Being with Imam Husayn

Shahid Ayatullah Beheshti was one of the great scholars of the 20th century. He was a master in fiqh, usul, history, along with Islamic and Western philosophy. He was a pious man with a well balanced family life and numerous accomplishments. He was assassinated during the early days after the Islamic Revolution in Iran. It is well accepted that had he been alive after Imam Khumayni (may Allah raise his status) passed away, he would have taken over the spiritual guidance of the country.

A reliable source narrates a dream he had some years back near the time of the war in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The man dreamt of a friend who had fought in the war at a young age and become a martyr (shahid). The shahid looked very happy and comfortable. The man having the dream asked him how things were in paradise and how he passed his time. The shahid replied that things were very good, and that they were privileged to be able to attend a class on Qur’anic tafseer every day with Shahid Ayatullah Beheshti. The man having the dream then asked, “Do you have the opportunity to see Imam Husayn (a)?” The shahid replied wistfully, “We do see him once in a while, but as for Shahid Beheshti, he has a meeting with him every day!”

We are reminded from this dream that:

1) It is not correct to say that the hereafter has just one heaven and one hell, but rather it is many heavens and many hells, each one ranked according to the accomplishments one achieved in his life.

2) Nor is it the case that everyone who dies in the way of Allah as a shahid is equal. Yes, Allah (swt) has promised that one who sacrifices his life for His sake will at least enter a heaven. But that person’s heaven still depends on what he accomplished during his life.

3) Perhaps the most significant lesson of all from this dream: All of us love Imam Husayn (a) dearly and because of this love we yearn to spend time in his company in the hereafter. Suppose that Allah takes kindly to the few good deeds we perform during our lives, and with His Generosity, Forgiveness, and the intercession of the Ahlul Bayt (a) we make it into heaven. Even then, it could very well be the case that our access to Imam Husayn (a) is sporadic at best.

We need to ask ourselves, what kind of heaven do we want? What sort of heaven is a heaven without the regular company of Imam Husayn (a)? And the Prophet (s), Imam Ali (a), Bibi Fatima (a), and the rest of the Ahlul Bayt (a)? If we really want their company, the secret is to live a life that in every way leads us closer and closer to Imam Husayn (a). Both Shahid Beheshti and the young man who was seen the dream were shahids meaning that they died in the same way. The difference between them, however, was in the way that they lived.

-- From an akhlaq lecture by a teacher of the howza, February 2005