Imam Hussain (a) says: "By God, if there was nowhere to escape or seek refuge, I still would never pledge allegiance to Yazīd ibn Mu'āwiyah (la).." Now think of the current circumstances of the Ummah - do you succumb to the social and political pressure of the enemies of Islam?

In reality, this is what it ultimately comes down to. Have you chosen routes of comfort in your quest for spiritual ascendancy? Or do you realize that 'comfort' makes it no 'quest' at all? Have you chosen love without sacrifice? Or are you cognizant that there is no such thing?

Imam Mūsa al-Kādhim (a) explains clearly: "The example of the believer is like the example of the two sides of a scale - whenever their faith increases, their tribulation rises.." Brothers and sisters, this is a fact of faith; it is the price of love; it is the test of life.

Life is not random (23:115). It serves a greater order and a divine cause: to establish the authority of God (2:30) and guide people to their perfection - not by compulsion (2:256), but by freeing their innate natures from the existential limits of finite worship (30:30).

God orders believers not to incline to oppressors (11:113), which includes non-Islamic power structures. Yes - they do not rule by divine authority, which renders them at odds with justice. God says this makes them disbelievers (5:44), transgressors (5:45), lecherous (5:47), etc.

These are the standards of the Qur'an, but some tend to apply their own rubric of right and wrong even in politics, finding no impermissibility in staying silent towards oppression or living comfortably under the guardianship of tyrants - even when God says to avoid them (39:17).

If we reflect a bit deeper on the words of Imam Hussain (a), we will see that he has not acted independently or in randomness, but rather, he has established for us an eternal postulate of disassociation from structures obstructing our submission to God - the absolute Truth.

The Imam (a) said: "One like me shall not pledge allegiance to one like Yazīd (la).." Notice: the Imam (a) did not say he would not pledge allegiance to Yazīd, although that is true. The Imam (a) said that those who are 'like him' must not submit except to God. He set an example.

It is a matter of principle, not a matter of the past. It is a lesson of eternity, not a lesson of death. It is a choice of freedom and declaration of awareness. Peace be upon Hussain (a), and Ali ibn al-Hussain (a), and the sons of Hussain (a), and the friends of Hussain (a).