(By a Native Artist.)
After this came four led horses, caparisoned in the richest manner. The fronts of their heads were ornamented with plates, entirely covered with diamonds, that emitted a thousand beautiful rays. Their bodies were dressed with shawls and gold stuffs; and on their saddles were placed some objects emblematical of the death of al-Ḥusain. When all these had passed, they arranged themselves in a row to the right of the King’s apartment.
After a short pause, a body of fierce-looking men, with only a loose white sheet thrown over their naked bodies, marched forwards. They were all begrimed with blood; and each brandishing a sword, they sang a sort of a hymn, the tones of which were very wild. These represented the sixty-two relations, or the Martyrs, as the Persians call them, who accompanied al-Ḥusain, and were slain in defending him. Close after them was led a white horse, covered with artificial wounds, with arrows stuck all about him, and caparisoned in black, representing the horse upon which al-Ḥusain was mounted when he was killed. A band of about fifty men, striking two pieces of wood together in their hands, completed the procession. They arranged themselves in rows before the King, and marshalled by a maître de ballet, who stood in the middle to regulate their movements, they performed a dance, clapping their hands in the best possible time. The maître de ballet all this time sang in recitative, to which the dancers joined at different intervals with loud shouts and reiterated clapping of their pieces of wood.
MUHARRAM STANDARDS.
HUSAIN’S HAND AND STANDARD.
The two processions were succeeded by the tragedians. Al-Ḥusain came forward, followed by his wives, sisters, and first relatives. They performed many long and tedious acts; but as our distance from the stage was too great to hear the many affecting things which they no doubt said to each other, we will proceed at once to where the unfortunate al-Ḥusain lay extended on the ground, ready to receive the death-stroke from a ruffian dressed in armour, who acted the part of executioner. At this moment a burst of lamentation issued from the multitude, and heavy sobs and real tears came from almost every one of those who were near enough to come under our inspection. The indignation of the populace wanted some object upon which to vent itself, and it fell upon those of the actors who had performed the part of Yazīd’s soldiers. No sooner was al-Ḥusain killed, than they were driven off the ground by a volley of stones, followed by shouts of abuse. We were informed that it is so difficult to procure performers to fill these characters, that on the present occasion a party of Russian prisoners were pressed into the army of Yazīd, and they made as speedy an exit after the catastrophe as it was in their power.
The scene terminated by the burning of Karbalāʾ. Several reed huts had been constructed behind the enclosure before mentioned, which of a sudden were set on fire. The tomb of al-Ḥusain was seen covered with black cloth, and upon it sat a figure disguised in a tiger’s skin, which was intended to represent the miraculous lion, recorded to have kept watch over his remains after he had been buried. The most extraordinary part of the whole exhibition was the representation of the dead bodies of the martyrs; who having been decapitated, were all placed in a row, each body with a head close to it. To effect this, several Persians buried themselves alive, leaving the head out just above ground; whilst others put their heads under ground, leaving out the body. The heads and bodies were placed in such relative positions to each other, as to make it appear that they had been severed. This is done by way of penance; but in hot weather, the violence of the exertion has been known to produce death. The whole ceremony was terminated by a k͟hut̤bah, or oration, in praise of al-Ḥusain. (Morier’s Second Journey through Persia.)
