The Women of Karbala: Ritual Performance and Symbolic Discourses in Modern Shi'i Islam

Commemorating the Battle of Karbala, in which the Prophet Mohammad's grandson Hosayn and seventy-two of his family members and supporters were martyred in 680 CE, is the central religious observance of Shi'i Islam. Though much has been written about the rituals that reenact and venerate Karbala, until now no one has studied women's participation in these observances. This collection of original essays by a multidisciplinary team of scholars analyzes the diverse roles that women have played in the Karbala rituals, as well as the varied ways in which gender-coded symbols have been used within religious and political discourses. The contributors to this volume consider women as participants in and observers of the Karbala rituals in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, India, Pakistan, and the United States. They find that women's experiences in the Shi'i rituals vary considerably from one community to another, based on regional customs, personal preferences, religious interpretations, popular culture, and socioeconomic background. The authors also examine the gender symbolism within the rituals, showing how it reinforces distinctions between the genders while it also highlights the centrality of women to the symbolic repertory of Shi'ism. Overall, the authors conclude that while Shi'i rituals and symbols have in some ways been used to restrict women's social roles, in other ways they have served to provide women with a sense of independence and empowerment.

Author: Kamran Scot Aghaie
Publisher: University of Texas Press
Published: 12/01/2005
Pages: 309
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 1.27lbs
Size: 9.02h x 6.64w x 0.81d
ISBN: 9780292709591

Review Citation(s):
Choice 11/01/2006 pg. 499

About the Author
KAMRAN SCOT AGHAIE is Associate Professor of Islamic and Iranian History at the University of Texas at Austin.