Why did Imam Hossein (AS) Move to Mecca?
- last year
Muawiyah died after being in power for nearly 42 years. He was initially appointed by the second caliph as the governor of Syria, and was in control of the entire Islamic territory for around 20 years after the peace treaty was established with Imam Hasan.
After Muawiyah’s death, his son, Yazid, came into power. Yazid sent letters to his governors, asking them to announce Muawiyah’s death and demand allegiance from the people on his behalf. He sent an additional letter to Medina, in which he ordered his governor, Valeed, to demand immediate allegiance for him from Imam Hossein before the news of Muawiyah’s death spread in the city. Yazid explicitly asked Valeed to either get the Imam’s allegiance, or to send the Imam’s severed head to him.
In his efforts to get the Imam’s allegiance, Valeed called the Imam to his palace. The Imam was suspicious of this meeting. He went with approximately 30 men from his family and supporters for protection. He told them to hide their swords, to stay behind the door, and to intervene only when he called. Inside, Valeed told the Imam about Muawiyah’s death, and asked for the Imam’s allegiance to Yazid. The Imam responded by saying that someone like him should not pay allegiance in private, but in public. Valeed accepted this statement and let the Imam go, as he did not want to bear the responsibility of killing the Imam. On the following day, the Imam notified Valeed about his refusal to pay allegiance to Yazid. Valeed reported back to Yazid, who responded by threatening Valeed and ordering him to force allegiance from the Imam.
Migration to Mecca
Imam Hossein knew that Medina was no longer safe for him, as Yazid would take drastic measures to eliminate him. The Imam did not want his death to be forgotten silently similar to the injustice that happened to Imam Hasan. Thus, the Imam decided to leave Medina, and migrated to Mecca in less than three days after his meeting with Valeed. The Imam decided to migrate with his family, as it was very likely that the government would imprison them as hostages to pressurize the Imam for allegiance.
Prior to migrating, the Imam bid farewell to his relatives and visited the tombs of his grandfather, the Prophet, as well as his mother, Lady Fatimah, and his brother, Imam Hasan. The Imam wrote a will and entrusted it to his brother, Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah. In his will, the Imam clearly explained the purpose of his uprising. The Imam wrote, “My intention for this uprising is to guide the nation of my grandfather and enjoin the good and forbid the wrong.”
The Imam left Medina at night while reciting the verse of the Quran that Prophet Moses was reciting when he was escaping alone from Egypt to Madyan in the fear of the pharaoh [28:21], “Therefore he got away from there while in fear. He (Moses) said, ‘Oh My Lord, save me from the wrongdoing people’.”
On his way to Mecca, the Imam met some travelers and informed them of his intention to refuse allegiance to Yazid.
After Muawiyah’s death, his son, Yazid, came into power. Yazid sent letters to his governors, asking them to announce Muawiyah’s death and demand allegiance from the people on his behalf. He sent an additional letter to Medina, in which he ordered his governor, Valeed, to demand immediate allegiance for him from Imam Hossein before the news of Muawiyah’s death spread in the city. Yazid explicitly asked Valeed to either get the Imam’s allegiance, or to send the Imam’s severed head to him.
In his efforts to get the Imam’s allegiance, Valeed called the Imam to his palace. The Imam was suspicious of this meeting. He went with approximately 30 men from his family and supporters for protection. He told them to hide their swords, to stay behind the door, and to intervene only when he called. Inside, Valeed told the Imam about Muawiyah’s death, and asked for the Imam’s allegiance to Yazid. The Imam responded by saying that someone like him should not pay allegiance in private, but in public. Valeed accepted this statement and let the Imam go, as he did not want to bear the responsibility of killing the Imam. On the following day, the Imam notified Valeed about his refusal to pay allegiance to Yazid. Valeed reported back to Yazid, who responded by threatening Valeed and ordering him to force allegiance from the Imam.
Migration to Mecca
Imam Hossein knew that Medina was no longer safe for him, as Yazid would take drastic measures to eliminate him. The Imam did not want his death to be forgotten silently similar to the injustice that happened to Imam Hasan. Thus, the Imam decided to leave Medina, and migrated to Mecca in less than three days after his meeting with Valeed. The Imam decided to migrate with his family, as it was very likely that the government would imprison them as hostages to pressurize the Imam for allegiance.
Prior to migrating, the Imam bid farewell to his relatives and visited the tombs of his grandfather, the Prophet, as well as his mother, Lady Fatimah, and his brother, Imam Hasan. The Imam wrote a will and entrusted it to his brother, Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah. In his will, the Imam clearly explained the purpose of his uprising. The Imam wrote, “My intention for this uprising is to guide the nation of my grandfather and enjoin the good and forbid the wrong.”
The Imam left Medina at night while reciting the verse of the Quran that Prophet Moses was reciting when he was escaping alone from Egypt to Madyan in the fear of the pharaoh [28:21], “Therefore he got away from there while in fear. He (Moses) said, ‘Oh My Lord, save me from the wrongdoing people’.”
On his way to Mecca, the Imam met some travelers and informed them of his intention to refuse allegiance to Yazid.