True Love of the Ahlul-Bait (A.S.)

By: Jan Ali Kazmi
The prayer that the Muslims recite while sending peace upon Hazrat Imam Hussain A.S (Ziarat) are very effective to inculcate the feelings of self-immolation in one. The words of the prayer are;
"O Lord Hussein how I wish I were in Karbala with you and how I wish that I would have been among those martyred in Karbala with you and for your cause."
And this prayer has great significance and effect in nullifying (invaliding) the desire of the world from ones heart and these words should be frequently recited by all Muslims that,
"How I wish my Allah that in Karbala it would have been my hands which were severed (torn) instead of the blessed hands of Abbass the Faithful brother of Imam Hussein (these are words in which man offers sacrifice). How I wish that the arrow which wounded the little neck of Ali Asghar would have devoured (destroyed) my throat… and how I wish that the lance (sharp-pointed weapon) which pierced (thrust) into the heart of Ali Akbar would have cut my heart"
Thus, these are words, which should be recited regularly by Muslims so that a man might gauge (extent) himself whether he is ready for such sacrifices, or not? And by reciting these words again and again a man can cultivate and expatiate (expand) the love of Allah and the Ahlul-Bait in him and subside (restrain) and undervalue the love of the temporary and temporal world from, his heart.
And another important point to be ruminated (pondered) is that all the prayers should be offered with sincerity and concentration and the words of prayers should proffer from the depth of the heart and only a verbal affirmation (declaration) and confession (acknowledgment) is not advisable.
There once lived a Muslim who used to read the Ziarat of Hazrat Imam Hussein (AS) regularly, but some how he was not able to concentrate from his heart and his recitation of the Ziarat was only verbal and shallow (not deep). One night the Muslim saw a dream in which he found that Hazrat Imam Hussein (AS) in Karbala, where he alludes (suggests) to him that he is about to perform his prayers and if any arrows come his way the Muslim should counter the arrows by coming in the way. Now the Muslim did as he was told by Imam Hussein (AS), he waited for any arrow to come his way. However, the Muslim was weak in his intention and the love of self surpassed (exceeded) the love of Imam Hussain (AS) so as soon as an arrow came towards Imam Hussain (AS) the Muslim sided away and the arrow pierced Imam Hussain and he was wounded. At this the Muslim felt great embarrassment that he had high claims that he loved Hazrat Imam Hussain (AS) even more than his life but at the time of test he failed his Imam. Then the Muslim mustered (roused) up courage and stood up once again that this time he would not waver, but when another arrow came he got frightened once again and the arrow hit Imam Hussain (AS) even this time.
When the scholar woke up from his dream he began to shed tears of shame that Hazrat Imam Hussain (AS) had warned him through the vision. Yet his love is not been purified for the cause of Allah and the Ahlul-Bait and he still loves his self and prefers his life to Allah and the cause of the Ahlul-Bait.
If man wishes to attain a successful hereafter and aspires (desires) a peaceful death and a peaceful path to paradise. Then he should endeavour (try) and work hard to kill his love of the self and fill his heart with the love of Allah and the Ahlul-Bait. These are the measures of a man's success in this world and the hereafter. A man should check and test himself as to what extent he can claim to love the Ahlul-bait? It is a thing to be remembered that if the love of Hazrat Ali (AS) is strong in our hearts then our death would be very peaceful. We would not face any torments of the death and the grave and go through none of the tortures of hell and the intermediary (transitional) part (Alim-e-Barzakh). But if the love of Allah and the Ahlul-Bait is not strong then it is quiet possible that the love, which he claims, might diminish at the very threshold (doorstep) of death. And this is quiet possible because sometimes the tortures of death are so great that it might take away man's memory, and this is the philosophy behind the recitation of Talkeen as a part of the funeral rites of Muslim. It is recited in Talkeen that, "Say Allah is my God, that my Prophet is Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), that Ali (AS) is the Leader of the Faithful, that Quran is my book etc." The reason of repeating all these words during the funeral rites is that it might be possible that the deceased person had gone through such torments and tortures in his death that his memory might have been lost. The Talkeen is a sort of a reiteration (repetition) of his covenant (agreement) towards his God.
The question is as to how a man judge can and check himself that whether the love of Allah and the Ahlul-Bait is strong in him or he is a follower of his ego and a lover of the self? The formula prescribed is very easy and can be applied instantly.
Now if the love of the Ahlul-Bait is strong enough that it stops us from committing all the big and small sins of the world then it is strong enough to save us from the tortures and the torments of the Hereafter too. For instance, if we feel ashamed while committing any sort of sin from our eyes or our tongue then it is an indication that our love of the Ahlul-Bait is strong and firm. Then if this love spares (saves) us from the habit of drinking wine, and if we quit liquor (alcohol) because we remember the saying of Imam Sajjad (AS) that,
"O' Muslims refrain from drinking wine because whenever I see wine I remember the court of Yazeed where I stood with my aunts and Yazeed was busy in drinking wine"
If the love of Ahlul-Bait is strong then it will save man from the sin of lust and licentious- ness (unchaste acts), and if the love of Ahlul-Bait is strong then it will save us from the sin of gambling, envy, malice and spite. Thus if a man is reminded of the Ahlul-Bait whenever he intends to something good or bad then he should be thankful to his Allah. Also, be very sure in his heart that if this love is strong enough to control on the sins in this world, then this is the sign that man/woman is secure from the torments of hell and Hereafter.
Reference: ImamReza.net