::At Noon::
When Abu Thumamah al-Sa'di looked up at the hot sun, he realized it was noon, and said to the Imam, "O Imam! I think these people are not going to leave you alone, and I want to die for you before they reach you. But this is the time for prayer."
The Imam raised his head to the sky and said, "You remembered the prayer, and may God keep you among the people who pray. Yes, this is the time for prayer. Ask them if they will give us some time so we can pray."
The chief of the army replied, "Your prayer will not be accepted by God."
Habib Ibn Muzahir became angry and said, "The prayer of the People of the House of the Prophet will not be accepted, but yours will?" And he attacked. Habib swung, but missed. He hit the chief's horse instead and the chief fell. His people came and rescued him. Habib kept fighting and killed sixty-two soldiers before they wounded him with a spear. He fell down and his head was cut off. When the Imam saw this, he said, "To God, I will take the case."
After Habib, Hurr al-Riyahi went to fight. He went with Zuhayr and they made an agreement that if the enemy captured one of them, the other would help him. In the fight, Hurr's horse was wounded badly, so he left the horse and fought on foot, until he killed forty-one soldiers, then, he was surrounded by the enemy and killed.
The followers of Imam Husayn went and brought his body. Everyone who was killed was brought to the tent of the Imam and the Imam looked at them and asked for the mercy of God, saying, "A fight just like the fight of the Prophet and the children of the Prophet."
He looked at Hurr, cleaned the blood from his face and said, "You are Hurr (free) as your mother named you. You are free in this world and the hereafter."
THE PRAYER
The Imam prayed with the rest of his followers. They prayed Salat al-Khawf (Prayer of Fear), a two-unit prayer for wartime. Two of his followers, Zuhayr and Sa'id, were in front of the Imam protecting him.
The Imam's followers rotated, half prayed while the other half fought and then they exchanged places.
The enemy shot arrows and Sa'id fell while saying, "O, God! Curse them. Curse those who do not help the descendants of Your Prophet."
Then he turned his face to the Imam and said, "O, Imam! You are my leader."
As he died, the Imam said to him, "You will be in heaven before us."
When the Imam's companions counted, they found thirteen arrows on his body. Then, the Imam said to his remaining followers, "O, honored people! This is heaven. The doors of heaven are open and the Messenger of God and other martyrs are waiting for us. Protect the religion of God and the religion of his Prophet, and protect the women of the House of the Prophet."
They replied, "Our souls are for your souls and our blood is for your blood. By God, as long as we are alive, no one can hurt your family!"
At this point, 'Umar Ibn Sa'd ordered archers to shoot arrows on the Imam's camp and swordsmen to cut the legs of their horses. After this, the Imam had no horsemen left except Dhahak who said, "When I saw all of our horses' legs being cut, I took my horse and hid it in the tent."
People were fighting and everyone who left to go fight first came to the Imam and said, "Peace be upon you, O, grandson of the Messenger of God!"
The Imam always answered, "And may upon you be peace, and we are right behind you," then recited, "Some of then have fulfilled [their covenant], and others are waiting [to do so], and have not made any changes [in the religion]." [Sura of al-Ahzab 33: 23]
Abu Thumamah al-Sa'idi went and fought until he was killed. Then, Sulayman Ibn Mazarib al-Bajali went, fought, and was killed. Then, Zuhayr Ibn al-Qayn asked permission and the Imam said, "We are going to follow behind you." He went and killed one hundred and twenty of the enemy before he was killed.
'Amr Ibn Qardha al-Ansari was protecting the Imam with his own body and he fell and died from all the arrows. He had a brother on the enemy side. His brother called to the Imam from far away and said, "O, Husayn O, liar! You deceived my brother until you killed him!"
The Imam said, "I did not kill your brother. God has given him guidance."
The brother said, "I am going to attack you and kill you!"
He rushed towards the Imam but Nafi' Ibn Hilal al-Bujali fought with him and killed him, then killed twelve others with his arrows (his name was on each arrow.) When all of his arrows finished, he went barefoot, fighting with his sword but they catapulted rocks on him until he could not fight any more. When they took him to 'Umar Ibn Sa'd, 'Umar asked him, as he was bleeding to death, "Why did you do this to yourself?"
Nafi' answered, "By God, I have killed twelve of you and wounded others, and I do not apologize for anything, and as long as I an alive, I will not leave any of you alive."
Shimr killed him with his sword.
When Wadih, a Turk in Imam's camp, was fighting, he suddenly called for help, and the Imam immediately went to help him. By the time the Imam reached him and put his face on his face, he died.
THE REMAINING COMPANIONS
Yazid Ibn Ma'qil, from the army, called Burayr and said, "O, Burayr! How do you find what God did to you?"
Burayr said, "God chose what is best for me and what is worst for you. You do not remember when you were criticizing Mu'awiyah and called him astray?"
Burayr then asked him to ask for divine intervention before they fight so that God kills whoever of them is evil. Ibn Ma'qil agreed, they fought, and Burayr killed him. On his way back, another group of soldiers attacked Burayr and killed him.
