Article Archives

Possible Parallels between Jesus and al-Ḥusayn

Prof. Christopher Clohessy Pontifical Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies, Rome The urge to draw contrasts between outstanding figures is highly seductive and can at times prove theologically perilous. With little effort, for example, one could find parallels between Mary, the mother of Jesus (particularly as she is portrayed in ...

Sakina: Daughter of Hussain

By Jerrmin Abu Shahba A four-year old girl by the name of Sakina, the daughter of Imam Husain (AS), more commonly known in the middle east as Ruqayyah – her tragedy is that like none other. It is globally recognized that when young children are victimized or affected by a ...

Misconceptions about the tragedy of Karbala

Bashir A. Datoo, Ph.D., A number of misconceptions about the tragedy of Karbala have been popularized by, of all people, Muslim scholars. These misconceptions are not necessarily due to any bigotry on the part of the scholars. Rather, they arise because of their total misunderstanding of the true nature of ...

Who was victorious at Karbala?

By Dr Bashir A. Datoo The response to the question hinges upon a couple of fundamental distinctions. One distinction is between a battle and a war – the former involves the outcome of an immediate military conflict, while the latter involves the achievement of the larger purpose for which the ...

What was at stake at Karbala?

By Dr Bashir A. Datoo Karbala began with Saqifah. Prophet Muhammad (s) had just passed away and, while his family was busy with the burial rites, some of his companions met at the assembly hall in Medina to plot their next move. They decided to bypass the declared successor of ...

Hussain’s unique sacrifice for humanity

By: Dr. Bashir Datoo The contemporary world, its socio-political structure and civilizational growth, owe a great measure of gratitude to sacrifice and leadership of a few people of yore who have left indelible foot prints on the sands of time. Imam Hussain’s name stands out among these people as one ...

Lessons of Karbala

By: Dr. Hassan Abbas The idea of defiance against tyranny and oppression owes a great deal to Hussain ibne Ali, the hero of the battle of Karbala in 680 AD. With just 72 valiant followers and family members, the grandson of Prophet Mohammad faced the military might of the Muslim ...

Martyrdom in various cultures

By: Dr. S. Manzoor Rizvi The purpose of this essay is to share with our fellow human beings, what we consider one of the ultimate and unique sacrifices in the history of civilization, which is the martyrdom of a man known as Husain. Thomas Carlyle says this about Imam Hussain ...

Karbala And Political Activism

By Jerrmein Abu Shahba Today after nearly 1400 years, we the nation of Prophet Muhammad, the lovers and devotees of the progeny of the Seal of Prophets, commemorate the martyrdom of his holy grandson, Imam Husayn (AS) which took place on the day of Ashura, 61 years A.H. We begin ...

Hussain : The Conscience of all Regions

By Bashir A. Datoo, Ph.D. This is how a perceptive Lebanese Christian writer, Antoine Bara, characterized the stand of Imam Hussainb. Ali (a), the Third Imam in the line of succession to Prophet Muhammad (s), against the tyrant ruler Yazid b. Muawiya, the ruler of the Umayyad dynasty. He included ...