Was Imam Husayn (as) returning so as to give bayya to Yazeed?

Tareekh Kamil Volume 4 page 48 Imam Husayn

Al Bidayah Volume 8 page 175

Tareekh Tabari page 314

Tadkhira Khawwas page 141

We read in al Bidaya that Uqbah bin Subhan narrates:

"I accompanied Husayn from Makka until the time that he was killed. I heard all of his speeches and at no point did he state 'Take me to Yazeed so that I can give him bayya" The comments of an actual Sunni scholar, Allamah Shibli in his book Zeyneb page 156 are also worthy of note:

"Husayn said 'I am from the Ahl'ul bayt of the Prophet. Yazeed is not worthy of receiving my bayya'"

Kr-hcy.com states:WHEN HAZART HUSAYN WAS STILL ON HIS WAY TO KUFA HE RECEIVED NEWS THAT HIS COUSIN, MUSLIM BIN AQEEL, WHO WAS SENT EARLIER BY HIM TO KUFA TO ASCERTAIN THE CONDITIONS THERE, HAD BEEN MURDERED ON RECEIVING NEWS OF THE DEATH OF MUSLIM BIN AQEEL, HAZRAT HUSAYN LOST CONFIDENCE IN THE PEOPLE OF KUFA AND DECIDED TO RETURN BUT THE RELATIVES OF MUSLIM BIN AQEEL UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF SABAI ELEMENTS INSISTED ON AVENGING THE MURDER OF MUSLIM BIN AQEEL AND HENCE HAZRAT HUSAYN DECIDED TO RESUME HIS ONWARD JOURNEY TO KUFA.

Reply

If the brothers of Muslim wanted to avenge his death - then what is the big deal here? The desire to avenge the blood of an innocent is not a reprehensible act. The Qur'an prescribes an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Yazeed was responsible for the killing of an innocent here, and the state being controlled by Yazeed had committed the atrocity, so the innocent's brothers decided to follow God's Word and carry out the penalty against the soldiers of Yazeed who had committed this action as the state would do nothing having committed the atrocity. The family of Rasulullah (s) were the rightful heirs of Hadhrath Muslim (as) - if his brothers took action to fulfil a desire to avenge their brothers unlawful murder at the hands of a demonic khalifa, then what is the objection? It was no reason why Imam Husayn (as) should have halted his journey. If the family of Rasulullah (s) had discussions amongst themselves and continued on the journey then how exactly does this absolve the transgression of Yazeed? If Imam Husayn (as) was intending to return to Medina, a view for which there is no historical or textual basis, then what basis did Yazeed then have to kill Imam Husayn (as)?

We the Shi'a believe that Yazeed, in order to strengthen his reign, blocked Imam Husayn (as)'s march to Kufa at a place called Karbala. This is testified to in all historical sources e.g. whole chapters in Tabari and the chapters in all the other historical works that chronicle 60-61 AH. They also chronicle the fact that Yazeed's army then killed Husayn (as) in a pitched battle. This sin is worse than kufr. Husayn (as) was the last voice of open dissension in the Ummah, and dictators like Yazeed deal with those that speak out against their unjust ways by using their armed forces to liquidate them. The choices that were put before Imam Husayn (as) were to either accept the reign of Yazeed or die. If Imam Husayn (as) really was returning to give bayya to Yazeed then there would have been no need for this battle. The objective of bayya could have been carried out through via an intermediary, and indeed Yazeed's commanders at the Battle of Karbala said to Husayn (as) that he would be free to go if he gave the bayya to Yazeed.

In fact it is manifestly clear that Yazeed wanted one thing and one thing only from Imam Husayn (as) - his bayat. Husayn (as)'s refusal to give this bayya was the trigger that enabled Yazeed to justify killing Imam Husayn (as) to the Muslims. But other Muslims objected and said, as most do to this day, that Husayn (as) could not have given bayya to Yazeed as the latter was unlawfully appointed khalifa in breach of treaty, and further Yazeed's character would have destroyed Islam had the very grandson of the Prophet (saws) sanctioned such a demon as Khalifah. It is like voting for a homosexual into power - if he is elected it means that homosexuality is not condoned by the people. This is the state in many western countries today. Had the greatest and most learned Muslim of the age, indeed the closest male blood of the Prophet (saws) given the bayat, it would mean that dog/sister/bear/mother daughter penetration was acceptable in Islamic society. Given how fragile 60/61 AH was - Islam was still a very new religion - Islam itself as a religion with laws for society would have been destroyed. This is why Husayn (as) is called the Saviour of his grandfather's religion. Yazeed's ulterior motive was on top of extracting the bayat, and thereby completing his agenda to decimate Islam as a religion in society, to avenge the slaying of his family by Muhammad (saws) and Ali (as) by exacting tribal blood revenge - this is obvious from his words when the head of Husayn (as) was brought before him, in which Yazeed claims that the Revelation to Muhammad (saws) was a power game of the Hashim tribe, and one in which his own tribe of Umayyad had been the losers which was now avenged by killing Muhammad (saws)'s grandson who was also Ali (as)'s son.

Adapted from the book: "Yazeed"