The Right Path

Nada: Why do you pray on a turba if it is merely made out of clay? You worship the turba by praying on it and that is committing an act of blasphemy (shirk).

Fatima: May I ask you a question?

Nada: Yes, you may.

Fatima: If we look at it as you do and use your sense of argument then you are actually contradicting yourself because you are performing an act of blasphemy every single day.

Nada: No I don't… When… How!

Fatima: You do it five times a day when you pray.

Nada: How! That 's impossible.

Fatima: You worship the Kaaba.

Nada: I don't. I only pray towards it because Allah has ordered me to do so.

Fatima: Now we're getting somewhere! You pray towards the Kaaba not to the Kaaba, but to God because he ordered you to do so. Well, we also pray on the turba not to the turba, but to God because he ordered us to do so. Furthermore, If praying on the turba is shirk then Allah himself committed blasphemy (ashrak) when he ordered his angels to bow to Adam. If we look at it from your point of view then the only one that actually refused to commit an act of blasphemy was Satan because he refused to bow to Adam. But if we were to dwell deep into the context of Allah's order, we find that He ordered the Angels to bow to Adam in obedience to Him, not as a command for
them to worship Adam and take him as a second God. Therefore, Satan was the one committing the sin because he refused to bow completely disobeying Allah.

Nada: This is the first time it is been described to me in such detail. I now understood that when you pray on the turba you are actually glorifying Allah and not the turba.

Nada: May I ask you a question?

Fatima: Yes, you may.

Nada: Why is it that you are determined to pray on a turba and not on anything else?

Fatima: There is a hadith that prophet Mohammed peace be upon him once said: "Allah has created the earth and made it a pure place for prostration. This hadith must surely point to the fact that prostration must be done only on pure earth.

Nada: Yes it does because Allah has said "Accept whatever the messenger gives you and keep away from whatever he prevents you from". I just want to ask, if you are able to pray on any pure earth, why is it that you persist in carrying around with you a 'turba'.

Fatima: The Shias are allowed to pray on any earth on the condition that it is clean and pure. Praying on unclean ground makes your prayers void so to be sure that we are always praying on pure ground, we carry this turba with us.

Nada: I've noticed that a lot of your turbas have Karbala written on it, plus most Shias prefer to prostrate on a 'turba' that comes from Karbala. What is so special about the soil that comes from Karbala?

Fatima: The reason for this came from a hadith that says: Prostrating on the soil of Husain (A.S) (Imam Husain (A.S) was buried in Karbala) will pass the gates of the seven skies.

Meaning that performing prostration on a turba that is made from the soil that comes from Karbala raises the status of ones prayers and will more likely be accepted by Allah.

Nada: Will this prayer be accepted even though there was things in it that invalidate it?

Fatima: The Shias consider any prayer which does not correctly, and in order combine all the requirements set out by the Holy Prophet as invalid, even if it is prayed on the turba of Karbala.

Nada: Is the ground of Karbala more honorable than the ground of Mecca and Madina?

Fatima: What is wrong with that?

Nada: The ground of Mecca is where Adam was brought down to, plus the Kaaba is located on its ground. The ground of Madina is where the Prophet is buried. Do you mean to say that these grounds are lower in status to the ground of Karbala? This is very strange! Are you saying that Husain Ibn Ali is better than his grandfather is?

Fatima: No I am not saying that. But you must understand that Imam Husain was very much like his grandfather. Imam Husain is an infallible meaning that he like his grandfather is sinless. Allah purified him along with his grandfather, Mother, Father and Brother as per the Quranic Verse, "Allah desires to keep away from you all uncleanness, Oh People of the House and purify you a thorough purifying.

The only difference between the Prophet and the Imam is that the Prophet had revelation descend upon him, whereas the Imam was guided by inspiration. (Ilham). Imam Husain holds this high position because of that great role he played in the revival of Islam. He sacrificed himself and many members of his family on the plains of Karbala in a battle against the Ummayid, Yazid bin Muawiya, who was a drunkard calling himself Calipha of the Muslims.

Because of this great sacrifice, Allah rewarded him with three things:

1) Those prayers be answered under the dome of his shrine.

2) That his turba have special healing powers

3) And that the remaining nine Imams descend from him.

For someone to be butchered along with his family and then have his women and children enslaved as a service to Islam surely deserves great a reward from Allah.

So you can understand now our great love for the Imam and the importance of his turba. So one who honours and respects the turba of Imam Husain is actually respecting Imam Husain and respect for Imam Husain is respect for the Prophet.

Nada: It actually makes sense, because what is the difference between praying on earth and praying on a piece of that earth. And since Allah has allocated greater rewards for praying on earth that is extracted from the burial grounds of the grandson of the Prophet then it is only logical to use it for prostrating on.

Fatima: Look here Nada, there's one thing that I want to make clear to you and that is, there are many lies that fly around about the Shias, and it is up to you to look for the truth. You have to differentiate between right and wrong.

BY ZAHRA AND ZAYNAB ALHAMEEM