The Day of Ashura (Arabic: عاشوراء ʻĀshūrā’; Urdu: عاشورہ; Persian: عاشورا; Turkish: Aşure Günü) is on the tenth day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar and marks the climax of the Mourning of Muharram. It is commemorated by Sunni Muslims (who also refer to it as The Day of Atonement) as the day on which the Israelites were freed from Egypt. According to Sunni Muslim tradition, Ibn Abbas narrates that Muhammad came to Medina and saw the Jews fasting on the tenth day of Muharram. He asked, “What is this?” They said, “This is a good day, this is the day when Allah saved the Children of Israel from their enemy and Musa (Moses) fasted on this day.” So he fasted on this day and told the people to fast.[1][2] It is commemorated by Shia Muslims as a day of mourning for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala on 10 Muharram in the year 61 AH (in AHc: October 9,[3] and in AHt: October 10, 680 CE).[4] In some Shia regions of Muslim countries such as Afghanistan, Iran, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Lebanon, Bahrain, and Pakistan, the Commemoration of Husayn ibn Ali has become a national holiday and most ethnic and religious communities participate in it.[citation needed] Even in predominantly Hindu majority but secular country like India, Ashura (10th day in the month of Muharram) is a public holiday. The root for the word ashura has the meaning of tenth in Semitic languages; hence the name of the remembrance, literally translated, means the tenth day. According to the orientalist A.J. Wensinck, the name is derived from the Hebrew ʿāsōr, with the Aramaic determinative ending.[5] The day is indeed the tenth day of the month, although some Islamic scholars offer up different etymologies. In his book Ghuniyatut Talibin, Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani writes that the Islamic scholars have a difference of opinion as to why this day is known as Ashura, with some scholars suggesting that this day is the tenth most important day that God has blessed Muslims with This day is well-known because of mourning for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of Muhammad and the third Shia Imam, along with members of his family and close friends at the Battle of Karbala in the year 61 AH (680 AD). Yazid I was in power then and wanted the Bayah (allegiance) of Husayn ibn Ali. Muslims[neutrality is disputed] believe Yazid was openly going against the teachings of Islam in public and changing the sunnah of Muhammad.[6][6][7] Husayn in his path toward Kufa encountered the army of Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad, the governor of Kufa. On October 10, 680 (Muharram 10, 61 AH), he and his small group of companions and family members (in total who were around 72 men and few ladies and children)[8][9] fought with a large army of perhaps more than 100,000 men under the command of Umar ibn Saad, son of the founder of Kufa. Husayn and all of his men were killed while being thirsty. The nearby river (Euphrates) was also blocked by Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad men and Husayn and his companions were not allowed to get any water from it. Before being killed, Husayn said if the religion of Mohammad was not going to live on except with me dead, let the swords tear me to pieces.[10][unreliable source?]. Some of the bodies of the dead, including that of Husayn, were then mutilated.[4] Commemoration for Husayn ibn Ali began after the Battle of Karbala. After the massacre, the Umayyad army looted Husayns camp and set off with his women and children for the court of Ibn Ziyad. A moving oration delivered by Zaynab in Kufa is recorded in some sources. The prisoners were next sent to the court of Yazid, Umayyad caliph, in Damascus, where one of his Syrian followers asked for Husayns daughter, Sukayna, and once again it was Zaynab[disambiguation needed] who came to the rescue and protected her honour. The family remained in Yazids prison for a time. The first assembly (majlis) of Commemoration of Husayn ibn Ali is said to have been held by Zaynab in prison. In Damascus, too, she is reported to have delivered a poignant oration. The prison sentence ended when Husayns 3 year old daughter, Janabe Rukaiyya, died in captivity. She often cried in prison to be allowed to see her father. She is believed to have died when she saw her fathers mutilated head. Her death caused an uproar in the city, and Yazid, fearful of a potential resulting revolution, freed the captives.