Though some Muslim scholars believe the dramatic practice is permissible, others within Islam object to it and say it damages relations between the two sects. Some Shiite Muslims participate in mourning marches that day others also engage in self-flagellation using their hands, chains, or even blades as a way of memorializing al-Hussein’s suffering. death of Muhammad’s grandson, Husayn Ibn Ali al-Hussein, during a battle that set the stage for a schism between Shia and Sunni Muslims.Īs the month begins, Shiite Muslims observe 10 days of mourning, culminating in Ashura on the 10th day to mourn the death of al-Hussein. These differences can be traced back to the 680 C.E. However, Islam’s two major religious sects observe the first month of the year differently. The Quran forbids warfare or fighting during Muharram and three other sacred months Muslims around the world commemorate the entire month of Muharram with prayer and family time. In Arabic, the word muharram means forbidden-a hint at the month’s meaning. Though the Hijrī calendar has a distinct starting point, the days and times its months begin can vary by region because it relies on the first sighting of the new crescent moon. That migration, also known as Hijrah, was an attempt to escape religious persecution, and the date is widely seen as the beginning of Islam both as an organized religion and political institution. during which the Prophet Muhammad and his followers are said to have migrated in secret from Mecca, the city in Saudi Arabia where the prophet was born, to Medina. Umar set the beginning of the calendar on an important anniversary: the summer in 622 C.E. as part of a broader attempt to standardize and organize Islamic life and traditions-and possibly so the calendar would stand apart from those used by other religions. Umar I, the second Muslim caliph, instituted the calendar in 639 C.E. Because the Hijrī relies on the movements of the moon, the Muslim calendar has just 354 or 355 days, making it about 11 days shorter than the solar Gregorian calendar with 365 days (366 in leap years). Though majority-Islamic countries are governed by the solar Gregorian calendar, the lunar calendar is used to calculate the dates of religious feasts and important observances such as the Hajj pilgrimage. The Islamic New Year takes place during the first month of the Hijrī, or Muslim lunar calendar.

Here’s an introduction to the holiday-what you need to know about its origins, how it’s observed around the world, and why it occurs in the middle of July.

For many Muslims, Muharram, the sacred month that kicks off each new year, is a time of mourning and reflection. When the new crescent moon appears on July 28, 2022, Muslims around the world will celebrate the beginning of the Islamic New Year, also called the Arabic or Hijrī New Year.

Islamic calendar year 1190