I did not see him cutting his forehead with a sword, I shot him after his swordplay, I took a few pictures , but these two stand out.All these pictures are of the 11 th Moharam Juloos at Dargah Hazrat Abbas in Lucknow.
I scourged my back too , taking somebody elses flagellating blades , just for a few minutes.
The problem I face is that I too get carried away, but than I take a few steps back as my intention is to shoot pictures to share with all of you.
My wife keeps telling me not to do heavy duty matam in a different city, as she feels I travel by train thinks can get worse , like the wound on my hand during Delhi Chehlum, that has given me one hell of a time.
I am actually never sure where I will be during Ashura next, I avoid Mumbai, as I want different backgrounds, different faces , that can only happen if I go to another city.
I have not shot the Moharam in Chennai or Bangalore.
I spoke to the guys in Chennai, they are reciprocative of my wishes to see and shoot the Azadari of Madras, under the auspices of a group called Sabisons.
I also was keen to go to Kargil , but I move about barefeet, so Kargil was out.
Perhaps Srinagar who knows where Moulah will take me this year.
Everyday is Ahura every town a Karbala…
From Wikipedia
Shī‘a Islam, also Shi‘ite Islam or Shi‘ism (Arabic شيعة šīʿa), is the second largest denomination of the Islamic faith after Sunni Islam. Shias adhere to the teachings of Muhammad and the religious guidance of his family (who are referred to as the Ahl al-Bayt) or his descendents known as Shi’a Imams. Muhammad’s bloodline continues only through his daughter Fatima Zahra and cousin Ali which alongside the prophet’s grandsons are the Ahl al-Bayt. Thus, Shi’as consider Muhammad’s descendents as the true source of guidance while considering the first three ruling Sunni caliphs a historic occurrence and not something attached to faith. The singular/adjective form is šīʿī (شيعي.) and refers to a follower of the faction of Imam Ali according to the Shia ideology.
Shia Islam, like Sunni Islam, has at times been divided into many branches; however, only three of these currently have a significant number of followers. The best known and the one with most adherents is the Twelvers (اثنا عشرية iṯnÄÊ¿aÅ¡ariyya) which have a large majority in Iran and Iraq; the others are Ismaili, Sevener, Alawite and Zaidiyyah. Many Druze consider themselves Shias, although their practices differ significantly. The Sufi orders among the Shias are the Alevi, Bektashi, Kubrawiya, Noorbakhshi, Oveyssi, Qizilbashi, Hamadani and Fatimid orders and denominations. Twenty percent of Turkey’s population is Alevi while Lebanon and Syria have a large presence of Druze and Alawites.
Shia†is the short form of the historic phrase Å¡Ä«Ê¿at Ê¿AlÄ« (شيعة علي), meaning “the followers of Ali†or “the faction of Aliâ€. Both Shia and Sunni sources trace the term to the years preceding the death of Muhammad; see Shia etymology.
The word “Shia†means “followers; members of partyâ€. It can be interpreted in a wider sense than simply “followers of Aliâ€: it signifies that they claim that the Shia Muslims are the followers and believers of (Allah) the Almighty Creator of existence, His Prophets (Guides to Heaven), His Messages and the Ahlul Bayt (The Family of the House of Prophet Mohammad) and the prophet’s descendents which are the shi’a Imams Fathered by Ali.
Shia Muslims believe that the descendents from Muhammad through his daughter Fatima Zahra and his son-in-law Ali (the Imams) were the best source of knowledge about the Qur’an and Islam, the most trusted carriers and protectors of Muhammad’s Sunnah (traditions), and the most worthy of emulation.
In particular, Shia Muslims recognize the succession of Ali (Muhammad’s cousin, son-in-law, the first man to accept Islam — second only to Muhammad’s wife Khadija — the male head of the Ahl al-Bayt or “people of the [Prophet’s] houseâ€) and the father of the Prophet Muhammad’s only bloodline as opposed to that of the caliphate recognized by Sunni Muslims. Shia Muslims believe that Ali was appointed successor by Muhammad’s direct order on many occasions, and that he is therefore the rightful leader of the Muslim faith.
This difference between following either the Ahl al-Bayt (Muhammad’s family and descendents) or the Caliph Abu Bakr has shaped Shia and non-Shia views on some of the Qur’an, the Hadith (narrations from the prophet) and other areas of Islam. For instance, the collection of Hadith venerated by Shia Muslims is centered on narrations by members of the Ahl al-Bayt, while some Hadith by narrators not belonging to the Ahl al-Bayt are not included (those of Abu Huraira, for example). Ali was the third successor to Abu Bakr and, for the Shia, the first divinely sanctioned “imam,†or male descendant of the Prophet Muhammad. The seminal event in Shia history is the martyrdom in 680 CE of Ali’s son Hussein, who led an uprising against the “illegitimate†caliph (72 of Hussein’s followers were killed as well). For the Shia, Hussein came to symbolize resistance to tyranny.
