In the Name of The Most Exalted

Karbala – The Revolution Continues…...

Its Timeless Effects

Husayn Moola

The legacy of the collision between good and evil, spirituality and materialism, and between oppressors and oppressed is a timeless one. Perusing the pages of history, it is manifest that this collision has been since the advent of the human being on the surface of the earth, and its first classical example is the conflict and collision between Cain and Abel, and many other such conflicts and collisions have left their mark and footsteps on sands of history, but none so as the legacy of the Tragi/Saga of Karbala.

How does one define Karbala and its events? For those not witness to this momentous occasion, it is and becomes extremely difficult to portray every of its facet, or capture its mood and its awesomeness, yet history has witnessed a plethora of copious works trying to achieve just that, even at this present juncture, some 1370 years later. Why? one wonders. One fundamental reason is that Karbala represents a particular Paradigm, and an enduring one at that.

However, the anomaly surrounding Karbala is that it evokes so many different hues and shades of opinion, more so now than ever before. The underlying reason for this is the success of the Islamic Revolution in Iran and the subsequent progress and advancement of the Islamic Republic of Iran as a powerbroker in the global politico-socio sphere.

From the time of its occurrence, the Tragi/Saga of Karbala has evoked different responses, some of joy and jubilation, and others of deep sorrow and commemoration, and yet another, which delved into understanding its meaning and philosophy. Whilst some celebrate the 10th Muharram (day on which the event of Karbala occurred), as the day of many historical events, and exchange gifts and distribute sweet foods, others ardently mourn and commemorate the one single most important event which can be readily identified with, in terms of its proximity to time, the Tragi/Saga of Karbala. However, however much the incident of Karbala has been written about talked about or eulogized, of importance to us is its effect on our present day environment.

To understand its effects in our present day environment, we need to understand its meaning and philosophy, even though this may be a cursory one. Karbala in its most simplistic understanding is an eternal display of various and contradictory characteristics. It is at once, a display against tyranny, injustice, repression, torture and execution, and sacrifice, bravery, loyalty, nobility and spirituality, as well as the contradictory characteristics of treachery, betrayal, human abasement and wretchedness. Bearing these in mind, we can endeavor to simply analyse the impact the Tragi/Saga of Karbala has had on our present day environment.

The success and culmination of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, is the most glaring and powerful manifestation of the potency of the Legacy of Karbala, its meaning and understanding. The late great Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Ruhullah Khomeinie (may ALLAH be pleased with him), and the vanguard of his movement, effectively portrayed and used the true and realistic dynamics of Karbala as an impetus for the Islamic Revolution. Imam Khomeinie very insightfully and realistically demonstrated that Karbala was not an incident meant to remain on the pages of history, but that it represented a movement, a movement to “safeguard the principles of justice, social equity and independence.”

Karbala represents an archetype eternal struggle of truth against falsehood, justice against injustice, magnanimity against tyranny, oppressed against oppressor, poor against rich and human dignity against bestiality. This is exemplified by what Imam Husayn (as) said: “O people! Verily the Messenger of ALLAH (s) said: ‘Whoever observes a sovereign legalizing what ALLAH has made unlawful, violating the covenant of God, opposing the Sunnah of the Messenger of ALLAH, and treating the creatures of ALLAH sinfully and oppressively, and does not oppose him with his speech and action, ALLAH has a right to bring him to the same fate as that of the tyrant.’ Indeed, these people have committed themselves to the following of Satan, and abandoned obedience to ALLAH. They have given currency to corruption and abolished the Islamic laws, plundering the public treasury, making lawful what ALLAH has forbidden and forbidding what ALLAH has permitted. And I, of all people, have a greater right to act [in accordance with the Prophet's exhortation].”

Imam Khomeinie and his vanguard of combatant scholars took the myopic understanding of Karbala as a mere ritual and lamentation, and “translated the Revolutionary and Creative potential of this Movement into reality.”  It is this reality which serves as an impetus for the current spate of “Islamic Awakening”, and it is this, which instills fear into the hearts of the “taghuti” forces, who now are hell bent on thwarting the progress of the Islamic Republic.

On the flip side of the legacy of Karbala as a movement to confront the “Taghuti” forces, is the one which challenges the reality and factuality of the event of Karbala, and/or its intent and purpose. An interesting fact is that ever since the culmination and success of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, a plethora of literature has emerged, which undermines the value of the Tragi/Saga of Karbala as a Movement meant to uplift human dignity, and two such contemporary works are: “Karbala: Fact or Fiction” by Dr Shabbir Ahmed, and “The History of Karbala” by Abu Ammar.

Interesting to note is the fact that this literature, whilst addressing the issue of Karbala, is mainly about the “Persian/Iranian” flavour of the incident of Karbala, particularly as described in the book: “Karbala: Fact or Fiction.” Another interesting note is the fact that these “authors” have been deafeningly silent against the untold atrocities perpetrated on a global scale, and the undemocratic and draconian rule of the “monarchs” ruling Muslim masses. A point worthy of note is that every year, since the Islamic Revolution, the tempo of the hype against the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Shiaphobia is raised to a crescendo. Why? The Revolutionary Message which is disseminated and the Revolutionary fervour which is created during the commemoration of the Legacy of Karbala instils a destabilising and numbing fear into the hearts of the oppressors, tyrants, hypocrites, imperialists, colonizers, racists and their ilk, for they are well aware of the unyielding and enduring clarion call of Karbala which has resonated through the marching sounds of history:

“DEATH WITH DIGNITY IS FAR GREATER THAN LIFE UNDER OPPRESSION AND TYRRANY!”

(Imam Husayn ibn Ali (as)).