Shahsey-Vahsey and Soviet Anti-Religious Policy in Georgia in the 1920s-1930s
Keywords:
Shahsey-Vahsey, Husayn ibn Ali, Shia Islam, Antireligious politic, GeorgiaAbstract
‘Ashura’ (10th day of Muharram in the Islamic lunar calendar) - a day of mourning for Shiites (“day of grief”), which commemorates the martyrdom of Prophet Muhammad's grandson - Imam Husayn ibn ‘Ali in the Battle of Karbala (October 10, 680). Participants in the mourning procession engaged in self-flagellation, accompanied by loud cries of “Shah Husayn, Vah Husayn!” meaning Shahid (martyr) Hussein, Wah Hussein! Hence comes another name for 'Ashura' - “Shahsey-Vahsey”. From the 19th century in Tbilisi, as sources confirm, ‘Ashura’ or “Shahsey-Vahsey” was most extensively observed in Avlabari. Meidani (""Tatar Square"" or Vakhtang Gorgasali Square) and the mosque on Meidani (The Shia Mosque) were the center of Shiite religious and cultural life. From the 1920s in the Soviet Union, including Georgia, an active anti-religious campaign against “Shahsey-Vahsey” begins. In this article, for the first time in Georgian historiography, based on scientific literature, archival materials, periodical press, and decrees issued by the Soviet Union and Georgian government, the political-religious context of the “Shahsey-Vahsey” mourning ritual and the essence and results of the related anti-religious campaign in Georgia are discussed and analyzed.
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