...I'm a bit bored. I may have lots to do but I don't feel like doing any of the. It's raining & the sound of rain drops is combined with the loud voice of the mourning group that is going along our streets, these days streets are full of these groups that are most men & boys , the Marsh of mourning is played by a big drum & a special rhythm that makes a heavy atmosphere, but that's difficult to tolerate & sometimes the loud & not nice melody can makes you crazy.  ... So, although I love rain's sound but because of that other voice I have to close my window.

Anyway, I just want to write some things about Ashoora’s culture, & that's got  nothing with my beliefs, just as a matter of sharing info
about Iran's special customs...Actually ninth of Moharram is the day that Imam Hossein had a fatal journey in Kerbela with just 72 ones & had a war with Yazid with a big military, the history of religion says that Islam’s military (Imam Hossein’s) fought bravely & the next day that is called Ashoora, all of them & also Imam Hossein became martyred...So Shiites have their mourning rituals through Moharram specially in these two
days
& some days before, every area of the city has a special place that is for a
group of people, & this group that contains most men that hit themselves( not
very hard) by a kind of chain, go to streets, so the city is full of these
groups...each has a special metal thing called "Alam" & don't have any information about the history of philosophy of this big thing that has some materials & is carried by a strong man in front of the mourning group & also some ones play drum or trumpet & also someone sings religious songs , they have big kinds of speaker, so the voice is heard in the whole street….

 

they go through city all day & at the nigh time they come back to their places that they had started from, when they come they kill a sheep in public ( you know, this is one of Islamic acts & has its own rules) & cook dinner that is given to people freely…actually that is vowed; these days also many people vow & give different kinds of  food, drink, & some other things (shit, I just don’t know many words) for free.... After these days mourning, there is another ritual at the last night that I love the best, (at least that seems like a normal death ritual), that night that kinds of mornings are over & people just light candles & stand in streets respectfully. That’s a sad atmosphere, actually the night when Hossein was martyred & his family were as captives in the enemy’s places…

That’s all, although there are lots of more details that I didn’t mention; a sad & hard ritual, but valuable in culture that is made in hundreds of years in Iran. But you know, nowadays most of reasons or targets are not seen & I don’t think there are many people left who do these things because of Imam Hossein & their beliefs, in fact there is no belief left…

Anyways, the sad rituals are involved in Islam’s history & culture…I hope I could share just a piece of it with you. Here is also more formal note about these things, although I don't think there might be any of you who likes these kinds of things & the stuff...