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EID-E-ZAHRA (A.S.)
Ahmad ibn
Is-haq al-Qummi was a great companion of Imam Hasan al-‘Askary (a.s). On
the 9th Rabee’ al-Awwal, Muhammad Hamadani and Yahya Baghdadi
came to visit him and were informed that Ahmad was busy performing
Ghusl for that day. When they inquired what the Ghusl
was about, they were told that Ahmad had heard from Imam
Muhammad al-Hadi (a.s), who said: “9th
of Rabee’ al-Awwal is the day of Eid. It is our greatest Eid and the Eid
of our followers”.
After
performing his Ghusl Ahmad ibn Is’haq said to the two
visiting men: “I have performed Ghusl because today is the Eid of 9th
Rabee’ al-Awwal. I visited Imam Hasan al-‘Askary (a.s) on this day and
noticed that his ring was shinning. The people of his household wore new
clothes and had applied perfume. When I asked the reason, Imam (a.s)
said, ‘Today is 9th Rabee’
al-Awwal. It is the day of Eid for us and for our followers’”.
(Chauda Sitaare)
SOME
HISTORICAL EVENTS OF THIS DAY:
Firstly,
some historians are of the opinion that the Holy Prophet (saww) was born
on the 9th Rabee’ al-Awwal. There are two other opinions: 12th
Rabee’ al-Awwal and 17th Rabee’ al-Awwal respectively. For
the Shia’hs, the most popular narration is the one which states that the
Holy Prophet (saww) was born on the 17th Rabee’ al-Awwal 570
AD.
Whatever
the case, it date does not make a big difference. Ayatullah Ruhullah
Musawwi al-Khumaini (r.a) had declared the week between 9th
and 17th Rabee’ al-Awwal as Usboo’ al-Wahda
meaning “the week of unity amongst Muslims”. Muslims all over the world
are urged to get together and celebrate the birth of the Holy Prophet (saww)
for the whole week.
Secondly,
the 9th of Rabee’ al-Awwal is also known as Eid-e-Zahra
(a.s) meaning the festival of Fatima al-Zahra (a.s), because 3
to 4 years after the tragedy of Karbala, it was on this day that joy and
happiness was restored in the family of Ahlul-Bayt (a.s). From the
tragedy of Karbala in 61 A.H. till this day, the family members of the
Holy Prophet (saww) had continuously mourned and grieved the martyrdom
of Imam al-Husayn (a.s).
Then
Mukhtar bin ‘Ubaydullah al-Thaqafi, together with Ebrahim bin Malik al-Ashtar
and others rose to avenge the blood of Imam al-Husayn (a.s). They
arrested every killer of karbala and executed them. Finally, Mukhtar
arrested ‘Umar ibn Sa’d (commander-in-chief of Yazeed’s army at Karbala)
and ‘Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad (governor of Yazeed in Kufa). He beheaded them
and sent their heads to Imam Ali ibn al-Husayn (a.s) in Madina. These
two heads reached the Imam (a.s) on the 9th Rabee’ al-Awwal
and on seeing them, Imam (a.s) went into prostration and said,
“I thank Allah who kept me alive to this day
so that I could see the heads of the tyrants who killed my father”.
He (a.s) then instructed the members of his family to remove
the clothes of mourning, adorn themselves and celebrate the day with joy
and happiness.
(Nasikh al-Tawarikh)
Thirdly,
9th Rabee’ al-Awwal is the first day of the Imamate of our
Living Imam, Imam Muhammad bin Hasan al-Mahdi (A.J) – a day of rejoicing
and celebration.
(Almanac)
It is
true that an Imam is an Imam from birth but every Imam assumed the
official role of his Imamate after the death of the previous Imam. The
reason why we celebrate, in particular, the Imamate of our Living Imam (A.J)
is to perhaps remind ourselves of his presence and about our
responsibilities towards him. Imam Hasan al-‘Askary (a.s) passed away on
the 8th Rabee’ al-Awwal 260 A.H. and our 12th Imam
(A.J) assumed his Imamate formally at a young age of 5 years on the 9th
Rabee’ al-Awwal 260 A.H.
We pray
to Allah (SWT) to keep us firm on His path, and to always protect us
from negligence in discharging our duties towards Him and our Living
Imam (A.J), and to also include us among the Imam (A.J) helpers and
companions –Ameen.
RECOMMENDED ACTS:
On the 9th
of Rabee’ al-Awwal, it is highly recommended to:
Perform
Ghusl.
Wear new
clothes.
Apply
perfume.
Hold
gatherings to praise Allah (SWT), His prophet (saww) and the Ahlul-Bayt
(a.s).
Our heartiest greetings and felicitations to our Living Imam (A.J) and
all the Muslims and followers of Ahlul-Bayt (a.s) on this auspicious
occasion of Eid-e-Zahra (a.s)
Mulla
Mujaheedali Sheriff
mulla@almahdi.org.uk |