Arba'een
Arba'een (Arabic: الأربعين‎, "forty"), Chehlom (Persian: چهلم‎, Urdu: چہلم‎, "the fortieth [day]") or Qırxı, İmamın Qırxı (Azerbaijani: امامین قیرخی, "the fortieth of Imam") is a Shia
Shia Muslim religious observance that occurs forty days after the Day of Ashura. It commemorates the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, who was killed on the 10th day of the month of Muharram. Imam
Imam Husayn ibn Ali
Husayn ibn Ali and 72 companions were killed by Yazid I's army in the Battle of Karbala
Karbala in 61 AH (680 CE). Writing in forty batches[clarification needed] has become a tradition among Islamic scholars. Arba'een
Arba'een or forty days is also the usual length of mourning after the death of a family member or loved one in many Muslim traditions. Arba'een
Arba'een is one of the largest pilgrimage gatherings on Earth, in which up to 45 million people go to the city of Karbala
Karbala in Iraq.[1][2][3][4][5] The significance of the number 40 has roots in a saying (hadith) of Muhammad: "On the day of judgment, among my people, God will consider whoever memorized forty Hadiths as an erudite man". Numerous Islamic scholars have gathered collections of forty hadith, quoting from the prophet and the Imams who followed him in Shia
Shia Islam.

Contents

1 Background 2 Annual pilgrimage 3 Ziyarat of Arbaeen 4 Other religions and countries in the Arba'een 5 Political significance 6 Arba'een
Arba'een in the Gregorian calendar 7 See also 8 Notes 9 References

Background[edit] According to tradition, the Arba'een
Arba'een pilgrimage has been observed since the year 61 AH of the Islamic calendar
Islamic calendar (10 October 680) after the Battle of Karbala
Karbala or the following year. According to tradition, the first such gathering took place when Jabir ibn Abd Allah, a sahabah and the first Arbas'een pilgrim, made a pilgrimage to the burial site of Husayn.[6] He was accompanied by Atiyya ibn Sa'd because of his infirmity and probable blindness. According to tradition, his visit coincided with that of the surviving female members of Muhammad's family and Husayn's son and heir, Imam
Imam Ali ibn Husayn Zayn al-Abidin (also spelled Zain-ul-Abideen), who had all been held captive in Damascus
Damascus by Yazid I, the Umayyad
Umayyad Caliph. Zayn al-Abidin had survived the Battle of Karbala
Karbala and led a secluded life in deep sorrow. He lived under pressure and tight surveillance set by Umayyad
Umayyad Caliphate.[7] According to legend, for twenty years whenever water was placed before him, he would weep. One day a servant said to him, ‘O son of Allah’s Messenger! Is it not time for your sorrow to come to an end?’ He replied, ‘Woe upon you! Jacob
Jacob the prophet had twelve sons, and Allah made one of them disappear. His eyes turned white from constant weeping, his head turned grey out of sorrow, and his back became bent in gloom,[a] though his son was alive in this world. But I watched while my father, my brother, my uncle, and seventeen members of my family were slaughtered all around me. How should my sorrow come to an end?’[b][8][9] Arba'een's performance has been banned in some periods, the last of which was when Saddam Hussein, (a Sunni who ruled as an Arab nationalist, clashing with Islamic revivalism) was president of Iraq. For nearly 30 years under Saddam's regime, it was forbidden to mark Arba'een
Arba'een publicly in Iraq. Following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the observance in April 2003 was broadcast worldwide.[10] Annual pilgrimage[edit] Main article: Arba'een
Arba'een Pilgrimage The city of Karbala
Karbala in Iraq
Iraq is the center of the proceedings which many pilgrims travel miles on foot to reach. As of 2016 “between 17 million and 20 million” pilgrims usually attend Arba'een
Arba'een their, including about three million foreigners, most of whom are Iranians.[11] Arba'een
Arba'een is consistently among the largest peaceful gatherings in history.[citation needed] Every year, huge crowds of pilgrims travel to the city of Karbala
Karbala in pilgrimage to the Imam
Imam Hossein holy shrine in Karbala
Karbala on Arba’een Day.[12] (For example it is over 500km from Basra
Basra the largest city in southern Iraq
Iraq where Shia
Shia predominate to Karbala.)[13] It is traveled annually on foot by Iraqi pilgrims, which takes them two weeks, or approximately one month to come from other countries like Iran. The crowds become so massive that roads are blocked for hundreds of miles. In 2008, approximately nine million religious observers converged on Karbala
Karbala to commemorate Arba’een.[14] In 2009, over ten million people were estimated to have reached Karbala, according to BBC News and Press TV. In 2013, 20 million pilgrams from 40 countries came for Arbaeen, according to Iranian media.[15][16][17] A car bomb targeting worshippers returning from Karbala
Karbala killed at least 20 Shiite pilgrims in January 2013.[18] In 2014, up to 17 million people made the pilgrimage and many choose to make the 55-mile journey on foot from Najaf, near areas controlled by the militant Islamic State of Iraq
Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), which has declared Shia
Shia Muslims apostates.[19][20][21] Up to 17 million pilgrams came in 2015[22] and 2016 Ziyarat of Arbaeen[edit] Main article: Ziyarat of Arba'een The Ziyarat Arba'een
Arba'een is a prayer which is usually recited in Karbala on the day of Arba'een. It is narrated from Safwan al-Jammaal from Imam
Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq, the sixth Shiite Imam, in which the Imam instructed him to visit Imam
Imam Husayn's mosque, and to recite a specific visitation prayer on Arba'een
Arba'een by which the believer should reaffirm their pledge to Husayn's ideals. The Ziarat or prayer is a text which designates Husayn as the "inheritor" of the Islamic/Jewish and or Christian prophets Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses
Moses and Jesus.

