From Medina to Karbala: In the Words of Imam al-Husayn,

By: Ayatollah Muhammad-Sadiq Najmi.
Translated and annotated by Dr. Muhammad-Reza Fakhr-Rohani.
Birmingham: Sun Behind The Cloud Publications, 2012.
The figure of al-Ḥusayn, son of â€کAlī bin Abū Ṭālib and grandson of the Prophet Muḥammad through his daughter Fāṭima, forms one of the most
important personalities for Twelver Shī’ism as the third infallible Imām. Following the death of â€کAlī, the rise to power of the Umayyad
Caliph Mu’āwiya, and the renunciation of leadership by â€کAlī’s eldest son al-Ḥasan, al-Ḥusayn was marginalized at his home in Medina.
Mu’āwiya sought to establish a hereditary dynasty and designated his son Yazīd as his successor. Upon Mu’āwiya’s death, Yazīd summoned
al-Ḥusayn, challenging him to pledge allegiance to his authority.
Al-Ḥusayn refused, claiming that one so corrupt and profligate as Yazīd had no right to lead the Muslim umma. Seeking to escape Yazīd’s
clutches and establish himself as the rightful leader, al-Ḥusayn withdrew from Medina to Mecca, then traveled with a small band of family members and supporters towards Kūfa, some of whose inhabitants offered him their support. Yazīd’s forces caught up with the group on the plain of Karbalā’ in central Iraq, where they were massacred on the 10th of Muḥarram. It is fair to say that this event, known as Āshūrā’ (“tenthâ€‌), became the most defining moment of history for Shī’ites, and their most important annual memorial.
This book is a valuable contribution towards helping English-speaking readers understands both the details and the significance of al-Ḥusayn’s final days. In the first place, it comprises a complete collection of his dialogues, speeches, prayers and letters, gathered from a variety of early Shī’ite sources, from the time that he received Yazīd’s ultimatum up to that fateful day. The chapters, arranged in chronological sequence, each begin with the Arabic text of what al-Ḥusayn is reported to have said or wrote, followed by a fine English translation. They depict the Imām’s resolute determination to remain loyal to his faith, yet to submit peaceably to the will of his Lord in the face of assaults from Yazīd and reports of hypocrisy among the Kūfans. This material itself is of immense value to both scholars and faithful alike. But this work provides much more. The author has
supplied an expansive commentary to each passage, explaining its specific historical circumstances as well as offering information about the general perspectives and beliefs of Shī’ites relevant to that passage. Furthermore, the translator has added numerous endnotes to each chapter, not only giving details about sources and references, but also clarifying names, dates and events for English readers who may not be as familiar with Shī’ite history and literature. The book includes three maps which outline al-Ḥusayn’s movements, as well as bibliographies of sources utilized by both the author and the translator. The resulting work thus presents not only a comprehensive account of this brief pivotal period of al-Ḥusayn’s life, but it also captures the heart of Shī’ite Islam’s essential ethos.
Both author and translator are established contemporary Iranian scholars. Ayatollah Muḥammad-Ṣādiq Najmī, who passed away in 2011, was
rector of an Islamic university which he founded in Khoy (north-western Iran); he authored numerous books (in Persian) on Islamic history, the Qur’ān and the Ḥadīth literature. Dr. Muḥammad-Reza Fakhr-Rohānī, Assistant Professor of English Literature at the University of Qom, has devoted his career to providing English readers access to the wealth of Āshūrā’ literature, through such works as his Ashura Poems in English,
Explained and Annotated (2 vols., Karbalā’ and Qom, 2011). From Medina to Karbala is certainly one of the most significant contributions to this growing literature, and it deserves to be incorporated in any library which claims to offer important resources on the history and character of Shī’ite Islam.

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For students of Religious Studies, exposure to source material is essential in developing an understanding of another faith. For English-speaking students of Islam, Mohammad-Reza Fakhr-Rohani’s , From Medina to Karbala in the words of Imam al-Husayn meets that important need. Both beginning and advanced students of Islam are offered translations of Imam al-Husayn’s letters, statements, speeches, and prayers from the last weeks of his life leading to his martyrdom at Karbala and will find the detailed and insightful commentary following each of the selection helpful. Overall from Medina to Karbala offers the reader the opportunity to better understand a figure central in the religious history of Shi’i Muslims.

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Imam al-Husayn, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad through his daughter Fatimah al-Zahra’ and Imam â€کAli ibn Abi Talib, is one of the
most remarkable figures to have walked the face of the Earth. Loved and admired by Shiâ€کite Muslims, he remains a marginal personality in
Sunnism and virtually unknown outside of the Islamic world. While a wide body of works has been produced about Imam al-Husayn, especially
in the Arabic, Persian, and Urdu languages, the offerings in English have been somewhat scarce. The few works that exist in English are
mainly biographical in nature or present a small selection of the Imam’s prayers and statements. Fortunately, this state of affairs has
been addressed by Dr. Muhammad-Reza Fakhr-Rohani. Thanks to his translation and annotation of the late Ayatullah Muhammad-Sadiq
Najmi’s From Medina to Karbala, students and scholars can learn about one of the most significant events in Islamic history, the tragedy of
â€کAshura’, In the Words of Imam Husayn. As a result of the combined efforts of an ayatullah and his academic associate, English readers
finally have a complete collection of Imam al-Husayn’s discourses from the time he was asked to recognize Yazid as Caliph until his martyrdom
on the 10th of Muharram in the year 680 CE. Each chapter commences with a discourse from Imam al-Husayn in its original Arabic, followed
by a clear, competent translation in the English language. These citations and translations are followed by critical commentaries and conclusions which are supported by numerous notes. Since some of the maqatil or martyrdom literature, both past and present, was composed
by poets, eulogizers, and professional reciters, who were not always scholars, literary considerations, not to mention unbridled enthusiasm, sometimes took precedent over historical fact.
Consequently, many mistaken notions continue to circulate among the Shiâ€کite community. It was for this reason that Ayatullah Najmi and Dr.
Fakhr-Rohani were determined to draw the discourse of Imam Husayn from reliable sources. As a result of both selection and commentary, these
scholars have corrected some of the mistakes found in the Husayni literature composed by individuals who were not optimally educated.
Besides its literary and scholarly content, the work also contains numerous figures describing and detailing Imam Husayn’s route from
Medina to Mecca and finally to Karbala, the place of his heroic last stand against the forces of oppression, tyranny, and infidelity. From
Medina to Karbala: In the Words of Imam Husayn marks an important moment in the history of Shiâ€کism in the Western world: the moment in
which the message of Imam al-Husayn was fully articulated by the Imam himself by means of the English language. For students and scholars
interested in understanding the split between Sunnism and Shiâ€کism, the discourses of Imam al-Husayn are an absolute must.