Poetry: Ashraf AboArafe
O Ashura, dawn ablazed with light upon the horizons of time,
A remembrance where the patience of prophets embraced the tears of humankind.
You come carrying divine mercy for those who fast,
And within your heart you bear the echoes of centuries and the secrets of the faithful.
You are the day when the sea embraced destiny,
When God opened for Moses a path of certainty through the waves.
The waters parted like gates of light,
And the arrogance of tyranny sank into the depths of its own delusion.
There walked Moses, peace be upon him,
Followed by a people wearied by chains.
Deliverance arrived from where they least expected,
And the sea became a soldier among the armies of God:
Opening a road of salvation for the oppressed,
And weaving shrouds of ruin for the arrogant.
When the Prophet Muhammad ‘PBUH‘ arrived in Madinah,
He saw people fasting on this day.
He asked about its meaning,
And was told:
“It is the day on which God saved Moses and his people,
And drowned Pharaoh and his hosts.”
Then the Prophet declared:
“We have a greater claim to Moses than they do.”
So he fasted the day and encouraged its observance,
That gratitude might continue to flow
Like a river through the hearts of believers.
Then he said:
“If I remain until next year,
I shall surely fast the ninth.”
As though teaching his community
That worship is not mere ritual,
But understanding, wisdom, and faithful devotion.
O Ashura,
Your fast is rain upon deserts of sin,
A light washing away the dust of passing years,
And a reminder
That deliverance walks hand in hand with patience,
And that every dawn is born from the womb of night.
How strange indeed!
That a day which began as gratitude for salvation
Should become a cause of dispute among brothers.
How could a remembrance that united Moses and Muhammad,
Peace be upon them both,
Become a field of division among the followers of Muhammad ‘PBUH‘?
***
The Tear of Karbala and the Martyrs of the Ummah
After the roar of the sea had faded,
And the story of Moses’ deliverance had settled into memory,
Other pages remained in the book of days—
Pages written at times with ink,
At times with tears,
And sometimes with blood.
There, upon the land of Karbala,
Stood Husayn ibn Ali,
Like a lofty palm tree before the storm.
The winds only strengthened his resolve,
And danger only deepened his dignity.
He was not seeking a throne,
Nor pursuing worldly gain,
But carrying the banner of honor,
Bearing witness that truth may stand alone,
Yet never truly dies.
Peace be upon Husayn:
The day he was born,
The day he strove,
And the day he returned to his Lord,
Patient and steadfast.
And peace be upon the Household of Prophethood,
Lamps of guidance
And springs of fidelity.
Yet Husayn was not the only wound
In the body of this Ummah,
Nor was Karbala the only tear in its history.
Before it,
Umar ibn al-Khattab fell as a martyr,
Establishing justice among the people,
Like a lantern seeking to illuminate the world,
Only to be struck by treachery.
And before him,
The blood of Uthman ibn Affan was shed
While he recited the Book of God.
The letters of the Qur’an seemed to mingle
With tears of grief and sighs of history.
And after them,
Ali ibn Abi Talib was wounded,
Knight of wisdom and gate of knowledge,
As he walked toward prayer,
Teaching future generations
That great men may depart,
But principles endure.
Which of these bloods is not ours?
Which of these wounds does not dwell within our memory?
They are the wounds of one Ummah,
The tears of one household,
The sorrows of one heart.
So do not turn remembrance
Into a wall between brothers,
Nor a tear into a trench between those who love one another.
For all martyrs meet
In the heavens of loyalty,
And pure souls are wider
Than the boundaries of dispute.
How desperately we need today
To read history through the eyes of wisdom,
Not through the eyes of anger;
To carry from Karbala the lesson of steadfastness,
Not the seed of division;
And from the lives of the martyrs
A call to harmony,
Not fuel for conflict.
***
Salman, the Unity of the Ummah, and the Call to Awakening
And if you speak of the Household of the Prophet,
Remember Salman al-Farsi,
The sage of Persia and the knight of insight.
He left behind lands and comforts,
Crossed deserts and seas,
And spent a lifetime searching
For a truth that would fill the soul with light.
He did not ask about race,
Nor color,
Nor tribe,
Nor language.
He asked only for a path
That would lead him to God.
And when he found Muhammad ‘PBUH‘,
He found the truth he had long awaited,
And a heart vast enough to embrace all humanity.
Then Prophethood spoke its immortal words:
“Salman is one of us, from the People of the Household.”
What a magnificent declaration!
It shattered the walls of prejudice,
Opened the gates of brotherhood,
And made piety a lineage,
Truthfulness a kinship,
And sincerity a homeland for the soul.
In the city of the Prophet ‘PBUH‘,
There were no labels dividing believers,
No factions feeding upon the wounds of history.
They stood together in one rank,
Raised one banner,
And sheltered beneath one testimony:
“There is no god but God,
And Muhammad is the Messenger of God.”
How long division has darkened our nights,
How many strengths have been wasted in disputes,
How often names have overshadowed the essence of the message.
We argue over calendars,
Question intentions,
And stir the dust of old conflicts,
While the future waits for us
To become greater than our disagreements.
O followers of Muhammad ‘PBUH’, Will you not awaken for the sake of your Prophet?
Will you not hear the call of the Seal of the Messengers,
The Messenger to all worlds,
Calling you toward mercy and unity?
Let Ashura become a bridge between hearts,
Not a trench between ranks.
Let the memory of Husayn
Be a torch of dignity,
Not fuel for hostility.
Let Umar teach us justice,
Uthman purity,
Ali wisdom,
And Salman insight.
Come,
For an Ummah that witnessed the deliverance of Moses,
That was blessed with Muhammad ‘PBUH‘ as guidance,
With Husayn as steadfastness,
With Umar as justice,
With Uthman as modesty,
With Ali as wisdom,
And Salman as insight,
Deserves better than division.
Let us restore the voice of the Message,
The meaning of brotherhood,
The beauty of faith,
And the dignity of humanity.
O God,
Unite the hearts of Muslims upon truth and mercy.
Make their differences a source of richness, not conflict.
Extinguish the fires of discord.
Make Ashura a remembrance of salvation,
Karbala a lesson in steadfastness,
Salman a sign of brotherhood,
And Muhammad ‘PBUH‘ a path that unites and never divides.
Amen, Lord of the Worlds.
