Ali al-Akbar ibn al-Hussain: Difference between revisions

==Commemoration and Shi’a Rituals==

‘Ali Akbar’s memory is celebrated in Muharram ceremonies from the West Indies to Southeast Asia. Of all the young men of the Ahl-e Bayt, he is “the Persians’ most beloved, most exalted, most regretted; for he is Imam Hussain’s own son, he is the fatherland’s blood”.<ref>Gobineau, Religions, p. 347</ref> Many features of his story appear in [[taʿziya]] (passion play) rituals, such as the love and devotion shown ‘Ali Akbar by his sisters ([[Sakina]]/ Sokayna at Karbala, and Fatima Sogra, who was sick and remained in Medina) and his aunt Zaynab; separate platonic love stories have also developed.<ref>on Khotanese or Egyptian princesses in love with ‘Ali Akbar see Rossi and Bombaci, Elenco, indices, p. 355</ref> He is pictured as a brave and unfortunate youth martyred before he could marry; allusions to worldly and heavenly marriage abound. Chronology is reshuffled, and ‘Ali Akbar is martyred before [[Qasim]], who competes with him in his eagerness to sacrifice his life for Hussain. In the dramatization of Qasim’s marriage and [[martyrdom]], the dead bodies of ʿAbbas, ‘Ali Akbar, and Zaynab’s children appear on stage.<ref>see I. N. Berezin, Puteshestvie po severnoĭ Persii, Kazan, 1852, p. 322</ref> Zaynab’s offering of her own children in sacrifice for ‘Ali Akbar was first dramatized as part of ‘Ali Akbar’s martyrdom.<ref>ibid., pp. 316ff.; P. Chelkowski, Tarikh va janba-ye adabi-e taʿzia, thesis, Tehran University, 1347 Sh./1968, pp. 230-35</ref> before becoming a separate play <ref>Rossi and Bombaci, Elenco, indices, p. 356</ref> [[ʿAbbas]] is shown testing and training ‘Ali Akbar before the battle.<ref>a scene apparently performed only in Caspian coastal areas; see Chelkowski, Tarikh, pp. 180-86; Rossi and Bombaci, Elenco, no. 716</ref> A parallel has been observed between Abraham’s sacrifice of his son Ismaʿil and Hussain’s sacrifice of ‘Ali Akbar.<ref>Lassy, Muharram Mysteries, pp. 79ff.; Chelkowski, Tarikh p. 211 In Jawhari’s Tufan al-bokaʾ, the story of Ismaʿil is related within that of ‘Ali Akbar. Tehran, n.d., pp. 249ff.</ref> The actor playing ‘Ali Akbar had to be a young and handsome man with a slim waist, and melodious voice.<ref>ʿA. Mostawfi, Sharh-e zendegani-e man I, 2nd ed., Tehran, 1341 Sh./1962, p. 289</ref> In popular iconography, ‘Ali Akbar appears in a coat of mail (sometimes covered with a shroud) dying in Hussain’s lap, arrows stuck in his chest and his head wounded by a sword. Young Boys were often dedicated to ‘Ali Akbar as [[nadhr]] or ex-voto, and thus were made Muharram ceremony celebrants for ‘Ali Akbar. A tradition says that ‘Ali Akbar wore a scalp lock; young boys, especially in villages, used to wear scalp locks in his memory.<ref>B. A. Donaldson, The Wild Rue, London, 1938, p. 187</ref> Persons who do not expect to meet again may express the wish to meet on Judgment Day by quoting ‘Ali Akbar’s farewell words to the Ahl-e Bayt.<ref>ʿA. A. Dehkhoda, Amthal o hekam, Tehran , 1352 Sh./1973, II, p. 849</ref>

==Bibliography==