page_title: Battle of Karbala
section_title: Shi'a Islam
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of Karbala / Impact / Shi'a Islam
caption_attribution_description: العربية: يقيم شيعة إيران مراسيم عزاء في شهر محرم من كل عام في كافة المدن والقرى. رغم أن كل هذه الطقوس تشترك من حيث المبداء ألا وهو تخليد ذكرى مقتل الحسين بن علي وأصحابه في كربلاء لكن نظرا لإختلاف وتنوع الثقافات ما بين سكان المناطق المدنية والريفية المختلفة ونظرا لتعدد الأقوام الإيرانية، تقام هذه الطقوس بأنماط وأشكال مختلفة.English: Mourning of Muharram is held in majority of cities and villages in Iran by Shia Muslims annually. Although all sort of ceremonies are performed for Imam Hossein and his followers martyrdom remembrance, they have different styles and rules referring to various cultures.فارسی: شیعیان ایران هرساله اقدام به برگزاری آئین عزاداری محرم در شهرها و روستاهای ایران می‌نمایند. با وجود ماهیت مشترک همه آنها که یادبود کشته شدن حسین بن علی و همراهانش در کربلا می‌باشد، به موجب گوناگونی فرهنگی در میان اهالی شهرها و روستاهای ایران و همچنین اقوام مختلف ایرانی، این مراسم با شیوه‌ها و آداب و رسوم مختلفی برگزار می‌شود.
context_page_description: The Battle of Karbala was fought on 10 October 680 between the army of the second Umayyad caliph Yazid I and a small army led by Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, at Karbala, Iraq.
  Prior to his death, the Umayyad caliph Muawiyah I had nominated his son Yazid as his successor. Yazid's nomination was contested by the sons of a few prominent companions of Muhammad, including Husayn, son of the fourth caliph Ali, and Abd Allah ibn Zubayr, son of Zubayr ibn al-Awam. Upon Muawiyah's death in 680 CE, Yazid demanded allegiance from Husayn and other dissidents. Husayn did not give allegiance and traveled to Mecca. The people of Kufa, an Iraqi garrison town and the center of Ali's caliphate, were averse to the Syria-based Umayyad caliphs and had a long-standing attachment to the house of Ali. They proposed Husayn overthrow the Umayyads. On Husayn's way to Kufa with a retinue of about 70 men, his caravan was intercepted by a 1,000-strong army of the caliph at some distance from Kufa. He was forced to head north and encamp in the plain of Karbala on 2 October, where a larger Umayyad army of 4,000 arrived soon afterwards.
context_section_description: Prior to the Battle of Karbala, the Muslim community was divided into two political factions. Nonetheless, a religious sect with distinct theological doctrines and specific set of rituals had not developed. Karbala gave this early political party of pro-Alids a distinct religious identity and helped transform it into a distinct religious sect. Heinz Halm writes: "There was no religious aspect to Shi'ism prior to 680. The death of the third imam and his followers marked the 'big bang' that created the rapidly expanding cosmos of Shi'ism and brought it into motion."
  Husayn's death at Karbala is believed by Shi'as to be a sacrifice made to prevent the corruption of Islam by tyrannical rulers and to protect its ideology. He is, as such, believed to have been fully aware of his fate and the outcome of his revolt, which was divinely ordained. He is thus remembered as the prince of martyrs (Sayyed al-Shuhada). The historian G. R. Hawting describes the Battle of Karbala as a "supreme" example of "suffering and martyrdom" for Shi'as. According to Abdulaziz Sachedina, it is seen by Shi'as the climax of suffering and oppression, revenge for which came to be one of the primary goals of many Shi'a uprisings. This revenge is believed to be one of the fundamental objectives of the future revolution of the twelfth Shi'a Imam Muhammad al-Mahdi, whose return is awaited. With his return, Husayn and his seventy-two companions are expected to be resurrected along with their killers, who will then be punished.
caption: Ritual of chest beating
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