Peace be on the favorite of Allah, Peace be on the beloved friend of Allah, His distinguished hero! Peace be on the choicest confidant of Allah, sincerely attached precisely like his father! Peace be on Hussain, who gave his life in the way of Allah, a martyr, underwent untold hardships Peace be on the hostage surrounded by the-tightening circle of sorrow and grief, killed by a horde of savages.[23] He met with deadly dangers, acted justly and fairly, made use of everything belonging to him to pay full attention to give sincere advice, took pains, made every effort and put his heart, mind, soul and life at the disposal of Thy mission to liberate the people from the yoke of ignorance and evil of bewilderment, but an evildoer, deceived with empty hopes of mean and worthless worldly gains, had pressed heavily on him, and sold out his share (eternal bliss) for the meanest and lowest bargain, betrayed his "day of judgment" for a vulgar return, took pride in insolence, fell into the fathom- well of silly stupid follies, provoked Thee and Thy Prophet to anger, did as the harsh discordant, the hypocrite, the heavily burdened bearers of sin, condemned to Hellfire, advised to him, however, he (the Holy lmam), steadily, rightly and justly coped With them, till, in Thy obedience, gave his life after which his family was set adrift.[23]

Other religions and countries in the Arba'een[edit] While the Arba'een
Arba'een is a distinctively Shi'a spiritual exercise, Sunni Muslims and even Christians, Yazidis, Zoroastrians, and Sabians partake in both the pilgrimage as well as serving of devotees. Pilgrims from European countries including Sweden, Russia and even a delegation from Vatican City have joined in past observances. Some Iraqi Christian religious leaders also joined the delegation from the Vatican.[24][25] Many delegations from various African countries including Ghana, Nigeria, Tanzania
Tanzania and Senegal
Senegal have also participated in the Arba'een.[17] Political significance[edit]

18 million Shi'ite Muslims gather around the Husayn Mosque in Karbala after making the pilgrimage on foot during Arba'een, 2013.[26]

Since the first Arba'een, it has influenced subsequent Shi'ite uprisings against Umayyad
Umayyad and Abbasid
Abbasid rule. Arba'een
Arba'een has also been used as a political protest, at least in Iran. It was first used there to protest the killing of supporters of Ayatollah
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini
Ruhollah Khomeini in Qom
Qom on 5 June 1963 when a general strike was announced. A cycle of Arba'een
Arba'een public observance of mourning rituals of martyred protestors — where an Arba'een
Arba'een observance was held to commemorate those killed in the preceding Arba'een
Arba'een protest demonstration — is often credited as part of the reason for the success of the 1979 Iranian Revolution that overthrew Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi,[27] although that explanation has also been questioned.[28] Arba'een
Arba'een in the Gregorian calendar[edit] While Arba'een
Arba'een is always on nearly the same day (20 or 21 Safar) of the Islamic calendar, the date on the Gregorian calendar
Gregorian calendar varies from year to year because of differences between the two calendars, since the Islamic calendar, the Hijri calendar (AH), is a lunar calendar and the Gregorian calendar
Gregorian calendar is a solar calendar. Furthermore, the method used to determine when each Islamic month begins varies from country to country (see Islamic calendar). Arba'een
Arba'een always falls 40 days after the Day of Ashura. The Day of Ashura, in turn, falls nine days after the first day of Muḥarram. Hence, Arba'een
Arba'een falls 49 days after the first day of Muḥarram. This date is shown for a selection of years, according to the Umm al-Qura Calendar of Saudi Arabia, in the table below:

Islamic year Saudi Arabia[29] Iraq

1435 23 December 2013

1436 13 December 2014

1437 2 December 2015

1438 20 November 2016

1439 9 November 2017 10 November 2017[30]

1440 30 October 2018

See also[edit]

List of largest peaceful gatherings in history List of casualties in Husayn's army at the Battle of Karbala

Iraq
Iraq portal Shia
Shia Islam portal Islam portal Ashura portal

Notes[edit]

^ Quran, 12:84 ^ From Shaykh as-Sadooq, al-Khisal; quoted in al-Ameen, A’yan, IV, 195. The same is quoted from Bin Shahraashoob’s Manaqib in Bih’ar al-Anwar, XLVI, 108; Cf. similar accounts, Ibid, pp. 108–10

v t e

Islamic holidays
Islamic holidays and observances

The two Eids

Eid al-Fitr Eid al-Adha

Other holidays and observances

Day of Arafah Day of Ashura Islamic New Year Arba'een1 Mawlid Lailat al Miraj Mid-Sha'ban Ramadan Laylat al-Qadr Eid al-Ghadir1 Mubahala1 Promised Messiah Day2 Promised Reformer Day2 Caliphate Day2

1 Shia
Shia Muslim only 2 Ahmadi Muslim only

References[edit]

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Karbala Middle East English". .voanews.com. 5 February 2010. Retrieved 30 June 2010.  ^ Hanun, Abdelamir (5 February 2010). "Blast in crowd kills 41 Shiite pilgrims in Iraq". News.smh.com.au. Retrieved 30 June 2010.  ^ http://rch.ac.ir/article/Details/10164 ^ جعفریان, رسول (2008). حیات فکری و سیاسی امامان شیعه علیهم السلام [Hayat fekri va siysi aemeh] (in Persian) (11th ed.). قم: موسسه انصاریان. p. 273.  ^ Sharif al-Qarashi, Bāqir (2000). The Life of Imām Zayn al-Abidin (as). Translated by Jāsim al-Rasheed. Iraq: Ansariyan Publications, n.d. Print.  ^ Imam
Imam Ali ibn al-Hussain (2009). Al-Saheefah Al-Sajjadiyyah Al-Kaamelah. Translated with an Introduction and annotation by Willian C. Chittick With a foreword by S. H. M. Jafri. Qum, The Islamic Republic of Iran: Ansariyan Publications.  ^ Vali Nasr, The Shia
Shia Revival. New York: Norton, 2006; pp 18–19. ^ Sims, Alexandra (24 November 2016). "Millions of Muslims take part in mass pilgrimage of Arbaeen – in spite of Isis". The Independent. Retrieved 21 December 2017.  ^ Fouladi Fard, Reza.; Mahvi, A.H.; Sadat Hosseini, S.; Khazaei, M. (2014). "Fluoride concentrations in bottled drinking water available in Najaf
Najaf and Karbala, Iraq" (PDF). Fluoride. 47 (3): 249–253.  ^ "http://www.distancefromto.net/between/Basra/Karbala".  External link in title= (help) ^ "mnf-iraq.com". mnf-iraq.com.  ^ "زيارة الاربعين: 18 مليون زائر ونجاح امني كبير". Al-Alam. Retrieved 4 January 2013.  ^ "Arba'een, an appointment for army of Imam
Imam Mahdi (a.s) on the rise". December 2014.  ^ a b Dearden, Lizzie (25 November 2014). "One of the world's biggest and most dangerous pilgrimages is underway". The Independent.  ^ "Car bomb in Iraq
Iraq kills at least 20 Shiite pilgrims". independent. 3 January 2013.  ^ "One of the world's biggest and most dangerous pilgrimages is underway". independent. 25 November 2014.  ^ "Arbaeen pilgrimage in Iraq: 17.5 million defy threat". SBS. 14 December 2014.  ^ " Shia
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