[11] Zaynab bint Ali quoted as she passed the prostrate body of her brother, Husayn. O Muhammad! O Muhammad! May the angels of heaven bless you. Here is Husayn in the open, stained with blood and with limbs torn off. O Muhammad! Your daughters are prisoners, your progeny are killed, and the east wind blows dust over them. By God! She made every enemy and friend weep. Tabari, History of the Prophets and Kings, Volume XIX The Caliphate of Yazid.[12] Husayns grave became a pilgrimage site among Shia only a few years after his death. A tradition of pilgrimage to the Imam Husayn Shrine and the other Karbala martyrs quickly developed, which is known as Ziarat Ashura.[13] The Umayyad and Abbasid caliphs tried to prevent construction of the shrines and discouraged pilgrimage to the sites.[14] The tomb and its annexes were destroyed by the Abbasid caliph Al-Mutawakkil in 850–851 and Shia pilgrimage was prohibited, but shrines in Karbala and Najaf were built by the Buwayhid emir Adud al-Daula in 979-80. Public rites of remembrance for Husayns martyrdom developed from the early pilgrimages[citation needed]. Under the Buyid dynasty, Muizz ad-Dawla officiated at public commemoration of Ashura in Baghdad[citation needed]. These commemorations were also encouraged in Egypt by the Fatimid caliph al-Aziz[citation needed]. From Seljuq times[citation needed], Ashura rituals began to attract participants from a variety of backgrounds, including Sunnis[citation needed]. With the recognition of Twelvers as the official religion by the Safavids, Mourning of Muharram extended throughout the first ten days of Muharram. Zaynab bint Ali quoted as she passed the prostrate body of her brother, Husayn. O Muhammad! O Muhammad! May the angels of heaven bless you. Here is Husayn in the open, stained with blood and with limbs torn off. O Muhammad! Your daughters are prisoners, your progeny are killed, and the east wind blows dust over them. By God! She made every enemy and friend weep. Tabari, History of the Prophets and Kings, Volume XIX The Caliphate of Yazid. Muhamad) Ahl al-Bayt the third Imam to be the rightful successor of Muhammad. Shia devotees congregate outside the Sydney Opera House, Australia to commemorate Husayn. Shias make pilgrimages on Ashura, as they do forty days later on Arbaeen, to the Mashhad al-Husayn, the shrine in Karbala, Iraq that is traditionally held to be Husayns tomb. On this day Shia are in remembrance, and mourning attire is worn. They refrain from music, since Arabic culture generally considers music impolite during death rituals. It is a time for sorrow and respect of the persons passing, and it is also a time for self-reflection, wh en one commits oneself to the mourning of the Husayn completely. Weddings and parties are also never planned on this date by Shias. Shias also express mourning by crying and listening to recollections about the tragedy and sermons on how Husayn and his family were martyred. This is intended to connect them with Husayns suffering and martyrdom, and the sacrifices he made to keep Islam alive. Husayns martyrdom is widely interpreted by Shia as a symbol of the struggle against injustice, tyranny, and oppression.[16] Shias believe the Battle of Karbala was between the forces of good and evil with Husayn representing good while Yazid represented evil. Shias also believe the Battle of Karbala was fought to keep the Muslim religion untainted of any corruptions and they believed the path that Yazid was directing Islam was definitely for his own personal greed. Shia Imams strongly insist that the day of Ashura should not be taken as a day of joy and festivity. According to a hadith which is reported from Ali claiming it was on that day the God forgave Adam, Noahs Ark rested on dry land, The Israelites were saved from Pharaohs army, etc.[clarification needed] The day of Ashura, according to Eighth Shia Imam, Ali al-Rida, must be observed as a day of inactivity, sorrow and total disregard of worldly cares.[17] Some of the events associated with Ashura are held in special congregation halls known as Imambargah and Hussainia. Cutting with knives or chains As suffering and cutting the body with knives or chains (matam) have been prohibited by Shia marjas like Ali Khamenei, Supreme Leader of Iran,[18] some Shia observe mourning with blood donation which is called Qame Zani[18] and flailing.