Kerbala and Beyond

One day in history changed the course of the Islamic nation for all time to come. It deepened the differences between Islam's both main branches, the Sunni and the Shi'ite. It created states and undermined others. It had an impact which not many people in any place or time can truly fathom. That date is: October 14, 680 A.D. when the younger grandson of the Prophet of Islam, namely Hussain son of Ali ibn Abu Talib, was martyred together with all males of his family, with the exception of his ailing son Ali, and of his few supporters who stood with him to the end. This date is referred to as Ashura, the tenth of Muharram, which has been commemorated since that year and will continue to be commemorated till the end of time. This book details the events, social and political, that led to the martyrdom of Hussain son of Ali and its aftermath as well as the biographies of nine descendants of Hussain who are referred to by Shi'ite Muslims as the Infallible Imams. This book is full of history and, for the sympathetic reader, it is full of admonishment. It is a tale of heroism unmatched in the entire history of mankind.