The Uprising of Imam Hussein

The Uprising of Imam Hussein is an English translation of the Arabic study of Imam Husayn's movement by Sayyid Hibat al-Din al-Shahristani (1884–1967), the Iraqi scholar, reformer and one-time minister of education. Completed in Baghdad in 1343 AH (1925), it sets out the history, motives and results of the uprising, drawing on early sources such as al-Tabari, al-Mas'udi, Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani and al-Mufid.

Short chapters examine Yazid's rule and Husayn's refusal to give allegiance, his departure from Medina, his stay in Mecca and choice of Kufa, the killing of Muslim ibn Aqil and Hani, the meeting with al-Hurr, and the events of Ashura through to the captivity and Lady Zaynab in Kufa and Damascus. A closing section traces Husayni commemoration under the Umayyads and Abbasids and the rise of majalis, mawkebs and husayniyyas, with pointed criticism of some practices.

A biography of the author by Ali al-Khaqani opens the volume. Translated by Mohammad Muheyaddin Taher for the Ameerul-Mumineen Center for Translation (ACT), Holy Shrine of Imam Ali, 2017.