The Hidden Truth about Karbala

Preface to the Second Edition

All praise belongs to Allah, the Sublime, the Merciful, Who provides guidance through His Chosen Ones (S), who are Immaculate and therefore Infallible. As the Vicegerents of Allah on the earth, they wished, said, or did only that which Allah pleased, and in turn in His Majesty, Allah declared their words, deeds and wishes to be His Will.

I did not expect the first edition to go out of stock so soon. We are thankful to the Masumin (a.s.) for their blessings.

Fallible as I am, there were several mistakes, though not in content, that needed to be rectified. I have carried out the correction to the extent of my limitations. I have added two important Chapters in this edition. Chapter 25 deals with the incidents relating to the burial after Ashura, 61 AH. Chapter 27 deals with the Persecution of the Shia through the centuries. The last mentioned chapter is relevant in the context of the present liberal atmosphere in several countries, which tend to obliterate the torture and suffering the Shia were put to, throughout history, even as lately as the last decade when Saddam carried out wholesale annihilation of thousands of Shias.

Through the ages, our ancestors had preserved and passed on the Shiite traditions at the risk of their lives, by word of mouth, from one generation to another, fearing at every step, as to which relative, which friend would betray them to the government of the time. I have heard the Moulvis at Madras, at the end of the day of the procession on the seventh of Muharram, thanking the Government for allowing us to openly mourn Imam Husayn (a.s.). We tend to forget that during our ancestor’s times it was a crime to mourn for Imam Husayn (a.s.) and people were executed for it. The sacrifices made by our ancestors should not be forgotten, for they are the very foundation on which our faith has been preserved.

I heartily welcome any suggestions, corrections etc. that will be certainly incorporated to bring out a more comprehensive edition.

I thank the Almighty and the Masumin (a.s.) and pray that in their Benevolence and Grace, they may forgive my lapses and accept this humble effort.

A.K. Ahmed 20th March 2007 9th Rabee’ul Awwal, 1428 AH