Tasu'a () is the ninth day of
Muharram
Muḥarram ( ar, ٱلْمُحَرَّم) (fully known as Muharram ul Haram) is the first month of the Islamic calendar. It is one of the four sacred months of the year when warfare is forbidden. It is held to be the second holiest month after R ...
and the day before
Ashura
Ashura (, , ) is a day of commemoration in Islam. It occurs annually on the 10th of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar. Among Shia Muslims, Ashura is observed through large demonstrations of high-scale mourning as it marks the ...
. Several events occurred on this day, including:
Shemr
Abū al-Sābigha Shamir ibn Dhī al-Jawshan ( ar, أبو السابغة شمر بن ذي الجوشن), often known as Shamir or Shimr, was an Arab military commander from Kufa who killed Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhamma ...
's entrance to
Karbala
Karbala or Kerbala ( ar, كَرْبَلَاء, Karbalāʾ , , also ;) is a city in central Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad, and a few miles east of Lake Milh, also known as Razzaza Lake. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorat ...
, the granting of safe conduct for the children of
Umm ul-Banin
Fāṭima bint Ḥuzām al-Kilābīyya al-ʿAlawīyya (; died 683/684 or 69 A.H. 688/689), better known as ʾUmm al-Banīn ( ar, أُمّ ٱلْبَنِين, meaning "Mother of the Sons"), was a wife of Ali. She was from the tribe of Banu Kil ...
, preparation for war; and
Husayn ibn Ali
Abū ʿAbd Allāh al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib ( ar, أبو عبد الله الحسين بن علي بن أبي طالب; 10 January 626 – 10 October 680) was a grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a son of Ali ibn Abi ...
and his companions were besieged by the enemy (as part of the
Battle of Karbala
The Battle of Karbala ( ar, مَعْرَكَة كَرْبَلَاء) was fought on 10 October 680 (10 Muharram in the year 61 AH of the Islamic calendar) between the army of the second Umayyad Caliph Yazid I and a small army led by Husayn ...
). The day is attributed to
Abbas ibn Ali
Al-Abbas ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib ( ar, ٱلْعَبَّاس ٱبْن عَلِيّ ٱبْن أَبِي طَالِب, al-ʿAbbās ibn ʿAlīy ibn ʾAbī Ṭālib), also known as Abu al-Fadl ( ar, أَبُو ٱلْفَضْل, link=no) (15 May 647 - ...
because of his actions as commander in the army of Husayn ibn Ali.
Etymology
Tasu'a literally is a variant from the Arabic word 'ninth' (
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
:
تاسع ''tāsi‘'') and in the Islamic calendar refers to the ninth day of Muharram.
Events of Tasu'a
The following are the main events of Tasu'a:
Shemr's entrance to Karbala
In the forenoon of Tasu'a,
Shemr
Abū al-Sābigha Shamir ibn Dhī al-Jawshan ( ar, أبو السابغة شمر بن ذي الجوشن), often known as Shamir or Shimr, was an Arab military commander from Kufa who killed Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhamma ...
, accompanied by a four thousand-man army, arrived at
Karbala
Karbala or Kerbala ( ar, كَرْبَلَاء, Karbalāʾ , , also ;) is a city in central Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad, and a few miles east of Lake Milh, also known as Razzaza Lake. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorat ...
.
He brought a letter from
Ubayd Ullah ibn Ziyad to
Umar ibn Sa'ad
ʿUmar ibn Saʿd () ( fl. 620–686) was a son of Muhammad's companion, Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas. He was born in Medina and later moved to Kufa, which was founded by his father and stayed there until his death.
He took orders from Ubaydullah ibn Ziya ...
, telling him to take
Bay'ah
''Bayʿah'' ( ar, بَيْعَة, "Pledge of allegiance"), in Islamic terminology, is an oath of allegiance to a leader. It is known to have been practiced by the Islamic prophet Muhammad. ''Bayʿah'' is sometimes taken under a written pact ...
from Husayn or fight.
Safe conduct for the children of Umm ul-Banin
Shemr was one of the
tribesman
The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in part due to conflic ...
of
Umm ul-Banin
Fāṭima bint Ḥuzām al-Kilābīyya al-ʿAlawīyya (; died 683/684 or 69 A.H. 688/689), better known as ʾUmm al-Banīn ( ar, أُمّ ٱلْبَنِين, meaning "Mother of the Sons"), was a wife of Ali. She was from the tribe of Banu Kil ...
. He was given a guarantee of
safe conduct
Safe conduct, safe passage, or letters of transit, is the situation in time of international conflict or war where one state, a party to such conflict, issues to a person (usually an enemy state's subject) a pass or document to allow the enemy ...
from Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyad for children of Umm ul-Banin in Tasu'a. He asked
Abbas ibn Ali
Al-Abbas ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib ( ar, ٱلْعَبَّاس ٱبْن عَلِيّ ٱبْن أَبِي طَالِب, al-ʿAbbās ibn ʿAlīy ibn ʾAbī Ṭālib), also known as Abu al-Fadl ( ar, أَبُو ٱلْفَضْل, link=no) (15 May 647 - ...
and his brothers to abandon Husayn ibn Ali and obey
Yazid. Abbas didn't accept his safe conduct and answered him: "God curse you and your safe conduct! You give us safe conduct and you do not give safe conduct to the grandson of the
Prophet
In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the s ...
of God? And you are asking us to enter the obedience of the cursed people and those who are children of cursed people?"
Preparing for war
After rejection of the safe conduct by Abbas and his brothers, Umar ibn Sa'ad ordered his army to attack Husayn's camp.
