Muharram in the Quran and Sunnah
One of the four sacred months: The Quran (9:36) identifies four of the twelve months as sacred (hurum) — Dhul-Qa’da, Dhul-Hijja, Muharram, and Rajab. During sacred months, the shedding of blood is especially prohibited.
The Prophet on Muharram: “The best fast after Ramadan is the fast of Allah’s month, Muharram.” — Muslim
Ashura before Karbala: When the Prophet arrived in Medina, he found the Jews of Medina fasting on the tenth of Muharram. He asked why; they said it was the day Allah saved Musa and drowned Pharaoh, and they fast in gratitude. The Prophet said: “We have more right to Musa than you” — and fasted Ashura, later commanding Muslims to fast the ninth AND tenth (to distinguish from Jewish practice).
See also: Karbala, Ramadan Guide, Musa Pharaoh
Karbala and Ashura: The Historical Grief
On 10 Muharram 61 AH (10 October 680 CE), Imam Husayn ibn ‘Ali was killed at Karbala. With him were martyred his brothers, sons, nephews, and companions. The women and children — including the fourth Imam ‘Ali Zayn al-‘Abidin — were taken captive.
The grief of Ashura is not merely historical remembrance of a distant event. It is, in the Ismaili understanding, the grief that accompanies every generation’s witness of the Imam’s station being denied, attacked, or suppressed. Whenever the light of the Imam’s walayah is opposed by worldly power, Karbala is happening again.
See also: Karbala, Hasan Husayn, Zayn Al Abidin, Imamah, Wali Al Asr
Muharram Observance in the Dawoodi Bohra Community
The Dawoodi Bohra observance of Muharram is among the most distinctive features of Bohra religious life — differing significantly from both Sunni and Twelver Shi’i practice in its specific character.
The first ten nights: The Da’i al-Mutlaq or senior ‘ulama lead special majalis (gatherings) on each of the first ten nights of Muharram. These gatherings combine:
- Recitation of Quran
- Marsiya (elegies commemorating Karbala — sung in Arabic and Lisan al-Dawat)
- Nasiha (exhortation and spiritual instruction)
- The narration of the events of Karbala in sequence — day by day, night by night
The tone: Bohra Muharram gatherings are characterized by weeping (buka’) — which is not regarded as weakness but as spiritual sensitivity. The Prophet’s own weeping at the news of Husayn’s future martyrdom (narrated in hadith) is the model. The Imam of Weeping — Zayn al-‘Abidin — is the patron of this practice.
White dress: Contrary to some Shi’i communities’ practice of wearing black in mourning, Bohras traditionally wear white during Muharram gatherings — white being the color of purity and the Fatimid tradition.
Ashura day: On the tenth, the majlis reaches its culmination — the full narration of Imam Husayn’s martyrdom. The atmosphere is one of intense grief. After the majlis, special foods are prepared and shared — including khichda (a slow-cooked wheat and meat dish) which is historically associated with Muharram communal meals.
See also: Dai Al Mutlaq Institution, Majalis Al Hikmah, Understanding Walayah, Bayah And Walayah
The Ta’wil of Muharram
The Ismaili ta’wil transforms the historical event of Karbala into a living spiritual reality:
Husayn as the permanent Imam: Every generation’s Imam faces the choice that Husayn faced — to compromise walayah for worldly safety or to maintain it at all costs. The path of walayah always involves the willingness to sacrifice the nafs (self) for the divine’s truth.
The mourner’s participation: When a believer weeps for Imam Husayn, they are not merely feeling sympathy for a historical figure. They are recognizing, through the act of weeping, that they are complicit in the denial of the Imam’s status whenever they fail to honor walayah in their own lives. The grief of Muharram is simultaneously outward (for Husayn) and inward (self-reckoning).
Yazid as the nafs al-ammara: In ta’wil, Yazid represents the nafs al-ammara (the commanding self, the ego that drives toward evil) — the interior enemy that seeks to deny the Imam’s authority within the soul. The battle of Karbala is simultaneously exterior (historical) and interior (spiritual).
See also: Tawil Esoteric Interpretation, Nafs The Soul, Karbala, Imamah, Hasan Husayn, Zayn Al Abidin, Muhasaba
Fasting on Ashura
The Prophetic Sunna of fasting on Ashura (and the ninth of Muharram) remains a practice for Muslims:
The Hadith: “Fast the Day of Ashura, and differ from the Jews: fast a day before it or a day after it.” — Ahmad
The reward: Fasting Ashura is described as expiating sins of the previous year (Muslim).
How to fast: Fast the ninth and tenth (Tasu’a and Ashura), or the tenth and eleventh. The single tenth alone is also valid but the Prophet preferred the pair.
See also: Ramadan Guide, Five Pillars Of Islam, Sunnat Al Nabi, Sabr Patience
See also: Karbala, Hasan Husayn, Zayn Al Abidin, Imamah, Wali Al Asr, Tawil Esoteric Interpretation, Nafs The Soul, Dai Al Mutlaq Institution, Majalis Al Hikmah, Understanding Walayah, Bayah And Walayah, Ramadan Guide, Five Pillars Of Islam, Muhasaba, Sabr Patience