Recreating Karbala in Awadh: A Photographic Essay

Historically, karbalās functioned as burial grounds for the ephemeral representation of Imam Husain’s tomb called taʿziya and evolved into rauẓahs (shrines). For those who were unable to visit the original shrines in Iraq, these karbalās served their spiritual desire of paying homage at Imam Husain’s grave remotely. In sensorial terms, a karbalā holds the same essence as an imāmbāṛā (enclosure of the Imam), a place of mourning. Karbalā, including the rauẓah, is a replica of Imam Husain’s shrine-tomb in Karbala, Iraq.

ʿAzādārī (mourning) begins at the imāmbāṛā and, ritually, it concludes at the karbalā ground. The imāmbāṛā is a religious building that developed over time in Awadh for holding mourning assemblies (majlis-e ʿazā) and the display of ʿalams (metal standards that represent the Imams and family of the Prophet Muhammad, the Ahl-e Bait) and taʿziyas during Muḥarram. An imāmbārā is an abode for taʿziya in life, and the karbalā ground where it is buried on 10 Muḥarram (ʿAshura) symbolizes the afterlife where it is put to rest.

This understanding of Lucknow’s karbalā grounds, however, is quite simplistic, with a focus solely on Muḥarram and its rituals and material culture. The general perception of Lucknow’s karbalā grounds focuses on ʿazādārī and its related rituals and material practices. In this photo essay, I show another dimension of Lucknow’s karbalās, not only as centers of ʿazādārī but also vital living spaces in the city. Many of the images presented here show the rhythm of everyday Shiʿi life in Lucknow. These photographs offer a glimpse of people performing their day-to-day chores like collecting water (figure 19), making taʿziyas (figure 3), or just visiting and resting in the shrine (figures 20 and 17).

This photo essay aims to show the ecosystem of karbalā and how it functions simultaneously as a living space. Many karbalās in Lucknow have been documented to show multifaceted aspects in the life cycle of Shiʿism as a practice. Karbalās are not only burial grounds for taʿziyas and people alike, but they also provide sanctuary to the homeless. In some cases, generations of families have taken up residence in the precincts of Lucknow’s karbalā complexes.

Lucknow’s karbalās are popular pilgrimage destinations for South Asian Shiʿa. Advertisements promoting catering, funeral services, and offering prayers for the deceased can be seen in and around the premises of the city’s karbalās, which are constantly abuzz with visitors (figures 8, 12, 13, and 15). Street stalls catering to visitors’ needs are found at Lucknow’s karbalās (figure 14).

The photographs in this essay highlight several aspects of Shiʿi religious life in Lucknow. Notably, I include only one photograph from Muḥarram, which is of taʿziya burial on ʿAshura, 10 Muḥarram (figure 18). This editorial decision enables the viewer to understand how Shiʿa in Lucknow reimagine karbalā beyond Muḥarram, recreating it into a self-serving space and structure arising out of need based on living thousands of miles from Imam Husain’s shrine-tomb and rooted in a South Asian cultural context. This photo essay highlights annual Shiʿi events like Shab-e Barāt (figure 11) and Ramaẓān (figures 7, 8, 9, and 10), exhibiting society’s connection to the city’s karbalās beyond the Muḥarram period.

Karbalā, which is sacred and unique in its representation, acts as a common ground for Shiʿa, and this photo essay attempts to exhibit that very cycle of representation, participation, and lifestyle.

Figure 1.A view of the qabristān (cemetery) of Karbalā Malka Jahan in Aishbagh, Lucknow, where a man is seen reciting Surat al-Fātiha next to a grave. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, June 19, 2022.

Figure 2.A ḥayātī qabr (cemetery plot) inside the cemetery of Karbalā Malka Jahan. It is a common practice among Shiʿa in Lucknow to secure a ḥayātī qabr in one of the city’s karbalā grounds during their lifetime. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, June 19, 2022.

Figure 3.Taʿziya (ephemeral representations of Imam Husain’s tomb) makers inside the Kazmain compound, which is a replica of the shrine of the seventh and ninth Imams and one of the major centers of Shiʿi ritual practice (ʿazādārī) in Lucknow. The place is unique in many aspects, and almost all the families residing in the compound are professional taʿziya makers. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, August 27, 2019.

Figures 4a and 4b.A stack of taʿziya domes made out of paper at the entrance of a house inside the Rauẓa-e Kazmain compound. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, August 27, 2019.

