The first day of the year
The Hijri year begins with Muharram, one of the four sacred months of the Arabian calendar in which warfare was traditionally suspended — the name itself means "forbidden". The count of years starts from the Prophet's (s) migration from Makkah to Madinah in 622 CE; the calendar was formalised in the caliphate of Umar, when the Hijrah was chosen as year 1 and Muharram, already the first month of the Arab year, kept its place at the head of it.
A new year that opens in grief
For the followers of the Ahl al-Bayt (a) the first of Muharram is not a festival. It opens the ten days that lead to Ashura, the anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam Husayn (a) at Karbala in 61 AH. Mourning gatherings (majalis) begin on this night in husayniyyas and homes across the world, black cloth goes up over doorways and minbars, and the story of Karbala is retold night by night until the tenth.
What people do
Many recite a supplication for the new year and give charity; the majority of the community, however, mark the day by attending the first majlis of Muharram and beginning the decade of remembrance.
Written for Shia Online Community. Dates and facts are checked against the references listed under Research & books; where the tradition records more than one date, all are given.
