Majmu' al-Fatawa - Ibn Taimiya - (4/505)

Majmu' al-FatawaIbn Taimiya

Nor is it known that al-Hajjāj killed anyone from Banū Hāshim during the caliphate of Abd al-Malik, when he was his governor in Iraq.

When captivity is mentioned to us, the incident most often cited is the killing of al-Husayn and the transportation of his family to Yazīd. Yet these people are ignorant of what actually happened. Some imagine that his family were taken to Egypt, that they were killed there, and that they numbered a great many people. Indeed, some of them, upon seeing dead bodies bearing signs of violent death, say, “These are among the captives who were killed.” All of this is ignorance and falsehood. Al-Husayn—may Allah be pleased with him, and may those who killed him and those who approved of his killing be cursed—was killed on the day of ʿĀshūrāʾ in the year 61 AH.

The man who urged his killing was al-Shimr ibn Dhī al-Jawshan, who began writing about it to the ruler’s governor in Iraq, Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyād. This Ubayd Allah ordered his deputy, Umar ibn Saʿd ibn Abī Waqqās, to fight al-Husayn, after al-Husayn had asked them for what any ordinary Muslim might ask. He had brought no fighting force with him. He asked them to let him return to Medina, send him to his cousin Yazīd, or allow him to go to the frontier to fight the unbelievers. They refused, insisting that he either surrender to them as a prisoner or face them in battle. They fought him until they killed him, along with a group of his household and others.

Then they took his belongings and his family to Yazīd ibn Muʿāwiyah in Damascus. Yazīd had not ordered them to kill him, nor did he show any pleasure at his killing or approval of it. Rather, he spoke words condemning them. It is reported that he said:

“I would have been satisfied with the obedience of the people of Iraq without al-Husayn being killed.”

He also said:

وَلَا يُعْلَمُ فِي خِلَافَةِ عَبْدِ الْمَلِكِ وَالْحَجَّاجِ نَائِبُهُ عَلَى الْعِرَاقِ أَنَّهُ قَتَلَ أَحَدًا مِنْ بَنِي هَاشِمٍ. وَاَلَّذِي يُذْكَرُ لَنَا السَّبْيُ أَكْثَرُ مَا يُذْكَرُ مَقْتَلُ الْحُسَيْنِ وَحَمْلُ أَهْلِهِ إلَى يَزِيدَ لَكِنَّهُمْ جُهَّالٌ بِحَقِيقَةِ مَا جَرَى حَتَّى يَظُنَّ الظَّانُّ مِنْهُمْ أَنَّ أَهْلَهُ حُمِلُوا إلَى مِصْرَ وَأَنَّهُمْ قُتِلُوا بِمِصْرِ وَأَنَّهُمْ كَانُوا خَلْقًا كَثِيرًا حَتَّى إنَّ مِنْهُمْ مَنْ إذَا رَأَى مَوْتَى عَلَيْهِمْ آثَارُ الْقَتْلِ قَالَ: هَؤُلَاءِ مِنْ السَّبْيِ الَّذِينَ قُتِلُوا؛ وَهَذَا كُلُّهُ جَهْلٌ وَكَذِبٌ. وَالْحُسَيْنُ - رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ وَلُعِنَ مَنْ قَتَلَهُ وَرَضِيَ بِقَتْلِهِ - قُتِلَ يَوْمَ عَاشُورَاءَ عَامَ وَاحِدٍ وَسِتِّينَ. وَكَانَ الَّذِي حَضَّ عَلَى قَتْلِهِ الشِّمْرُ بْنُ ذِي الْجَوْشَنِ صَارَ يَكْتُبُ فِي ذَلِكَ إلَى نَائِبِ السُّلْطَانِ عَلَى الْعِرَاقِ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ زِيَادٍ؛ وَعُبَيْدُ اللَّهِ هَذَا أَمَرَ - بِمُقَاتَلَةِ الْحُسَيْنِ - نَائِبَهُ عُمَرَ بْنَ سَعْدِ بْنِ أَبِي وَقَّاصٍ بَعْدَ أَنْ طَلَبَ الْحُسَيْنُ مِنْهُمْ مَا طَلَبَهُ آحَادُ الْمُسْلِمِينَ لَمْ يَجِئْ مَعَهُ مُقَاتِلَةٌ؛ فَطَلَبَ مِنْهُمْ أَنْ يَدَعُوهُ إلَى أَنْ يَرْجِعَ إلَى الْمَدِينَةِ أَوْ يُرْسِلُوهُ إلَى يَزِيدَ بْنِ عَمِّهِ أَوْ يَذْهَبَ إلَى الثَّغْرِ يُقَاتِلُ الْكُفَّار فَامْتَنَعُوا إلَّا أَنْ يَسْتَأْسِرَ لَهُمْ أَوْ يُقَاتِلُوهُ فَقَاتَلُوهُ حَتَّى قَتَلُوهُ وَطَائِفَةً مِنْ أَهْلِ بَيْتِهِ وَغَيْرِهِمْ. ثُمَّ حَمَلُوا ثِقْلَهُ وَأَهْلَهُ إلَى يَزِيدَ بْنِ مُعَاوِيَةَ إلَى دِمَشْقَ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ يَزِيدُ أَمَرَهُمْ بِقَتْلِهِ وَلَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهُ سُرُورٌ بِذَلِكَ وَرِضًى بِهِ بَلْ قَالَ كَلَامًا فِيهِ ذَمٌّ لَهُمْ؛ حَيْثُ نُقِلَ عَنْهُ أَنَّهُ قَالَ: لَقَدْ كُنْت أَرْضَى مِنْ طَاعَةِ أَهْلِ الْعِرَاقِ بِدُونِ قَتْلِ الْحُسَيْنِ وَقَالَ: