 As-salamu alaikum my respected viewers, my brothers and sisters from all over the world. I stand here in Karbala. I stand about seven kilometers or eight kilometers from the city center of Karbala Muqaddasa. And today we are here to talk about Al-Horbni Yazid Al-Riyahi Al-Tamimi, in which I stand behind this holy shrine. Unfortunately, we're not able to go inside the shrine today because of construction that's going on in the shrine and of the new Darih they're placing, and the new dome they're placing. But we will take a look at the life of Al-Horbni Yazid Al-Riyahi and talk about how Al-Riyahi came from being on the side of Yazid Al-Mu'awiya, on the side of Al-Waida Allah ibn Ziyad al-Aliyama al-La'ana, to the side of Ibi Abdullah al-Hussain, and being of the 72 that were of the Ansar, of the companions of Ibi Abdullah al-Hussain Sayyid al-Shuhada. Al-Horbni Yazid was counted among the 72 companions of Ibi Abdullah al-Hussain, in which Rasulullah sallallahu alaihi wa alaihi wa sallam, peace be upon him and his family, stated that there are no companions, there are no Ansar like that of an Ansar of Imam al-Hussain. And when Imam al-Hussain sallallahu alaihi alaihi comes back in his raja'a, the first among these people that will come back will be Imam al-Hussain and his companions. Now we're going to start by talking about how Al-Horbni Yazid al-Riyahi originally started out. It is narrated by Sheikh al-Mufid in his Irshad. That Imam al-Hussain sallallahu alaihi alaihi has left Medina and is on his way to Kufa because the Kufans at the time informed him to come and that they will be for his aid. Obaidullah ibn Ziyad alaihi al-La'ana had sent al-Horbni Yazid al-Riyahi with 1,000 soldiers to stop Ibi Abdullah al-Hussain and to divert him on a tangent somewhere else. On his way in his caravan, Ibi Abdullah al-Hussain sallallahu alaihi alaihi, one of his companions stopped and said, Allah is great. Imam al-Hussain sallallahu alaihi alaihi told him, Allah is great. Yes, God is truly great. But why are you saying Allah is great? What did you see? His companion told him that far away I saw a palm tree. Then he asked his companions, he said, what do you guys see? They said, there are no palm trees here. We swear to Allah that this area, no palm trees grow in this area. Then he asked his companions, then my companions, what is it that you see? His companions told him, we hear the hooves of the horses making sound on the ground and we see the edge of the spears. Imam al-Hussain sallallahu alaihi sallam asked his companions, he told them, is there a place we can take refuge so that our backs are to this place and that we can fight the enemy in case they attack us? You see, Imam al-Hussain sallallahu alaihi sallam, like his grandfather, Rasulullah sallallahu alaihi wa alaihi wa sallam and like his father, Ali ibn Abi Talib, fought in all fairness. He did not want to face the army back to back. He wanted to face the army face to face so that nobody attacks from behind, from his side and nobody attacks from behind from the enemy's side. So his companion told him, he said, there is a hill close by called Dhuhamsa. Let us go there. If we hasten to the left, we shall reach there before and achieve our goal. So Imam al-Hussain sallallahu alaihi wa sallam turned left with his companions towards the cliff and they were able to make it to the cliff before al-Hurr's army arrived. Now, when they arrived at the cliff and al-Hurr's army arrived as well, the narration says, the historians say that they all had their spears ready and they had their standards. A standard in battle is called a war flag or a banner. Imam al-Hussain sallallahu alaihi wa sallam faced the army of al-Hurr on the scorching sun on a day that was very hot at the time of Dhuhr. Imam al-Hussain told his companions, now here it is very important that we look at this part here. Imam al-Hussain told his companions, give them water. Now you see al-Hurr alaihi wa sallam learned and saw Imam al-Hussain's humility, kindness, generosity. So he told his companions, give them water. His companions came and filled their bowls and their water skins with water and they fed each and every one of the thousand people al-Hurr's army. After they fed each person, they fed each horse. It is narrated, they fed each horse three or four times until the horse was fully quenched and his thirst was gone, they moved on to the other horse. Now another incident to narrate