[19] Yet some Shiite men and boys, considered heretics by some Muslim scholars, slash themselves with chains (zanjeer) or swords (talwar) and allow their blood to run freely.[19] Certain rituals like the traditional flagellation ritual called Talwar zani (talwar ka matam or sometimes tatbir) using a sword or zanjeer zani or zanjeer matam, involving the use of a zanjeer (a chain with blades) are also performed.[20] These are religious customs that show solidarity with Husayn and his family. People mourn the fact that they were not present at the battle to fight and save Husayn and his family.[21][22] Shia commonly believe that taking part in Ashura is to be absolved of sin[citation needed]. A popular Shia saying has it that, `a single tear shed for Husayn washes away a hundred sins For Shias, commemoration of Ashura is not a festival, but rather a sad event, while Sunni Muslims view it as a victory God has given to his prophet, Moses. This victory is the very reason, as Sunni Muslims believe, Muhammad mentioned when recommending fasting on this day. Sunnis also commemorate this day as the day of victory for Islam. The martyrdom of Hussain, gave new life to the message of Islam. Sunnis gather at the mosques, to remember the noble sacrifice made by Hussain and his companions, hold seminars and take out procession in the remembrance of this great martyr of Islam. For Shias, it is a period of intense grief and mourning. Mourners, congregate at a Mosque for sorrowful, poetic recitations such as marsiya, noha, latmiya and soaz performed in memory of the martyrdom of Husayn, lamenting and grieving to the tune of beating drums and chants of Ya Hussain. Also Ulamas give sermons with themes of Husayns personality and position in Islam, and the history of his uprising. The Sheikh of the mosque retells the Battle of Karbala to allow the listeners to relive the pain and sorrow endured by Husayn and his family. In Arab countries like Iraq and Lebanon they read Maqtal Al-Husayn. In some places, such as Iran, Iraq and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf, Tazieh, passion plays, are also performed reenacting the Battle of Karbala and the suffering and martyrdom of Husayn at the hands of Yazid.[8][9] Tabuiks being lowered into the sea in Pariaman, Indonesia, by Shia Muslims. For the duration of the remembrance, it is customary for mosques and some people to provide free meals (NAZRI) on certain nights of the month to all people[citation needed]. People donate food and Middle Eastern sweets to the mosque[citation needed]. These meals are viewed as being special and holy, as they have been consecrated in the name of Husayn, and thus partaking of them is considered an act of communion with God, Hussain, and humanity.[citation needed] Participants congregate in public processions for ceremonial chest beating (matham/latmiya) as a display of their devotion to Husayn, in remembrance of his suffering and to preach that oppression will not last in the face of truth and justice.[24] Others pay tribute to the time period by holding a Majilis, Surahs from the Quran and Maqtal Al-Husayn are read. Today in Indonesia, the event is known as Tabuik (Minangkabau language) or Tabut (Indonesian). Tabuik is the local manifestation of the Shia Muslim Mourning of Muharram among the Minangkabau people in the coastal regions of West Sumatra, particularly in the city of Pariaman. The festival includes reenactments of the Battle of Karbala, and the playing of tassa and dhol drums.[citation needed] In countries like Turkey, there is the custom of eating Noahs Pudding (Ashure) as this day in Turkish is known as Aşure. In some countries other religious communities commemorate this event. In Trinidad and Tobago[25] and Jamaica[26] all ethnic and religious communities participate in this event, locally known as Hosay or Hussay, from Husayn Significance of Ashura for Sunni Muslims Not related to Ashura and Karbala, some Sunni Muslims fast on this day of Ashura based on narrations attributed to Muhammad. The fasting is to commemorate the day when Moses and his followers were saved from Pharaoh by Allah by creating a path in the Red Sea. According to Muslim tradition, the Jews used to fast on the tenth day. So Muhammad recommended to be different from the Jews and recommended fasting two days instead of one.