Zuljanah
Zuljanah (Arabic: ذو الجناح, lit. 'Possessor of Two Wings') was the horse of Husayn, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad and the third Shia Imam. A grey Arabian horse, he was bred and raised by Muhammad himself. Zuljanah was known to be very loyal and famous for his strength, endurance and devotion. It is said that he shielded Husayn with his body and was injured taking an arrow meant for his master during the Battle of Karbala. When Husayn was brutally killed and beheaded, Zuljanah returned bloodied to his family, alerting them to the ambush and died after discharging his final duty.
During Muharram, a decorated riderless horse representing the sacrifice is honoured by the devotees.[1][2][3] Zuljanah holds a special place of importance in Shia Islam, and reverence in ta'ziya performances and mourning processions commemorating Husayn.[4] He is also regarded as the Active Intellect, often compared to Buraq. He was renowned for his agility and speed in battle, and was given this name because of his swiftness, which was likened to that of birds. According to some accounts, Zuljanah was one of the horses of Muhammad, which Husayn inherited.[5]
Loyalty
Hadith narrators have extensively described Zuljanah's loyalty, intelligence, and affection toward Husayn, often speaking of the horse with great reverence.[6] When Husayn became weakened by thirst, wounds, and blood loss, Zuljanah skillfully and swiftly carried his master away from the battlefield toward the camp.[7] However, Husayn fell from the horse before reaching the camp. Umar ibn Sa'd then called out to his men to seize the horse, declaring that he was one of Muhammad's most valuable horses. When Ibn Sa'd's forces attempted to capture it, Zuljanah attacked them, reportedly killing them with his hooves. Ibn Shahr Ashub recorded that the horse killed forty warriors, while other accounts give higher numbers. Ibn Sa'd eventually ordered his men to leave the horse alone, fearing that he would kill them all.
Breaking the news of Hussein's death
When the enemy had moved away and Zuljanah was certain that they had left him alone, the horse approached Husayn's body, circled around him, and reportedly sniffed and kissed him. It then smeared its forehead with the blood from Husayn's body and, striking the ground with its hooves and neighing, headed toward the camp. Upon reaching the camp, he reportedly cried out loudly and struck its head against the ground. When Husayn's family saw Zuljanah in this state, they came out of the tents, weeping and gathering around the horse, touching its head, face, and legs. Umm Kulthum placed both hands on her head and cried out, “O Muhammad! O my grandfather! O Prophet!”[8]
Zuljanah's fate
Historians differ regarding the fate of Zuljanah on the day of Ashura.[9] Some accounts state that after bringing news of Husayn's death to his family, the horse repeatedly struck its head against the ground until it collapsed and died in front of the camp. Other accounts maintain that Zuljanah was killed before Husayn and that it fought the forces of Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyad on foot after its rider had been killed. Abdullah ibn Qays is reported to have said that he saw the horse drive everyone away from him before rapidly heading toward the tents. According to his account, no one was able to approach him, after which it headed toward the Euphrates, entered the river, and disappeared beneath the water; its subsequent fate remained unknown.
In art
Zuljanah is commemorated in Ashura literature, and Shia Muslims have referred to its intelligence and loyalty to Husayn in Arabic, Persian, and other poetry.[10] On the day of Ashura, a riderless horse, painted red and adorned with arrows, is paraded before mourning processions and at Husayniyas as a symbol of the death of Husayn Shia painters have also long depicted Zuljanah in sorrowful and mournful scenes, producing images and paintings on cloth and glass. The Iranian artist Mahmoud Farshchian created a famous painting in 1976 depicting Zuljanah returning to the camp, with members of Husayn's family gathered around him.[11] The original painting is preserved at the Astan Quds Razavi Central Museum of the Imam Reza Shrine, and millions of copies in various sizes have been printed and distributed around the world.[12]
See also
External links
- Zuljanah - A Brief Introduction at the Wayback Machine (archived 2014-12-04)
- Encyclopaedia Iranica
References
- ↑ Hussain, Sameer (July 29, 2023). "Zuljanah: Behind symbol of Imam Hussain's last companion". The Kashmir Walla. Archived from the original on July 29, 2023. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
- ↑ "Zuljanah - Islam Guidance". sibtayn. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
- ↑ Nakshawani, Sayed Ammar. "What Do We Know About Dhul Janah, The Horse Of Imam Husayn (A)?". Al-Islam TV. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
- ↑ "ḎU'L-JANĀḤ". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved 2026-08-30.
- ↑ Saints and Sinners on Horseback: Volume 2. Trivent Publishing. 2024. doi:10.2307/jj.23091279. ISBN 978-615-6696-28-1.
- ↑ "Du'l-Janah". WikiHussain (in French). Retrieved 2026-08-30.
- ↑ "What Do We Know About Dhul Janah, the horse of Imam Husayn (A)?". al-islam.org. 2022-08-14. Retrieved 2026-08-30.
- ↑ El-Aswad, El-Sayed (2010-01-01). "The Perceptibility of the Invisible Cosmology: Religious Rituals and Embodied Spirituality among the Bahraini Shi'a". Anthropology of the Middle East. 5: 59–76. doi:10.3167/ame.2010.050205.
- ↑ El-Aswad, El-Sayed (2010-01-01). "The Perceptibility of the Invisible Cosmology: Religious Rituals and Embodied Spirituality among the Bahraini Shi'a". Anthropology of the Middle East. 5: 59–76. doi:10.3167/ame.2010.050205.
- ↑ "ديوان شعراء الحسين عليه السلام". sites.dlib.nyu.edu. Retrieved 2026-08-30.
- ↑ "Farshchian - About". www.farshchianart.com. Retrieved 2026-08-30.
- ↑ "Mahmoud Farshchian". www.farshchianart.com. Retrieved 2026-08-30.