The tragedy of Ashura.
The tragedy of Ashura is little known in the West, though it has nothing to envy of the most heartfelt tales of heroism and sacrifice so familiar to us. The trope of the few against the many is, after all, a celebrated and beloved theme in both fiction and human history itself: three hundred Spartans against the Persian army, the campaigns of Alexander the Great, Saigo Takamori's revolt that inspired the famous film The last samurai, not to mention the European literature that The Song of Roland a The Lord of the Rings celebrates the heroism of sacrifice for a greater good, where life itself and individual existence are set aside for a purpose considered greater and more important. Each of the above events, and many more, represents A tribute to self-sacrifice, a celebration of the spirit of martyrdom, a recognition of the purest concept of heroism. And the martyrdom of Imam Husayn and his companions in Karbala represents the culmination and highest expression of all these dimensions.
The protagonist of the story, which has been defined here as a tragedy not in reference to the theatrical genre of Greek origin but in accordance with the The meaning Dante attributed to the word, or in recognition of the lofty nature of the subject, is Imam Husayn, son of Imam Ali and Lady Fatima, and grandson of the Prophet Muhammad. Surrounded by his seventy-two supporters, as well as elders, women, and children, he courageously faced the thirty-thousand-strong army of the usurping caliph Yazid to the last drop of blood. Ten days of siege, hunger, thirst, hardship, and pain led to the heroic and brutal martyrdom of these valiant warriors, driven, as has been said, not by personal or material goals, but by absolute, lofty, divine ideals and values such as the protection of the oppressed, the fight against oppressors, and the defense of pure religion. The scene that unfolded on the plains of Karbala on the 10th of the month of Muharram was a theater of death; Nonetheless, the martyred Imam's sister, Lady Zaynab, once said: "I have seen nothing but beauty." And this very beauty is the common thread that connects all the events, historical and literary, cited at the beginning of this article: the beauty of the struggle for an ideal, the beauty of renouncing one's own lowly existence in defense of divine values, the beauty of an ethic superior to any compromise. The beauty of the human being who has understood his role in this world, who has courageously reclaimed it, and who, obeying it, abandoning himself to it, sacrifices his life for something better.
Ashura is a constant warning for Shia Muslims, as for all humanity. Karbala is wherever the oppressed rebel against the oppressor, wherever the blood of martyrs is shed. “Every day is Ashura, every place is Karbala”, says a famous motto. And it is precisely this awareness that defines Iranian identity, today more than ever, in its confrontation with the oppressors of our time. The mourning celebration of Ashura is not limited to processions, weeping, elegies, and performances, but rather takes on the aspect of active and disruptive remembrance: just as Imam Hussein fought to the end against the tyrants of his time, so too the Islamic Republic of Iran has demonstrated and continues to demonstrate its full adherence to these teachings, courageously confronting two nuclear powers who, by waging an unprovoked and cruel war, have in turn revealed to the world their membership in the ranks of the cruelest of oppressors.
Like Imam Hussein at Karbala, Iran held its head high against a larger and better-armed enemy, refusing to abandon its principles and refusing to accept cowardly and humiliating compromises. As in the tragedy of Ashura, brave men and women, innocent children, and unarmed civilians were massacred by the murderous fury of the aggressors. NeverthelessThe Iranian people, strengthened by the teachings of Karbala, did not collapse. Instead, they raised a single, unified cry of resistance that shook the entire world, sending a clear message brimming with living hope: heroism does not exist only in the most fanciful tales or in the events of the past; it is still present today in the hearts of those who have put the teachings of the most courageous of men into practice and transformed the tears of mourning into an everlasting promise of fidelity to the Higher Good.
And all this, yesterday as today, is nothing but beauty.