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264 PURE LIFE, Vol. 6, No.20 (Rajab 1441. Esfand 1398. March 2020)

None of Husayn's men defected and they all
remained with him. Hussein and his followers held a
vigil and prayed all night.
On Muharram 10th, also called Ashura, Hussein ibn
Ali completed the morning prayers with his
companions. He appointed Zuhayr ibn Qayn to
command the right flank of his army, Habib ibn
Muzahir to command the left flank and his half-brother
Al-Abbas ibn Ali as the standard bearer. Hussein ibn
Ali's companions numbered 32 horsemen and 40
infantrymen. Hussein rode on his horse Zuljanah.
Hussein ibn Ali called the people around him to join
him for the sake of God and to defend Muhammad's
family. His speech affected Hurr, the commander of
the Tamim and Hamdan tribes, who had stopped
Hussein from his journey. He abandoned Umar ibn
Sa'ad and joined Husayn's small band of followers.
On the other side, Yazid had sent Shimr ibn Thil-
Jawshan (his chief commander) to replace Umar ibn
Sa'ad as the commander.
Umar ibn Sa'ad advanced and shot an arrow at
Hussein ibn Ali's army, saying: "Give evidence before
the governor that I was the first thrower." Ibn Sa'ad's
army started showering Husayn's army with arrows.
Hardly any men from Hussein ibn Ali's army escaped
from being shot by an arrow. Both sides began
fighting. Successive assaults resulted in the death of a
group of Hussein ibn Ali's companions.
The first skirmish was between the right flank of
Husayn's army and the left of the Syrian army.