[27] 9th and 10th or the 10th and 11th day of Muharram. According to Hadith record in Sahih Bukhari, Ashura was already known as a commemorative day during which some Makkah residents used to observe customary fasting. Muhammad used to fast on the day of Ashura, 10th Muharram, in Makkah. When fasting the month of Ramadhan became obligatory, the fast of Ashura was made non compulsory. This has been narrated by Aisha, Sahih Muslim,Hadith-2499. In hijrah event when Muhammad led his followers to Medina, he found the Jews of that area likewise observing fasts on the day of Ashura. At this, Muhammad affirmed the Islamic claim to the fast, and from then the Muslims have fasted on combinations of two or three consecutive days including the 10th of Muharram (e.g. 9th and 10th or 10th and 11th).[1][2] A companion of Muhammed, Ibn Abbas reports Muhammed went to Madina and found the Jews fasting on the tenth of Muharram. Muhammed inquired of them, What is the significance of this day on which you fast? They replied, This is a good day, the day on which God rescued the children of Israel from their enemy. So, Moses fasted this day. Muhammed said, We have more claim over Moses than you. Muhammed then fasted on that day and ordered Muslims too.[28] The narrations of Muhammad mentioning the Children of Israel being saved from Pharaoh are indeed confirmed by authentic hadith in Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. Sunnis regard fasting during Ashura as recommended, though not obligatory, having been superseded by the Ramadan fast.Sahih Muslim,Hadith-2499[29] Muhammads tribe, the Quraish, fasted on the 10th of Muharram. Though optional, Muhammad retained this pre-Islamic practice too. Below is details from the Hadith: Narrated Aisha: Ashura (i.e. the tenth day of Muharram) was a day on which the tribe of Quraish used to fast in the pre-lslamic period of ignorance. The Prophet also used to fast on this day. So when he migrated to Medina, he fasted on it and ordered (the Muslims) to fast on it. When the fasting of Ramadan was enjoined, it became optional for the people to fast or not to fast on the day of Ashura. Egyptian Muslims customarily eat a pudding (also known as Ashura) after dinner on the Day of Ashura. Similar to the Turkish Aşure, it is a wheat pudding with nuts, raisins, and rose water. Socio-political aspects Commemoration of Ashura has great socio-political value for the Shia, who have been a minority throughout their history. Al-Amd asserts that the Shia transference of Al-Husayn and Karbala from the framework of history to the domain of ideology and everlasting legend reflects their marginal and dissenting status in Arab-Islamic society.[original research?][citation needed] According to the prevailing conditions at the time of the commemoration, such reminiscences may become a framework for implicit dissent or explicit protest. It was, for instance, used during the Islamic Revolution of Iran, the Lebanese Civil War, the Lebanese resistance against the Israeli military presence and in the 1990s Uprising in Bahrain. Sometimes the `Ashura celebrations associate the memory of Al-Husayns martyrdom with the conditions of Islam and Muslims in reference to Husayns famous quote on the day of Ashura: Every day is Ashura, every land is Karbala.[30] From the period of the Iranian Constitutional Revolution (1905–1911) onward, mourning gatherings increasingly assumed a political aspect. Following an old established tradition, preachers compared the oppressors of the time with Imam Hosayns enemies, the umayyads.[31] The political function of commemoration was very marked in the years leading up to the Islamic Revolution of 1978–79, as well as during the revolution itself. In addition, the implicit self-identification of the Muslim revolutionaries with Imam Hosayn led to a blossoming of the cult of the martyr, expressed most vividly, perhaps, in the vast cemetery of Behesht-e Zahra, to the south of Tehran, where the martyrs of the revolution and the war against Iraq are buried.[31] On the other hand some governments have banned this commemoration. In 1930s Reza Shah forbade it in Iran. The regime of Saddam Hussein saw this as a potential threat and banned Ashura commemorations for many years. In the 1884 Hosay massacre, 22 people were killed in Trinidad and Tobago when civilians attempted to carry out the Ashura rites, locally known as Hosay, in defiance of the British colonial authorities. Violence during Ashura 2009 Ashura protests in Iran The Sunni and Shia schism is highlighted by the difference in observance by Sunni and Shia Muslims. In countries that have significant populations of both sects, there is often violence during the holiday. On June 20, 1994 the explosion of a bomb in a prayer hall of Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad[32] killed at least 25 people.