Muharram

Template:Short description Template:About Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox month Template:IslamicMonths sidebar Al-Muharram (Template:Langx) is the first month of the Islamic calendar. It is one of the four sacred months of the year when warfare is banned. It precedes the month of Safar. The tenth of Muharram is known as Ashura, an important day of commemoration in Islam. For Sunni Muslims, the day marks the parting of the Red Sea by Moses and the salvation of the Israelites, celebrated through supererogatory fasting and other acceptable expressions of joy. By contrast, Ashura is a day of mourning for Shia Muslims, who annually commemorate the death of Husayn ibn Ali, grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the third Shia imam. Husayn was killed, alongside most of his relatives and his small retinue, in the Battle of Karbala in 680 CE against the army of the Umayyad caliph Yazid ibn Mu'awiya (Template:Reign). The Shia rituals span the first ten days of Muharram, culminating on Ashura with mourning processions in Shia cities. Also in Muharram, the Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem was initially set as the direction of prayer for early Muslims.

OriginsEdit

Muharram (Template:Lit) is the first month of the Islamic calendar, with (at most) thirty days. Warfare in Muharram is forbidden, and it has been so since before the advent of Islam.Template:Sfn The word Template:Transliteration is short for "Muharram Safar" (Template:Lit), which distinguishes in the ancient Arab calendar between Safar I, which was sacred, and Safar II, which was not. Over time, however, the adjective Template:Transliteration itself became the name of the first month of the year.Template:Sfn

AshuraEdit

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} Template:See also The tenth of Muharram is known as Ashura, an important day of commemoration in Islam. For Sunni Muslims, Ashura marks the parting of the Red Sea by Moses and the salvation of the Israelites.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Also on this day, Noah disembarked from the Ark,Template:Sfn God forgave Adam, and Joseph was released from prison, among various auspicious events on Ashura in Sunni tradition.Template:Sfn Ashura is celebrated in Sunni Islam through supererogatory fasting, and also other pious acts and acceptable expressions of joy.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn In some Sunni communities, the annual Ashura festivities include carnivals, bonfires, and special dishes,Template:Sfn Template:Sfn even though some Sunni scholars have criticized such practices.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

By contrast, for Shia Muslims, Ashura is a day of mourning as they commemorate the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the third Shia imam.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Husayn refused on moral grounds to pledge his allegiance to the Umayyad caliph Yazid ibn Mu'awiya (Template:Reign) and was subsequently killed, alongside most of his male relatives and his small retinue, by the Umayyad army in the Battle of Karbala on Ashura 61 AH (680 CE).Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Among the Shia, mourning for Husayn is viewed as an act of protest against oppression, and as such a struggle for God (Template:Transliteration).Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Mourners also hope to secure the intercession of Husayn in the afterlife.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Ashura is observed annually through mourning gatherings, processions, and reenactments.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

File:Muharram mourning, Hussainia TZ.jpg

Muharram mourning gathering in Tanzania

File:عزاداری شیعیان در ماه محرم 07.jpg

Muharram mourning procession in Iran

TimingEdit

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} Template:Hijri to gregorian calendar.svg The Islamic calendar is lunar, and months begin when the first crescent (hilal) of a new moon is sighted. Since the lunar year (of twelve lunar months) is eleven or twelve days shorter than the solar year.Template:Sfn Muharram days are different in consecutive solar years.Template:Sfn

Muharram dates between 2022 and 2026
Islamic calendar	First day (CE)	Last day (CE)
1444	30 July 2022	27 August 2022
1445	19 July 2023	16 August 2023
1446	Template:07 July 2024	Template:04 August 2024
1447	Template:026 June 2025	Template:025 July 2025
1448	Template:016 June 2026	Template:014 July 2026

Battle of KarbalaEdit

2 Muharram: Arrival of Husayn ibn Ali in Karbala, Iraq, in 680. On their way to the nearby Kufa, Husayn and his small caravan were intercepted by the Umayyad army and eventually forced to camp in the desert lands of Karbala, away from water and fortifications.Template:Sfn
7 Muharram: The Umayyad army cut off Husayn's access to the drinking water of the nearby Euphrates river.Template:Sfn Under the siege, Husayn's camp suffered from thirst and hunger in the coming days.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Template:Sfn
9 Muharram (Tasu'a): Negotiations between Husayn and the Umayyads failed on this day in 680. The Umayyad commander Umar ibn Sa'd (Template:Died in) was set to attack after the afternoon prayer on Tasu'a but was persuaded to delay the confrontation until the following day.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Husayn and his men spent the night in prayer.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn
10 Muharram (Ashura): The Battle of Karbala was fought on this day in 680. Husayn and most of his male relatives and his small retinue were slaughtered by the Umayyad army by the end of the day. After the battle, the women and children in Husayn's camp were taken prisoner and marched to the Umayyad capital Damascus in Syria.Template:Sfn

Other Islamic eventsEdit

1 Muharram: Death of Caliph Umar (Template:Reign) by injuries from the attack of Persian slave Abu Lu'lu'a Firuz.Template:Sfn Sunnis carry rallies on 1 Muharram to commemorate Umar.Template:Sfn
2Template:Ndash10 Muharram: Most mourning rituals for Karbala take place during the first ten days of Muharram, culminating on the tenth with processions in major Shia cities.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn
5 Muharram: Baba Farid, a Punjabi Sufi saint, died on this day in 1266. His death is celebrated (urs) for six days during Muharram, in Pakpattan, Pakistan.Template:Sfn
8 Muharram: In what became known as the 1782 Muharram Rebellion, on this day Bengali Muslims in Sylhet staged one of the earliest anti-British uprisings in the Indian subcontinent.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn
16 Muharram: On this day, the Islamic prophet Muhammad set the Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem as the Template:Transliteration, towards which early Muslims prayed.Template:Sfn This was superseded later by the ancient Ka'ba sanctuary in Mecca in connection with verse 2:144 of the Quran, the central religious text in Islam.Template:Sfn
17 Muharram: Arrival of the "people of the elephant" in Mecca, a reference to al-Fil (Template:Lit), a Template:Transliteration (chapter) in the Quran.Template:Sfn