all things weep over the tragedy of that noble Imam (a.s.), yet we do not comprehend the reality of that weeping.

For example, the weeping of the sky was the falling of blood-like rain; the weeping of the earth was that whenever a stone was lifted, blood was found beneath it; the weeping of the fish was their emerging from the water; the weeping of the air was its darkening; and the weeping of the sun and moon was their eclipse, and so on, as has been reported in the narrations. [321]

The second is that Divine Unity (Tawḥīd) is among the innate dispositions, as Allah says:

«فِطْرَةَ اللَّهِ الَّتِي فَطَرَ النَّاسَ عَلَيْهَا»

“The innate nature of Allah upon which He created mankind.” (Surah al-Rum 30:30) [322]

Even idol-worshippers and atheists acknowledge it inwardly, although they may deny it with their tongues.

Likewise, sorrow for Imam Husain (a.s.) is also innate. [323]

Even those who do not know him weep for him and hold gatherings of mourning for him, such as some Hindus who are strangers to the religion of Islam.

Know that the enemies of that Imam (a.s.), despite openly displaying hostility toward him, would still weep for him.

Thus Ibn Saʿd wept at the moment when he gave the order for his killing. [324]

And that accursed man who was stripping Fatimah, the daughter of Imam Husain (a.s.), also wept. [325]

Likewise, the killers themselves wept in some situations.

And Yazid the obstinate would weep on certain nights. [326]

Indeed, the one whose extreme wretchedness and cruelty left no report of any softness of heart or tears is the accursed Ibn Ziyad.

Yet even his state changed somewhat when he ordered the killing of Imam al-Sajjad (a.s.), and his aunt embraced him and said:

“If you are going to kill him, then kill me with him as well.”

That accursed one looked sharply at her and seemed affected. Then he said:

“Leave him, for I think he will not survive this illness from which he suffers.” [327]

The third is that in the Divine Attributes of Perfection, comparative forms (afʿal al-tafḍīl) are not truly applicable, even though they may appear so outwardly.

This is evident from all the passages of Duʿa al-Sahar.

At first one says:

«اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْأَلُكَ مِنْ بَهَائِكَ بِأَبْهَاهُ»

“O Allah, I ask You by the most splendid of Your splendour.”

Then one says:

«وَ كُلُّ بَهَائِكَ بَهِيٌّ»

“And all of Your splendour is splendid.” [328]

The same applies to the remaining passages.

Likewise, a resemblance to this attribute exists with Imam Husain (a.s.).

Whenever we wish to describe his greatest affliction, we become bewildered as to what we should mention, because whenever we consider one of his calamities, we find it to be the greatest.

Thus one may say:

«إِنِّي أَبْكِي مِنْ مَصَائِبِكَ لِأَعْظَمِهَا وَ كُلُّ مُصِيبَتِكَ عَظِيمَةٌ»

“I weep over your calamities because of the greatest of them, yet every one of your calamities is great.”

چهارم اينكه: خداوند از براي عبادات خود كه طريق رضوان و تقرب عباد است، طرق بسياري قرار داده است تا اينكه فيض عام باشد، بلكه از براي هر عملي درحال ضرورت بدلي مقرر فرموده است، حتي اينكه از براي نيت تنها، ثواب عمل را قرار داده و همچنين از براي حضرت حسين (عليه‌السلام) نيز نظير آن مقرر فرموده مثلا از براي زيارت آنحضرت فضيلتي قرار داده، و بدل آن اين است كه كسي را به نيابت بفرستند، يا از دور زيارت كنند، و از براي گريه بر او فضلي قرار داده بسيار بزرگ و اسباب آنرا بسيار، تا اينكه كسي محروم از فيض آن نشود.پس مصائبش را مختلف قرار داده، به جهت اختلاف قلوب در اسباب رقت، مثلا بعضي از قلوب رقت نمي‌كند به محض ملاحظه‌ي غربت، اما اگر تصور كند غريب عطشان را رقت مي‌كند، و بعضي بر زخم تنها رقت نمي‌كند، اما بر زخم روي زخم رقت مي‌كند، و بعضي براي آنهم رقت نمي‌كند اما بر پامال نمودن بعد از آن رقت مي‌كند، و هكذا، اين است كه از هر مصيبتي اعلي و اشدش در آنجناب بوده، تا فيض گريه به هر قلبي برسد.پنجم: همان قسم كه خداوند را در صفات كماليه شريكي نيست، همچنين آنجناب را در خصايصي كه دارد شريكي نيست.ششم: همچناني كه محبت الهي محبت مخصوصي است كه شباهتي به محبت مخلوقيت ندارد.همچنين محبت آنجناب در قلوب شباهتي به ساير محبتها ندارد، اين كه پيغمبر (صلي الله عليه و آله) از آن تعبير نموده به محبت مكنونه در باطن مؤمنين، در جواب سؤالي كه [ صفحه 143] از آن سرور نمودند، وقتي كه اظهار لطف مخصوصي به آنحضرت مي‌نمود.چنانكه از مقداد روايت شده كه حضرت رسول (صلي الله عليه و آله) روزي در طلب حسين (عليه‌السلام) بيرون آمد، پس يافت ايشان را در بستاني كه بر روي زمين خوابيده‌اند، پس اول سر حسين (عليه‌السلام) را برداشت و او را حركت مي‌داد به مهرباني، و زبان خود را به دهان او مي‌برد مكرر، تا اينكه بيدار شد، مقداد عرض كرد كه كأنه حسين (عليه‌السلام) بزرگتر است! حضرت فرمودند: كه از براي حسين (عليه‌السلام) محبتي است مكنون در قلوب مؤمنين. [329] .پس ظاهر شد خصوصيتي در محبت آنجناب كه از براي محبت پدر و جدش نيست، هر چند ايشان افضل بوده‌اند، و محبت ايشان بايد بيشتر باشد، اما خصوصيت محبت حسيني دخلي به كثرت ندارد، و آن چند وجه است:يكي: آنكه قلوب ايشان ميل فطري به سوي او و زيارت او دارند، و همچنين به زوار او، بيشتر از ميل حج و ساير زيارات و زوار.دوم: اينكه هر كس به زيارت عراق مي‌رود هرگاه از او سؤال نمايند: كجا مي‌روي يا كجا بودي؟ مي‌گويد: كربلا، با اينكه نجف و كاظمين و سامرا نيز مي‌رود لكن اسم، مخصوص آن حضرت است.سوم: اينكه اسم شريفش تأخير خاصي دارد در قلوب، چنانكه پدرش مي‌فرمود: «يا عبرة كل مؤمن» [330] : [اي اشك ديده‌ي هر مؤمن]، و خودش مي‌گفت: «انا قتيل العبرة» [331] [من كشته‌ي اشكها هستم.]چهارم: اينكه دخول شهر آنحضرت، يعني محرم، قلوب را محزون مي‌نمايد. [332] .پنجم: اينكه از كثرت استماع مصائبش ملول نمي‌شوند، پس اگر روزي هزار مرتبه ذكر آن را بشنوند باز چون بشنوند كه آنجناب تشنه كشته شد، يا غريب و تنها بود، [ صفحه 144] و استغاثه مي‌نمود، باز ناله‌ي ايشان بلند مي‌شود.

