History of Azadari in Indian Sub-Continent

History of Azadari in Indian Sub-Continent

By Dr. Mazhar Naqvi

The history of Azadari (Mourning for the Martyrs of Karbala)) in the Indian subcontinent, comprising mainly three countries, namely India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, dates back to the arrival Arabs in Sindh. The first conqueror of Sindh (now a province of Pakistan), Haris bin Mar’at al-Abdi, and his companions had brought love of Ahle-E-Bait with them. During the reign of Hazrat Ali, Shansab, a ruler of Sindh embraced Islam and was allowed to continue as a ruler of his kingdom located in the western part of the subcontinent in the name of the Caliph. Thus, Shansab was the first ruler to receive a degree to rule from a caliph of the Holy Prophet. His descendants constituted the first loyalists of Hazrat Ali and they continued to bear allegiance to Hazrat Ali long after he had died and the Umayyad had taken over the caliphate.

It is also a popular belief that a Sindhi woman had been married to Imam Zainul Abdeen, who mothered his martyr son, Zaid. Due to affinity with Sindh , many of Hazrat Ali’s loyalists  took refuge in Sindh during  the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates whenever they resorted to ruthless persecution of Imam Ali’s devotees.Those who made Sindh their home included Abdullah al-Ashtar al-Hussaini (Abdullah Shah Ghazi, buried Karachi), who came to Sindh after his father Muhammad al-Nafs was martyred. He later traveled to Kandahar with Isa bin Abdullah bin Mas’ada. During the regime of  the first Abbasid caliph, Mansur, Qasim bin Ibrahim Hasni also sought refuge in Sindh, and later shifted to Khan Garh, near Multan. Several i scholars went to seek knowledge from the seminary of Imam Jafar al-Sadiq, namely  Faraj Sindhi, Khulad Sindhi Bazaz, Aban bin Mohammed Sindhi, Sabah bin Nasr Hindi, etc. 

No doubt Sindh played host to the loyalists of the Ahle-E-Bait and some early traditions of Muharram rituals can be traced back to the province but  Azadari flourished in the sub- continent as a mass movement only after the formation of the Deccan states of Bijapur and Golkonda. The Qutub Shahs who ruled most parts of Deccan from 1510 till 1687 A.D. observed Muharram ceremonies with great reverence and strived to popularize azadari among all sections of the society. Muharram was observed in almost all the villages of the Qutub Shahi Empire, with the same spirit of piety and enthusiasm. According to the accounts that have come down to us as a legacy, the Hindus of Gugodu village observed Muharram every year. It was the only occasion on which the people of all castes were allowed to participate and the caste differences so rigid among them were forgotten. They called it Deen Govind. The babies born during the Muharram were Husain Rao etc. The Qutub Shahs did not impose any restriction over the diversified ways of observing Muharram rituals. They knew that neither the non-Muslims could be brought into the mosque  nor Muslims could participate in the prayers inside the temple. They established  Ashur Khanas( Imambaras) so as to enable all people to participate in the ceremonies according to their own ways. The Alams in the Ashur Khanas were made sacred not only to the Muslims but to all the people of all the religions. It was because of this that the non-Muslims, who did not believe in Islam, also paid their homage to the martyrs of Karbala. As a sequel to the liberal approach of Qutub Shahi kings, there is hardly any city, town, village of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, where the ‘Alams’(Standards) are not installed . Muharram still is held as a pious ceremony not only by Muslims but other communities as well in the twin states.

