Biggest ‘aag ka maatam’ in Pakistan arranged in Hyderabad on Muharram 9

The mourners are willing to endure blisters and boils in order to complete the ritual.

HYDERABAD: To mourn the martyrdom of Hazrat Imam Hussain (RA) and his companions, some people undertake to walk across a red-hot path of fire, while others make a quick dash across it.

This ritual of walking through fire (‘aag ka matam’) has existed for centuries and has been organised in the Tando Jahanian area of Hyderabad on the occasion of Muharram for the past 39 years. The fire trail is a 15-feet long, three-feet deep and three-feet wide ditch which contains cinders of over four tonnes of wood which has been burnt for about 20 hours. The walk begins at 12:30 am on Muharram 9.

“It is one of the ways in which we can remember and mourn the martyrdom,” said the organiser, Syed Athar Hussain. “For some people, the walk symbolises the long and painful journey of Imam Hussain’s (RA) family from Karbala to Damascus.”

The ritual, which is a feature in many cultures and religions, is centuries old. According to religious scholar Allama Yawar Ali Shah, the Shias adopted it a few centuries ago in Burma, which is now known as Myanmar. The ritual was later brought to Lucknow in India, before it spread to other parts of the subcontinent.

In Muharram, the ritual is organised in many different places in Pakistan. But the one in Tando Jahanian is the biggest in terms of attendance. Given the security concerns, DIG Hyderabad, Sanaullah Abbasi, along with officials from other law enforcement agencies, was present to monitor the security this year.

The Anjuman Safina Ahle Bait organises the event. One of its members, Syed Azam Ali Shah, said that more than 27,000 people attended the event last year. “However, about twice as many people could not attend as the police install only one walk-through gate every year. We have requested them to install at least three gates to allow more people to attend,” he said.

A three-tier security plan is implemented every year. The area that lies within half a kilometre from the place of the ritual is closed to vehicles and people are only allowed to pass through after stringent body searches.

Mourning

The ritual begins with chest beating accompanied by resounding chants of ‘Ya Hussain’ (RA) to raise the spirits of the participants. After this has gone on for several minutes, a group of seven ‘alamdars’ (standard bearers) traverses through the fiery path. They move slowly to show the onlookers that the fire will not hurt the faithful. Over the next 20 minutes, hundreds, of people walk through the burning path. Some people do get hurt in the process and develop painful sores on their feet.

Qasim Laghari, who has taken part in the ritual for many years, said that the sensation of burning is common and some people also develop lesions and boils. “We have even seen instances of people falling face-first into the burning cinder. This happens when they try to walk slowly but others behind them get restless and push them aside,” he said. Yet, these incidents do not deter most of the mourners from participating in the ritual, Laghari added.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 6^th, 2011.