What happened after the Battle of Karbala? []

After the Battle of Karbala, Yazid‘s army led by Umar ibn Saad plundered and dismembered the bodies and raised the the head of Husseinع and companions onto spears. The tents in which the women and children were residing were looted and set ablaze.

Amongst the remaining family members were Zainabع and Umm Kulthumع, the granddaughters of the Holy Prophet ﷺ
and Ali Zain-Al-Abideenع, the last remaining son of Husseinع.

Ali Zain Al-Abideenع was severely ill during the battle of Karbala, and though he wished to fight alongside his fatherع was unable to do so.

The family members, including young toddlers were shackled in chains and paraded in the nearby city of Kufa, where they were presented to Yazid's governor Ubaydallah ibn Ziyad in his courtyard.

Ali Zain Al-Abideenع delivered a defiant speech in the face of Ibn Ziyad, and reminded the people of Kufa that they had pledged allegiance to Hussain. Ibn Ziyad turned towards Zainab, and asked her what she thought about what God had done to her family, to which she resoonded:

“𝐈 𝐬𝐚𝐰 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐲. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐦 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐲𝐫𝐝𝐨𝐦 𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐨."

𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐉𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐧, 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐉𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭."

—Zeinab bint Aliع

Shortly afterward, the family members of Hussainعwere marched on a perilous journey from Kufa to Damascus.

It is said that several of the younger children on this journey died on the route from the harsh conditions and ill-treatment of Yazid's army.
The family were paraded in several towns along the route, and were often humiliated and assaulted by bystanders.

The exact dates for how long this journey lasted are unclear, but many historians believe it was around 2 months after Muharram, in which the family of Hussainع finally arrived in Damascus.

Yazid had ordered for the city to be decorated and jubilant. Crowds had gathered to celebrate the capture of the prisoners. Years of propaganda by Bani Ummayah against Ali ibn Abu Talibع and his sonsع, had created an environment of hatred against the Prophet's ﷺ family.

Whilst the family of Hussainع were paraded in the market of Damascus, some historians note the bystanders attacked them with rubbish, stones and even hot water. The family were eventually gathered in the Ummayad mosque in front of Yazid.

To further humiliate and antagonise the family, Yazid used a stick to poke the dismembered head of Hussainع. Undeterred, Ali Zain Al-Abideenع, delivered a powerful sermon in the courtyard of Yazid, to tell the people who he was in relation to the Holy Prophet:

“𝐎, 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞! 𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐞𝐜𝐜𝐚 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐚. 𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐙𝐚𝐦𝐳𝐚𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐚𝐟𝐚. 𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐧,

𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐪 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐨𝐧, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐋𝐨𝐫𝐝. 𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐥𝐬.

𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. 𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐅𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐡 𝐚𝐥-𝐙𝐚𝐡𝐫𝐚, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐊𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐣𝐚𝐡.

𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝. 𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐊𝐚𝐫𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐚."

Upon hearing this speech, the people of the Courtyard were moved. Yazid ordered his soldiers to place the family members of Hussain in his prisons. With some historians suggesting it could have been a matter of weeks and others suggesting it could have been months.

After their release, the family of Hussainع travelled back to their hometown of Madina. Many people believe that the family of Hussainع returned to Karbala on their way back, to bid a proper farewell to the martyrs, though this is contested.

Either way, Yazid's ambition to boost his credibility by killing Hussain had ultimately backfired.

Word spread of his atrocities against the Prophet's family, sparking several uprisings against his rule - most notably by Abdullah ibn Zubair in Makkah, and Mukhtar Al-Thaqafi in Kufa. Mukhtar is also famed for avenging the killing of Hussain.

Every year, people from around the world mark 40 days from the day of Ashura, known as Arbaeen.
Millions of people participate in a walk from the city to Karbala to pay homage to the stand of Hussain.