Ashura, Afghanistan is one of the most popular Festivals of Afghanistan. Located approximately in the center of Asia, the landlocked country of Afghanistan is a land of Festivals. The Ashura, Afghanistan provides lot of opportunities to fit the tourists into the festival.
The word ‘ashura’ means simply ‘tenth’ in Arabic and hence the name of the remembrance, literally translated, means ‘the tenth day’. The Asura Festival, Afghanistan is celebrated on the 10th day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar and marks the climax of the Remembrance of Muharram. Ashura in Afghanistan is memorialized by the Shi‘a as a day of remembrance for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the prophet Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala on 10 Muharram in the year 61 AH. According to the belief of the Sunni Muslims, Moses fasted on that day to express gratefulness to God for liberation of Israelites from Egypt. As said by Sunni Muslim tradition, Muhammad fasted on this day and asked other people to fast.
Customs of Asura Festival
The commemoration of Ashura is rather a sad event for the Shi‘a, while on the other hand, Sunni Muslims observe it as a victory Allah has given to his prophet, Musa. For Shi’as, it is a time of intense grief. They congregate at a Mosque for mournful recitations such as marsiya, noha, latmiya and soaz performed in memory of the martyrdom of Hussein, lamenting to the tune of beating drums and chants of ‘Ya Hussain’. Ulamas give sermons with themes of Hussein’s personality and position in Islam and the history of his uprising. The Sheikh of the mosque retells the Battle of Karbala to allow the listeners to relive the pain and sorrow endured by Hussein and his family.
Apart from Ashura, Afghanistan, some other popular Festivals of Afghanistan are:
- Eid al Fitr
- Eid al Adha
- Independence Day (Jesham)
- Labour Day
- Mawleed al Nabi
- Nau Roz
- Ramadan
The festival of Ashura, Afghanistan enables tourists and travelers to reach an ideal destination at the end of a spiritual quest. Apart from visiting the chief Tourist Attractions in Afghanistan, you can take part in the beautiful festivals.
Online information on Ashura, Afghanistan is provided by travel.mapsofworld.
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