Handalah Ibn Sa'id al-Shabbami called the Imam aside and said to him, "These people deserve the punishment of God when they refuse your call and after killing all of your friends and followers. Do not prevent me from fighting." He went and fought until he was killed.
'Abis Ibn Shabib al-Shakiri came and said to the Imam, "There is no one dearer to me on this earth than you. If I were able to help you by anything better than my soul, I would. May peace be upon you. I bear witness that, indeed, you are on the path of guidance." He took his sword, went to the enemy, and said, "Who wants to fight?"
They recognized him but did not answer. They loaded the catapults with boulders. When he saw that, he took off his armor and his helmet and attacked them with his sword. More than two hundred of them ran away. Then they regrouped, surrounded him from all sides, and killed him.
After that, John, the only African in Imam Husayn's camp, asked permission from the Imam to go. The Imam answered him, "O, John! You did not join this caravan for this battle."
John collapsed at the feet of the Imam and said, "I was following you when things were easy, and I am not going to leave you in this difficult time. I know that I may not have an excellent genealogy, but I have my black skin. Let me enter heaven for your honor. Indeed, I am not going to leave you until my black blood is mixed with your blood!" The Imam allowed him to go and fight, and he killed three hundred and twenty four soldiers before he was killed. The Imam prayed for him.
Then, Anas Ibn Harith Ibn Nabih al-Khalili asked for permission. He was in old man, a companion of the Prophet, and fought with him at the battles of Badr and Hunayn. He went and he killed eighteen soldiers before being killed.
Next, 'Amr Ibn Junadah al-Ansari who was eleven years old asked the Imam's permission. The Imam turned and said, "This is the one whose father was killed in the first attack. Maybe his mother does not want him to fight."
'Amr said, "My mother ordered me to do so and that is why I am asking your permission."
The Imam allowed him to fight. When he was killed, his head was cut off and thrown to the Imam's camp. His mother picked up his head, then took a tent pole and killed two soldiers, but the Imam went to her and took her back.
Then, Hajjaj Ibn Masruq al-Ju'fi fought until he was killed. Then, Sawwar Ibn Abi Hamr al-Fahmi fought, until he was captured as a prisoner. 'Umar wanted to kill him, but his tribe prevented him. He lived through the massacre at Karbala', but died after six months.
The last one, Suwayd Ibn 'Amr Ibn Abi al-Muta went and, during the fighting, fell down on his face. Everyone thought that he was dead, but suddenly when he heard that Imam Husayn was killed, he got up, took out a small dagger from his waist, and started fighting with it. They surrounded him and killed him. He was the last of Imam Husayn's companions to be killed.
The chief of the army replied, "Your prayer will not be accepted by God."
Habib Ibn Muzahir became angry and said, "The prayer of the People of the House of the Prophet will not be accepted, but yours will?" And he attacked. Habib swung, but missed. He hit the chief's horse instead and the chief fell. His people came and rescued him. Habib kept fighting and killed sixty-two soldiers before they wounded him with a spear. He fell down and his head was cut off. When the Imam saw this, he said, "To God, I will take the case."
After Habib, Hurr al-Riyahi went to fight. He went with Zuhayr and they made an agreement that if the enemy captured one of them, the other would help him. In the fight, Hurr's horse was wounded badly, so he left the horse and fought on foot, until he killed forty-one soldiers, then, he was surrounded by the enemy and killed.
The followers of Imam Husayn went and brought his body. Everyone who was killed was brought to the tent of the Imam and the Imam looked at them and asked for the mercy of God, saying, "A fight just like the fight of the Prophet and the children of the Prophet."
He looked at Hurr, cleaned the blood from his face and said, "You are Hurr (free) as your mother named you. You are free in this world and the hereafter."
THE PRAYER
The Imam prayed with the rest of his followers. They prayed Salat al-Khawf (Prayer of Fear), a two-unit prayer for wartime. Two of his followers, Zuhayr and Sa'id, were in front of the Imam protecting him.
The Imam's followers rotated, half prayed while the other half fought and then they exchanged places.
The enemy shot arrows and Sa'id fell while saying, "O, God! Curse them. Curse those who do not help the descendants of Your Prophet."
Then he turned his face to the Imam and said, "O, Imam! You are my leader."
As he died, the Imam said to him, "You will be in heaven before us."
When the Imam's companions counted, they found thirteen arrows on his body. Then, the Imam said to his remaining followers, "O, honored people! This is heaven. The doors of heaven are open and the Messenger of God and other martyrs are waiting for us. Protect the religion of God and the religion of his Prophet, and protect the women of the House of the Prophet."
They replied, "Our souls are for your souls and our blood is for your blood. By God, as long as we are alive, no one can hurt your family!"
At this point, 'Umar Ibn Sa'd ordered archers to shoot arrows on the Imam's camp and swordsmen to cut the legs of their horses. After this, the Imam had no horsemen left except Dhahak who said, "When I saw all of our horses' legs being cut, I took my horse and hid it in the tent."
