The Study of How to Relate Muharram Mourning Ritual Ceremony and Nain City

Practicing traditions and rituals in a given society strengthens the social ties. In Shia culture, too, the mourning ceremonies held in Muharram are of considerable spiritual value. These ceremonies have brought about a set of rituals that have developed various social functions and made into the popular folklore in the course of time. Due to the role that religion and religious rites played in the social life during the Qajars rule, certain venues were dedicated to such rituals (the most significant of which being the observance of Ashura). In Nain, for instance, the Husseyniyeh-plaza (meydān) spatial structure (which is composed plazas with surfacing and the physical structure of the Husseyniyeh) were first built in this era, under the influence of ceremonies in question. The present study was conducted in an attempt to examine the interaction between the city of Nain and the ritual observances, particularly those held in the mourning ceremonies and Muharram and Safar as elements of culture and identity. With regards to the interaction between Nain and Ahura rituals, questionnaires and theoretical analyses showed that as for physical features, these rites have created certain elements and spaces during the Qajar reign (the seven Husseyniyeh-plazas), which are considered to be the most effective spaces and ritual elements contributing to the formation of the urban space of the neighborhood centers, and are influential factors in the formation of spatial structure and physical integrity of the town. Also, since the mourning ceremonies are in line with the people’s beliefs, they signify the spaces relevant to those beliefs, and define the identity of the spaces and the sense of belonging that accompanies them. These ceremonies are held with collective participation of the people, which entails social integrity and local unity in the area where the ceremonies are held.