Ziyarat Ashura is a salutatory prayer to Imam Husayn ibn Ali (AS) and the martyrs of the Battle of Karbala. The prayer is part of the liturgy used in pilgrimages to the shrine of Imam Husayn (AS) in Karbala. Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (AS), the fifth Shia Imam, recommended reciting Ziyarat Ashura on Ashura while facing Karbala, as a symbolic visit to the shrine.
In Islam, a ziyarat is a visit to the tomb of a saint or other holy person, such as Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) or Imam Husayn (AS).
Ashura, literally “tenth”, is a holiday and a day of grief for the Shia muslims, falling on 10 Muharram of the Islamic calendar. The death of Imam Husayn ibn Ali (AS) and his associates during the Battle of Karbala is commemorated on this day.
Ziyarat Ashura is attributed to Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (AS), the fifth Shia Imam, who transmitted it to his followers. The prayer is found in sacred hadith narrated in particular by Shaykh Tusi in Misbah al-Mutahajjid and by Ibn Qulawayh in Kamil al-Ziyarat: The prayer is also found in Bihar al-Anwar by Allamah al-Majlisi and Mafatih al-Jinan by Abbas Qumi.
Ziyarat Ashura contains concepts like tabarra (dissociating from those who oppose God, the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) or his family), tawalla (loving the Ahl al-Bayt), self-sacrifice for society, and never surrendering to tyranny and oppression.
