In Shia Islam, Karbala symbolizes the eternal struggle between good and evil, the pinnacle of self-sacrifice, and the ultimate sabotage of Muhammad's prophetic mission.

Mourning for Karbala began with its female survivors, particularly Husayn's sister Zaynab, and evolved over time into distinct rituals that help define the Shia identity.

Often held in dedicated buildings, the main component of mourning ceremonies is the recitation of Karbala narratives intended to raise the sympathy of audience and move them to tears.

[3] Husayn was killed, alongside most of his male relatives and his small retinue, on 10 Muharram 61 AH (10 October 680 CE) in the Battle of Karbala against the much larger army of the Umayyad caliph Yazid ibn Mu'awiya (r. 680–683), having been surrounded for some days and deprived of the drinking water of the nearby Euphrates river.

[4][5][6] The fight took place in the desert land of Karbala, en route to the nearby Kufa, whose residents had earlier invited Husayn to lead them against Yazid.

majlis) is the narration of the stories of Karbala (rawza-khwani, qiraya),[12][10][13] and the recitation of elegies and dirges (nawha, niyaha, marsia-khwani),[14][15] all intended to raise the sympathy of audience and move them to tears.

[15] Rooted in ancient Arab practices,[19][20] mild forms of self-flagellation, striking one's face and chest in grief (latm, sina-zani, matam),[15][14][21] are common today in mourning rituals,[22] intended to share in the pain of Husayn.

[24][25] But there are also extreme forms of self-flagellation (tatbir, tiq-zani, qama-zani), in which the participants strike themselves, usually on the forehead or back, with knives, swords, or chains to which razor blades are attached.

[14] Ta'ziya or shabih-khwani is the dramatic reenactment of Karbala narratives, practiced today in Iran, in Shia communities of the western Gulf shore, and in Lebanon.

[29] In Iraq, there are no widespread ta'ziya rituals today,[27] although an annual performance on Ashura in Karbala reenacts the burning of Husayn's tents after the battle by the Umayyads and the captivity of the women and children.

[32] In Najaf, Iraq, mourners march on the eve of Ashura toward the shrine of Ali ibn Abi Talib, the first Shia imam, carrying decorative torches (masha'il).

[42] Muharram rituals also appear in Sufism, but therein Karbala is less of a tragedy, but rather the celebration of the eternal life of Husayn and his companions, who annihilated themselves in the Divine with their voluntary deaths.

[43] In Shia Islam, the Battle of Karbala symbolizes the eternal struggle between good and evil, where Husayn is viewed as the exemplar of piety, sacrifice, and perseverance, while Yazid represents injustice, tyranny, and corruption.

"[49][48] In Shia view, the preordained but voluntary uprising and sacrifice of Husayn thus preserved the true Islam for future generations,[50][51] as it awakened the Muslim community to its moral depravity under the Umayyads.

"[67] A Sunni hadith, attributed to Muhammad, reports that he profusely wept for the death of his infant son Ibrahim but forbade mourners from saying anything that would "irritate the Lord."

In turn, proponents of Muharram rituals argue that feeding the poor is part of the Karbala culture,[71] usually to fulfill religious vows (nadhr) made by devotees.

[27][73] Through such practices, participants argue that they experience a fraction of the pain inflicted at Karbala,[74][75] show their willingness to self-sacrifice,[74][65] and atone for the sins of those Kufans who deserted Husayn.

[23] Opponents respond that self-harm is forbidden in Islam,[73][76] that the spilt blood renders the body impure (najis) for daily prayers,[73][77] and that such practices project a negative image of Shi'ism.

[86] Alternatively, the first annual commemoration and the first pilgrimage may be attributed to Tawwabun,[19][27] that is, those Kufans who regretted deserting Husayn in Karbala: They are said to have gathered at his grave site on the first anniversary of his death, where they mourned his loss and recited elegies.

[88] After Karbala, this community crystallized into a distinct sect that regards Shia imams, that is, Husayn and certain other descendants of Muhammad, as his rightful religious and temporal successors.

[90][99] The first public Karbala processions happened under Buyids, the Shia dynasty that ruled parts of Iraq and Iran,[57][100] after the collapse of the central Abbasid caliphate.

[101] On Ashura 963, during the reign of the first Buyid ruler Mu'izz al-Dawla (r. 945–967), markets were closed in Baghdad, Iraq,[102] and processions of black-garbed Shia mourners marched in the streets, weeping, wailing, and striking their faces and chests.

[103] Such processions provoked violent Sunni riots and counter-processions, which involved, for instance, reenactments of the Battle of the Camel in 656 against Ali ibn Abi Talib.

[104][105] In Cairo, Egypt, however, deadly Sunni riots apparently discontinued the Shia processions during the reign of the Fatimid caliph al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah (r. 953–975).

For instance, participants openly condemned (la'n) the first three caliphs–Abu Bakr, Umar, and Uthman–who are viewed in Shi'ism as the usurpers of the right of Ali ibn Abi Talib to succeed Muhammad.

[78] Such rituals likely originated in Turkish-speaking regions of Caucasus and Azerbayjan in Northern Iran,[113] introduced into Shi'ism by the Qizilbash, who formed the backbone of the Safavid military and were regarded as Ghulat because of their exaggerated veneration for the Shia imams.

[27][27] As early as the Qajar period (r. 1789–1925), Iranian rituals also extended to the month of Safar, due to the commemoration of Arbai'n, which marks forty days after the death of Husayn.

[121][112] Indeed, as early as the 1909 constitutional revolution in Iran, mourning gatherings had assumed a political dimension as preachers compared Iranian oppressors to the enemies of Husayn in Karbala.

[14][61] Eventually, the Pahlavis were toppled in the Iranian Revolution (1978–1979) through the continued efforts of dissidents, such as Ali Shariati (d. 1977),[23] who effectively used Karbala symbols and rituals against the regime.

[128] Perhaps also influenced by Iraq and Iran,[18] there were dedicated buildings for Muharram rituals in South Asia by the end of the sixteenth century,[103] known variously as imambarah, imambaragh, azakhana, Ashurakhana, and ta'ziyakhana.