Tatbir

Tatbir (Arabic: تطبير, romanized: Taṭbīr) is a form of self-flagellation rituals practiced by some Shia Muslims in commemoration of the killing of Imam Husayn ibn Ali and his partisans in the Battle of Karbala by forces of the second Umayyad caliph Yazid I (r. 680–683).

10th of Muharram, 19th-century painting by Fausto Zonaro

The ritual is practiced in the Islamic month of Muharram, usually on Ashura. Tatbir involves striking oneself with chains or swords. It has been considered haram ("forbidden") by some of the Shia clergy, who cite it as self-harm.

Practice

Performance of Tatbir in Iran. An image from Brooklyn Museum. The image is taken between 1876 and 1933.

Tatbir, also called Zanjeer Zani or Qama Zani,^[1] is practiced by some Shia Muslims on the day of Ashura on the 10 Muharram of the Islamic calendar and on the 40th day after Ashura, known as Arba'een (or Chehelom in Persian) by Twelver Shias around the world.^[2][3] Some Shia may also perform tatbir on other occasions as well.

The practice of Tatbir includes striking oneself with a talwar, a type of sword, on the head, causing blood to flow in remembrance of the pain felt by Husayn ibn Ali. Some also hit their back and/or chest with blades attached to chains.

Fatwas

Tatbir are contested among Shia clerics.^[4] While some traditionalist clerics allow believers to indulge in tatbir, modernist clerics deem it impermissible because it is considered self-harm, thus haram in Islam.^[5] Most religious authorities associate all forms of self-flagellation and blood-letting as ways to relate to painful deaths during the battle of Karbala by Imam Husayn and supporters.^[6]

Fatwa of Abu al-Qasim al-Khoei on tatbir by Grand Ayatollah Ishaq al-Fayadh

#	Image	Marja'	Fatwa	Description
1		Ruhollah Khomeini	Permissible, but discouraged	"No problem in performing this act (tatbir)."[7] "There is no obstacle if it doesn't cause harm, but it shouldn't be practised today."[8]
2		Abu al-Qasim al-Khoei	Permissible	Many Grand Ayatollahs state that Ayatollah Khoei allowed tatbir like: Mirza Jawad Tabrezi,[9] Safi Golpaygani,[10] Muhammad Shahroudi,[11] Mofti al-Shia,[12] Sadiq Hussain Shirazi[13] and Taqi Tabatabei Qomi.[14] In a question asked about tatbir with the assumption that it does not cause harm he replied: "There is no problem in performing such act in itself according to the assumption in the question".[15] "If blood matam and hitting oneself with chains, which are practiced in Muharram, cause serious harm, or harm or ridicule the religion and sect then it is impermissible."[16]
3		Mohammad Ali Araki	Permissible if it does not cause harm	"If it doesn't cause any harm to the body or that there is no danger of dying from this act, then it is permissible (allowed)".[17]
4		Ali Sistani	No fatwa given, leans towards impermissible.	Refer to another Marja for guidance on this issue[18] "Reviving Hussaini traditions is Mustahabb but one is not allowed to harm the body or the noble reputation of the faith."[19]
5		Ali Khamenei	Forbidden	Ali Khamenei, Supreme Leader of Iran has stated that Tatbir is forbidden.[20] "Tatbir is a wrongful act ... Tatbir [Qame Zani] is also a fabricated tradition ... Do not practice it, I do not approve. If someone does anything to display their desire to practice Tatbir, I will be deeply disappointed in them."[21]
6		Naser Makarem Shirazi	Forbidden	Muslims should avoid actions that display weakness in the Shia religion and damage the body.[18]
7		Mohammad Fazel Lankarani	Forbidden	Tatbir shows the harsh face of mourning of Husayn ibn Ali and it harms Shiism.[18][22]
8		Abdollah Javadi-Amoli	Forbidden	It is not permissible to insult Islam and the desecration of mourning. Therefore, it is better to avoid Tatbir and things like that.[18]
9		Mohammad-Taqi Bahjat Foumani	Forbidden	It should be avoided; every act that would be an insult to the Shia.[18]
10		Hossein Noori Hamedani	Forbidden	Should be avoided as actions that weakens the Shia religious.[18][22]
11		Hossein Mazaheri	Forbidden	When Wali e Faqih (Guardian Jurist) orders to avoid something, all people have to avoid it, even if they do not follow Guardian Jurist.[18]
12		Kazem al-Haeri	Impermissible	Tatbir is a superstition that causes the defamation of Islam and Shia Islam in particular.[18]
13		Mohaqiq Kabuli	Forbidden	There is no allowance to practice Tatbir or self-flagellation or something else that is considered as self-harm.[citation needed]
14		Muhammad al-Fayadh	Permissible if it does not cause serious harm to the body	Tatbir is permissible, if it does not cause serious damage to the body.[23]
15		Muhammad Saeed al-Hakim	Recommended if it does not cause harm to the soul or the body.[24]	Tatbir as one form of the mourning of Husayn ibn Ali is permissible. It is permitted under the intention of sympathy with God and trust-seeking, to promote searching for trust. [citation needed] "Religious rituals that Shias perform to mourn the tragedies of the Imams of the Ahlulbait (peace be upon them) and to present the oppressions that they suffered are recommended. However, it is obligatory to avoid what causes harm to the soul or the body. If it does not result in harm, it remains being recommended. One should avoid performing them in a place where the reputation of the Shias is damaged."[25] Imams did not "shed their own blood because of their sadness and grief for what happened to Imam Hussein".[26]
17		Hossein Vahid Khorasani	Not Forbidden[27]	"The Ayatullah also goes over the Fatwas (verdicts) of previous scholars on the Mourning rituals and he even states that shedding blood for the sake of mourning Ahlulbayt is Halal (lawful)."[28]
18		Bashir al-Najafi	Not Forbidden	"Tatbir is permitted until it describes sorrow for Imam Hussain".[29]
19		Shamsodin Vaezi	Not forbidden	"Tatbir is permissible (allowed) and the issue is described in detail in our book Al-Husseini rituals".[30]
20		Jawad Tabrizi	Permissible	"Tatbir is permissible (allowed) and it is a Mustahab act, this is due to some narrations which state that: When sayyida Zainab saw Imam Hussain's head, she smashed her head into a rock and blood flowed from her head"[31] "The inclusion of the aforementioned (acts like tatbir) under the category of recommended grief for what occurred to the Master of Martyrs is problematic/doubtful."[32][33]

Criticisms

• There are different opinions about the practice of Tatbir. Some Shia Marja believe that it is a form of self-harm, so it must be forbidden. According to some Shia Marja, it is felt that Tatbir reflects poorly on Shia observers, so they typically advise avoiding it in a region where Sunnis also reside.
• Iraqi sociologist Ibrahim al-Haidari has called Tatbir an irrational act. He states blood donations should replace Tatbir. Iraqi cleric Hussein Al-Sadr and his followers donate blood every year during the mourning of Husayn ibn Ali.^[34]
• Hassan Nasrallah, the former leader of Hezbollah in Lebanon, had also taken steps to end Tatbir. Instead of practicing Tatbir, he had offered to donate blood on Ashura day to patients who need it.^[35]
• Mohammad Mehdi Shamseddine established a blood bank in Najaf to donate blood on Ashura day to patients who need it.^[36]

See also

• Shia Islam portal

• Battle of Karbala
• Criticism of Twelver Shia Islam
• Mourning of Muharram
• Self-flagellation