'IRAQ AND THE PERSIAN GULF' [‎222v] (449/862)

PEOPLE
328
In Iraq they can when they wish exercise great political influence
(p. 291).
The principal Shia shrines in Iraq are at Karbala and Najaf. The
reputed tomb of Ali is at Najaf, though the site of his death is in
the great mosque of Kufa. At Karbala there is the tomb of Husain
and other shrines connected with the battle of Karbala at which
Husain was killed (p. 240). Karbala and Najaf are full of theological
Students supported, with their wives and families, by very extensive
charitable funds (zvaqf) including the Oudh bequest, an Indian
foundation. No control is exerted over their studies to ensure atten
dance, and a man may remain a student at the madrasas for as long
as he wishes. Other holy places, the tombs of later Imams, are at
Kadhimain, and at Samarra there is the cave or well in which the
Twelfth Imam disappeared. These are described in the Gazetteer of
Towns, pp. 522 ff. The shrines have their custodian (kiliddar )—
a figure of some importance—chief attendant (sarkhidma), and lesser
attendants.
Pilgrimage to these shrines is a great feature of life in southern
Iraq and is reckoned very meritorious, being voluntary instead of
obligatory like the pilgrimage to Mecca. Pilgrims come from Persia,
Afghanistan, and India, and from the Shia regions of Syria, and there
is much local pilgrimage within Iraq. The visit to the shrines is
called ziyarat, and at the shrines the pilgrims secure rosaries, shrouds,
and tablets of sacred earth (turbo). At his daily prayers a Shia bows his'
head upon the turba instead of touching unconsecrated ground.
Pious Shias bury their dead in cemeteries adjoining the shrines men
tioned above, and thus secure the protection of the saints. There is a
constant traffic of coffin-caravans to the shrines, which gain a con
siderable revenue from this source.
The most notable festival of the Shia year is the mourning for
Husain during the first ten days of the month Moharram. Passion-
plays (taziyd) tell the story of his death, and troops of mourners
work themselves into a frenzy in which they flagellate themselves
with swords and chains until the blood flows. It is a time of great
excitement and outbursts of fanaticism may occur. To a certain extent
the processions are organized affairs in the less remote towns, and
wooden weapons are often substituted for swords, but there is a very
considerable element of genuine religious emotion among both
mourners and spectators.
Sunnis. Sunnis are so named from the Sunna or Traditions which
with the Koran they hold to be the final revelation of their religion.