Editing Nakhl (section)

==Nakhl-Gardani==
nakhl-gardani is the ritual ceremony of carrying the nakhl, as a symbolic representation of the Imam’s coffin, in the procession of the ʿ[[Ashura|Ashura]]ʾ (i.e., 10 [[Muharram|Moharram]], the date of the martyrdom). On the day of ʿAshura, the nakhl is carried to a place where [[Rawza-Khani|rawza-kani]] (mourning sessions commemorating the tragedy at [[Karbala]]) or passion play ([[Ta'ziya|taʿzia]]) is being performed. Sometimes, the nakhl is so colossal and heavy that it requires several hundred men to lift it up and carry it (pictures 2 & 3).
[[File:Nakhl fig 3.jpg|thumb|3. The nakhl carriers awaiting the order to lift the nakhl (Photo by J. Ghazbanpour, Mehriz, 1997).|371x371px]]
[[File:Nakhl fig 4.jpg|thumb|4. The famous nakhl of Yazd, called the Amir Chakhmaq nakhl, resting unclad in front of the Takiya Amir Chakhmaq (Photo by Tara Bahrampour, 1997).]]
[[File:Nakhl fig 5.jpg|thumb|5. Amir Chakhmaq nakhl in front of the Takiya Amir Chakhmaq (Photo by Tara Bahrampour).|384x384px]]
As ritual objects for the ʿAshura, nakhls are built from wood in various sizes, from simple constructions that can be carried by two persons to colossal structures about three stories high that have to be supported by hundreds of men. In Yazd and the surrounding towns and villages, a nakhl is often referred to as a naql “conveying, carrying, transferring.” This large wooden structure is carried on the day of ʿAshura from one place to another. According to some, the edifice is called nakhl during the entire year except on ʿAshura, when it is referred to as naql (since on that day it is moved in procession), but this opinion is not universal. It is interesting to note that on the dedication plaque attached to the biggest and most famous nakhl, which stands in front of [[Takia Amir Chakhmaq]] in the square of the same name in Yazd (pictures 4 & 5), the word naql is used. It bears the date 20 Rajab 1229/9 February 1882 and measures 8.50 m in each of its three dimensions.<ref>Afšār, II, pp. 709, 1194-96, pl. 167</ref>