From the First Memories of the Marching Ceremony to Karbala
Compiled by: Faezeh Sasanikhah
Translated by: Fazel Shirzad
2022-9-20
One of the very interest and heartwarming memories I have from my stay in Najaf was participating in the marching ceremony from Najaf to Karbala. In addition to professors, scholars, and students, usually, the authority on matters of religion also participated in this ceremony. Walking on occasions like Ashura, and Arbaeen, the presence of the late Grand Ayatollah Shahroudi was more noticeable and remarkable. They left Najaf on foot and headed towards Karbala, the others joined them. Some gentlemen used to come back in vehicles, but Mr. Shahroudi always returned on foot.
I also had the opportunity to participate in this very spiritual ceremony several times. I often visited with my students. The route between Najaf and Karbala, which is about 60 Km, was usually traveled for two or three days. Some people, like Mr. Sheikh Hadi Zabali, who studied with me, had a special taste. Mr. Zabeli used to travel this distance in one day and return in one day. After the ceremony, some of them would go to Kazmin and Samarra from Karbala, and some of them would return to Najaf from there.
Interestingly, in the middle of the road, Arab nomads who had the Shiite religion were living. They welcomed the pilgrims of Imam Hussain (PBUH) and students and nobles in a good way. They did not make any difference between people and treated everyone equally. At lunch and dinner time, they would welcome the gentlemen inside the big tents that served as the reception hall and take them to their tents for a party with requests and wishes. With all the propaganda that was done in Najaf and other cities against the clergy and the synagogues, the minds of these nomads were free from all these rumors. They had a strange belief in the clergy and Hosseini pilgrims. Sometimes it was observed that they collected the soil from the students' feet from their shoes and took it for medical treatment. These nomads were not in a favorable economic situation. Next to the Euphrates, each of them cultivated a small amount of rice, and their food was mostly rice and yogurt, and they did not have any other stews. Despite all this, they were very generous towards Hosseini pilgrims and seminary students and did not harass them for anything.[i]
[i]Source: Memoirs of Ayatollah Muslim Malkouti, translated by Abdul Karim Abazari, Tehran, Islamic Revolution Documentation Center, 1385, p. 174.
Number of Visits: 3582
The latest
- 100 Questions/ 30
- The Story of a Street Classroom
- Validation: Challenges and Necessities
- Memories of Mr. Jalal Setareh
- Third Regiment: Memoirs of an Iraqi Prisoner of War Doctor – 30
- 100 Questions/ 29
- Theory One: “The Structural Duality of Opportunity–Threat in the Government’s Entry into Oral History”
- The 373rd Night of Memories – Part 7
Most visited
- Theory One: “The Structural Duality of Opportunity–Threat in the Government’s Entry into Oral History”
- The 373rd Night of Memories – Part 7
- From Revolutionary Circles to the Military Arm of the Islamic Government
- Third Regiment: Memoirs of an Iraqi Prisoner of War Doctor – 29
- 100 Questions/ 29
- Third Regiment: Memoirs of an Iraqi Prisoner of War Doctor – 30
- Memories of Mr. Jalal Setareh
- Validation: Challenges and Necessities
Photo Album from The Doctor of fly
The Doctor of fly, authored by Fatemeh Dehghan Niri, presents the memoirs of Dr. Mohammad-Taqi Khorsandi Ashtiani, Professor Emeritus and a subspecialist in Otolaryngology at Tehran University of Medical Sciences. Compiled within the framework of oral history, the work recounts different stages of his life—from childhood and years of ...The Beating Pulse of a Nation at the Moment of Nowruz
Every year, in the days and nights leading up to Nowruz, Shohada Square had a special charm. A few days before the New Year, the shops would fill with customers, and street vendors would take over the sidewalks. You could find everything in their stalls (from items for the Haft Sin table, candles, goldfish, and spring flowers to clothes, bags, and shoes).The Editor's Missing Place on the “Deck”
The book From Deck to Heaven offers a relatively fresh approach to examining the role of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army Navy (AJA) during the eight years of the Sacred Defense, published under the “Oral History of the Islamic Revolution” series. To compile this book, the esteemed author has utilized documentary research (referring to relevant archival centers and selecting documents) and field research ...An Exceptional Haft‑Seen Table
I wanted to celebrate the new year with my family. Together with two relief workers I boarded buses designated for transporting the wounded to Choubideh and received our mission orders. We waited for a helicopter to take us to Bandar Imam Khomeini. I was stationed near the helicopter’s touchdown zone and was slight in build. As the helicopter was about to land, I could not steady myself; the breeze generated by the rotor blades lifted me off the ground.
