Poetry and famous couplets remembering Imam Hussain, his martyrdrom at Karbala

The martyrdom of Imam Husain and his supreme sacrifice have inspired people for centuries. Innumerable elegiac verses have been written by poets in Urdu, Persian, Arabic and other languages, recalling the events at the battle of Karbala.

On this website, Iqbal's famous nazm [verse] on Imam Husain, has been posted in the past. You can READ IT HERE. Some of the most famous verses and oft-quoted couplets about the real message of Imam's Shahadat [sacrificing his and his companion's lives].

Read the immortal couplets. First in simple Persian, later two in Urdu.

शाह अस्त* हुसैन, बादशाह अस्त हुसैन
दीं अस्त हुसैन, दीं पनाह अस्त हुसैन
सर दाद, न दाद दस्त दर दस्त-ए-यज़ीद**
हक़्क़ा कि बिना-ए-ला-इलाहा अस्त हुसैन

ख्वाजा मोईनुद्दीन चिश्ती 

Translation
Ruler is Hussain, Emperor is Hussain,
Faith is Hussain , guardian of faith is Hussain
Offered his head and not the hand to Yazid
Truly, the mirror of faith is Hussain 

क़त्ल-ए-हुसैन असल में मर्ग-ए-यज़ीद है
इस्लाम ज़िंदा होता है हर कर्बला के बाद

मोहम्मद अली 'जौहर' 

इंसान को बेदार तो हो लेने दो
हर क़ौम पुकारेगी हमारे हैं हुसैन

जोश मलीहाबादी 

Now read the couplets in Roman English script:

Shah ast* Husain, baadshah ast Husain
Dee.n ast Husain, Dee.n panaah ast Husain
sar daad, na daad dast dar dast-e-yazeed**
haqqa, ki binaa-e-la-ilaaha ast Husain

Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti

Qatl-e-Husain asl mein marg-e-yazeed hai
Islaam zinda hota hai har Karbala ke baad

Maulana Mohammed Ali 'Jauhar'

insaan ko bedaar to ho lene do
har qaum pukaaregi hamaare hain Husain

Josh Malihabadi

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Mini-dictionary

[*Ast=is, है][dee.n=faith, religion, दीं/दीन]
[**Hussain gave his head, but didn't give his hand i.e. allegiance to the evil Yezid][bina=basis, बुनियाद]

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Hazrat Imam Husain [alternative spellings: Hussain, Hussein], the grandson of Prophet Muhammad, had attained martyrdom at the battle of Karbala in today's Iraq, nearly 1380 years ago. His family and companions were called treacherously, denied water and later they were mercilessly killed by Yezid's army.

Muslims across the world see Husain's act as supreme sacrifice by standing up to the tyrant who wanted to usurp power and also to get legitimacy from the Prophet's grandson. The event had occurred in the Islamic month of Muharram, and hence, the observances are often termed as Muharram.