to you, to show you the Imam's humility. The Imam was at the pinnacle of humanity. The Imam understood what humanity means. When Ali ibn Abi Talib, the commander of the faithful, says that man is either your equal in faith or your brother in humanity. When Ali ibn Abi Talib, peace be upon him, had stated that either man is your equal in humanity or your brother in faith, Imam al-Hussain, like his father, had placed this law and had practiced this law. A man by the name of Ali ibn al-Taqan al-Muhrabi narrates this incident. He said, I was one of the last people from the army of al-Hurr to arrive. When I arrived, I arrived late. I arrived late and Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him, came to me and he said, sit your Rawiya down. Now Ali says that by Rawiya, I thought he meant my water skin since Rawiya in Arabic translates to the camel that holds water, the water skin. So I did not understand what he meant. So the Imam came to me and told me, oh Ali sit your camel down. I sat my camel down and he told him, go drink from the water. So he took the water skin. He began to drink and every time he would drink the water would pour on his face. The Imam told him, ya Ali, bend the water skin so that water may flow down correctly. The Ali himself says that I did not understand what the Imam meant by this. The Imam, peace be upon him, went to Ali and began to properly show him how to drink the water. This is the Imam's humility. This is Abi Abdullah al-Hussain on the scorching sun giving his enemies. Knowing that these people will soon in Karbala slaughter him into pieces and massacre and not give him water. He wanted to show something. He wanted to stamp in history and say, look, we are the Ahle Bayt of Muhammad SAW. And we follow the teachings of Muhammad. We follow the teachings of the Quran. And the Quran tells us to be nice and to be nice to all humans. Because water is not for me and you. Water is for everybody. Because Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him, wants to show the world that this water that flows here is for all mankind. Like his father, Ali ibn Abi Talib al-Suffin, when he blocked the army of Muawiya and Muawiya alaihi al-La'nah did not have any water. And his companions said, no, Ali ibn Abi Talib, do not give him water. Ali ibn Abi Talib said, this river that flows through here is not mine. This river is Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. This river that flows is for all of humanity. This is Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him, following his father's footsteps. Imam al-Hussain then called for prayer for Adhan. He asked his companion, al-Hajjaj ibn Masroor, to call for the Adhan prayer. Imam al-Hussain left his tent wearing but his shirt, sandals and turban. Now you see here, Imam al-Hussain left his tent only wearing his shirt, a turban and sandals. He wasn't wearing his clothes for war. Of course, when al-Hur looks at the situation, al-Hur is amazed that the Imam, there is danger on his life, yet he leaves like this. So he left and he gave a khutbah. I will read to you the khutbah from the nas, it says, O people, I did not come to you until I received your letters and messengers urging me to come to you. He is talking about the letters and the messages that came from al-Kufa. For you had no Imam and you desired that Allah may unite you through me towards the path of guidance and truth. If you adhere to your promises, I have come to you. Thus, admit your promises and covenants and testimonies so that I may find relief. While I do not agree to it and I despise my arrival, I shall go to where I had come from. This is the Imam preaching to the people whom sent him from al-Kufa. He told them, you guys had no Imam, you guys had nobody to guide you and he told me to come to be a guide for you, to guide you towards truth. Why is it now that you have blockaded my path and asked me to go on a tangent and leave? None replied from the army of al-Hurbni, al-Riyahi, al-Salam. And then the Imam asked the Mu'addin to continue the call for prayer and continue the iqama. Then he went to al-Hurbni Yazid and told him, al-Hurb, if you want to pray with your companions then do so. Al-Hurb told him, no, but I would rather pray alongside you and you lead the prayer. So they prayed the heart together. After finishing prayer al-Hurb went to his tent. Imam al-Hussein, peace be upon him, went to his tent. And then the time of