Salaam dear young friends and heartfelt condolences to you all. You know the occasion for consoling you, and what makes our heart full of grief these days.
Yes, two days on Monday was Arba’een – the traditional 40th day of the anniversary of the heartrending tragedy of Ashura in Iran and in Iraq, due to the difference of moon sighting, yesterday was Arba’een.
Anyways, this means, our hearts were turned towards Karbala in Iraq, towards the holy shrine of Imam Husain (AS), the grandson of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA), towards each these days everyone seemed to be trekking despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
In this long and large march on foot by many, were devotees of all ages. The young and the old, the toddlers clinging to the hands of their parents, the babes in prams, the briskly walking teenagers, men and women in the prime of life, the grey-haired, the elderly, and even those walking with crutches or traversing on wheelchairs, braving the scorching heat of the sun in daytime and the bone chilling cold of the desert at night.
Their hearts were beating with the love for Imam Husain (AS) and those martyred along with him in 61 AH (680 AD), including his infant 6-month old son Ali Asghar (AS).
This year, due to the pandemic, only 60,000 Iranian pilgrims were allowed in Iraq, and as the world has witnessed, millions of pilgrims were in Karbala to pay homage to the Chief of Martyrs.
Here in Iran, in the commemoration of Arba’een, and while observing the health protocols, young and old, packed the main roads leading to the holy places and mosques.
Even in other parts of the worlds, like, India, Nigeria, Afghanistan, and Pakistan and even in some Western countries, devotees of Ahl al-Bayt (AS) carried out mourning processions to commemorate the Arba’een.
Yes friends, those who had the opportunity to walk the 80 km distance from Najaf from the shrine of the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali (AS), towards Karbala were lucky enough to experience a lifetime.
Each year pilgrims come to Karbala not to admire the physical beauty, or to shop, or to be entertained, or to visit ancient historical sites — but to cry and mourn. They come to join the angels in their grief. They all enter the sacred shrine crying, weeping, and lamenting. It is as if every person has established a personal relationship with Imam Husain (AS). They talk to him, call out his name and touch the walls and doors near his tomb the way one touches the face of a long lost friend.
On the roads leading to Karbala, the local people, for the sake of God, offer whatever they can and beseech the pilgrims to accept their offerings as the honourable guests of Imam Husain (AS). Residents often offer free of charge accommodation, food, drinks, medical services, use of phones and chargers, and repair prams or shoes for the pilgrims.
Sects, ethnicities, language barriers, conflicts, and other fault lines are forgotten as millions of devotees march shoulder to shoulder. It’s not just Shi’a Muslims but our Sunni brethren also, as well as Christians, Zoroastrians, Sabians, and Hindus, who undertake the journey.
Everyone is welcome and it is indeed a great lesson in brotherhood for all humanity.