Maddahi is a ceremonial singing or eulogy recitation especially for

Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

Muslims. The word Maddahi means "to praise" in Arabic. One who sings this style is called a maddah. Maddahs mostly sing on

Ahl al-Bayt () refers to the family of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. In Sunni Islam, the term has also been extended to all descendants of the Banu Hashim (Muhammad's clan) and even to all Muslims. In Shia Islam, the term is limited to Muhammad, his daugh ...

's birth and death anniversary. The theme of Maddahi may be joyous or sorrowful. Most maddahs are men but some women perform in exclusively female gatherings. The majority of maddahis are sung in

mourning Mourning is the emotional expression in response to a major life event causing grief, especially loss. It typically occurs as a result of someone's death, especially a loved one. The word is used to describe a complex of behaviors in which t ...

of Ahl al-Bayt, particularly at the ''

Mourning of Muharram Mourning of Muharram (; ; ) is a set of religious rituals observed by Shia Islam, Shia Muslims during the month of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar. These annual rituals commemorate the death of Husayn ibn Ali, grandson of the ...

'' in the beginning of

Muharram Al-Muharram () is the first month of the Islamic calendar. It is one of the four sacred months of the year when warfare is banned. It precedes the month of Safar. The tenth of Muharram is known as Ashura, an important day of commemoration in ...

until the

Day of Ashura A day is the time period of a full rotation of the Earth with respect to the Sun. On average, this is 24 hours (86,400 seconds). As a day passes at a given location it experiences morning, afternoon, evening, and night. This daily cycle dri ...

and

Arba'een In Shia Islam, Arba'in () marks forty days after Ashura, which is the martyrdom anniversary of Husayn ibn Ali, grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the third Shia imam. Husayn was killed, alongside most of his relatives and his small re ...

References

از پرده خوانی تا مرشدی
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Persian language Persian ( ), also known by its endonym and exonym, endonym Farsi (, Fārsī ), is a Western Iranian languages, Western Iranian language belonging to the Iranian languages, Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian languages, Indo-Iranian subdivision ...

'' {{Mourning of Muharram Arabic poetry Shia literature Mourning of Muharram Persian poetry Music of Iran Music of Iraq Culture of Iran Culture of Iraq Music of Azerbaijan

See also

References