When Husayn ibn Ali understood their intent, he asked his brother to go to them and ask about his plan. Abbas ibn Ali,
Zuhayr ibn Qayn
Zuhayr ibn Al-Qayn Al-Bajalī ( ar, زُهَيْر ٱبْن ٱلْقَيْن ٱلْبَجَلِيّ, fa, زهیر بن قین بجلی), was a member of the Bajila tribe in Iraq and a companion of Husayn ibn Ali, Muhammad's grandson and son of ...
,
Habib ibn Madhahir and a few others went and asked them. They answered that our governor ordered us to ask you to Bay'ah him and his rule or fight. Abbas returned to Husayn and said their message. "Go back to them and ask them to give us this evening as a respite till tomorrow so that we may pray to our Lord, supplicate to Him, and seek His forgiveness, for He knows how much I love prayers, the recitation of His Book, the abundance of invocations, and the seeking of His forgiveness", Husayn said to Abbas. Abbas went back to the army and said them the message. Umar Ibn Sa'ad agreed to delay the war until the next day.
Siege of Karbala
In a
Hadith
Ḥadīth ( or ; ar, حديث, , , , , , , literally "talk" or "discourse") or Athar ( ar, أثر, , literally "remnant"/"effect") refers to what the majority of Muslims believe to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approval ...
by
Ja'far al-Sadiq
Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAlī al-Ṣādiq ( ar, جعفر بن محمد الصادق; 702 – 765 CE), commonly known as Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq (), was an 8th-century Shia Muslim scholar, jurist, and theologian.. He was the founder of th ...
it is said: "Ninth of Muharram is the day, when Imam Husayn and his companions were besieged at Karbala by the army of
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
from all sides and offloaded their luggage. The son of Marjanah (Ubaydullah bin Ziyad) and Umar ibn Sa’ad were pleased at the large number of their army and they deemed Imam and his companions to be weak. They knew that Imam Husayn had no helpers or aides in
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
. May my father be ransom upon the oppressed traveler."
Rituals
![Tasu'a, in Iran (Ardabil)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Tasu%27a%2C_in_Iran_%28Ardabil%29.jpg)
In the days of Tesua and
Ashura
Ashura (, , ) is a day of commemoration in Islam. It occurs annually on the 10th of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar. Among Shia Muslims, Ashura is observed through large demonstrations of high-scale mourning as it marks the ...
, Shia Muslims go to mosques and Takiehs or go to mourning ceremonies.
They recite
Ahadith
Ḥadīth ( or ; ar, حديث, , , , , , , literally "talk" or "discourse") or Athar ( ar, أثر, , literally "remnant"/"effect") refers to what the majority of Muslims believe to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approval ...
and poems in honor of
Abbas ibn Ali
Al-Abbas ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib ( ar, ٱلْعَبَّاس ٱبْن عَلِيّ ٱبْن أَبِي طَالِب, al-ʿAbbās ibn ʿAlīy ibn ʾAbī Ṭālib), also known as Abu al-Fadl ( ar, أَبُو ٱلْفَضْل, link=no) (15 May 647 - ...
. In general, the mourning ceremonies consist of processions, chanting and self-flagellation.
One of the oldest and most common traditions among Muslims is to wish for something from Allah while also promising to feed people. In
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
this tradition is well-established and reaches its climax on Tasua and Ashura (the 9th and 10th of Muharram) when mourners are fed.
Ta'zieh as a religious play is an old traditional practice for mourning in some cities and villages.
Participants see the
Ta'zieh
Ta'zieh ( ar, تعزية; fa, تعزیه; ur, ) means comfort, condolence, or expression of grief. It comes from roots ''aza'' (عزو and عزى) which means mourning.
Depending on the region, time, occasion, religion, etc. the word can sig ...
as a part of ritual mourning and not as a common play where actors have to memorize their scripts. In other words, the actors read from the script.
Relation with Abbas ibn Ali
This day is devoted to Abbas ibn Ali in Shia communities, because of his bravery as the standard-bearer of Husayn's army in the
Battle of Karbala
The Battle of Karbala ( ar, مَعْرَكَة كَرْبَلَاء) was fought on 10 October 680 (10 Muharram in the year 61 AH of the Islamic calendar) between the army of the second Umayyad Caliph Yazid I and a small army led by Husayn ...
.
Gallery
November13,2013 - Muharram 9,1435 Tasu'a - Nishapur 213.JPG
Tasu'a Mourning-Shia muslim in qom عزاداری روز تاسوعا در قم 17.jpg
November13,2013 - Muharram 9,1435 Tasu'a - Nishapur 218.JPG
See also
*
Mourning of Muharram
The Mourning of Muharram (also known as Azadari, Remembrance of Muharram or Muharram Observances) is a set of commemoration rituals observed primarily by Shia people. The commemoration falls in Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar. ...
*
Arba'een
, duration = 1 day
, frequency = once every Islamic year
, observedby = Shia
, date = 20 Safar
, date2018 = 30 October
, date2019 = 19 October
, date2020 = 8 October
, date2021 = 28 September
, date ...
*
Battle of Karbala
The Battle of Karbala ( ar, مَعْرَكَة كَرْبَلَاء) was fought on 10 October 680 (10 Muharram in the year 61 AH of the Islamic calendar) between the army of the second Umayyad Caliph Yazid I and a small army led by Husayn ...
*
Ashura
Ashura (, , ) is a day of commemoration in Islam. It occurs annually on the 10th of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar. Among Shia Muslims, Ashura is observed through large demonstrations of high-scale mourning as it marks the ...
References
{{Mourning of Muharram
History of Islam
Ismailism
Family of Muhammad
Mourning of Muharram
Islamic holy days
Islamic terminology
Karbala