Classic Iran with Ashura Festival

Today is Ashura ceremony which is the most important day of Muharram because on this day Imam Hussein and his family and 72 of his companions were slaughtered by the Umayyads in the Karbala desert on Yazid’s orders. Other surviving members of Imam Hussein’s family or followers (including women, children and elderly people) were taken captive. They were martyred in the name of justice and freedom, that’s why Imam Hussein is a symbol of resistance against tyranny. Today we will watch different activities such as Nakhl-Gardani, Rowzeh-Khani, Sineh-Zani. Overnight stay in Yazd.

• Nakhl gardani: One of the main features of Yazd Muharram ceremonies is “Nakhl gardani”, the act of carrying the Nakhl, a wooden structure used as a symbolic representation of the Imam’s coffin, from one place to another, resembling an Imam's uneral. It also has other decorations such as mirrors, fruits, decorative knots and silk clothes, which are tied at two sides of Nakhl. As they are very heavy, Nakhl is lifted by mourners and carried in circles. After the Nakhl-Gardani ritual, people continue mourning and listening to the religious sermons.
• Other ceremonies such as Rowzeh-Khani (religious sermon), Sineh-Zani (beating the chest as a sign of grief) and slaughtering cattle are held alongside Nakhl-Gardani. And azri food will be cooked for mourners. As is common within Islam, distributing free food o honor the sacrifice of others is a mainstay ritual of Ashura.
• We will also experience eating Nazri, The food is considered holy for anyone who eats it or makes it. In Muharram and in Ashura days, you can see people who line up to get Nazri foods. They do it because Nazri foods are Holy and amazingly delicious.
• Sham-e Ghariban: After the night prayers, they hold the Sham-e Ghariban (literally the night of the strangers) as candlelight vigil for the martyrs of Karbala. We will also light a candle.