The Quality of Imam Hossein's Little Son Martyrdom

Imam Hussein's baby's being shot in the Taf incident is narrated differently by the narrators in the earliest Maqtal books. The philosophy of the baby's presence on the front lines of the war, the identity of the child's killer and how he was killed has always been of interest to Shiites. This historical analysis seeks to answer the question of what was the story of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein's baby. The infant, nicknamed Ali Asghar from the sixth century, was shot dead by an unknown attacker on the day of Ashura, possibly from the Bani Asad tribe. How the baby is martyred and the identity of the killer are different in the earliest Maqtal books and other consequent later sources. In the earliest Maqatel books, it is narrated that Imam's meeting with the newborn baby is an expression of longing and farewell to the child, but the request for water from the enemy for the baby is added to Maqatel books in the following centuries to this story. Likewise, in the later sources, the name of the killer, Harmaleh ibn Kahel Asadi is added unsubstantially. The supernatural news of the child's shedding of blood into the sky and its non-return has also been mentioned for the first time in the fourth century by an unknown narrator and has gradually been detailed in the later Maqatel books of the following centuries.