Achievements of Belief in Imam Hussein’s Raj’ah
In interpreting certain verses from Surah Al-Isra, such as Verse 6, “Then We gave you back the turn to prevail over them...,” Imam Sadiq (AS) said:
“The emergence and return of Imam Hussein (AS) will take place with seventy of his loyal companions, wearing golden helmets. They will come from two directions and announce to the people that this is Hussein, who has returned and reappeared, so that no believer may doubt him. There will be no uncertainty that he is not the false messiah (Dajjal) or Satan, and that Hujjat ibn al-Hassan (Imam Mahdi), is still among the people. Once it is firmly established in the hearts of the believers that this is indeed Hussein (AS), the time of the passing of Imam Mahdi (may God hasten his glad advent) will arrive. It will be Imam Hussein (AS) who washes his body, shrouds him, applies camphor, and buries him—for none but a successor (Wasi) and Imam can prepare the body of another Wasi.”
The belief in the return of Imam Hussein (AS) and his loyal companions is one of the core tenets upheld by the followers of Ahl-ul-Bayt (AS) school of thought, bearing profound spiritual and ethical fruits.
The first achievement of the belief in the return of Ahl-ul-Bayt (AS), especially Imam Hussein (AS) is that it signifies that the Imam (AS) and his companions were not buried in history; rather, this caravan, led by Aba Abdullah (AS), continues its journey and will reappear at a future time.
The second intellectual achievement of this belief is that one gets certain that this caravan is alive and present, not deceased. Thus, at every moment and every year, it embraces a group of pure-hearted individuals in the world—evident in the fact that we continuously witness their inclination toward Imam Hussein (AS). The gatherings of Muharram and Arbaeen are manifestations of this truth.
The third is that it instills hope in the community of those who love Ahl-ul-Bayt (AS), keeping them in anticipation of joining the Husseini caravan. This expectation reforms the religious community’s understanding of the events related to Imam Hussein (AS) and Ashura, and subsequently leads to the rectification of our behavior and conduct.
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In other words, the more believers internalize faith in the return of Imam Hussein (AS) in their heart, the more they strive to refine their actions. Knowing that the Imam will one day return, they distance themselves from the behavior of the enemies of Ahl-ul-Bayt (AS) and adhere to righteous values—so that perhaps, one day, they may be counted among the army of the Imam at the time of his return.
