The First Ten Days of Muḥarram are Muharram 1st to the Muharram 10th. Muharram is the first month in the lunar calendar. In these ten days, the Shi'as hold mourning ceremonies on the occasion of the martyrdom of Imam al-Husayn (a) and other martyrs of the Event of Karbala.

Naming of the First Ten Days of Muharram

In many Shiite areas, every day of the Muharram month is named after one of the Martyrs of Karbala, and so, people mourn in the name of those martyrs by reciting an elegy. The naming has no religious origin. Moreover, its historical origin is not known, and it differs in different areas.[1]

 
In these gatherings, mothers take their children up to reenact the way Imam al-Husayn (a) took Ali Asghar up before the enemy, after which Ali Asghar was hit by an arrow and martyred.

Husayni Infants

Since 2004, a conference has been held under the Husayni Infants to honor 'Ali al-Asghar (a), the infant son of Imam al-Husayn (a) who was martyred in his infancy. The ceremony is held on the first Friday of the Muharram month. It was first held in Tehran. In recent years, it is also held in other Shiite countries. The ceremony is attended by women who take their young and infant children with them.

Days after the Ten Days

Notes

  1. Maẓāhirī, ‘’Farhang-i sūg-i Shīʿī’’, p. 229-230.
  2. Maẓāhirī, ‘’Farhang-i sūg-i Shīʿī’’, p. 229-230.

References

  • Maẓāhirī, Muḥsin. Farhang-i sūg-i Shīʿī. Tehran: Nashr-i Khiymi, 1395 Sh.