Abu ‘Ali, al-Muhsin Ibn ‘Ali al-Tanukhi, the judge, quotes his father saying,
“Abul-Hasan, the scribe, inquired once about who the son of the mourner was. Nobody in the meeting place at Karkh6 knew the answer besides myself. I asked him, ‘What is the context of the question?’
He said, ‘I have a bondmaid who fasts and who recites tahajjud quite often, yet she cannot [besides] correctly pronounce even one Arabic word! Moreover, she even quotes poetry, and her accent is heavily Nabatean. Last night, she woke up terrified, trembling.
Her bed was close to mine. She cried out to me, ‘O father of al-Hasan! Come help me!' I asked her what was wrong with her.
She said, ‘I performed my prayers and supplications then went to bed. I saw myself walking in one of the Karkh alleys. Soon I saw a clean room, white and beautiful, decorated with teak wood, and its door was open.
There were women standing in it whom I asked about who had died and about what the matter was. They pointed to the interior of the house, so I entered and found a clean and most beautiful room. In its courtyard stood a young woman who was the best, the most radiating, the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.
She was wrapped in white clothes, and in her lap there was a head bleeding. I asked her, ‘Who are you?' She said, ‘Never mind..., I am Fatima daughter of the Messenger of Allah (S), and this is the head of my son al-Husayn (‘a). Tell Ibn Asda’ on my behalf to euologize him with this verse:
I did not dress his wound,
No, nor was he sick at all.'
I, therefore, woke up frightened.'” She was calmed down by the old lady in the house [apparently the mother of the narrator] till she was able to sleep.
Abul-Hasa, the scribe, said to ‘Ali al-Tanukhi, “O father of al-Qasim! Since you yourself know Ibn Asda’, you are now morally obligated to convey the message to him.” Al-Tanukhi agreed saying, “I hear and I obey the order of the Lady of all the Women of the World, peace be upon her.”
All this happened during the month of Sha’ban when people were suffering a great deal from the persecution of the Hanbalis who resisted their going to al-Ha'ir. I kept pleading to them till I was permitted to go. I reached al-Ha'ir in the eve of the middle of Sha’ban.
I kept inquiring about the whereabouts of Ibn Asda’ till I was able to see him. I said to him, “Fatima, peace be upon her, orders you to mourn the martyrdom of her son with the poem starting with:
I did not dress his wound,
No, nor was he sick at all.
He said, ‘I have a bondmaid who fasts and who recites tahajjud quite often, yet she cannot [besides] correctly pronounce even one Arabic word! Moreover, she even quotes poetry, and her accent is heavily Nabatean. Last night, she woke up terrified, trembling.
Her bed was close to mine. She cried out to me, ‘O father of al-Hasan! Come help me!' I asked her what was wrong with her.
She said, ‘I performed my prayers and supplications then went to bed. I saw myself walking in one of the Karkh alleys. Soon I saw a clean room, white and beautiful, decorated with teak wood, and its door was open.
There were women standing in it whom I asked about who had died and about what the matter was. They pointed to the interior of the house, so I entered and found a clean and most beautiful room. In its courtyard stood a young woman who was the best, the most radiating, the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.
She was wrapped in white clothes, and in her lap there was a head bleeding. I asked her, ‘Who are you?' She said, ‘Never mind..., I am Fatima daughter of the Messenger of Allah (S), and this is the head of my son al-Husayn (‘a). Tell Ibn Asda’ on my behalf to euologize him with this verse:
I did not dress his wound,
No, nor was he sick at all.'
I, therefore, woke up frightened.'” She was calmed down by the old lady in the house [apparently the mother of the narrator] till she was able to sleep.
Abul-Hasa, the scribe, said to ‘Ali al-Tanukhi, “O father of al-Qasim! Since you yourself know Ibn Asda’, you are now morally obligated to convey the message to him.” Al-Tanukhi agreed saying, “I hear and I obey the order of the Lady of all the Women of the World, peace be upon her.”
All this happened during the month of Sha’ban when people were suffering a great deal from the persecution of the Hanbalis who resisted their going to al-Ha'ir. I kept pleading to them till I was permitted to go. I reached al-Ha'ir in the eve of the middle of Sha’ban.
I kept inquiring about the whereabouts of Ibn Asda’ till I was able to see him. I said to him, “Fatima, peace be upon her, orders you to mourn the martyrdom of her son with the poem starting with:
I did not dress his wound,
No, nor was he sick at all.
... and I was at that time unfamiliar with that poem. He felt very vexed, so I narrated to him and to those in his company the incident above. They all burst in tears, and everyone who mourned al-Husayn (‘a) that night used this poem as a eulogy. It starts with
O eyes! Overflow and do not dry
And do over the one killed at Taff cry.
It is written by a poet from Kufa. I went back to Abul-Hasan and told him.”7
O eyes! Overflow and do not dry
And do over the one killed at Taff cry.
It is written by a poet from Kufa. I went back to Abul-Hasan and told him.”7
Notes:
6. Baghdad's part on the east of the Tigris. It is the same part where the holy city of KaÄimiyya is located.
7. al-Tanukhi, the judge, Nashwar al-Muhadara, Vol. 8, p. 218.
Adapted from: "Maqtal al-Husayn; Martyrdom Epic of Imam al-Husayn (a.s.)" by: "Abd al-Razzaq al-Muqarram"