People were fighting and everyone who left to go fight first came to the Imam and said, "Peace be upon you, O, grandson of the Messenger of God!"
The Imam always answered, "And may upon you be peace, and we are right behind you," then recited, "Some of then have fulfilled [their covenant], and others are waiting [to do so], and have not made any changes [in the religion]." [Sura of al-Ahzab 33: 23]
Abu Thumamah al-Sa'idi went and fought until he was killed. Then, Sulayman Ibn Mazarib al-Bajali went, fought, and was killed. Then, Zuhayr Ibn al-Qayn asked permission and the Imam said, "We are going to follow behind you." He went and killed one hundred and twenty of the enemy before he was killed.
'Amr Ibn Qardha al-Ansari was protecting the Imam with his own body and he fell and died from all the arrows. He had a brother on the enemy side. His brother called to the Imam from far away and said, "O, Husayn O, liar! You deceived my brother until you killed him!"
The Imam said, "I did not kill your brother. God has given him guidance."
The brother said, "I am going to attack you and kill you!"
He rushed towards the Imam but Nafi' Ibn Hilal al-Bujali fought with him and killed him, then killed twelve others with his arrows (his name was on each arrow.) When all of his arrows finished, he went barefoot, fighting with his sword but they catapulted rocks on him until he could not fight any more. When they took him to 'Umar Ibn Sa'd, 'Umar asked him, as he was bleeding to death, "Why did you do this to yourself?"
Nafi' answered, "By God, I have killed twelve of you and wounded others, and I do not apologize for anything, and as long as I an alive, I will not leave any of you alive."
Shimr killed him with his sword.
When Wadih, a Turk in Imam's camp, was fighting, he suddenly called for help, and the Imam immediately went to help him. By the time the Imam reached him and put his face on his face, he died.
THE REMAINING COMPANIONS
Yazid Ibn Ma'qil, from the army, called Burayr and said, "O, Burayr! How do you find what God did to you?"
Burayr said, "God chose what is best for me and what is worst for you. You do not remember when you were criticizing Mu'awiyah and called him astray?"
Burayr then asked him to ask for divine intervention before they fight so that God kills whoever of them is evil. Ibn Ma'qil agreed, they fought, and Burayr killed him. On his way back, another group of soldiers attacked Burayr and killed him.
Handalah Ibn Sa'id al-Shabbami called the Imam aside and said to him, "These people deserve the punishment of God when they refuse your call and after killing all of your friends and followers. Do not prevent me from fighting." He went and fought until he was killed.
'Abis Ibn Shabib al-Shakiri came and said to the Imam, "There is no one dearer to me on this earth than you. If I were able to help you by anything better than my soul, I would. May peace be upon you. I bear witness that, indeed, you are on the path of guidance." He took his sword, went to the enemy, and said, "Who wants to fight?"
They recognized him but did not answer. They loaded the catapults with boulders. When he saw that, he took off his armor and his helmet and attacked them with his sword. More than two hundred of them ran away. Then they regrouped, surrounded him from all sides, and killed him.
After that, John, the only African in Imam Husayn's camp, asked permission from the Imam to go. The Imam answered him, "O, John! You did not join this caravan for this battle."
John collapsed at the feet of the Imam and said, "I was following you when things were easy, and I am not going to leave you in this difficult time. I know that I may not have an excellent genealogy, but I have my black skin. Let me enter heaven for your honor. Indeed, I am not going to leave you until my black blood is mixed with your blood!" The Imam allowed him to go and fight, and he killed three hundred and twenty four soldiers before he was killed. The Imam prayed for him.
Then, Anas Ibn Harith Ibn Nabih al-Khalili asked for permission. He was in old man, a companion of the Prophet, and fought with him at the battles of Badr and Hunayn. He went and he killed eighteen soldiers before being killed.
Next, 'Amr Ibn Junadah al-Ansari who was eleven years old asked the Imam's permission. The Imam turned and said, "This is the one whose father was killed in the first attack. Maybe his mother does not want him to fight."
'Amr said, "My mother ordered me to do so and that is why I am asking your permission."
The Imam allowed him to fight. When he was killed, his head was cut off and thrown to the Imam's camp. His mother picked up his head, then took a tent pole and killed two soldiers, but the Imam went to her and took her back.
Then, Hajjaj Ibn Masruq al-Ju'fi fought until he was killed. Then, Sawwar Ibn Abi Hamr al-Fahmi fought, until he was captured as a prisoner. 'Umar wanted to kill him, but his tribe prevented him. He lived through the massacre at Karbala', but died after six months.
The last one, Suwayd Ibn 'Amr Ibn Abi al-Muta went and, during the fighting, fell down on his face. Everyone thought that he was dead, but suddenly when he heard that Imam Husayn was killed, he got up, took out a small dagger from his waist, and started fighting with it. They surrounded him and killed him. He was the last of Imam Husayn's companions to be killed.
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