The fourth is that Allah has established many paths for His acts of worship, which are the means to His pleasure and the nearness of His servants, so that His grace may be widespread.

Rather, for every act of worship He has appointed a substitute in times of necessity. He has even granted the reward of an action for mere intention.

Likewise, He has established similar provisions concerning Imam Husain (a.s.).

For example, He has assigned immense merit to visiting him, and a substitute for that is that a person may send someone on his behalf, or visit him from afar.

Likewise, He has assigned an immense virtue to weeping for him, and He has made its causes numerous, so that no one may be deprived of its grace.

Thus, He made his tragedies diverse because hearts differ in the things that soften them.

For example, some hearts are not moved merely by contemplating loneliness and estrangement, but if they imagine a lonely and thirsty stranger, they become softened.

Some are not moved by a wound alone, but they are moved by wound upon wound.

Others are not moved even by that, but they are moved when they hear that the body was trampled after death.

And so it is with other people.

For this reason, every calamity reached its highest and most severe form in the case of that noble Imam (a.s.), so that the grace of weeping might reach every heart.

The fifth is that just as Allah has no partner in His Attributes of Perfection, likewise that noble Imam (a.s.) has no partner in the special distinctions that belong to him.

The sixth is that just as the love of Allah is a unique love that bears no resemblance to the love of created beings, likewise the love of that noble Imam (a.s.) in the hearts bears no resemblance to any other form of love.

This is what the Holy Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.a.) described as a hidden love concealed within the hearts of the believers, in response to a question put to him [ صفحه 143] when he was showing a special affection toward Imam Husain (a.s.).

It is narrated from Miqdad that one day the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.a.) went out searching for Imam Husain (a.s.). He found him asleep in an orchard upon the ground.

The Prophet (s.a.w.a.) lifted Imam Husain (a.s.)’s (a.s.) head and gently moved him with affection. He repeatedly placed his blessed tongue into the child's mouth until he awoke.

Miqdad said:

“It seems as though Imam Husain (a.s.) is greater!”

The Prophet (s.a.w.a.) replied:

«إِنَّ لِلْحُسَيْنِ (عليه السلام) مَحَبَّةً مَكْنُونَةً فِي قُلُوبِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ»

“Indeed, Imam Husain (a.s.) possesses a hidden love concealed within the hearts of the believers.” [329]

Thus, a special characteristic becomes evident in the love of that noble Imam (a.s.) which is not found even in the love of his father or grandfather, although they were superior to him and their love should, in principle, be greater.

However, the unique quality of Husaini love is not dependent upon quantity. It has several aspects:

First: The hearts of believers possess a natural inclination toward him, toward visiting him, and likewise toward his pilgrims, more than their inclination toward Hajj, other pilgrimages, or other pilgrims.

Second: Whenever someone travels to Iraq for pilgrimage and is asked, “Where are you going?” or “Where have you been?” he replies, “Karbala,” even though he may also have visited Najaf, Kadhimayn, and Samarra. Yet the name is specifically associated with Imam Husain (a.s.).

Third: His blessed name has a unique effect upon hearts, as his father Imam Ali (a.s.) said:

«يَا عَبْرَةَ كُلِّ مُؤْمِنٍ»

“O tear of every believer.” [330]

And Imam Husain (a.s.) himself said:

«أَنَا قَتِيلُ الْعَبْرَةِ»

“I am the one slain for whom tears are shed.” [331]

Fourth: The arrival of his month, namely Muharram, fills hearts with sorrow. [332]

Fifth: People never grow weary from repeatedly hearing of his tragedies.

Even if they hear them a thousand times in a single day, when they hear once more that he was killed thirsty, or that he was left lonely and without support, or that he cried out for help, their lamentation rises anew. [ صفحه 144]