[33] The Iranian government officially blamed Mujahedin-e-Khalq for the incident to avoid sectarian conflict between Shias and Sunnis.[34] However, the Pakistani daily The News International reported on March 27, 1995, Pakistani investigators have identified a 24-year-old religious fanatic Abdul Shakoor residing in Lyari in Karachi, as an important Pakistani associate of Ramzi Yousef. Abdul Shakoor had intimate contacts with Ramzi Ahmed Yousef and was responsible for the June 20, 1994, massive bomb explosion at the shrine Imam Ali Reza in Mashhad.[35] The 2004 (1425 AH) Shia pilgrimage to Karbala, the first since Saddam Hussein was removed from power in Iraq, was marred by bomb attacks, which killed and wounded hundreds despite tight security. On January 19, 2008, 7 million Iraqi Shia pilgrims marched through Karbala city, Iraq to commemorate Ashura. 20,000 Iraqi troops and police guarded the event amid tensions due to clashes between Iraqi troops and members of a Shia cult, the Soldiers of Heaven, which left around 263 people dead (in Basra and Nasiriya).[36] On December 27, 2009, tens of thousands of opposition protesters in Iran demonstrated in conjunction with the day of Ashura. Clashes between anti-riot forces and demonstrators occurred in several Iranian cities. Among others, the nephew of the opposition leader Mir-Hossein Mousavi was killed.[37] On December 28, 2009, dozens of people were killed and hundreds injured (including both Shia and Sunni commemorators) during the Ashura procession when a massive bomb exploded at the procession in Karachi, Pakistan (See: 2009 Karachi bombing). Reuters[38] On December 15, 2010, 200 Shia followers were detained by the Selangor Islamic Department (JAIS) in a raid at a shop house in Sri Gombak known as Hauzah Imam Ali ar-Ridha (Hauzah ArRidha). This was because of a fatwa by a Salafi Selangor mufti, who had declared the Shias to be heritics. Khusrin said all the Shias mourners who were detained were to be charged under Section 12 of the Selangor Syariah Criminal Enactment 1995 which are insulting, rejecting, or dispute the violation of the instructions set out and given a fatwa by the Salafi religious authorities. ABNA[39] On December 5, 2011, thirty Shia pilgrims participating in Ashura processions were killed by a series of bomb attacks in Hilla and Baghdad, Iraq.[40] On December 6, 2011, a suicide attack killed 63 people and critically wounded 160 at a shrine in Kabul, Afghanistan where a crowd of hundreds had gathered for the day of Ashura observation Ashura in the Gregorian calendar Main article: Islamic calendar Bahraini Shia Muslims carry-out a theatrical performance to recreate the martyrdom of Imam Hussein. While Ashura is always on the same day of the Islamic calendar, the date on the Gregorian calendar varies from year to year due to differences between the two calendars, since the Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar and the Gregorian calendar is a solar calendar. Furthermore, the crescent appearance to determine when each Islamic month begins varies from country to country due to obvious geographical reasons[citation needed]. 1430 AH 2009 January 6, in Middle East and Iran 2009 January 7, in South Asia (i.e. Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, etc.) 1431 AH 2009 December 28, in India, Pakistan, Iran, N.America, Europe and Middle East and December 2009 December 29, in Far-East 1432 AH 2010 December 16, in part of Middle East and Iran 2010 December 17, in Iraq and South Asia (i.e. Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, etc.) 1433 AH 2011 December 5, in part of Middle East and Asia 2011 December 6, in Lebanon, Iraq, and North America Share: On this page Word Browser Advertisement (Bad banner? Please let us know) Ashura, holy day in Islam, the 10th day of the month of Muharram. It commemorates the day Noah left the ark and the day Moses was saved by God from the Egyptians, and is a voluntary day of fasting for all Muslims. For Shiites it is a solemn day of mourning, commemorating the martyrdom of Husein , grandson of Muhammad, who was killed (A.D. 680) in the battle of Karbala . Shiites observe Ashura with memorial remembrances at mosques, public processions of mourning (including in some instances self-flagellation), and plays that reenact Huseins martyrdom. Ashura First 10 days of Islamic month of Muharram On the 10th of Muharram in the year 680, Muhammads grandson Hussein (also spelled Husain) was killed in a skirmish between Sunnis and the small group of Shiite supporters with whom he was travelling to Iraq. They had been cut off from water and had suffered for 10 days before the men were killed and the women and children taken to Damascus, Syria, along with the heads of the men. His battlefield grave in Kerbela, about 60 miles southwest of Baghdad, became a pilgrimage site almost immediately, and to this day it remains a devotional center for Shiite Muslims around the world. Many aging Shiites settle in Kerbela or ask in their will to have their bodies carried to the holy city. So many dead have been sent to Kerbela that the town has been transformed into one vast burial ground. This Islamic holy day, celebrated in the first month of the Islamic year, was derived by Muhammad from the Jewish fast of Yom Kippur; he later changed it to an optional fast day and it is so observed by modern-day Sunni Muslims. But for Shiites throughout Asia, the festival is dedicated to Hussein and begins on the first day of Muharram, when people put on their mourning clothes and refrain from shaving or bathing. The story of Husseins martyrdom is recited in Muslim halls, with as much elaboration as possible. The celebration culminates on the 10th day of Muharram, in a large procession designed as a reenactment of Husseins funeral, with many men whipping themselves bloody with whips and knives to take on the pain of Hussein. Since the early 19th century, the Hussein Day celebration has culminated in the performance of a taziyah, or passion play, in which Husseins life, death, and burial are recreated in a loose sequence of 40 to 50 scenes. The Fatimid dynasty (969-1171) transferred Husseins head to Cairo and built the Mosque of the Hasanain (the two Hasans: Hasan and his brother, Hussein) over the relic. It is an especially holy place and is venerated also by Sunnis. In India non-Shiites frequently take part in the processions, whereas in Iraq they would not be tolerated. Small replicas of Husseins tomb, called Ta ziyehs (from the Arabic aza, meaning mourning), are carried and buried in the local Kerbela grounds: India is so far from Kerbela, Iraq, that Indian Shiites consecrate local lands so they, too, may be buried in Kerbela grounds. In Jamaica and Trinidad the festival is called Hosay and is celebrated by Muslims and Hindus as a symbol of East Indian unity. In Guyana, it is called Tadja and is now celebrated by Afro- and Indo-Guyanese, after having been outlawed in the 1930s because of clashes between Muslims and Hindus when it coincided with Durga Puja. In West Africa the holy day is combined with African beliefs, and ensuring prosperity is of uppermost importance: everyone eats as much as possible, inviting poor people to join them, because a full belly ensures prosperity. The Hausa give a fowl or goats head to each member of the household, which they eat with their backs to each other. In Senegal, Guinea, and Sierra Leone, the dried head and feet of the ram killed at Id Al-Adha are cooked and eaten. Symbolic bathing in rivers and purification by leaping over small fires are followed by torchlight parades and contests. In Turkey, the 10th of Muharram is called Yevmi Ashurer, (day of sweet soup or porridge) and commemorates Noahs departure from the Ark onto Mount Ararat. They must share Allahs gifts with others, so everyone makes ashurer, which is a sweet soup or porridge made of boiled wheat, dried currants, grain, and nuts, similar to that supposedly made by Noah and stored in the bins of the Ark. Each person is assigned a day to invite his neighbors to come and share it. CONTACTS: Embassy of Iraq 3421 Massachusetts Ave. N.W. Washington, D.C. 20007 202-742-1600; fax: 202-462-5066 iraqiembassy.us SOURCES: AnnivHol-2000, p. 233 BkFest-1937, p. 237 ConEncyIslam-1991, p. 52 EncyRel-1987, v. 1, p. 462 FolkWrldHol-1999, p. 433 HolSymbols-2009, p. 53 MuhFest-1988, pp. 51, 85 OxYear-1999, pp. 732, 734 RelHolCal-2004, p. 144 UndIslam-2004, p. 261
Posted on: Tue, 12 Nov 2013 07:51:21 +0000
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