Imam al-Husayn (A.S.) and Mu‘awiya

Compiled by: Ahmad Ahmadi Birjandi
As long as his brother was alive, Imam al-Husayn (as) was not to oppose the decisions made by his brother who was a proof (hujja) of God and an Imam, to whom obedience was incumbent on every Muslim and obeying him was the same as obeying God. On the other hand, Imam al-Husayn (as) was well aware of the reasons forcing Imam al-Hasan (as) to accept peace treaty.
Imam al-Hasan al-Mujtaba (as) never did anything opposed to wisdom and the expediency of the Muslims to which his brother would have disagreed. If Imam al-Husayn (as) had been in his brother's place, he would have done the same as what Imam al-Hasan (as) had done in his time.
The Imamate and leadership are, in any case, in the same line; but in different times they differ in tactics: a time is for peace, a time for war; a time is for supplication, a time for guidance and teaching. In any era, each one of the noble leaders has somehow struggled against the tyrant rulers and held up the banner of the Truth.
Anyhow, little by little Mu‘awiya exposed his filthy plan and paved the way for its implementation. He intended to make monarchy and authority over Muslims hereditary in his dynasty and, through this devastating act, thoroughly uproot Islam.
He wanted to appoint his son Yazid as Amir al-Mu‘mimin and the ruler of Muslims. Yazid actually had no art except hedonism and wearing flamboyant clothes. He was so reckless that he would easily and frankly declare lawful the things proclaimed as unlawful by the Prophet (S). Following is what he has been quoted as saying: “If wine has been made unlawful in the religion of Ahmad, let's then turn the goblet around by the religion of Jesus, son of Mary.”
Yazid was such a person to perpetrate incest in his drunken state (Zaynab (as) Himasa-i Abadi Bar Faraz Tarikh, p. 59). He was constantly indulged in seeking pleasures, drinking, playing with monkeys, and engaged in other amusements. Whenever indulged in drinking, he was apt to whisper what was hidden in his heart as follows: “My companions! Come over and listen to the intoxicating tune of the singers. Pour yourselves cups after cups of wine and let go of your scholarly rhetoric. The pleasant tune reverberated from a harp and lute distracts me from the call of Allahu Akbar. I have exchanged the paradise houris with the dregs of wine. This exciting tune of music, these dancers with their enticing bodies, and the goblets of ruby-colored wine suffice me; I neither wish for houris nor other such things.”
It was for such a mean and nasty son of his that Mu‘awiya wanted to secure allegiance from people.
First, Mu‘awiya pursued this goal in cities other than Medina, since he knew the latter was more significant than other cities. At first, he ordered Marwan b. Hakam to take allegiance from the people of that city… even from Husayn b. ‘Ali (as).
In order to pave the way, Mu‘awiya left Sham to go on Hajj but went to Medina and spoke harshly to Husayn b. ‘Ali (as), Zubayr's son and ‘Umar's son. Then, he gathered the people in the mosque and talked to them about Yazid's competence, asserting that “all Muslims except you have sworn allegiance…”
Interrupting him, Imam al-Husayn (as) stood up and said: “I swear by God, you are putting aside, in favor of Yazid, the one whose father and mother are better and more competent than Yazid's father and mother and he himself is better than Yazid.”
Mu‘awiya said: “It sounds you mean yourself?”
Husayn (as) retorted: “Yes.”
Mu‘awiya went on: “Verily, your saying that your mother is better than Yazid's mother is true because Fatimah is the daughter of the Messenger of Allah, and her religiosity and bright lifespan is evident to everybody... As for your saying that your father was better than Yazid's father, however, God made his father superior to your father.”
The Imam (as) said: “The ignorance suffices you that you regard the transient world as superior to the Eternal World.”
Mu‘awiya said: “As for your opining that you are better than Yazid, I swear by God that Yazid is better and more competent for the umma of Muhammad (as) than you.”
The Imam (as) replied furiously: “This is a lie and calumny. Is the drunkard and negligent Yazid better than me?”
When Mu‘awiya noticed this open opposition, he ordered to station two armed agents in each allegiance center so that if anyone uttered any word of dissidence, they would do away with him. This was not acceptable to Imam al-Husayn (as), however, and Mu‘awiya's attempts did not come through.
A study on the states of Imam al-Husayn (as) shows that during the reign of Mu‘awiya, Imam al-Husayn (as) would always consider rebelling against the tyrannical rule of the Abu Sufyan's clan and constantly pointing out Mu‘awiya's innovations (bid‘a) and wrong doings.
However, he would regard his noble brother's peace agreement and the presence of Mu‘awiya as a barrier to his uprising and waited for a time when the people would get informed about the corruption in the Umayyad ruling system and would become well-aware of the poisonous propaganda against the household of ‘Ali (as).
It would take years for the people to feel the bitter taste of the despotic rule, so that they could appreciate the uprising of such a pious man as al-Husayn (as) and make it their paradigm for ever.
If Imam al-Husayn (as) had started his movement in time of Mu‘awiya, the latter would have been able to, by his trickery and cunning tricks, murder the Imam and neutralize the efficacy of his spilled blood. However, the collapse of Mu‘awiya's ruling system by way of unlawful acts, tyranny, and impurities, gradually paved the way which reached its peak in the time of Yazid. Perforce the bloody uprising and the immortal epic of the Prophet (S)'s grandson was matured enough to get ready to emerge.