Musa Iqbal

“To me, death is nothing but happiness, and living under tyrants nothing but living in a hell.” – Imam Hussain (a.s.)

This year, an estimated 21 million pilgrims  attended the event of Arbaeen in Karbala, Iraq, marking another consecutive year of a record-breaking number of attendees. Indeed, Arbaeen – an event overwhelmingly recognized by Shia Islam – has become one of the largest human gatherings in history.

Arbaeen marks the fortieth day after the martyrdom of Imam Hussein (a.s.), the grandson of the holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), known throughout Islamic tradition as the “Master of Martyrs.” Millions of pilgrims from around the world gather in Karbala, embodying a powerful act of devotion and remembrance of the sacrifice of Imam Hussain and his companions. A part of this sign of respect for the beloved Imam is taking a 74 kilometer journey on foot from the city of Najaf to Imam Hussain’s (as) shrine in Karbala. Along the way, Iraqis and other believers provide food, water, and shelter for the pilgrims as a sign of love and respect for the pilgrims and the martyrs of Karbala. 

Hussain (as) stood against the tyrannical rule of Yazid because he was a despot whose reign and usurpation epitomized the corruption and injustice. On the 10th of Muharram, 61 AH (or 680 CE), Imam Hussain and his camp were martyred by the Ummayad army, at the command of the corrupt, tyrannical Yazid.

With a few dozen companions, Imam Hussain faced an army of thousands, refusing to bow to oppression. Despite his martyrdom, as well as the martyrdom and subsequent captivity of his companions and family, his sacrifice on the plains of Karbala was not a defeat but a victory of principle – a call to humanity to rise against injustice, no matter the odds.

It was an act of devotion to Allah swt – a principled stand against those who use the guise of Islam to spread their corruption and bask in unlawful deeds. Imam Hussain (as) feared and loved Allah more than he feared death and loved the material world – and so his sacrifice for the sake of Islam – a sacrifice he knew would be bloody and painful – was not a choice, but the only path forward.

Today, the Arbaeen march, drawing 25 million souls, embodies this same spirit, transforming grief and sorrow into a global movement for justice and an active call to fight tyranny.

Observing the martyrdom of Imam Hussain (as) without applying the principles of his sacrifice to the current conditions of the world is missing the point. That is why Arbaeen is so essential – it is not just remembrance of a historical event, but applying the lessons of Imam Hussain’s (as) revolt to the corrupted world we live in today. It is simultaneously also why there is a total Western media blackout on one of the world’s largest human gatherings – an analysis of Arbaeen would expose the imperialist powers as the primary evil within the global stage.

Indeed, the remnants of Yazid – oppressors who demand total allegiance from the oppressed – exist today. They exist in the form of modern tyrants, from the ruling class that exploits the world from Washington and Wall Street to the genocidal colonialist regime in so-called “Tel-Aviv,” which, of course, is backed politically and economically by the former. They exist within Arab-Muslim regimes that work hand in hand with the former, paving a pathway for allegiance with the oppressor instead of rising against them.

It is no surprise then that the path to Karbala is decorated with the photos of martyrs – from giants like Yahya Sinwar to Hezbollah soldiers martyred in the field of battle against the Zionist usurpers. These photos are surrounded by flags of the Axis of Resistance, not only displayed in the streets from Najaf to Karbala but also wielded by the pilgrims who march to Imam Hussain (as).

“A man like me can never pay allegiance to a man like him” – Imam Hussain (as)

Today, there are thousands of men actively engaged on the battlefield against the tyrants of our time. The most compelling example in the fashion of Karbala is the resistance fighters of Gaza holding off a Zionist onslaught that is armed by global imperialism. Despite the enemy’s advanced weaponry and the political and financial backing of the world’s wealthiest— and indeed, most tyrannical—powers, the steadfast resistance fighters continue to deliver blow after blow.

The imperialist apparatus that the resistance challenges is not limited to just Gaza. Imperialist powers actively fuel corruption, exploitation, and devastation in the Muslim world – and of course, these wounds are fresh in the holy lands of Iraq. These tyrannical powers have advanced militaries and seemingly endless military resources. However, they are the oppressors of today. They back the Israeli occupation’s genocide of the Palestinian people. They sign off on bombs dropped on the oppressed of the world. They coerce people into exploitation, lining their own pockets while starving hundreds of millions around the globe.

As imperialism’s grab is aimed at the world, resistance is not just limited to the guns and bombs of the Axis. Resistance is called upon by the writer, the speaker, the doctor, the organizer, the journalist, the student, the teacher – no matter the profession, resistance calls upon anyone who stands for truth, who stands with the oppressed versus the oppressor.

You can find all of these professions on the road to Karbala.

Those who were silent in 680 CE were submitting themselves to the camp of Yazid. Yazid benefitted from this complicity – and that complicity remains the same today.

Imperialism’s carefully constructed image of being the arbiter of global law and order has made it difficult – but not impossible to challenge. Imperialist powers, positioning themselves as “humanitarians,” are the exact opposite – they are oppressors, looters, thieves. They silence journalists, threaten protestors, kill and hurt those who challenge their narratives, while pretending to be a representation of moral enlightenment and so-called democratic values.

Even though Yazid called himself a Muslim, Imam Hussain (as) exposed him as a tyrant. Today, millions remember and celebrate Hussain (as) – not Yazid – despite Yazid having an all-powerful and formidable army, it was the oppressed who took a principled stand that ultimately won.

It was the victory of blood over the sword. 

The resistance cannot remain in a silo, within its challenges to the imperialist threat. Arbaeen forces us to consider which camp Imam Hussain (as) would be in if he were in the mortal world today – would he be amongst the Arab regimes that have bowed before imperialist arrogance out of fear and offers of financial opportunity, or would he be standing with the resistance fighters? If one cannot answer this question confidently, they have missed the point of Imam Hussain’s (as) sacrifice.

“By God, I will never surrender to my enemies like a humiliated person and never pledge allegiance to them like slaves.” Imam Hussain (as)

Musa Iqbal is the Political Director and Editor at Vox Ummah.