Bismillāh
مَنْ كَانَ يُرِيدُ الْعِزَّةَ فَلِلَّهِ الْعِزَّةُ جَمِيعًا
Whoever seeks honour [should know that] honour belongs entirely to Allah.
Sūrat al-Fātir, No. 35, Āyat 10
‘Izzah is often translated as “honour” or “dignity,” but in order to understand the above verse more, let’s investigate a bit deeper. In Arabic, the same root is used to refer to hard, compacted ground (أرض عزاز), earth so firm it cannot be broken into or worn down. From this comes the core sense of ‘izzah: to be unbreakable, unconquerable, impossible to overpower.
The Qur’ān itself uses the word this way outside of our verse. In Sūrat Sād, there is an account of an angel who comes to Prophet Dāwūd ‘alayhis salām in the form of a man complaining about his brother. He says:
وَعَزَّنِي فِي الْخِطَابِ
he overpowered me in speech (Q 38:23)
Meaning he got the upper hand over me, he defeated me in the exchange. The word here describes one party dominating another, leaving no ground for the other to stand on.
So when the Qur’ān says ‘izzah belongs entirely to God, it’s saying that real invincibility, the condition of never being defeated, only exists with Him. Human beings are constantly searching for ‘izzah in wealth, status, the approval of powerful people, the size of our following, etc. However, this verse tells us that ‘izzah can only be found in Allah. The only path to attain it for others is from Allah, which would come about through obedience of Him.
The complete manifestation of this verse is found in Imam al-Husayn (a), who chose death over surrendering what he stood for, and plainly exclaimed: “Far be it from us to accept disgrace” (هَيْهَاتَ مِنَّا الذِّلَّة). Imam al-Husayn (a) is should be remembered as the very embodiment of ‘izzah. He gave himself entirely to God’s command, and hence he could not be broken, not even by death.
One practical conclusion that follows from all of this, especially for those who recite poetry and elegies for Ahl al-Bayt (a), is that we must be careful regarding how we depict them. It’s easy, in trying to move an audience or convey the weight of their suffering, to slip into language that paints them as humiliated, broken, helpless. That language betrays the very thing their lives proved. Their suffering was real and immense, but it was suffering endured from a position of ‘izzah, never a descent into dhillah.
We ask Allah to accept our mourning for Imam al-Husayn (a) in these blessed days of Muharram and forgive our sins. By the sake of the Imam we ask Allah to hasten the appearance of his grandson Imam al-Mahdi (aj) and place from amongst his followers.
Source: ‘Allāmah Muhammad Husayn Tabātabā’ī, Tafsīr al-Mīzān.