'Military report on Tehran and adjacent Provinces of North-West Persia (including the Caspian Littoral)' [‎108r] (220/610)

Other persons with religious functions are the strolling Taziyehkham,
players (taziyehkhan), and reciters of the history of the Imams rauzehkhftni.
'(rauzehkhan).
‘ Tazlyehkha.nl ’ or Passion Play, is a representation of
events in the lives of the Imams and prophets but especially
of Imam Husain and his family.
It is performed in the religious theatres “ Taklyeh ”, found
in all towns and most villages, before emotional audiences who
are stirred to extreme religious enthusiasm, especially during
the month of Muharram.
4 RauzehkhanI ’ is a recitation of these events made in the
masjids and to gatherings in private houses. Under the guise
of “ Rauzehkhani ” meetings are often held for the furtherance
of political propaganda, especially against the Anglo-Persian
agreement of 1919.
Great significance is attached to pilgrimages as a means Pilgrimages.
■of salvation.
The places of pilgrimage, in order of sanctity are :—
1. Mecca.
2. *Kerbela, the tomb of Husain, and
Najaf, the tomb of Ali.
3. Meshed, the tomb of Riza, the eighth Imam.
4. Qum, the tomb of Fatima-i-Ma’asum, sister of Imam
Riza, daughter of Musa the 7th Imam.
Pilgrims to the first three earn the titles of Haji, Kerbelal,
and Meshedi respectively. Pilgrimage may be made by proxy.
The souls of those buried in these sacred precincts are
believed to gain the assistance of the saint to prompt them when
interrogated by the angles Nakir and Munkir on the night after
interment concerning the Imams and the principles of Islam,
and to escape the risk of failure to answer these questions
which involves chastisement by these angels until the day of
resurrection.
The Safavi dynasty, established by Shah Isma il in 1499 Relation of
and overthrown by Afghan invaders in 1722, claimed descent jfiefarchy to
from the Imams and were acknowledged as the religious as well temporal
as the temporal leaders of Persia, but subsequent dynasties, government *
set up by soldiers of fortune, were theoretically usurping and
had no claim to such religious leadership.
* Kerbela means “ sorrowful calamity