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Concept
Ashura
Summary
Ashura (عَاشُورَاء, ʿĀshūrāʾ, ʕaːʃuːˈraːʔ) is a day of commemoration in Islam. It occurs annually on the 10th of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar. Among Shia Muslims, Ashura is observed through large demonstrations of high-scale mourning as it marks the death of Husayn ibn Ali (a grandson of Muhammad), who was beheaded during the Battle of Karbala in 680 CE. Among Sunni Muslims, Ashura is observed through celebratory fasting as it marks the day of salvation for Moses and the Israelites, who successfully escaped from Biblical Egypt (where they were enslaved and persecuted) after Moses called upon God's power to part the Red Sea. While Husayn's death is also regarded as a great tragedy by Sunnis, open displays of mourning are either discouraged or outright prohibited, depending on the specific act.
In Shia communities, Ashura observances are typically carried out in group processions and are accompanied by a variety of rituals ranging from weeping and shrine pilgrimages to the more controversial acts of self-flagellation and chest-beating. In Sunni communities, there are three rounds of fasting, based on Muhammad's hadith: on the day before Ashura, on the day of Ashura, and on the day after Ashura; while fasting for Ashura is not obligatory, it is strongly encouraged. In folk traditions across countries such as Morocco and Algeria, the day of Ashura is variously celebrated with special foods, bonfires, or carnivals, though these practices are not supported by religious authorities.
is an Aramaic word meaning 'tenth'. It may also be derived from the Syriac word or . At any rate, root of the word is the Hebrew word 'āsōr. In Arabic, Ashura refers to the tenth day of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar, the month in which fighting was forbidden even before Islam.
Fasting on Ashura was likely a Jewish practice adopted by the Islamic prophet Muhammad after his arrival in the city of Medina in 622 CE, perhaps signifying Muhammad's sense of a shared prophetic mission with Moses.
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