صراط عشق صراط عشق
He charged at the enemies of Allah (SWT) like a lion, and when a man from Kufa severed his right arm, he transferred the sword to the left and went on fighting as if nothing at all had happened. Soon his left arm, too, was lopped off by a single stroke of a sword, and the hero fell to the ground. His wife watched the whole scene.
This is the story of a young bride and bridegroom who were at Karbala and, the bridegroom was his mother’s only child. Wahab Bin Abdullah Kalbi, a Christian, and his wife, also a Christian, were married only a fortnight ago. One such group of people in the epic history of Karbala is that of Wahab, his mother, Qamar, and wife, Haniyyah.
While, there are few times as joyful in life as the early days of marriage and, it is a period filled with happiness and hopes for the future. To put aside all this for a greater, more noble cause requires an admirable presence of both mind and soul.
Having witnessed what went on between Imam Hussain (peace be upon him) and his foes, they sympathized with Hussain (peace be upon him) and embraced the Islamic creed at his hands. The words of the Imam’s sermons penetrated their hearts and found an echo.
On the day of the 10th of Muharram, Wahab was encouraged by his mother to seek out permission for battle. Wahab’s mother said to her son, “I will not be pleased with you till you give your life away for the sake of Hussain (peace be upon him).”
Once it was granted, he fought with passion until he was captured by the enemy and brought to ‘Umar ibn Sa’d, with his hands severely wounded and almost cut from his body.
Umar was forced to praise his firmness in battle before ordering his men to behead Wahab and throw his head towards the army of Imam Hussain (peace be upon him). Wahab ‘s mother took his severed head in her lap and cleaned away the blood from it, saying, “Praise be to Allah who bestowed honor upon me by your martyrdom.” Then she flung the head back towards the enemy as if to say that whatever is given in the way of Hussain (peace be upon him) is not taken back.
His wife pleaded to the Imam thus as she darted towards his enemies, “O Imam! Please do not ask me to go back! I prefer to die fighting rather than to fall captive in the hands of Banu Umayyah!” The Imam tried to dissuade her, explaining to her that fighting is not mandated on women, but at seeing her husband martyred, she ran to him and, putting his lifeless head in her lap, she began to wipe it with her clothes. Soon a slave of Shimr put an end to her life while she was thus engaged. Haniyyah was the first and only woman to be martyred on the Day of Ashura. His mother seized a tent post in her hand and fell upon the enemies.
At their martyrdom, Wahab and Haniyyah had been Muslims for ten days. Their lives is not just a touching story, but a lesson that no relationship is greater than that of Wilayah and when two people are united in their love for Allah (SWT) in this world, He places them together in honor in the Al-Akhirah as well.
Source:
The Journey of Tears
