Understanding Karbala

We are in the Ashura days of the month of Muharram. These are the anniversary days of the time when Imam Hussein, in order to bring down precisely the idea that a tyrant whose rule and gloom gripped the whole of society was invincible and irremovable, rose up in rebellion, risking everything. These are the days when it is shown with certainty that daring to die with honor keeps a person more alive than living dishonorably by giving assent in a world where tyranny rules. These are the days when one learns how arduous the struggle for the truth is, and how much more the weakness shown by one's companions on the road hurts than the open tyranny of Yazid. These days, the Ashura days, are the days when the noble blood of Imam Hussein mingled with the soil at Karbala but never dried.

Yesterday, at the Friday prayer, the subject of the sermon in all the mosques was Karbala and the mourning of Muharram. When I listened to the sermon the imam read, for some reason I was not at all surprised; it was an address that sounded very familiar. Yet I suddenly realized that in Turkey, Karbala and Ashura had never before been made the subject of Friday sermons. I wonder whether it was thought that the congregation would react to it? Do the mosque congregations in Turkey hold a different attitude than the Alevis regarding Karbala, where Hz. Hussein was martyred?

Of course, the meaning attributed to this event and its place in the world of belief may differ, but however different they may be, were the mourning of Karbala and the love of Hz. Hussein not at least one of the common subjects? It is easy to explain the separation between us by digging through history, but why has an opportunity for rapprochement over at least this common subject never been tried?

It is truly impossible to understand. Yet it is a fact that such a sermon, far from disturbing the mosque congregation, most of whom are Sunni, appeals greatly to the feeling within them.

Despite my opposition to the practice of centrally written sermons, I congratulate the present Presidency of Religious Affairs for thinking of a sermon on Karbala, and I am relaying the sermon here as it is.

My brothers!

We are in the month of Muharram, one of the periods of time blessed with our Lord's wisdom and mercy: following the month of Ramadan, when the gates of Paradise are opened wide, and the pilgrimage season, when believers push away property, possessions, rank and fame with the back of their hand and, clad in white garments like shrouds, rehearse the Day of Gathering. Muharram has an important place in our history and our culture. For Muharram is the month which, on the basis of the Hijra of our Prophet, is accepted as the beginning of the Hijri year. Muharram is the month of Ashura. And Muharram is the month that reminds us of Karbala, which sears our hearts.

Karbala is the place where Hz. Hussein, our master, one of the two beloved offspring of Hz. Ali and Hz. Fatima, whom our Messenger honored with the words "the masters of the youth of Paradise," and more than seventy believers were martyred...

Dear brothers!

This grievous event, which has pained our hearts and burned our insides for centuries, has wounded deeply and hurt the hearts of all believers, first of all our nation, who love our Prophet and his Ahl al-Bayt. It has plunged all Muslims, whatever their culture, sect or temperament, into deep sorrow.

Indeed, Kazım Pasha expresses this common sorrow of the ummah very meaningfully in these verses:

"Hussein fell from his horse onto the plain of Karbala

Gabriel, be there and bring word to the sultan of the prophets..."

The honorable resistance against injustice and tyranny, and the sincere march in the name of righteousness, of Hz. Hussein and his kin, who were mercilessly martyred in Karbala, have left unforgettable marks in the hearts of all believers. And those who deemed this tyranny fit for the grandchildren of the Messenger of God have been condemned in the common conscience of humanity.

Dear brothers!

Muharram is, for us, a season of common sorrow and mourning, and equally a table of justice, wisdom, right and truth. While we mourn this event, so that the same pains may not be lived again, we need, more than ever, to read and understand Muharram correctly, to draw positive conclusions and take lessons from it, and to act in accordance with the command of our Almighty Lord: "Do not be like those who became divided and fell into disagreement after clear proofs had come to them..."2

We should regard the month of Muharram as an opportunity for the revival of the feelings of truth, justice, mercy, compassion, tolerance and tenderness for which Hz. Hussein sacrificed his life, and for the strengthening of Muslims' feelings of love, brotherhood and unity.

Indeed, our tradition of ashura, which we keep alive in the month of Muharram, is one of the most beautiful examples of this brotherhood. Ashura is a symbol of sharing, solidarity and togetherness. Just as the different ingredients that come together in the ashura pudding contribute to the same common taste, so our nation, as a requirement of living together for centuries, continues to share joy and grief, affection and hardship.

On this occasion, we commemorate with mercy all our martyrs, above all Hz. Hussein, the master of martyrs, the flower of the Prophet of mercy, the lord of the youth of Paradise, the apple of the eye of the ummah, and the martyrs of Karbala.

We ask our Lord that the love of the Ahl al-Bayt of Mustafa may remain forever in our hearts, and that the human and moral virtues that have come down to us from them may adorn our minds and hearts. We pray to the Lord, the Almighty, that the sorrows and pains we have lived in the past may not cause new griefs, but rather bind us to one another with love and affection.