The Press Release on the Tragedy at the Entrance of the Holy Shrine

The Press Release on the Tragedy at the Entrance of the Holy Shrine
2019/09/14

Indeed we are of Allah and to Him we shall return

It is with great sadness and pain that the news of the tragedy at the entrance of the holy shrine of Imam Hussain (peace be upon him) has reached us, which led to the loss of tens of lives, as they repeated the chant “Ya Husayn”, their hearts filled with the love and grief for the Ahlulbait (peace be upon them), during their participation of the Tuwairich Run on the afternoon of Ashura.
We, therefore, pay condolences to the Imam of our Time (may Allah hasten his reappearance) as well as to their grieving families, and to all the believers and lovers of the Ahlulbait (peace be upon them).
We call upon those responsible in the Iraqi government and the Custodianship of the Holy Shrines to establish sound plans and to take precautionary measures to ensure that such a tragedy does not occur again.
Similarly, we call upon all the respected visitors to the holy shrines – may Allah honour them – to act in coordination with the brothers who have been tasked with managing the millions of visitors in order to enable the illumination of godly teachings and guidance, and the expression of love and sorrow for the Ahlulbait (peace be upon them). Indeed, such service during this season is amongst the greatest of deeds in the eyes of Allah Almighty, and He is the greatest supporter and the Guardian of the believers.
In conclusion, we supplicate to Allah Almighty to bless those pure souls and to raise them in the highest ranks with the Master of Martyrs and his noble companions, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon them all. We pray that He inspires their loved ones who they leave behind with patience and solace, and that He blesses the injured with a quick recovery, for He is the Most Merciful.

11 Muharram 1441

Day Questions

Is the Sufi music called qawwali permissible, considering that it contains the dhikr of the Prophet and the Ahlulbait (peace be upon them all)?

If it involves “Tarab”, then it is not permissible to listen to it even if it includes praising the Prophet and the Ahlulbait (peace be upon them all).

It is mentioned the edicts of His Eminence that the fish must be taken out of the water alive when it was caught in order for it to be lawful to consume. If there is fish in a shop and it has scales, or the eggs of such a fish, how am I supposed to know whether it was caught dead or alive? Does this mean we have to know that this fish in particular in front of us was caught alive? Or can we make assumptions based on the possibility that it was caught alive?

The conventional and usual way of fishing and catching fish is according to the sharia-defined way, i.e. take the fish alive from the water. So the doubt whether it is caught alive or not is usually not reasonable and one can ignore it. But if the doubt is based on evidence indicating that there is also a convention that people catch fish in another way in which the fish die in the water, this will make the consumption of such fish unlawful.

Does Imam Mahdi (peace be upon him) have servants? How can I appoint myself to be his servant?

We advise you to stay away from this kind of thoughts and focus on performing what is obligated and recommended in the Sharia. Once you do that, you will be under the care of the Twelfth Imam (peace be upon him), even if you don’t directly feel his blessings.

I have just recently known about Ayatollah al-Hakeem (may Allah have mercy upon him) and I have found his rulings to be most agreeable and wise but knowing that he is deceased (may Allah have mercy upon him), is it permissible to still follow him?

It is permissible to follow him only if the edict of the current most knowledgeable marja' allows the following of the deceased marja'. Otherwise, it is not permissible to follow him, but it is obligatory to follow the most knowledgeable living marja'.

News Archive