Asr came. Imam al-Hussein, al-Salam, once again told his Mu'addin to do the idhan for Asr. He finished prayer. After finishing prayer, he recited his salutations. He glorified Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and he gave another Nos and I'll read to you this Nos as well. It says, now then, oh people, if you fear Allah and you recognize the do's of the rightful, Allah will be pleased with you. We are the household of Muhammad, sallallahu alayhi wa alayhi wa sallam and hold more authority upon this matter, meaning this leadership than those who claim it. The Imam tells him that, wallah, we are a haqq. We are more right to this leadership because we are from the family of Muhammad, sallallahu alayhi wa alayhi wa sallam. Um Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in the Quran chose us. Um Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in the Quran contextually stated that the Imam after you is Ali ibn Abi Talib. If you believe this, then you must follow us. He says, they have sown the seeds of oppression and enmity amongst you. The Imam here speaks about two, about Ahlul Sakhaifa and about Bani Umayyah, whom trick these people into following these enemies to sowing seeds of oppression. The ones who sowed oppression are the ones in Ziyarat Aashura, whom the Imam al-Sadiq, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, states from the Hadith al-Qudsi, al-Ladina asas al-Ghulmi wa al-Jawri, aleykum ahlul bait. They are the ones of Ahlul Sakhaifa. They are the ones who sat in Ahlul Sakhaifa from Ibn Abi Quhafa and Ibn Al-Khattab, who sowed the killing of Imam al-Hussain, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. It continues. It says, then if you despise us and you do not recognise our rights and if your opinions are adverse to what you had written to me in your letters and conveyed to me through your messages, then I shall go away. This is the second complaint by the Imam al-Salam. He told him that if you guys truly won't follow this, I will go away. I will go on my path. Al-Hur replied to the Imam's sermon. Al-Hur said, by Allah, I do not know anything regarding these messages and these letters. Imam al-Hussain said to his companion. He said, Al-Aqba, bring forth the bag containing the letters and the sermons so that we may show Hur what the Khufans wrote to us telling us to come to our aid and we will fight for you. He came. Al-Hur said, we did not know of those letters that was written for you. We have been commanded not to part with you as soon as we find you. Await Allah told Al-Hur as soon as you find Abi Abdullah al-Hussain, you do not depart with him. You stick with him. You stick with him and you direct him to a different route. You direct him to a place where there's no water, where the sun is scorching hot, where there's no one to come aid him. Direct him towards Naynawa, towards Karbala, where Abi Abdullah, peace be upon him, will be martyred. Al-Hur says, and then to take you to Kufa to the presence of Await Allah ibn Ziyad. The original plan of Await Allah ibn Ziyad is to divert Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him, from Kufa and take him directly to ibn Ziyad, so that ibn Ziyad may deal with him. Al-Hur, Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him, then came to him and said, Awur, may your mother be born over your death, that is your mother. What do you intend to do with me? Al-Hur said, Ya Aba Abdullah, I cannot reply to you because I know who your mother is. Al-Hur, you see, Al-Hur has divine tawfiq from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to gain this manzala here, because Al-Hur knew who Abi Abdullah was. This is the divine tawfiq that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala guided Al-Hur from the path of hellfire, from the path of Kufa, this belief, hypocrisy, to become one of the 72 Ansara, Abi Abdullah al-Hussain, peace be upon him, because Al-Hur, peace be upon him, had ma'rifah. Now after this incident, Imam al-Hussain told him, what will you do now? Because he told his companions, let's leave and Al-Hur stopped him again. He said, no, Aba Abdullah, you will not go towards Kufa. You will go somewhere else. Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him, went towards Al-Qadisiye and Al-Hur followed him on this path. Now the story is long, concerning Al-Hur means the Riyahi and our time is very limited. But after that, the letters from Al-Hur came and the messenger came. Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him, found out of the hypocrisy of the people of Kufa. Now I suggest my viewers to go and read about Al-Hur and how he became who he was. And Al-Hur was the main reason, the main reason that Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him, went to Karbala, was by Al-Hur means the Riyahi. Now I spoke to you about Al-Hur and I've only spoken but a small percentage about his life. And I tell my viewers, please go and read more about Al-Hur, our time here is limited. And I want to move to the story in how Al-Hur ibn Jid al-Riyahi, al-Tamimi, peace be upon him, changed his path from the army of Omar ibn Sa'ad to the army of Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him. When Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him, had sent camp in Karbala and Al-Hur was on the side of Omar ibn Sa'ad. Omar ibn Sa'ad told his companions, now we're going to go wage war against this person and slaughter him in cold blood. Al-Hur heard the call of Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him. Imam al-Hussain on that day in Karbala, he said, is there none that would hasten to assist us in the name of Allah? Is there none who would defend the household of the Prophet, peace be upon him? Al-Hur went to Omar ibn Sa'ad and asked him. He told him, would you fight this man? Are you going to fight this man, Al-Hussain ibn Ali, peace be upon him? Listen to the treacherous words of Omar ibn Sa'ad. This la'een, this Mal'oon said, yes by Allah, he swears by Allah. He says, the battle which if goes smoothly will result in the rolling of heads and cutting of hands. Hur said, then this proposal is not accepted. Al-Hur, peace be upon him, left the army. Omar ibn Sa'ad and departed towards the side of Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him. Al-Hur went, took his horse and he placed his hand on his head and he started walking towards the army. Abu ibn Abdullah al-Hussain, peace be upon him, in shame. He came to Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him, and he told him. He said, by Allah, I am returning towards you. Thus you accept me, for I have put fear into the hearts of your friends and the children of the Prophet's grandson. Al-Hur tells Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and tells Imam al-Hussain, Ya Allah accept me. Abu ibn Abdullah accept me. I am the reason that Imam al-Hussain and his family have been instilled with fear. I am the reason that they are brought here towards Karbala. He told him. May my soul be sacrificed for you, our son of the Messenger of Allah. I am the one who had stopped you from returning back and accompanied you all the way and forced you all here. But I had not known these people would directly refuse your proposal and bring you to this present state. By Allah, by Allah, if I had known they would do such a thing. I would not have undertaken what I have done, Ya Abu ibn Abdullah. Hence, how do I apologize to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala? Al-Hur tells Imam al-Hussain, alayhi salam. He tells him, I am the reason that you came to Karbala. How will I apologize to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that I am the reason for your massacre? What have I done, Ya Abu ibn Abdullah? What have I done? Do you think that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala will accept my forgiveness? Imam al-Hussain, alayhi salam. The forgiving Hussain, alayhi salam replied and said, May Allah accept your repentance. Thus, get up from your horse. Join us. Al-Hur said, Ya Abu ibn Abdullah, I will not get off of my horse until I am killed. Ya Abu ibn Abdullah, give me permission that I may be the first one to go and be killed in your name since I was the reason that you came here. Al-Hur, Ibn Isid al-Riyahi, took permission from Imam al-Hussain, peace be upon him. He left and he began to give a thunderous sermon to the enemies. He told them, do you know who you are fighting? You are fighting Ibn Bint al-Rasood Allah, al-Hussain ibn Ali, alayhi salam. You are fighting Hussain ibn Ali, the son of the Messenger of Allah, the son of Fatima al-Zahra. Do you dare kill this man? Nobody listened to him and they attacked him. And this is when Omar ibn Sa'id al-La'een, al-Mal'oon, took his standard, took the war flag and shot the first arrow and said, I testified that I was the first to shoot an arrow at the camp