Regardless of the dispute about the Caliphate, the Shia recognize the religious authority of the Shia Imams, also called Khalifa Ilahi.
By some estimates, over 15% of the world’s Muslims are Shi’a. There are an estimated 220 million Shi’a Muslims[1] (including Twelvers, Ismailis, Alevi, Zaidis) throughout the world, about three quarters of whom reside in Iran, Pakistan, India, Iraq, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, and Turkey. [2][3]
A large portion of the world’s Shi’a live in the Middle East. The Shia Population of the Middle East[4] constitutes a majority in Azerbaijan, Iraq, Bahrain and especially Iran, where 90% of the population is Shi’a. In Lebanon Shi’a form a plurality, and they remain as significant minorities in Afghanistan, Syria, India, Pakistan and Turkey. In Yemen, both Zaidi and Twelver Shi’a comprise close to 45% of the population. Among the smaller Persian Gulf states, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates also have significant Shi’a minorities, as does the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.
About 20% of Pakistan’s and India’s Muslim population are Shi’a, and significant communities exist on the coastal regions of West Sumatra and Aceh in Indonesia (see Tabuik). Shi’a presence is negligible elsewhere in Southeast Asia, where Muslims are predominantly Shafi’i Sunnis.
According to the Shi’a, one of the lingering problems in estimating the Shi’a population is that unless the Shi’a form a significant minority in a Muslim country, the entire population is often listed as Sunni. The reverse, however, has not held true, which may contribute to imprecise estimates of the size of each sect. For example, the 1926 rise of the House of Saud in Arabia brought official discrimination against Shia [5]. The Shia-majority areas of Al-Ahsa, Qatif and Hofuf on the Persian Gulf, and western Arabia provinces of Jazan, Asir and Hijaz, that had large Shi’a minorities, have officially been completely stripped of their religious identities. Some Shi’a claim that they endure much bigotry and other indignities from Walmen authorities daily and that Shi’a pilgrims from other countries are often singled out for harassment (see Status of religious freedom in Saudi Arabia); in Saudi Arabia they are called akkaf (عكÙ) which means rejecters (راÙضه).
The Shia believe in the five pillars of Islam, as do Sunnis, but categorize them differently. Shia beliefs include the following:
Theology of Shia (Usūl al-Dīn)
Tawhīd (Oneness): The Oneness of God
Adalah (Justice): The Justice of God
Nubuwwah (Prophethood): God has appointed perfect and infallible prophets and messengers to teach mankind the religion (that is, a perfect system of how to live in “peace†(â€submission to Godâ€))
Imamah (Leadership): God has appointed specific leaders to lead and guide mankind — a prophet appoints a custodian of the religion before his demise
Qiyamah (The Day of Judgment): God will raise mankind for Judgment
Branches of Religion (Furū al-Dīn)
Salat — called “Namaaz†in Persian — (Prayer) – Performing the five daily prayers
Sawm — called “Roozeh†in Persian — (Fast) – fasting during the holy month of Ramadhan (Able to eat after the sun goes down)
Hajj (Pilgrimage) – performing the pilgrimage to Mecca (once in a lifetime)
Zakat (Poor-rate) – paying the poor-tax (2.5% of your wealth every year should go to the poor)
Khums (One-fifth of savings) – paying tax to the Imam (سهم اما)
Jihad (Struggle) – struggling to please the Almighty. The greater, or internal Jihad is the struggle against the evil within one’s soul in every aspect of life. The lesser, or external, Jihad is the struggle against the evil of one’s environment in every aspect of life. This is not to be mistaken with the common modern misconception that this means “Holy Warâ€. Writing the truth (jihad bil qalam) and speaking truth in front of an oppressor are also forms of Jihad.
Amr-Bil-Ma’rūf – commanding what is good
Nahi-Anil-Munkar – forbidding what is evil
Tawalla – loving the Ahlul Bayt and their followers
Tabarra – dissociating oneself from the enemies of the Ahlul Bayt
June 5th, 2007
Posted by photographerno1 on 05 Jun 2007
Filed Under: hazrat imam hussain, kama zani, shiasm | No Comments »
