Abū ʿUbayd al-Qāsim ibn Sallām said: Ḥajjāj ibn Muḥammad related to me, from Abū Maʿshar (1), from one of his elders, who reported: When al-Ḥusayn arrived at Karbala he asked, “What is the name of this land?” They replied, “Karbala.” He remarked, “It is karb wa-balāʾ—grief and tribulation.”

ʿUbayd Allah ibn Ziyād then sent ʿUmar ibn Saʿd to fight him. Al-Ḥusayn said to ʿUmar, “O ʿUmar, choose for me one of three courses: either allow me to return the way I came; if you refuse, then send me to Yazid [so that I may place my hand in his and he may pass whatever judgment he wishes; and if you refuse that, then send me to the Turks so that I may battle them until I die]. ʿUmar submitted this request to Ibn Ziyād, and he was inclined to let him proceed to Yazid (2).”

Shamir ibn Dhi’l-Jawshan objected, “No—only if he surrenders to your authority.” That reply was conveyed to al-Ḥusayn, and he said, “By Allah, I will not.” ʿUmar delayed the attack, so Ibn Ziyād dispatched Shamir ibn Dhi’l-Jawshan with the order: “If ʿUmar advances and fights, fine; otherwise kill him and take his place, for I have put you in command.” About thirty leading men of Kufah were with ʿUmar. They said to him, “The grandson of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ offers you three alternatives and you accept none of them?!” They then crossed over to al-Ḥusayn and fought on his side (3).

Abū Zurʿah said: Saʿīd ibn Sulaymān narrated to us, ʿAbbād ibn al-ʿAwwām narrated to us, from Ḥuṣayn, who said: “I witnessed the affair—that is, the killing of al-Ḥusayn.” He added: “Saʿd ibn ʿUbaydah told me: ‘I saw al-Ḥusayn wearing a cloak of striped wool, and a man named ʿAmr ibn Khālid al-Ṭuhawī shot him with an arrow. I watched the arrow hanging from his cloak (4).’”

Ibn Jarīr said: Muḥammad ibn ʿAmmār al-Rāzī narrated to us, Saʿīd ibn Sulaymān narrated to us, ʿAbbād ibn al-ʿAwwām narrated to us, Ḥuṣayn narrated to us: The people of Kufah wrote to al-Ḥusayn: “You have one hundred thousand supporters with you.” He therefore sent Muslim ibn ʿAqīl to them… and he recounted the story of Muslim’s death as mentioned earlier.

Ḥuṣayn continued: Hlāl ibn Yasāf informed me that Ibn Ziyād ordered the people to guard the stretch from Wāqiṣah to the road to Syria and the road to Basra, allowing no one to enter or leave. Al-Ḥusayn advanced, unaware of this, until he met some Bedouins and asked them about the situation. They said, “By Allah, we know nothing, except that you will not be able to enter or leave.”

So he set off toward Yazid ibn Muʿāwiyah, but horsemen intercepted him at Karbala. He dismounted and appealed to them by Allah and by Islam. Ibn Ziyād had sent against him ʿUmar ibn Saʿd, Shamir ibn Dhi’l-Jawshan, and Ḥuṣayn ibn Numayr, and he implored them by Allah and by Islam to convey him to the Commander of the Faithful Yazid so that he might place his hand in his hand. They replied, “No—only that you surrender to the authority of Ibn Ziyād.” Among them was al-Ḥurr ibn Yazid al-Ḥanzali, later al-Nahshali, leading a cavalry unit. When he heard what al-Ḥusayn was saying, he said—