عالم is an Arabic term transliterated as both alim (scholar/ਆਲਿਮ) or aalam (realm/ਆਲਮ). Sultan Bahoo has used it in this piece of poetry therefore either he is referring to the scholars who were present in the army of Yazid at the time of incident of Karbala and fought against the sacred progeny of the Holy Prophet only for the lust of wealth and worldly gains or he is pointing towards the eighteen thousand realms created by Allah. He may also have meant the creations of eighteen thousand realms.

Sultan Bahoo tragically recalls Karbala:

If the reality of Islam could be understood through exoteric knowledge (sharia, fiqh and Hadith) then the progeny of Messenger of Allah had never been beheaded. Rather eighteen thousand scholars in the army of Yazid (or eighteen thousand realms or their creations) had sacrificed themselves for Husayn. If the religious scholars of that time had even a little respect for the Holy Prophet, then tents of his progeny had not been burnt. If the so-called Muslims in the army of Yazid had even a speck of honour for their oath of allegiance to the Holy Prophet then they had not stopped the water supply of his progeny. The true religion is only followed by the Divine lovers who always keep the honour of their love even if they are beheaded.