Muharram ceremonies in Pariaman, Indonesia

Sunday, December 12, 2010

My article on Muharram ceremonies in Pariaman was published in the online journal Inside Indonesia during the same week that Muslims all over the world observed this special occassion. The flow of visitors to Inside Indonesia that week was so high that the bandwidth was temporarily exceeded. If you are unable to access this article online, please visit my papers for a pdf copy of the cached version.

In 680AD, the grandchild of the Prophet Muhammad, Imam Hussein, died in the Karbala war (60AH). His death is observed with mourning, fasting, and every year Shiites stage a lachrymose festival on the tenth day of the first month of the Islamic lunar calendar, called Muharram.

At other times, Hussein’s ordeal has variously been remembered around the world by tragic and deviant acts of martyrdom. During Muharram, Hussein's story is enacted through boisterous parades associated with self-flagellation and sometimes riots and occasional violence. Along Sumatra’s west coast, however, the reliving of the suffering of Hussein in Karbala has become a yearly cultural manifestation that unites town-folk, promotes regional identity, and bolsters tourism and trade. The event is called Tabuik.

Surprisingly, the festival of Tabuik is found in a predominantly Sunni country. Tabuik finds its earliest origins, however, from tenth century Shiite traditions in Iran. Even more fascinating is that the tradition finds its earliest roots in pre-Islamic Persian legends with themes of redemptive sacrifice and the veneration of deceased heroes. There may even be connections to celebrations of the Ark of the Covenant, or a form of processional worship from the Torah celebrating the Tablets of Law onto which the Ten Commandments were inscribed.


If you want to learn more, please read my article featured in Inside Indonesia:
http://www.insideindonesia.org/stories/islamic-new-year-in-west-sumatra-09121378

My ethnographic footage available on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BECy1wggCTM

Frank Korom's book, Hosay Trinidad:
http://www.bu.edu/religion/faculty/bios/korom/

David Pinault's, Horse of Karbala:
http://us.macmillan.com/author/davidpinault

And, Margaret Kartomi's upcoming book Musical Journeys in Sumatra.