For the sake of Allah, Imām Ḥusayn (ʿa) strived 

Indeed falsehood withered and the truth survived  

 

He fought against the corruption of Islam, so imperative

He sacrificed his life, and won the historic narrative

 

Imām Ḥusayn (ʿa) was brutally killed but he did not die

In the hearts of thousands he remains forever alive

 

His story strikes a chord as we listen to it crying

His love in the heart saves our souls from dying

 

Helping to heal us and purify our intention

To gain obedience to the One and rise in ascension

 

Every time our desires have free reign

Imām Ḥusayn’s (ʿa) death becomes in vain

 

We must ask ourselves a question and answer it with care

Which camp are we really in, during this Karbala affair?

 

Are we in the camp of Imām Ḥusayn (ʿa)

With those whose love for him fill their veins?

 

His truly noble and courageous friends

Their souls from selfish desires, fully cleansed

 

Obedient to Allah and the Imām of their time

They have conquered their selves, sublime

 

Those that light up the darkness like stars in the sky

They shine bright for those in heaven so high 

 

They are the true Shīʿah of Imām Ḥusayn (ʿa)

The likes of them not seen on earth again

 

Or are we on the side of Yazīd?

The slaves of selfishness and greed

 

Those who sold a life that’s lasting for the fleeting

Love of dunyā (this world) distracting them from Allah’s meeting

 

They are happy to kill Imām Ḥusayn (ʿa)

Playing and laughing with no shame

 

Living a heedless life with no goal

Unwittingly killing their own soul

 

Or are we of those who ran away on their own

And left Imām Ḥusayn (ʿa) behind to die alone

 

Too cowardly to face the enemies they praised

Too weak of heart to fight the desires they raised

 

And so they live their lives avoiding responsibility

Immersed in various types of games and futility

 

Trying to avoid the guilt eating them away

As he dies within their hearts every day

 

Imām Ḥusayn (ʿa) is the fiṭrah (innate nature of God-consciousness) that keeps our hearts alive

Our conscience without Ḥusayn (ʿa) cannot survive

 

We must see where we really stand and be true

Make a decision in the war that rages inside of you

 

An Imām cannot serve and gain victory on his own

He needs loyal supporters who follow him alone

 

He could not even find 313 loyal followers to succeed

Our Imām (ʿaj) can’t find that number either, do we not heed?

 

يا ليتَنا كنّا مَعكم

We call  “we wish we were with you”

When our Imām (ʿaj) comes, will our words be true? 

 

We must preserve Imām Ḥusayn (ʿa) inside our souls

By living like him and his followers as our goal

 

To be Zaynab (ʿa) in the words we say

And as-Sajjād (ʿa) in the way we pray

 

Be ʿAbbās (ʿa) in our service to all others

And ʿAlī al-Akbar (ʿa) with our fathers and our mothers

 

Be Qāsim in his self respect

and Hurr in his introspect

 

Let’s join the camp of Ḥusayn (ʿa) this Muharram, and be brave

Tell our selve’s desires, “we’re no longer your slave!”

 

The plains of Karbala represent the recesses of our heart

And we must take up arms so that the struggle can start

 

Fight the battle inside us and be reformed

So that Muḥarram next year sees us, transformed

 

Let’s work hard to improve every year with Ḥusayn’s (ʿa) love

So that he would smile on us from heaven above

 

The one who fights his inner self is the most courageous one

To win the smaller struggle we first need to win the greater one

 

Our chance to serve with our Imām (ʿaj) is coming near

Let’s get ready and become a believer sincere