Azadari also touched other parts of the sub- continent with same fervor, speed and popularity  later. The Nawabs of Awadh, the Talpur Mirs of Sindh, the rulers of Bengal and Haider Ali and Sultan Tipu’s family of Mysore took it to new heights. Punjab also did not lag behind and Azadari began in the province with the arrival of the Syeds .A noble Rajab Ali Khan gave a fillip to it further. In Kathiawar and the Rann of Kutch, members of the Khoja community not only promoted Azadari in their own region but also took Muharram rituals to far off places like Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Oman, Hong Kong, Aden and elsewhere as traders. Similarly, wandering mystics, known as qalandars and haiderees, took the Muharram traditions and rituals with them wherever they went. They brought them to the subcontinent from Turkey. Initially, at Sehwan in Sindh, qalandari centers were established. The first centers of the azadari were the mosques and the military camps. In North India, historical accounts indicate that azadari began in all earnest in the 13^th century. Noor Turk, an Ismaili , preached about Karbala in Delhi by the time of Mohammed Tughlaq, when Muharram came to be celebrated widely and on a popular scale. This gave way to the raising of the alams(standard) and the tradition on the rallies. In Lataef-e-Ashrafi, it is narrated that Syed Sahib and his associates used to carry a water bag made from hide in their area during the mourning days of Muharram. They did not wear good clothes or attend any functions in Muharram. Thus, they continued to observe Ashura with solemnity for 30 years, sitting under an alam (standard) at the mosque of Jaunpur.

Besides Sindh, azadari is performed at a large scale in Pakistan. Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Quetta and Multan are considered as prominent centers of azadari. In some areas Punjab and North- West frontier, Muharram ceremonies are performed on the pattern of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Even the sectarian violence has not dampened the spirit of devotees and they prefer to die instead of complying with the directive of fanatics to stop Muharram rituals. Pakistan has produced some of the most distinguished marsiya writers, nauhakhwans and Zakir-e Ahle Bait.  

The taziadari, one of the most prominent features of azadari (mourning), is believed to have started from the time of Amir Taimur. According to Hollister ‘the custom of carrying these models of Hussain’s tomb is said to date from the time of Timur (d. 808 AH/1405 AD), who brought such a miniature tomb back from Karbala, later called the tazia.’ Scholars agree on the origin of the tazia rituals in India, but differ on whether Taimur had the zarih (the miniature model) built on order, or had it brought from Karbala. Hollister does not mention the exact date when Taimur started the rituals. However, Shahid Naqvi, a poet and a lawyer by profession, has mentioned in his book that ‘Taimur set out the tradition of taziadari in 1400 AD/803 AH’ However, according to the autobiography of Taimur (translated by Marcel Breaven), ‘it was the month of Muharram (801 AH/1398 AD), when Taimur finally attacked the fort of Meerut in India.’ Naqvi defines the purpose of introducing taziadari rituals during Taimur’s invasion as: ‘some of the  soldiers of Taimur’s army requested him to allow them to visit Karbala when the war was on’. Taimur was unable to grant them permission  in the wake of ongoing war. Ultimately he found the solution to the problem and ordered the building of a tazia( a miniature model of Imam Husain’s  mausoleum. Later, tazias of monumental proportions ( Chiniot and Jhang In Pakistan) evolved from this miniature model  and they are carried out in processions with traditional fervor on Yam- E- Ashura throughout the sub- continent.

Muharram has been observed since 10th century in Bengal. In Bangladesh, a large procession is brought out from the Husaini Dalan Imambara in Dhaka on 10th Muharram. Muharram ceremonies are also held elsewhere in the country. Husaini Dalan  is a big two-storied building, constructed by Mir Murad in 1642  for the observance of Muharram.Horses and elephants are also used in the processions. The tenth day of the month of Muharram (Ashura) is a national holiday in Bangladesh.

Muharram is also observed in Nepal. On the tenth day of Muharram, the Tazias, also called Dahas are taken around town in procession with mourners beating their chests and shouting ‘Ya Husain, Ya Husain’ in the Muslims dominated areas.. In the evening, the Tazias are buried. In these ceremonies Muslims and Hindus participate enthusiastically. Muslims are a minority in Nepal, and comprise between eight and ten percent of the population. ( Author is a Kanpur –Based Heritage Management Expert with deep interest in Islamic traditions and culture. In view of ongoing Muharram , he is contributing articles on different shades of  Muharram in Indian Sub- Continent)