Known as an admirable personal trait that provides benefits for people personally, socially, mentally and spiritually and is a characteristic that informs and strengthens all other traits, courage should definitely be present within believing Muslim individualities. Now one might ask, what exactly is courage? Courage is defined as the mental and emotional preparedness and ability to deal with difficult, challenging, and sometimes seemingly impossible circumstances. It is the ability to confront fear, pain, danger, uncertainty, intimidation and other threats. It is one of the traits that one cannot be born with, instead it is one that needs to be developed and can be cultivated and honed.

Although the definition of the term courage may be the same, there is however a difference depending on the type of courage one is referring to.  There are two types of courage, each with different characteristics that differentiate them from each other. Moral courage and physical courage are the two types of courage that exist in today’s world and play a major role in the decisions we take every single day. The most important of the two and the one that Islam focused on the most is moral courage.

Moral courage is defined as doing the right thing even at the risk of inconvenience, ridicule, punishment, or even the loss of social status.  It requires one to make judgments about what actions or behaviors are supportive of one’s highest ideals, and which ones are destructive.  It assists individuals to recognize responsibilities and see the consequences of the actions one partakes each day. This is a very important aspect in the religion of Islam and should be present within the individuality of each believing Muslim. Courage ideally should come out of love, respect and fear from Allah SWT as the sincerity one has towards their creator persuades them to do what is right and stand firm against what is wrong. Those who possess this type of courage have adopted the manners taught by the Holy Qur'an, and are always striving to persuade others to do the same. These individuals do not remain silent in the face of evil acts committed, and take on the full responsibility of opposing what is wrong no matter what the outcome may be. These characteristics of moral courage mentioned, like many other positive virtues, are seen to be within the individuality of all the Prophets, members of the Ahulbayt AS, and Allah’s messengers. This is mentioned in the holy Quranic verse:

“(Prophets are) those who conveyed Allah's Message and feared Him, fearing no one except Allah. Allah suffices as a Reckoner. (Surat al-Ahzab, 39)

This holy verse is stating that because the messengers of Allah SWT chose to spread the Holy message, they were faced with many obstacles; however the only thing they feared was Allah SWT, and not the unbelievers in their communities no matter how great of a threat they were.

One of the greatest and most powerful example of moral courage history has ever witnessed was the courage Sayeda Zainab AS possessed and revealed after the day of Ashura. When the women and children, as well Imam Zayn Al Abideen who was very ill at the time, were taken as captives to Kufa to the palace of Ubaid Allah Ibn Zeyad, Sayeda Zainab held a powerful position and said a powerful sermon that has remained as a symbol for moral courage and will continue to remain. When the members of the Ahulbayt AS were presented in front of Ubaid, Sayeda Zainab AS and Imam Ali Ibn Al Hussein bravely stood before him with the rest of the women and children behind them. Ubaid himself even mentioned, “I have never seen a women stand so bravely and confidently before especially after her family has been brutally killed before her eyes.” At these moments, Sayeda Zainab AS’s heart was filled with moral courage and she did not fear anybody nor anything except Allah as she exposed the terrorism that had been committed towards her holy family. When asked who this woman speaking was, Ubaid was informed that this was Zainab AS, the daughter of Ali AS, known for her bravery, eloquence and patience, in which all was inherited from her father. Upon recognizing whom he was speaking with Ubaid Allah decided to reveal the joy he felt as he thought that he was victorious over the Imam and said "How did you find the way Allah (SWT) treated your brother and your family?" at this point however, Ubaid Allah did not know he was speaking to the perfect embodiment of courage and eloquence as Sayeda Zainab AS said: "I have seen nothing but beauty.. They rushed towards their graves with honor. But know that Allah (SWT) will judge between you and them, and He will call you to account; so be worried about the winner at that day either it will be you or them.”

This powerful stand led to the revealing the true face of terrorism and revealed what moral courage truly is. By speaking this way, there was a large risk for Sayeda Zainab to lose her life however she persevered through all of this and continued to fight against the enemies. Through her bravery, eloquence and firm stand, Sayeda Zainab revealed who Imam Hussein truly is and awakened and enlightened the hearts of the people at the time. Sayeda Zainab life was always laden with hardships, but because of the moral courage she possessed, she never feared coping with difficulties, instead this enhanced her endurance and elevated her soul.

Because of her stand the Hussaini revolution has lived in the memories and hearts of millions to this day, has kept the sacrifices of Imam Hussein alive, and brought dynamism to every movement that is aimed at removing injustices on earth.

Due to the powerful stand Sayeda Zainab took, these words will never be forgotten: “I express my complaint only to Allah (SWT) and have trust in Him. You may therefore do any treachery that you have, make all your attempts, and try all you can. By Allah (SWT), you cannot remove us from the minds of people, and you cannot fade our message. You will never reach our glory and can never wash the stain of this crime from your hands. Your decisions will not be stable, your period of ruling will be short, and your population will scatter. In that day, a voice will shout: "Indeed may the curse of Allah (SWT) be upon the oppressors..."