Ibn Abdullah al-Hussain, alayhi salam. Al-Hur went back to Imam al-Hussain, alayhi salam. He greeted him, he said his goodbye and he went towards the battlefield. He fought courageously, he fought ferociously and he killed many until he was slaughtered. When he was slaughtered, he called, Ya Hussain come for my aid. Come for my aid. Imam al-Hussain ran towards al-Hur, alayhi salam. He ran towards al-Hur and he told him, Ya Hur, al-Hurra, al-Hurra, al-Hurra, truly your name al-Hurra, your name al-Hurra, ismun ala musammah, that you are free, just like your mother, just like your mother named you al-Hurra, you are free in this dunya and you are free in this akhira. Imam al-Hussain, alayhi salam, gave al-Hurra a guarantee, gave him zaman that you have paradise with me al-Hurra ibn Ijid al-Riyahi. After the maqtala of al-Hurra, alayhi salam, al-Hurra stayed on the medan in Karbala, on the grounds in Karbala. When Umar al-La'een, Umar ibn Sa'ad, alayhi al-La'na, asked for the horses to trample the bodies, the family of al-Hurra, his close family came and said, you will not trample the body of al-Hurra. You will not trample the body of al-Hurra. They took him seven kilometers from the maqtala. Imam al-Hussain, alayhi salam, and brought him here. Here. They buried him here. And now millions of Zuhwar, every year, come and visit al-Hurra. Take blessings from his shine. Take tabarak. Ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, by the right of this Nasr, by the right of this companion of Abiyah Abdullah al-Hussain, to grant them their hajats. A lot of history resides here. This maqtala here, this Medina, has been named by the tabarak of al-Hurra. They called this maqtala here al-Hurra District. This maqtala here has been through a lot of reconstructions as well. The first person to come here and reconstruct this maqtala was Shah Ismail al-Safawi, from the Safavid era. This man here came to Karbala to visit al-Hurra. He wanted to dig his grave. It is narrated. It is narrated that he dug the grave of al-Hurra, and he witnessed al-Hurra as if just seconds ago. He was slaughtered in the ma'laka. He narrates himself that there was a cloth that was tied around the head of al-Hurra. He wanted to take it for blessings, but as soon as he removed it, it began to seep blood. He put it back and he built the first structure here of al-Hurra. After that time, many hukam, many salatine came and built this place. As you can see Alhamdulillah, the khuddam are working on building the dome. Insha'Allah, in the near future, when Allah gives us a longer life, if we still live in the near future, insha'Allah, we will go inside and look at the finished bari'ah of al-Hurr ibn Yajid al-Riyahi. We ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, by the right of al-Hurr, to count us amongst the Ansar of Imam al-Husayn, alayhi salam. We ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to count us amongst the Ansar of Imam al-Mehdi, al-Muntadar, al-Ajjal Allah, al-Farajah, al-Sharif. As we stand here in Karbala, when Imam al-Mehdi comes and asks us for his aid, we will not turn our heels and run away from him. We ask Allah to give us the divine tawfiq and the divine guidance so that we may not turn back on our heels because the Ahadith tell us that when Imam al-Mehdi, al-Ajjal Allah, al-Farajah, Al-Sharif, al-Ruhi, al-Fida, al-Salam Allah, alaihi alaikum. A lot of people will turn back on their heels and they will say Ibn Rasulullah, we do not need you Ibn Rasulullah because we have our taqiyyah and taqiyyah is more love to us then your grandfathers and Taqiyah is more loved for us. We don't need you to cause fitnah. So let us not, let us not turn back on our heels when Imam al-Nahdi comes and asks us for his aid. And you won this greatest test. Among seventy-two companions you became Awhar. Among seventy-two whom Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala talks about and takes pride in their creation. You are among seventy-two whom Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and the messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his holy family has stated in our hadith that there are none like the companions of Abi Abdullah al-Hussain. Awhar, make sure we also win this divine test by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and make sure we are also counted amongst the Zubar and amongst the Ansar of Abi Abdullah al-Hussain, peace be upon him. Peace be upon him.