Moharram is known as a month of azadari, or mourning the martyrdom of Hazrat Imam Hussain, Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, in Karbala. The month also witnesses one of the oldest processions of the city. But, given the pandemic, a lot has changed.
For instance, for over a century the Hussaini Kothi palace in the Old City has been home to the annual Moharram majlis (congregational remembrance meeting), an inalienable occurrence of the month.
As per decades of tradition, a Shia Muslim scholar from Uttar Pradesh used to be invited to the majlis, who then spoke of the martyrdom of Hazrat Imam Hussain, and of the importance of prevalence of justice and a just society. But this year was different. The majlis, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, went online.
Syed Mohammed Muzaffar Khan, a descendant of Shamsheer Jung-II, a nobleman from the erstwhile Hyderabad State, who now organises this majlis in Hussaini Kothi palace, says that Maulana Syed Mohammed Aqeel from Banaras in Uttar Pradesh and his family have been speaking at the majlis for many years. Since they did not want to break this tradition, they preferred moving it online.
“Maulanas from UP have been coming to Hussaini Kothi for over 60 years. Maulana Syed Mohammed Aqeel’s family has been here coming for 28 years. But due to the pandemic, we thought it best to have this particular majlis online. The Maulana addresses us from UP. Majlis happens from the 1st of Moharram to the 9th. Then, since the 10th of Moharram is the Ashoora, there is a day’s break. Then we have the majlis on the 11th and 12th,” he said, adding that the maulana’s lecture was streamed on YouTube and Zoom.
Similarly, the historic Badshahi Ashoorkhana, one of the oldest Shia places of mourning, witnessed a change. According to its mutawalli Syed Abbas Moosvi, given the pandemic, the ashoorkhana was accessible to the public round-the-clock. “This was done so that there would be no crowding. Generally, there is a rush in the evening. But since the ashoorkhana was open throughout the day and night, the public arriving here was distributed across a span of several hours. We ensured that precautionary measures such as social distancing was maintained. Sanitisers and masks were also made available,” he said. Mr Moosvi observed that a large number of people were seen engaged in azadari at homes as well.
Syed Mounis Jafar Abidi, a lawyer, observed that doure ki majlis (moving remembrance meeting) became more frequent. This majlis travels from house to house in the neighbourhood, and the meeting lasts for around 10 minutes.