Editing Nakhl (section)

==Nakhl’s Structure==
A nakhl has four wooden legs that support a rectangular base made of intersecting tree trunks that stick out laterally in four directions. Men use the trunk poles to carry the structure on their shoulders and in their arms. These poles metaphorically represent the lances that pierced the body of Imam Hussain at Karbalaʾ. According to ʿAbd-al-ʿAzim Puya, the legs are made from wood from the plane tree; the shoulder and hand poles from aspen; and mulberry wood is used for the lattice that rests on the grids formed by the poles. The lattice is held together by nails and metal braces and decorative objects are attached to it with nails and ropes. Although it is called nakhl (date palm), the shape of the lattice more closely resembles the cypress tree. In Persian literature, the cypress is a metaphor for beauty, in particular for a beautiful and handsome figure. In the dedication plaque to the Amir Chakhmaq nakhl, the structure itself is likened to the beautiful corpse of the “Sultan of Karbala,” that is, Imam Hussain.