The Islamic New Year is almost upon us – by the Fatimid calendar, the month of Muharram al Haram begins tonight at sunset. For Shi’a muslims, the new year marks the start of the Ashara 10-day period of mourning for Imam Husain AS, which culminates on Yawme Ashura, the 10th of Muharram (next Saturday). The centuries-old tradition of my community of Shi’a muslims, the Dawoodi Bohras, is to congregate en masse to hear sermons from our spiritual leader, Dr. Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin TUS. This year, Syedna TUS has chosen Marol, Mumbai as the venue for Ashara and so I am flying out tonight, to return Monday after next.

Inshallah I will be posting photos and the occassional text from there, but the frequency of my posts (especially over the next few days until I arrive in Mumbai) is going to be decreased. I do recommend saying tuned to Talk Islam for the latest news, politics, and discussions in the meantime (I’ll post an notice there too if/when I have new posts here at COB).

Off to Mumbai!