A noha ( fa, نوحه, ur, نوحہ; translit. ''nūḥa/nawḥa''; az, Növhə/Нөвһә/نؤوحه), when interpreted in light of Shia views, is an
elegy about the tragedy of
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 ...
in the
Battle of Karbala.
and Noha have the historical and social milieu of pre-Islamic
Arabic and
Persian culture.
The sub-parts of Marsiya are called Noha and
Soaz which means lamentation. It is usually a poem of mourning. Lamentation has a central part in the literature of the followers and devotees of the Shia sect and its offshoots. The tradition of elegizing Hussain and the Karbala tragedy is not limited to Arabic speaking poets. Poets from different languages have also contributed significant poetic literature in their language.
In
Urdu language, a number of poets like,
Mir Anis and
Mirza Dabeer
Mirza Salaamat Ali Dabeer ( ur, ),
(29 August 1803 – 6 March 1875) was an Urdu poet who excelled and perfected the art of Marsiya writing. He is considered the leading exponent of Marsiya Nigari or marsiya writing along with Mir Anees.
Mirz ...
have contributed a treasure in Marsiya and its sub-branch Noha. In like manner, English-speaking poets, whether Muslim, Christian, have also made significant contributions to produce elegies for Imam Hussain and the Karbala tragic incidents.
See also
*
Mourning of Muharram
*
Juloos
*
Rawda Khwani
*
Marsiyah
*
Majalis
Notes and references
{{Urdu poetry
Arabic poetry
Shia literature
Cultural depictions of Husayn ibn Ali
Persian poetry