The first month of the Islamic calendar, Muharram holds great importance in Islamic history. Many incidents took place in this holy month of Muharram. Youm-e-Ashurah is the day of Ashurah and it falls on the tenth of Muharram. Youm-e-Ashurah has great significance in the history of Islam. It has a very deep impact on our lives too. This day is called Ashurah because Ashurah is a word that is derived from Asha Nura which means ‘enlightened day’. It is named so, because many important incidents have taken place on this day.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) has repeatedly explained the importance of Youm-e-Ashurah. Some of the very important and significant incidents that took place on Youm-e-Ahurah include the restoring of the health of Prophet Yousaf from leprosy, Allah spoke to Prophet Musa on this day, the release of Prophet Younas from the belly of a whale took place on Youm-e-Ashurah, Prophet Ibrahim was saved from the blazing fire that he was thrown into. Also, many other incidents like the downfall of Pharaohs and the restoration of the kingdom of Prophet Sulaiman also took place on Youm-e-Ashurah.
The most significant and tragic incident in the Islamic history also took place on Youm-e-Ashurah and that is the sad martyrdom of the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) beloved grandson Sayyidina Imam Hussain. This incident holds great importance in the life of Muslims. The tragic incident that took place on the tenth of Muharram in Karbala took the lives of many Muslims and Hazarat Imam Hussain got the honor of getting martyred.
The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) also used to fast on the tenth of Muharram that is Youm-e-Ashurah. He (peace be upon him) emphasized on the importance of fasting on this day. He (peace be upon him) also told the Muslims to fast on ninth and tenth of Muharram. Fasting on Youm-e-Ashurah has great blessings and importance. However, the fasting on this day is considered voluntary but not farz. Doing good deeds like feeding the hungry, providing the needy, applying kohl to the eyes and looking after and visiting a sick person on Youm-e-Ashurah is considered to be very good and full of rewards from Allah.
The whole Muslim world expresses great grief on Youm-e-Ashurah regarding the martyrdom of Sayyidina Imam Hussain. The Shia community holds different majalis in order to grieve this sad incident. On Youm-e-Ashurah, two holidays are observed on the ninth and tenth of Muharram. The respect of Muharram and Youm-e-Ashurah can be seen all over the Muslim world. Youm-e-Ashurah is indeed a very sad day in the history of Islam and is grieved all over.
