Muharram, Martyrdom of Imam Hussain and the "Hussaini Brahmins": Strengthening the Beautiful Blend of Indo-Islamic Tradition

By Ghulam Rasool Dehlvi, New Age Islam 31 July 2023 ہند میں کاش حسین ابن علی آجاتے چومتے ان کے قدم پلکیں بچھاتے ہندو جنگ کرنے یہاں شبیر سے آتا جو یزید اس کو راونڑکی طرح دھول چٹاتے ہندو (Translation: Had Imam Hussain come to India, he would have been greatly venerated and revered by the Hindus. If Yazid were here to wage a war against the Imam, Hindus would have defeated him the way they humiliated the Ravana) While commemorating Muharram and recalling Imam Hussain’s martyrdom, we Muslims often forget those who stood by Hussain in his harshest times. Those who exerted concerted efforts to fight for truth and justice, though they did not belong to Islam, the religion of Imam. One of the most notable, but regrettably forgotten supporters of Imam Hussain was an Indian community historically traced as "Hussaini brahmins". A little-known group and small in numbers, the Hussaini brahmins also known as Dutt community and Mohiyals, mainly found in Punjab, are traced back to the event of Karbala which occurred in 680 AD. These Punjabi Brahmins are those whose ancestors fought for Imam Hussain in Karbala. The story goes on: Fast as wind, carving their way through the sand, dunes at lightning speed, a caravan of few Indian sons in a noble pursuit, was making its way towards Karbala to register their names in the pages of history. ’Hal Min Nasirin Yansurna’: Is there anyone who can help me? When Prophet Muhammad's Grandson Imam Husain posed this question to humanity, History witnessed that while Kalma-reciting Muslims were out there to slit his throat, far from his battlefield in Karbala, some brave Indians left their homes to support Imam Husain striving for the truth and righteousness. These were those brave Indians who travelled to Karbala to write a golden page in the history of age-old Hindu-Muslim Unity. The ongoing Islamic month of Muharram marks a turning point in our Indian history too. On the auspicious 10th of Muharram, Imam Hussain attained martyrdom and rescued the humanity from the clutches of evil. He refused to surrender to the Tyrant Yazid, who created dictatorial dynasty deviating from the consensual democracy (Shur’a) in Islam. Therefore, the noble sacrifice of Imam Hussain is looked up as the revival of the true Islamic principles of democracy, justice, fairness and mutual consensus in the matters of governance. The Tyrant Yazid, high on his power was adamant on bringing shame to humanity. But he knew as long as Imam Husain was alive, he wouldn’t succeed in his nefarious ends. It was because of this fear that Yazid cornered Imam Husain and his family at Karbala and forced him to bow down to his tyranny. A living example of valiance and indefatigable determination, Imam Husain proposed that either he would live in Madina on his conditions, or he would migrate to India (Hindustan). None of these peaceful proposals was accepted by the Tyrant Yazid. Rather, the innocent Imam and all his clan and noble family was cornered near the River of Euphrates, Dariya-e-Furat in Iraq. They were tortured and persecuted so much so that even water was denied to their little children, toddlers and their mothers. Even 6-month-old Ali Asghar, the youngest son of Imam was killed by the Tyrants in an extreme hunger and thirst for water. And all these atrocities were executed on a written order from Yazid. As they say, people remember the dearest ones and the real well-wishers in their tough times. While Imam Husain wrote a letter seeking help from his childhood friend Habib in Arabia, his elder son Ali Akbar wrote a similar letter and sent it far away from Karbala…very far to India..... to a Hindustani Sapoot and King of India, Raja Samudargupt who happened to be a cousin-brother of Ali-ibn-e Husain. Strange as it may sound, History is witness to this unlikely relationship. Over 1400 years ago, the king of Iran, a Parsi by faith, had two daughters--Maher Bano and Shaher Bano. Maher Bano was married to King Chandragupt and was renamed Chandralekha. A few years later, Canderlekha’s younger sister, Shaher Bano, was married to Imam Husain A.S. Chandralekha and Chandergupt’s son Samudargupt was the King of India when he got the letter from his cousin Ali ibn-E-Husain. King Samudargupt swiftly arranged for a group of brave Indian soldiers and ordered them to depart towards Karbala. The army commander was Rehab Dutt, a Mohiyal Brahmin. Unfortunately, by the time Rehab Dutt and his brave-heart soldiers reached Karbala, Imam Husain was killed. This news disheartened the entire Indian troupe. They decided to run their swords on their own necks. “When the one we came to help is no more, what should we do with these swords? they asked. Just then, an Arab admirer of Imam Husain persuaded them to take the swords off their necks and join the force of Janab-e-Mukhtar. Thus, these Indian soldiers fought a memorable battle, exhibiting the best of Hindustani swords in Karbala to avenge the death of Imam Husain A.S. Even today, the place of Karbala where these brave Brahmins resided is called ‘ad-Dayar-ul-Hindiyya’. Some of these Brahmins were martyred at Karbala, some stayed back, while few returned to Mother India. History remembers these Brave Brahmins by the name of ‘Husaini Brahmins’. Today, we must salute this lesser known but truly great saga of Hindu-Muslim Unity. These Rajput Mohiyals or the Dutt family from India fulfilled the sacred vision of holy Prophet when he said: I feel the fragrance coming from India. These "Hussaini brahmins" also strengthen the beautiful blend of our Indo-Islamic tradition. In the words of a Hindustani poet: Wah Dutt Sultan, Hindu ka Dharm, Musalman ka Iman, Adha Hindu, Adha Musalman! (Bravo! O Dutt, the king who follows the Hindu religion as well as the Muslim faith, and is a half Hindu and a half Musalman) Famous Indian film actor Sunil Dutt also belonged to Rahab Dutt's family, and hence was a 'Hussaini brahmin'. He used to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussain by himself in the footsteps of his ancestors on the occasion of the holy month of Muharram. In this context, the Muharram processions and commemorations organized by Husaini Brahmins in memory of Imam Hussain is the best example of the inclusive of Indo-Islamic tradition. Most notably, the members of the Dutt family did not leave their religion and while being Hindus, they told the humanity that Hussainiyyat is an integral part of their faith. Besides the Indian celebrities Sunil Dutt and his son Sanjay Dutt, Hindu Urdu writers such as Sabir Dutt and Nand Kishore Vikram are also some of the notable Hussaini brahmins. ------ A Regular Columnist with Newageislam.com, Ghulam Rasool Dehlvi is an Indo-Islamic scholar and English-Arabic-Urdu writer. He has graduated from a leading Sufi Islamic seminary in India, and acquired Diploma in Qur'anic sciences and a Certificate in Uloom ul Hadith from Al-Azhar Institute of Islamic Studies. He has also participated in the 3-year “Madrasa Discourses” program initiated by the University of Notre Dame, USA. 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