Between December 17 and 26 this year, Syria’s Shia community will mark Ashura, the anniversary of the passing of the Prophet’s grandson Hussein Ibn Ali (pbuh) who martyred during the Battle of Kerbala in 680 AD.

Between December 17 and 26 this year, Syria’s Shia community will mark Ashura, the anniversary of the passing of the Prophet’s grandson Hussein Ibn Ali (pbuh) who martyred during the Battle of Kerbala in 680 AD.

Ashura – which literally means “the tenth” – is celebrated during the first 10 days of Muharram, the first month of the Muslim calendar.

Sayyed Abdul Rasoul al-Musawi al-Kazemi, a history teacher and Islamic scholar at the Zaynabia Hawza in Saida Zeinab, explains that it is a period of immense grief and sadness for all Shias.

“Believers around the world express their sorrow through similar rituals,” Kazemi said. “They raise black flags and wear black clothes during the whole month.”

Kazemi, who is originally from Iraq and moved to Damascus 30 years ago, explained that the rituals and traditions associated with Ashura express not just sorrow at the death of Hussein, but also symbolise humility and express solidarity with the oppressed.

During special processions, known as Husseini processions, believers file through the streets to the tune of beating drums and the rhythmic chanting of ‘Ya Hussein’. Believers break down in tears as they remember the passing of Hussein and his family (pbut). Kazemi said that it is in fact a religious duty to cry during Ashura.

“Like slapping oneself, crying is an expression of the highest degree of human grief,” he said.

“These rituals must be carried out with the heart and the mind,” Kazemi explained. “They must balance reason and emotion, faith and sense.”

Other rituals during the month of Muharram include the performance of passion plays in which the life and death of Hussein (pbuh) are enacted. Believers also carry out ta’ziya, in which they pay their condolences to other believers marking the death of Hussein (pbuh).

“During the ta’ziya, which is held for the first 10 days of Muharram, believers gather to listen to poets eulogise Hussein (pbuh) , his family and their lives,” Kazemi said.

Believers also gather at Shia religious schools, known as a hawza, to listen to preachers narrate the story of Ashura, often via song or poetry, and draw lessons from Hussein’s life (pbuh).

Special foods are served during Ashura, with many believers also donating sweets and other foods to local mosques. One popular Ashura dish is al keyema, an Iraqi recipe made with crushed chickpeas, sliced meat, onions and tomatoes and served with rice. Believers usually serve water to their guests during this period to symbolise the thirst Hussein and his family (pbut) felt during the battle.

On the tenth day of Muharram, the commemorations reach their climax.