Figure 5.Rauẓa-e Kazmain, a replica of the Baghdad-based shrine of the seventh and ninth Shiʿi Imams, namely Musa al-Kazim and Muhammad al-Jawwad, is not only one of Lucknow’s major centers of ʿazādārī (mourning ritual) but also an important hub for taʿziya production and trade. People travel to Lucknow from other cities and villages to purchase taʿziyas from the Kazmain market. One such group can be seen here against a banner from ʿĪd-e Ghadīr, commemorating the Prophet Muhammad’s designation of ʿAli as his successor in 632, in the background. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, August 27, 2019.

Figure 6.An electric rickshaw is parked outside a house at Gār-wālī Karbalā (Cave Karbalā). Electric rickshaws have been introduced in an attempt to reduce air pollution in Lucknow. The Karbalā’s rauẓah (shrine) can be seen in the background. Many karbalā(s) are home to people both permanent and temporary. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, June 14, 2022.

Figure 7.Lucknow’s most famous procession is of the Hasan Mirza ṣāhib kā tābūt (Mr. Hasan Mirza’s coffin replica) that is buried at Karbalā Talkatora. It commemorates the martyrdom of Imam ʿAli on 21 Ramażān. The procession starts from the Raużah-e Najaf in Kashmiri maḥallā and ends at Karbalā Talkatora, where the tābūt (coffin) is buried beneath a white sheet to solemnify the event and retain privacy. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, April 23, 2022.

Figure 8.A procession taken out on the anniversary of Imam ʿAli’s martyrdom on 21 Ramażan with ʿalams (metal standards representing the Imams and family of the Prophet Muhammad, the Ahl-e Bait) and tābūts (coffins) at the Karbalā Talkatora compound. Many types of advertising banners for restaurants, religious tours, and prayers can be spotted in the right side of the image. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, April 23, 2022.

Figure 9.A young man selling flower garlands for offerings at the entrance of Karbalā Talkatora to the visitors and mourners coming to pay homage to the tābūt (coffin) of Imam ʿAli on the anniversary of his martyrdom on 21 Ramaẓān. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, April 23, 2022.

Figure 10.People gathered around the tābūt (coffin) of Imam ʿAli to pay their final respects and witness its burial at the conclusion of the famous Hasan Mirza ṣāḥib kā tābūt procession, 21 Ramaẓān at Karbalā Talkatora. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, June 27, 2016.

Figure 11.A woman in prayer at the graveyard at Karbalā Talkatora on the night of shab-e barāt (the night of vigil) held on 14 Shaʿbān, when people pray for forgiveness and for the souls of the dead, and when the destinies of the living are registered in heaven for the coming year. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, March 18, 2022.

Figure 12.A placard written in Hindi posted on a tree in the cemetery at Karbalā Malka Afaq Jahan reads, “Contact to get grave plates made.” Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, June 19, 2022.

Figure 13.Spaces in and around karbalā grounds provide the right audience for advertisements for Islamic tours of ḥajj and ziyārah, food services for tabarruk and feasts, and Qurʾan and prayer recitations for the deceased. One such banner advertising a chef can be seen at Karbalā Talkatora, Lucknow. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, June 25, 2022.

Figure 14.A makeshift stall inside Karbalā Talkatora, where a man sells candles and incense sticks to give as an offering in the rauẓah (shrine). Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, June 25, 2022.

Figure 15.A signboard pasted at the entrance to the main compound of Karbalā Talkatora reads, “Contact to have prayers (namāz) and the Qurʾan read for the deceased.” Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, March 18, 2022.

Figure 16.Signboards commissioned by a local political candidate commending the Karbala martyrs at Karbalā Dayanat al-Daula, Lucknow. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, September 25, 2017.

Figure 17.A woman performing ziyārah (visitation) to a ẓarīḥ (model of Imam Husain’s tomb) inside the shrine of Imam Husain at Karbalā Dayanat al-Daula, Lucknow. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, March 13, 2021.

Figure 18.A man carries a taʿziya wrapped in a sheet for burial on ʿAshura (10 Muharram) at Karbalā Talkatora, Lucknow. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, August 20, 2021.

Figure 19.A man carrying water in a plastic container from Karbalā Azimullah Khan, Lucknow. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, June 25, 2022.

Figure 20.A man sleeping outside the shrine of Imam Husain at Karbalā Talkatora, Lucknow. The shaded grounds and relative peace of the expansive space of Lucknow’s karbalā grounds provide respite from the city’s traffic and crowds. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, June 25, 2022.

Figure 21.A replica of Imam Husain’s shrine at Karbalā Dayanat al-Daula, Lucknow. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, October 2, 2016.

Figure 22.A view of the replica of Imam Husain’s shrine at Karbalā Imdad Husain Khan, Lucknow. Photo by Aoun Hasan Naqvi, July 4, 2022.