The Impact of Ashura-Related Traditions on the Expansion of Shiism in Iran (656 AH/1258-907 AH/1501)

It is significant to identify Ashura-related traditions among rulers as part of the elite class of the society in the important historical period from 656 AH/1258 (the year in which Baghdad and the Abbasid Caliphate collapsed) until 907 AH/1501 (the year in which the Safavid dynasty was established), in order to discover the extent to which such traditions had an impact on the growth and development of Shiism. For rulers had a greater impact on the propagation of Ashura-related traditions among people than other elites. Drawing upon historical texts written in this period as well as the notion of “ritual” as our conceptual framework, we can, in general, identify four traditions: “the belief in the priority of Husayni sadat (or the progeny of Imām al-Ḥusayn) for caliphate and government,” “the claim of vengeance on those who shed the blood of the family of the Prophet Muhammad,” “the tradition of waqf</em> (or endowment) in the name of the pure Imams,” and “pilgrimage of the mausoleums of the Imams by rulers.” Moreover, from the concomitance of these traditions, and their congruence, with cultural and social developments of the period—that is, the expansion of political and social activities of the Shi’as after the Mughal invasion, and the tendency of some rulers towards Shiism and Sufism—we can conclude the reasons for the acceleration of the growth and expansion of Shiims in the geographical, civilizational, and cultural limits of Iran. From this viewpoint, we can arrive at renewed knowledge of the social history and social lifestyles of Iranian Shi’as in their interactions with Ashura-related traditions of the rulers.