This is an English rendering. Qur’anic verses and prophetic ḥadīth are shown in their original Arabic.
In this article
Imam al-Husayn (may God be pleased with him) is one of the foremost figures of the Prophet’s Household. This article introduces his birth and noble lineage, then mentions some of his great virtues, his description and his worship.
The birth and lineage of Imam al-Husayn
He was born (may God be pleased with him) in the fourth year of the Hijrah in Madinah, one year and ten months after his brother al-Hasan. He is “the great Imam Abū ʿAbdillāh al-Husayn ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib al-Hāshimī al-Qurashī, the fifth of the People of the Cloak… from a pure, blessed, God-fearing mother: Fāṭimah al-Zahrāʾ, daughter of the Master of Messengers ﷺ.”
Among his great virtues
From the Prophet ﷺ: «الحسنُ والحسينُ سيّدا شبابِ أهلِ الجنة» — narrated by al-Tirmidhī and Aḥmad — and he ﷺ said: «هما ريحانتاي من الدنيا» — narrated by al-Bukhārī. In the ḥadīth of the Cloak, when he ﷺ wrapped himself, al-Hasan, al-Husayn and Fāṭimah in a cloak, he said: «اللهم هؤلاء أهلُ بيتي وخاصّتي، اللهم أذهِب عنهم الرجسَ وطهّرهم تطهيرًا» ﴾﴿الأحزاب ٣٣
His resemblance to his grandfather ﷺ and the Companions’ honouring of him
“He resembled in his physical form some of the features of the Messenger of God ﷺ”; ʿAlī (may God be pleased with him) said: “Al-Husayn most resembles the Messenger of God ﷺ from his chest to his feet.” The Companions placed him in a station of honour, such that ʿUmar (may God be pleased with him) assigned him in the stipend “the like of the stipend of Imam ʿAlī: five thousand.”
His description and worship
“Imam al-Husayn (may God be pleased with him) was a handsome, comely master, eloquent and learned, intelligent, dignified and modest, generous and abundant in good, religious and devout,” “excellent, frequent in prayer, fasting and pilgrimage — so much so that it was said he performed pilgrimage twenty-five times on foot — generous, abundant in charity, merciful to the poor and a helper of the weak.”
Frequently asked questions
Who is Imam al-Husayn?
He is al-Husayn ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (may God be pleased with them), grandson of the Prophet ﷺ and son of Fāṭimah al-Zahrāʾ, and the fifth of the People of the Cloak.
When was Imam al-Husayn born?
He was born in the fourth year of the Hijrah in Madinah, a short while after his brother al-Hasan.
What are his most notable virtues?
He and his brother al-Hasan are the two masters of the youth of Paradise, the two sweet basils of the Prophet ﷺ, and among the People of his House from whom God removed impurity.