Ashura in Shia Islam

For Shi'a Muslims, rituals and observances on Ashura consist primarily of public expressions of mourning and grief. Some Shi'as express mourning by flagellating themselves on the back with chains, beating their head or ritually cutting themselves. This is intended to connect them with Husayn's suffering and death as an aid to salvation on the Day of Judgment.

Passion plays commemorating the death of Husayn are also presented on Ashura. In London, around 3,000 Shi'a Muslims gather at the Marble Arch on Ashura for a mourning procession and speeches.

Many Shi'a make pilgrimages on Ashura to the Mashhad al-Husayn, the shrine in Karbala, Iraq, that is traditionally held to be Husayn's tomb.

Husayn's martyrdom is widely interpreted by Shia as a symbol of the struggle against injustice, tyranny, and oppression.

The regime of Saddam Hussein saw this as a potential threat and banned Ashura commemorations for many years. In neighboring Iran, the festival became a major political symbol during the Islamic Revolution, as also occurred in Lebanon during that country's civil war.

The 2004 (1425 AH) Shi'a pilgrimage to Karbala, the second since Saddam Hussein was removed from power in Iraq, was marred by bomb attacks that killed and wounded hundreds.

Konular

• The Twelve Months of the Islamic Lunar Calendar
• Hajj Requirements/Saudi Arabia
• Saudi Arabia: Hajj/Umrah Pilgrimage
• Umrah packages by H.Mujaddedia hajj travels& tours
• Saudi Arabia to increase Hajj quotas for first time in five year
• Saudi Arabia allocates Indonesia haj quota of 221,000 per year
• Indonesia would welcome bigger haj quota
• Saudi Arabia increases India's annual Haj quota to 1.70 lakh
• Haj quota increases ruled out by Saudi Arabia
• Saudi Arabia approves additional haj quota
• Indonesia: Saudi Arabia agrees to increase Hajj quota
• Indonesia says Saudi Arabia increased its Hajj quota
• Saudi Arabia rolls out 'biggest increase' in India's Haj quota, hikes it by 34,500
• India gets quota of 136,020 pilgrims for Haj
• SA Hajj quota re-instated as stricter accreditation process outlined
• There Are 17,000 South African Muslims Still Waiting To Attend Hajj
• Malaysia’s Haj quota is 30,200 this year
• Haj quota for pilgrims restored to 27,900 this year, says Tabung Haji
• Malaysia's haj quota restored to 30,200 pilgrims this year
• Malaysia’s haj quota for this year back to 27,800, says Jamil Khir
• Number of Hajj pilgrims from Azerbaijan to exceed quota this year
• 30,000 Bangladeshis to miss Hajj this year due to quota restriction
• Bangladesh Haj quota reduction may continue for next year
• Haj quota for Pakistan increased
• Pakistan urges Saudi govt to increase its Hajj quota
• Iraq’s hajj quota to increase by 2,200 next year
• Iran pilgrims to join this year's Hajj: Saudi Arabia
• UZBEKISTAN: Over 160 year wait to go on haj pilgrimage?
• Uzbekistan: Is Hike in Mecca Pilgrimage Quota Another Sign of Thaw?
• Uzbekistan to ask Saudi Arabia to increase Umrah quota