Ashura- A Day of Gratitude or Mourning?

Ashura- A Day of Gratitude or Mourning?

Come Muharram and our newspapers are filled with images of decorated street processions and young men wailing on the streets and flogging themselves to mourn the martyrdom of Imam Hussainؓ  and his family (May Allah be pleased with them). Discourses are held at every other street corner- by Shias and Sunnis both- in the first ten days of Muharram (recollecting the day-to-day account of the battle that took place at Karbala 1400 years back) ostensibly as a mark of piety and devotion. Juma sermons touch upon the fateful events of Karbala and the entire period is marked with mourning and covered with a sense of melancholy and grief. Though Shia Muslims held fort in this regard till the last many centuries, Sunni Muslims are also now catching up and erecting Sabeels of water and arranging huge programs every year now.

The point I want to make is that Ashura (the 10^th of Muharram), which was originally meant to commemorate the exodus of the Children of Israel from the clutches of the tyrant Egyptian Pharaoh some 3500 years back is now gaining popularity as the death anniversary of the members of the family of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ on the battlefield of Karbala. Thus, a day which was supposed to be marked with gratitude is now being marked with sorrow. We now live in an age where the youth is not even aware of the true significance of Ashura!

True Significance of Ashura:

It is reported in the compilations of Imam Bukhari and Imam Muslim via Hazrat Abdullah ibn Abbasؓ  that when Prophet Muhammad ﷺ settled in Madinah after his migration from Makkah, he noticed that the Jews of Madinah observed a fast on Ashura. He enquired about its significance and was told that: ‘This is a very prestigious day for us as it was on this day that Allah liberated Prophet Musaؑ  and his followers and drowned the Pharaoh and his army. Prophet Musa observed a fast on this day as a mark of gratitude to Allah, so following him, we also fast this day.’ The Prophet ﷺ said that our association with Prophet Musa is more than what it is with you and thus we are better placed to observe this fast. Thereafter, the Prophet ﷺ observed a fast this day himself and instructed the ummat to fast on this day.

However, in order to differentiate ourselves from the Jews, it is recommended that we fast on two days- either the 9^th and 10^th or the 10^th and 11^th.

In this regard, we again have a Hadees by Imam Muslim where Hazrat Abdullah ibn Abbasؓ  says that the Prophet ﷺ himself began observing this fast and also instructed the Sahaba to do the same. Some Sahaba told him, ‘O Prophet, this day is observed by the Jews and Christians as a big day.’ So the Prophet ﷺ replied that from next year onwards, we would, inshaAllah, fast on the 9^th day as well (so as to avoid similarity with the People of the Book). Hazrat Abdullah ibn Abbasؓ  recounts that ‘However, the Prophet passed away before the next year’s Ashura.’

It is quite clear from the above mentioned narrations that the fast of Ashura was:

1. Observed since the time of the Prophet ﷺ and his Sahabaؓ , decades before the martyrdom of Imam Hussainؓ .

2. It was observed as a mark of gratitude.

3. It has its significance attached with the Exodus of Prophet Musaؑ  and the Children of Israel from Egypt.

Should Martyrdom be mourned?

Since martyrdom is a matter of great prestige and honour, the question arises whether it is right to mourn someone’s martyrdom? Also, the Qur’an tells us that martyrs are not dead. So why should someone mourn a person who is not to be categorized as dead, but indeed very much alive?

Of the many ayaat in the Qur’an that speak of martyrs, a passage from Surah Al-e-Imran (169-171) has been quoted below:

“And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision,

Rejoicing in what Allah has bestowed upon them of His bounty, and they receive good tidings about those (to be martyred) after them who have not yet joined them- that there will be no fear concerning them, nor will they grieve.

They receive good tidings of favour from Allah and bounty and (of the fact) that Allah does not allow the reward of believers to be lost.”

Readers are advised to also go through Surah Al-Baqarah ayat 154, Surah Al-e-Imran ayaat 157-158 and Surah Al-Hajj ayaat 58-59 to get a gist of the matter.

Permitted period of Mourning:

Another aspect of mourning the dead is the time period prescribed, which is only 3 days. It has been recorded in a Hadees by Imam Tirmizi that the Prophet ﷺ said that ‘It is not permitted for a Believer to mourn anyone for more than three days, except for a widow whose mourning period is four months and ten days….’

It is also recorded that four days after the passing away of the brother of Hazrat Zainabؓ  bint Jahsh (May Allah be pleased with her) some women visited her. She applied perfume in front of them and said that ‘I have no need of any perfume at this hour. I have applied this perfume only because I have heard the Prophet ﷺ saying that it is not permitted for any Muslim lady to mourn any relative of hers for more than three days, except for her husband.’

These Ahadees question the practice of mourning the death of the victims of Karbala since the past fourteen centuries!

Etiquettes of mourning the dead:

Islam lays down certain etiquettes when it comes to mourn the deceased, quite contrary to what is usually observed in Muharram processions.

It is reported by Imam Tirmizi that the Prophet ﷺ said that ‘The one who tears his collar, beats his cheeks and wails and cries like in the days of Ignorance is not from my ummat.’

It is also reported by Imam Bukhari that upon the martyrdom of Hazrat Jaafarؓ  the ladies of his house started wailing and crying. The Prophet ﷺ asked someone to stop them from doing so. But when the ladies did not relent upon repeated admonishments, the Prophet ﷺ ordered that their mouths be filled with mud.

Practice of mourning in the history of the Ummah:

Throughout the 1450 years of this Ummat’s history we never come across a single person being publicly mourned for so long, no matter how high his stature. Many of the Prophet’s companions were martyred or passed away but they were never mourned as such. Even the passing away of the Best of Creations and the Pride of Humanity ﷺ has never been mourned in this manner.

Conclusion:

Call it false propaganda, call it ignorance or call it whatever you may, the plain truth is that the Day of Ashura is actually a Day of Thanksgiving, a Day of Gratitude which is observed to commemorate the immense favours of Allah on his servants, the ummat-ul-Muslimeen of that time.

Call it bidat, call it shirk or call it whatever you may, attaching the significance of Ashura with the fateful events of Karbala instead of attaching it with what the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and his Sahabaؓ  attached it to is not at all acceptable and the way in which the respected martyrs are mourned is also against the precepts of Islam.

-Dr. Parvez Mandviwala