What is 'Shahadat' or Martyrdom

WHOEVER IS TAKEN unawares or shot dead or suddenly killed be that even for any matter of goodness on the part of the murdered one, other than God's cause, cannot be called a martyr. It can no doubt be said that the assassin had been cruel and the good man had been unjustly killed, but he cannot be a martyr in the proper or the right sense of the term, for, perhaps, if the murdered one had an opportunity or the chance to escape death, he might have successfully avoided it, or if he had been warned of the fate, he would have changed his views or conduct to avoid the cause for the murder.

A martyr in the true and the proper sense of the term is the one mho stands for Truth and Righteousness even at the cost of his We and property not excluding his near and dear ones.

Adapted from the book: "Husain; The Saviour of Islam" by: "S.V. Mir Ahmed Ali"