Awn b. Abd Allah b. Ja'far al-Tayyar

Awn b. Abd Allah b. Jaʿfar, known as Awn al-Akbar, was a son of Zaynab who accompanied Imam Hussain on his journey from Mecca to Kufa. He fought bravely at the Battle of Karbala and was martyred on the Day of Ashura.

Awn b. Abd Allah b. Ja'far al-Tayyar
Martyrs of Karbala.jpg
Native nameعون بن عبدالله بن جعفر بن ابی طالب
Full NameAwn b. Abd Allah b. Ja'far b. Abi Talib b. Abd al-Muttalib
Companion ofImam al-Hussain
EpithetAwn al-Akbar
LineageBanu Hashim
Wellknown RelativesImam Ali (Grand Father), Fatima (Grand mother), Zaynab (mother), Imam Hasan (uncle), Imam Hussain (uncle)
Place of BirthMedina
Place(s) of ResidenceMedina
Death/Martyrdom61/680
Cause of
Death/Martyrdom
Martyred in the Event of Ashura
Burial PlaceHoly Shrine of Imam Hussain, Karbala
ActivitiesParticipating in the Battle of Karbala

LineageEdit

Awn was a son of Zaynab, Imam Hussain's sister, and Abd Allah b. Ja'far b. Abi Talib b. Abd al-Muttalib who was a companion of the Prophet.[1] Awn's grandfather was Ja'far al-Tayyar who was appointed by the Prophet as the chief of Muslims in their migration to Abyssinia. [2] Abd Allah had two sons called Awn[3]: Awn al-Akbar whose mother was Zaynab and Awn al-Asghar whose mother was Jamana, daughter of Musayyib b. Najba[4] Awn al-Asghar became one of the commanders of Tawwabun Uprising. [5]

Accompanying Imam HussainEdit

When Abd Allah b. Ja'far learned about Imam Hussain's departure to Kufa, he wrote a letter to Imam to convince him to return to Mecca. Abd Allah sent his letter to Imam by his sons Awn and Muhammad.[6] When Abd Allah found that Imam was determined in his decision, advised his sons Awn and Muhammad to accompany Imam and fight along with Imam.[7]

MartyrdomEdit

On the Day of Ashura, after Muhammad was martyred, Awn went to the battlefield and made a battle cry as below:

If you do not know me, I am son of Ja'far,

a true martyr who is in the shining paradise,

who flies there with green wings,

this honor is enough on the Day of Resurrection[8]

According to Ibn Shahr Ashub, he killed 3 horsemen and 18 foot soldiers from the army of Umar b. Sa'd and finally was martyred by Abd Allah b. Qutba.[9]

SourceEdit

ReferencesEdit

  1. Iṣfahānī, Maqātil al-ṭālibīyyīn, p. 124.
  2. Ibn Hishām, al-Sīra al-nabawīyya, vol. 1, p. 323.
  3. Ibn Qutayba, al-Maʿārif, p. 207.
  4. Balādhurī, Ansāb al-ashrāf, vol. 2, p. 67-68.
  5. Ibn al-Jawzī, Tadhkirat al-khawāṣ, p. 175.
  6. Abī Mikhnaf, Maqtal al-Ḥusayn, p. 69.
  7. Mufīd, al-Irshād, vol. 2, p. 68-69.
  8. Ibn Aʿtham, Kitāb al-Futūḥ, vol. 5, p. 112.
  9. bn Shahrāshūb, Manāqib, Ibn Aʿtham, vol. 4, p. 106; Kitāb al-Futūḥ, vol. 5, p. 111.