Statement of Grand Ayatullah Sayyid Sadiq Shirazi on the Occasion of Ashura 1423

Holy City of Qum

In the name of Allah the beneficent, the merciful
Praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds, and His peace and blessings be upon His trustworthy messenger, Muhammad al-Mustafa and his purified Progeny.

It is Allah's will that from the martyrdom of Imam Hussein peace be upon him, should come the issues of the Tear (the 'Abra) as well as the Lesson (the 'Ebra) and the Model (the Uswa), not only for the generations that followed him, but even for the prophets and messengers who preceded Imam Hussein peace be upon him. 

As for the 'Abra and the Tear, the Creator of creation began it with Adam (AS) when archangel Gabriel (AS) mentioned the Purified Five, Muhammad, Ali, Fatima, Hassan, and Hussein peace be upon them. Adam (AS) said to him, "why is it that when I mention the name of Hussein my eyes flood with tears and my sorrows intensify?" Allah Almighty continued the concept of this 'Abra with the prophets during their passage through the sacred land of Karbala through their sufferings in it, and this concept continued throughout the ages, such that Imam Hussein peace be upon him said "I am a murdered (victim) for whom tears are shed; no believer remembers me unless he cries and weeps for me". 

As for Lesson and the Model - the 'Ebra and the Uswa - Imam Sadiq peace be upon him refers to it in his salute to his grandfather - Imam Hussein peace be upon him - on the fortieth day of his martyrdom, in which he addresses Allah Almighty referring to Imam Hussein peace be upon him, "He gave his blood to rescue Your servants from ignorance, and the wilderness of being misguided".

As for the Servants, it is not restricted to a group, a nation, or a generation. 

And the Rescue refers to the hope and wish of the nations of being saved from the various sorts of tragedies and calamities the basis of which are ignorance and misguidedness. 

And the Wilderness is that that has overwhelmed the majority of the people in their journey of life and in their destiny. 

These points refer to one aspect of the aims of Imam Hussein peace be upon him in his speeches and in his deeds through the history of Ashura. 
It would be most deserving that everyone of the Mu'minin everywhere works to promote the aspect of the 'Abra and the tear, by arranging and establishing Husseini Majlis & Sha'a'er - or Husseini commemoration programs which are the outward continuation of the signs of Allah Almighty, and the holy Qur'an has described them as {being from the piety of the hears}. It is this that has made the grief in the event of calamities that is usually dispraised in Islamic teachings as commended, instructed upon, and rewarded if it is for the sake of Ashura and for the Sayyid al-Shuhada, the Master of the Martyrs, peace be upon him.

It is the 'Abra and the Tear that was frequently practiced by the Ahl-ul-Bayt peace be upon them, that gravely ulcerated their eyes and eyelids, and Rayyan bin Shabib reports that Imam Ridha peace be upon him said to him "The day of al-Hussein has made our eyes ulcerous". 

It is the 'Abra and the Tear that has bled those holy eyes of the Imam of Zaman - Imam al-Mahdi peace be upon him and may Allah hasten his appearance when he says in the Ziyarat al-Nahiya; ". . . I shall cry blood for you instead of tear . . ." 
As for the case of the Lesson and the Model - which Imam Hussein peace be upon him set upon and adhered to on various occasions since leaving the holy cities of Medina and Mecca, and on his way to Karbala, and on the eve of Ashura, and on the day of Ashura, through his speeches, letters, and through his conduct in the process - that lesson and model is the determined effort to eliminate the ignorance and the misguidedness that has overwhelmed humanity. 

That will not be achieved unless through continuous efforts and total sincerity to Allah Almighty, and substantial sacrifice for the sake of awakening the servants of Allah Almighty, and taking the light of the Ahl-ul-Bayt peace be upon them to every district, place, town, and village, house, and to every man, woman and youngster. And to implement the way of Imam Hussein peace be upon him in using Ashura to rescue the servants of Allah Almighty from the tyrannies of the day, killing and bloodshed, persecution and torture, humiliation of indignity that great many people face today, especially the Muslims, in many countries. And to publicize the Teachings of Islam through all the mass media which cover all aspects of life. 

We pray to Allah to help all in this lesson and model and also in the 'Abra and tear. 

Sadiq Shirazi
Holy City of Qum
29 Dhil-Hajjah 1422

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Majalis at Haram-e-Shareekatul Hussain (AS), Syria

By: Special Reporter

DAMASCUS, Syria: Under the arrangements of TNFJ Syria unit, daily Majalis-e-Muharram ul Haram are being held at Haram Shareeka tul Hussain Hazrat Zainab (AS) Hussainia Pakistania at 7:00 am.

Allama Syed Shabbir Rizvi, Molana Miskeen Hussain and Molana Muhammad Ismail address the majalis.

On 10th of Muharram ul Haram - the day of Ashoora, after majlis-e-Ashoora Zuljinah procession will be taken out.

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Zainab Organization of Greater Seattle holds majalis 

By: Special Reporter

SEATTLE: Majalis-e-Aza, organized by Zainab organization of Greater Seattle, were held from Thursday 14 March 2002 to 23 March.
24 and 25 March majlis will be held in Renton
Time: 7:30 to 7:50--------------------------------Quran/Souz
7:50 to 8:50 -----Lecture by Moulana Ghulam Hur
Topic: Straight Path

8:50 to 9:00 -------------------------------- Noha

(Dinner/Snacks will be served)
Location: Ballinger Commons
Zainab (A.S) Organization of Greater Seattle
P O BOX 25566, SEATTLE, WA 98125
E MAIL info@zainab.org

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