Virtues of al-Husayn bin Ali

Umarah bin Yahya bin Khalid bin Urfutah said: We were with Khalid bin Urfutah on the day of the martyrdom of Sayyiduna Husayn bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both). Sayyiduna Khalid (may Allah be pleased with him) said to us: This is what I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) saying; he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "After me you will be put to trial concerning my household."
Imam al-Tabarani and Imam al-Bazzar recorded it. The narrators of Imam al-Tabarani are the narrators of the Sahih, except Umarah bin Yahya, and Umarah was declared trustworthy by Ibn Hibban.

Habib bin Yasar said: When Sayyiduna Imam Husayn bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both) was martyred, Sayyiduna Zayd bin Arqam (may Allah be pleased with him) stood at the door of the mosque and said: "Have you done this? I bear witness that I heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) saying: 'O Allah, I entrust these two to You and to the righteous believers.'" Ubaydullah bin Ziyad was told that Sayyiduna Zayd bin Arqam (may Allah be pleased with him) had said such-and-such, and he said: "He is an old man whose mind has gone."
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator, Muhammad bin Sulayman bin Bazi', and I do not know him. The remaining narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).

Al-Zubayr bin Bakkar said: Sayyiduna Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) was born on the fifth of Sha'ban in the year 4 AH, and he was martyred on a Friday, the day of Ashura, in the month of Muharram in the year 61 AH. Sinan bin Abi Anas killed him, and Khawli bin Yazid al-Asbahi, who was from Himyar, cut off his head and brought it to Ubaydullah bin Ziyad. Sinan then said: "Load my mount with silver and gold, for I have killed a king of high rank; I have killed the one who was the best of people in mother and father."
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Shahr bin Hawshab said: I heard Sayyidah Umm Salamah (may Allah be pleased with her), when the news of the martyrdom of Sayyiduna Imam Husayn bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both) reached her; she cursed the people of Iraq and said: "They have killed him, may Allah Almighty kill them. They deceived him and abandoned him to humiliation; may Allah Almighty curse them."
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators have been declared trustworthy.

Aslam al-Minqari said: I came to al-Hajjaj, and meanwhile Sinan bin Abi Anas, the killer of Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him), also came there. He was a brown-complexioned old man with henna on him; his nose was long and there were blotches on his face. He was made to stand before al-Hajjaj. Al-Hajjaj looked at him and asked: "Did you kill Sayyiduna Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him)?" He replied: "Yes." Al-Hajjaj asked: "What did you do to him?" He said: "I struck him with the spear and cut him to pieces with the sword." Al-Hajjaj said: "You two (that is, you and Imam Husayn, may Allah be pleased with him) will never be together in one abode (that is, in Paradise)."
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Ibrahim al-Nakha'i said: If I had been among those who martyred Imam Husayn, and then I were forgiven and then admitted into Paradise, I would be ashamed to pass before the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and have him look at my face.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Al-Layth bin Sa'd said: Sayyiduna Imam Husayn bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both) refused to be taken captive. The people fought him and martyred him, and they also killed his sons and his companions who had fought alongside him. This happened at a place called al-Taff. They took Ali bin Husayn (that is, Zayn al-Abidin), Fatimah bint Husayn and Sukaynah bint Husayn to Ubaydullah bin Ziyad. Ali bin Husayn (that is, Imam Zayn al-Abidin) was at that time a boy who had reached puberty. Ubaydullah bin Ziyad then sent them to Yazid bin Mu'awiyah. He gave orders concerning Sayyidah Sukaynah bint Husayn (may Allah be pleased with them both), and she was placed behind his throne so that she would not see the head of her father and of her relatives. Sayyiduna Ali bin Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) was at that time bound in shackles. The head of Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) was placed (before him), and Yazid struck his front teeth with a stick and recited this verse: "We split the skulls of men who are dear to us, while they were the more undutiful and the more unjust." Then Imam Zayn al-Abidin (may Allah be pleased with him) recited this verse: "No calamity befalls on the earth or in yourselves except that it is in a record before We bring it into being; indeed that (recording everything beforehand) is easy for Allah Almighty." It weighed heavily upon Yazid that he had recited a line of poetry to comment on the situation while Imam Zayn al-Abidin had recited a verse from the Book of Allah. So Yazid said: "No, rather it is because of what your own hands have earned, and He pardons much" (that is, he too recited a verse). Imam Zayn al-Abidin said: "By Allah, if the Messenger of Allah had seen us in this state, bound in shackles, he would have wanted to unfasten our shackles." Yazid said: "You have spoken the truth; unfasten their shackles." Imam Zayn al-Abidin said: "If we had been made to stand at such a distance before the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), he would have wanted to bring us near." Yazid said: "You have spoken the truth; bring them near." Then Sayyidah Fatimah bint Husayn (may Allah be pleased with her) and Sayyidah Sukaynah bint Husayn (may Allah be pleased with her) began raising themselves up to try to see their father's head, and Yazid raised himself up in his seat so as to screen the head of Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) (so that the women could not see it). Then he gave orders concerning them; they were provided with provisions, he had them made ready, and he sent them to Madinah.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Sayyiduna Zayd bin Arqam (may Allah be pleased with him) said: When the head of Sayyiduna Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) was brought to Ibn Ziyad, he began poking at Imam Husayn's eyes and nose with the stick in his hand. Sayyiduna Zayd bin Arqam (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Lift your stick." He asked: "Why?" Sayyiduna Zayd (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "I have seen the mouth of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) at that very place."
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator, Haram bin Uthman, who is matruk (abandoned).

Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: When the head of Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) was brought to Ubaydullah bin Ziyad, he began tapping his front teeth with a stick and saying: "He was very handsome." The narrator says: I said: "By Allah, I will make you regret your deed, for I saw the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) kissing the place where you are striking with the stick." The narrator says: So he drew back his hand.
Imam al-Bazzar recorded it, and Imam al-Tabarani recorded it with various chains, and its narrators have been declared trustworthy.

Imam al-Sha'bi said: I saw in a dream that some men descended from the sky carrying spears, searching for the killers of Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him). The narrator says: Only a short time had passed when al-Mukhtar came and had all those killers put to death.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its chain is hasan (good).

Imam al-Sha'bi said: The head of Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) is the first head in Islam that was carried (from place to place).
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator, al-Waqidi, who is da'if (weak).

Abd al-Malik bin Umayr said: I came to Ubaydullah bin Ziyad, and the head of Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) lay before him on a shield. By Allah, after a short while I came to al-Mukhtar, and the head of Ubaydullah bin Ziyad lay before al-Mukhtar on a shield. By Allah, after a short while I came to Mus'ab bin al-Zubayr, and the head of al-Mukhtar lay on a shield. By Allah, after a short while I came to Abd al-Malik, and the head of Mus'ab bin al-Zubayr lay on a shield.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and Imam Abu Ya'la recorded something similar, and he says: These people had no business except heads. The narrators of Imam al-Tabarani are thiqat (trustworthy).

Dhuwayd al-Ju'fi narrates from his father: "When Sayyiduna Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) was martyred, a camel from his camp was plundered. When its meat was cooked, it turned into blood, so they overturned it."
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Humayd al-Tahhan said: I was among the tribe of Khuza'ah when they brought some of the belongings left behind by Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him). They were told: "Should we slaughter them, or sell them and divide the proceeds?" They said: "Slaughter them." I sat by a cooking pot, and when I sat down, fire flared up in it.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator whom I do not know.

Amr bin Ba'jah said: The first humiliation that entered upon the Arabs was the killing of Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) and the claim made regarding Ziyad (his lineage).
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Abu Raja' al-Utaridi said: Do not revile Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) or anyone from his household, for we had a neighbour from Balhujaym who said: "Have you not seen this sinner Husayn bin Ali? May Allah Almighty kill him." The narrator says: So Allah Almighty struck that man's eyes with two stars (that is, their light), and that man's sight was taken away.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih.

The chamberlain of Ubaydullah bin Ziyad said: I entered the palace behind Ubaydullah bin Ziyad when Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) had been martyred, and fire flared up in front of Ubaydullah bin Ziyad's face. He tried to shield his face with his sleeve like this. Then he asked: "Did you see that?" I said: "Yes." He said to me: "You must keep this hidden."
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it. I do not know Ubaydullah's chamberlain; the remaining narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).

Al-Zuhri said: Abd al-Malik said to me: "You are the one person who can tell me what the particular sign was on the day of the martyrdom of Imam Husayn bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both)." The narrator says: I told him: "On that day, no pebble in Bayt al-Maqdis was lifted except that fresh blood was found beneath it." Abd al-Malik said to me: "In this matter, you and I are companions."
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).

Al-Zuhri said: On the day of the martyrdom of Imam Husayn bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both), no stone was lifted in Sham except that there was blood beneath it.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih.

Sayyidah Umm Hakim (may Allah be pleased with her) said: When Sayyiduna Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) was martyred, I was a young girl at that time, and for several days the sky remained red.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators up to Umm Hakim are the narrators of the Sahih.

Jamil bin Zayd said: When Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) was martyred, the sky turned red. I said: "On what basis are you saying this?" He said: "The liar is a hypocrite; the sky did turn red at the time of the martyrdom of Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him)."
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its chain contains a narrator whom I do not know.

Abu Qabil said: When Imam Husayn bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both) was martyred, the sun was eclipsed, so much so that the stars became visible at midday, and we thought that it was the very thing (the Hour).
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its chain is hasan (good).

Isa bin al-Harith al-Kindi said: When Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) was martyred, for seven days our state was such that when we had prayed the Asr prayer, we would look at the sky, and it seemed as though it were wrapped in red sheets, and we would see the stars striking against one another.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator whom I do not know.

Muhammad bin Sirin said: There was no redness in the sky until Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) was martyred.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it. Its chain contains a narrator, Yahya al-Himmani, who is da'if (weak).

Sufyan said: My grandmother, that is, my father's mother, related this: Two men of the Ju'fi tribe were present at the killing of Imam Husayn bin Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both). As for one of them, his private organ grew so long that he used to wrap it up; and as for the other, he would put a full waterskin to his mouth and drink it to the last drop. Sufyan said: I saw the child of one of them; he was afflicted with madness, as though he were insane.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators up to Sufyan's grandmother are thiqat (trustworthy).

It is reported with the same chain that he said: "I saw that the wars (saffron-like dye) taken from the camp of Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) had become like ash."

Al-A'mash said: A man from Banu Asad defecated on the grave of Imam Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him), and the members of his household were afflicted with derangement, madness, leprosy, vitiligo and poverty.
Imam al-Tabarani recorded it, and its narrators are the narrators of the Sahih.