Muḥarram is the first month of the Islamic calendar. The general meaning of the adjective muharram means "banned, barred, forbidden, illegal, illicit, impermissible, prohibited, unlawful, unauthorised, unpermitted". It is one of the four sacred months of the year during which warfare is forbidden. It is held to be the second holiest month, after Ramaḍān. The Tenth day of Muharram is known as the Day of Ashura. Sometimes, as part of the Mourning of Muharram, Shia Muslims practice partial fasting, and Sunni Muslims practice fasting on Ashura. Shia Muslims mourn the martyrdom of Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī and his family, honouring the martyrs by prayer and abstinence from joyous events. Shia Muslims do not fast on the 10th of Muharram, but some will not eat or drink until Zawal to show their sympathy with Husayn. In addition there is an important ziyarat book, the Ziyarat Ashura about Husayn ibn Ali. In the Shia sect, it is popular to read this ziyarat on this date.
Muharram and Ashura
The sighting of the new moon ushers in the Islamic New Year. The first month, Muharram, is one of the four sacred months mentioned in the Quran, along with the seventh month of Rajab, and the eleventh and twelfth months of Dhu al-Qi'dah and Dhu al-Hijjah, respectively, immediately preceding Muharram. During these sacred months, warfare is forbidden. Before the advent of Islam, the Quraish and Arabs also forbade warfare during those months.
Muharram and Ashura to the Shia
Muharram is a month of remembrance and modern Shia meditation that is often considered synonymous with Ashura. Ashura, which literally means the "Tenth" in Arabic, refers to the tenth day of Muharram. It is well-known because of historical significance and mourning for the murder of Ḥusayn ibn Ali, the grandson of Muhammad. Shia's begin mourning from the first night of Muharram and continue for ten nights, climaxing on the 10th of Muharram, known as the Day of Ashura. The last few days up until and including the Day of Ashura are the most important because these were the days in which Husayn and his family and followers were deprived of water from the 7th onward and on the 10th, Husayn and 72 of his followers were killed by the army of unjust terrorist ruler Yazid I at the Battle of Karbala on Yazid's unjust orders. The surviving members of Husayn’s family and those of his followers were taken captive, marched to Damascus, and imprisoned there.
Timing for Muharram
The Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar, and months begin when the first crescent of a new moon is sighted. Since the Islamic lunar calendar year is 10 to 11 days shorter than the solar year, Muharram migrates throughout the solar years. The estimated start and end dates for Muharram are as follows :
10 Muharram: Referred to as the Day of Ashurah, the day on which Husayn ibn Ali was martyred in the Battle of Karbala. Shia Muslims spend the day in mourning, while Sunni Muslims fast on this day, commemorating the rescue of the people of Israel by Musa from Pharaoh. Sunni Muslims also mourn for the martyrs of Karbala. Many Sufi Muslims fast for the same reason as the Sunnis mentioned above, but also for the martyred dead in Karbala.
