Importance of attending Ashara Mubaraka Waaz from 2nd Moharram

Personal Experience of one Mumin

In every bayaan, Mufaddal Maula TUS is emphasising the importance of zikr Hussain AS and attendance of waaz majlis regularly from 2nd Moharram, come what may. So much so that recently he said "Mein wajib karun chhun". Parents often worry about their children's education and schools not granting leave, and Maula specifically addresses such concerns with " je thatu hoye thawa do". I would like to share my personal experience in the hope that it removes any such fears parents may still have, and convince them that Maula knows what is best for us, and when he himself is taking responsibility, rest assured the outcome will be better than we can imagine. 

In 1417H/1997 I was a student in 7th standard in BVS Parsi High School, one of the oldest schools in Karachi, Pakistan with a reputation for its academic standards, merit and strict discipline, when Muqaddas Maula, Syedna Muhammad Burhanuddin RA gave the sharaf of Ashara Mubaraka to Karachi. It was common knowledge among Bohra students, that is was pointless asking for leave, as it would certainly be denied, and consequences then of staying absent would be worse. With my mother's consent I decided to stay absent for the week and deal with it later. When the time came to go back to school with a note of excuse, with strength and courage from Imam Hussain and his Dai, I decided to be honest. It would have been an easy way out to have a doctor's note and make illness an excuse, but at that time it didn't feel right.

The day could not have gone worse. I was told by my class teacher to get the note signed by the principal, whose sight used to scare me. The principal asked me the reason, and I think I had just uttered 'Moharram', when she burst out, saying she was sick of us Bohra students, and told me to get out and tell my parents to collect my leaving certificate. I was not allowed to sit in class that day and spent the whole day sitting outside in the grounds, crying, scared and not knowing what to do. The next day it was my parents' turn. I was not inside, but the gist of the conversation was that my parents were not serious about my education, they were too lenient with me, and that I would have to leave school at the end of the year. Technically, that meant I was let off with a warning. But I was so upset that I refused to continue and convinced my parents to get me admitted to another school. There was a new school that had opened a few years earlier and was yet to pass out its first batch. Admissions were open and the test was scheduled in the near future. We signed up, I got admitted that same session without wasting a year. This new school followed the Cambridge O'level system as opposed to the local matriculation system followed by BVS. The blessings had already started. In 5 years, third batch from the school, I passed with flying colors, topped in school, from an internationally accredited system, went on to do A'levels from another top school in Karachi, followed by Engineering from USA and Masters from Australia. 

Today I have a 3 year old son, and I Azm that I will never let education interfere with Ashara Mubaraka waaz and zikr Hussain, because that is the true education that holds us together in this world and prepares us for the next. The rest as they say is history.