Slideshow with on the spot sound recording
The month of Muharram is an important period of mourning in the Shi’a branch of Islam. The event marks the anniversary of the Battle of Karbala when Imam Husayn ibn Ali, a grandson of Muhammad the founder of Islam, and a Shi’a Imam, was killed. Many of the male participants congregate together in public for ceremonial chest beating as a display of their devotion to Imam Husayn and in remembrance of his suffering. In some Shi’a societies, such as Kashmir, some male participants incorprate knives or razors swung upon chains into their ceremony…
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