22nd ZilHijjah 1429 A.H.

22nd ZilHijjah 1429 A.H. - Martyrdom of Hazrat Meesam-e-Tammar(a.r.) - a freed slave of Imam Ali(a.s.) and his close associate. This is also the day of martyrdom of the sons of Hazrat Muslim ibn-e-Aqeel(a.s.) who were brutally killed in Kufa.
Hazrat Meesam-e-Tammar(a.r.)
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He was a slave of a woman of bani-Asad. Imam Ali(a.s.) bought and then freed him. He was a man of high character and a true lover of Allah(swt), Prophet Mohammad(sawaw) and his Ahl-e-Bait(a.s.). He name was Meesam. He used to sell dates and therefore his name became Meesam-e-Tammar. Imam Ali(a.s.) taught him many branches of knowledge which included ilm-e-manaya wal balaya (the knowledge of death and future calamities) and ilm-e-Taweel (Interpretation and exegesis of Quran). There are several instance quoted in history where Hazrat Meesam(a.r.) foretold events and even his own manner of death as taught to him by Imam Ali(a.s.). Famous narrator of Quranic traditions, Abdullah ibn-e-Abbas(a.r.) used to consult and take notes from Meesam(a.r.). Once Meesam(a.r.) was informed by Imam Ali(a.s.) that in his final days he would be asked by the cruel governor of Kufa Ubaidullah ibn-e-Ziyad(la) to denounce Imam Ali(a.s.) and talk bad of him. Meesam said he would never do it. Imam Ali(a.s.) informed him that if he does so, his hands and feet will be cut off and he will be hanged and finally his tongue will be cut off as well and he will die as a consequence after two days. Meesam said if that all was due to the love of Imam Ali(a.s.) and for the sake of Allah(swt) then he would not hesitate in accepting it and it seemed easy for him. Months and years passed by. Imam Ali(a.s.) was martyred then Imam Hassan(a.s.) was martyred and Meesam kept waiting for the time. Finally came 60 A.H. when Ubaid-ullah ibn-e-Ziyad was appointed governor of Kufa. He called for all supporters and lovers of Ahl-e-Bait(a.s.) and Meesam’s name was among the top. He summoned Meesam and asked him to dissociate himself from Imam Ali(a.s) and talk bad about him. Meesam plainly refused. The governor told him that he would cut his hand and feet and would hang him. Meesam said my Mawla already had informed me that a cruel man whose mother will be of bad character would cut my hand and feet and would cut off my tongue before killing me. Ibn-e-Ziyad(la) said that you are both liars and I will cut off you hand and feet but will leave your tongue intact to prove that your Mowla lied (naozo billah). When Meesam’s hand and feet were cut off and he was hanged upside down on the date tree that Imam Ali(a.s.) identified, Meesam called with a loud voice that people gather around him and he will relate traditions about excellence of Imam Ali(a.s.) and his secret ahadith. Many people gathered and Meesam started relating ahadith of Prophet Mohammad(sawaw) about the excellence of Imam Ali(a.s.). When ibn-e-Ziyad(la) got this news he ordered the tongue of Meesam be cut for fear that people might rise up against him. Finally as predicted by Imam Ali(a.s.), Meesam’s tongue was cut off and due to extensive bleeding, he was martyred on 22nd ZilHijjah after having been hung upside down for two days. Inna lillahe wa inna ilehe rajeoon.
Martyrdom of Children of Hazrat Muslim ibn-e-Aqeel(a.s.)
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Hazrat Muslim(a.s.) had taken with him his two sons Muhammad and Ibraheem. After Hazrat Muslim(a.s.) was martyred, Muhammad and Ibraheem were also arrested and put into a dungeon. It is said that Muhammad was just eight years old and Ibraheem was ten years old.On the 22nd of ZilHijjah in 60 Hijrah, when the jailer came to give the children their evening meal, he saw them saying their prayers. The jailer waited. When the boys had finished their prayers, he asked them who they were. When the jailer learnt that they were the sons of Muslim Ibne Aqeel and the grandsons of Imam Ali(a.s.), he let them escape. The children came out of the prison. It was a dark night. Their first thought was to go to Imaam Hussain(a.s.) and warn him not to go to Kufa. Everywhere they went, they found the roads blocked by Ibne Ziyad soldiers. It was impossible to get out of Kufa. Now it was almost day-break. Where could these two young boys go? They found themselves by the side of the river Euphrates. They drank some water from the river and then went up a tree to hide for the day. Just then a woman came to the river to get water. She saw the two young boys and asked them who they were. Ibraheem said, "We are two orphans, could you please leave us alone and not tell any one that you have seen us?" The woman asked them to accompany her to her mistress who would help them. The woman's mistress was a kind lady. After talking to the boys for a while she realized who they were. She gave them food and said to them, "You can spend the day here and I will try to help you. Unfortunately my husband Harith is working for Ibne Ziyad. He is out at the moment. You can rest in the spare room but make no noise otherwise when he comes back, he will find out you are here".The children said their prayers and went to sleep. In the evening Muhammad woke up and started crying. Ibraheem asked him why he was crying. Muhammad said "I saw our father in a dream. He was calling out for us". Ibraheem said, "Brother, be patient. I also saw our father in a dream beckoning us to him". They both started weeping. Harith, who had come back heard the children crying. He opened the door and asked the children who they were. On learning they were the sons of Muslim Ibne Aqeel, he tied both the boys to a pillar. Harith's wife tried to stop him, but he beat her up. Harith wanted to collect the reward which Ibne Ziyad had offered to anyone capturing the children. The children spent the whole night tied to the pillar. In the morning Harith dragged them to the river-bank. He took out his sword. Ibraheem asked him, "Harith, are you going to kill us?". Harith said "Yes !". Ibraheem said, "In that case give us time to finish our morning prayers". The two boys said their prayers. They raised their hands and cried out "Inna Lillaah wa Inna IIay-hi Rajeeoon! O Allah we are coming to you. Give our mother courage when she hears of our death and judge between us and our killers!!". Muhammad cried that he be killed first since he was younger and was scared to see his brother killed in front of him. Ibrahim said the same since he did not want to see his younger brother killed in front of him. Finally the two innocent brothers embraced each other and the sword of Harith slashed them both dead. Their bodies were thrown in the water but Harith witnessed that the two head sqashed bodes came floating close to each other and the two brothers embraced each other once again. Ala lanatullahe alal qaum-iz zalimeen. May Allah curse the cruel tribe which committed atrocities on Aal-e-Mohammad(pbut).
The site http:/www.ziaraat.com has been updated with the audio masaib of Tiflan-e-Muslim(a.s.) as follows:
recited by Allama Hasan Zafar Naqvi : http://www.rizvia.com/huzn/tiflanmuslim-hzn.mp3 (12 minutes)
recited by Hafiz Tassaduq Hussain: http://www.rizvia.com/huzn/tiflanmuslim-hth.ram (15 minutes - requires Real Player)
Several more Masaib are available in the “Gosha-e-Huzn” Section on the site.